In my earlier visit to Intramuros, I did not manage to enter San Agustin Church due to private event, and I vowed to visit this place again for sure. This time I have made it!
For this second visit to Intramuros, I just took a cab directly to the Rizal Park, instead of using the LRT to save the hassle of changing the train at EDSA station. Taking a cab should not cost more than 120 Pesos if the cab driver is honest.
First stop, the Department of Tourism.
Being a tourist in the Philippines, we should always thanks to this government agency whose mission is to encourage, promote and develop tourism to generate foreign currency and employment. Without this agency, how are we able to know so much about the 7,107 beautiful islands of the Philippines?
Next, I walked around the Rizal Park. This park marked a few important historical events, which was named after the national hero, José Rizal, who was executed in 1896, which led to Philippines Revolution against Kingdom of Spain. The park was renamed to Rizal Park to honor the fallen of the national hero, with a monument of him situated right in the middle of the park.
The Philippines Independence from the United States was held here in the Rizal Park on July 4, 1946 as well as several political rallies happened here in the 1980s. Plenty of the recent events happened here as well which made to international news, whether happy or sad events, such as the hostage crisis of Hong Kong citizens held by gunman in 2010, and also Papal visit of Pope Francis earlier this year on January 18, 2015.
The Gallery of Heroes
The modern Cinderella's Pumpkin Carriage
After walking around Rizal Park, I took a jeepney into the Intramuros. Jeepney is the most popular public transport in the Philippines, which were originally made from U.S Military jeeps left over after the World War II. Jeepney has then become the part of the culture of the Philippines.
Nowadays jeepneys were manufactured by different regional manufacturers and they come with different variants of design. Still, we can easily recognize the jeepneys from their similar outlook, the crowded passengers and the flamboyant and noisy characteristic.
So here comes my main mission here for the second visit to Intramuros, the San Agustin Church.
The entrance fee was 100 Pesos as per 2011 for general admission. It may sound like big amount to you as a backpacker but I can assure you that the church definitely worth the 100 Pesos that you paid for!
The beautiful interior of the San Agustin Church
The main altar of the San Agustin Church
The grand pipe organ
The graves of prominent people such as governors, at the church floor.
Jesus statue in the museum
So do you agree with me on the beauty of the interior of San Agustin Church? It was totally a jaw-dropping experience for me seeing the interior. How could the oldest church in the Philippines, still looks so beautiful after so many years? There is no other church that is comparable with this, so far.
Even when you are a tourist, do you ever wanted to confess to the God in the foreign land? In San Agustin Church, you may converse to the God in 3 different languages - Tagalog, English or Spanish.
Before leaving Intramuros, I walked pass the Manila Cathedral again. Looking from far, Manila Cathedral is beautiful, but the San Agustin Church is totally unbeatable in terms of architectural beauty.
Hereby I concluded both visits to Intramuros were fruitful, visiting the major landmarks definitely leaves unforgettable memories for this walled compound in Metro Manila.
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