Our childhood would never be complete without Manila field trips. However, have you ever gone to a rare, privileged one like the Malacanang Palace tour? For the Buwan Ng Wika, pay a visit to this regal Filipino landmark.
The palace opened its doors to public viewing of its Presidential Museum and Library, and you can also make arrangements before getting inside the Malacanang Palace. If you are interested, you can check the official website.
The palace, where the Office of the President of the Philippines is housed, is situated in the vicinity of San Miguel, Manila. Usually, the tour will take you inside and in some places near the Malacanang Palace.
There are three main places inside the palace gates that you shouldn’t miss:
Malacanang Library: Established in 1946, this 66-year old collection of laws and executive issuances has been used as reference materials of the President, palace officials, employees, students, and researchers. The library has been updated with all the files from the 1900s.
Malacanang Museum: Now renamed and merged with the library, the Presidential Museum is located in a new adjacent building, the Kalayaan Hall. The Museum has been established to originally display relics that are significant to each administration. It has also been an avenue for tour guide trainings of the Presidential Guards Battalion.
National Shrine of St. Michael and the Archangels (San Miguel Church): Known as the Malacanang Church, it is one of the historical churches you’ll find in the area. It has been constructed in 1572 by the Jesuits and rebuilt in the 1913s by the Franciscans, which later became the 1946 pro-cathedral of Manila. This is the same church where the former President Marcos was wed.
And there are equally great neighboring places to dine and visit as you leave Malacanang:
La Cocina de Tita Moning, a.k.a. The Legarda Mansion: One of the first elegant Art Deco houses in San Rafael St., San Miguel, Manila, owned by the Legardas, who were known for their lavish gatherings and high-class society party hostings. Others say it looks like the palace’s mini-me with the way the rooms and antique displays are arranged. This resto has been one of the resident guided tour stopovers, so why not get a taste of their authentic Pinoy cooking then?
Casa Roces: Find this cozy restaurant-café in the corner of Aguado St. just across the palace, and you’re up for a dining experience in a “freedom-fighters, pioneer journalists, and artists’” family ancestral home, as the Roces have turned this into a very stylish classic-modern gallery-restaurant.
National Shrine of St. Jude Thaddeus: Long before it became the home of the patron of hopeless cases, and be flunked by students and individuals seeking help from the saint every Thursday, the church was originally known as the Espiritu Santo Chinese Parish in the 1950s. This church, which is very near the J.P. Laurel gate of the palace, belonged to the era of the Chinese’s pastoral presence. Visiting this shrine would be a great ending to your Malacanang Palace tour.
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