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We’re touring the historical island of Corregidor on Sun Cruises with our new Capoeira friends. It’s one of the most visited tourist spots in the country, and guess what, you’re coming with us.

This is how you get to Corregidor Island, you head up to the CCP Complex terminal A at the Manila Bay. You hop on to the MV Sun Cruise 2 catamaran, and in an hour and a half you arrive at the historical Island of Corregidor. Once you arrive on the island, you get assigned to a bus that takes you on a tour of the whole island that will take you back in time, all the way back to World War 2.

The first stop of the tour takes you to Battery Way where you get to see actual World War 2 war guns. We brought some new friends with us on this trip, martial artists from Escola Braziliera Capoeira Philippines. Kodak moments cannot be helped when you are in the presence of artifacts that date way back to World War 2, so we did our share of picture-perfect moments. Marc could also not help himself from sticking his head directly inside the barrel of one of the guns and found a way to play as usual. Marc seemed like he was having a lot of fun so I too followed suit.

We're off to the highest vantage view point of Corregidor, a stunning 360-degree view of the island from here you can see that Corregidor is shaped like a tadpole and its tail can be seen from the top most part of the island. From a certain point you can also see the mouth of Manila Bay with Bataan from the right. Corregidor has a very rich history. For first time Filipino visitors, when exploring the island, you instantly realize what our brave soldiers went through defending our country during World War 2. Being on Corregidor Island gives you a glimpse of who and what our race is all about. We've been around the country, and we can say that not many tourist spots in the Philippines give you that feeling of National identity like Corregidor does.

The name Corregidor is derived from the Spanish word "corregir" which means "to correct”, since this island served as a checkpoint for vessels, entering Manila Bay during the Spanish and American occupations. It's important to note that Corregidor's strategic location was vital in the defense of Manila during World War 2.

What a treat to watch coach Fantasma and his group do their thing. Just a few minutes into it and you are immediately transported into the beautiful musical sporty world of Capoiera. They created their own melody, moved with passion, gusto, tough moves, tumbling, twisting, bending, kicking their powerful routine quickly drew a crowd at Corregidor.

Marc and I gave it our best shot learning the very basic steps of capoiera. It’s a combination of leg and arm movement plus instinct. If you don’t have strong legs and upper body, doing capoiera will surely develop them after a few minutes of tutoring. We were allowed to play. Capoeira has a way of getting you into a rhythm that gets you to stay in it and do more. There's something about moving with a partner, you energize each other. A few minutes of that and you are breathing very hard. You kinda push yourself beyond what you normally would do. It helped that our new capoeira friends were upbeat, encouraging and complimenting even our most basic accomplishments. Capoiera is wonderful.

Next stop on our tour, the Malinta Tunnels. We were asked to wear helmets for safety purposes and they also provide tourists with flashlights to use when going through the tunnels. Walking through these dark tunnels gives you that eerie feeling, and you cannot help but actually feel like one of the soldiers back in the day, and what they must have gone through. Many, many lives were lost in these tunnels during World War 2 which is why we were told that numerous skeletons were found here, but they were hauled out of the island before these tours were organized for obvious reasons. Our guide told us that because of all the lives that were lost here, many spirits or should we say ghosts, have never left Corregidor and are actually still here in these tunnels. Now that's creepy. It makes this tour so much more thrilling than many other tours you might take in the Philippines. Visitors have told guides that they have actually taken pictures in these tunnels and have seen unknown images in their pictures. Could this be your imagination? Or are the spirits really still here? Come to the island, you take your pictures, develop them, and then you decide. Imagination? Maybe. Reality, maybe. Check your proofs and let us know. Just another reason why Corregidor is a place you should check out and experience.

Our next stop on the tour required a hike that took us through a forest area that lead us to the Japanese Tunnel. The first thing that came into our minds when we saw this tunnel was, "How on earth did they build this back in that time?"

We also saw the ruins of what was the officers quarters, it was almost like we were in the actual movie set of "Apocalypse Now." This hike also leads you to a lighthouse that you can explore and also has another great view from the top of the island.

This trip to Corregidor Island after all these years was a definite eye-opener and a tour that took us back through time.

This trip gave us a sense of pride and nostalgia that we have not experience in any other island that we've been to.

This trip gives you that realization of what other Filipinos had to do. For us now to be able to call the Philippines "my country” because of what went on in Corregidor. It's a trip that every Filipino should find the time to take, not only will you have a great time but it also gives you the chance to take time out to be grateful for those who gave their lives for our country. It's the very least we can do.