go round in circles

road not taken

"I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference." - Robert Frost

colonel sanders

The famous colonel of KFC overlooking UST hospital

the main building

The statues atop... Standing at the pedestals on the fourth floor of the Main Building are statues symbolizing the spiritual and intellectual aspiration of the University. A creation of the Italian Sculptor Francesco Monti, a faculty member in the College of Architecture and Fine Arts, they were installed between 1949 and 1953. Above the main doorway of the building is a group of three statues symbolizing Faith, Hope and Charity, also known as Tria Haec. Facing the building, one sees to the left of the Tria Haec, Fr. Vincent de Beauvais, O.P., St. Augustine, St. Raymond de Peñafort, O.P. To the right are the philosophers Aristotle, St. Albert The Great and Plato. On the side facing P. Noval are the three great writers of tragedy Calderon de la Barca, Sophocles and William Shakespeare. On the opposite side are the great playwrights Lope de Vega, Aristophanes and Moliere. (Source: http://www.ust.edu.ph)

simply called...

the main building.

This massive and imposing structure has the rugged look acquired through time since it’s construction in 1927. Most people mistook the main building as the university’s church but the cross atop the tower only signifies the catholic mission of the university.

This building hold many stories within its walls, turned into a concentration camp by the Japanese Imperial Forces in World War II. Here 10,000 Americans, British and other nationals were interned from January 1942 to February 1945. Here they were starved, dehumanized, left to die.

ust lions

I know the title seems incorrect since most of the locals knows that UST's team in the UAAP is called UST Tigers but i'm reffering to these lions that guard the foot of Benavides Monument (see yesterdays photo).
One shield features the emblem of the Philippine Republic with its three stars, eight-rayed sun, a lion and an eagle. Another shield has the seal of Spain, consisting of four compartments, two with castles and two with the symbolical lion of Spanish royalty, all compartments topped by a jeweled crown. The use of the Spanish coat-of-arms here perhaps indicates the special honor given to UST by King Charles III when he granted it the title of "Royal University" in 1785 in recognition of the exceptional loyalty of the UST administration and students when they volunteered to defend Manila against the British invasion. A third shield emblazons the Papal Tiara and the Papal keys. The Holy See gave UST a special status when Pope Leo XIII made it a "Pontifical University" in 1902, and Pius XII later bestowed upon it the title "the Catholic University of the Philippines". The fourth shield with a cross surrounded by the rosary indicates the Dominican presence in UST, for it is run by the Order of Preachers.

benavides monument

The walkway from the arch of the centuries leads you to this monument. Benavides monument is the centerpiece of the raised open rotunda where small elephants statues (see the smaller photo)stand at the edges. Four lions guard the foot of the monument, each lion holding a shield with a coat of arms.

PS. I want to thank all of you for visiting my blog, sorry if i cant respond to your comments... i have been very busy and will stay busy until the end of the month. I wont be able to visit your blogs as well, but will try to when i have the time. But i'll still try to post photos everyday.

not a tunnel

This UST alumni covered walkway near the España gate looks like a tunnel in this picture, dont you think so?

arch of the centuries 2

A different view of the arch of the centuries from yesterdays photo.

arch of the centuries

This one's for you Reyna Elena, cant find a gwapo to pose at the center though. :)

"Any visitor or new student who enters the España main pedestrians' gate is immediately drawn to the Arch of the Centuries, right in front, about fifteen meters away. Classical Greek and Roman in inspiration with its Doric fluted columns, but baroque in its wealth of curving and embossed details, it looks like one of those triumphal arches for victorious Athenian athletes or returning Roman generals that are seen in history books. The medallion arch is usually a memorial for all distinguished Thomasians. The inscription says, "Gateway to the history of the finest breed of Filipinos". On the lower facade of the pillar, a commemorative plaque honors Jose Rizal, national hero and UST alumnus, and another plaque, Manuel L. Quezon, President of the Philippine Commonwealth, also a UST graduate. On the sides of the rectangular top of the arch are panels depicting some milestones in the life of St. Thomas Aquinas. Above all these, sits the serene, regal image of this angelic doctor, scholastic philosopher and theologian, patron of the University and of all Catholic schools.

The side of the arch facing the campus was the main doorway to the university building before it was destroyed by World War II. The stones of that doorway, now rough-hewned and eroded, were transferred and reassembled piece by piece in its present site. The side with its Grecian design facing España Street is a reconstruction of the doorway as it originally looked."

Source: http://www.ust.edu.ph