Not many people know that the San Beda University Manila campus grounds in Mendiola Street houses not only the academic institution that is San Beda University. It is also the site of a monastery. To be specific, it is a monastery of the Benedictine monks who happen to be the ones administering the university. Nevertheless, both the monastery and the school share a common spiritual center: the church known as the Abbey of Our Lady of Montserrat, more popularly known as the Abbey Church in San Beda.
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San Beda, the University
Last February 6, 2018, the institution known before as San Beda College finally was granted by the Commission on Higher Education the status of being a university. For the San Beda community, it is a culmination of years of hard work to attain such a status. Thus, it is fitting that the Urban Roamer pays tribute to the newly-christened university the focus in this particular entry as we learn the story of how it rose to become a premier institution in the metropolis and the country in general.
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On the “Controversial” World War II Memorial at Roxas Boulevard
February may be a month of love for many or a time for celebrating the upcoming lunar new year this year. But it is also a month of tragedy as we remember that dark chapter in history that was the Battle of Manila which happened 73 years ago. The Battle of Manila and the greater historical context that was the period of Japanese occupation in the Philippines from 1942 to 1945 has been considered as a part of history that people would rather forget. Part of that tragic tale is the story of the comfort women, young women in Japanese-controlled areas who were forced by the Japanese soldiers to be…
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The Army and Navy Club Transformed: A Peek Inside Rizal Park Hotel
The Urban Roamer has talked about the Army and Navy Club a number of times now, bearing witness to its sorry state, a then-unknown future, and its renaissance-in-progress. And after years of work, the Army and Navy Club reopened recently, this time as a new hotel near Rizal Park named, Rizal Park Hotel. The hotel actually opened back in July this year though from what I understand, there are still some parts of the hotel that are yet to be finished. But it is seeing a good flurry of activity since its opening, despite the competition from nearby hotels, most notably the other historic hotel named after the park area, and the Grand Dame located…
