The city of Parañaque, or Lungsond ng Parañaque, is a constituent city of Metro Manila, the National Capital Region found on the island of Luzon in the Philippines.  It is located approximately 8 kms south of Manila, the country’s capital; and bordered to the north by Pasay city, Muntinlupa City to the southeast, Las Piñas to the southwest, Taguig City to the northeast, and to the west by the Manila Bay.

Parañaque is the home of the Baclaran (Redemptorist) Church, which is the national shrine of Our Lady of Perpetual Help.  It is the most attended church in Asia where Catholic pilgrims petition their prayers and requests every Wednesday.  The Holy Virgin has reputation for granting all requests petitioned through weeks of novena or devotion.

The city’s old name is Palanyag derived from “palayan”, referring to the rice fields that were abundant in the city, and “palalayag, referring to the fishing and sailing occupation of its residents.  There are many local tales of its evolution to Parañaque.  One most popular tale suggests that it came from the phrase, “Para na aque”, or “ Stop now, boy”.  The area used to be a usual stop for horse-drawn carriages during the Spanish   era, and this phrase is usually said to indicate to the driver that the passenger wishes to get off.  “Para” came from the Spanish term “to stop”, “na” from the Tagalog term for “now”, and “aque” from the Tagalog word for boy “lalki” or “lalake”

Its history is just as colorful as the tales of the city’s etymology.  Parañaque was founded as a town in 1572, the town’s strategic location at the crossroads of Manila and the provinces of Cavite and Batangas had allowed the townsfolk to play significant roles throughout the Philippines’ history.  Paraqueños had twice helped the Spanish defend Manila and ward off invaders—once, when the Chinese pirate Limahong attempted to attack Manila in 1574,, and when the British launched an invasion of Manila in 1762.  The townspeople however, would not stay loyal to the Spanish colonizers for long.  When the Philippine Revolution broke out in the late 19th century, some prominent revolutionary leaders, like Manuel Quiogue and secular priest Father Pedro Dandan,  emerged from its people.  During the Japanese occupation in World War II, Parañaque was an ardent supporter of the guerilla movement. History lay  quiet after the war, until the then municipality of Parañaque became a component of Metro Manila.  It was incorporated into a city on February 15, 1995.

Residential Places in Parañaque

Being largely a residential area, Parañaque has a variety of subdivisions and villages that houses Paraquenos from all income brackets.  The list of gated communities in the city include Aeropark Subdivision, BF Homes Parañaque, Better Living Subdivision, Camella Homes Parañaque, Concorde Village, Countryside Village, El Puentebello de Sucat, Fourth Estate Subdivision, Fortunata Village, Garden City I & III, Gatchalian Subdivision, Goodwill II &III Subdivision,   Greenheights Village, Ireneville, Los Tamaraos, Makati South Hills, Marcelo Green Village, Marimar Village, Marian Lakeview Park, Maywood Village, Merville Subdivision, Mon-El Subdivision, Moonville Subdivision, Moonwalk Village, Multinational Village, Parañaque Greenheights Subdivision, Parkview Homes, Rainbow Village II, Salvador Estate, South Bay Gardens, St. Catherine Village, San Antonio Valley, Severina Diamond Subdivision, Sun Valley Subdivision, Teoville (East & West), United Hills, United Parañaque Subdivision II, III, IV, & V, Villa Mendoza, and Villanueva Village.

The most prominent and upscaleof these is the BF Homes Parañaque, which is also the largest subdivision in Asia.  It covers an area of 765 hectares that   spreads out across the cities of Parañaque, Las Piñas, and Muntinlupa. The subdivision is a self-contained community with its own wet market, several supermarkets, shopping centers, eating establishments, gas station, churches, medical centers, and learning institutions from primary to college.  Most residents in this  subdivision are from upper to upper-middle class income brackets.  Among its most prominent residents are politicians, basketball players, and celebrities.

Hospitals and Universities of Parañaque

Parañaque has several private and government tertiary care hospitals.  The Medical Center Parañaque, which is situated along A. Santos Avenue in Sucat, is the largest among these and stands as one of the city’s reputable hospitals.  The hospital has a 95-bed capacity and provides a wide-range of medical services, such as internal medicine and its sub-specialties, obstetrics-gynecology, pediatrics, surgery and its sub-specialties, anesthesiology, Ophthalmology, hematology, psychiatry, and dentistry.

Other hospitals and medical centers in Parañaque are listed below:

Parañaque Hospitals
Name Address Telephone


D.T. Protacio Medical Services 484 Quirino Avenue, Tambo 832-2953                                                                  Olivarez General Hospital Dr. A. Santos Avenue, Sucat 825-8747/826-7966
Our Lady of Peace Hospital Coastal Road, Barangay Dionisio 825-4902
Parañaque Community Hospital Quirino Avenue, La Huerta 831-9612

South Superhighway Medical Center Km 17, West Road, South Superhighway 821-8454
Sta. Rita De Baclaran Hospital 97 G. Cruz Street, Baclaran 831-7005
Sto. Nino De Cebu Maternity Hospital Sucat Road 827-9647

Education

Parañaque has two learning institutions for aeronautics, namely the Airlink International Aviation College and the PATTS College of Aeronautics.

