Monday, October 8, 2007

Intramuros will fall apart

Here are a few examples of how sometimes Filipinos have a disregard for keeping parts of their culture and artifacts of the Philippine culture, heritage, and architecture in tact.

There are a few historic buildings that reflected the heritage and genius of Philippine architecture and culture that should have been restored and turned into Philippine heritage sites, that were turned instead into commercial centers, all for the pursuit of money.

It's understandable, considering the economic depression of the Philippines, but we need to appreciate and love our heritage more, and there's a lot of open space, enough so that commercial centers can be built in other places besides the important historical sites. But they don't seem to care at all about their own culture or heritage, and this was confirmed to me when I received the news that even our beautiful Intramuros didn't even matter to many Filipino architects and businessmen because even now as you read this, they're violating the land building rules and have started construction on a new commercial center that overlaps into the outer walls of Intramuros, which is dangerous because to build this new structure they had to destroy part of the foundation of the outer wall of Intramuros which of course will lead it to slowly destruct and fall apart. And yet, construction is still going on.

It's only Intramuros, one of the most important historical sites in the Philippines, who cares when money is more important in this world, right? Good God, how shameful of those people who are doing that. And all for the hollow pursuit of money, but at what price?

We need to start it now, and teach it to our kids and future generations to appreciate their cultural heritage, or else everything that is beautiful about Filipino culture and heritage will be gone and will be replaced by malls, shoe stores, and commercial centers. Economic progress is important for the country, but it's coming at the cost of our souls, and at the cost of our culture and heritage.

And once a building built in colonial style from the 16th - 18th century is torn down, there's no bringing it back, it's gone forever and a piece of our culture as well, because there's no turning back time. And we have so little bit of them left, and they're being destroyed by careless, money hungry Filipino companies and businesses.

The YMCA Manila building has been turned into an emotionally hollow and money hungry SM Mall:
This street in Manila with beautiful colonial architecture has been torn and down replaced with shabby cement buildings:

The Pasig River has turned from a beautiful river fit for boats and swimming into a polluted, environmentally hazardous waste compound:

The once pristine and well-manicured Plaza Rizal in the 1930s when Naga was the Provincial Capital of Camarines Sur (top photo) was a sight to behold. Today, that glory and splendor are lost as the plaza dedicated by Bicolanos to the national hero has been turned into a seedy market place or changue (bottom photo) by those who have ensconced themselves at the provincial capitol in Cadlan, Pili, Camarines Sur:

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