Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
It is nice to know some restoration is ongoing in Intramuros. But a complete restoration is impossible because the area was destroyed during the Battle of Manila.
It is nice to know some restoration is ongoing in Intramuros. But a complete restoration is impossible because the area was destroyed during the Battle of Manila.
watch the last video that I posted, Almost all is already restored at least in Intramuros. There's still more building mentioned that is scheduled for restoration. Hopefully, there still a chance.
^this is scheduled for restoration too that was destroyed during the war. The Intendencia or Aduana Bldg.
Intendencia before
Intendencia to restore
The Opposite side of Intendencia
Quote:
In 1982, the Intramuros Administration restored the plaza and in 2000 it was renovated with the statue of King Philip II. The statue was unveiled by the Spanish monarch Queen Sophia as part of the closing activities of Philippine Independence Centennial.
The motherhouse of the Dominican order in the Philippines once stood south of the Aduana. The fifth Yglesia y Convento de Santo Domingo de Manila that stood on the same site was designed by Felix Roxas. The Church was neo-gothic in design and took three years to build.
The image of the Nuestra Senora de la Naval de Manila was housed in the church of Santo Domingo. The feast day of the La Naval in October was one of the grandest processions in Intramuros.
The church and convent was reduced to ashes when the Japanese bombed that part of Intramuros in 941. Like other religious orders, the Dominicans did not return to Intramuros after the last Great War. Bank of the Philippine Island now occupies the lot.
To the southwest of Santo Domingo is a small plaza called Plaza Santo Tomas. The lot was meant to be the Dominicans cemetery and garden. The city government bought the plaza in 1861 for a place where to erect the statue of Queen Isabel II however the monument was placed in Arroceros instead.
In 1879, the university rector received permission to erect the statue Archibishop Miguel de Benavides, founder of the oldest university in Asia. In 2002, Plaza Santo Tomas was refurbished as part of the 400th anniversary of the foundation of the university.
A replica of the Benavides’ statue was erected on the site. A marker was also placed to honor the 53 alumni who signed the Malolos Constitution.
The Dominicans established two Dominican schools in Intramuros. One was being the oldest university in Asia and the other as a school for girls.
The Beaterio de Santa Rosa founded by the Dominican tertiary Mother Paula de la Santissima Trinidad. The school was initially an orphanage for girls. The Beaterio was famous in pre-war Manila for the Legend of the Twisted Sword.
The Royal and Pontifical University of Santo Tomas was created through the bequest of Archbishop Benavides in 1611. The institution was granted with royal recognition in 1618 by Philip II and given permission to confer academic degrees in 1624. The stature as a university was later granted. Charles III gave the title Real (Royal) in 1785 in recognition of patriotic student who volunteered for military duty upon news of British invasion.
In 1902, Pope Leo XIII gave UST its pontifical status. UST established a school in Sampaloc in 1927. The Law and Medicine remained in the Walled City.
UST in Intramuros was severely destroyed during the 1945 Battle for Manila. Only a section of the main portal remained which currently stands in the Sampaloc campus. This is known as the Arch of the Century.
Hidden in isolation within Intramuros was the Real Monasterio de Santa Clara. The Clarisas of the Philippines was founded in 1621 by mother Jeronima de la Asuncion, native of Toledo, Spain and relative of the monarch (Hence the “Real” was attached to the name of the convent). The convent became popular for devotees who Offer Eggs to Santa Clara for good weather.
The 1945 Battle for Manila destroyed the convent. The order sold their property and moved to Cubao along Katipunan Avenue where it founded a new monastery.
this was just restored last 2008. This is not intendencia, it's different building
Colegio de Santa Rosa in Intramuros
^I hope they clear this hanging electric wires and also people on this area to somewhere else
it's too crowded and most of all the building need to restored again.
The Church of San Pablo or the Augustinian Church in Intramuros
Carpenters, masons, metalworkers and other craftsmen produced the many magnificent edifices of the world and yet they toil in anonymity. A lot of these structures, which are testaments of heritage and architectural genius, are now crumbling due to the ravages of time. Preservation and reconstruction of these glorious buildings requires knowledge of the original skills in which these structures were built.
At the Escuela Taller de Intramuros, young men and women are learning classical carpentry and old construction technologies in preparation for a noble goal: the restoration of various heritage sites in the country.
A collaborative endeavor
Escuela Taller is a collaborative project between the Agencia Española de Cooperacion Internacional para el Desarrollo, the National Commission on Culture and the Arts (NCCA), the Intramuros Administration (IA), the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).
Escuela Taller was originally initiated in Spain during the 1980s as a response to two problems: the rising number of unemployed youths and the lack of manpower to work on the restoration of the country’s many heritage buildings.
Escuela Taller became such a huge success in Spain that it soon spread in many countries. It was recorded that from 1991 to 2006, Escuela Taller workshops were established in 40 cities in 17 countries in Central and South America. Involving 10, 711 apprentices, these school workshops planned and implemented 150 restoration projects.
First in Asia
The Escuela Taller de Intramuros was launched on March 25 with the inauguration ceremony attended by Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos. The school workshop, located in the rustic environs of Intramuros is the very first Escuela Taller in Asia. Out of the interviews conducted during the first quarter of year, 75 youths aged 16 to 25 qualified as participants. The apprentices, who were all from the Baseco Compound in Port Area, Manila went through a screening process conducted by the DSWD.
The number of women participants in a course of study dominated by men may prove surprising. Of the 75 students of Escuela Taller, 20 are female. “This project offers and equal opportunity for all—male or female,” says Architect Michael Manalo, director of Escuela Taller.
