Category Archives: Architecture

Angkor Archaeological Park (Siem Reap, Cambodia)

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Our second day in Siem Reap was to be spent exploring Angkor Archaeological Park, particularly its star attraction – Angkor Wat.  After breakfast at Bopha Angkor Hotel, Violet, Osang, Jandy and I were met at the lobby by our previous tuktuk driver who brought us, from the bus station, to the hotel the previous day. A lot of tourists tour Angkor this way.

Check out “Hotel and Inn Review: Bopha Angkor Hotel & Restaurant”

He agreed to bring us, on board his tuktuk, to the park and back for US$5 each (they prefer this payment rather than their local currency – the rial).

Touring Angkor Archaeological Park via tuktuk

Aside from Angkor Wat, we were to also visited Bayon Temple, Preah Pithu, Terrace of the Elephants, Terrace of the Leper King, Royal Palace and Phimeanakas Temple, Baphuon Temple, Chao Say Tevoda, Ta Prohm Temple, Banteay Kdei and Thommanon Temple.

A rainy arrival……

The tuktuk drive took around 20 mins. and we arrived at the park by 10:30 AM.  It was drizzling when we arrived.

Check out “Bayon Temple,” “Preah Pithu,” “Terrace of the Elephants,” “Terrace of the Leper King,” “Royal Palace and Phimeanakas Temple,” “Baphuon Temple,” “Chau Say Tevoda,” “Ta Prohm Temple,” “Banteay Kdei” and “Thommanon Temple”

Royal Palace – Silver Pagoda (Phnom Penh, Cambodia)

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Silver Pagoda (Temple of the Emerald Buddha)

Silver Pagoda (Temple of the Emerald Buddha)

From the Throne Hall, Osang, Violet, Jandy and I proceeded to south side of the Royal Palace complex.  The beautiful Silver Pagoda, built in honor of the Lord Buddha, is the official temple of the king of Cambodia.  Formerly known as Wat Ubosoth Ratanaram, its official name is Preah Vihear Preah Keo Morakot (“Temple of the Emerald Buddha”), after the green baccarat crystal Buddha it houses.  Its name is commonly shortened to Wat Preah Keo.

Mandapa of Satra and Tripitaka

Mandapa of Satra and Tripitaka

Constructed in 1962, at Queen Kossamak’s command, by King Norodom Sihanouk, it replaced the wooden pagoda built by his grandfather in 1902,  the original aging structure being too weak to stand. During the Khmer Rouge years, more than half its contents were stolen but the pagoda itself was pretty much unscathed.

King Norodom's Statue

King Norodom’s Statue

The Silver Pagoda, is so named because of its 5,329 silver floor tiles, each around  20 cm. (8 inches) square and each weighing 1.125 kg (2.48 lbs), and having a total weight of more than 6 tons. Some of its outer facade was remodeled with Italian marble. The pagoda’s construction shows the clear influence of Bangkok’s Wat Phra Kaeo, also home to a precious crystal Buddha to which the one in Phnom Penh bears an uncanny resemblance.

King Ang Duong's Stupa

King Ang Duong’s Stupa

After removing our hats and leaving our footwear outside, we were allowed to enter the vihara which houses a rich collection of 1,650 royal gifts received by the Royal family over the years, including artifacts and Buddha images, many of them national treasures.  The pagoda is more a museum than place of homage and no monks stay in permanent residence here. However, on entering the pagoda, we only saw a small area of the temple’s signature  silver tiles as much of the floor was covered by carpets. Photography is also not allowed inside.

Kantha Bopha's Stupa

Kantha Bopha’s Stupa

On display are gold and jeweled Buddha statues, notably a a small 17th century baccarat crystal Buddha (the “Emerald Buddha” of Cambodia) and an impressive, life-sized gold Maitreya Buddha. The latter, housed in the sanctum sanctorum of the temple, was created in the palace workshops between 1906 and 1907.  It weighs in at 90 kgs., is dressed in royal regalia commissioned by King Sisowath, and is decorated with 9,584 diamonds (the largest of which weighs 25 carats).

Reamker Frescoes

Reamker Frescoes

The main building (vihear) is bounded, to the east, by the statue of King Norodom (sitting on a white horse) and to the north by the Mondapa of Satra and Tripitaka, a library housing Buddhist texts.  At the eastern corner is the bell tower, south of which, near the exit, is a model of Angkor Wat. South of the vihear stands 4 structures, from west to east – the chedi (stupa) of King Suramarit and Queen Kossamak, the Dharmasala, the Chedi of Princess Kantha Bopha and the Phnom Mondop (Mount Mondop, where the statue of Preah Ko is situated). The last mentioned is an artificial hill with a pavilion housing a bronze footprint of the Buddha from Sri Lanka.

