If you are looking for a great escape from the city's busy streets and bustling sounds of vehicle horns, you don't deed to go too far. Aside from the normal traveling spots (Antipolo, Tagaytay, Subic), there are a lot of other "sleepy" towns that is waiting for you to discover.
One of them is the town of Taal in Batangas. You probably have the idea of what you will find in Taal as most people associate the town to the world famous volcano with the same name. But on a closer look, Taal has a lot more things to offer other than just a site of the majestic landmark.
Taal is a quite place, peaceful and serence and is adorned with centuries-old houses. Most of the houses in Taal dates back in the 1800. These ancestral houses are still in use for the owners but mostly only during the holidays or long vacation periods.
Stone houses and old churches are really refreshing to see. Probably the most famous landmark aside from he volcano is the Basilica of St. Martin de Tours. It was built in 1575 and for almost half a millenia, the basilica went under a number of repairs and restoration process.
The houses and institutional buildings in Taal reminds us all of our colorful past, the time when Spain was still our commander. Some people in Taal are also surprisingly "mestizo". The Spanish people really left a mark not only in our culture, but also in our blood lines. They left a huge mark in our history.
