It’s been less than a month since we visited Casa Rap Batangas and we’re back again in no time at all. And this time, we’ve got the whole gang in tow. It was drizzling as we navigated through the roads of San Jose, coming all the way from Taal. A jeepney transfer later and we were at KM90 of the National Highway.

THE RESTAURANT IS INSIDE A GREENHOUSE OF SORTS

QUAINT DECORS AT CASA RAP

I made three separate posts about this restaurant before; Casa Rap Restaurant’s interiors, the Casa Rap Prayer Room, and Casa Rap’s food. Do check the links so I won’t have to delve much into details about it again.

A trip to any locale would not be complete without a souvenir item or two, and after searching and not finding even one ref magnet in Taal, we turned to a more unconventional memento, Batangas’ famous balisong.

Butterfly knives, fan knives and click clacks are just some of the names that have been associated with the peculiar knife that hails from this province.

The knife originated from the French fan knife and its first local incarnation was handcrafted from a small barrio named Balisong in Batangas. It was said that the term balisong came from the term baling sungay (broken horn) since the first of these kinds were made from carved carabao horns.

Descending one hundred steps down a three-meter wide stone stairwell called hagdan-hagdanan and into a concrete entryway; we entered the grounds of one of the oldest church in Taal.

Unlike its more famous neighbor, the Taal Basilica, Our Lady of Caysasay Church looks quite plain and humble. Its body is built of coral stones and its roof, made of plain corrugated tin. Most of its exterior wall is unpainted, except for the facade which is done in a light yellow tone.

Its interior is also very homely (and looks about ready to crumble anytime), with the exception of its north and south transept crossings which is towered over by painted domes done by artist Cesar Aberoni.

There are barely any décors outside and you’d hardly take a second look at the structure if you don’t have any idea about its rich history.

The next house we visited, just a stone throws away from the Goco House, was Glicera Marella Villavicencio’s ancestral home.

So what’s with the long name you might ask? It so happens that the owner of the said heritage house is considered to be the Matriarch-General of the Revolutionary Forces, named by none other than General Emilio Aguinaldo for her contribution in the uprising against the Spaniards and the Americans.

The house is also called the Gift House, it being a gift of husband, Eulalio Villavicencio, to his wife on their wedding.

We wandered around the town of Taal despite the intense heat of the midday sun. Having no map on hand, we walked around aimlessly; our goal was to reach Caysasay Church, the other old church, at the far end of the municipality. Passing several old houses, we were surprised that a few were open to visitors like us. One of these is the ancestral home of the Goco Clan.

We were cordially greeted by two Filipiniana-dressed guides who welcomed us to check the old house. We were more than glad to do so.

I checked my camera’s viewfinder, backing away as I did so. I was trying to fit the massive edifice of the Taal Basilica on my camera frame. It took some steps back to finally enclose the church fully in my camera, and I was using an ultra wide lens at that.

Colossal is the word that comes to mind as one steps under the shadow of the ancient Basilica of St. Martin of Tours in the historic town of Taal, Batangas. Almost a hundred meters long and 45 meters wide, made of adobe and coral stones, this is the largest church, not only in the Philippines, but through the whole of Asia.

Three hours of grueling bus ride is more than enough for one’s stomach to grumble in protest, especially if you haven’t had proper breakfast yet. I hope you’ll forgive me if my first post at the historic Taal Town is about a restaurant.

The day was a scorcher as we took shelter at Don Juan BBQ’s cool interiors after being directed here by some of the locals.

Don Juan looks like a typical Filipino house on the outside; painted in warm white, it has a pitched roof with capiz (mother of pearls) windows circling the whole structure. The place seems to be emulating the old houses which Taal is known for.