Osang, Jandy and Osang at Kantha Bopha's Stupa

Osang, Jandy and Osang at Kantha Bopha’s Stupa

These structures are surrounded by a wall – the oldest part of the palace – covered with 80 m. long, colorful series of frescos depicting episodes from Reamker, the Khmer version of the Indian Ramayana, , one of the great Hindu epics.ainted from 1903 to 1904, its bottom half has faded, throughout the Khmer Rouge years, due to neglect. Some restoration has been done but much of the damage is still clearly visible.

Royal Palace: Samdach Sothearos Blvd., Phnom Penh.  Open daily, 8 to 11 AM and 2 to 5 PM.

Royal Palace – The Throne Hall (Phnom Penh, Cambodia)

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Throne Hall (Preah Tineang Tevea Vinichhay)

Throne Hall (Preah Tineang Tevea Vinichhay)

Upon paying the admission fee of US$6.25, Jandy, Osang, Violet and I started our guide-less tour of the Royal Palace grounds.The first major building we passed was the open-sided Preah Tineang Phhochani, the banqueting and dance hall, inaugurated in 1912. The pristine gardens of the palace grounds are dotted with topiaried trees and are planted with tropical flowers and plants such as Allamanda cathartica, Couroupita guianensis and Jatropha integerrima.

Osang, Violet and Jandy at top of grand stairway

Osang, Violet and Jandy at top of grand stairway

We started with the cross-shaped Throne Hall (Preah Thineang Dheva Vinnichay Mohai Moha Prasat, or “Sacred Seat of Judgement”), the most impressive building in the royal compound.  The Throne Hall , crowned with 3 spires, is the second building to be built on this site.  The King’s confidants, generals and royal officials once carried out their duties here and it is still in use today as a place for religious and royal ceremonies (such as coronations and royal weddings) as well as a meeting place for the King’s guests.

A 7-headed naga

A 7-headed naga

The first building was constructed of wood in 1869-1870, under King Norodom, then demolished in 1915 and the present 30 x 60 m. building, a  faithful reproduction of Norodom’s wooden palace, was built in 1917 and inaugurated by King Bat Sisowath in 1919. This building, as well as all buildings and structures at the Royal Palace, faces the east (best photographed in the morning). The building’s central, 59 m. high spire is topped with the white, 4-faced head of Brahma.

A garuda appearing to support the roof

A garuda appearing to support the roof

Inside are 3 royal thrones (2 traditional and 1 Western-style) and golden busts of Cambodians kings and queens, starting from the reign King Ang Doung onwards. However, we, as well as all other visitors, weren’t allowed to go inside, much less take pictures of the interiors, even from the outside.  We could only take photographs of its exterior.

Spire topped with the white, 4-faced head of Brahma

Spire topped with the white, 4-faced head of Brahma

The hall’s broad and grand entrance stairway has banisters formed by 7-headed nagas.  Each column of the colonnaded veranda is topped by a garuda with outstretched wings, all seemingly supporting the eaves of the roof.

Hor Samranphirum

Hor Samranphirum

To the right of the Throne Hall is the Hor Samran Phirum, the Royal Rest House, built between 1915 and 1917.  It is not open for public viewing. On coronation day, this small pavilion is used as a royal rest house and waiting area.  Here, the incoming King and Queen wait for their elephants to be bought around. On one side of the building is a door and some posts which are used to harness the elephants while the royals board.  The king no longer keeps elephants and, today, this building is used to house gifts from foreign dignitaries as well as the royal musical instruments and utensils used in royal coronation processions.

Hor Samritvimean

Hor Samrit Vimean

Exhibits at Hor Samritvimean

Exhibits at Hor Samrit Vimean

One small but elaborate pavilion we could photograph, both inside and out, was the Hor Samrit Vimean, also known as the Bronze Palace. The Royal treasury, this tall but narrow building houses regalia vital to the coronation ceremony including the Great Crown of Victory; The Great White umbrella of state; The Sacred Sword; The Victory Spear; The Fan; various procession group figures bearing the national, religious and monarchy flags; and clothing worn during King Sihamoni’s coronation on October 2004. We joined other tourists at the small display room at the lower floor where we observed, and photographed, display cases exhibiting some of the more minor royal regalia and utensils. At the rear, we note the 7 mannequins wearing seven days’ worth of colors.

