AHP was at it again when we "invaded" Tarlac to do a heritage tour of the proviince. Our first stop was at the San Sebastian Church where we admired the composite architecture which was built in 1686. It was converted into a stone church in 1872.. This was where the national assembly was reconvened after the capital was transferred to Tarlac in 1899. It was here where Apolinario Mabiini was appointed as chief magistrate of the Supreme Court of the Philippines on the 23rd of August 1899. This was where Leon Ma. Guerrero also opened the Literary University of the {hilippines on 8 August, 1899. The curch was renovated in 1959 and was declared a cathedral on 6 February, 1963.
Next stop was the Diwa ng Tarlak museum featuring a historical diorama of the founding of Tarlac and it's role in the various upheavals in history up to the present. Renovation on the structure was made possible by Gov. Susan Yap with support from the vice governor and the city council and funding from Amb. Eduardo Cojuangco. The current exhibits feature a photo exhibit on the Abelen aetas process of creating bows and arrows for hunting. Across this section is a photo exhibit on endemic birds of Tarlac. On the ground floor is a permanent exhibit of artifacts granted to the museum by Nayong Pilipino which features textiles, indigenous clothing, accessories and funerary artifacts. We visited a souvenir shop that had everything but the kitchen sink. I didn't purchase anything since i didn't want o lug stuff home to add to my already busting house. 
We then motored to the ancestral home of the Aquino's in Concepcion, Tarlac. The expansive grounds and magnificent ancestral home is now a museum. It features the home created by Don Benigno and Doña Aurora Aquino for their brood of five. The home was designed and created by a certain Toti Ramos from Biñan, Laguna and skilled local craftsmen from Tarlac. It was directly supervised by the Don himself. The home is impressive with the use of red narra from it's wooden panels to it's coromandel screens and solihiya beds and mariposa sofas. The home is simple but exudes an old-world charm.
After lunch of tinola, chopsuey, bangus with tausi and a meat dish at Ves Resort. The next stop was at Capas War Memorial. A short historical brief was given and short prayer to honor the 30,000 Filipinos and 11,000 American soldiers who died during the Death March. We saw an actual caboose where 160 men were packed for a 60 pax capacity and then a tree planting to honor each and every soul that was quashed during the Japanese Occupation.
Finally, we visited the Bamban WWII Museum. We were feted with a prayer from the local Aeta community and a short entertaining program. And the ribbon cutting ceremony to re-open the museum by curator, historian and WWII artifacts collector Rhonie dela Cruz. It is interesting to note that Aetas fought alongside Americans in our fight for liberation without hesitation or fear. Also interesting is a black and white photo of a female, Benita Perez who contributed to the war effort as a guerilla fighter.
Our thanks also go to Tourism Officer of Capas Maita Claire on FB and Shrine curator Darwin Campo for a heart-rending explanation of the raison d'etre of the Capas Shrine. Credits also to Tourism staff Michael Paolo Avila for guiding us through different locations in our quest for knowledge and understanding our history and heritage. Job well done!
