In response to this week’s WordPress Challenge – Heritage
For over 300 years, the Spaniards have built thousands of Catholic churches in the Philippines. Among them is The Basilica de San Martin de Tours, which is known as the oldest Catholic church in the Philippines and quite possibly in Asia. Sitting atop a hill, the colossal Baroque towers over the famous Taal Volcano as well as the old heritage town of Taal, Batangas – where my father was born. The church channels Visita Iglesia, an old-age tradition observed by the Catholic faithfuls during holy week, wherein they visit and pray at seven separate churches to reflect on the Passion of Christ.
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The Basilica de San Martin de Tours looks impressive, and never knew there were basilicas in the Philippines. Lovely to hear about the religious significance, and it sounds like these structures have their places in Filipino history.
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Yes, it really is a lovely place! I had the privilege to visit the town in January and it was just surreal — they still use calesa for public transport, which is a horse-drawn calash, and the street signs were all in Spanish — but the houses surrounding the church were a little scary as most of them were built in 1567 and were still in use. 😊
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