And his love was too strong that it became the pillars of the temple.
Truly, love does wonders. It’s so powerful that it goes beyond a bouquet of roses, a romantic picnic or a dinner in the fanciest restaurant, a diamond ring or a strand of pearls. Remember Taj Mahal in India, Swallow’s Nest Castle above the waters of the Black Sea, and the Boldt Castle in upstate New York? What do they have in common? Yes, they are all built out of love. ❤
Cebu also prides this magnificent landmark Temple of Leah as a testament of an architecture-romantic Mr. Teodorico S. Adarna’s undying love and devotion to his wife – Leah.
Perched on the highlands of the city, Temple of Leah continously draws tourist because of it’s splendiferous architecture similar to that of Rome and Greece. Knowing that this is built in the name of love is another thing that invites people’s curiousity.
Some time in January, after our visit in the botanical garden of Terrazas de Flores, we dropped by this temple to see how lucky Leah must be.
We were collected Php50 each as an entrance fee. The temple was not done yet but it is already open to public. We went there on a weekday so there were not too many people at that time.
The edifice resembles Rome classical structures, inspired by Leah’s travel to Rome. It is very evident with the rectangular designs, the Doric columns, the podium and the altar.
A huge bronze statue of Leah was built in the altar. This spells Mr Adarna’s devotion to her that he treated her like a goddess.
This temple was meant to be a repository of Leah’s items which she gathered from her travels. According to her daughter, Arlene, her mom was a collector. Before she died, she worried where to put all her collections. Her good husband promised to build this temple to store all her things. Now, this shrine serves as a museum of Leah’s things. However, the museum was not yet open for the public during our visit.
While classical temples have their storage rooms behind the altar, the chambers for Leah’s collection were built on the opposite wings of the edifice.
There is a fountain in front of the shrine’s podium which is inspired by her trip to Europe. Truly a work of art. Look at those meticulous carvings.
The temple also gives a panoramic vista of Cebu City. Although, it’s hot to stay here in the mid-afternoon. We wonder if the sunrise or the sunset looks great from here.
The place is sooo perfect for photo ops to flood your Facebook and Instagram. Every corner is “instagrammable”, they said. (Is there such word, by the way?)
From the high rising pillars to the precised carvings, the temple is just WONDERFUL, it’s brilliant. Mr Adarna must have really made his wife happy even when she’s already gone.
Indeed, love does wonder. The Temple of Leah speaks of a man’s real love and devotion to his wife. And this our friends, we hope inspires you to not give up on love because it really exists. Yay!
We hope you enjoyed our photo-diary of the Temple of Leah. Over to you, what would you do for love? Leave us some words.
‘Til our next cheesy adventure.
Keep safe!
Love, Ace and Demi
Ace and Demi Travel Stories 