Oasis/Water World Wednesday

Be the peace you seek.

Linking to Water World Wednesday

Fort Santiago, revisited/OWT

I am having fun with photo effects.:p  And I think these photos are perfect for the vintage effect, don't you think?  The top and bottom photos were taken in front of Fort Santiago, an old Spanish fort in the walled city of Intramuros.  With these horse-drawn carriages, I was thrown back in time to 1900's Manila.  But I was here to attend a modern-day wedding reception at the Plaza de Moriones.  My friend's son got married---I couldn't believe it!  It was like yesterday when this handsome little boy entertained himself by drawing pictures while us girls were having girl-talk. 

my friend, Angie, giving her speech and crying at the same time.  she couldn't seem to stop crying.:p  Nico, after all, is her first-born.

This building across the entrance of Fort Santiago houses United Philippine Lines (UPL), a manning company for the maritime industry. 

Linking to Our World - Tuesday

Public [Photo Hunt]

These are recycled photos of Plaza de Armas in Fort Santiago, the fort's main square.  This place is open to the public for a minimal fee of 75 pesos (approximately $1.65).   At the entrance of Plaza de Armas are the brass footsteps of  Dr. Jose Rizal, embedded on concrete.  These are his footsteps from his prison cell to Bagumbayan where he was executed by firing squad  and made him a martyr of the Philippine Revolution.  Dr. Rizal was imprisoned in this fort in 1896 during his court martial---he was later convicted on charges of rebellion, sedition and conspiracy against the Spanish government.

Across Plaza de Armas is the Rizal Shrine, a public museum built in honor of Rizal's heroism.  The shrine holds Dr. Rizal's books, memorabilia, manuscripts and artworks, his famous poem Mi Ultimo Adios and a piece of his vertebra.   A life-size statue of  the hero holding a book stands at the edge of Plaza de Armas.  This statue made me wonder what was his favorite book.:p

Plaza de Armas at dusk

Posted for Photo Hunt

Moat of Fort Santiago [Sunday Bridges]

At the tip of the delta near the mouth of the Pasig River stands Fort  Santiago.   It was built in 1571 for Spanish conquistador, Miguel Lopez de Legazpi.  It is part of the structures of the walled city of Intramuros, and one of the oldest Spanish stone fortresses in the Philippines. As the premier defense fortress of the Spanish government in the Philippines, the main gate of Fort Santiago is fortified by a moat with a stone  bridge. 

Fort Santiago was the site of fierce conflicts between the Chinese and the Spanish in the 15th century.  It was captured by the Japanese during World War II and sustained heavy damage from American and Filipino mortar shells during the Battle of Manila in 1945.

This was the main fort for the spice trade to the Americas and Europe  for 333 years, and where the famous Manila Galleon trade to Acapulco, Mexico began. 

Posted for Sunday Bridges

Roxas Bridge [Sunday Bridges]

Viewed from the walls of historic Fort Santiago in Intramuros is Roxas Bridge, formerly called the Del Pan Bridge, one of the 13 bridges that crosses Pasig River.  Pasig River stretches 25 kilometers connecting Laguna de Bay, a freshwater lake, to Manila Bay.  Roxas Bridge is the last bridge near the mouth of the Pasig River that opens to Manila's Port Area.

Posted for Sunday Bridges

Photo-Hunt: lock

A rusted padlock secures this recessed gate in Fort Santiago, one of the oldest Spanish stone fortresses in the Philippines. The view from this locked postern far north of Plaza Armas is the dying Pasig River, choked with industrial waste and garbage. This gate is called Postigo de la Nuestra Senora de Soledad (Postern of our Lady of Solitude), an escape passage of a Spanish Governor-General in 1762 when British soldiers captured Manila.

Postigo de la Nuestra Senora de Soledad

Posted for Photo-Hunt

Litratong Pinoy: Misyon [Mission]

Rizal Shrine in Calamba

Kung dati ka ng napadpad dito, malamang nakita mo na ang ibang litratong ito sa dati kong mga post. Naisipan ko lang na ang magiging misyon ng blog page ko ay ang mailarawan ang ganda at mayamang kultura ng Pilipinas. Kung isa kang Pinoy, nais kong magiging no. 1 fan ka ng Pilipinas at ipagmamalaki mong Filipino ka. At kahit maraming problema dito, sana hindi mo ipagsawalang-bahala ang mga kapuri-puring bagay sa bayan mo.

Kung dayuhan ka naman, gusto kong makita mo sa blogsite na 'to ang iba pang mukha ng Pilipinas---hindi lang kahirapan, katiwalian, at krimen ang makikita mo dito. Puno ng yaman ang buong kapuluan. Hindi man ginto o langis, kundi yaman ng pagkamalikhain, taos-pusong pagkakaibigan at tunay na kagandahang-loob. Gusto ko rin makilala mo ang marangal naming lahi, at kung ano man ang pagkakaiba ng ating kultura, kaugalian at paniniwala, imbes na pag-awayan, pintasan o batikusin, sana matuto tayong ipagdiwang ang ating kaibhan.

Navy cadets in Corregidor

World War II memorial---Brothers in Arms

If you’ve been to this blog before, you have probably seen these photos in my previous posts. I thought of re-posting them and make it this blog’s mission to show the beauty and the rich cultural heritage of the Philippines. If you are a Filipino, I’d like you to be proud of who you are and become the Philippines’ no. 1 fan. Our challenges seem to be never-ending but don’t let it blind you to the commendable milestones we have achieved as a people.

