History buff pays forward through free heritage tours

Bryl Jan Yucaran (far left) and friends who joined his heritage tour in 2015 posed in front of Fort San Pedro. (CONTRIBUTED PHOTO)

Eight-year-old Bryl Jan Yucaran was strolling with his mother, Magdalena, in downtown Cebu City when something caught his attention: a pamphlet on the history of the Basilica del Sto. Niño.

He begged his mother to buy him a copy.

Flipping through the pages, Bryl already knew where his interest would lie.

Fourteen years later, Bryl is doing exactly what he loves — providing free educational tours around some of the city’s heritage sites every January, in time for the annual Sinulog festival in celebration of the feast of the Holy Child Jesus.

“January is not just a month of Sinulog celebration, but a celebration of Cebuano heritage and culture. It is also my birth month. It is my way of paying it  forward,” said Bryl, who turned 22 last January 11.

Since childhood, he has been interested in unraveling the story behind “old things.”

“It’s nice to trace the history of the church. It’s one of the oldest structures in the city, but it still exists until now,” he said.

Bryl is the youngest of two children of Magdalena, a financial advisor, and Loreto, who died when Bryl was young. His elder brother, Adrian Ryz Yucaran, 24, is a freelance IT specialist.

Growing up, Bryl was different from other boys his age.

While his peers were interested in toys, Bryl saved money to buy books.

“My mom and grandma, Paz Salazar, used to read me story books when I was young and that nurtured me to be inquisitive,” said Bryl.

Salazar fueled his inclination to history when she would often tell him stories about World War II.

Since he was always with his grandparents and other older relatives, he was surrounded by talks about how Cebu City was during their time.

And this intrigued the little boy.

To quench his thirst for knowledge, Bryl would save money to buy books — mostly related to history.

Magdalena, a widow, supported her son’s passion for learning by buying him more books.

When he was taking up a bachelor’s degree in Communication at  Cebu Normal University, he attended a class on local history and heritage tourism.

In 2009, Bryl became involved with the AFS Intercultural Program, an international youth exchange program.

A group of AFS exchange students went to Cebu City in 2010 and wanted to learn more about Cebu.

So an idea came to Bryl’s mind. He volunteered to tour his guests around Colon Street, the oldest street in the country.

“They wanted to learn about Cebu. Knowing I have some knowledge about local history, I decided to give it for free,” he said.

The group, a mix of European and Asian college exchange students, met at a mall in uptown Cebu City where they took a  jeepney to Colon Street.

Approaching Fuente Osmeña, Bryl told them that an image of the structure could be spotted in the old P50 bill and asked the students to take one out if they had any as he began to tell them about the history of the fountain.

“I wasn’t expecting the other passengers in the jeepney to listen intently. There was one guy who really took out a bill to check,” he said.

The tour gave him a different kind of fulfillment knowing that he helped contribute to someone’s  knowledge.

It started a tradition of holding annual heritage tours.  He doesn’t collect any fee for his tours, which is now on its sixth year.

“I’m in it for the fulfillment. It’s nice to know that they learned something. If they know about our culture, then they learn to appreciate it,” said Bryl.

Bryl caters not only to foreign exchange students but also to the locals and his network of friends outside Cebu – mostly youth leaders from around the country who are interested in Cebuano history.

Every year, about 30 people would get to tag along during his tours.

This year, Bryl scheduled his tours on January 15 and 16 which will start at the Cebu Provincial Capitol before heading down to Osmeña Boulevard, passing by landmarks like  Fuente Osmeña and the University of San Carlos.

The group will then proceed to Plaza Hamabar in Parian  before going to the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral, Plaza Independencia, Fort San Pedro, and Magellan’s Cross.

Bryl said that while Cebuano youths today know a little of Cebu’s history, it is not deep enough for them to appreciate it fully.

Former college classmates, who took part in the tours,  admitted that their lack of knowledge  about Cebu’s heritage left them feeling like something was missing in their identity.

“It gives me fulfillment  to be able  to help fill the gap within themselves,” he said.