Getting Here: San Juanico Bridge

I can still remember the day when my Sibika at Kultura teacher in first grade showed us a photo of San Juanico Bridge, glued on a 1/4 illustration board. We were all in awe. After all, it’s the longest bridge in the Philippines, spanning a total length of 2.16 kilometers.

Getting Here

San Juanico Bridge is approximately 15 kilometers from downtown Tacloban City. From there, take a multicab or a tricycle to Abucay New Terminal. Then, take any Samar-bound jeep. After all, these jeeps will have to cross the island via San Juanico Bridge. Minimum fare is Php 20. We alighted near the starting point of the bridge, the last town of Tacloban City.

San Juanico Strait.

The beautiful S-curve.

I’ve been to this bridge several times but it was only that time when I had the chance to scale the inclined platform of the bridge. It took us 45 minutes before reaching Sta. Rita, the first town of Samar after crossing San Juanico Strait. It was a great form of exercise as well as it gave me a peace of mind after encountering so much toxicity from social media brought about by these election—related posts. However if you plan to explore the bridge on foot, you need to exercise extreme caution. The bridge gets wobbly whenever a bus or a truck passes by. If you have vertigo or if you’re acrophobic (fear of heights), then this activity isn’t for you.

But hey, this engineering feat withstood the wrath of Yolanda almost three years ago and it will never fail to amaze me.

Lakas maka Sibika at Kultura eh!

PS: All photos were taken using an iPhone 6 Plus.