A Walk Tour in Manila | Churches Part 3

I still have three churches in my list and a day would be enough to visit them all.

My day started when I traveled back to Malate Church by jeep at around 1:00 PM. It is written at its marker that it was built in 1588 and Nuestra Señora de Los Remedios is its patron, hence the street beside the church is named Remedios. This church was used by the British troops as their headquarters in 1762. There's no information regarding the years after 1937 so I'm not sure if this too was destroyed during the Liberation of Manila in 1945.


In front of the Malate church is the Liwasang Rajah Sulayman, a plaza named after the last native ruler of Manila during the arrival of Martin de Goiti and Juan Salcedo in 1570. He along with Rajah Lakan Dula revolted against the Spaniards in 1574. His name, however was never mentioned again after this revolt.

Again, I walked through Roxas Boulevard from the Liwasang Rajah Sulayman to Pedro Gil street. Dramatic statues of great men stand tall along this boulevard: Arsenio Lacson, the first elected mayor of Manila, Evelio Javier, a critic of the Marcos Administration who was killed in 1986, Benigno Aquino Jr., a great hero who fought and died for democracy, Salvador Laurel, vice president from 1986 to 1992, Jose Laurel, president of the Philippines during the second world war, and Manuel Roxas, the fifth president of the Philippines. I also saw some men fishing by the bay, masseurs doing their job at the side of baywalk, and lovers too were all over the place. What a lovely boulevard.

From the corner of Pedro Gil and Del Pilar street, I rode a jeep to Paco Church, my second stop. Built in 1601, this old church undergone several reconstructions after it was destroyed by the Chinese revolt in 1603, the British occupation in 1762, earthquakes in 1852 and 1881, typhoon in 1892, and a fire in 1899. It was again destroyed during the Liberation of Manila in 1945. The present structure was built in 1948.

I made a long walk from Paco church to Plaza Dilao in Quirino Avenue. A statue of Lord Justo Ukon Takayama (1552-1615) is standing at the center of the plaza. He was the leader of a group of Japanese nobles who were exiled from Japan because of their Christianity. They settled at the town of Dilao (now Paco).

I then took a jeepney ride to Sta. Ana, my last destination. At around 3:00 PM, I reached the "Historic Community of Sta. Ana", a welcome post at Plaza Felipe Calderon.

I strolled around the so called historic community through Tejeron-Medel-Suter-PacoRoman-Syquia-Roxas streets. Ancestral houses stand side by side the streets, cleanliness rule the place and it's indeed a very peaceful community. It is said that this place was the capital of the Kingdom of Namayan, an old kingdom (older than the Kingdoms of Maynila and Tondo) by the Pasig river.

The Sta. Ana Church, my last stop, stands at the end of Plaza Felipe Calderon. This old baroque church was built in 1578, first Franciscan mission outside the walled city. The feast of Our Lady of Forlorn is being held every 12th of May.

I crossed the Pasig river through the Lambingan Bridge (Pres. Corazon Aquino and Sen. Benigno Aquino Jr. Bridge), and from there I traveled by jeep back to my home, exhausted but equipped with awesome new experiences and knowledge.

Part 1
Part 2

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