Pres. Carlos P. Garcia Heritage House (Tagbilaran City, Bohol)

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Pres. Carlos P. Garcia Heritage House

Part of the Panglao Bluewater  Resort-sponsored Tagbilaran City Tour

The 2-storey residence of former Philippine President Carlos P. Garcia, it was built from 1953-1954 on the former residence of the Jorolan family. As Garcia spent most of the year in Manila, the Tagbilaran house was just a vacation house.

NHI Plaque

Years after Garcia’s death, the house was rented to the Provincial Government of Bohol for use as a provincial museum. The collection consists of preserved local flora and fauna, small replicas of the century-old churches, as well as artifacts sourced from different parts of the province.

The ground floor. On the left is the piano donated by the Japanese Embassy

On September 4, 2009, it was declared as a heritage house by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines. On November 25, 2011, the management of the museum was transferred, from President Carlos P. Garcia Foundation, Inc. (PCPGFI), to the Bohol provincial government. The Bohol Provincial Museum collection is now located in the Bohol Branch of the National Museum of the Philippines, in the Provincial Capitol Complex.

The president’s work desk

Locals refer to it as the White House largely because of the dominant color of the house paint. On display are the president’s memorabilia such as photographs, medals and certificates, suits, and books.

Pres. Garcia’s suit

The president’s chess set

Portrait of Pres. Garcia and wife Leonila

Also on display are the opulent the wardrobe of the Mrs. Garcia and their only daughter, paintings, and furniture belonging to the Garcia family including the former president’s bed and work desk, the chess set which Garcia played with professor friends every night and the Yamaha grand piano given by the Embassy of Japan.

President Carlos P. Garcia Heritage House: F. Rocha cor. A. Holtanosa Sts., Tagbilaran City, Bohol. While admission is free, a donation box is set up by the entrance.

How to Get There:  The house is just a few blocks away from the Bohol Provincial Capitol and the Cathedral of Saint Joseph the Worker.

Bohol Tourism Office: Governor’s Mansion Compound, C.P.G. Ave. North, Tagbilaran City, 6300 Bohol.  Tel: +63 38 501-9186.  E-mail: inquire@boholtourismph.com.

Panglao Bluewater Resort: Bluewater Rd., Sitio Daurong, Brgy. Danao, Panglao, 6340 Bohol.  Tel: (038) 416-0702 and (038) 416-0695 to 96. Fax: (038) 416-0697.  Email: panglao@bluewater.com.ph. Website: www.bluewaterpanglao.com.ph.  Manila sales office: Rm. 704, Cityland Herrera Tower, Rufino cor. Valera Sts., Salcedo Village, 1227 Makati City, Metro Manila.  Tel: (632) 817-5751 and (632) 887-1348.  Fax: (632) 893-5391.

Cathedral of St. Joseph the Worker (Tagbilaran City, Bohol)

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Cathedral of St. Joseph the Worker

Part of the Panglao Bluewater  Resort-sponsored Tagbilaran City Tour

First built with forced labor by Jesuits in 1787, it was burned on December 23, 1798 (8 PM) and reconstructed and enlarged from 1839 to 1855 by Fr. Valero de San Sebastian. Between 1888 and 1894, Fr. Escolastico Enciso made improvements by sumptuously painting it and adding iron cornices, wooden flooring and chandeliers. In 1941, the church was made into a cathedral.  Very little remains of its Spanish-era past.

The new left wing of the cathedral

Between 1945 and 1951, ill-conceived and deeply regretted renovations were initiated by Msgr. Julio Rosales (the first Bishop of the Diocese of Bohol and later Cardinal), assisted by the parish priest Fr. Arturo Tecson. The coral stone facing was totally replaced by cement, the antique wooden flooring was replaced by reinforced concrete and the original ceiling, featuring beautiful, centuries-old frescoes depicting catechetical themes and Biblical scenes found in many historic churches of Bohol, was totally changed and lost forever.

The right wing

Between 1952 and 1970, the church façade and the choir loft were totally changed by Msgr. Manuel Mascarinas, with the assistance of parish priests Fr. Pedro Namoc and Fr. Camilo Auza.  Major renovations were also done in the interior and exterior walling.  To widen and enlarge the presbytery, massive stone walls were demolished so that the main altar can be moved back by 3 m. and additional wings (which forever altered its cross-shaped plan) were built to accommodate a fast-growing congregation.

The statue of St. Joseph the Worker that replaced the small, Spanish-era obelisk

Also, on May 1, 1996, as part of the Cathedral Expansion Project, a small obelisk in front of the church, erected in February 1828 and repaired on February 1949 was removed, replaced by a statue of St. Joseph the Worker. The church was slightly damaged during the strong October 15, 2013 earthquake.

