Other sights in Philippines
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Museo ng Maynila
The Museo ng Maynila is in the former Army & Navy Club, a once-posh US officers’ retreat. It reopened in 2007 after being closed for several years. The museum’s ground floor has a modest photo exhibit of Manila during the American period, but the main reason for visiting is to check out the building, a classic piece of American-era architecture. The tennis courts and swimming pool at next-door Seafood Wharf were once part of the club.
reviewed
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Negros Forests & Ecological Foundation
A zoo with a difference, the Negros Forests & Ecological Foundation is a ‘wildlife rescue and captive breeding centre’ that seeks to preserve endangered animals endemic to Negros. Staffed by volunteers, it houses about 15 different species, including deer, wildcats and birds of prey. Now that only 3% of the island’s original forest cover remains, this could well be one of the most precious pieces of land in the Philippines.
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National Gallery of Art
This proud museum, which reopened in 2008 after being closed for four years of renovations, contains many of the Philippines’ signature works of art, including Juan Luna’s stunning Spoliarium, which provides harsh commentary on Spanish rule. It’s in the old Congress building designed by Daniel Burnham, across the street from its sister National Museum of the Filipino People.
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A
Ayala Museum
The modern and excellent Ayala Museum has ethnographic and archaeological exhibits on Filipino culture, art and history. At the heart of the collection is a brilliant exhibit consisting of 60 dioramas tracing the nation’s violent history. The museum’s rotating art exhibits tend to showcase Filipino masters like Luna and Amorsolo. Guided tours of the museum are highly recommended.
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Naomi’s Bottle Museum & Book Club
When global warming eventually catches up with the precarious waterside structures of Moalboal, there is at least one place whose legacy is guaranteed well into the future. Marooned above the dive centres, bars and rampant commerce of Panagsama Beach is Naomi’s Bottle Museum & Book Club, where you can cast off your preloved paperbacks and pluck words of wisdom from a bottle.
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Syquia Mansion
The Syquia Mansion on Quirino Blvd was recently turned into a museum filled with old furniture and exhibits dedicated to the life of Vigan native Elpidio Quirino, the Philippines’ sixth president. Quirino was born in the nearby provincial jail, where his mother worked. He rose to political prominence after marrying into the fabulously wealthy Syquia family.
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Greenbelt Complex
Across Makati Ave is the Greenbelt Complex, an upscale development that encircles pretty little Greenbelt Park. Amid the commerce is the Ayala Museum and the open-air Sto Niño De Paz Chapel. This is the high end of the Ayala Center and there are scores of delightful cafés and restaurants. The development is separated into four main shopping malls: Greenbelt 1, 2, 3 and 4.
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Rizal Shrine
The Rizal Shrine, in the building where Rizal was incarcerated, contains various displays of Rizal memorabilia, including a reliquary containing one of his vertebrae, the first draft of his novel Noli Me Tangere (Touch Me Not) and the original copy of ‘Mi Ultimo Adios’ (My Last Farewell), which was smuggled out of his cell inside an oil lamp.
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B
Anthropology Museum & Centre for the Study of Philippine Living Culture
The Anthropology Museum & Centre for the Study of Philippine Living Culture has displays including artefacts from Siquijor and ancient Chinese bits and pieces dug up on various Philippine islands. It’s in the central campus area. Enter from Hibbard Ave, the extension of Perdices St, and head to the old building with the staircase at front.
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Manila Ocean Park
The Manila Ocean Park is Manila’s latest and greatest kid-friendly attraction. It’s an impressive and impressively eco-conscious aquarium, but it’s a bit too popular for its own good. The place often gets mobbed, especially on weekends when there are long lines to get in. The entrance is behind the Quirino Grandstand.
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American Memorial Cemetery
This sprawling cemetery on a grassy, beautifully manicured plot near Makati in Fort Bonifacio is a must-see for WWII buffs. In addition to hundreds of rows of perfectly aligned white crosses, there are several excellent open-air galleries with murals and descriptions of key battles. It’s a poignant and peaceful spot.
