The Ruins in Talisay

From the urban landscape of Bacolod City down to the greens and plains of sugar plantations along the inner roads of Talisay City, a captivating surprise awaits and ready to transport anyone to a different dimension. The remnants of a grand mansion of Don Mariano Ledesma Lacson popularly known today as The Ruins, a proud memento of the family’s glorious past and a reminder... Read More

The Proud Bantay

For someone going to or leaving the Ilocos Sur capital of Vigan, one that will certainly not be missed is this old yet captivating structure, obviously noticeable from the main road before entering the heritage town, ready to steal ones attention, the old bell tower of the town of Bantay. The old belfry of Bantay Bantay, a neighboring town of Vigan City to the east, is one... Read More

Paco Park and the Old Cemetery

In the heart of the City of Manila is a small and old circular park which used to be a municipal cemetery for Spanish aristocrats of the old walled city of Intramuros – the Paco Park and Cemetery. Situated in the western boundary of the district of Paco (San Fernando de Dilao district during the Spanish era) and in the eastern end of Padre Faura Street, Paco Park and Cemetery... Read More

Campo Santo de La Loma and its “Lumang Simbahan”

The old San Pancratius Chapel inside La Loma Cemetery The Cemetery In the northernmost district of Sta.Cruz, on the city boundary with Caloocan, sits Manila’s oldest Catholic cemetery, the La Loma Catholic Cemetery or Campo Santo de La Loma. It opened in 1884 and was known as Cementerio de Binondo back then where it was exclusively used as burial ground for Catholics... Read More

Dambana ng Kagitingan (Shrine of Valor)

In 1966, a shrine was commissioned to be built on the summit of Mt. Samat to commemorate the heroic Filipino and American soldiers in Bataan who fought the Japanese Imperial Army in 1942, in what is known toady as Battle of Bataan. Located in Barangay Diwa, town of Pilar, the shrine with a land area of 73,665 hectares, was designed by Lorenzo Castillo and landscaped by Dolly Quimbo-Perez.... Read More

The Beauty of Quiapo

I am a Manileño, in heart and in deeds. Having been born and grew up in my beloved City of Manila, its historic streets are my playgrounds; its alleys and sidewalks are my everyday walkways; its structures, buildings, halls, walls and tombs are my regular sights. I grew up and still living in the crowded and frenzied market street in the boundary of Sampaloc, Tondo and northern... Read More

Faro de Punta Capones

The bone shaped island of Capones, off the coast of San Antonio, Zambales, hides a lonely sentinel that for years, decades and even century survived the wars, earthquakes and countless storms but still standing and serving its purpose – the Faro de Punta Capones. One of the few remaining old Spanish lighthouse in the country, the Capones Island Lighthouse was built in the... Read More

The Forgotten Forts of Romblon

During the Spanish colonization of the Philippines, the Spaniards built the twin fortresses of San Andres and Santiago on the two adjacent hills in the town of Romblon. For centuries, the twin forts made of coral blocks and bricks guarded the town against the Moro raiders and Dutch pirates. The wall of San Andres Fort Almost four centuries past, what were left are remnants of the... Read More