Tanauan | The Premiere City of CALABARZON

It was a gloomy Wednesday when I decided to go out and ride a bus to Tanauan City, Batangas. With me is my old friend who's also bored and wanted a quick escape from the busy life in Manila.

| Tanauan City is the third city of Batangas Province. Just an hour away from the city of Manila, it is the hometown of two of our great heroes. History buffs would find this city a great place for walk tours.

The bus dropped us in front of my favorite Jollibee, of course we filled our tummies first with Jolly Spaghetti and Burger Yum before we proceed to Tanauan City tour. I was planning our IT with the help of printed google maps while consuming my jolly meal. Most are just around the Poblacion of Tanauan.

After the meal, we walked along Mabini Avenue towards the Church of Tanauan, the first in my IT, and along the way, just several meters from the Jolibee, we saw the ancestral house of President Laurel.

President Jose P. Laurel is one of the two great sons of Tanauan. Being the Supreme Court Justice during the time of world war 2, President Quezon tasked him to lead the country on his absence. Laurel then became the President of 2nd Republic of the Philippines (puppet government of Japanese Empire). 

President Laurel donated his estate in Tanauan to the Philippine Government to serve as a Museum and a Library.

Ten minutes of buzzing the doorbell and no one was coming to open the gates. Few more minutes have passed, a guard approached us and told us that we need a permit from the Lyceum in Manila (whatda?!) to enter the old Laurel House. We're so unlucky that day.

| Jose P. Laurel founded the Lyceum of the Philippines University after his presidency.

Since we can no longer enter the Laurel House, we decided to continue walking and take look at the city's church. We spent a little time there and thanked God for everything, after such we proceeded next to the old municipal building which is just near the church.

Tanauan Church or St. John the Evanglist Church. Founded by the Augustinian in 1690 near the Lake of Bonbon (now Taal Lake). The eruption of Taal Volcano destroyed the whole town of Tanauan, thus its church and the whole Poblacion moved to its current location in 1754.

The municipal building (since Tanauan is now a city) has turned into a museum. It displays a number of items, portraits and art works that are all significant to the city's great past. As we entered the museum, students were having their field trip inside.

at the plaza stands the statue of another great son of Tanauan, Apolinario Mabini.

the Municipal Building now Tanauan City Museum

Tanauan became a city on March 10, 2001 under the leadership of Mayor Cesar V. Platon

Some say that Tanauan got its name from this plant known as "tanawa", Cordia dichotoma, which grows abundantly on the lake shore of Taal Lake.

Unknown to many, Tanauan City is the home of our great (champs actually) base ball players.

Our guide in the museum told us to follow the students for they might enter the Laurel House. He told us that we can join them in their tour. So we followed the kids. We tailed them to the Way of the Cross at the back of the church where we can find life-size statues of the stations of the cross.

life size statues of the Stations of the Cross at the back of Tanauan Church

We continued following the students thinking that their next stop was the Laurel house. But it really wasn't our day, the kids boarded their jeep, according to their teacher their next destination was the eco-trail far south of the city center. We don't have enough funds to join these kiddos and they weren't entering the old house anymore. So we gave up all our hopes of entering the old Laurel House.

My real purpose for visiting Tanauan was its public cemetery. I will be visiting Pres. Laurel's tomb to complete my presidential tombs project. So from the market, we rode a tricycle to Tanauan's old cemetery. We found there a simple tomb, you wouldn't think that a president was laid to rest inside it.

tomb of President Laure at the old Tanauan public cemetery

Our last stop for the day was the Apolinario Mabini Shrine which is a few kilometers away from the city proper. Located at Brgy. Talaga, we rode a jeep bound to Talisay (fare is P11.00) at the public market.  

Mabini Shrine in Brgy. Talaga, Tanuan City

Apolinario Mabini, "the Sublime Paralytic" or "the Brains of Katipunan", was one of the prominent individuals during the Philippine Revolution and the First Republic. He served as the Prime Minister as well as the chief adviser of Pres. Aguinaldo.

Mabini's humble abode.

Apolinario Mabini's final resting place. He was one of the victims of the cholera outbreak in 1903. First he was buried at Manila Chinese Cemetery, then his remains was moved to Manila North Cemetery and finally back to his hometown in Tanauan, Batangas.

Tanauan City also have eco trails and lake tour but that would cost us more time and money. After visiting Mabini Shrine, we rode bus again back to Manila.

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