Chapel on the Hill

pre-nup shot on location by Archie Paungan

Our Wedding Chapel: Chapel on the Hill

Don Bosco Batulao, Nasugbu, Batangas City
0916-250-3559/743-5614

I first heard the place from our company chaplain. A new chapel built on a hill and especially made for weddings. I have always dreamt of a wedding chapel with scenic and refreshing view. Chapel on the Hill (COTH) was the perfect place!

When we had our first ocular visit, we decided right there and then that it will be our wedding chapel. We also visited the nearby Caleruega chapel but the lack of good parking space made it a lot easier for us to choose Chapel on the Hill. Besides, COTH is run by Don Bosco Fathers and we happened to have several Don Bosco Priests friends.

Lorie, the chapel staff, was so easy to deal with. The Chapel gets booked early and although we came almost a year before our wedding date to reserve, we had to move dates several times because the dates we chose were booked already. We first thought of December 28 (but this date usually gets booked second to December 8), then December 10 (our Community’s Christmas party was scheduled on this date – meaning 75% of our guests may not make it), so we settled for December 3.

And December 3, 2005, indeed became a special day for us.

It was quite a challenge for us to get our church documents in place. Being both Manila-based, we had to travel to Calaca, Batangas for our canonical interview and to submit our documents to Bishop Buonggaling. He was a fatherly and a very good priest who made sure we understood the decision we made, and the sacrament (of matrimony) that we were to receive.

The chapel, with its featured labyrinth brick floor, was filled with close to 300 guests on our wedding day. It was an intimate and very solemn wedding. We were literally surrounded by our loved ones and friends in the sphere-shaped chapel. For me, it was the most solemn and spirit filled mass of my life, so far. Our family and guests agreed. Our wedding mass lasted for almost a couple of hours, including pictorials.

Although COTH has its own set of guidelines, they were not as strict as the other churches. We were allowed to prepare our own missalette, add prayers, and other rites that were uniquely ours. It was, of course, a big help that our wedding priest, Fr. Martin M. Macasaet, SDB, was a Bosconian himself and known by COTH staffs.

COTH Guidelines and Requirements:
A. Necessary Documents to be accomplished 3 months before the wedding date:
1. Marriage License*
2. Baptismal Certificate*
3. Confirmation Certificate*
*should be inscription: For Marriage Purposes Only
B.Pre-cana Seminar (in our case, Discovery Weekend (DW) was considered - a separate review on DW will be posted soon)
C.Marriage Banns
4.License Number of officiating priest
5.Names and addresses of principal sponsors


Rave: Like, Like. (Will never tire visiting this beautiful chapel every chance I get!)

Rant: The aisle (rattan chairs were movable) was too narrow, especially when my husband and his parents, and my parents and I were walking down the aisle. (Maybe they did it to place more chairs to accommodate our overflowing guests – I never had the chance to check).