VISIT TACLOBAN: CALVARY HILL

The 14-station way of the CROSS located at Siren District is another proof of TACLOBANON'S faith to God. every lenten season, this place is crowded with thousands of CATHOLICS who celebrates the passion of CHRIST through the 14 station of the CROSS.

it's cemented stairs eases the pilgrims on going up to the last station where you could see the tall RESURRECTED CHRIST statue.

the complete 14 life-sized stations were made of pure cement and painted white and of some primary colors.

every year, our family went to here on the morning of GOOD FRIDAY, and we could see pilgrims walking in their bare foot in the streets heading to the CALVARY HILL. the whole place is feasted with vendors who sells foods and some religious stuffs. the little boys sells candles and flowers. young and old pilgrims, sung the passion of the Christ.

the topmost statue of the RESURRECTED CHRIST faces the whole city, his arms held high which seems to bless TACLOBAN. some throw money on the statue which has a screen fence and asks for wishes and petitions. also on top you will see the whole city and the SAN JUANICO STRAIT and it's BRIDGE. you may enjoy the beauty and its other side (the squatters who settled near the calvary hill)

you will see some biblical characters who were involved in the passion of the Christ. the whole diorama is life-sized so you could feel it more than it's cement-made faces.

the fresh breeze of the San Juanico Strait will ease the heat that the candles emits and the heat of the sun.

by night, you will see the great candles lighted in the whole area when you are attending the procession of the dead Christ in from Romualdez Street-Rizal Avenue-Avenida Veteranos.

this place is not exclusive for lenten season only, you could go there anytime you want and have a solemn time on remembering Christ's sufferings.

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pictures courtesy of Rhossill Comia

VISIT TACLOBAN: ZAIBATSU BAR

roam around the new TACLOBAN CITY, new establishments sprouted everywhere.

while driving along J. ROMUALDEZ streets, and made a left turn at SEN. ENAGE STREETS, you will be attracted by the facetious look of small bar nearing the corner of LOPEZ JAENA.

"this is definitely the new favorite neighborhood restaurant, a best kept secret to the discriminating people of Tacloban that we think should be public. Stop in for a fabulous meal, light fare, or drink and dessert, and I'm telling you: no disappointments!" from a food review article

ZAIBATSU Bar, with its reddish eye relaxing tone theme and sophisticated, luxurious and definitely a WOW ambiance has become a secret venue of the town. you wont even imagine that a place like this could actually exist in the heart of the city.

try to search the meaning of the bar in the net, and you will definitely see what it has to offer. this place is good for people who has a need of searching REAL FOOD and eating it in a REAL PLACE, the reality it takes is the WEALTH which connotes abundance of delightful and enticing menus it has to offer to its every customers, it's place offers a healthy and a fit place for CLIQUES who wants to have a small gathering, and a sip with the drinks that ZAIBATSU offers.

it serves an array of mouth-watering foods, from pastas, seafoods, salads, sandwiches and a lot more. with throat-refreshing smoothies and more! different foods for different people who thirsts for different drinks.

i could still remember my friend who attended a CHRISTENING catered by the bar, he even had an outstanding review about the place. "once you entered there, all you could say is WHOAH! amazing", well certainly because TACLOBANONs could seldom go to a place like this.

the service is even more attached to customers, where you could feel the phrase "BEING-SERVED". plus the additonal WIFI service will make you more feel free to stay longer, have a free internet connection and an endless craving for the enticing foods they serve while continuously sipping their iced choco coffee.

Ms. CRISTINA MAGALLON, entrepreneur, made this a reality in almost a year, and continuously develop the whole place that could cater a CLASS yet affordable party place.

another thing that amazed me with MS. TINA, is her strategy in promoting her place. FACEBOOK is her window of inviting people to come over to ZAIBATSU and chooses those who accepts the services and the nature of her bar. a little PSYCHOLOGICAL method/approach was done by her which is best suit to her CLASSY RESTAURANT. her friendly and approachable personality made me at ease on featuring her place, and this is the BEST QUALITY that this entrepreneur possesses. so for MS. TINA! cheers for you!

please visit their FAN PAGE at FACEBOOK. CLICK HERE

the CLASSY place, the oozing foods, the enticing drinks and the cozy ambiance... all in one place. ZAIBATSU BAR..

