There’s something about how Metro Manila loves rotondas, never mind if many motorists don’t know how to use them properly. If the presence of a number of rotondas in the metropolis can be taken as evidence of such. Even though some of these places no longer have the physical rotondas, the presence of rotondas in those places before still live on in memory. (Take for instance the old Santa Mesa Rotonda where the old Carriedo Fountain used to stand in the middle of that rotonda) But of all the rotondas in the metropolis, living or extinct, none perhaps would be as more renowned and well-loved of what is now a…
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A Palace Made (Mostly) of Coconuts
Palaces come in different shapes and sizes so to speak. Then there’s the Coconut Palace. And yes, it does it exist in case you haven’t heard of one yet. The palace first sprang to life as a pet project of then First Lady Imelda Marcos who wanted to showcase homegrown Filipino architecture at its finest. To do the job, she commissioned an architect named Francisco Mañosa to make her dream into a reality. Work began in 1978 and would be finished just in time for the visit to Manila of the then leader of the Roman Catholic Church, Pope John Paul II. Originally, the Coconut Palace was offered to…
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Rizal Park, Part 7: celebrations and grandstandings at the Quirino Grandstand
Having been elevated into prominence as Manila’s (as well as the country’s) definitive landmark by the American colonial era, it comes as no surprise that Rizal Park a favored spot for parades, athletic events, and special events like the famed Manila Carnival. These events used to be held at what was known as Wallace Field, located east of the Rizal Monument, approximately where the Binhi sculpture & the Heidelberg Fountain are now located. Fast-forward to the year 1946. A year had passed since Manila suffered from utmost destruction brought about the by the war, more particularly during the Battle for Manila. As a a nation was trying to get its…
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Rizal Park, Part 6: of New Luneta and Kilometer 0
Not many people would realize it, but Rizal Park is one of Manila’s best examples of how much the city has changed in the span of just over a century. Originally, and this was up to the end of the Spanish colonial era, Manila’s bayshore was only up to what is now the gutter of the northbound lane of Roxas Boulevard. So Luneta back then was really near the shore of Manila Bay, not to mention there was no Roxas Boulevard yet. Manila’s expansion would begin during the American colonial period as reclamation work in the 1900’s extended farther Manila’s land area as part of Burnham’s Manila plan, thus expanding…