high above the hustle and bustle of the city of cebu sits what they call an “island in the sky.” instead of blue waters, it is surrounded by green mountains sloping up and down to form intriguing ridges and crevices that are captivating to look at but frightening to fall into.

the fear of falling down those mountains may be imaginary at best, but the fear of falling through the colorful wooden slabs of the resort’s hanging bridge is definitely real.

but it’s not really that scary, though. should you fall, it would only be about one or two stories high. the lush green bermuda lawn below makes a somewhat comfortable landing pad. but then again, the friendly terrain also happens to slope at an angle so while the grass may break your fall, the rough cement of the basketball court you roll further down into might not be as accommodating.

if you’re going to ask me what’s interesting about this resort, aside from the hanging bridge i just mentioned, there’s a pretty good chance i’ll start raving about the pine trees and the cool weather — a far cry from the heat in the city below. here, it’s nothing but freshly squeezed, cool, clean air sprinkled with a little bit of sunshine to give you that healthy glow! trust me, your lungs will thank you for the welcome respite when it’s not cursing you for the additional workload climbing up and down those stairs (like mine did when i practically wheezed my way back to the top).

but for what it’s worth, the view is definitely a consolation for the breathlessness which felt like near-asthma attacks.

for recreation, the resort has a zipline, a cable car, a huge (danger-prone looking) swimming pool, and a caged monkey you’re not supposed to feed. the zipline was waaay too short and i know this sounds crazy but i kind of have this fear of short ziplines. for some reason, they make me anxious. like that one in argao which probably took only about 5 seconds but, boy, did i almost have a heart attack prior to being harnessed! i kid you not. i don’t mind 600 meters or a thousand meters of zipline but if it’s less than a hundred, i need to be defibrillated.

oh, and the resort has a basketball court too but who cares about that when right beside it are a couple of swings! i love swings! they’re like the perfect excuse to regress into that certain stage in childhood where the only thing you get envious about is seeing all those other kids swinging when you can’t find an available swing for yourself. i especially love it when the swing gets higher and higher and faster and faster. it’s such a thrill. but what’s even more thrilling is getting it to stop and you suddenly start to wonder how long you’re gonna stand there swinging like an idiot until the momentum balances off.

all in all, island in the sky is a pretty cool place (because it sits on top of the mountain, duh!) but don’t expect too much from it unless you want your heart broken. the scenery is great, i’ll give it that, but you have nature to thank for that. the rest of the resort stuff like the pool and the zipline are so-so. the cottages are nice, though. i like their cottages. it’s a nice place to chill with your friends and wait for the fog to thicken until everything you see becomes nothing but a gray mist.

i do want to go back there, though, if only for the pine trees and the weather. hopefully, it will fog the next time i’m there. i wanna see for myself how thick they say the fog gets.