15 November 2013 – The possibility of concluding a Sister City pact between Cebu City and Sabrosa in Portugal was boosted with the visit of Philippine Ambassador to Portugal Philippe Lhuillier to Sabrosa last  November 13.

Ambassador Lhuillier met with Sabrosa Mayor Dr. Jose Manuel de Carvalho Marques and other local city officials to discuss the proposed partnership between the two cities.

Sabrosa, located 380 kms north of Portugal´s capital Lisbon, is the birthplace of famous Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan or Fernão de Magalhães as he is locally known. The ancestral house of Magellan still stands in its original site and has become a favorite spot for tourists passing by Sabrosa which is part of the Alto Douro region, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2001 due to its picturesque landscape made up of vineyards and quintas that produce the country´s famous port wine.

Mayor Marques who had visited Cebu a few years ago, has committed his full support to the proposed undertaking which would formalize the linkage between the two so-called “Magellan cities”. The Magellan Cities is a larger project spearheaded by the Mayor to establish a link among several international cities which have been part of Ferdinand Magellan´s voyage in preparation for the bigger event in 2021 to commemorate the 500^th year anniversary of the exploration.

Ambassador Lhuillier who is a native of Cebu has been planning the sister city agreement between Cebu and Sabrosa since being posted as the country´s Head of Mission to Portugal.  Aside from this initiative, the Ambassador has already lined up a number of projects to implement the Cultural Agreement between the Philippines and Portugal in order to promote more people to people engagement between the two countries.

The Ambassador hopes that upon conclusion of the sister city agreement, a statue of Magellan or a marker could be placed in Cebu with the cooperation of Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama to replicate the efforts of the Sabrosa Mayor who had already succeeded in naming an avenue in the city after Cebu. END