BARASOAIN CHURCH
A national shrine, the historic Barasoain Church is the site of the Constitutional Convention of the first Philippine Republic, making the Philippines the very first Asian Government to promulgate a Constitution. It was the Seat of the First Philippine Republic on Sept. 15, 1898 to the last week of Feb. 1899 under the presidency of Pedro Paterno. In its convent the Universidad Literaria Cientifica de Filipinas was first housed. It also boasts of a light and sound museum under the management of National Historical Institute.
How to Get to Barasoain Church Using Your Vehicle~
For those people who have their own vehicle and are coming from Manila, you need to go to the North Luzon Expressway. You need to pass Kamachile, Valenzuela, Meycauayan, Marilao, Bocaue and Guiguinto, Bulacan using the North Luzon Expressway. It doesn’t matter if you came from Quezon City, if you came from Monumento, from Cubao and so on. You need to get yourself in the NLEX.
Tabang is your target NLEX exit. Slow down and keep your vehicle to the right when you see the Shell Gasstation after the Bocaue toll gate. Prepare your NLEX fee at Tabang toll gate. From that point, just go straight until you reach the Malolos fly over. DO NOT use the fly over. Drive under the fly over to reach Malolos crossing. Turn left afterwards. Go straight and you will see Barasoain church at the right side. That’s how you get to barasoain church from NLEX.
Best time to travel~ You can travel there anytime, anywhere esp. when you want to talk to God and confess your sins.
PINAGREALAN CAVE
ENRIQUEZ ANCESTRAL HOUSE
Location: San Jose Bulakan, Bulacan
Constructed during the 1850s, it is one of the ancestral houses found in San Jose, Bulacan, Bulacan. Some of the documents of Marcelo H. del Pilar were found in this house. It houses a museum of rare antiques and historical artifacts. It is presently owned by acclaimed Filipino food historian Milagros Enriquez.
THE ENRIQUEZ FAMILY
Vicente and Petrona Enriquez had nine children: six boys and three girls. They were Alfonso, Anacleto, Severina, Victoria, Paula, Vicente Jr., Jose, Laureano, and Bonifacio. The first four sons joined the Katipunan, became high ranking members, and fought actively in the Philippine Revolution.
Alfonso became a captain and headed Brigada Pilar, the victorious Katipunan force in Bulakan. Anacleto became a general at age 20 and fell in the Battle of San Rafael on November 30, 1896. Vicente became a lieutenant-colonel and aide-de-camp (ayudante) to Gen. Gregorio del Pilar and, along with Jose, who became a lieutenant, survived the Battle of Tirad Pass. Vicente was the principal source of the details of the battle which would be chronicled by historians. Laureano and Bonifacio, the youngest of the Enriquez brood, did not join the Katipunan because they were too young.
Gen. Anacleto Enriquez and Gen. Gregorio del Pilar were close friends from childhood. They were born only 10 months and 12 days apart (September 26, 1876 and November 14, 1875). In fact, Gen del Pilar was born on land adjacent to the Enriquez family house in Barrio San Jose, Bulakan. Together with Anacleto's younger brother Vicente, the two maintained their friendship as students of the Ateneo Municipal de Manila at Arsobispado St. in Intramuros. It is said that Gen. del Pilar was inspired profoundly by Gen. Enriquez' death, leading him to emulate Gen. Enriquez' martyrdom.
Because of the revolutionary activities of her children, Petrona Enriquez was arrested and detained by the Spaniards in the old Bilibid Prisons when hostilities broke out in 1896. Her third child, Victoria Enriquez, was also arrested by the Spanish authorities.
Vicente Enriquez' father was named Anacleto Enriquez, which explains why he named one of his sons Anacleto. In turn, the former's father was a pure Spaniard by the name of Rafael Enriquez, about whom the Enriquez clan in the Philippines knows very little.
Petrona Enriquez and Blasa Gatmaitan, the mother of propagandist Marcelo H. del Pilar, were first cousins. My mother, Eneida Enriquez Reyes, told me time and again that Petrona and her wealthy sister Eugenia contributed to the financial allotment that Blasa Gatmaitan sent to Marcelo H. del Pilar while he was campaigning for reforms in Spain.
BEST TIME TO TRAVEL
Anytime. Please make sure you have the permission of the Barangay Captain to enter the Historical House.
For those people who have their own vehicle and are coming from Manila, you need to go to the North Luzon Expressway. You need to pass Kamachile, Valenzuela, Meycauayan, Marilao, Bocaue and Guiguinto, Bulacan using the North Luzon Expressway. It doesn’t matter if you came from Quezon City, if you came from Monumento, from Cubao and so on. You need to get yourself in the NLEX.
