Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Vicita Iglesia 2012 Part Two - 14 New Churches Added To My Chronicle

Part two of two.  Continued from this post


8th Station: Parish of St. Francis of Assisi (Church of Meycauayan)
Meycauayan, Bulacan, Philippines

I got so excited at the first sight of this church that I lost an important piece of paper here. I’m imagining horses and carriages, ladies in Maria Clara dresses attending masses and some timid stolen glances from the gentlemen. This church is founded in 1578 and there’s a lot of digging to do to make a special post for this one.

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9th Station: St. Michael Parish (Church of Marilao)
Marilao, Bulacan, Philippines

Plants sprouting from all over its walls is the first thing that you will notice from this old church which is founded on April 17, 1796. And once you enter, be ready to be amazed by its breathtaking altar. Watch out as I share the details in a more detailed post

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101_9412-1_thumb13When I was doing Vicita Iglesia in the old days, I don’t eat or drink anything unless I finished the fourteen stations.
This time, my navigator bought some “pastillas” and “yema” candies from the vendor at the second church. I ate just about two pieces because my mouth was so dry from the heat. Then beside this church at around lunch time, I saw him munching “kamote fries”, “banana que”, “quek-quek” and sipping ice cold lemon lime! Oh forgive this hungry human I can no longer resist the temptation and hunger! LOL!
10th Station: National Shrine of the Divine Mercy
Marilao Bulacan, Philippines

As we ask people what is the nearest church from our 9th church, everybody points to one direction, the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy. But we were also warned about the crowd and the traffic. I realized later what was the warning is about when we reached the place, it is sooo crowded. Again, some bits of memories takes me down memory lane but I can’t make a solid one. The place looks familiar but I can’t remember the scene I am seeing now. I probably been here a very long time ago. I need to make some research soon so to give clarity to my bit of memory and I’ll be sharing it to you.

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11th Station: St. Martin of Tours Church
Bocaue, Bulacan, Philippines

Another old church. It’s unfortunate that we were not able to take a shot of the church marker. Our time constraint started from here. We need to be home by 2:30PM and we’re running out of time. My navigator wants to have the Barasoain Church as our last station but he’s not sure if our time is ample. I don’t mess around with the time and navigation planning. I’m not good at that, I’m just the spoiled passenger :).

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12th Station: San Juan Chapel
Balagtas, Bulacan, Philippines

I suggested that we take this chapel at Balagtas Bulacan to be our 12th station. I surmised that if ever we run out of time, at least I’m done with my main purpose. It’s a very simple chapel that caters to the parishioners of a certain number in this Barangay. The full shot of the chapel doesn’t look good, so I chose to share this shot with a cross. 

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13th Station: St. Lawrence Deacon and Martyr Parish
Balagtas, Bulacan, Philippines

A beautifully structured old church with a beautiful arch adorned with the image of the patron saint atop of it and three old church bells, what more could you ask for? But there’s really more to share about this church that I will feature in a more detailed post.

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14th Station: Barasoain Church /Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Parish 
Malolos Bulacan, Philippines 

We drove straight to Malolos, skipping the San Ildefonso Church. My navigator had been in this church once but he’s serious in bringing me here. He said that our Vicita Iglesia in this area would not be complete without visiting the most historical one. The famous church that is printed/engraved in the Philippine Ten Peso denomination, famously known as the Barasoain Church. There are quite a lot to say about this historical edifice and so I will be working hard on the detailed post for this one.

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There it is! fourteen churches completed my Vicita Iglesia. 2012 and added to my chronicle. My purpose is accomplished and my adventurer self satisfied.

Of course that was made possible by having the best navigator with me, who happens to by my man = my hubby, powered by his GPS android tablet and his reliable two-wheel drive. Now the challenge is to travel back home speedily but safely. I pray to all the saints and angels that we met from all the churches that we visited, to guide us on our trip back home.

As we drove back home, I can hear the “Mission Impossible” movie theme playing in the background as I held on tight to my hubby feeling like “Katie Holmes” to my "Tom Cruise" as we go back riding home. Winking smile

“as years go by, the beliefs and traditions are adapting into the modern time and technology,
 but the faith never loosen”

6 comments:

  1. wow! salamat sa infos. naimpress ako sa mga kasin-antique kong churches na yan hehe. maghahanap ako sa photo database ko if may makita akong kasin-antique ng mga churches na kuha ko, 1578 hmmm..

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  2. you're welcome Gracie!
    I'm glad you liked them. Can't wait to see your collection :)

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  3. ayos ah...ehehe yung entry 9 and 10 dun ako nagsisimba...ehehe sa divine mercy at st michael parish church...ehehe yung sa 11 naman dun ako nagsisimba nung high school days kasi malapit lang dun school namin...yung sa 12 nadadaanan ko yun...at yung sa 13 naman dun ako nagsisimba araw-araw bago pumasok sa opis :)

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  4. sabi ko na nga ba familiar karamihan dito kay "bulakenyong henyo" eh. ang gaganda talaga ng mga churches dyan sa inyo. pag may chance babalikan ko pa yung iba :)

    silipin mo yung part one, I'm sure may mga story ka din doon ;)

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  5. Great photos mukhang enjoy talaga ang visita iglesia. Thanks for sharing your photos love it! Ung Barasoain Church sa may bulacan din ba un? tanda ko nag field trip kmi doon nung high school.

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    1. hello sis yes super enjoy nga. bonding namin ni hubby yan :) am glad you liked the photos.
      Yes, Barasoain in Malolos Bulacan. it's sort of a tourist spot doon sa area. lahat ng churches na nandito sa Part One & Two na post na eto are Valenzuela & Bulacan area and they are members of the Diocese of Malolos.

      wow field trip! THANKS for visiting :)

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