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photos courtesy of Ms. Cristina Magallon (thanks to you)

call them through 053-523-9488 for more inquiries. and for those who will be in TACLOBAN. visit ZAIBATSU.. it's a must! =)

VISIT TACLOBAN: TACLOBAN ASTRODOME

TCCC or the Tacloban City Convention Center which can accommodate upto 5000 individuals is located at REAL STREET, KANKABATO bay. this is made for cultural events, conventions, local affairs, concerts and basketball tournaments.

the dome is the biggest indoor venue in the region. part of the city government's project which is to be proud of by all taclobanons. the whole area is being fenced.

every morning at around 4:30 am to 8:00pm are free fresh place for morning exercises. free TAEBO for all health-conscious TACLOBANONS. and you could jog around the dome and it's little baywalk which has length of an approximately 100meters. there is also a gym in one of the stalls of TCCC second floor.

at night, are free open house movie where you could watch while sitting on you car or on the benches built in the whole area.

outside astrodome are bars and restaurant. when the sun sets in, the whole area is lighted with inviting colors and sounds. office workers, students are all welcome to join the party. different kind of party-gig-services are being offered, from a coffee-shop to a disco bar while taking in the fresh breeze from KANKABATO bay. no worries on troubles because police forces are in the whole area.

but the most exciting dates to be watched for are within may-july. the wide vacant space is for rent by the city government set for barbecue kiosks and beer stands with tables facing a fancy stage where local bands play.

on it's left side is the SAGKAHAN BAY WALK facing the DZR airport. there you could enjoy walking or jogging with someone or have a nice view of the dome. the benches also invites you to sit and fell the cold breeze of the bay. at night, you could stay there and enjoy star gazing, or meet the sun rise. there you could also have picnic with your family.

another must see place at night. TACLOBAN is best visited FRIDAY or SATURDAY and wear that funky disco clothes. enjoy the music, the lights and the drinks.

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VISIT TACLOBAN: PEOPLE'S CENTER LIBRARY

PEOPLE CENTER TACLOBAN. located at REAL STREET besides the famous STO. NINO SHRINE MUSEUM. this a 2-floor huge building which has enormous collections of dioramas of local cultural minorities, document and articrafts. and even a copy of the original NOLI ME TANGERE could be found there.

the facade of the building has a strong representation through it's bulky greek inspired posts, a drive thru could also made you realize that even before, the MARCOSES gathers with their colleagues who has the most trendy cars during their times.

when you entered the hall, you will notice the wide area where you could imagine cocktail parties, cotillions, big gatherings, and political meetings. the floor is made of the finest wood tiles on the center and bricks plain concrete floor on the sides while the stage is designed with a huge curtain and on it's back is the map of the region and the couple's (IMELDA and FERDINAND) faces painted on it. this painting is seldom seen on the public.

when you look up, you will be amazed of the inner terrace where the readers above could definitely see whose performing the function hall.

it's second floor is the library, upon entering are the dioramas and the carved staircase. the quiet place will make you feel that it is a real learning place. you will see statues and old typewriters in it, and even the old grandfather's clock.

the library is arranged same as the ordinary library where you could locate your needed books per subject or per topic, but the difference? they aren't arranged in THE ORDINARY LIBRARY which has huge shelves, instead they used enormous rooms and the SUBJECT tags per placed on the doors.

they also use the old library card system.

in the lobby are round shaped tables made of wood. there you could find also antique machines used for mimeographing.

i could still remember when we had a project in our LITERATURE class and we were assigned to look for original WARAY WARAY stories. we have searched the internet and our school's library but we found not even a single article. but luckily we were able to visit PEOPLE'S CENTER LIBRARY and found what we were looking for.

this hall also serves until now for graduation rites, concerts, beauty pageants, political rallies and even rented by bazaar organizers. the bazaars occupies the place from may-july (during the city fiesta) and october-january (for the christmas season)

find your way to have a little tour in the hall after visiting the SANTO NINO SHRINE museum.

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VISIT TACLOBAN: STO NINO SHRINE MUSEUM

who says you could only find castles and dream rooms in EUROPE?

