Author Archives: rob

malaysia chronicles: three temples

Posted by rob on

malaysia has its share of beautiful temples and penang is one of the places to go to see these structures.  docgelo, tina, gabby and i started our day early to visit the temples.  we headed off to air itam by taxi, where the largest buddhist temple in southeast asia, the kek lok si is located.

 the “temple of supreme bliss” was started during the late 1800’s and visitors have to ascend a flight of stairs to reach the top.  there were souvenir stores along the pathway leading to the temple but most of them were still closed when we got there.  the temple itself was also still closed  (we were quite early being there) so we were just able to take pictures of the outside.

 

the temple has a main seven-storied pagoda known as the pagoda of 10,000 buddhas which we were not able to view. docgelo told me he will go back to the place next time so he can take pictures of the interior.

 

we boarded the efficient rapid penang bus to reach another temple built during the early 1800’s, the dhammikarama burmese temple that houses a tall marble-made golden buddha.

 

the design of the interior around the buddha is so intricate and very detailed. i took a shot of the ceiling which is beautifully designed.

 

behind the statue are images of buddha with different hand gestures called as mudras (read docgelo’s interesting post, mudras: inspiring gestures).

 

just opposite dhammikarama is wat chaiyamangalaram, a thai temple with a reclining buddha which is said to be third of the largest in the world.

 

docgelo took a picture of me with his wife and son. it was a memorable time for me visiting penang with him and his family.

 

thanks doc for the tour! a day in penang is not enough but i enjoyed it a lot. if everything goes well back here at work i might visit you again sometime next year.. show me more of penang then! 🙂

malaysia chronicles: penang

Posted by rob on

after spending two rainy days at kota kinabalu, my next stop for my trip was penang, northern part of malaysia.  the main reason that i wanted to visit penang is to meet my friend docgelo (of beyond toxicity), who’s based there together with his wife and my godson, gabby.  i have known angelo since our pre-med years when we were both taking up biology to become future doctors (he became one and i did not for lack of determination – lol!).

i took a two and a half hour air asia flight from kota kinabalu, found myself at penang airport and met up with docgelo and his family.  we went straight to georgetown by taxi to check-in at tune hotels, downtown penang.  tune hotels is an excellent budget accommodation operating around malaysia.

tune hotels offers low-priced rooms with comfortable spring mattress beds and bathrooms equipped with high pressure, heated “power showers”.

being a limited service hotel, optional add-ons include a 12 or 24 hour airconditioning but still there is a ceiling fan in the room.  i paid an additonal amount for the wi-fi with a good connection.

after checking in at tunes, docgelo invited me for dinner with his wife, tina and gabby at santorini (see docgelo’s post, food porn: penang) and had some coffee at starbucks, new world park which is only beside the hotel.  we returned to the hotel for a good night’s sleep to start the next day to visit the temples at penang.

read docgelo’s related blog post, reunion in penang.

monasterio de tarlac holy week schedule of activities

Posted by rob on

i noticed i get a lot of views from my posts about the monastery (monasterio de tarlac, revisiting the monastery) and some might be checking out the schedule of masses for the holy week.  i revisited the monasterio last month and was able to take note of their activities for this lenten season which can be of use for those devotees planning to visit the place.

Palm Sunday

10:00: Blessing of palms at the Resurrection Garden;  10:15: Commemoration of Christ’ triumphant entry to Jerusalem (Procession from the Garden of Ressurection to the Plaza);  10:30: Holy Mass at Monasterio Plaza;  15:00: Blessing of Palms (Shorter Rite), Holy Mass and Veneration of the Holy Cross.

Holy Monday

05:00: Penitential Rosary Procession; 06:00: Community Mass; 10:30: Pilgrim’s Mass; 15:00: Liturgy of the Word and Rite of the Veneration of the Holy Cross.

Holy Tuesday

05:00: Penitential Rosary Procession; 06:00: Community Mass; 10:30: Pilgrim’s Mass; 15:00: Liturgy of the Word and Rite of the Veneration of the Holy Cross.

Holy Wednesday

05:00: Penitential Rosary Procession; 06:00: Community Mass; 10:30: Pilgrim’s Mass; 15:00: Liturgy of the Word and Rite of the Veneration of the Holy Cross.

Holy Thursday

07:00: Liturgy of the Word and Rite of Veneration of the Relic of the Holy Cross (Scheduled as follows 07:00, 08:30, then every hour to 15:30);  16:30: Mass of the Lord’s Supper; 18:00: Paschal Triduum.

Good Friday

07:00: Via Crucis, Veneration of the Relic of the Holy Cross; 15:30: Celebration of the Lord’s Passion and Veneration of the Cross.

Holy Saturday

07:00: Rite of Veneration of the Relic of the Holy Cross (Scheduled as follows 07:00, 08:30, then every hour to 17:30); 19:00: Easter Vigil (Blessing of Light, Liturgy of the Word, Blessing of the Baptismal Water / Baptism and the Holy Eucharist).

Easter Sunday

10:30: Open-Air Mass at Monasterio Plaza and Veneration of the Relic;  15:00: Holy Mass at the Chapel.