152/365: The Viking From The North Talks About Norway’s Oldest Stave Church

1st of June

Roffe - The Viking From The North (Norway) is a long time blogger friend.  If I remember it right it has been since I started this blog.  He is one among the few long time blogger friends who still around and actively blogging. 

If you will check on Roffe’s site you will find that he’s been blogging for quite a long time now and he has several blog sites too.  His blogs have quite a number of regular visitors and followers.  No wonder Roffe’s sites also have good page ranks consistently.

I learned a lot about Norway from Roffe.  Its culture and tradition, food, occasion, season and a lot more.  Reading along Roffe’s post is like reading a concise encyclopedia about Norway.  He also shares his experiences and adventures outside Norway.  His blog site is very informative and entertaining at the same time.

What I admire about Roffe’s blog entries is his unique way of posting short yet so interesting posts.  Which is what I have been trying to learn.  He has this unique writing style that makes each entry brief, concise but interesting.   Awesome!

Take for example this guest blog post where he presented a very unique kind of church. 

~***~

Norway’s Oldest Stave Church

The ground under the Urnes stave church is sinking, and this national treasure in Sognefjord has begun to sink at its northern end.

During the summer of 2008, researchers from NTNU worked to determine how much the church could be lifted and stabilized without being ruined. At the same time, dendrochronologist Terje Thun took tree ring samples from the oldest wood. The samples confirm that the church was erected over a longer period in the 1130's.

At the same time it was shown that a portion of the church, - including the northern wall, with its spectacular carvings, was actually recycled material from another church that previously stood at the same spot. The youngest of these timbers were felled around year 1070.

Based on the wood samples, it is concluded that The Urnes Stave Church is the oldest Norwegian Church that has been dated.

~***~

Thank you so much Roffe for granting my request!  I hope you will never stop blogging and sharing your interesting entries to us.

137/365: Fresh From Budapest The (Not So) Wholesome Kid Talks About A Church Inside A Cave Called Sziklatemplom

17th of May

“Shameless syet” , “inorgasm”, “kilig-b*y*g”, “k*nt*t”, “lamp*ngan” are some of the the regular words being used by the smart-cracking-mouth of this young guy on his social media statuses and on his blog  which by the title itself is a warning - Hindi Ito Wholesome (This Is Not Wholesome).

My apologies to my foreign readers because there are no decent exact translation for the opening words to the English language.  If I will find one and translate them for you my blog might be re-classified ha ha!

If you judge this kid through his words probably you will never like understand him.  I honestly cringed during the first time that I was coming across his statuses and blog posts.  But when you read beyond words you will realize that they are logical and sensible.  I took it that this kid uses words to emphasize his points which I think is very effective.  Plus his presence in the blogosphere by his own unique way of expression serves as a balance versus the abundance of the “goody-goody” blog sites. “Pang-balanse ika nga at maiba naman.”

Funny thing is that, in spite of this kid’s blatant way of expression I found it very contrasting to his angelic face.  Meet Cyron – tadaah!

Cyron's talent came in bundle.  Aside from his talent in writing he is also very good in art.  And attention ladies – he is SINGLE! (as far as I know ha ha).  Go get your passports and chase him in Hungary  

I had the chance to be in conversed with Cyron a few times because we share the same love for cats.  From there I found that there’s really a sweet boy behind those censored-risk-defying-expression (lol).

Now considering how Cyron expressed himself do you think it was easy for me to ask him to be my guest blogger and write about something that is related to ”holy” ?  Yep!  I did not hesitate!,  In fact he is one among the first people that I asked because I am certain that behind those “censored-risk-defying-way-of-expression is an intelligent and sensible sweet boy. 

And I was not wrong.  After clarifying some details about my invitation his “orgasmic” reply was “look forward for my post”.

So here it is for the first time in history!  Fresh from Budapest the Wholesome Cyron! 

~ *** ~

When it comes to places of worship, Budapest (Hungary) is rich in historic places of it representing many faiths and traditions. I have been living here for more than 10 years now and I must say this country is a must to visit here in Europe.

