5 Responses to “[Video] A Trip to Manila”

1. Pinoy Comics USA on February 24th, 2009 8:08 am

   Gerry,
   Excellent video. Oh, you were so close to my old school Mapa High School. Used to see San Sebastian Church everyday from the window of the Mapa branch on R. Hidalgo right in that plaza, in my 3rd year of high school. Looks like Capitol Theater and Odeon are still standing, and I saw a glimpse of Times. Just in the back of Binondo church I used to buy paper for my printing. Napaka-nostalgic nitong video. Thanks so much.
   Rod

2. Gerry Alanguilan on February 24th, 2009 9:10 am

   You might not see San Sebastian from V. Mapa anymore, Rod because Centro Escolar has grown really huge. They’ve erected tall buildings along that road that leads from V. Mapa to San Sebastian (I forgot the name of the road). Next time, I’ll probably visit that area. Legarda wasn’t really part of our itinerary. We just went there because I asked them if they were interested in seeing an all steel church. :D

3. Kat on February 24th, 2009 9:38 am

   I love Manila. It’s messy and chaotic and that in itself makes it a gem of place to visit. I love the old buildings and that part on the LRT from Carriedo to Vito Cruz is always a favorite for the view it gives of Manila.

4. Pinoy Comics USA on February 24th, 2009 12:15 pm

   Gerry,
   I was talking about another branch right in front of San Sebastian Church. Mapa then had four branches, being at that time one of the largest High Schools in the world. There were at least 50 sections in my 4th year. Third year students were located in a building on the San Sebastian end of R. Hidalgo right in front of San Sebastian. Even then San Sebastian was still not viewable from the Mendiola Mapa, oh, maybe the towers. Next time you visit, go to Bustillos too, where there are two churches. I used to jump onto buses and jeepneys, selling newspapers on that corner. We lived not too far away from Bustillos on Legarda.

   How religious are Pinoys? Very religious indeed, to have so many churches. There are at least 8 Catholic churches within a half-mile distance (or walking distance) from each other in the Quiapo, Binondo, and Sampaloc area. Let’s see, Binondo Church, Santa Cruz, Quiapo, San Sebastian, two Sampaloc churches, St. Jude besides Malacanang, and don’t forget UST Church.
   Rod

5. Jose Mari Lee on February 24th, 2009 1:02 pm

   Sayang nga itong video na ito. I could only understand 5% of the dialogs. Napakaingay kasi ng background. Ganda sana kung yung natural noises sa BG ay 1/4 lang ang volume at 75 ang dialogs ninyo nina Johnny and company. But yet, San Sebastian is indeed a wonderful building. When we were scouting for locations for BEDSPACERS, the intention was to use UE as our setting for university. The gym and the classroom scenes were shot in UE. But then, I’ve always loved the San Sebastian Building and the Church, and I was able to convince Gosiengfiao to shoot the more dramatic scenes there, especially the tragic story of the love affair of the characters played by Deborah Sun and Mark Gil. Of course, the San Sebastian building was the most “romantic” and approaprite setting for Mark Gil to leap to his death in the film. The building looks really awesome in the movie, yet nobody seems to bother use it after that. I just hope Noel Lim will use the building for WASTED, especially when the lead character falls to his death after getting shot by the cops.

   :)