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Museum of Cordillera Sculpture
The Museum of Cordillera Sculpture, located next to Spring Village Inn, has a fabulous collection of bulol and other Ifugao woodcarvings, including some rare originals. There are also some fascinating old books that you can read, including a 1912 National Geographic on Ifugao head-hunters.
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Tamaraw Falls
Tamaraw Falls drop from a forested ravine into pools off the main Puerto Galera–Calapan road, about 14km out of town. They’re busy at weekends, but otherwise you would be just about the only person there – take a picnic and chill out. Jeepneys headed for Calapan will drop you there (P25, 30 minutes).
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MacArthur Memorabilia Rooms
World War II buffs will want to visit the MacArthur memorabilia rooms on the 2nd floor of the College Assurance Plan (CAP) building. Housed in rooms that MacArthur used in the (now decaying) grandeur of the 1910 Price Mansion, this is a charming mini museum. Ask the watchman downstairs to let you in.
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Baguio Mountain Provinces Museum
The collection of Cordillera artefacts at the Baguio Mountain Provinces Museum isn’t quite as impressive, but the museum also has a compelling exhibition on the history of Baguio, with some superb old photos and placards chronicling the city’s role in WWII. There’s also one Kabayan mummy on display.
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Katibawasan Falls
Katibawasan Falls is a beautiful clear stream of water dropping more than 70m to a plunge pool. You can swim and picnic here, though the facilities are basic. A special trip by jeepney or multicab from Mambajao will cost about P300 return; from the resorts around Agoho it’s about P350 return.
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C
Centrop
Centrop is a small zoo and research centre housing 16 species of indigenous mammals, reptiles and birds, including the endangered Philippine spotted deer and the Visayan warty pig. If you’re planning a hike at Twin Lakes or Mt Kanlaon, come here first to familiarise yourself with the fauna.
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Julia Campbell Agroforest Memorial Park
In barangay Pula in the town of Asipulo, a 48-hectare organic coffee forest has been turned into the Julia Campbell Agroforest Memorial Park. Julia Campbell was a US Peace Corps volunteer whose murder at the hands of a local man on the main trail to Batad in April 2007 shocked the country.
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D
Quezon City
Quezon City has almost 500,000 residents and it sprawls over the slightly hilly terrain northeast of the centre. It is known for its vibrant nightlife along T Morato Avenue. Some of the energy comes from the University of the Philippines Manila, which has a vast campus about 1km east of Quezon City.
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St Paul Cathedral
This church was built in ‘earthquake baroque’ style (ie thick-walled and massive) after an earlier incarnation was damaged by two quakes in 1619 and 1627. The construction of the original wooden, thatched church is believed to have been supervised by Salcedo himself in 1574.
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Ganduyan Museum
The Ganduyan Museum contains a wealth of sculptures, jewellery and other Kankanay artefacts. Be sure to chat to owner Christina Aben, who is a fountain of information about local culture and history. Ganduyan is the traditional Kankanay name for Sagada.
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Avilon Zoo
A humane zoo, if you have wheels, is the Avilon Zoo. It’s northeast of Quezon City in the town of Rodriguez, a 40- to 60-minute drive from Makati (depending on traffic). It’s damn near impossible to find so get directions on its website.
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Mayon Planetarium & Space Park
In the (the never-opened and now derelict) Mayon Skyline Hotel (810m) on the northwestern side of Mt Mayon, the Mayon Planetarium & Space Park houses an eclectic array of NASA photos and volcano information.
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Timbac Caves
The best-preserved mummies are in the Timbac Caves. Located about 1200m above Kabayan proper, these are Kabayan’s most sacred caves, and locals customarily make offerings of gin and pinikpikan before entering them.
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Banaue Museum
The Banaue View Inn runs the Banaue Museum, which contains books written decades ago by anthropologist Otley Beyer and Igorot artefacts collected by his son William.
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