The spire, tower, dome or minaret is usually the most distinctive feature in any village or urban neighborhood, and often is the most significant historic building.  Fortunately, most are still used for worship, and some have found new sympathetic uses.  But investment in their care is also a significant responsibility, so congregations and communities can find it difficult to raise funds and maintain the buildings and their beautiful decorations and furnishings.  For the tourists and visitors, it is not easy to find interesting places of worship or learn of their history. 

As a person living here in the city, this is one of my favorite places of worship. To be tell the truth, I am a religious person in away that I don’t schedule myself to go to church on Sunday but instead just go in whenever I have a time and feel like to be alone and talk to myself and to God.

Sziklatemplom



Sziklatemplom pronounce as ’Sikla Templom’ or Cave Church is one of the unique church in Budapest, Hungary. It is located inside of the hill called Gellért Hill. It was founded in 1926, by a group of Pauline monks after a pilgrimage to Lourdes, France.

If you are not familiar, Budapest is home to a number of natural caves and cellar systems formed by thermal springs.

This church is not your typical church with high ceilings and gilded interior. The altar itself is located at the entrance of the cave and the congregation was seated outdoors on the terrace.












According to the legend, used to be, this place was a place for healing. Some time in the medieval ages there was a hermit called Ivan who cured many people with the thermal healing waters that kept flowing from the underground hot springs from the karst caves of the Gellert Hill. At that time the name of the hill was ‘Pest
Hill’ pest pronounce as ‘pesht’ – meant ‘cave’ in the Slavic languages, and Hungarians used the Slavic word for this area (part of Budapest now) indicating that the natural cave existed many centuries ago. St Ivan cave was not too big, so to make the church more spacious, there was a series of explosions carried out.

During World War II, the church served as a hospital and asylum. After the war, the monks were arrested and their superior, father Ferenc Vezér was sentenced to death by the Communist regime.

~ *** ~

By the way if you need more amusement and laughter in life you may want to tumble with Cyron here.

102/365: Churches: A Church from Sagada Philippines in the Eye of The Soul Explorer.

12th of April

The mysterious Marco The Soul Explorer is one among the first bloggers that I have regular and fun interaction with in the blogosphere when I was just starting this blog.  And it is such a pleasure thought that he is still around exploring and blogging up to this day.  Some of our common blogger friends had gone hiatus and has not come back yet.

Marco is one among my favorite person in the blogosphere.  Probably because we share the same passion for running  and exploration.  I usually call him “lakwatsero” – the most fitting Tagalog word that best describes his personality and passion.  I wish someday I can also do his other passion - mountain climbing.

For me to describe Marco as a blogger and in person? (Yep I already met him in person ha ha). Apart from being one good looking guy (no argument on this!) he is also a pleasant and a well- mannered guy.

As a blogger he is supportive and thoughtful.  In spite of being the male and older counterpart of “Dora” he never fails to surprise me with his simple yet sincere thoughtfulness. Out of the blue he will drop a comment to my blog or a “hi” or any conversation anywhere online. That is, as long as he's not in any mountain top, backpacking, going against rapids, dancing in festivals, tasting weird food or finishing a race!

Take for example this request.  I did not even ask twice. I was really delightfully surprised finding this entry on my email inbox!   THANKS Marco!  More power to you and may you never get tired sharing your exploration to all of us!  Now let’s see/hear it from you!

  ~~**~~

The Episcopal Church of Saint Mary the Virgin



Before heading to our next activity, we passed by at the only church in the town. This is a well-known landmark in the town of Sagada –is the only town in the Philippines that is almost Anglican where in 95% of locals baptised into the Episcopal Church of the Philippines. It is located at the Episcopalian Mission compound and it was sanctified on the 8^th of December 1921.

Behind of the church is the school of Saint Mary’s Highs School, the Calvary Hills and fifteen to twenty five minutes hike is the echo valley, and you can see the hanging coffins. You can pass by at the Sagada Cemetery before you reach to the echo valley. Truly a nice view at the back!

We were able to get inside the church because it was open and able to take some pictures in it. So lucky! And, minutes after the mass had begun. The church is quite small, but it simple and looks nice. The altar has rocks at the back which looks so different.



This should not be missed when visiting the place!

