Wandering around in one of the oldest and most well-known towns in Batangas; Taal. The Home of (balisong) butterfly knife.

If you have been reading my recent blogs, perhaps you have remembered Taal Lake/Volcano as if it was included and even highlighted recently. Thus, for everyone information, there is a town in Batangas that was named Taal, as this is where the volcano could be found. Founded in 1572, tour with me for today's #Wednesdaywalk of @tattoodjay and #makemesmile by @elizacheng.

Taal is more than an hour's drive from our house, but we are hesitant at first whether to visit or stay at home. Yet, thinking only a few days were left before he went back to Taiwan, we decided to go. We were considering more beautiful memories to create.

We arrived at around eleven in the morning, and the sun was striking hot, so only a few people were around. Our primary purpose was to visit the church. As I mentioned, the husband is a religious type.

At the road, the Philippine flag was hung and displayed in relation to the incoming 125th National Independence anniversary. This road faces the church at the right and the municipal road at the left from where I stand.

We chose to walk straight on the right side as the trees shaded it. More comfortable.

There are a few benches where I saw some students spend time as there was a nearby university. We just continued walking as I was looking for a perfect angle to capture the full view of the church. To the left, to the right, and gotcha!

Trivia: This is not the original design, as it was damaged during the volcanic eruption last 2020. That leaves us with no choice but to renovate. This is the OLD look.

The husband and I wanted to take some photos here, but I forgot to bring our tripod, so we tried a 10-second timer. Does it work? Hehehe, you judge!

Not that good! Good thing a local vendor (sells native delicacies) offers to be our photographer! What a good marketing strategy that will make us buy some of his merchandise as an act of gratitude.

Okay, stand at letters T and L, he instructed. Huh? Why?, I asked.

That means TRUE LOVE in TAAL. He says!

Okay, here we go.

He directed more poses like we were having a Pre-nup! Lol. After a few more shots we walked around, not that far, yes, with our photographer as he kept on telling us about some good spots. It couldn't be denied that he had already mastered every angle here!

What caught my attention was the stairs going to the main cathedral. It looks old but beautiful. Imagine walking here wearing a wedding gown with a long veil touching the ground.

The pathway from the highway was also renovated just like the historical Vigan, wood, and stone shells if I am right.

This was also a perfect spot for tourists to take photos with the background of old houses across the road.

On the left side was the Escuela Pia/Cultural Center but it was closed. It is only open if rented as a venue for any occasion.

Wait, the Baño (Comfort room) looks like you will be seeing someone's peaking, 🤣.

Kidding aside, what do you think?

We decided to go to the church as we didn't want to take much of the time of our photographer. However, @tengolotodo commented in my previous blog that my husband and I always took photos apart. So here, pretty close?

Imagine us having a photoshoot at almost noon in 30-something degrees! I could no longer smile properly; sweat was dripping.

There was no scheduled mass, so we just lit a candle and offered a prayer.

This monument is outside the church, but honestly, I am unfamiliar with who. It looks nice, though.

At the back was a school Rizal College of Taal.

From the church, if you want to explore more and feel the old heritage and houses, walk across the road. Houses and buildings here still maintain the old architectural designs from decades ago. It feels back being transported years ago!

Those Capiz windows, the pavements, and the whole design. This is what you can see if you walk around.

Not to mention, aside from the volcano, this old town was known for; Tapa, Gowns, Balisong or what they called butterfly knife and heritage houses.

If you are looking for food, Tapa, I recommend Casa Dela Rosa in the above photo. That is where we ate lunch.

For RTW gowns, there are a lot of tailoring shops, and if you notice in one of the pictures, you can see a young lady fitting her gown.

For the heritage house, we only managed to drop by Gregorio Agoncillo mansion but sad to say; it was still closed to the public.

The last one and my other purpose here is the balisong, I'd been planning to buy one as it amazed me!

Just a few changes since the pandemic, only a few stores left in the area, unlike before there were so many displays on the road.

The good thing was there were still many choices.

Different sizes and colors of the dimensions of your choice. I just bought a small balisong keychain and a pen, Just small enough to bring anywhere for emergencies.

Hello Hivers, happy Wednesday and thanks for dropping by.

[//]:# (!pinmapple 13.88047 lat 120.92398 long Wandering around in one of the oldest and most well-known towns in Batangas; Taal. The Home of (balisong) butterfly knife. d3scr)

Lead image was edited using Canva
All photos are mine
Footer credit to Sensiblecast