The cathedral interior

The cathedral has a Neo-Romanesque facade with corbelled arches underneath the cornice, a porch over the main entrance and tall, semicircular arched windows. The Augustinian Recollect Order’s seal are carved on the doors, arches and cornices.

The main and 2 side altars

Inside are 20 venerated, wooden and historic images along the walls of the church. The main altar, elegantly decorated with ornate gold designs depicting symbols of Old Testament times, is in the 19th century Neo-Classical style.

The main altar

At its center is the 18th century image of St. Joseph the Worker, with the image (dated 1848) of San Roque (St. Roch), the secondary patron, on the left, and that of St. Vincent Ferrer, dated 1861, on the right. Immediately above St. Joseph’s throne, on the main altar’s second storey, is the image of Nuestra Senora de Lourdes (Our Lady of Lourdes), said to have been donated in 1895 by Dona Maria de Bourbon of the Royal House of Spain, and installed, with great pomp, on February 19, 1895.

The left side altar

The 2-tiered side altars are of the 18th century Baroque style. The left wing retablo contains images of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (acquired in 1897) and 4 different devotions to the Blessed Virgin, the Mother of Jesus, and St. Therese of Liseuix, the Little Flower.  On the right side altar are the Risen Christ, the Immaculate Heart of Mary (acquired in 1897), St. Anthony of Padua, and Our Lady of Perpetual Help.

The new ceiling frescoes

The 4-storey bell tower (currently being repaired), with a dome roof and six bells (dating from 1891 to 1907), was started in 1886 by Fr. Jose Sanchez and finished and blessed in April 1891.  The 2-storey convent, also destroyed in 1798, was enlarged and roofed with galvanized iron in 1872 by Fr. Lucas Coromina. It is now the bishop’s residence.

The 4-storey bell tower

Cathedral of St. Joseph the Worker: J.A. Clarin cor. F. Sarmiento St., Tagbilaran City. Tel: (038) 411-2282 and (038) 411-3522. Feast of St. Joseph the Worker: May 1.

Bohol Tourism Office: Governor’s Mansion Compound, C.P.G. Ave. North, Tagbilaran City, 6300 Bohol.  Tel: +63 38 501-9186.  E-mail: inquire@boholtourismph.com.

Panglao Bluewater Resort: Bluewater Rd., Sitio Daurong, Brgy. Danao, Panglao, 6340 Bohol.  Tel: (038) 416-0702 and (038) 416-0695 to 96. Fax: (038) 416-0697.  Email: panglao@bluewater.com.ph. Website: www.bluewaterpanglao.com.ph.  Manila sales office: Rm. 704, Cityland Herrera Tower, Rufino cor. Valera Sts., Salcedo Village, 1227 Makati City, Metro Manila.  Tel: (632) 817-5751 and (632) 887-1348.  Fax: (632) 893-5391.

The Ancestral Houses of Sitio Ubos (Tagbilaran City, Bohol)

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Part of the Panglao Bluewater  Resort-sponsored Tagbilaran City Tour

Tagbilaran City has a number of heritage houses that can be found in Sitio Ubos (Lower Town), the oldest district of the city. During this period, old rich Chinese families built their houses in this formerly major port town in the city to establish their wealth. In 1916, there were only four families living there – the Oppus-Borjas, the Rochas, the Manigques and the Butalids. Through the positioning of their houses, the Rochas almost wholly owned the place, showing their great economic clout. We visited three of these, all located in close proximity to each other.

Fortich-Rocha House

The first house we visited was Fortich-Rocha House, the home of Don Fernando Gorraiz Rocha. Formerly a renowned schoolteacher (known as Maestro Andoy) in the Spanish school for boys and also a former governor of Bohol in the early 20th century, Don Fernando lived here with his wife, Dona Catalina Fortich, a local lady of Spanish extraction. The house, probably built before the 1850’s, was made with wooden boards and had a nipa roof.

The ground floor of this house once served as a bazaar.  However, the house was made popular by the baking skills of the Las Hermanas Rochas, the unmarried sisters of Don Fernando, who once produced the best pastries in town – hojaldres, broas, kinatloan and the plebeian fare called dugmok (toasted left-over bread).

Antonio Rocha House

The most distinct and impressive house in Sitio Ubos today is probably the house of the mestizo sangley Don Antonio Rocha, once the escribiente (clerk) of the Tagbilaran parish.   It has a tile roof and stone skirting at the ground floor. On the back wall is inscribed the date 1831, most likely the year when this house was built. In the 1970’s, the owners rented out some of the rooms to students in Tagbilaran.

Later on, the owner sold it to a Manila-based antique collector who shelled out some earnest money so as to gain foothold in the house, after which he began methodically stripping the house of valuable antiques, including the frame of an Antonio Rocha painting.  He then sold it to the present Swiss owner.

