Conquering Tacloban City, Leyte

Guys, let me share you my adventure last March 25 - 27, 2011 in Tacloban City, Leyte. Actually, I was able to get there because my brother can't get back home from the US to attend his son's graduation so he requested  me and my mom to attend my nephew's high school graduation at Saint Mary's Palo, Leyte and I totally said yes because he'll pay for the airfare.




hahahaha! Don't laugh at me guys! It's my first time to ride a plane through Zestair and it was fun.Well, enough of the talk, let me share you the pictures I took alone. Check out the attractions in Tacloban City that can make you say WoW.

Enjoy!

First Stop: Sto. Niño Shrine and Heritage Museum



The Santo Niño Shrine is one of the 29 presidential rest houses that the late President Ferdinand Marcos had built. It was built for his wife Imelda Marcos, who was born in Tacloban. It is considered the number 1 tourist spot in Tacloban because of its association with Imelda.



A chapel dominates the ground floor with the image of Sto. Niño as focal point. Elevated by 2-3 steps on the peripheral are 13 guest rooms, each with varied motifs representing the different regions of the country. On the second floor is a very spacious ballroom as well as the bed chambers of the former First Family.



Inside the mansion you can find some collections of paintings of historical events in Leyte. The shrine was also a palace during the Marcos regime, with Olympic-size swimming pool, state dining rooms, about 13 guest rooms and private bedrooms for Imelda, Ferdinand and their children. Imelda's bathroom was luxurious and larger than many Filipino homes. The place is filled with antique ceramics, pottery and collectibles. Imelda stayed there only once.



The guest rooms are each in a different theme; a little touch that I really like was that each room had a signed picture of Ferdinand, and a diorama showing Imelda performing some beneficial act or another.

The whole house was furninshed with a multitude of antiques from around the world, you can find Austrian mirrors in almost every room of the mansion.  It also became a repository of the Marcos' collections - chandeliers from Czech Republic, mirrors from Austria, tiles from Italy, jars from China, floor carpets from Argentina, among others. (source:Sto. Niño Shrine)

Second Stop:Philipppine-Japan Peace Commemorative Monument and Park

A multi-tiered park built to honor the paramilitary personnel and soldiers who served and died during World War II.



Third Stop: Madonna Peace of Shrine

A statue made of a rare miyagi stone created by a famous Japanese sculptor. 



Fourth Stop: MacArthur Park (Leyte Landing Memorial, located at the Red Beach, Palo, Leyte)


Unfortunately, I was not able to visit the Price Mansion and the famous San Juanico Bridge (bridge connecting Samar and Leyte) maybe when I get back that will be first thing that'll do.

More Photos: Tacloban City, Leyte