The real reason for coming here is to visit Aguinaldo House in the village of Kawit, 23km south of Manila. Here the revolutionary army of General Emilio Aguinaldo proclaimed Philippine Independence on 12 June 1898 – a triumph soon quashed by the Americans. The house is now a shrine, and you can tour Aguinaldo’s private rooms and see his much-loved bowling alley. The general died in 1964 after a very long life that included a period of chumminess with the Japanese occupiers.