Preah Tineang Phhochani

Preah Tineang Phhochani

Just north of the Preah Tineang Phhochani, the palace grounds are closed to visitors so we could only observe the other buildings beyond from afar. Getting a much-needed facelift and shielded by a huge tarpaulin (with the actual likeness of the building inside) during our visit was the cast-iron, French-style Pavilion of Napoleon lll, the oldest surviving structure on the palace grounds.  It was presented by French Emperor Napoleon III to King Norodom in 1876 and re-erected here. The pavilion was used by the Empress Eugenie (Napoleon’s wife) during her inauguration of the Suez Canal in in Ismailia, Egypt in 1869. It now serves as a museum of royal memorabilia and a photo exhibit of former Cambodian kings.

The Pavilion of Napoleon III and the Preah Reach Damnak Chan

The Pavilion of Napoleon III and the Preah Reach Damnak Chan

West of the pavilion is the Preah Reach Damnak Chan.  Built in 1953, it’s partly a museum housing a collection of gifts to the royal family while another part is an office for the Ministry of the Royal Palace.  Just past the Pavilion of Napoleon III, a gateway provided us access to the Silver Pagoda.

Royal Palace: Samdach Sothearos Blvd., Phnom Penh.  Open daily, 8 to 11 AM and 2 to 5 PM.

Preah Sothearos Boulevard (Phnom Penh, Cambodia)

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Preah Sothearos Boulevard

Preah Sothearos Boulevard

After our short visit to the National Museum, Osang, Violet, Jandy and I proceeded on our way to the nearby Royal Palace. The Royal Palace, a good example of Khmer architecture, covers an area of 174,870 sq. m. (402 m. x 435 m.). Its layout features a defensive wall (kampaeng), throne hall (preah tineang), Temple of the Emerald Buddha (Wat Preah Keo Morakot), stupas (chedei), towering spires (prang prasat) and mural paintings.

Osang feeding the doves

Osang feeding the doves

The complex is divided by walls into four main compounds.  On the south side is the Silver Pagoda, on the north is the Khemarin Palace, on the west is the private sector (or the Inner Court) while the central compound contains the Throne Hall . The buildings of the palace were gradually built over time, some were dismantled and rebuilt as late as the 1960s, but some old buildings date back to the 19th century.

Gamely posing with a sentry at his ost

Gamely posing with a sentry at his post

From Street 184, we turned right to the surprisingly car-free (save for one tourist bus) Preah Sothearos Blvd. On its left is a wide promenade with yellow hexagonal floor tiles.  Here, flocks of black, white and gray doves congregate.  Children enjoy chasing them while adults feed them with corn kernels and peanuts bought from vendors nearby. Beyond the promenade is a small park, Sisowath Quay and the mighty Mekong River.

The open-air Preah Thineang Chan Chhaya ("Moonlight Pavilion")

The open-air Preah Thineang Chan Chhaya (“Moonlight Pavilion”)

On the boulevard’s right are the high, yellow crenelated walls of the Royal Palace. We passed two guardhouses, one of them manned, gamely posing with the guard on duty. The  open-air  Preah Thineang Chan Chhaya (“Moonlight Pavilion”), built alongside a section of the palace walls, dominates the facade.

The Victory Gate

The Victory Gate

One of the most notable buildings of the Royal Palace, it serves as a venue for the Royal Dancers, as a tribune for the King to address the crowds and as a place to hold state and royal banquets. During the 2004 coronation of King Norodom Sihamoni, it was used for a banquet and a tribune for the new king.  It also has a balcony that is used for viewing parades marching along Sothearos Boulevard.

Finally ... the visitor's entrance gate

Finally … the visitor’s entrance gate

Past the pavilion is the Victory Gate which faces the entrance steps leading to the palace’s Throne Hall. Traditionally, this gate was only used by the king and queen though it is now used to admit visiting dignitaries.  As such, this gate was locked.  However, the entrance for tourists wanting to tour the palace was nearby.  Upon entering, we walked along a short corridor to the ticket booth.

 

Saigon Central Post Office (Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam)

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The largest and busiest central post office in Vietnam, this Neo-Classical-style building, one of the most recognizable landmarks in the city and a fine example of French colonial architecture, is a mixture of Gothic, Renaissance and French influences.  This big, airy and spacious building  was designed and constructed, between 1886 and 1891, by the famous French civil engineer and architect Gustave Eiffel (of Eiffel Tower fame).

Saigon Central Post Office

Saigon Central Post Office

Its vaulted roof, massively high arched ceiling (carried by the two rows of steel pillars), numerous wickets, wooden counters (that seem like ticket counters), ornate furnishings, green window shutters and creatively designed arched windows (with engaged piers) are reminiscent of old European railway stations.

Clock above the main entrance

Clock above the main entrance

Above the main entrance, with its intricate ironwork, is its original and still working giant clock. The gorgeous, patterned floor tiles inside represent antique maps.

