Visita iglesia routes for Holy Thursday 2011

By now, you might have decided where to go tomorrow for Holy Thursday visita iglesia. But for those who still don't have any plans, here are some ideas for visita iglesia to our heritage churches in Metro Manila and nearby provinces.

You could visit churches in Cavite, Batangas, Laguna, Rizal, Quezon, Pampanga, Bulacan, Bataan and Pangasinan.

Bulacan: San Miguel Heritage Town and Biak-na-Bato National Park

San Miguel, Bulacan is a very historic town. The town proper is an outstanding assemblage of colonial-period houses. While the caves of Biak-na-Bato were witness to the birth of the Philippine nation.



We got to visit San Miguel, Bulacan recently as part of Lakbay Norte of the North Philippines Visitors Bureau. First stop was the San Miguel Heritage Town. We were able to stop by the historic San Miguel Church, where some of our nation's heroes are buried including Maximo Viola, a friend of Dr. Jose Rizal who helped finance the publication of Noli Me Tangere.


Unfortunately, we didn't have time to explore the ancestral houses. But we made one round around town.



I got to explore San Miguel when I was still a college student. And obviously, much has changed. It alarms me that the historical fabric of the town is starting to change as well. And safeguards need to be put in place if we are to conserve the historic core of San Miguel.



A few kilometers from the town proper is the Biak-na-Bato National Park, the mountain hideout of the Philippine Revolutionary Forces and birthplace of the Republika ng Biak-na-Bato in 1897. It is said to be the first Philippine republic with its own constitution. But it was short-lived and lasted only a month.


In 1937, President Manuel L. Quezon declared 2,117 hectares in the Biak-na-Bato area as a national park to honor the First Philippine Republic. It's actually a refreshing place with a comfortable cover of green, several streams and waterfalls, and a system of caves which served as hideouts for our revolutionary forces.


A visit to San Miguel, Bulacan is definitely an appointment with Philippine history.

Metro Manila: Las Pinas Bamboo Organ and visita iglesia in Paranaque and Las Pinas

The southern cities of Metro Manila have some interesting heritage churches, particularly Paranaque and Las Pinas which you can visit for visita iglesia.


Who does not know the Bamboo Organ? The Las Pinas Church is home to this National Cultural Treasure. It was in 1810 that Fr. Diego Cera began contruction for the Las Pinas Church which was completed in 1819. The architecture of the church itself is very simply yet sturdy with its massive stone colonades ans stucco Neoclassical altar.


The highlight of any visit to the Las Pinas Church is the Bamboo Organ which Fr. Cera built in 1823. It has a total of 1,031 original bamboo pipes and 129 new metal ones. It fell into disrepair but was restored in 1942 by Carmelo and Jose Loinaz. In 1973, the organ was sent to the Johannes Klais Factory in Bonn, Germany for a full restoration.



In Paranaque, one of the best preserved churches is the San Dionisio Chapel. This small chapel is worth the visit because of its intact wooden altar. But what makes the altar even more famous or infamous is the headless image of San Dionisio or Tatang Dune to the locals.


Paranaque in fact has several other heritage churches including the Paranaque Cathedral, La Huerta Chapel and Redemptorist Church, which you can visit when on visita iglesia.

The Paranaque Cathedral's veneration for the Nuestra Senora del Buen Suceso dates back to 1625. The current church was built from 1638 to 1650.