Bicol 2015 Series| Cagsawa Ruins

Don't ever miss this place when you are in Legazpi! This has been an advice for anyone who's visiting.  It's actually the no. 1 tourist destination in Albay.

 

with the shy Mayon Volcano

 from Wikipedia:

 

These are the remnants of an 18th-century Franciscan church.  The Cagsawa church was built in 1724, but was destroyed by the eruption of the Mayon Volcano in 1814.  Cagsawa town was buried under several hundred million cubic meters of tephra and lahar, killing an estimated 1,200 people.  Hundreds of inhabitants of the town of Cagsawa purportedly sought refuge in the church, but were also killed by pyroclastic flows and lahar.  Only the belfry and some parts of the convent survive today, though parts of the crumbling façade were still standing long after the 1814 eruption.

 

it's history

 

Today, it's has been preserved as a tourist spot.  Fortunately, that natural disaster didn't happen again in this area.

 

to go there from the City:  Ride a jeepney bound for Cagsawa, alight in the intersection (with belfry structure) then ride a tricycle going to the ruins

 

It's best to visit here early in the morning, to have a better view of Mayon Volcano.  In the afternoon, it will be mostly covered by clouds. 

 

epic fail!

 Our available time to visit is only in the afternoon, so I don't have a picture that clearly shows the perfect cone of this volcano.  God must really love the Philippines.  He has gifted it with lots of beautiful natural sceneries.

  

 

This place has been improved tremendously from the last time I saw it.  There is now an event place.  Souvenir shops are well organized.  Prices here BTW are almost the same with the shops in the city but I found nicer ref. magnets here.
 



shop, shop, shop!



famous for wedding receptions

So what can you do here? - sight seeing, picture taking and shopping of course!  Recently, they have added another activity - ATV adventure.  Unfortunately, I don't have the luxury of time for it.  On my next visit then.

 

A lot of people are trying the funny shots but I still opted for the usual shots.

you have to see this for yourself, how thick the walls are

gigantic boulders... just imagine what will happen to you if you will be hit by one of these

he is almost 6 feet tall, so the belfry maybe more than 30 feet tall?

I marveled how thick the walls are and these are just made of stones and some binding ingredients.  But no matter how sturdy it may look, it can't withstand any nature's wrath.  These ruins always remind me that nothing is really permanent in this world and nothing can really be at par with the forces of nature and that we are only mortals.