The post office's massive interior

The post office’s massive interior

Though still a completely functional post office housing a useful office center with phones and fax lines, the building administration have also added souvenir shops (ref magnets, post cards, T-shirts, wallets, coin and stamp collector sets, etc.), currency exchange offices (though their rates was pretty high they are better than rates at the airport), wooden benches for tired tourists, and the still original phone booths (above which are clocks with times of select Asian cities) to make international calls (others are now ATM booths).

Phone and ATM booths

Phone and ATM booths

Inside this never too crowded but never really empty post office, on the upper part of both walls flanking the main entrance, are two large, eighteenth century maps that were painted on the walls just after the post office was built.

Map of Southern Vietnam and Cambodia

Map of Southern Vietnam and Cambodia

Map of Greater Saigon

Map of Greater Saigon

On the left side is a map of Southern Vietnam and Cambodia entitled Lignes telegraphiques du Sud Vietnam et Cambodge 1892 (“Telegraphic lines of Southern Vietnam and Cambodia 1892”) while on the right side is a map of Greater Saigon entitled Saigon et ses environs 1892 (“Saigon and its environment 1892’). At the end of the expansive hall is a huge portrait of Ho Chi Minh. 

Osang, Jandy, Violet, the author and Australian friend Gerald Hosiah

Osang, Jandy, Violet, the author and Australian friend Gerald Hosiah

Saigon Central Post Office: 2 Công xã Paris, Bến Nghé, tp. (opposite Notre Dame Cathedral), Ho Chi Minh City.  Open 8 AM – 5 PM. Tel: +84 8 3822 1677.   

Saigon Opera House (Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam)

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The iconic, stately and elegant Saigon Opera House, also known as the Ho Chi Minh Municipal Theater, is hard to miss as it is located at the intersection of Ð Dong Khoi and ÐL Le Loi.  The front of the building is a good place to take photos or maybe just sit round and spend some time people-watching. A Highland Coffee Shop outlet is located behind the building. During our visit, a pre-nuptial photo shoot was ongoing at the bottom of the steps in front of the theater.

Saigon Opera House

Saigon Opera House

Unfortunately, we weren’t allowed to see the inside unless we watched an actual performance (plays, concerts, ballet, opera, and Vietnamese traditional dance) or the 60-min. AO Show (6 PM and 8 PM), a show fusing dance, circus and musical forms in a vibrant and light-hearted series of sketches.  However, prices for these performances don’t come cheap. For the AO Show, admission ranges from 630,000 VND to 1,470,000 VND (US$29.7 to US$69.3).

A venue for pre-nuptial photo shoots

A venue for pre-nuptial photo shoots

This grand, 1,800-seat colonial building, an example of French Colonial architecture in Vietnam, was designed, as the Opėra de Saigon, by architect Felix Olivier and its construction, started in 1898, was supervised by architects Ernest Guichard and Eugène Ferret. The theater was completed on January 1, 1900. Its applied ornaments, balustrades, cartouches and roof are particularly French while the large central arch, Ionic columns, coffered ceiling and the caryatids (though less modestly clothed than Greek examples) are Greco-Roman motifs.

The veranda and richly-engraved arch

The veranda and richly-engraved central arch

In 1944, the theater was damaged by the Allied air attacks and, in 1954, was used as a temporary shelter for French civilians arriving from North Vietnam. After 1956, the building was restored and used as the home of the Lower House assembly of South Vietnam and it was not until 1975, after the fall of Saigon, that it was again used as a theater. In 1995, the theater was again restored.

A scantilly clad carytid

A scantily clad caryatid

Shaped like the Opéra Garnier in Paris, the Municipal Theater is a smaller counterpart of the Hanoi Opera House (built between 1901 and 1911).  Influenced by the flamboyant style of the French Third Republic, its ornate façade, decorated with inscriptions and bas reliefs, is shaped like France’s Petit Palais (“little palace”) which was also built in 1900. In 1943, some of its decorations, engravings and statues were removed from the theater façade (to make the the theater look more youthful) but, in 1998, during the 300th anniversary celebration of Saigon, a portion was restored by the city government.

Bas reliefs and paired Ionic colums

Bas reliefs and paired Ionic colums

This opera house has an 800-seat main seating floor plus two levels of seating above; a sweeping staircase; and all the inscriptions, décor, and furnishings were designed and drawn by a French artist and sent from France. It now hosts the Ho Chi Minh City Ballet Symphony Orchestra and Opera (formerly the Ho Chi Minh City Symphony and Chamber Orchestra), one of the city’s premiere entertainment companies.

Deatil of bas relief

Deatil of bas relief

The theater is equipped with state-of-the-art lighting and sound systems, and safety equipment. Many of its original architectural and decorative features, including a stone veranda, white stone statues at the entrance, colorful granite tiled floors, chandeliers, bronze statues in front of the stairs, richly-engraved auditorium arch and wall statues, have been incorporated. In 2009, an outdoor lighting system was installed on the roof of the Opera House.

