The SAN PABLO CHURCH in Isabela was built in 1625 and said to be the oldest in the province and its bell tower is the tallest in the Cagayan Valley. San Pablo is the oldest town of Isabela and it was founded by Padre de Sto. Tomas, 210 years before Isabela was made a province.
The PARISH CHURCH OF ST. MATHIAS in Tumauini, Isabela was built in 1753 under Dominican Supervision and was completed in 1805. It is an ultra-baroque church unique for its extensive use of baked clay both for wall finishing and ornamentation. Clay bricks come to life in concentric circles on the facade, spiral curves on the finial serpentine reliefs and many finely molded details flowers, foliage, surfaces, cherubs and saints. Its architecture bears Chinese ancestry. This church of stone features a unique cylindrical bell tower that is the only one of its kind in the Philippines. Its exquisite ornamentation makes this church in Isabela one of the most striking and interesting churches.
GUIBANG CHURCH houses the Miraculous Lady of the Visitacion. It is located along the national highway of Gamu, Isabela. Every month of July, religious pilgrims come to offer prayers of thanks and to ask for another year of good fortune. The Miraculous Lady of the Visitacion was canonically crowned on May 26, 1973 and acknowledged as a National Shrine on January 24-26.
Alicia is famous for having an old Spanish church dedicated to Nuestra Señora de Atocha more popularly known today as Our Lady of Atocha. It was declared by the Philippine’s Department of Tourism as one of the national religious tourist attractions in the country.
The current structure of the church was completed and inaugurated in 1849 with the help of Fr. Tomas Calderon, OP. It is made up of bricks with an antique Castilian architectural design and can be found along the Maharlika national highway and is accessible by land transport.
Our Lady of Visitation, also known as Nuestra Señora De La Visitacion was the title given to our Blessed Virgin Mary upon her visit to her cousin Elizabeth as mentioned in the Second Joyful Mystery of the Holy Rosary. There are two places venerating Our Lady of Visitation in Northern Luzon: the National Shrine of Our Lady of the Visitation in Guibang, Gamu, Isabela and the Basilica Minore of Our Lady of Piat in Cagayan Province.
The image is housed at the Basilica Minore of Our Lady of Piat in Cagayan Province. The Lady of Piat is famous for her intercession for the ill, the poor, and the troubled. Originally known as the Nuestra Señora de la Santissimo Rosario, was brought to the Philippines by the Dominican friars from Macao in 1604.
The wooden image was first enthroned in the seat of Nueva Segovia in Lallo, Cagayan then was brought to the Church of Piat in 1620, to help in the conversion of the quarelling Didayas and Itawis to Christianity.
Since then, numerous miracles took place and these were attributed to the intercession of the Lady. Because of these incidents, the image has attracted a large number of followers who prevented all attempts to transfer permanently the image to other towns. Our Lady of Piat was canonically crowned as Queen of Heaven and Earth on June 20, 1954 in Tuguegarao, Cagayan by Papal Delegate Egidio Vagnozzi.
The Shrine of Our lady of the Visitation in Guibang, Gamu, Isabela houses the image of Our Lady of Piat and serves as a junction for travelers passing along Maharlika Highway. It is now as famous as the Shrine of Basilica Minore of Piat as it comes alive on July 2 every year when religious pilgrims come to offer prayers of thanks and to ask for another year of good fortune. The image of the miraculous Lady was canonically crowned on May 26, 1973.
Popular Stories Regarding the Our Lady’s Habits and Customs
• Residents about to close their windows and doors at night to sleep, would smell a strong scent of Sampaguita flowers that would remain hanging in the air for along period of time even during off seasons.
• At the sroke of midnight of September 8, people will hear loud sounds of bell coming from the direction of the shrine. However, when they tried to investigate about the incident, the priest would deny that he has rung the bell at that particular time.
• Our Lady of Visitation is choosy with her clothes, especially when it does not look gaudy, her face would frown.
St. Mathias Church was built in 1753 by the Dominicans and was finished in 1805. It is an ultra-baroque church, unique for its extensive use of baked clay both for wall finishing and ornamentation. Clay bricks come to life in concentric circles on the façade, spiral curves on the finial serpentine reliefs, and many finely molded details – flowers, foliage, surfaces, cherubs, and saints. Its architecture bears Chinese ancestry. This church of bricks features a unique cylindrical bell tower that is the only one of its kind in the Philippines. It was declared a National Historical Landmark on February 24, 1989.
Aside from the festive town fiestas, free and natural beaches, trekking adventures, bird watching in October or fishing in summer, there are a lot of other local attractions worth visiting such as:
Historic Churches in every town. The churches in Basco, Mahatao, Ivana and Sabtang which were originally decorated in baroque were over 200 years old made of massive mixture of lime and stone.
Unique architecture of Ivatan houses made of thick lime and stone walls with cogon grass roof has made it a favorite attraction to visitors.
Sabtang Island, considered as one of the 12 best destinations in the Philippines according to the published coffee table by the Department of Tourism. Undisturbed and unspoiled, Sabtang exists in another time. Intermittent sandy beaches, rugged country trails and lime stone and cogon houses has made Sabtang a secret paradise.
Radar tukon in Basco rests on the hilltop overlooking a 360 degree view of the cliffs, hills and the seas around the island.
Interior road, a trail of unending countryside panoramic views, rock formations and rolling terrain. Don’t forget to stop by at Valugan Mahatao and the locally known “spring of youth” in Diatay.
Create Your Own
We attended a wedding ceremony last May 10 at Barasoain Church in Malolos, Bulacan. My husband is one of the 12 godfathers of the couple. The bride’s groom previously worked in the company where’s my husband is working in the Administration Department. The photos show the Barasoain Church: the outside, the inside and their small garden. The church is not that big but the altar looks magnificent with its architecture and floral arrangement. There is an adjacent building beside the church for their office, administrative and religious works.
