Exploring downtown Manila

Today, Ross and I headed into Intramuros to explore parts of downtown Manila. We started at Fort Santiago and wandered around parts of Intramuros looking at various forts, statues, churches and Spanish influenced architecture.

We headed over the Pasig River into Quiapo and the Chinatown area. In one of the squares opposite a church, UNICEF workers were teaching classes to the street kids. As Ross and I stood in the square, children came running for everywhere to sit with the volunteers. They had a great mobile classroom which was on the back of a small hand-pulled trailer. Chalkboards, displays and various games etc. could all be pulled out of the trailer - it was really cool and a simple idea.

Ross and I wandered through Chinatown which was much more authentic than many we had been to in other countries. There were a lot of ancient churches and cathedrals to look at and as we headed more into the depths, the crowds became more and more. Apparently Friday mornings are very busy in this part of Manila with devotees of the the Black Nazarene flocking to worship a black-coloured, life size replica of Jesus Christ found in the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene in Quiapo.

Surrounding the Basilica, markets about with thousands of Filipinos coming to buy everything from religious icons, fresh fruit and vegetables, fish, meat and an assortment of other household items (including a lot of moth balls for some reason!). Ross and I were kind of swamped by the amount of people but luckily we both stand almost a foot taller than the average Filipino so we were in no danger of losing each other.

We walked through the market area to another bridge that crossed back over the river under which was a handicraft market with many local, traditional items. Ross and I then headed back to the LRT station to brave the local trains on the way back to Tara and JB's.

The train was an experience in itself. The carriages were divided into male and female so Ross and I had to separate. The women's carriage was pretty spacious with air-con and plenty of room to stand. The carriage Ross was on however was not quite the same, the men were packed in like sardines with barely enough room to stand. At every stop, more and more people tried to cram into the carriages. Men also tried to get in the female carriage but were chased off at every stop by the security guards.

At the EDSA station we changed lines for the short trip on the MRT to Ayala. It wasn't too busy this time but as we went to get off at our station we were met by a wall of people. Ross had to put up a battering ram with his arms and barge his way through as the crowd tried to push onto the train. Not so fun.

That night we headed to a local pub called Murphy's where a few of the teachers from Tara and JB's school play together in a band. We were all pretty shattered so we just had a couple of beers and headed home.

A good, interesting and busy day all up. It gave Ross and I a good taste of Manila. A few things stick out as being unique here:

1. Jeepneys: one of the most popular modes of transport.


2. "Mamsir": Hospitality is pretty big here in the Philippines. Every shop, cafe, store that Ross and I entered we were greeted by the phrase "Hello, Mamsir, welcome to ...". Everywhere from designer boutiques to McDonald's the one word colloquialism of Mam/Sir was to be heard!


3. Cheap coffee: a tall skim cappuccino here costs around $2 at Starbucks - cheap as chips!


4. Christianity: Ross and I found it really different to be in an Asian country with such a strong Christian population - churches can be found everywhere with Catholicism being the main religion.


5. Statues: Obviously, Filipinos like their statues. On every corner or road, it seems there is a statue dedicated to someone or some event.
6. Security: Everywhere you go in Manila, you are met with gun toting security. At malls, banks, trains etc. What I did particularly like is the small little sticks that the mall security guards use to pry open your bag to have a look :-)