The author, Jandy, Osang and Violet

The author, Jandy, Osang and Violet

Saigon Opera House: 7 Lam Son Square, Ben Nghe Ward, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City. Tel: 08 3829 9976.

The Ruins (Talisay City, Negros Occidental)

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The highlight of our Silay Heritage Tour was our visit to The Ruins in nearby Talisay City.  Here, a wacky, English and Tagalog-speaking tour guide narrated to visitors the fascinating tale of The Ruins, injecting humor along the way.

The Ruins - the Taj Mahal of Negros

The Ruins – the Taj Mahal of Negros

The Ruins is what remains of the grand, 2-storey mansion that Negrense sugar baron, Don Mariano “Anoy” Ledesma Lacson (1865-1948) built in the middle of his 440-hectare sugar cane plantation in the early 1920s, following the death of his first wife, Maria Braga, a Portuguese from Macau who died in an accident while pregnant with their 11th child. Don Mariano is the youngest of the 8 children of Lucio Lacson and Clara Ledesma from Molo, Iloilo.

Our tour guide explaining the history of The Ruins

Our tour guide explaining the history of The Ruins

He later remarried, this time to Concepcion Diaz from Talisay, adding 3 more children to his existing brood of 10 (which included Rafael Lacson, the former governor of Negros Occidental). It became the residence of Don Mariano and his unmarried children. After drawing lots, Don Manuel’s sugar plantation was divided among the 10 children by his first wife Maria and  the mansion went to Mercedes Lacson who married Manuel Javellana from Jaro District in Iloilo.

The interior of The Ruins

The interior of The Ruins

Later, the land was again divided into equal parts among the couple’s 12 children and the 3.6 hectares that included the mansion was given to Ramon Javellana. Raymund Javellana, one of Ramon’s children, thought of restoring the mansion and converting it to a tourist spot but the mansion remained abandoned for 67 years until they started to develop it on May 2007.  On January 2008, it was officially opened to the public as a tourist attraction.

The main entrance

The main entrance

The 903 sq. m., 10-room (8 rooms for their children, a master’s bedroom and a family room) mansion, of Italianate architecture, has twin Neo-Romanesque columns with the first letters of the names of Don Manuel and Dona Maria engraved onto the mansion’s posts.  They actually looked like Es that face each other.

The mansion grounds

Cheska, Marve, Kyle and Grace at the mansion grounds

Facing the main door, the boys’ and girls’ bedrooms, at the ground and second floors respectively, were all located on the left side. The master’s bedroom and the family room were both located upstairs and facing west, on the left and right, respectively. A small arched window, between the kitchen and the dining area, facilitated the movement of food, minimizing the servants going in and out of the kitchen.

The "M" moldings

The “M” moldings

The picturesque mansion, one of the top 12 fascinating ruins in the world and the Taj Mahal of Negros, has many interesting tales to tell.  Its top edges also feature a shell-inspired decor which, in New England, indicates that the homeowner is a ship captain. At the glassed-in sunroom with bay windows, Don Mariano would be often seen sitting as he viewed ships that come and go along the coastal waters of Talisay. Maria Braga’s father was also a ship captain.  Again, in keeping with the marine theme, the mansion’s second story also features a belvedere, between the master’s and family room  and also facing the west, where the family would gather to watch the sunset.

The restaurant dining area

The restaurant dining area

Felipe, one of Don Manuel’s sons, supervised the continuous concrete mixing and pouring, done 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  This ensured that the concrete was very compact and that no air got in, resulting in the high-quality strength of the structure.  The concrete mixture also incorporated egg whites which, to this day, visitors can still see the gloss or shine on the mansion’s walls because of it.

The remains of the stairs

The remains of the stairs

In 1942, during the Japanese occupation in the early part of World War II, the mansion was reduced to its skeletal frame when USAFFE (United States Armed Forces in the Far East) guerillas set the mansion ablaze, with the consent of Don Manuel, so it would not be used as headquarters by the Japanese forces.

Detail of column capital

Detail of column capital

The mansion’s roof, ceiling and the 2-inch thick, meter wide and approximately 20.5 m. long, jointless wooden floors, extending from the main entrance up to the end of the dining area, were all burned during the non-stop, 3-day fire but the foundations remained standing, thanks to its oversized steel bar reinforcement and the meticulous way of pouring the A-grade mixture.  The original Spanish machuca floor tiles, the hardest and most expensive during that time, also survived.

Detail of arch

Detail of arch

The original, 4-tiered fountain outside the mansion was, in its heyday, surrounded by a beautiful lily garden maintained by a Japanese gardener who, following the burning of the mansion, mysteriously disappeared.   Today, its landscaped garden draws various inspirations – from formal English to Japanese-inspired gardens.

