Manila

     I am listening to J.S. Bach's Prelude and Fugue No. 10 in E minor BWV 855 while writing this article. The music is so fitting with the images I search online. I go back in time viewing the Elks Club and the Army and Navy Club both located along Roxas Boulevard in Manila. These were magnificent structures built in the early 20th century during the American Colonial Era.

     I have lived in New York for almost a decade and came back to the Philippines at the latter part of 1995. I loved the museums in New York City particularly The Metropolitan Museum, The Guggenheim Museum and the Frick Collection located on the Upper East Side. My love for the arts never ceased when I came back to Manila. I would visit museums like the old National Museum, Fort Santiago, the Metropolitan Museum to name a few.  

     Last week, I visited the former Elks Club building which is now the Museo Pambata with my girlfriend and niece. I must say that they did a good job restoring the place. I wanted to go to the Army and Navy Club which is now called Museo ng Maynila but it was closed that day. While searching for photographs online, I was in awe by the architecture of both buildings with its high ceilings, the black and white tiles of the Army and Navy Club which I rarely see nowadays.

Manila City Hall

     I am sorry to say that most of us here do not value our heritage and history. I am sad when I see historical sites that were allowed to deteriorate like Intramuros, the Manila Metropolitan Theater; some were torn down like the Mehan Garden.   

        I love my country's history and heritage. Whenever I have time, I would visit   historical sites again and again just to get a feel of the past. I love Manila because I could find everything there. It is soulful and rich in culture. It seems that every turn leads to that one place- my beloved Intramuros.  

Intramuros