The Santo Niño Shrine, one of the 29 presidential rest houses that the late Pres. Ferdinand Marcos had built. There is an Olympic sized swimming pool behind the building.

The entrance to the Santo Niño Shrine. The Santo Niño is at the far end of the entrance. On both sides are a number of guest rooms with various themes.

Santo Niño, a representation of the infant Jesus Christ, is the patron saint of Leyte.

It is located in Real Street, Tacloban City. Paintings of the 14 stations of the Cross done by Filipino artists, wooden bas-relief of the legend of the First Filipino man-woman (Si Malakas at si Maganda); tastefully decorated guestrooms of varied Filipino motifs; image of the Holy Child; a collection of original paintings by Fernando Amorsolo; spacious ballroom; priceless. collector's.

some of the must see things inside are the antiques which was brought from different places. the mirrors, the statues, the furnitures, chandeliers, and the paintings.

13-room first floor has different unique themes that is on both sides and on the center is the magnificent SHRINE, which has religious statues on it. another painting that will attract you most is the family tree of the Romualdezes.

the daughters' room

IMELDA's room

FERDINAND'S room

at the back is the OLYMPIC size swimming pool and a gazebo. and on it's right is a huge LIBRARY and a function area, not just a simple function are, but a HUGE. now known as THE PEOPLE'S CENTER LIBRARY , it could accommodate large concerts and gatherings, and even GRADUATIONS and bazaars. between the two big buildings is an empty grass covered area where you will see the statue of a woman and a man (well, some folks told me it was the malakas at maganda, whose faces were copied from the couple IMELDA and FERNDINAND)

Tacloban City, is the province where the acclaimed MOST BEAUTIFUL FIRST LADY in the Republic of The Phillipines was born and raised. she became an instant celebrity during her husband's tenure in the Philippine Government serving in almost 20 years of Presidency. She lived in the most luxurious quality of living that almost all Filipina envies and was even tagged as a QUEEN.

no wonder that the whole STO NINO SHRINE, it's authenticity and beauty was taken from the owner herself, MADAM IMELDA.

now, it is owned by the city government and serves a simple history. everyone is welcome to visit the shrine and entrance fee is being collected for the EXTRAORDINARY maintenance of an EXTRA BEAUTIFULLY mansion of the MARCOSES.

visit TACLOBAN and enter the mansion of FERDINAND MARCOS.

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VISIT TACLOBAN: SAN JUANICO BRIDGE

SAN JUANICO BRIDGE, a 2.16 kilometer bridge connects SAMAR and LEYTE stretching above the SAN JUANICO STRAIT was the most promising structure in the PHILIPPINES and was known as the country's longest connecting bridge.

designed by Juanito Isko Balunbalunan, the 21.9 million dollar bridge was opened to the public in 1973 which began on 1969.

if you are going to travel from MANILA to TACLOBAN via bus, you will be traversing the bridge before entering the city. from STA RITA, SAMAR, upon reaching the bridge, a "WELCOME TO LEYTE" banner will definitely make you feel you are already in LEYTE, plus not to mention 'when you're already on the bridge'.

on the other hand, if you have arrived in TACLOBAN via air, you could still visit the bridge through public vehicles which takes 10 - 15 mins from the city proper, and upon reaching the bridge, you could have a nice 2-kilometer walk if you want and feel the cold breeze of the SAN JUANICO STRAIT. enjoy the thousand whirpools and islets of the strait. and from there you could see the VIEW of TACLOBAN CITY.

this bridge was not only designed to entertain visitors and tourists but it's main purpose was the access between two giant islands. TACLOBAN CITY, as the region's capital invites all the marketers from nearby towns and do the trading in it. the people from SAMAR sells their native products and delicacies in TACLOBAN, while the transportation from SAMAR was made accessible by the bridge too.

instead of using BANGKA or boats, they could travel using heavy equipped vehicles without worries of overloading on the waters because it could be brought safe from the place of origin to it's destination without hassles on transferring of goods.

by night, the SAN JUANICO BRIDGE is very elegant with it's lights that could made you think of a FLOATING DRAGON over the seas from afar.

a proud pinoy structure, a proud TACLOBANON bridge.

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