The original 4-tier fountain

The original 4-tier fountain

Viewed just outside the mansion, with a tree on top, is the chimney (simborio) of the muscovado sugar mill (where the juice of the sugarcane is extracted) of the family’s sugar farm. From the mill, the extracted sugarcane juice is then transferred to large vats, heated and then cooled to produce the sugar crystals.

Exterior detail

Exterior detail

Inside The Ruins is a semi-fine dining restaurant (offering Mediterranean cuisine), a mini-bar and a souvenir shop while around it are modern additions – an 18-hole mini golf course, a snack bar and newly built toilets that still use the mansion’s original septic tank.

Belvedere detail

Belvedere detail

Aside from tours and dining, The Ruins are also be used for special events such as weddings, family reunions, pre-nuptial pictorials, etc.  There are also a stall selling Erv’s sugar cane juice, camping and picnic grounds, bath houses and a pavilion. Also within the grounds is a 3 m. high obelisk,the Landmark Award of the Philippine Institute of Civil Engineering (PICE). Too bad, we left at 5 PM.  According to our guide, you will see the building glow from the sunset around 5:30 PM.

The simborio

The simborio

The Ruins: Open daily, 8:30 AM to 8 PM. Tel: (034) 476 4334. Admission: PhP60 (adults), PhP40 (students) and PhP30 (children).

 

 

Calvo Building (Escolta, Manila)

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Calvo Building

The historic Calvo Building, an outstanding example of Beaux Arts architecture, is one of the remaining buildings from the earlier part of the 20th century along Escolta Street. It was designed by architect and civil engineer Fernando H. Ocampo, Sr. (of Arguille & Ocampo Architects) and inaugurated on August 14, 1938 on the land owned by the couple Angel Calvo and real estate businesswoman Emiliana Mortera Calvo.

Plaque installed by National Historical Commission of the Philippines in 2018

On November 1944, during World War II, it was temporarily used by Japanese Imperial Forces and was destroyed during the 1945 Battle of Manila and restored in 1946. On August 14, 2018, a historical marker (entitled Gusaling Calvo) was installed by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines.

Cartouche above the arched window

This 4-storey building was one of the most prestigious business addresses of its time.  Its tenants were:

  • Philippine Bank of Commerce (ground floor)
  • Lissar Commercial (ground floor)
  • Aquino-Lichauco Law Offices (second floor)
  • Offices of Araneta & Co. (third floor)
  • MV Villar Records Store – then Manila’s biggest vinyl record bar
  • Sabater Optical
  • Mareco Broadcasting – owner of 105 Crossover FM
  • Mabuhay Records – a recording company that produced albums for kundiman legends Ruben Tagalog, Sylvia dela Torre and Pilita Corrales
  • Sorriente-Santos Department Store – the first store that introduced the “buy-one-take-one” selling strategy.
  • Luisa & Son (roof deck) – a pre-war soda fountain popular with Manila’s high society.

The truncated corner

On March 1, 1950, the GMA Kapuso Network was also born at a makeshift studio at the fourth floor of the building (before moving to its present location in Diliman, Quezon City) when former American war correspondent for United Press Robert “Uncle Bob” Stewart (who eventually fell in love with a Filipina and the country as a whole) transmitted the first signal of  Republic Broadcasting System, now radio station DZBB-AM. Stewart would later expand his media enterprise into television, and Radio Broadcasting System would later be renamed GMA.

Today, Uno Seafood Wharf Palace, Mercury Drug and Tropical Hut flank the entrance to the building, with Wah Yuen Hot Pot and Seafood Restaurant in its Calle Soda side.

Old pre-World War II photo of Calvo Building without its fourth floor

Its mezzanine is home to the little-known Escolta Museum which contains memorabilia from the past.  During the post-war years, a fourth floor was added to the three-storey edifice.

Check out “Escolta Museum”

The ground floor lobby

Its front being a flagstop for the tranvia (electric tram line), it is the only building along Escolta that is pushed back. It house one of the few classic-style and rare, manually operated Otis elevators.

The richly-decorated and stunning facade at the second level has arched windows (except at the truncated corner) flanked by Ionic pilasters, above which is a cornice embellished by garlands and gracefully broken, in alternating sections, by cartouches supported by corbels above the window’s arch.

Photo of Don Angel Calvo

Calvo Building: 266 Escolta cor. Soda Sts., Binondo, Manila. Coordinates: 14.597141°N 120.978221°E.

How to Get There: The building is accessible from the LRT1-Carriedo station. The Pasig Ferry also has an Escolta stop.

