The Pasig City Museum

Pasig City Museum
Photo by: Clara Dela Croce
Taken @ The Pasig City Museum, Pasig City Philippines

"The Mansion"
Photo by: Cyrill Concepcion Intalan
Taken @ The Pasig City Museum, Pasig City Philippines
Canon EF-S18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS
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Photo by: Cyrill Concepcion Intalan
Taken @ The Pasig City Museum, Pasig City Philippines
Canon EF-S18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS
S-1/125
A-f/4.5
iso-100

The Pasig City Museum, formerly known as the Concepcion Mansion, is located at one end of the Plaza Rizal in barangay San Jose. It was built in 1937 by Don Fortunato Concepcion, a successful business tycoon and the former mayor of Pasig (1918-1921). During World War II, the Japanese used it as their headquarters and detention center. On 19 February 1945, the American flag was hoisted atop the tower of this mansion, symbolizing the end of the Japanese occupation of Pasig – the Liberation Day of Pasig.

The Concepcion Mansion was acquired by the City of Pasig in 1980 from the heirs of Dr. Jose Concepcion, a son of Don Fortunato. For two decades, it housed the Pasig Library and Museum. In October 2000 the building was renovated; and in 2001, it was fully devoted to museum use. This marked the beginning of the thrust of the city of Pasig in the promotion of its arts, culture, and history.

In February 2008 the museum had undergone major rehabilitation and restoration works. This picture was shot after its renovation. The picture was already edited to eliminate the wires that cross the building. Then in June 6, 2008, it opened with a world class presentation of the city’s history and heritage. Today, it is one of the best local historical museums housing a Timeline History of Pasig, Comparative Sites and Landmarks Photo Exhibit, Natural Science Hall and some of the original furniture of the mansion among others.

Today, the Pasig City Museum is not merely history preserved in stands and display cases but an effective tool of the Local Government of Pasig in the promotion of arts, history and culture as well as tourism for the city.

Masskara Festival

Masskara Festival
Photo by: Cyrill Concepcion Intalan
Taken @ Pasig Catholic College (Field Demo)
Canon EF-S55-250mm f/3.5-5.6 IS
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A-f/5.6
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Masskara Festival
Photo by: Cyrill Concepcion Intalan
Taken @ Pasig Catholic College (Field Demo)
Canon EF-S55-250mm f/3.5-5.6 IS
S-1/200
A-f/5.6
iso-800

Masskara Festival
Photo by: Cyrill Concepcion Intalan
Taken @ Pasig Catholic College (Field Demo)
Canon EF-S18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS
S-1/200
A-f/5.6
iso-800

The word "Masskara" is a portmanteau, coined by the late artist Ely Santiago from mass (a multitude of people), and the Spanish word cara (face), thus forming MassKara (a multitude of faces). The word is also a pun on maskara (Filipino for "mask"), since a prominent feature of the festival are the masks worn by participants, which are always adorned with smiling faces.

The festival first began in 1980 during a period of crisis. The province relied on sugar cane as its primary agricultural crop, and the price of sugar was at an all-time low due to the introduction of sugar substitutes like high fructose corn syrup in the United States. It was also a time of tragedy; on April 22 of that year, the inter-island vessel Don Juan carrying many Negrenses, including those belonging to prominent families in Bacolod City, collided with the tanker Tacloban City and sank. An estimated 700 lives were lost in the tragedy.

In the midst of these tragic events, the city's artists, local government and civic groups decided to hold a festival of smiles, because the city at that time was also known as the City of Smiles. They reasoned that a festival was also a good opportunity to pull the residents out of the pervasive gloomy atmosphere. The initial festival was therefore, a declaration by the people of the city that no matter how tough and bad the times were, Bacolod City is going to pull through, survive, and in the end, triumph.

The Pasig City Hall

"My City's Progress"
Photo by: Cyrill Concepcion Intalan
Taken @ Pasig City Philippines

Panorama ( stitching 3 images)

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The Pasig City Hall

As a testament of Pasig City Mayor Robert C. Eusebio’s commitment to continuously innovate and improve the delivery of basic services to Pasiguenos, the city government of Pasig recently inaugurated its modern Pasig City Hall. The refurbished and modernized city hall aims to streamline the different offices and departments with emphasis on ease of access and convenience for the public that they serve. The new city hall floors were redesigned to maximize space to allow public servants to quickly facilitate requests and transactions while providing large open areas where the public can rest and wait in comfort assisted by courteous and ready-to-serve ushers. A new scenic elevator providing a panoramic view of the City Hall Complex overlooking the Pasig Mini Park, the Hall of Justice and the Tanghalang Pasigueno connect all floors. The highlight of the inauguration was the blessing of the new Pasig City Hall Communication, Command and Control Center (C3) which demonstrated its capability to remotely monitor and coordinate disaster response and rescue operations using state-of-the-art technology that provides real-time video streams transmitted from the field directly to the command center. With 165 CCTV cameras installed in critical areas in and around Pasig City and supported by BCEO Mobile Command Vans with CCTV cameras and radio link, Pasig C3 is and will be on top of any situation to provide Mayor Bobby with up to date assessments and actionable information. The new city hall was designed by Architect Jeff Isidro. The Comfac Global Group was tasked to turn the design into a reality, working on this fit-out for all floors, including the design and renovation of the Communication, Command and Control Center. The Comfac Global Group is currently working on the expansion of the City Hall.