82/365: Will You Be My Guest (Post) Blogger To Feature About Church or Any Place of Worship?

23rd of March

This coming month of April I will be starting a new series on my blog.  It will be called “Churches and Places of Worship” which will be done through guest postings.

Who will be the ”Guest Post”?
YOU! Be that you’re a reader, follower or blogger friend you are all welcome.  Anyone who is reading this and interested to be my guest blogger is welcome!

What makes this unique?
There are a lot of on-going guest posting in the blogosphere but what makes this unique is that we will just be talking about “churches” or “other places of worship”.

You may have noticed that I have this special interest (to the point of passion) about churches and places of worship. I already featured several churches here, and there’s a lot more that are on queue to be posted. As always I am just waiting for the right time to post about each church.

Then why guest post?
The more the merrier plus the fact that I will not be able reach as many places as I want to and feature as much churches as I want.  So why not ask the help of other people that might be interested with my interest as well?  Also, I have friends all over the world and it would be awesome to make them a part of this right?

Come join me as I feature churches and places worship from everywhere!

Any specifics?
Yes there are but they are not too complicated.

1. The post should not exceed 1,000 words and you can express it in any medium that you are comfortable with.
If you are a photographer you can feature it by photographs you just need to provide the caption.  If you are an artist you can express it by any medium you are comfortable with – drawings, doodles, song (with video is allowed) or any similar medium.  If you want it something literary, poem, quotation or a featured article it’s fine as long as it will not exceed 1,000 words.
3. Since my blog site is in the English medium the post should be in English as well.  But please don’t be intimidated by this.  I am not expecting a high-falutin words in the entry.  The simpler the better.
4. The church photograph or illustration is a must-provide plus the exact name and location of the church/place of worship. 

(If this is not too much) My special request.
I would appreciate it if you will be featuring a church from outside Metro Manila.  The reason for this is that I almost covered all the churches within the metro and we might have similar post.  My suggestion is that for you to choose a church from a place where you grew up, your provincial home or where you are currently located at or where you visited and travelled.

Is this a contest?
No. Therefore there is no material prize.  You will just make this blogger happy if that matters to you (smile).  What I will do is to connect your post to your blog or to any of your social media accounts or to whatever site you wanted to link it back (as long as it’s legal).  I will also include a brief description about yourself.

Initial steps.
I’ll start this by dropping private messages of request to some of my (fellow) blogger friends so I will have the initial batch of guest blogger as I wait for other guest volunteers.

How to?
You can email me at balutmanila@gmail.com or drop me a message on the comments form below or here. You can also contact me in Facebook or Twitter. Wherever that you are comfortable with is fine with me.
I am hoping for a “Yes” on the comment box below! Please?

P.S.
There’s a lot more about churches on this blog.  You just need to browse the “Search” button at the ride sided bar.

~ *** ~

HURRAY! for this early contributor! Be sure to check them out!

Churches: Magnificent;y Featured By A Fine Lady From Norway

A Church in Sagada Philippines in the Eye of the Soul Explorer

Let Us Travel To Long Phrae, Thailand With The Master of Metaphor As He Talks About Temple Wat Salaeng

How The Grumpy Blue Blogger Was Able To Write About A Place of Worship: OMKARESHWAR, INDIA: JYOTIRLINGA SHRINE OF SHIVA

Churches: Hail To The King of Mercy! Featured By A Christian Blogger From The Faraway Island of Surigao City, Philippines
Fresh From Budapest The (Not So) Wholesome Kid Talks About A Church Inside A Cave Called Sziklatemplom

23/365: When In Iloilo: The Church of St. Anthony de Padua Parish of Barotac Nuevo

Our trip to Barotac Nuevo to visit the Church of St. Anthony de Padua Church happened on a weekday.  I remember it was a Monday which is the day after we had our road trip to Molo.

Alighting from the jeepney I had a full view of the church across the street.   I was so excited to have a closer shot of the church’ façade but found that it was located in front of a football field which at that time was damped with rain water that when you step on it your foot will be covered with mud.

I have no choice but to take a far shot from the concrete border from the road where I alighted from the jeep.