Mengjia Longshan Temple (Taipei City, Taiwan)

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From Taipei 101, Jandy, Isha and I again walked to the Taipei City Hall MRT Station where we boarded the MRT to Longshan MRT Station.  It was just about dusk when we arrived at the station.  Before exiting, we all bought cups of coffee for take out and, upon exiting, leisurely sipped it while watching a Chinese dance being performed, beside the fountain, at Manka Park.

Gateway of Mengjia Longshan Temple

After finishing our coffee, we all walked over to the Mengjia Longshan (also spelled as Lungshan) Temple in front of the park, one of Taiwan’s most important places of worship.  Surrounding the temple are antique shops, Buddhists article shops, fortune tellers, traditional Chinese medicine shops and paper stores selling paper products that are burned for the deceased.

Waterfall of Cleaning Your Heart

Built in 1738 (during the Qing Dynasty), on a much smaller scale, as the spiritual center of Han settlers from the Jinjiang, Nan’an and Hui’an districts of Quanzhou County, Fujian, China, the temple has been destroyed, either in full or in part, by numerous earthquakes and fires. Nevertheless, Taipei residents have consistently rebuilt and renovated it. From 1919-1924, it was renovated, in large scale,  under the direction of famous architect Wang Yi-shun, a master of temple building in Fukien.

The Fore (or Front) Hall

On June 8, 1945, during World War II,  it was hit by American bombers, who claimed that the Japanese were hiding armaments inside. The whole main hall and a part of the right annex were damaged and many precious artifacts and artworks were lost in the ensuing fire. The fire somehow  missed the statue of Avalokiteshvara (in Sanskrit) or Guanyin (short for Guanshiyin which means “observing the sounds of the world”), the Buddhist Goddess of Mercy (only her toes were singed), even though the iron railing around her melted.  After the end of the war, a few months later, the temple was again rebuilt.

The main deity Guanyin with 2 bodhisattvas (Manjusri at the left and Samantabhadra on the right)

On August 19, 1985, Longshan Temple was designated as Taipei City’s fourth official historical site (after the Chang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, National Palace Museum and Taipei 101). The temple, one of the oldest and largest in Taiwan, has also been declared a Secondary National Heritage Site.

The temple courtyard packed with worshipers

We entered the temple’s gateway and, at the courtyard, noticed a small, man-made waterfall (the Waterfall of Cleaning Your Heart)  on one side and a lucky dragon fountain on the other.  The temple was already packed with locals either praying, reciting religious chants, lighting candles or burning incense sticks. They worship a  mixture of Buddhist, Taoist and folk deities such as Guanyin (also called Kuan-in), the main deity, Buddha, Matsu and other divine spirits. Thus, it is often called “meeting place of the gods” for the wealth of deities worshipped here. We didn’t see any Western tourists.

A bronze dragon pillar, the only one of its kind in Taiwan

The resplendent Longshan Temple,  with southern Chinese influences commonly seen in older buildings, is an emblematic example of Taiwanese Classical architecture.  Facing the south and mixing traditional Chinese siheyuan (“four-building courtyard”) with palace architecture in its design, it has a fore hall, main hall, a rear hall (added around the end of the 18th century) and a left and right wing.

Yuan Tung Grand Hall, the main hall

The Yuan-Tung Grand Hall, the main hall, is the center of the whole complex.  It houses the statue of Guanyin. The rear hall is divided into 3 parts.  The center is for the veneration of Matsu, the goddess of marine voyage, the left is dedicated to the gods of literature (or patrons of examination for civil service in the olden days) and the right is for Lord Kuan, the god of war.

The Rear Hall

The octagonal ceiling in its fore hall, the clock tower roof, and the circular ceiling (with its 7-layered spiral plafond) in the main hall are exceptionally elegant.  Its doors, beams and poles are also beautifully decorated.

Exquisite and elaborate carvings

A treasure trove of folk art, its fore hall is graced by a pair of unique bronze dragon pillars while the main hall has four pairs.  The walls and ceilings are covered by exquisitely delicate sculptures as well as many Chinese poems, verses and lyrics on signs, adding a touch of literature. The temple walls are graced with paintings of vivid creatures while stone statues of mystical creatures guard the temple grounds.  The wall and the roof  are joined without the use any nails or braces made of metal.

A phoenix figure on roof edge

The temple roof, representing the pinnacle of mosaic art in Taiwan, is covered with overlapping tiles and is decorated with figures of dragons, phoenixes and other auspicious creatures, all decorated with porcelain, clay, and shards of colored glass.

Drum Tower (West)

Bell Tower (East)

Two 2-storey buildings, one housing the bell on the east and a drum on the west side of the courtyard, between the fore hall and the main hall, have conic, hexagonal roofs with double eaves that forms a converse “S” curve, the first such roof design in Taiwan.