Located along Lombos Avenue in Barangay  San Isidro , the PATTS College of Aeronautics is a private aeronautical college established in 1969 to meet the demands of aviation and air transportation industries in the Philippines and abroad.  It offers courses in aeronautical engineering, air transportation, aircraft maintenance technology, avionics technology, airline office administration, Tourism, and hotel & restaurant management.  The Airlink International Aviation College is another privately owned Aviation College established in 1983 with its main campus located on Airport Domestic Road.  Its roster of academic programs includes  degrees in aviation, aerospace engineering, maintenance technology, avionics technology, airline management, tourism, and computer science.

The city’s most reputable college is the Olivarez College that stands on the corner of Dr. A. Santos Avenue and Sucat Road.  It what started as a nursing school now offers courses in psychology, political science, mass communication, education, commerce, hotel and restaurant management, tourism, and computer science.  Also offered are its established health related courses, such as nursing, radiologic technology, and physical therapy, as well as associates in midwifery, caregiver, and health science education.  Masteral degrees are also offered in these fields. The college has received accreditation from the prestigious Philippine Accrediting Association of Schools, Colleges, and Universities (PAASCU) and the Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities Commission on Accreditation (PACUCOA).

Other colleges in the city include the state college Parañaque City College of Science and Technology  , AMA Computer College Parañaque, St. Augustine School of Nursing, Universal College of Nursing, and St. Rita College.  There are also several computer schools located in the city, such as   the Datamex Computer College of Saint Adeline and Informatic Computer Institute.

Commercial Places in Parañaque

The city has two SM malls that are part of the SM chain of malls, which is the country’s largest chain of supermalls.  They are the SM City Bicutan situated along Doña Soledad Avenue in Barangay Don Bosco and SM Sucat that stands on Dr. A. Santos Avenue in Barangay San Dionisio.  Both malls have the usual SM malls’ anchor of department  stores and supermarkets, cinemas, entertainment halls, retail outlets, and several restaurants.

Parañaque is also home to Fiesta Shopping Mall, which is the country’s centre for duty Free shopping, located near the Ninoy  Aquino  International Airport.  Other shopping malls found in the city are the Pearl Plaza located along Quirino Avenue  in Barangay Tambo, and features several retail shops and a bowling center which often hosts tournaments, Uniwide Coastal Mall which stands near the Manila-Cavite Road and Roxas Boulevard, and the large retail centers of Waltermart  which stands on the corner of Quirino Avenue and Katigbak Drive in Baclaran, and Shopwise in Sucat.

Dining

Most of the city’s notable restaurants are found at the aforementioned shopping malls.  The restaurants found at these retail centers may range from Filipino, Japanese, Chinese, Italian, American, or a fusion of international flavors.  Some restaurants found in SM City Bicutan include Max’s Restaurant,  Gerry's Grill , Inasal Chicken Bacolod , Italianni's, Pancake House, Pizzeria Pronto, and Shakey's.  On the other hand, some notable dining establishments in SM Sucat are Café Americana, Mandarin Wok, Pizza Hut, and Yellow Cab Pizza.

The area around the Ninoy Aquino International Airport sports several decent restaurants.  Among the dining  establishments found in that area include the Sunduan Restaurant, Luk Foo Cantonese Kitchen, and Maxim's Tea House.  Several restaurants are also found at the affluent residential community of BF Homes Parañaque, particularly along Aguirre Avenue .  Some of these are the Vigo Restaurant, A Veneto Pizzeria Ristorante, Deuxieme , Julio's Kitchen , Pancake House , Piccolo Mondo , The Breakfast Club , and Sophie's Garden Bar & Restaurant.

The most prime entertainment venue in the city is found at the Casino Filipino.  The government-owned casino offers the usual gaming pleasures housed in a deluxe suite.  The venue has its in-house restaurant and an auditorium where many of the country’s most renowned performers have performed.

Service Establishments of Parañaque

The city’s electricity is supplied by the Manila Electric Company or MERALCO.  The city is part of the company’s central franchise, which consists of 22 cities and 89 municipalities, including the whole of Metro and Mega Manila.  The Meralco Extension Office in Parañaque is located on Parañaque Avenue in Barangay Tambo.

The Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT) is the largest telecom company that provides the city fixed line services and Internet access through dial-up and DSL connection.  Applications for service and bill payments may be done by visiting their business office located at Dona Soledad Avenue in Better Living Subdivision.  Smart Communications, a subsidiary of PLDT, offers wireless Internet connection with its brand SmartBro.

The cellular network providers in the city are Globe Telecom, Smart Communications, and digitel Communications.  With their brands, Globe Handyphone, Smart Mobile, and Sun Cellular, the three companies offer its subscribers prepaid and postpaid options, as well as competitive features.

The Parañaque Police Station is the Philippine National Police Southern District’s third station.  Under this station are several sub-stations located all over the city that functions as community police and precincts.  A table below lists their location and contact information:

Parañaque Police
Police Station/PCP* Address Telephone


Parañaque General Aguinaldo Highway, La Huerta 826-2877
826-8182
826-8121
PCP 1 Quirino/Taft Avenue , Baclaran 832-0107
PCP 2 Quirino Avenue, La Huerta 826-7240
PCP 3 Interchange, Bicutan 823-0858
PCP 4 Santos Avenue, San Dionisio 826-1415
*PCP-Police Community Precinct

Embassies in Parañaque

There are no consular offices of embassies located in the city.  The Bulk of these diplomatic missions have their offices located in Manila and Makati city.