If you're a foreigner, I'd like this blogsite to show you another facet of my country. Philippines is not all about poverty, corruption and crime. This archipelago is a treasure-trove, not of gold or oil, but of creativity and talent, of sincere friendships and genuine hospitality. I would like you to get to know of our proud and honorable race. We may differ in culture, tradition and religion, but instead of nurturing conflict, let us celebrate our differences.

beach in Camotes Island

Silliman Hall at Silliman University

tranquil Balinsasayao Lake in Negros Oriental

serene Lake Kabalin-an

raging Dumacaa River in Tayabas

a friendly encounter with a cowboy in Tayabas forest

remembering Dr. Jose Rizal's heroism in Fort Santiago

our heirs

Posted for Litratong Pinoy

Fountains at Fort Santiago - Watery Wednesday

Sounds of water greet the visitor upon entering the gates of Fort Santiago in the walled city of Intramuros. There are two fountains at the center of the plaza known as Plaza Moriones, named after Governor General Domingo Moriones (1877-1880). Plaza Moriones is a public promenade with benches and tree-lined walk ways. Near the fountain is a historical marker established by the Spanish Embassy to commemorate the 1792 political and scientific expedition to the Philippines made by Alejandro Malaspina and Jose Bustamante.
The information center, cafe and souvenir shop are housed at the ten chambers of the stone wall near the gate. An old building, a former soldiers' barracks of the Spanish and Americans, has been slowly disintegrating and no longer open to the public. Cultural performances are also shown here---we caught a drum and bugle corps during our visit. I also noticed picnic tables, and the archeological excavation of Artillera de Maestranza, a foundry during the Spanish regime that cast cannons and ammunition. Flowering kalachuchi (frangipani), old narra and huge anahaw trees provide shade in this part of Fort Santiago.

Remnants of the past---a cannon and mortar shells on display, either from World War II or the Spanish period. Fort Santiago, one of the oldest Spanish stone fortresses in the country, is definitely a cool place to visit.

"The whole history of the world is summed up in the fact that, when nations are strong, they are not always just, and when they wish to be just, they are no longer strong."

~ Winston Churchill

Posted for Watery Wednesday

Fort Santiago - Weekend Snapshot

Two weekends ago, I was an accidental tourist in Fort Santiago. It's been more than a decade since I visited the old fortress. I brought an American friend there once upon a time, then a client from UK. Driving from Caloocan on late Sunday afternoon after attending the first birthday party of my niece, together with my mom and my friend S, we stopped by the Manila Cathedral then walked towards Fort Santiago to cool off. It was a hot and humid afternoon.

Fort Santiago, or Fuerte de Santiago in Spanish, is a defense fortress built for Spanish conquistador, Miguel Lopez de Legazpi, in 1571. It was named in honor of a Spanish patron saint, James, Slayer of the Moors (Santiago Matamoros), whose wooden relief decorates the main gate of the fort. Fort Santiago is part of the structures of the walled city of Intramuros. One of the oldest and most dramatic colonial buildings in the Philippines, Fort Santiago was built to guard the entrance to the Pasig River. The site where the fort stands was originally the settlement of Rajah Sulayman, a Muslim chieftain and the last ruler of pre-hispanic Manila. The original structure made out of log and earth was destroyed in the Spanish-Chinese War of 1574-1575. It was in 1589 when the Spaniards constructed the fort using hard stone and finished in 1592. It became the main fort for travels and spice trade to the Americas and Europe for 333 years. The famous Manila Galleon trade to Acapulco, Mexico started sailing from the Fuerte de Santiago.

The fort is protected by 22 feet high walls, with a thickness of 8 feet and a gate measuring 40 feet high. The gate of Fort Santiago was built together with the military barracks in 1714. It was destroyed in the Battle of Manila in 1945, and was restored in 1982.

Fort Santiago was used by the Spanish as its base of power, which they wielded unforgivingly. It housed the military, Spanish officials and dignitaries and also served as a formidable prison with infamous dungeons and torture chambers. More recent memories of tyranny include the legacy of wartime Japanese occupation, when Philippine freedom fighters suffered and died here. In another cell block, American POW's were left to be drowned by the rising tide. This fort was one of the rumoured resting places for the legendary wartime trove of Yamashita's Gold and the victims' final resting place has been much disturbed by treasure hunters.

my mom, checking out the dungeon

The prison in Fort Santiago also held in confinement its most famous prisoner---Dr. Jose Rizal, the national hero, until his execution on December 30, 1896. It was during his final days in Fort Santiago when Jose Rizal wrote his death poem, Mi Ultimo Adios.

Rizal's cell---the former Cuarto de Repuesto

Now embedded onto the ground in bronze, are Rizal's final footsteps from his cell in Fort Santiago to Bagumbayan where he was executed by a firing squad.

Rizal's final footsteps

At the heart of Fort Santiago is the Rizal Shrine. The shrine is dedicated to Rizal's lifework and home to various memorabilia, books, manuscripts, artworks belonging to the martyr. It's a pity the shrine was already closed when we got there that Sunday afternoon. I would have loved to see the relics of our national hero---one of his vertebrae, the first draft of his novel Noli Me Tangere (1887) and the original of Mi Ultimo Adios.

a statue of Rizal at the Plaza de Armas

The brick ruins are part of the oldest building in Fort Santiago. Built in 1593, the structure was a barracks for Spanish soldiers. During the American period, army officers and their families lived here.

Plaza de Armas at dusk

The Fort Santiago I visited that Sunday was a lot better than the Fort Santiago more than 10 years ago. The fort is now well-maintained, the rest rooms and grounds are clean---a national shrine every Filipino can be proud of. Fort Santiago may have lost its old grandeur after World War II but its significance to our culture and history should not be lost on us.

Posted for Weekend Snapshot