Mengjia Longshan Temple: 211 Guangzhou St., Old Town Center, Wanhua District, Taipei City, Taiwan.  Tel: (+886-2) 2302-5162. Website: http://www.lungshan.org.tw. Open daily, 6 AM-10:20 PM. Admission is free.

The Taipei 101 Building (Taiwan)

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The rain had stopped when we returned to the mall and, after snacks at a MacDonald’s outlet at Jason’s Marketplace, the mall’s 1,000-pax basement foodcourt, Jandy, Isha and I exited the building to avail of this window of opportunity.  We all walked, some distance, to a nearby park to appreciate the enormity and grandeur of the 357,721 sq. m. Taipei 101, the first record-setting skyscraper to be constructed in the 21st century. From afar, its repeated segments and inclined  tiers simultaneously recall the rhythms of an Asian pagoda, a tower linking earth and sky (also evoked in the Petronas Towers of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)’ a stalk of bamboo, an icon of learning and growth (also emphasized by  its blue green-tinted windows) or a stack of ancient Chinese ingots or money boxes, a symbol of abundance.

Our worm’s eye view of Taipei 101 Building

In 2004 (until the opening of the Burj Khalifa in Dubai in 2010), Taipei 101, formerly known as the Taipei World Financial Center (until 2003), was officially ranked as the world’s tallest  building, displacing the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (check out my visit here at http://worldstotrek.wordpress.com/2010/12/31/kuala-lumpur-new-years-day/), by 56.1 m (184 ft).  It also displaced the 85-storey, 347.5 m. (1,140 ft.) high Tuntex Sky Tower in Kaohsiung as the tallest building in Taiwan and the 51-storey, 244.2 m. (801 ft.) high Shin Kong Life Tower as the tallest building in Taipei. That same year, it also  received the Emporis Skyscraper Award. In July 2011, the building was awarded the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED Platinum certification, becoming the tallest and largest green building in the world.  Its own roof and façade recycled water system meets 20–30% of the building’s water needs.

Curled ruyi figures, appearing throughout the structure as a design motif, are ancient symbols associated with heavenly clouds that connote healing, protection and fulfillment. Each ruyi ornament on the exterior of the Taipei 101 tower stands at least 8 m. (26 ft.) tall.

An icon of modern Taiwan ever since its opening, the structure appears frequently in travel literature and international media.  Taipei 101 was designed by C.Y. Lee & Partners and  constructed primarily by Samsung C&T and KTRT Joint Venture.   It  comprises 106 floors, 101 above ground and 5 floors underground.

The circular motif, the “zero” in Taipei 101, is also the shape of a traditional Chinese coin, a potent symbol of wealth

Architecturally created as a symbol of the evolution of technology and Asian tradition, this building’s Post Modernist approach to style incorporates traditional design elements and gives them modern treatments. Designed to withstand typhoon and earthquakes, Taipei 101, upon its completion, claimed the official records for:

  • Ground to highest architectural structure (spire): 508 m. (1,667 ft.). Previously held by the Petronas Towers 451.9 m. (1,483 ft.), the record  now rests with the Burj Khalifa in Dubai (UAE): 828 m (2,717 ft).
  • Ground to roof: 449.2 m. (1,474 ft.). Formerly held by the Willis Tower‘s 442 m (1,450 ft), the record briefly passed to the Shanghai World Financial Center in 2009 which, in turn, yielded it to the Burj Khalifa.
  • Ground to highest occupied floor: 438 m. (1,437 ft.). Formerly held by the Willis Tower 412.4 m. (1,353 ft.), the record also briefly passed to the Shanghai World Financial Center and then to the Burj Khalifa. .
  • Fastest ascending elevator speed: designed to be 1,010 m. per min., which is 16.83 m./sec. (55.22 ft./sec.) (60.6 kms./hr., 37.7 miles/hr.),  34.7% faster than the 12.5 m. (41 ft) per second (45.0 kms./hr., 28 mile/hr.) speed of Yokohama Landmark Towers‘ elevator, the previous record holder.
  • Largest countdown clock which was displayed on New Year’s Eve (fireworks launched from Taipei 101 also feature prominently in international New Year’s Eve broadcasts).
  • Tallest sundial: The  design of  circular Millennium Park, which adjoins Taipei 101 on the east, allows it to double as the face of a sundial. The tower itself casts the shadow to indicate afternoon hours for the building’s occupants.
  • Taipei 101 is the first building in the world to break the half-kilometer mark in height.

Taipei 101: Xin Yi Rd., Xin Yi District, Taipei City, Taiwan. Tel: (+886-2) 8101-7777. Website: http://www.taipei-101.com.tw.