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Thursday, March 7, 2019

PALACIO DE MEMORIA (Part II)

The Titos N Titas: L-R, Ferdi Bolislis, Pheeyah Salones, Tim Delez
Arlene Cejar, Myself, Bhel Asinas
Mabelle Tenorio, Lilibeth Benosa, Dodi Escartin
Febe Sevilla, Leah Caliboso, Del Nuqui, Pie Burwell
Dennis Roland Castanos, Yohann Moises, Fritzie Ramos, Amy Cristobal
This visit was planned by the Titos N Titas of Manila... We call ourselves that for no apparent reason except for the fact that we like visiting interesting areas that catch our fancy.  Annie Grace Nicandro Obeya made the arrangements for our tour of the mansion. So on top of that we decided to make a whole day of it visiting Baclaran Church, St. Andrew Church, St. Joseph Church, Sarao Jeepney, San Ezekiel Moreno Church. 


Shrine of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Baclaran
Since the Casa de Memoria doesn't open till ten in the morning, and since it was a first Saturday of the month, the group made the Baclaran Church our first stop. The first order of the day was Mass in honor of Our Lady of Perpetual Help . Originally dedicated to St. Therese of Lisieux,  whose grotto is in the patio, the veneration of the saint was eventually given second importance when the image of Our Lady of Perpetual Help was ensconced in the main altar upon the request of the Ynchausti family of Malate as a condition of their donation of a  high altar in 1932. The icon form Germany made it's way to Baclaran  through Ireland and, Australia .  The devotion to the Lady was celebrated on a Wednesday at the new church designed by Arch. Cesar Concio and it caught on. The popularity of the Novena was strengthened when people observed the devotion regularly since. Then Archbishop of Krakow, Karol Cardinal Wojtyla celebrated the Eucharist when he made an unofficial visit to Baclaran in the 1970s and then made it part of his Apostolic visit in 1981 as  Pope John Paul II. On a secular note, during the snap elections in 1986 the thirty five tabulators who walked out of the Philippine International Convention Center claiming the election was being rigged sought refuge in Baclaran Church despite the  fact that Imelda Romualdez Marcos was a known supporter of the church.


Needing sustenance, our lunch was at a non-descript carinderia along Quirino Highway in Paranaque called Gracia's. The food was exceptionally cheap and very tasty. I opted to order cantina style as I couldn't wait for them to cook my tapsilog. I ordered a bowl of monggo guisado (mung bean soup) and okoy na alamang (shrimp fry fritters). The combination was perfect! The fritter was really fresh and one could taste the briny shrimp that was crunchy and savory. The soup was hearty and thick. All that with a cup of rice an a small bottle of soda set me back around seventy pesos. Not bad at all!


