The interior of the former Laperal Apartments, now YOUniversity Suites for students
Quiapo is practically my next-door neighbor. I walk or bike to it, I have my regular devotion to the Black Nazarene and join the Traslacion procession every January. Yet when I was told of the invitation to join the Quiapo Walk Tour, I knew I had to join because I knew there would be always something new to discover in and about Quiapo.
Martin Lopez (second from left) with the author (far right) at start of tour
Organized by Martin Lopez, the senior director of the FEU (Far Eastern University) Center for the Arts, the Quiapo tour brought me deep into the heritage of Manila’s historic district and enabled me to enter its ancestral houses that I would ordinarily just pass by.
FEU campus, awarded by Unesco
The tour brings you the sights, sounds, smells and tastes of Quiapo—an ever-changing multi-sensory journey indeed. Another Quiapo tour is set April 6 and May 25. (See FEU website)
Lopez started the Quiapo tour more than a decade ago. In a written interview with TheDiarist.ph, he recalls, “FEU has been on the forefront of heritage preservation for more than two decades since it received an important award from Unesco. I started the official tour guiding program of FEU more than 15 years ago.
“As more people joined the FEU tours, I got connected to other heritage advocates in the area, particularly in the nearby district of Quiapo. Initially, we formed a loose association of owners or caretakers of heritage sites in the area. FEU tours then expanded to include these heritage sites in Quiapo for those willing to go on a daylong exploration. Through these tours then, we not only help our partners and the community at large, we also raise awareness of the different phases of preservation.”
The tour starts at FEU and a talk about its Art Deco architecture and its art treasures, including the masterpieces of the National Artists for Visual Arts, Carlos “Botong” Francisco, Napoleon Abueva and Vicente Manansala.
The tour made it plain to us how the landscape is changing irreversibly, with ancestral homes giving way to modern high-rises.
So yes, Quiapo’s attraction is one you should savor while it’s there.
Lopez explains what’s in for local and foreign tourists: “We visit or walk by the ancestral homes of Manila’s A-listers of the 19th and early 20th centuries. We walk down what was once the equivalent of today’s (Forbes) McKinley Road of Manila. Depending on the tour, we even enjoy heirloom recipes from a very prominent clan. Quiapo has so much to offer but not many people know about its sights, sounds, and tastes. There are misconceptions too that the tour aims to debunk after six or seven hours of walking, learning, and eating.
“To a certain extent and based on experience, it is sometimes easier to entice a foreign tourist to join the tour.”
The Japanese pagoda house, now a dormitory for seafarers
Historic San Sebastián Church under renovation
Asked how, given the city congestion, the organizers plan to draw people to Quiapo or make it a curiosity destination, Lopez explains, “The district, its heritage houses and churches, the food and the people, should speak for themselves. Hopefully, word of mouth and the social media posts of people who do the tour will entice others to visit too. Carpooling, ridesharing and of course, walking are some ways to avoid and not add to the congestion of the area.”
Nakpil house
Lopez isn’t giving up hope that there will still be something left of Quiapo for the next generation: “Quiapo has certainly improved since I began my tours almost a decade ago. As I tell my guests, one must take in the sights, sounds, tastes, and smells of Quiapo for the full experience. Just like anywhere else in the world, one must also be mindful of where one goes and steps and of one’s belongings. Unfortunately, since we began our tours, there have been more heritage houses that have either fallen into disrepair, been sold or torn down. But there have also been improvements like the cleaning and clearing of more esteros or canals. There are more dining options. There are small signs of hope, too.”
There will always be hope-finders among Filipinos, like Martin Lopez. And that’s good enough.