On the opposite side of the road is the impressive Beldia House, built in 1858 by Don Esteban Butalid, a gobernadorcillo and businessman. Don Manuel Timoteo Hidalgo, the brother-in-law of Jose Rizal (married to sister Saturnina), stayed in the house for four months (in January 1889 and then again in December of the same year) during his exile to Bohol.  It is also possible that Jose Rizal himself may have visited the house when he supposedly toured Bohol in 1894. During the Spanish regime, the house served as a provisional municipio before a new one, long since disappeared, was built high on the cliff above Sitio Ubos. In 1971, Judge Antonio Beldia bought the house from the Butalid-Calceta-Gallares family corporation.

The Beldia House

The Beldia House, with its elegant floating volada atop massive masonry walls, has a lot in common with its neighbor, the equally outstanding and exceptional Antonio Rocha House.  Both have curving gambrel roofs of clay tiles with its bent-down ridges.  Unique in the province, it gives the houses a distinct Chinese feel. Likewise, both houses have massive ground floor walls made with coral stone.

Hidden in one of the side walls (which used to be the main façade), fronting a now vanished road, is the original main entrance, now serving as window to the former office of the late Judge Beldia. Its elaborate Neo-Classic facade, unique in Boholano domestic architecture, is flanked by two pilasters with particularly attractive Composite capitals (a whimsical interpretation of the Corinthian model) hewn from coral stone.  Its three-centered arch is topped by an architrave of Classic proportions.

Originally having a U-shaped floor plan, the house’s internal courtyard has now been roofed over and now serves as the main entrance. The upper floor has since undergone considerable alterations.  There are new jalousie windows and the old wooden panels were largely replaced by contemporary materials.

Panglao Bluewater Resort: Bluewater Rd., Sitio Daurong, Brgy. Danao, Panglao, 6340 Bohol.  Tel: (038) 416-0702 and (038) 416-0695 to 96. Fax: (038) 416-0697.  Email: panglao@bluewater.com.ph. Website: www.bluewaterpanglao.com.ph.  Manila sales office: Rm. 704, Cityland Herrera Tower, Rufino cor. Valera Sts., Salcedo Village, 1227 Makati City, Metro Manila.  Tel: (632) 817-5751 and (632) 887-1348.  Fax: (632) 893-5391.

Balili Heritage House (Tagbilaran City, Bohol)

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Balili Heritage House

Part of the Panglao Bluewater  Resort-sponsored Tagbilaran City Tour

Our first stop in our Tagbilaran City tour was the majestic, two-storey Balili House, built sometime in 1934 by the then bachelor Mr. Eladio Balili, a history teacher of  Bohol National High School and businessman  (dried fish, lumber, furniture, transport and construction),  who later married Ms. Pancrasia “Caring” Castro.

The grand concrete stairway leading up to the porch

Barely visible from the street, its main facade is crowned by a wide overhanging gable roof with roof eaves adorned with Art Nouveau carvings.

The park-like garden

We passed through a park-like garden before climbing a sweeping grand concrete stairway leading to the artistically designed, second floor porch with its rounded corners, rough-hewn wooden posts, topped by semicircular arches with embroidery-like carvings on the fringes.

Arch. Gloria Balili-Katz (right) briefing members of media

The delicate calado wood carvings (in harp design), lattice screens, and barandillas (framed by carved wooden harps and friezes) underneath the windows add grace and playfulness to the house. The two sets of sliding capiz windows, with air vents above it, flank the porch on both sides.

February 18, 1957 (Eladio’s 58th birthday) picture of the Balili Family. Gloria is at the center

Elegant wooden canopies, with tooth-like fringes, protect the windows. The house has a square floor plan, unusual for Bohol houses.

The dining area

Upon entry, we were all welcomed by architect Gloria Balili-Katz, the youngest (of seven children) of Eladio and Pancrasia who gave us a tour of the well-preserved, incredibly beautiful mansion. According to her, the house served as a venue of grand social functions of Tagbilaran which were attended by prominent political and social personalities from both the local and national level.

Photo of Roxas-Quirino meeting on March 9, 1946

One such grand gathering was the March 9, 1946 meeting of then Pres. Manuel A. Roxas with senator (and later president) Elpidio R. Quirino, former governor Perfecto Balili (the brother of Eladio) and other important local political personalities. In March of 1942, during World War II, the Balili Mansion was requisitioned for use by high ranking Japanese military officers.

In the 1950s, after building a new larger house on the huge compound, Eladio finally moved out. The descendants of Eladio also preferred to build their own homes on the large family compound. The house was rented out but its last tenants moved out in 1998. For various reasons (accessibility, water supply, fear of ghosts, etc.), it was vacant for more than a decade.