The Barotac Church, also called as the St. Anthony of Padua Church, was constructed in the 16th Century by Spanish Missionaries. It is a Neo-classical church that has Roman arches. Its facade has ionic pilasters, square columns above and Doric pilasters below (Source: Various)

Taking photos of this church during our trip is quite challenging because apart from that the whole vicinity is damp, the church is also surrounded with safety fences because it is undergoing massive renovation.
Originally the church is fronting a plaza with a band stand but they were taken out and converted into a football field.  Iloilo is known to be the roster home of the country’s famous football players (I so agree - I know someone who is dear to me). 

Just few days back before our trip, the Philippine National team AZKALS played on this field versus a foreign team. 

The proposed structure of the church which is undergoing massive renovation

The church façade is decorated with the images of Jesus and Mary side by side and at the top is St. Anthony de Padua which is just a later addition.  I was not able to take a closer shot of St. Anthony’s image because it is located at the upper part of the church front structure.

The church has two belfries but they are both not built as high as the other belfries that were built during that time.   The belfry at the right side of the church is now topped with a bell house made of steel on a modern design.



The rear part of the church is now designed with a dome that is similar to some famous basilica in Rome.
The image at the side of the church is the huge image of St. Anthony de Padua.  I’m not really sure what this image is made up of.  I don’t want to touch anything on the structure because there are safety warning signs around the church due to the on-going renovations.

It’s good to know that restoration and renovation is already being done on this church.  Most part of the church are showing major damages.

I also was not able to take a good shot of the inner part of the church and the altar because most parts are covered due to ongoing renovations.



The Church of Barotac Nuevo together with its convent are declared as a National Historic Landmark. Its restoration and renovation is backed by public and private donations.



I wish that I will have the chance to go back to this church again when the restoration is completed.  I will surely share that experience with all of you if given the opportunity again.

Ten Things: That I Want To Nag Myself About Right Now

1. Pick one post from your blog drafts, finalize it and then publish.  It’s already mid-October and you only have one post showing on your October 2013 archive.  What’s with the draft queue?

2. In relation to Number 1, finish all series of posts on your blog specially about "Churches". Let the world see those beautiful structures that you had the privilege of documenting.  And you are not alone in feeling heart broken on the collapse of the historical churches in Cebu and Bohol.

San Geronimo (St. Jerome) Parish Church in Morong Rizal or the Church of Morong is one among the beautiful churches I visited in 2010.    Its frontispiece and the belfry is built between 1850 to 1853.  This is just one among my collection of churches photographs that I’m supposed to publish on this blog.  The current earthquake in Cebu and Bohol that caused damage to historical churches reminds me of my collection and the plan to publish them.

3. Rest.  You have fever and flu (again) because you braved that heavy downpour with matching lightning and thunderstorm.  The more sensible thing to do on such situation was to wait for the rain to subside.  Instead you soaked yourself in the rain after being in an air-conditioned room working all day without proper meal because you won’t give yourself a break.

4. Wait until your flu is gone before you run.

5. You have just ended one experiment so PLEASE don’t start another one. At least NOT JUST YET!

6. Find time to collect your pre-loved items that you plan to donate.

7. Mail those cards on your desk. It’s been almost a year now. You will end up adding new cards inside the envelope. It’s becoming too thick and it might be tagged as parcel instead of cards.

8. It’s a good thing that you are finding time to watch movies again. But when you write something about them make sure that you will publish them and not just on queue on your draft folder.

9. Avoid “qwerty nose-diving” while blog hopping. Either that you break your nose or your laptop and you don’t have a budget for the repair for both (LOL).

10. When are you going to realize that you can not adopt all the stray cats that will come along your way?  They can fend for themselves that is why they are called stray cats.  So be quick in finding new parents for your three (remaining) new wards.  Good job that you already gave away the other two.

few-days-old kittens that I’m temporarily adopting

(Again) Make it quick because they may grow too adorable and you will end up semi-adopting them just like what you did on the first three (and their parent cats).

my semi-adopted “catketeers” temporarily named as “Normal”, “Puti” and “Star”

Credits to: Mar of Unplog for the term "QWERTY nose-dive

Vicita Iglesia 2013: Seven Churches this Time

I hope that I am not too late for my annual and traditional post about Vicita Iglesia.

