CEBU FEELS ‘LIKE HOME’ FORTHE IRON HEART STARS
The city of Cebu has become a home to some of the stars of the ABS-CBN action-packed series The Iron Heart. They have been coming in and out of the city while some even stayed for months over the course of filming the series.
The cast members have nothing but great words to say about their past and recent experiences in the Queen City of the South. They told the select press who visited them in Cebu, including The Philippine STAR, of their beautiful memories of the beloved city, including the warm reception of the Cebuanos. They also recommended some tourist spots to visit and local dishes to try.
Lead actor Richard Gutierrez (as Apollo in the series) cited the locals’ hospitality and the scenic spots around Cebu, which is also his mom Annabelle Rama’s hometown. He expressed his gratitude to the Cebuanos for their warm welcome and the local government units (LGUs) that supported and assisted them during filming.
“One should really visit Cebu. Cebu has so much to offer. We also attended the Sinulog (festival) here. It was a great experience. Cebu is beautiful. Thirty minutes away nasa dagat ka, 30 minutes away nasa bundok ka. You have a nice modern city. The people are so nice (and) ang sarap ng pagkain,” he said.
Dimples Romana, who plays Selene in the series, is already familiar with Cebu since her husband Boyet Ahmee was born there. The actress knows the Bisaya language a bit, saying “Gamay ra.”
“I’ve gone around,” she shared. “This is where we had our honeymoon 20 years ago. I love lechon. I have good friends who live here. Mga kumare at kumpare ko kay Elio and Alonzo (children). So ako talaga, Cebu really feels like home. Tingnan mo, it doesn’t feel different to me.”
“I love Cebu,” declared Albert Martinez, The Iron Heart’s Engr. Priam dela Torre. The actor and his late wife Liezl used to be frequent visitors of Cebu.
“Actually, there was a time that we wanted to stay here for a very long time. So we got a unit here before. But since nga buhay namin is in Manila na and then ‘di na ko nakabalik,” he said.
“Now after so many years, I’ve seen the difference, I’ve seen the development and the good thing about Cebu is they were able to maintain their culture as Cebuanos. They are very kind people. Very helpful like yung typical na hospitality talaga is overwhelming here in Cebu,” he added.
His favorite dish is lechon. “We’ve been eating it almost every day… My only worry is that baka pagkatapos ng The Iron Heart (filming), ang taba ko na (laughs). Every day workout and every day lechon.”
For Maricel Laxa (Atty. Helen), Cebu reminded her of her stint in Ironman Philippines. “I remember vividly pagdating ko palang galing airport, umaakyat kami ng Mactan Bridge. I remember the last time na umaakyat ako ng Mactan Bridge pero nagbibisikleta ako, a 90-kilometer ride. So, now that I’m doing an action (series), nabalik ako duon,” she recalled.
On the other hand, Sue Ramirez (Venus) said her favorite location is the cockfighting arena in Carcar City where they filmed some of the scenes in the series. She and the team have also gone to other areas in the Cebu province such as Carmen and Argao Beach.
“I’ve been here before. We have been here since September. It’s very close to home. It’s very like Manila (with) the places that you can go to. Siguro ang naiiba lang talaga medyo may language barrier. Like kunyari magpapa-Grab kami dito. Sometimes, they talk to us in Bisaya. On our part, we have made a conscious effort to try to understand and vice-versa.” Sue was also touched by the friendly welcome of the Cebuanos.
Being an Ilongga, Sue found it easy to learn and communicate through their language. “It’s not so hard for me to try to communicate. ‘Lami kayo uy’ (very delicious). Sa Grab, palagi kong sinasabi na, ‘Kuya, paduong na lang sa lobby please.’”
Sue’s co-star, Sofia Andres (Nyx), who has a Cebuano boyfriend is also there to converse on behalf of them. “When we are with Sofia, we really feel at home because meron magkoconverse para sa amin,” said Sue.
Meanwhile, gaming video content creator Christine Samson and Kapamilya actor Anthony Jennings were the latest to join the powerhouse cast of The Iron Heart.
This is Christine’s second time in Cebu. The first one was last December with the family of her boyfriend where they got to visit the churches in Cebu. They queued for hours at the Simala Shrine to pray and made their wishes. Christine also witnessed a “miracle” when she prayed for her friend to pass the board exam and it came true.
Anthony, on the other hand, got to taste the lechon and learned Bisaya words, such as “gwapa (pretty)” and “naunsa ka man (what happened to you)?”
Enzo Pineda (Hero) considered Cebu his “home” having been taping in the city for three weeks. “Mas nagiging bahay namin ‘to lately,” he said.
During his stay, he went on a 4x4 off-roading adventure in the south of Cebu with co-actors Albert, Manuel Chua and Christian Vasquez. He recommended various activities and other places in the island-province like swimming with the whale sharks in Oslob, the Bai Hotel, Plantation Bay Resort and Spa, and NUSTAR Resort and Casino.
He also took down some notes of Bisaya phrases, such as “unsay imong pangalan (what’s your name?),” “unsay imong edad (what’s your age?)”, “palimpyo palihug (please clean this),” and “papalit (buy).”
Jake Cuena (Eros) named some of his favorite restaurants in town, namely, CUR8, The Pig and Palm and hotels Shangri-La, Sheraton and Waterfront.
Anna Marin (Delia), Althea Ruedas (Lia) and Louise Abuel (Troy) who were at the Rama Compound when the press interviewed them likewise shared what they love about Cebu.
“Thank you to all the Kapamilya here… Thank you to all the Cebuanos who welcomed us at walang gulo ‘pag nagte-taping kami. The people are very cooperative and the weather as well,” mentioned Anna.
Althea agreed, “(They are) very welcoming po and exciting na nakapunta po ako dito and I was able to work with great actors and actresses. We are very happy on set and outside the set.”
Louise was able to visit Argao Beach and also recommended Cebu’s lechon and chicharon as local food to try.
(Directed by Lester Pimentel Ong and Richard Ibasco Arellano, The Iron Heart airs 8:45 p.m. on A2Z, Kapamilya Channel, TV5, Kapamilya Online Live on Facebook and YouTube, Jeepney TV and TFC IPTV).