I spent the last three days at Betania Retreat House, run by the Congregation of the Religious of the Virgin Mary, in Tagaytay City in the province of Cavite. Three days with no internet, no cellphone, and no gadgets (I took this photo when our retreat group arrived, then put away the camera too). Three days of meditation, contemplation and prayer. I hope they will be enough to get me through another year with patience, serenity, and grace.
Showing posts with label Cavite. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cavite. Show all posts
May 12, 2013
Three days
I spent the last three days at Betania Retreat House, run by the Congregation of the Religious of the Virgin Mary, in Tagaytay City in the province of Cavite. Three days with no internet, no cellphone, and no gadgets (I took this photo when our retreat group arrived, then put away the camera too). Three days of meditation, contemplation and prayer. I hope they will be enough to get me through another year with patience, serenity, and grace.
May 28, 2009
Corregidor: The views
Though the views from the top of the Spanish lighthouse must be really amazing, it's not really necessary to go up its steep spiral steps to appreciate the views around Corregidor Island. It is only 5 square kilometers (about 2 square miles) in size after all. This is what it looks like through the tinted front windows of the ferry as we're arriving. Corregidor is shaped like a tadpole and the bulkiest part of the island would be the head.
Corregidor Island divides the mouth of Manila Bay into the North and South Channels. This is the view of the North Dock, North Channel and the hills of the Bataan Peninsula from the entrance of Corregidor Inn.
From the other side of the hotel, you can see the South Dock, South Channel and the mainland of the province of Cavite, which Corregidor is a part of.
Another view of the South Channel, this time from the Japanese Garden of Peace. The island on the left is Caballo Island, also known as Fort Hughes. Caballo and two other islands in the South Channel—El Fraile (Fort Drum) and Carabao Island (Fort Frank)—were also part of the harbor defenses built by the Americans.
The tadpole's tail as seen from the Eternal Flame of Freedom monument. The tip, separated from the rest of the island by a narrow channel of water, is called Hooker Point.
Saying goodbye to Corregidor Island from the ferry's open deck as the sun sets over Manila Bay.
And thus ends my Corregidor Island series. Thank you for coming on the trip with us! CORREGIDOR ISLAND SERIES #7 OF 7
Duh. I registered this post for Watery Wednesday, forgetting that it's already Thursday! My job's getting to me…
Corregidor Island divides the mouth of Manila Bay into the North and South Channels. This is the view of the North Dock, North Channel and the hills of the Bataan Peninsula from the entrance of Corregidor Inn.
From the other side of the hotel, you can see the South Dock, South Channel and the mainland of the province of Cavite, which Corregidor is a part of.
Another view of the South Channel, this time from the Japanese Garden of Peace. The island on the left is Caballo Island, also known as Fort Hughes. Caballo and two other islands in the South Channel—El Fraile (Fort Drum) and Carabao Island (Fort Frank)—were also part of the harbor defenses built by the Americans.
The tadpole's tail as seen from the Eternal Flame of Freedom monument. The tip, separated from the rest of the island by a narrow channel of water, is called Hooker Point.
Saying goodbye to Corregidor Island from the ferry's open deck as the sun sets over Manila Bay.
And thus ends my Corregidor Island series. Thank you for coming on the trip with us! CORREGIDOR ISLAND SERIES #7 OF 7
Duh. I registered this post for Watery Wednesday, forgetting that it's already Thursday! My job's getting to me…
May 25, 2009
Corregidor: The tour facilities
The best way to tour Corregidor Island on your first visit is to take one of the packaged tours of Sun Cruises. The day tour only costs Php 2,150 (US$ 45) per person and that includes the two-way ferry trip, guided tour, buffet lunch and Malinta Tunnel show. Going through the guided tour even just once will make the experience of the island so much richer. The ferry station in Manila is beside Harbour Square in the Cultural Center of the Philippines complex and the ferry most often used by Sun Cruises for the Corregidor trip is the M/V Sun Cruiser II. It takes the ferry about an hour and fifteen minutes to cover the 26.6 km distance between Manila and Corregidor.
Nothing fancy inside the ferry, just seats for 285 people in two air-conditioned levels. There's a snack counter and an open area on the upper deck. The three rows in front of us were all Japanese tourists and there were also a lot of Americans (some of whom were in the U.S. Armed Forces), a Spanish family and a few other Europeans.
Lunch is served at the Corregidor Inn, the only hotel on the island. This is also where you stay if you decide to take the overnight package.
The bus which takes you on the guided tour is designed to look like the electric trams that were used extensively on the island during the American period. Malinta Tunnel still has the trolley line's double tracks and you can glimpse what remains of the tracks beside the roads and under the vegetation all over the island.
CORREGIDOR ISLAND SERIES #6 OF 7
Nothing fancy inside the ferry, just seats for 285 people in two air-conditioned levels. There's a snack counter and an open area on the upper deck. The three rows in front of us were all Japanese tourists and there were also a lot of Americans (some of whom were in the U.S. Armed Forces), a Spanish family and a few other Europeans.
Lunch is served at the Corregidor Inn, the only hotel on the island. This is also where you stay if you decide to take the overnight package.
The bus which takes you on the guided tour is designed to look like the electric trams that were used extensively on the island during the American period. Malinta Tunnel still has the trolley line's double tracks and you can glimpse what remains of the tracks beside the roads and under the vegetation all over the island.
CORREGIDOR ISLAND SERIES #6 OF 7
May 24, 2009
Corregidor: The Spanish lighthouse
Even during the Spanish colonial period, Corregidor Island figured prominently in the history and defense of Manila because of its location at the mouth of Manila Bay. The Spaniards used the island as a fortress of defense, a penal institution, a signal outpost and a station for customs inspection. 'Corregidor' comes from the Spanish word corregir which means 'to correct.' None of the Spanish structures survived the American era and the wars, but the Spanish lighthouse, originally built in 1836, was reconstructed on its original site. It stands on the highest point of the island, which is 191 meters (628 feet) above sea level, and my husband says that the views from the top of the lighthouse were fantastic. I'm afraid that I didn't bother. After a day of walking, I couldn't bring myself to climbing up a steep, narrow, spiral staircase anymore. The little red speck up there beside the door is my husband waving for the camera. The base of the lighthouse is a small museum, and the signpost outside lists distances (in kilometers) to different cities around the world: Manila 26.6, Hong Kong 693, Singapore 1497, Tokyo 1719, Sydney 3044, Cairo 5704, Madrid 6672, San Francisco 6972.
CORREGIDOR ISLAND SERIES #5 OF 7
CORREGIDOR ISLAND SERIES #5 OF 7
May 23, 2009
Corregidor: The memorials
I found myself with some time to finally finish my Corregidor series, and it turns out that the timing is quite appropriate. The U.S. is observing Memorial Day on Monday and many Americans died on Corregidor Island during WWII. So my dear American friends, this post is especially for you.
For many reasons, Filipinos consider General Douglas MacArthur a hero. Corregidor Island was his headquarters during the Battle of the Philippines in 1941–42. When he was ordered by U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt to relocate to Melbourne, Australia when the Japanese attacks were getting worse, he considered resigning his commission and staying on as a private soldier in the Philippine resistance. This is his twice-life-size statue near Corregidor's Lorcha Dock, which was believed to be MacArthur's departure point for Australia on March 11, 1942. He spoke his most famous line "I shall return" in Australia, not the Philippines, and he did—on October 20, 1944 in the province of Leyte.
The unenviable task of defending the Philippines after the departure of MacArthur fell on General Jonathan M. Wainwright. It was he who had to make the agonizing decision to surrender to the Japanese on May 6, 1942. He was the highest-ranking American prisoner of war held by the Japanese until his liberation in August 1945. Throughout his captivity, he agonized over his decisions in the Philippines and felt that he let his country down. I can only imagine what he felt when President Harry S. Truman awarded him a Medal of Honor on September 10, 1945.
Of course, there were also many Filipino soldiers who fought and died alongside their American counterparts. This is the Filipino Heroes Memorial with the statue of the Farmer-Soldier, which is representative of what most Filipino soldiers truly are even until now. The low, stone walls of the memorial are covered with fourteen friezes depicting different battles fought by Filipinos in defense of their motherland, from the Battle of Mactan in 1521 to the People Power Revolution in 1986.
In all wars and battles, soldiers just follow orders from their officers who in turn also just follow orders from their governments. Corregidor Island is big enough—and I like to think that Filipino hearts are big enough too—to accommodate a Japanese Garden of Peace. The garden has a 10-foot tall Buddha and a Shinto shrine, relics of Japanese weapons, and this small plot with stone lotus leaves with little brass plaques engraved with Japanese characters around a lotus flower (the grass was dry last April but it must be beautifully green now). When the American and Filipino troops recaptured Corregidor in 1945, all the Japanese who died on the island were buried in this area. The bodies have since been exhumed and sent home to the soldiers' families, and the Japanese Garden of Peace was created to provide family members, friends and countrymen who visit, a place to pray, remember and reflect. And yes, many Japanese visit Corregidor Island every year, both young and old. A small monument in the garden ends with the line: "We ardently pray for… everlasting peace throughout the world." Amen to that.
This statue is named "Brothers in Arms" and the plaque in front of it reads, "In these hallowed surroundings where heroes sleep may their ashes scatter in the wind and live in the hearts of those who were left behind. They died for freedom's right and in heaven's sight theirs was a noble cause." It stands in front of the Pacific War Memorial, built by the United States government and completed in 1968, which is dedicated to the "Filipino and American fighting men who gave their lives to win the land, sea and air victories which restored freedom and peace to the Pacific Ocean area."
The dome of the main structure of the Pacific War Memorial has a hole which lets light fall on the circular altar underneath it. The altar is engraved with the words, "Sleep my sons, your duty done… for freedom's light has come. Sleep in the silent depths of the sea, or in your bed of hallowed sod. Until you hear at dawn the low, clear reveille of God."
If you walk beyond the altar to a door opposite the entrance, you will see a concrete path with narrow pools at the sides. On its walls are large marble slabs engraved with the names of all the countries and islands where the Pacific War was fought, and all relevant dates and battles. At the end of the path is the 40-foot tall, steel "Flame of Freedom" created by the American sculptor Aristides Demetrios. At the base of the sculpture, there is a small sign that says, "To live in freedom's light is the right of mankind."
CORREGIDOR ISLAND SERIES #4 OF 7
For many reasons, Filipinos consider General Douglas MacArthur a hero. Corregidor Island was his headquarters during the Battle of the Philippines in 1941–42. When he was ordered by U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt to relocate to Melbourne, Australia when the Japanese attacks were getting worse, he considered resigning his commission and staying on as a private soldier in the Philippine resistance. This is his twice-life-size statue near Corregidor's Lorcha Dock, which was believed to be MacArthur's departure point for Australia on March 11, 1942. He spoke his most famous line "I shall return" in Australia, not the Philippines, and he did—on October 20, 1944 in the province of Leyte.
The unenviable task of defending the Philippines after the departure of MacArthur fell on General Jonathan M. Wainwright. It was he who had to make the agonizing decision to surrender to the Japanese on May 6, 1942. He was the highest-ranking American prisoner of war held by the Japanese until his liberation in August 1945. Throughout his captivity, he agonized over his decisions in the Philippines and felt that he let his country down. I can only imagine what he felt when President Harry S. Truman awarded him a Medal of Honor on September 10, 1945.
Of course, there were also many Filipino soldiers who fought and died alongside their American counterparts. This is the Filipino Heroes Memorial with the statue of the Farmer-Soldier, which is representative of what most Filipino soldiers truly are even until now. The low, stone walls of the memorial are covered with fourteen friezes depicting different battles fought by Filipinos in defense of their motherland, from the Battle of Mactan in 1521 to the People Power Revolution in 1986.
In all wars and battles, soldiers just follow orders from their officers who in turn also just follow orders from their governments. Corregidor Island is big enough—and I like to think that Filipino hearts are big enough too—to accommodate a Japanese Garden of Peace. The garden has a 10-foot tall Buddha and a Shinto shrine, relics of Japanese weapons, and this small plot with stone lotus leaves with little brass plaques engraved with Japanese characters around a lotus flower (the grass was dry last April but it must be beautifully green now). When the American and Filipino troops recaptured Corregidor in 1945, all the Japanese who died on the island were buried in this area. The bodies have since been exhumed and sent home to the soldiers' families, and the Japanese Garden of Peace was created to provide family members, friends and countrymen who visit, a place to pray, remember and reflect. And yes, many Japanese visit Corregidor Island every year, both young and old. A small monument in the garden ends with the line: "We ardently pray for… everlasting peace throughout the world." Amen to that.
This statue is named "Brothers in Arms" and the plaque in front of it reads, "In these hallowed surroundings where heroes sleep may their ashes scatter in the wind and live in the hearts of those who were left behind. They died for freedom's right and in heaven's sight theirs was a noble cause." It stands in front of the Pacific War Memorial, built by the United States government and completed in 1968, which is dedicated to the "Filipino and American fighting men who gave their lives to win the land, sea and air victories which restored freedom and peace to the Pacific Ocean area."
The dome of the main structure of the Pacific War Memorial has a hole which lets light fall on the circular altar underneath it. The altar is engraved with the words, "Sleep my sons, your duty done… for freedom's light has come. Sleep in the silent depths of the sea, or in your bed of hallowed sod. Until you hear at dawn the low, clear reveille of God."
If you walk beyond the altar to a door opposite the entrance, you will see a concrete path with narrow pools at the sides. On its walls are large marble slabs engraved with the names of all the countries and islands where the Pacific War was fought, and all relevant dates and battles. At the end of the path is the 40-foot tall, steel "Flame of Freedom" created by the American sculptor Aristides Demetrios. At the base of the sculpture, there is a small sign that says, "To live in freedom's light is the right of mankind."
CORREGIDOR ISLAND SERIES #4 OF 7
May 10, 2009
Away from it all
When my husband and I attended his cousin's wedding in Tagaytay City, we stayed overnight in Hacienda Isabella in Indang, Cavite rather than driving back to Metro Manila late at night. If your idea of an ideal vacation is doing absolutely nothing in beautiful surroundings, or maybe walking around with a book, plopping onto a comfortable chair in a quiet spot, reading for a few minutes before falling asleep for one of many refreshing naps, then Hacienda Isabella is for you. Its bedrooms don't even have TV (which is of no consequence to us since we really don't watch TV anyway). We were three small family groups and our rooms were in the Casa Blanco which has a patio filled with cushions and pillows just begging to be laid down on.
Hacienda Isabella is a four-hectare farm resort with several houses and cottages scattered throughout the property. The main house, with its floor-to-ceiling windows, has a wide veranda where banquets and performances can be held.
The main house serves as the resort's reception and dining area. There are several long dining tables and the food is served family-style with the platters placed in the middle of the table. The main house also has several bedrooms.
Part of the view from the veranda of the main house overlooking the two-tiered lawn, another house with bedrooms and a vine-covered gazebo.
You may have noticed by now that Hacienda Isabella is also an antique-lover's paradise. The entire resort is a showcase for all the collections that the owners have acquired through the years: furniture, birdhouses, lamps, paintings, luggage, doors, glass panes, even old wooden beams. This house had shelves filled with antique typewriters, still and video cameras, movie projectors, radios and other small equipment.
A single-bedroom cottage perfect for honeymooners, whether on their first or their fiftieth.
Hacienda Isabella has a large swimming pool in one corner of the property. But if you're still not tired of doing absolutely nothing, this little screened cabana just off the pool with two day beds is waiting for you.
For those who just have to do something, Hacienda Isabella has a billiard table in a roofed, free-standing patio. Aren't these old ice-shavers just lovely?
I would like to apologize to any City Daily Photo administrators who visit this blog if I've been posting so many out-of-town photos these past two months. We don't normally take so many trips outside Metro Manila and it has been an exceptional privilege to show off some of the beautiful places here, just two to three hours drive away. And I haven't forgotten that I still owe four more posts for the Corregidor Island series. Soon, I hope.
Hacienda Isabella is a four-hectare farm resort with several houses and cottages scattered throughout the property. The main house, with its floor-to-ceiling windows, has a wide veranda where banquets and performances can be held.
The main house serves as the resort's reception and dining area. There are several long dining tables and the food is served family-style with the platters placed in the middle of the table. The main house also has several bedrooms.
Part of the view from the veranda of the main house overlooking the two-tiered lawn, another house with bedrooms and a vine-covered gazebo.
You may have noticed by now that Hacienda Isabella is also an antique-lover's paradise. The entire resort is a showcase for all the collections that the owners have acquired through the years: furniture, birdhouses, lamps, paintings, luggage, doors, glass panes, even old wooden beams. This house had shelves filled with antique typewriters, still and video cameras, movie projectors, radios and other small equipment.
A single-bedroom cottage perfect for honeymooners, whether on their first or their fiftieth.
Hacienda Isabella has a large swimming pool in one corner of the property. But if you're still not tired of doing absolutely nothing, this little screened cabana just off the pool with two day beds is waiting for you.
For those who just have to do something, Hacienda Isabella has a billiard table in a roofed, free-standing patio. Aren't these old ice-shavers just lovely?
I would like to apologize to any City Daily Photo administrators who visit this blog if I've been posting so many out-of-town photos these past two months. We don't normally take so many trips outside Metro Manila and it has been an exceptional privilege to show off some of the beautiful places here, just two to three hours drive away. And I haven't forgotten that I still owe four more posts for the Corregidor Island series. Soon, I hope.
Urban or rural, natural or man-made, take a sightseeing tour of our world's diverse scenery!
April 26, 2009
A room with a view
This is not in Metro Manila. Again. One of my husband's cousins got married in Tagaytay City in the province of Cavite yesterday afternoon and the house that the bride and groom rented for the reception has a magnificent view of Taal Lake and Taal Volcano. Taal Lake is the third largest lake in the Philippines and is located in the province of Batangas. It has several islands and the biggest is where the still-active Taal Volcano is. The reception was supposed to be outdoors so guests could enjoy the view but it rained the whole afternoon, shrouding the entire lake and ruining their original plan. It was bright and sunny when I took this photo this morning, but the dark clouds beginning to form signaled yet another wet afternoon.
The reception was eventually held in the living room of the house. Even on cloudy days, wouldn't you just love to have a view like this from your home? I know I would!
The reception was eventually held in the living room of the house. Even on cloudy days, wouldn't you just love to have a view like this from your home? I know I would!
Urban or rural, natural or man-made, take a sightseeing tour of our world's diverse scenery!
April 21, 2009
Corregidor: The tunnels
Corregidor Island had a vast network of tunnels built under solid rock. The Americans designed Fort Mills solely to ward off attacks from the sea but they soon realized that it would be very vulnerable to attacks from the air. So in 1922, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, with the help of the Philippine Scouts and a thousand convicts from Manila's Bilibid Prison, began work on tunnels that were meant to be a bomb-proof storage and personnel bunker. Its main tunnel was built under Malinta (full of leeches) Hill and the tunnel complex came to be known as Malinta Tunnel. It was finished in 1932.
During the Battle of Corregidor, Malinta Tunnel served as the headquarters of General Douglas MacArthur and was also the seat of the Philippine Commonwealth government under President Manuel Quezon (you've seen him before here) and Vice President Sergio Osmeña. Today, the main tunnel is the venue of an audio-visual show about the siege of Corregidor. With a script written by National Artist for Theater and Film Lamberto Avellana and sculptures made by National Artist for Sculpture Napoleon Abueva, the show is a must-see for WWII history buffs and for anyone who would like to understand what so many men and women had to endure for our freedom. (Please pardon the fuzzy picture. It was the best I could do in the darkness without using a flash.)
The main tunnel had 24 side tunnels branching from it. Much narrower and lower than the main tunnel, it was actually these laterals that served as storage areas and headquarters. Some of them led to other entrances, and two of the tunnels led to their own tunnel complexes. One of these was the underground hospital which had 1,000 beds. The main tunnel was restored for the lights-and-sounds show, but many of the smaller tunnels collapsed during WWII and remain that way.
Back outside, the island is also riddled with tiny tunnels and caves. I forgot to ask the guide if these were connected to the Malinta Tunnel complex, but he said that they were used by both American and Japanese snipers.
CORREGIDOR ISLAND SERIES #3 OF 7
During the Battle of Corregidor, Malinta Tunnel served as the headquarters of General Douglas MacArthur and was also the seat of the Philippine Commonwealth government under President Manuel Quezon (you've seen him before here) and Vice President Sergio Osmeña. Today, the main tunnel is the venue of an audio-visual show about the siege of Corregidor. With a script written by National Artist for Theater and Film Lamberto Avellana and sculptures made by National Artist for Sculpture Napoleon Abueva, the show is a must-see for WWII history buffs and for anyone who would like to understand what so many men and women had to endure for our freedom. (Please pardon the fuzzy picture. It was the best I could do in the darkness without using a flash.)
The main tunnel had 24 side tunnels branching from it. Much narrower and lower than the main tunnel, it was actually these laterals that served as storage areas and headquarters. Some of them led to other entrances, and two of the tunnels led to their own tunnel complexes. One of these was the underground hospital which had 1,000 beds. The main tunnel was restored for the lights-and-sounds show, but many of the smaller tunnels collapsed during WWII and remain that way.
Back outside, the island is also riddled with tiny tunnels and caves. I forgot to ask the guide if these were connected to the Malinta Tunnel complex, but he said that they were used by both American and Japanese snipers.
CORREGIDOR ISLAND SERIES #3 OF 7
April 20, 2009
Corregidor: The guns
Corregidor Island is only five square kilometers (about two square miles), but by the time WWII started, the Americans had installed 23 coastal gun batteries and 13 anti-aircraft artillery batteries on it. Of these, only five are still easily accessible and included in the tour, though we only visited two. Battery Hearn, completed in 1921, was named after Brigadier General Clint C. Hearn, who commanded the harbor defenses of Manila and Subic Bays in 1919. It was armed with one of the two longest-range seacoast guns on the island. The gun was manned by one officer and 33 enlisted men, four of whom were stationed in the well beneath the carriage. In 1941–42, it was used against Japanese artillery placed in the coastal towns of Naic and Ternate in the province of Cavite.
Battery Way, completed in 1914, was named in honor of 2nd Lieutenant Henry N. Way, 4th U.S. Artillery, who died in service in the Philippines in 1900. It was armed with four 305 mm (12-inch) guns used mainly to penetrate the decks of enemy warships. Each gun had a crew of 14 men. The last gun firing against the Japanese before Corregidor surrendered on noon of May 6, 1942 was from Battery Way. Its breech block froze at 11:00 am, warped by the heat of constant firing. That morning, the gun crews of Battery Way suffered 70 percent casualties.
CORREGIDOR ISLAND SERIES #2 OF 7
Battery Way, completed in 1914, was named in honor of 2nd Lieutenant Henry N. Way, 4th U.S. Artillery, who died in service in the Philippines in 1900. It was armed with four 305 mm (12-inch) guns used mainly to penetrate the decks of enemy warships. Each gun had a crew of 14 men. The last gun firing against the Japanese before Corregidor surrendered on noon of May 6, 1942 was from Battery Way. Its breech block froze at 11:00 am, warped by the heat of constant firing. That morning, the gun crews of Battery Way suffered 70 percent casualties.
