My World#79 (Philippine Churches: Part 7) Sta. Cruz Church, Manila

Sta. Cruz Church is located at Plaza Lacson, Sta. Cruz, Manila. It is just right off McArthur Bridge and is fronting the Greco-Roman styled Roman Santos Building (Prudential Bank Building), one of the old buildings of Manila which was built before World War II broke out.

The altar of Sta. Cruz Church, Manila

The facade of Sta. Cruz Church, Manila

The fountain fronting the church

I really wish that those obstruction fronting the church could be transferred. It is a beautiful old church and those who placed those electric post and snaking electric wires did the church such injustice and disrespect.

Wikipedia:
The Jesuits built the first Roman Catholic Church in the area where the present Santa Cruz Parish stands on June 20, 1619. The Jesuits enshrined the image of the Our Lady of Pilar in 1643 to serve the pre-dominantly Chinese residents in the area. The image drew a lot of devotees and a popular cult grew around it.

Source: philtravelcenter.com
Description: The original church of Sta. Cruz was built in 1608 for the Chinese converted to Christianity by the priests of the Society of Jesus. When the Jesuits were expelled from the Philippines, the church became Dominican. The structure was damaged by the earthquake, and then during the Battle of Manila in 1945. The present structure was rebuilt in 1957.


How to get there?: From Taft Avenue, hail a PUJ bound for Sta. Cruz. Get off right infront of the church.




Go here for more My World entries.

SHARE AND ENJOY THIS POST:

Skywatch# 39 Caleruega's Cul-de-Sac

We found this breathtaking view at the Caleruega's cul-de-sac. A quiet place for meditation while taking in the view.

Caleruega is situated at Brgy. Kaylaway, Batulao, Batangas, Luzon. The place is run by the Dominican priests. Over the years, it has gotten popular for weddings because of its isolated but quite beautiful surroundings.



For more about Caleruega, the Church on the Hill, go here and here.

Go here for more Skywatch entries.

SHARE AND ENJOY THIS POST:

My World#78 Gorge At Bukidnon

It can be easily seen from the highway and it looked like a huge asteroid hit it.

The local government was fixing up the view deck facing the gorge along the highway when we took our stop to take our pictures. It's a good move for the local government as the view was beautiful.




Go here for more My World entries.

SHARE AND ENJOY THIS POST:

Skywatch#38 Eden Mountain Resort, Davao City

Clouds hover over the city of Davao obstructing the view from Eden Mountain Resort.

The photo was taken near the resort's ampitheater area.

Go here for more Skywatch entries.

SHARE AND ENJOY THIS POST:

My World#77 Paco Park, Manila

Paco Park is located along Gen. Luna and Padre Faura Sts., Paco, Manila. It is about a block away from United Nations Ave.

It was where the national hero was secretly interred before he was officially buried in Luneta Park.

Paco Park was once a municipal cemetery and even served as central supply and ammunition depot of the Japanese forces during World War II. It is now more well-known as venue for shows, wedding events, film locations (eg. the 2010 Filipino movie, Miss You Like Crazy, with Filipino movie stars John Lloyd and Bea Alonzo), concerts and other functions.



Paco Park Gate

Paco Park Garden and  St. Pancratius Chapel

The left side of Paco Park with the pathway above the walls with niches.

The now unused century-old niches carved within the hollowed circular walls of Paco Park. 

Source: Wikipedia
Paco Park was originally planned as a municipal cemetery for the well-off and established aristocratic Spanish families who resided in the old Manila, or the city within the walls of Intramuros during the Spanish colonial era. Most of the wealthy families interred the remains of their loved ones inside the municipal cemetery in what was once the district of Dilao (former name for Paco). The cemetery was built in the late 1700s but was completed several decades later and in 1822, the cemetery was used to inter victims of a cholera epidemic that swept across the city.


The cemetery is circular in shape, with an inner circular fort that was the original cemetery and with the niches that were placed or located within the hollow walls. As the population continued to grow, a second outer wall was built with the thick adobe walls were hollowed as niches and the top of the walls were made into pathways for promenades. A Roman Catholic chapel was built inside the walls of the Paco Park and it was dedicated to St. Pancratius.


Go here for more My World entries.

SHARE AND ENJOY THIS POST:

Skywatch#37 Paco Park, Manila

I vaguely remembered Paco Park as the place where our national hero, Dr. Jose P. Rizal, was initially interred. Only a handful knew, which included his immediately family, where he was taken after being executed by the Spanish government in 1896. But I recognized Paco Park's pathways easily in the movie entitled Miss You Like Crazy starring local actors John Lloyd Cruz and Bea Alonzo.



This is St. Pancratius Chapel inside Paco Park in Manila. Paco Park was used originally as a municipal cemetery. Built in 1700s, it is circular in shape with the inner circle as the original cemetery. The niches were placed within its hollowed walls. A second circular wall was added and more niches were placed within its hollowed adobe walls as the population grew. The top of the walls were used as pathways or promenades. Its use was stopped in the early 1900s and the niches transferred to other cemeteries by the owners.

Nowadays, the park is mostly used for different occasions like mini concerts, weddings and parties.

Go here for more Skywatch entries.

SHARE AND ENJOY THIS POST:

My World#76 Batad Rice Terraces

Batad Rice Terraces are different from the more popular ones shown in our P1000 bill. Those are easily seen from the Banaue town while Batad is a more than an hour ride through rough mountain roads and another hour trek through mountain trails. The view, however, upon reaching the mountain town facing this ampitheather-like rice terraces more than compensated the hour-long trek underneath the sweltering sun.


That's our guide walking casually along the rice terraces. Thankfully enough, the pathways that ran on the edge of each rice paddy were mostly thick and wide enough to keep us from getting out of balance. According to our guide, the improvements started happening when more and more tourists from all over the world came to visit.




Go here for more My World entries.

SHARE AND ENJOY THIS POST: