Adecsky Explorer: INTRAMUROS- A GATEWAY TO THE PAST

Traveling on foot is one of the best ways to get acquianted with a place. It certainly gives you the chance to be up close and personal with it and its people. This is exactly what I did one sunny afternoon.

Intramuros was built by the Spaniards in the 16th century and is located along the southern bank of the Pasig River. The name itself literally means "within walls" and was constructed to protect the city from foreign invasion during the Spanish occupation of the Philippines. Also known as Ciudad Murada, it has nearly a three-mile-long circuit of massive stone walls and fortification that almost completely surround the entire area.

One finds within the walls different Roman Catholic churches which have been in existence since the Spanish colonization of the Philippines. The oldest among them is the San Agustin Church which was built in 1607. The other churches are San Nicolas de Tolentino Church, San Francisco Church, Third Venerable Order Church, Santo Domingo Church, Lourdes Church, and San Ignacio Church. Colegio de San Juan de Letran, one of the oldest educational institutions in the Philippines, is also located here.

Having one of the best views of Intramuros

I never got hopelessly lost as I continued my tour of Intramuros. This is precisely because the place has an orderly street plan found in signages strategically located in different areas. General Luna Street provides easy access to most of its major attractions. I was charmed with the restaurants, cafes, hotels and souvenir shops which are in proximity to this street.

Although I perspired a lot walking around under the sun, I certainly had an awesome time in Intramuros. I capped my tour with a delightful refreshment of calamansi creme cake, okoy, and halo-halo at the Ristorante delle Mitre.