CORREGIDOR ISLAND SERIES #2 OF 7
April 19, 2009
Corregidor: The ruins
I am going to break the rules of CDP again today and in the next few days. Yesterday, my husband and I took a day trip to Corregidor Island in the province of Cavite. Corregidor is a tiny, tadpole-shaped island which sits at the entrance of Manila Bay. Because of its location, it has always been strategically important in the defense of Manila and it played a large role during the Pacific War, that part of WWII which took place in the Pacific Ocean especially against Japan during the reign of Emperor Hirohito. The Philippines was a Commonwealth under the United States at the time, and many American soldiers were killed alongside Filipino troops during the Battle of Corregidor, the last battle to keep the Japanese Imperial Army from getting access to Manila Bay. Everything on the island was destroyed or heavily damaged during the war and all the ruins are being maintained by the Corregidor Foundation. A regular U.S. army post on Corregidor Island was established in 1908 and named Fort Mills, in honor of Brigadier General Samuel Meyers Mills, Jr., Chief of Artillery of the U.S. Army from 1905 to 1906. This was the Headquarters and Chapel.
The Middleside barracks could accommodate 3,000 soldiers—1,000 on each of its three levels.
Another view of the Middleside barracks from a completely collapsed end. When I said that the Corregidor Foundation maintains the ruins, I meant exactly that: they are trying to keep the ruins as they were at the end of the war. Notice the struts that are keeping the second-story wall in place. You can also glimpse the white beams in the third-story rooms that are holding the roof up.
The Mile Long barracks could accommodate 5,000 soldiers. It was actually less than a third of a mile long, but it was still one of the longest in the world, hence the soldiers' nickname for this Topside barracks. This end was heavily bombarded by the Japanese because they had heard that General Douglas MacArthur, Allied commander in the Philippines, was using it as his headquarters. Yes, he was, but he wasn't in the barracks at the time of the bombardment.
Like any other U.S. military base, Corregidor Island also had recreational and entertainment facilities for the troops stationed there. This was the local 'Y.' And I didn't notice them during the tour, but I'm seeing depressions in the field in this photo. I'm thinking that they must have been caused by artillery shells.
And this was Cine Corregidor, a movie theater.
Another view of Cine Corregidor, this time from inside the building. I'm at the stage area looking towards the entrance. The theater obviously had an upper balcony. Can you imagine how grand it must have been before the war?
There are many more interesting ruins in Corregidor, but the tour was running on a tight schedule and honestly, half a day is not nearly enough time to visit everything. To do so, you'll have to hire your own guide and vehicle, and stay on the island for at least two days. CORREGIDOR ISLAND SERIES #1 OF 7
The Middleside barracks could accommodate 3,000 soldiers—1,000 on each of its three levels.
Another view of the Middleside barracks from a completely collapsed end. When I said that the Corregidor Foundation maintains the ruins, I meant exactly that: they are trying to keep the ruins as they were at the end of the war. Notice the struts that are keeping the second-story wall in place. You can also glimpse the white beams in the third-story rooms that are holding the roof up.
The Mile Long barracks could accommodate 5,000 soldiers. It was actually less than a third of a mile long, but it was still one of the longest in the world, hence the soldiers' nickname for this Topside barracks. This end was heavily bombarded by the Japanese because they had heard that General Douglas MacArthur, Allied commander in the Philippines, was using it as his headquarters. Yes, he was, but he wasn't in the barracks at the time of the bombardment.
Like any other U.S. military base, Corregidor Island also had recreational and entertainment facilities for the troops stationed there. This was the local 'Y.' And I didn't notice them during the tour, but I'm seeing depressions in the field in this photo. I'm thinking that they must have been caused by artillery shells.
And this was Cine Corregidor, a movie theater.
Another view of Cine Corregidor, this time from inside the building. I'm at the stage area looking towards the entrance. The theater obviously had an upper balcony. Can you imagine how grand it must have been before the war?
There are many more interesting ruins in Corregidor, but the tour was running on a tight schedule and honestly, half a day is not nearly enough time to visit everything. To do so, you'll have to hire your own guide and vehicle, and stay on the island for at least two days. CORREGIDOR ISLAND SERIES #1 OF 7
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