Cutting edge curriculum
Escuela Taller students will be taught 18th and 19th century construction techniques that include carpentry, masonry; stone and brick, wood carving; metal works (including decorative grills). The modern components added to the curriculum are electrical and plumbing technologies.
All of the technical instructors in Escuela Taller are active industry practitioners to ensure the quality of tuition that the students receive. Manalo reveals that they will even import foreign instructors to give lectures on ancient construction techniques like the laying of brick domes without steel support.
One unique feature of Escuela Taller is the inclusion of Spanish language in its curriculum. At a glance, an observer may find such element offbeat for a course of study that dealt mainly with manual labor, but Manalo attests that there is a very important and practical reason behind it. “These students would soon be working on restorations of houses and buildings built during the Spanish colonial period. And with the task comes the necessity of reading archaic architectural plans and diagrams,” he explains, adding, “Terminologies written on these plans are in Spanish hence the necessity of learning the rudiments of the language.”
Interestingly, it was also because of the Spanish language that Manalo ended up being the director of Escuela Taller. He recalls that there were lots of candidates for the position when the project was still on the planning stage. “The choices began to narrow down when they stated that among the requirements was that the director must possess a good command of Spanish.”
Besides technical training, students at Escuela Taller also receive instruction in Mathematics, English, Values Education, and basic entrepreneurial skills.
Manalo foresees that the students could get far with the skills they would acquire. He points out that if the graduates of Escuela Taller were commissioned to work on a non-restoration project, it is likely that they would not be paid higher compared with ordinary carpenters, masons or metalworkers because of the classical skills that they have. “But these people can build things faster because of the excellent training they have received,” he relates, continuing, “As a lean but mean machine, they can complete big projects with less manpower and that means bigger profits because there’s just few to split the fee.”
Manalo desires that graduates of Escuela Taller organize themselves in the future, became entrepreneurial and rise from being a mere ordinary worker. “I desire that they would really familiarize themselves with the business side of the profession like contracts and everything,” he says spiritedly.
Labor of love
Manalo and all the instructors of Escuela Taller are being paid for the tasks but it’s obviously not the money that keeps them there. “Even if it pays, it is not a very comfortable job,” Manalo intones.
He admits that it’s not always easy maintaining harmony in such a setting. Manalo narrates of some instances when heated arguments among male students nearly emanated into brawls with weapons. All the school instructors were prepared for such occurrences knowing beforehand the grim living conditions that their students have to survive on a daily basis. With solid resolve they stood their ground, and decided to nurture the apprentices the best that they could. Soon, their efforts began to pay off.
Escuela Taller today is a perfect proof that peaceful coexistence is possible between Christians and Muslims. Manalo says that in their school, both sides show much tolerance on the cultural and religious sensitivities of each other. Manalo shares that the school’s environment even proves therapeutic for most of the students. School time for many trainees mean a break from the hardscrabble existence of Baseco.
The duration of the training, which will last one-and-a-half year, he observes, may prove too long for some of the participants whose priority are their daily subsistence. Manalo believes that dropouts would be inevitable but the students should persevere if they expect to reap the benefits later on. “It would definitely entail a lot of sacrifices from them in the beginning,” he stresses. The mild-mannered architect shares that they are trying their best to minimize the economic factors that could get in the way of the students finishing the course. “They were given a free ride to and from the school as well as free meals during class days.”
Noble goal
Being a colony of Spain for 330 years, the length and breadth of the Philippines is literally dotted with colonial houses, churches and government buildings. Due to lack of care and the ravages of time, many these precious heritage sites are already succumbing to decay. The first batch of graduates of Escuela Taller de Intramuros would be harnessed in the implementation of the planned heritage village of Intramuros. After the apprentices finished the course, two simultaneous projects are already slated for them—the rehabilitation of Casa Manila and Fort Santiago. The improvement of the two sites, which is among the most visited landmarks in Intramuros, is also expected to produce economic gains by being more attractive to tourists. These projects would be supplemented with other improvements like the addition and replacement of historical markers, cobble stoning of streets and installation of underground utility cables.
Another notable task that the graduates would eventually engage is the restoration of the country’s colonial churches. The undertaking would prove very beneficial for the apprentices because every centuries-old church in the Philippines is an excellent study in conservation work. With this accomplished, Escuela Taller de Intramuros hopes to initiate projects that would involve other developing countries in Asia.
Besides conservation, Escuela Taller is set to accomplish another mission and that is the betterment of the lives of its graduates. In partnership with Bahay Kalinga, the graduates of Escuela Taller plan to build 250 houses and add to existing facilities in their home community in Baseco.
Manalo laments that culture and heritage were still not given premium priority in the Philippines. He assumes that some may still see the preservation and reconstruction of heritage sites in the country as superfluous or even elitist since such undertakings were commonly associated with the rich. But Manalo stresses that appreciation and preservation of heritage contains benefits that transcend classes and social boundaries, “It’s not elitist to restore Intramuros, it’s for everybody,” he concluded.
^ I guess Intramuros Administration waited for them to master the techniques before they begun all of this restoration project.
^ I guess Intramuros Administration waited for them to master the techniques before they begun all of this restoration project.
This was a good idea. A good way to help Filipinos and a good way to help restore our colonial buildings and churches plus the students are able to learn Espanol
Colegio de San Juan de Letran is part of Intramuros area
established in 1620
Letran in 1880
During the post war in 1945
Restored Colegio de San Juan de Letran
Nice.. I wonder how many schools Spain built in the Philippines before.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
