A PEEK INTO HER MADNESS

The notoriously corrupt young congressman from the north that she married was such a force of stress that it took her about a year to convalesce in a New York mental hospital after suffering a nervous breakdown. But the time spent in recuperation also instilled a formidable desire to help her husband become the next president of the Philippines upon her return. Thus, began Imelda’s ultimate rise to power.

The Coconut Palace was another addition within the Cultural Center complex commissioned by Imelda Marcos. This time, it was architect Francisco Manora, not Leandro Locsin. It was built for $10 million dollars in preparation for Pope John Paul’s 1981 visit; however, much to her disappointment, the pontiff opted to stay instead at the Papal Nunciature at Taft Avenue during his stay in Manila.


The Coconut Palace which faces the Manila Bay was created by using coconut shells in combination with several Philippine hardwoods, including a specially-engineered hybrid of coconut and hardwood aptly named Imelda Madera. Nonetheless, it is the coconut’s versatility that was showcased as the palace’s essential element — from the coconut's roots, trunk, bark, fruit, flower and shell, as well as the palace's overall design, form, and collection of objet d'art.

The structure itself is octagon-shaped while its roof resembled that of a traditional Filipino bamboo hat — the salakot. The seven lavish suites on the second floor were named after certain Philippine regions and each suite was decorated by the region’s respective indigenous handicrafts.


During Imelda’s reign, the palace housed most of her foreign guests — Brooke Shields, Richard Van Clyburn, George Hamilton, Adnan Kashoggi, Moammar Kadafi, and many others.

It is now a museum with well-manicured grounds, butterfly garden, and orchidarium. It can also be rented for special banquets for about $500 dollars a day; however, it is fully booked months in advance. It is open for walk-in visits from Tuesday to Sunday, 9:00 am to 4:30 pm with an entrance fee of $2 dollars per person. Telephone number is 832-0223.


Visiting the Coconut Palace was part of Carlos Celdran’s Living La Vida Imelda! — an architectural walking tour of the Cultural Center of the Philippines Complex as seen through the life and aspirations of Imelda Marcos.

It’s a tour about the Philippines during the rise and fall of the Marcoses — the 1970s, Martial Law and the endeavor to create a New Society — the time of my youth in which I was absent from the country. It was an era of hope and madness. Carlos brought them back for us to get a glimpse of. Indeed, another enjoyable learning experience.

Bravo, Carlos!

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