Office desk with the agila chair (which Roxas sat on) behind it

Today, this well-maintained, virtually unchanged “sleeping beauty” has reawakened after it was converted into The Oasis lodging house (PhP450/pax for a fan-cooled room and PhP750/pax for an airconitioned room).  Meals are available upon request.

Antique wall-mounted clock

Inside are wooden walls (above which are calado woodwork) and ceiling, old photographs (including the photo of the Roxas-Quirino meeting) and floor of wide hardwood planks. Antique furnishings include the wooden chair (where Roxas sat on) with an agila (eagle) at its crest, an office desk, a butaka (a chair with long arm rests) and an old clock.

The sliding capiz windows with ventanillas below it

Balili Heritage House: 6 J. Borja St., Tagbilaran City. Tel: (038) 411-2511.  Mobile number: (0918) 299-1865. Website: www.oasislodgeHeritagehouse.com.

How to Get There: the house is located near the old Holy Spirit School, in front of Mang Inasal.

Bohol Tourism Office: Governor’s Mansion Compound, C.P.G. Ave. North, Tagbilaran City, 6300 Bohol.  Tel: +63 38 501-9186.  E-mail: inquire@boholtourismph.com.

Panglao Bluewater Resort: Bluewater Rd., Sitio Daurong, Brgy. Danao, Panglao, 6340 Bohol.  Tel: (038) 416-0702 and (038) 416-0695 to 96. Fax: (038) 416-0697.  Email: panglao@bluewater.com.ph. Website: www.bluewaterpanglao.com.ph.  Manila sales office: Rm. 704, Cityland Herrera Tower, Rufino cor. Valera Sts., Salcedo Village, 1227 Makati City, Metro Manila.  Tel: (632) 817-5751 and (632) 887-1348.  Fax: (632) 893-5391.

Alegre Guitar Factory (Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu)

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Alegre Guitar Factory

Part 10 of the Bluewater Maribago Beach Resort & Spa-sponsored City Tour

Prior to our return flight back to Manila, our van made a stopover at Alegre Guitar Factory.  One of the remarkable guitar-makers in Cebu, it is, by far the most impressive-looking as well as the most well known guitar factory in Abuno, Lapu-Lapu City. Its world-class guitars, gently created, outstandingly strong, competitive and of extraordinary quality, have never cease to impress seasoned guitarists and musicians.

Our guide showing us the different types of wood used in guitar making

Here, we were to make a short tour of the facility.  Our very knowledgeable and accommodating guide explained how Alegre’s quality guitars are all made by hand using imported wood  as well as indigenous woods (acacia, lauan, langka, mango and rosewood for backboard, and almasiga for the soundboard), with Philippine mahogany being one of the favorites.

Imported wood used include German spruce, Engelman spruce and cedar from Canada; Sitka spruce from Alaska; palisander from Africa; black ebony from Madagascar and Indian rosewood. The type of wood used, as well as local shell ornaments, make one unique instrument.

The assembly area was open for visitors and we were lucky enough to see some of the workers working, at different states of the process, on a guitar or a ukelele.  All the guitars are held together using glue and vises and twine hold the guitar parts in place during drying. However, due to health reasons, the area where they paint the guitars is closed.

Our short tour ended in a boutique full of finished products of all kind of qualities and prices, its walls neatly arranged with standard guitars of every type (there’s even a section for left-handed guitars as well) as well as other stringed instruments, all made by this guitar making family.

Prices for handmade guitars and ukeleles vary. There is a separate room showcasing the greater part of the top-quality and more expensive guitars that never stop to dumbfound the prepared, skilled guitarists and musical craftsmen.

Cocoleles

Ukuleles

Alegre doesn’t just sell guitars and ukuleles. They also sell the bandurria (a Philippine version of the mandolin), bass fiddles and even cocoleles (the Philipine version of the Hawaiian ukelele using coconuts for the body).

Marco Souvenir Shop

In addition, there is also an area for buying souvenirs (can’t play these).  Souvenirs, with prices anywhere from PhP150-900, include a tiny guitar with capiz shells in the front. They also have a wall full of pictures of artists, celebrities and famous musicians who previously visited their place.

Alegre Guitar Showroom

During our tour, we interviewed current owner and manager Mr. Fernando M. Alegre, himself a professional musician. The Alegre family, one of the pioneers in the guitar-manufacturing business, is on its third generation of proprietorship.

According to Mr. Alegre, the factory used to export guitars to to countries like Canada, Australia, Japan, and the United States but, as they get a lot of orders, they quit awhile back because the factory could not keep up with demand.  Still, people from all over come to buy the guitars made here.

