Holy Week in Retrospect

Holy Week was a singularly blessed time to be in Manila. No traffic jams!

Everything was quiet. No blaring sirens! No blowing car horns. No people rushing to and from work and/or school. Why anyone would want to be out of town for Lent is beyond me.

I had to work, though. The MS AMADEA was arriving at Pier 13 for its maiden voyage and it was on, of all days, Maundy Thursday! (Read my blog on the tour report posted on an earlier date.) I never thought I would have to work on Holy Week, but hey, it was worth the (pardon me) sacrifice.

After that I did get to do my spiritual obligations. I had actually planned to do Visita Iglesia to fourteen churches. Eventually, it had been cut by half. I had been to San Agustin in the morning and passed through Manila Cathedral with a busload of German tourists. Quiapo Church was its usual bustling self teeming with devotees of the Black Nazarene. Incidentally, about the only other time the Black Nazarene is brought out on procession is on Good Friday. It wouldn't have been a good idea to visit these churches after i worked all day long.

So for Visita Iglesia I visited the following eight churches:

Our Lady of La Paz (Makati)
St. Paul (San Antonio Village, Makati)
Sacred Heart Shrine (Makati)
St. Joseph, the Worker (Palanan, Makati)
St. Scholastica (Leon Guinto, Manila)
St Martin de Porres (Leon Guinto, Manila)
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal (San Marcelino, Manila)
Our Lady of Remedies (Malate, Manila)

I was with friends and we were making good time doing the rounds of churches via a convoy. Years ago, the traditional Visita Iglesia was done on foot. Modern conveniences have altered the way we do things. Yes, now we ride cars and all sorts of vehicles to get to the 14 stations.

After that we were famished! And being in Malate, we landed at a newly opened branch of David's Tea House along M.H. del Pilar right across the church on the Remedios side. We dined on Pancit Canton, Pancit Bihon, Siomai, Hakaw, Asado, Chicken feet, Fish fillet. But since it was a time of fasting, we tried to tone everything down by ordering small portions and not family style orders.

It was nice to see young people going around the churches as well... and families too who continue to observe Lenten traditions. More and more people are skipping the yearly exodus from Manila during Lent. So judging by what I've observed, Holy Week is alive and well for generations to come...