From the magnificent chilly weathered Tagaytay to pristine sandy beaches of Ternate; Cavite indeed has a lot to offer.
Last Good Friday, my family decided to take a different course of action to spend our holy week together. Usually we go to church and hold our annual "Pabasa" every Holy Wednesday. It has been the routine we are following for decades whenever Holy week approaches; but this time we decided to change that tradition and go try visiting 7 churches and pray the "Stations of the Cross" instead.
We never thought that the trip would be that overwhelming; our itinerary included seven beautiful churches in Cavite, some we have never been before.
Go try see these churches; whenever you have a chance!
1.) San Francisco de Malabon Church
First stop was the San Francisco de Malabon Church in Gen. Trias, Cavite. Like most churches around the Philippines, it is located just across the municipal hall or town plaza. The church was an awesome picture of tradition and history.
2.) Our Lady of Guadalupe Church
Our next stop was Our Lady of Guadalupe Church. It is located just across the Intel plant in Gateway Industries in Gen. Trias, Cavite. This modernly-designed church was actually a replica of the original Our Lady of Guadalupe Cathedral in Mexico. The church offers awesome murals and paintings which would amaze those who visit it. The altar was an awesome view as if you visited its inspiration in Mexico.
3.) St. Mary Magdalene Church
After Gen.Tri, we proceeded to its nearby town Amadeo, the coffee capital of the Philippines. You might also wanna try their famous homegrown coffee by visiting Cafe Amadeo just along the Gen.Tri-Amadeo road where our next destination is located.
St. Mary Magdalene Church was just across the Amadeo municipal hall; it offers a great deal of beautiful stained glasses adored by its parishioners.
4.) Our Lady of Lourdes Church
Tagaytay City is just a few minutes of drive away from Amadeo; like any other popular city, Tagaytay offers wide variety of churches that you might be interested on looking at. From modern-styled churches to old-ruined chapels, Tagaytay have it. Our first stop in this lovely city was Our Lady of Lourdes Church; it is just along Tagaytay-Nasugbo road. This is one of the popular tourist destination in Tagaytay as this church looks grand from the outside; its awesome landscape is enough reason to pay a visit in it.
5.) Our Mother of Perpetual Help Parish
After the famous Lourdes Church, we went to Our Mother of Perpetual Help Parish just along the Tagaytay-Calamba junction. The bricked walls made this church look good from the outside but rather it turned out simple in the inside. Like the Baclaran Church, it houses the image of Our Lady of Perpetual Help which was believed to be miraculous by many of its devotees.
6.) Church of the Pink Sisters / Convent of the Divine Mercy
Another famous spiritual landmark in the city of Tagaytay was the Church of the Pink Sisters. The chapel itself was just a part of a convent of nuns who wear pink robes thus, the term "Pink Sisters" came from. The facade of the chapel looked magnificent; it was actually a picture of serenity and peace. The architecture of the building looks more like of those in the States; the landscape of the outside was also breathtaking and one of a kind. A lot of people come here to attend the mass especially on special occasions like Christmas and Holy Week.
7.) Our Lady of Candelaria Church
After Tagaytay, we went down to its nearby town Silang. The Our Lady of Candelaria Church or Nuestra Senora de Candelaria Parish was just across the municipal hall and plaza of Silang, Cavite. Considered as one of the oldest church in the region, this church is a picture of tradition and history. The church's altar was obviously old as if it's been there for centuries; it even house tombs of famous people of their time, and yes they are all inside the church. This unique piece of history will surely catch everybody's attention as the church maintained its old-looking appearance.
Side Trip: Tierra de Maria
Tierra Maria wasn't really a part of our itinerary but for some reason fate brought us there. We were actually surprised that this prayer place was famous as people overflow to get into the building. We learned that Tierra Maria was actually built by a Mama Mary devotee named Bro.Jigger Alejandrino who offers healing and meditation session to anyone who needs it. The experience was actually cool as he lectured about praying and some better ways to improve one's spirituality.
The building was made very obvious by the presence of a 50-foot image of the Blessed Virgin Mary; it is located a few meters away from Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish in Tagaytay City.
DMLR :)
