blackshama's commentary on Philippine issues

The Philippine Daily Inquirer in the past week has featured on its front page, articles on the problems besetting the Manila Hotel . Today it has an editorial on it. The hotel which if I am not mistaken was built in 1912. One of the first icons and architectural symbols of American sovereignty, it was meant to provide luxurious accommodation for the new colonizers. During the preceding Spanish regime, the luxurious hotels were in Binondo. Rizal's Crisostomo Ibarra in the Noli Me Tangere, describes one of them. Nonetheless before the Manila Hotel was built, travellers to the Philippines had little good to say about tourist accomodations in the city. The hotel is famous for the fact that as part of the deal between Commonwealth President Quezon and General MacArthur on training the new Philippine Army, the general had for a perk the airconditioned penthouse of the hotel. The hotel also witnessed the end of American colonialism in the Philippines. Richard Connaughton, John Pimlott ...

The UP Iloilo College main building is one of the University of the Philippines' heritage buildings. It used to be the Iloilo City Hall until 1949 when the city donated it to the university. It is a fine example of American Neoclassic. Note the classic sculptures on the entrance that support the university seal. The two sculptures representing the Civil Authority were made by Italian sculptor Francisco Monti who was also a professor at the University of Santo Tomas

Plaza Roma, the main square of Manila, just in front of the Manila Cathedral, was bounded by old Figs Ficus trees. One of them I believe existed even during the Spanish colonial period as evidenced by the old photo (probably taken in the 1870s) above I lifted from http://www.simbahan.net/ . It was then hardly a sapling. (Thank you http://www.simbahan.net/ for giving us an online historical resource on our churches.) I have seen the same tree in photos of Manila devastated by the 1945 battle. The cathedral was almost totally destroyed save its facade. In one of the photos GIs are seen having a drink under the tree that was by then a strapping tough balete . As of the last time I was in Intramuros for the traditional Visita Iglesia last March, the tree provided shade for us while we drank our C2 ice tea. We just said our prayers under the tree since the cathedral was jampacked with worshippers. But horrors, the photo in today's print edition of the Philippine Star shows the tree n...