When I first visited Mirador Hill in October 2020 just when the city was starting to loosen up with Covid restrictions, it was still known to most as the Mirador Jesuit Villa and Retreat House. At that time, there were already plans to create a bamboo forest and an eco-park surrounding this haven of tranquility.

After the war in 1945, Jesuits from other parts of Asia went here to study because Jesuit teachers would often stay here during the summer. The current retreat house — the third one built by the Jesuits in the City of Pines — was designed by Gines Rivera, the same architect who designed the Administration Building of Ateneo de Manila, in 1952.

The Mirador Jesuit Villa Retreat House was founded in 1907

During the first months of the pandemic, churches everywhere in the Philippines closed as a way to follow social distancing and quarantine protocols. After more than a year of being at home and attending online masses, several churches are now reopening and accepting devotees and people who need divine intervention in their lives.

The reopening of churches also makes it possible for people to resume their Visita Iglesia, or the tradition of visiting different churches during Holy Week. If you live in a house or an apartment for rent in Tarlac province, here are five churches potentially near you where you might want to reflect and pray:

Far from being a typical Philippine island destination, Culion hides a ubiquitous layers of fascination courtesy of its storied history that is both harrowing and triumphant. Many decades removed from its upsetting past when boat loads of patients stricken with leprosy was sent to the island to live a life of treatment and isolation, Culion’s journey from being the island of no return to a charming quant isle is enough to entice any inquisitive traveler. 

La Immaculada Church of Culion

Popping with a yellow color you can spot a mile away, Sunlight Guest Hotel is every bit of its name, radiating light on a bright and beautiful day. Lending a Mediterranean vibe, it stands behind the water teeming with marine life and overlooking the islands of Coron and Uson. A small jetty within the property of the hotel instantly leads guests to a day of diving and snorkeling in the nearby Siete Pecados coral garden.

After devouring generous servings of Cordilleran cuisine at the Farmer’s Daughter, Missy and I were craving for some coffee fix. “Plus, I needed to join our Christmas party for an hour via zoom”, Missy tells me.  I figured the outdoor setting of this café I first saw on Instagram would be an ideal place to sit, sip and chill — and in Missy’s case, to “zoom”.