Iloilo : Jaro Metropolitan Cathedral

Church of St. Elizabeth of Hungary

With a few hours to spare before my flight back to Manila, I spent those hours wandering around Iloilo City proper. It is my first time here eventhough just in-trasitu, so it is a good idea to check out the place.

Jesus Takes The Wheel



Beautiful Ceiling Art



The Jaro subburb is located north of Iloilo proper. It is barely five minutes via jeepney ride from the downtown. It is home to a number of ancestral homes and impressive churches including the oldest church of Panay - The Jaro Metropolitan Cathedral. It was built in 1864 and was visited by Pope John Paul VI who conducted a mass in 1982.

Artful Interiors

Domed Ceiling

Its patron saint is The Lady of the Candles known also as Nuestra Senora de la Candelaria. The 400-year-old shrine of the Lady of the Candles is perched on a glass encased shrine carved out of the facade and can be seen face-to face via climbing the Cathedral's front steps.

In Memoriam

Jaro Cathedral Belfry

Across the Church is Jaro's Belfry Plaza dominated by the Belfry Tower, a lonely old figure standing high and handsome on the edge of the square. On the center is the statue of Rizal with its hand pointing to high heavens.

Rizal in the Park