Our visit to this guitar manufacturing center was a great educational experience as we saw how guitars were made using different types of wood material. Aside from visitors, prospective buyers, who are interested in the different stages of guitar-making, can take a look at the workshop to witness the craftsmen do the actual guitar-making process.

Mr. Fernando M. Alegre

Prices of Alegre-manufactured guitars and stringed instruments, compared to other guitar-selling shops, are quite expensive. The guitars range in price from around PhP2,000 (around US$40) to over PhP75,000 (around US$1,500). Still, you will get your money’s worth as their guitars last for a considerable amount of time.

Members of print media with Mr. Alegre

Alegre Guitar Factory: Pajac-Maribago Rd., Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu.  Tel: (032) 340-4492 and  (032) 505-0706.  E-mail: alegreguitar@yahoo.com.ph.

Bluewater Maribago Beach Resort & Spa: Buyong, Maribago, Lapu-Lapu City, 6015, Cebu. Tel: (032) 492-0100. Fax: (032) 492-1808.  E-mail: maribago@bluewater.com.ph.   Website: www.bluewatermaribago.com.ph.  Metro Manila sales office: Rm. 704, Cityland Herrera Tower, 98 Herrera cor. Valero Sts., Salcedo Village, Makati City, Metro Manila. Tel: (02) 887-1348 and (02) 817-5751. Fax: (02) 893-5391.

Church of Our Lady of the Pillar (Sibonga, Cebu)

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Church of Our Lady of the Pillar

Part 9 of the Bluewater Maribago Beach Resort & Spa-sponsored City Tour

This southern Cebu town’s present stone and brick church was started by Fr. Juan Alonso (parish priest from 1868 to 1881) and finished by Fr. Enrique Magaz in 1881. Fr. Emiliano Diez was applying the finishing touches when the revolution broke out in 1898.

The simple and bare, Pseudo-Gothic facade

In 1907, the church was restored and blessed by Msgr. Jeremiah James Harty, Archbishop of Manila, American Bishop Thomas Hendrick and 17 other priests.

NHCP Plaque

On December 2, 2010, a cast-iron national historical marker was unveiled at the church’s facade by National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) Chairman Ambeth R. Ocampo along with Sibonga’s parish priest Fr. Leo Cabahug and the Sibonga Ecclesiastical Heritage Commission’s president Dr. Noel Ponce.

The convent

The solid and beautiful convent was built by Fr. Prospero Puerto (parish priest from 1833 to 1868) following the plans of Bishop Santos Gomez Marañon. The oldest bell, dedicated to Santa Filomena, was installed in 1863. The bell tower was destroyed during the typhoon of November 25, 1877.

The church’s beautiful interior

The altar

The church’s simple and bare, Pseudo-Gothic façade, divided into three sections by shallow pilasters, has a flame-like arched main entrance flanked by massive twin bell towers with pyramidal roofs and flame-like arched windows. The Gothic-style triangular pediment has a rose window sporting the Augustinian seal in wrought iron.

Left side retablo

Right side retablo

The one-nave interior, clearly influenced by Carcar City’s Church of St. Catherine of Alexandria, has a wooden colonnade and a mesmerizing series of  ceiling murals at the nave.

Baptism

Confirmation

Holy Communion

 

Matrimony

Holy Orders

Extreme Unction

Penance

Painted in amber and brownish tones by famed Cebuano artist Raymundo Francia (popularly called the “Michaelangelo of Cebu”) in 1924, they feature the  Seven Sacraments (“Baptism,” “Confirmation,” “Extreme Unction,” “Penance,” “Matrimony,” “Holy Communion” and “Holy Orders”).

Christians Defending Their Faith

Christ Purging the Temple

At the entrance vestibule are the ceiling frescoes  “Christians Defending Their Faith” and “Christ Purging the Temple.” The “Creation of the World,” the mural above the altar, shows the Biblical scene of the seven days of creation (Genesis). The ceiling of the side aisles was expertly painted to create an optical illusion of a coffered ceiling woodwork. 

The Creation of the World

Optical illusion of coffered woodwork at ceiling

Church of Our Lady of the Pillar: National Highway, Poblacion, 6020 Sibonga. Tel: (032) 486-9390. Feast of Our Lady of the Pillar: October 12.

How To Get There: Sibonga is located 60.7 kms. south of Cebu City.

Bluewater Maribago Beach Resort & Spa: Buyong, Maribago, Lapu-Lapu City, 6015, Cebu. Tel: (032) 492-0100. Fax: (032) 492-1808.  E-mail: maribago@bluewater.com.ph.   Website: www.bluewatermaribago.com.ph.  Metro Manila sales office: Rm. 704, Cityland Herrera Tower, 98 Herrera cor. Valero Sts., Salcedo Village, Makati City, Metro Manila. Tel: (02) 887-1348 and (02) 817-5751. Fax: (02) 893-5391.

