It has been a busy two weeks for us here in the Philippines! The temple has been closed for maintenance and cleaning, so we took advantage of the time off and did a little traveling. After our last shift before the shutdown, we flew to Manila for a few days, where we took a couple of tours and learned a lot about the history of WWII in the Philippines.

The first day there was Sunday, so we went to church at the spot where the first LDS chapel in the Philippines was built. It just so happened that we attended an international ward, so everything was in English. It was nice to be able to understand everything that was being said. The Manila Mission home is also on the property.

After church, we visited the American Military Cemetery and Memorial. It was a humbling experience to walk among the crosses and reflect on the many who their lives for our freedom.

The next day we took a fun tour of Manila, and a fun touresty town called Tagatay. We rode a jeepney to the top of hill where we enjoyed a breathtaking view of the countryside side and the skyscrapers of Manila.

Lake with volcano

Inside the Jeepny

Outside the Jeephy

So much yummy fruit

Dad spotted a golf course in the distance, which reminded him of how much he misses golf.

Our fun group

The following day, we were up early to meet our tour guide at 4 a.m. so we could travel to the Bataan Peninsula and take a boat to Corregidor Island.

This boat was a little scary, I wasn’t sure we were going to make it to the island

Ruins of barracks

Artillery left on the island

Afterward, we returned to Bataan to learn about the Death March and other WWII history in that area. It was an enriching trip, and we learned a lot abut this sad time in history.

This is a picture of a torture chamber that has been preserved. They build an elementary school around it. It seems kind of weird but I’m glad they preserved it for history sake.

This picture is a statue of the surrender of the Philippines to Japan. It is inspired by a picture of the event and looks exactly like the photo. It is placed in front of a museum also in the middle of the school.