Tabang is your target NLEX exit. Slow down and keep your vehicle to the right when you see the Shell Gasstation after the Bocaue toll gate. Prepare your NLEX fee at Tabang toll gate. From that point, just go straight until you reach the Malolos fly over. DO NOT use the fly over. Drive under the fly over to reach Malolos crossing. Turn left afterwards. Go straight and you will see Barasoain church at the right side. That’s how you get to barasoain church from NLEX.
Best time to travel~ You can travel there anytime, anywhere esp. when you want to talk to God and confess your sins.
PINAGREALAN CAVE
Location: Minuyan, Norzagaray, Bulacan
This cave is a subterranean network of caverns extending more than a kilometer deep. The Katipunero Revolutionaries during the war against Spain used it as a camp in 1896 and again during the Filipino-American War in 1898 as hideout of General Emilio Aguinaldo (the First President of the Philippines). It was also used as a sanctuary by the Japanese Imperial Army when the Philippines was liberated by American Forces.
How to Get to Pinagrealan Cave~
Catch a Barangay Bigte jeep from Norzagaray town proper and ask the driver to drop you at the rotunda. From there, board a motorcycle straight to the cave starting point.
Best time to travel~
Summer. It is a different adventure for many cavers to wiggle, waggle, waddle, squirm, push and pull amidst the numerous stalactites and stalagmites just to see the innermost beauty of the cave. One even has to climb up the uneven vertical fractures and rock formations that are embedded in the slippery sand-stones. It is also a good spot for photography because of the dark, dramatic, and mysterious surroundings.
ENRIQUEZ ANCESTRAL HOUSE
Location: San Jose Bulakan, Bulacan
Constructed during the 1850s, it is one of the ancestral houses found in San Jose, Bulacan, Bulacan. Some of the documents of Marcelo H. del Pilar were found in this house. It houses a museum of rare antiques and historical artifacts. It is presently owned by acclaimed Filipino food historian Milagros Enriquez.
THE ENRIQUEZ FAMILY
Vicente and Petrona Enriquez had nine children: six boys and three girls. They were Alfonso, Anacleto, Severina, Victoria, Paula, Vicente Jr., Jose, Laureano, and Bonifacio. The first four sons joined the Katipunan, became high ranking members, and fought actively in the Philippine Revolution.
Alfonso became a captain and headed Brigada Pilar, the victorious Katipunan force in Bulakan. Anacleto became a general at age 20 and fell in the Battle of San Rafael on November 30, 1896. Vicente became a lieutenant-colonel and aide-de-camp (ayudante) to Gen. Gregorio del Pilar and, along with Jose, who became a lieutenant, survived the Battle of Tirad Pass. Vicente was the principal source of the details of the battle which would be chronicled by historians. Laureano and Bonifacio, the youngest of the Enriquez brood, did not join the Katipunan because they were too young.
Gen. Anacleto Enriquez and Gen. Gregorio del Pilar were close friends from childhood. They were born only 10 months and 12 days apart (September 26, 1876 and November 14, 1875). In fact, Gen del Pilar was born on land adjacent to the Enriquez family house in Barrio San Jose, Bulakan. Together with Anacleto's younger brother Vicente, the two maintained their friendship as students of the Ateneo Municipal de Manila at Arsobispado St. in Intramuros. It is said that Gen. del Pilar was inspired profoundly by Gen. Enriquez' death, leading him to emulate Gen. Enriquez' martyrdom.
Because of the revolutionary activities of her children, Petrona Enriquez was arrested and detained by the Spaniards in the old Bilibid Prisons when hostilities broke out in 1896. Her third child, Victoria Enriquez, was also arrested by the Spanish authorities.
Vicente Enriquez' father was named Anacleto Enriquez, which explains why he named one of his sons Anacleto. In turn, the former's father was a pure Spaniard by the name of Rafael Enriquez, about whom the Enriquez clan in the Philippines knows very little.
Petrona Enriquez and Blasa Gatmaitan, the mother of propagandist Marcelo H. del Pilar, were first cousins. My mother, Eneida Enriquez Reyes, told me time and again that Petrona and her wealthy sister Eugenia contributed to the financial allotment that Blasa Gatmaitan sent to Marcelo H. del Pilar while he was campaigning for reforms in Spain.
BEST TIME TO TRAVEL
Anytime. Please make sure you have the permission of the Barangay Captain to enter the Historical House.