Monastery of the Holy Eucharist (Sibonga, Cebu)

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Monastery of the Holy Eucharist (Simala Shrine)

Part 8 of the Bluewater Maribago Beach Resort & Spa-sponsored City Tour

The majestic and sacred Monastery of the Holy Eucharist, popularly known as the “Simala Shrine” or “Simala Church,”is one of Sibonga’s most visited locations.  From a distance, the shrine looks like a castle.  It is technically not in Brgy. Simala, but the road leading to it traverses through Brgy. Simala.

A flood of tourists and devotees flocking into the shrine

Built by the Marian Monks (fondly called “Mga Monghe ni Maria”)  from Pampanga in 1998, the place was formerly a small farm gradually developed by the monks who planted vegetables and trees as well as raised animals.

Due to the presence of the Marian Monks who, after some time, built houses and a chapel, it was later called Marian Hills. The church became famous due to miracles that happened in the area made through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

After the community was hit by an epidemic, the monks reportedly prayed for an intercession by the Blessed Virgin Mary, asking her to save the children suffering from the epidemic.

Simala Church

A painting at the shrine depicts a religious old Lindogon native named Ireneo Villamor (fondly called Inkong Niyong).   Around sixty years ago, he predicted that the Lindogon hills will become balaan (blessed) in the future.

Ceiling of Simala Church

He also said that a lady in white will become the center of all people and her devout servants will have to go through persecution and suffering. The site has been associated with various miracles – one of which is the shedding tears of blood of a statue of the Virgin Mary housed in the site.

Testimonies for healing or wishes granted

Many devotees make the trip to the Simala Shrine to pray to the Blessed Virgin for healing of physical and spiritual illness.  Many of them have their own stories of miracles in their lives, all documented at the church and stored in cabinets close to the exit of the shrine.

Statue of Birhen sa Simala

Within the spacious and green environment is a huge statue of Virgin Mary (or the “Mama Maria sa Lindogon” or Birhen sa Himala), sculptures or statues of various saints, and various images and statues of the Virgin Mary from various cultural backgrounds such as the Virgin of Guadalupe or the Virgin wearing a kimono.

Open cottages for picnics

There’s also a replica of the Nazareth Well where people throw in coins while silently wishing for something. There are also cottages there, free and available for families or group of friends who brought their packed lunches with them. The whole shrine is still in the process of improving its structures.

Replica of Nazareth Well

When visiting the shrine to offer a petition or prayer, there are candles for sale (more or less Php35.00). Each color has a corresponding purpose. Here is a guide:

  • White– Purity (enlightenment, guidance, right path, etc.)
  • Yellow– Peace (courage, strength, hope, etc.)
  • Violet– Achievements (plans in life, journey, struggles, endeavors, voyage, etc.)
  • Red– Love (unity, family, friendship, engagement, etc.)
  • Pink– Thanksgiving, Happiness, Joy (physical, spiritual)
  • Orange- Reconciliation (sweetheart, husband, wife, family, enemy, etc.)
  • Gray– Deliverance (bad ways, things, spirits, etc.)
  • Green– Prosperity and Success (financial, business, study, exam, etc.)
  • Gold– Healing (good health, spiritual, recovery, family tree, etc.)
  • Cream– Conversion and Faith (household, children, couples, etc.)
  • Brown– Vocation (marriage bond, single life, God’s servant, etc.)
  • Blue– Perseverance (employment, career, promotions, assignment, etc.)
  • Black– Souls (pardon, forgiveness, etc.)

The following are prohibited within the shrine:

  • Taking pictures with flash
  • Wearing revealing clothes such as miniskirts, short shorts, see-through blouses and pants, tube and crop tops (Note: for those wearing such, there are shawls or cloaks for rent at Php20.00 each).
  • Smoking and alcoholic drinks
  • Shouting and making loud noise
  • Wearing of footwear inside the prayer room

Station of the Cross

Monastery of the Holy Eucharist: Marian Hills, Brgy. Lindogon, Sibonga, Cebu. Open daily, 8 AM – 8 PM. The Simala Shrine celebrates mass every day – Mondays to Fridays at 12 noon, Saturdays at 10:30 AM, and Sundays at 12 noon and 3:30 PM.  Masses are also held every 13th day of the month at 10:30 AM and 3:30 PM.

How to Get There: To get to the Simala Shrine, take a Ceres bus or a more expensive van at the South Bus Terminal (near Elizabeth Mall) that passes through Sibonga (a 2.5-hour trip). Get off at the motorcycle terminal at Lindogon and, from there, take a 10-15-min./5-km.  tricycle or motorcycle (habal-habal) ride going up to the shrine.

