Guimbal Travel Guide

Most of the locals are Catholics who believe in miracles. If you are not Catholic but just visiting the church as a curious tourist, it would be wise to exercise prudence by keeping quiet and listening attentively to locals' account of miracles instead of arguing.

There are three popular stories that you might hear. The first story is about the blocking of the Muslim raiders in a main Street by a very tall, black-robed man who had long legs and strong arms. His legs reportedly extended across the street blocking the raiders. A very bright halo above his head blinded the raiders, scaring them to flee to their vintas. The mysterious man was believed to be their Patron Saint, San Nicolas de Tolentino.

A similar story relates what happened when the Muslim raiders landed at a barrio one night,. When they followed a trail inland, they saw a very tall man garbed in a priest's robe walking along the trail. The raiders got scared and returned to their vintas, sailing away. Again, the mysterious apparition was attributed to San Nicolas de Tolentino.

The third story is about the Muslim raiders who, while still on their vintas at sea saw what seemed like a lady carrying a child on the shore. Lights from their halos looked like blasting cannons from afar. The raiders retreated upon seeing these. The townsfolk believe that the image was that of La Señora de la Consolacion holding the Child Jesus. She has a statue inside the church.

You don't have to argue about the logic of said stories. Just respect them as the locals' beliefs.

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Just like in other towns in Iloilo, the town plaza of Guimbal is just across the Church and the Municipal Building. It also has hedges of nice flowering shrubs, trees, benches and a monument of Dr. Jose Rizal. There is a children's playground, too.

I rested in one of the benches of the plaza facing the church, waiting for the other tourists and their vehicles to leave so I could finally take a picture of the church. It was a restful wait for me, with the wind sweeping my hair and cooling my body as I sat on a bench under the shade of a tree.

Keep the town clean. Do your share by not littering. Guimbal is the cleanest and greenest municipality in Iloilo Province. The municipality is also a proud 2-time titleholder for the Most Business-Friendly Municipality, 4th to 6th Class Municipality Category of a national contest sponsored by the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry. So please, no littering so investors will still find Guimbal a clean municipality.

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When we passed by Guimbal Church on our first visit to Miagao, it didn't impress me. In fact, I asked myself mentally, "Why on earth did they paint the church in such loud yellow shade?" An Ilonggo friend made me take a second look at the church with much interest. Why? I learned that Guimbal Church, also known as Church of San Nicolas de Tolentino is made of adobe stones called "igang" from Sitio Igang in Barangay Igcocolo and coral stones from Guimaras Island and Barangay Calampitao.

Like other Spanish-built churches, Guimbal Church was constructed through forced labor imposed by the Spanish friars in 1733. It became an architectural masterpiece, wowing people through the years. Aside from its beautiful facade, the bell tower of Guimbal Church was a conversation piece. It is said to be one of the tallest belfries among the churches in Iloilo. Its 4-storey high tower also served as a watchtower during the Spanish times against invading Moro pirates.

After suffering major damage twice during the World War II and during the devastating 1948 earthquake, it had undergone some reconstruction and restoration. At present, it is still undergoing rehabilitation. I can attest that this is one church that is painstakingly and meticulously restored to its original structure. While I was exploring the interior of the church, Bro. Vergil showed me some fallen "igang" blocks gathered in one corner of the church compound. He showed me some masons pounding on the old blocks and sifting the powdered "igang". I learned that they will use that instead of ordinary cement to repair the walls of the church. I wish other church administrators of other heritage churches in the country were as concerned about preserving the original look of the structures of their churches.