We then motored to St. Andrew Church which wasn't too far. The church of St. Andrew is one of the oldest churches in Manila dating back to 11 May, 1580. Established in an area known then as Palanyag ( a derivative of the Filipino term Paglalayag meaning to set sail). It was a small fishing village of a few houses which were clumped along the Paranaque river and Manila Bay. Agustinian priest Fr, Juan de Orto was tasked with spreading the word of God in the area which he started doing around 1578. By 1580, they community had become a visita where Fr. Diego de Espinal had built a mission house and appointed as its superior. Being a fishing village, the community was dedicated to St. Andrew who was the patron of fishermen. The parish thrived under the Patronato Real in which King Felipe II provided 200 pesos and 200 bushels of rice to the religious in the area periodically because the mission had no funds. By August 10, 1625 the shrine to honor the Nstra. Sra, del Buen Suceso. The Chinese Pirate Koxinga threatened to invade Manila in 1625. Gov. Manrique de Lara had all the churches outside Manila demolished in order to fortify the city. St. Andrew was not spared. In 1762, when the British conquered Manila, Fr. Eusebio Polo and Fr. Manuel de Sto. Tomas Garcia were exiled in Goa, India..Eventually, the church was rebuilt and declared a shrine. Some of the visitas in and around the area like Sta. Monica and San Dionisio are built facing the Cathedral.
St. Andrew Cathedral
The next site we visited was the St. Joseph Church. Arguably, the most photographed church during the Christmas season, St. Joseph is also the home of the world famous Bamboo Organ. Built under the initiative of Fr. Diego Cera, O.S.A, the church is done in the Philippine earthquake baroque style from 1797 - 1819. The adjacent convent, now a museum, is done in the manner of a Spanish Antillan house. Damaged by strong earthquakes in 1828 and 1863, and wars from the British invasion and the Japanese occupation, the church was restored and structurally reinforced to its present condition. The church gets a lot of attention for its historic, aesthetic, cultural contributions. It is virtually impossible to talk about the St. Joseph church without at least viewing the Bamboo Organ.
St. Joseph Church
The Bamboo Organ
On our afternoon visit, our guide brought us into the church to listen to the pure tones that it produces. Fr. Diego Cera built the organ from 1816-1824. The organ has 1,031 pieces, 902 of which are bamboo pipes.  It was destroyed in the earthquake oh 1828 and laid unused until 1917. In 1972 , Johannes Klais Orgelbau won a contract to restore the organ in Bonn, Germany and by 1975, the organ  restoration was completed and the Bamboo Organ Festival was celebrated since. That merited a trip up to the choir loft to view the organ's inner mechanisms that ingeniously have been partially encased in glass so one can see how it operates. A go-see of the museum revealed that the cost of restoration during the 1970s at approximately P1.5M. It was money well spent, if you ask me.
Bamboo Organ pipes

Bhel Asinas touring us around her high school campus
Tita Bhel Asinas took us on a sentimental tour of her high school, St. James. We were allowed into the campus to see the still existing Spanish era conventos and campus plus the "improvements" made that included new school buildings and gym that brought back many funny stories to tell. Then we were off to Sarao Motors to see how the iconic mode of transport - the Jeepney is constructed. It also offered us a glimpse of  history since the time the jeeps were conceptualized and produced to its evolution up to the present. I am of an age when the jeepney fare for kids was ten centavos. The regular fare at the moment is nine pesos... that's inflation for you, folks! From war transport, our beloved jeeps are now subject to high technology. E-jeepneys are now in vogue as a concession to environment friendly practices.

Ness Sembrero and Piolo Panaligan at the Sarao Jeepney factory
San Exequiel Moreno Church
Finally, we visited San Exequiel Moreno Church on the outskirts of Las Pinas along the C5 route. San Exequiel was born in  Alfaro, La Rioja, Spain on the 9th of April, 1898. Twenty years later, on September 22, 1868 he took his vows in Navarra, Spain.  By the 10th of February,  1848 San Exequiel Moreno was sent to IntramurosManila where he stayed at the San Nicolas convent, a.k.a Recoletos. By mid 1870 he was sent off to Jaro, Iloilo.  He was also sent off to Palawan , Mindoro and Las Pinas His religious zeal and love for the poor are traits endeared him to his parishioners. He stood by their sickbed to minister to them and shared personal funds to provide for their needs in times of calamity. As proof of fact, the parishioners petitioned for his continued stay in Las Pinas when they learned he was to be assigned to Sto. Tomas, Batangas.  He was also assigned to the parish in Sta. Cruz, Manila and Imus, Cavite. Subsequent postings merited petitions for the suspension of his transfer, but St. Exequiel Moreno always obeyed the orders of his superiors. This paved the way for his return to Spain and then he was assigned to Colombia. In mid 1905, he was diagnosed with cancer of the palate and retired to spend his days in Monteagudo, Spain. On August 19, 1906, San Exequiel Moreno succumbed to his illness. His remains were exhumed in 1915 and 1975 and found to be incorrupt. The church dedicated to him is spanking new, reminiscent of  Neo Romanesque design on a massive scale. Everything was an obvious match to the new development in the area. I particularly liked the relic of St. Exequiel Moreno displayed near the left transept of the altar.  I'd give it a few more years to display more character. I even climbed up the choir loft to view the shiny  pipe organ that's a definite feature of the church.
San Exequiel Moreno relic
By sundown all of us had boarded our way to the vans headed for Manila. That was epic!

















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