Bluewater Maribago Beach Resort & Spa: Buyong, Maribago, Lapu-Lapu City, 6015, Cebu. Tel: (032) 492-0100. Fax: (032) 492-1808.  E-mail: maribago@bluewater.com.ph.   Website: www.bluewatermaribago.com.ph.  Metro Manila sales office: Rm. 704, Cityland Herrera Tower, 98 Herrera cor. Valero Sts., Salcedo Village, Makati City, Metro Manila. Tel: (02) 887-1348 and (02) 817-5751. Fax: (02) 893-5391.

Church of St. Catherine of Alexandria (Carcar City, Cebu)

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Church of St. Catherine of Alexandria

Part 7 of the Bluewater Maribago Beach Resort & Spa-sponsored City Tour

Carcar City is noted for its striking examples of preserved colonial architecture, both from the Spanish and American eras. The most notable structure is the Church of St. Catherine of Alexandria. Around 1622, the town’s first convent and church was burned when Muslims sacked the town.

The church’s Graeco-Tuscan facade

The present masonry church, probably the second or third church, was built on a hill for greater security. It was started by Fr. Antonio Manglano in 1860, continued by Fr. Gabriel Gonzalez in 1865 and completed (including the interior painting) by Fr. Manuel Fernandez Rubio in 1875. Its roof was blown away during the November 25, 1876, typhoon.

An array of statues of some of the 12 Apostles at the church patio

Statue of Judas Iscariot, now painted white

Its lovely and massive Graeco-Tuscan façade, with its strong Muslim influence, has a double recessed arched main entrance (similar to an iwan of a Middle Eastern mosque), a blind wheel rose window below the upper recessed arch (above it is a carved Augustinian symbol), spandrels with geometric flora and a Baroque pediment on a high entablature, which crowns the middle segment.

The church’s interior

The lower story is flanked by a one-story structure corresponding to the aisles flanking the 68-m. long, 22-m. wide and 12-m. high-main nave. Neo-Classical altars, a coffered ceiling and carved cherub heads located along the arcade separating the nave from the aisle embellish the church’s interior.

The church patio, surrounded by a low fence of coral stone and wrought iron, has statues of the 12 Apostles, all painted white.  The statue of Judas Iscariot, standing all alone on a pedestal in front of the convent, used to be painted black but is now in white.

The Neo-Clasical main altar

The twin Muslim-like bell towers have solid geometric pylons which act as buttresses, and have no openings except at the third storey where ogee arches are used for the bells. This level ends up in onion-shaped domes reminiscent of minarets. One of its bells bears the date 1810, suggesting that a church was already in place by the early 19th century.

The church pulpit

Fr. Manuel Fernandez Rubio also built the masonry and wood convent, established on May 23, 1559, under the advocacy of the Visitation of the Virgin. An independent structure separated from the church by a road, it measures 33 m. in front and 22 m. at the side.  The convent sank during the November 25, 1876, typhoon.

The choir loft

Church of St. Catherine of Alexandria: Tel: (032) 257-3272. Feast of St. Catherine of Alexandra: November 25.

How to Get There: Carcar City is located 42 kms. (a 1-hour drive) south of Cebu City.

Bluewater Maribago Beach Resort & Spa: Buyong, Maribago, Lapu-Lapu City, 6015, Cebu. Tel: (032) 492-0100. Fax: (032) 492-1808.  E-mail: maribago@bluewater.com.ph.   Website: www.bluewatermaribago.com.ph.  Metro Manila sales office: Rm. 704, Cityland Herrera Tower, 98 Herrera cor. Valero Sts., Salcedo Village, Makati City, Metro Manila. Tel: (02) 887-1348 and (02) 817-5751. Fax: (02) 893-5391.

Carcar City Museum (Cebu)

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Carcar City Museum (formerly Carcar Dispensary and Puericulture Center)

Part 6 of the Bluewater Maribago Beach Resort & Spa-sponsored City Tour

The very first museum in South Cebu, this museum is housed in the former Carcar Puericulture Center and Dispensary, a two-storey hospital for women and children. Resembling a doll house rather than a medical institution, it was perhaps meant that way to dispel the fears of the patients.

The second floor veranda

An excellent example of American-era civic architecture in the Philippines, this ornate and gracefully designed dispensary was initiated by Mayor Mariano Mercado in 1929 and inaugurated by Ms.Flora Base Mercado, the mayor’s wife, in 1937 with Gov. Sotero Cabahug in attendance.

Historical plaque

The building was inaugurated as the Carcar City Museum on July 8, 2008, during Carcar’s first anniversary as a city.