Every year I wish to visit fourteen new churches. It’s sort of hitting two birds in one stone. First is to fulfill my Roman Catholic faith. Second is to satisfy the blogger in me.  However this year I visited seven churches only.  I had a flu (running nose)  at that time and I don’t want to aggravate my condition. 

Also this year,two among these churches are not first time visits for me.  Read and tag along to find what are these churches and join me as I meditate for Good Friday while being a blogger.

First church is…

THE REDEMPTORIST CHURCH in Baclaran Pasay City.  The home or Shrine of Our Lady of Perpetual Help.

I have countless visits to this church because I am a devotee of the Our Lady of Perpetual Help. If it wasn’t in conflict with my work I am attending the novena mass at this church almost every Wednesday.

Our (un)plan is to visit churches in the Cavite area this time.  However, I can not find my Vicita Iglesia guide/prayer book so I opt to start from the Baclaran church that has vendors selling religious  items all over the place. Funny though because after buying it I realized I have a prayer book that is a regular content of my purse and it has in it the prayer guide.

1st and 2nd Station

THE CATHEDRAL PARISH OF ST. ANDREW
or The Church of Parañaque  - Quirino Avenue, La Huerta, Parañaque City.

I am seeing this church when I passed by in this area but I never had a chance to visit it or attend a mass from this church so we decided to have our third and fourth station here.

3rd and 4th Station

ST. JOSEPH PARISH CHURCH
also known as the house of the famous Las Piñas Bamboo Organ

This is my second time to visit this church.  The first time is during one of my birthday getaway which I spent through a road trip to Tagaytay and Laguna.  I haven’t observe Vicita Iglesia here so I decided to meditate here the 5th and 6th station.

We were informed by the residents that there will be real crucifixion here later at around 3Pm thus explains the beautifully designed stage at the side of the church.

5th and 6th Station

Standing true to its image why this place became popular, the station of the cross is signified by crosses made from bamboo – genuine eh?




Off we go and head to Cavite area.   First stop is in Bacoor Cavite.

SAN MIGUEL DE ARKANGHEL PARISH
(ST. MICHAEL DE ARCHANGEL) – Bacoor Cavite

7th and 8th Station

After Bacoor we headed to Kawit town and look what I found - The Aguinaldo Shrine!  I featured the Home of Aguinaldo in one of my posts but this is the first time I viewed this magnificent shrine coming from the back road - beautiful isn’t it?

ST. MARY MAGDALENE PARISH, Kawit Cavite

9th and 10th Station

Off we go again and continue the road trip without any particular church in mind to visit next.  We always do our Vicita Iglesia this way.  We will choose a certain area but we don’t have an exact plan or list of churches to visit.   The church searching is sort of an added sacrifice and the exploration is another adventure for the blogger.

MOST HOLY ROSARY PARISH
-  Rosario Cavite

11th and 12th Station

We learned that the next town is Noveleta (correct me if I’m wrong) but we can’t find the church in the town of Noveleta so off we go to another town which is Tanza where we found the home of the saint who is popularly known as the miraculous “T ata Uste” or San Agustin (St. Augustine).   More about this church and the miraculous saint when I make a separate post for this.

HOLY CROSS PARISH
(PAROQUIA DE SANTA CRUZ) Tanza Cavite

13th and 14th Station

There’s a lot more town and churches in the area of Cavite City but again I can’t expose myself to much heat so as not aggravate my body condition.

As usual during Good Friday there was no traffic in Metro Manila.  We left home at past 7Am and were back home before lunch time.  It was safe for my body condition during that day to be back home and rest early.  But my body and spirit is sort of looking for the feeling of being inside the church at least until the late afternoon of Good Friday.

Again, I am planning to make a separate post for each church in the coming days.  Oh boy they are becoming too many in my files!

If you wish to take a peek on my post about Vicita Iglesia and churches here are some links for you!

The 14 Churches I Like Most From My Vicita Iglesia Chronicle

Vicita Iglesia 2012 Part 1 and Part 2.