Yesterday was Maundy Thursday. Mom, Mica and I spent the afternoon on our family's annual practice of Visita Iglesia. I make it a point to spend this "bonding" time with my mom and my daughter, a tradition to be kept alive by the women in our family. As luck would have it, we were accompanied by my brother, Kuya Jay, who served as our driver, saving me the headache of searching for parking spaces and navigating the unusually empty thoroughfares. :-)
Visita Iglesia - the tradition of visiting seven churches and reciting the Stations of the Cross in each church - is an old Filipino tradition, most probably dating back to the Spanish colonial era. I find it a good excuse to spend time with my family while sightseeing along the way to the churches. This time, we went to churches near our home but those that we don't usually go to: The Sta. Lucia Eucharistic Adoration Chapel along Manggahan, the Holy Family Chapel in Eastood City, the Diocesan Shrine of Our Lady of the Abandoned in Marikina, the Christ the King Church near Green Meadows, the Sta. Clara de Montefalco Parish in Pasig and lastly, Pasig Church. That makes only six churches; for the past five years, we haven't completed all seven churches. I'm not so much into the penance aspect of the practice, as I enjoy the family time aspect of it more. The highlight of the day is always the halo-halo merienda we enjoy en route to the last church.