Calado woodwork

Stairs

This outstanding, beautifully restored white painted architectural landmark has a profusion of artful latticework, semicircular transoms, carved barandillas (railings) and mini-canopies and stained glass window panes. Beside the museum is a small gated park that pays homage to Don Mariano Mercado, who was responsible for many of Carcar’s beautiful landmarks.

The author at Carcar City Museum

Its galleries, in several rooms, feature objects with historical, cultural and artistic relevance such as a traditional corn milling stone, antique furniture, winning costumes used by Carcar contingents in numerous artistic performances, women’s clothing worn during that era, religious artifacts, leather cutters, kitchen utensils, journals, paintings, war weapons, medical tools, musical instruments and old news clippings about Gen. Pantaleon “Leon Kilat” Villegas.

Antique sewing machine

Farming implements

Props for Linambay (Cebuano term for komedya or moro-moro)

On the museum walls, visitors can see a chronology of events that took place in Carcar from the Pleistocene period up to the present. The terrace (terasa) is the best place to feel the cold breeze from the outside. 

Aparador

Bajo de unas (double bass) used in a rondalla 

Sousaphone

Carcar City Museum: Carcar Square, Carcar City, Cebu.  Open Mondays to Saturdays, 8 AM to 5 PM. Admission: free.

Bluewater Maribago Beach Resort & Spa: Buyong, Maribago, Lapu-Lapu City, 6015, Cebu. Tel: (032) 492-0100. Fax: (032) 492-1808.  E-mail: maribago@bluewater.com.ph.   Website: www.bluewatermaribago.com.ph.  Metro Manila sales office: Rm. 704, Cityland Herrera Tower, 98 Herrera cor. Valero Sts., Salcedo Village, Makati City, Metro Manila. Tel: (02) 887-1348 and (02) 817-5751. Fax: (02) 893-5391.

Church of St. Isidore the Farmer (San Fernando, Cebu)

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Church of St. Isidore the Farmer

Part 5 of the Bluewater Maribago Beach Resort & Spa-sponsored City Tour

The town’s first church was constructed at Brgy. Pitalo but, after repeated repairs, it was decided that a new and much better church was be constructed on a land donated by Doña Clara Najarro at Taboan Market, not far from the town’s present cemetery.

The Neo-Gothic facade

The present masonry church was started by Fr. Miguel del Burgo on December 1870, following the plans of Spanish architect and engineer Don Domingo Esconrillas, and continued by Fr. Emiliano Diez on March 11, 1876. During the November 25, 1877 typhoon, half of the church’s roof, the sacristy and convent fell.  It was finished and solemnly blessed on October 25, 1886.

The pointed recessed arch main entrance

During World War II, the church was spared from war damage. In 1945, the separate, two storey, coral stone convent was turned into a school. From 1968-76, Fr. Constantino Boctoy renovated the church.

The right side of the church

Its Neo-Gothic facade has a flamboyant pointed, recessed arch main entrance flanked by two small pointed arch windows.  The main doorway is topped, above the cornice line, by a large, elaborately carved rose window.  Flat pilasters, mounted on high rectangular pedestals, rise up to the pediment line.  They end up in pinnacles and divide the facade into three vertical sections.

One of two bell towers

The upper level, integrated with the gable, is crowned at the apex by a cross and has a small, centrally located carved Augustinian emblem.  Traceries line eaves of the pediment. The church interior has been heavily renovated.

The church interior

A strong typhoon cut the tops of the twin Gothic-style square bell towers and they were never rebuilt to its original height. The present twin belfries, seemingly incongruous with the overall coral stone structure, were actually built in concrete later in the 20th century. They have one wheel window on the lower level, flame-like windows on the upper and both taper into spires topped by pinnacles at the corners of the painted dome.

The church altar

Church of St. Isidore the Farmer:  Natalio B. Bacalso South National Highway, Brgy. Poblacion South. Tel: (032) 488-9314. Feast of St. Isidore the Farmer: May 15.

How To Get There: San Fernando is located 29.3 kms. south of Cebu City. Buses to San Fernando park at the Cebu South Bus Terminal along N. Bacalso Ave. in Cebu City.  The church is just across the municipal hall.

Bluewater Maribago Beach Resort & Spa: Buyong, Maribago, Lapu-Lapu City, 6015, Cebu. Tel: (032) 492-0100. Fax: (032) 492-1808.  E-mail: maribago@bluewater.com.ph.   Website: www.bluewatermaribago.com.ph.  Metro Manila sales office: Rm. 704, Cityland Herrera Tower, 98 Herrera cor. Valero Sts., Salcedo Village, Makati City, Metro Manila. Tel: (02) 887-1348 and (02) 817-5751. Fax: (02) 893-5391.