revisiting manila

i had not really been to manila, the capital of the philippines for a long time (like about 3 years already). but during my last trip recently, i did make the effort to visit four well known places of manila that are becoming big hits with OFWs (overseas filipino workers)/immigrants as well as with local tourists. one was intramuros, or the walled city. recently, the place was transformed into one huge tourist area with restaurants and exhibit stalls selling all sorts of filipino traditional goodies....that day i went it was the CARAGA region (which is part of MINDANAO island) that was exhibiting their products and wares. i managed to buy two shawls which i really liked. the atmosphere was very festive and i felt quite safe walking from one end of the intramuros walls to the other end. i went there with my family so that helped a lot in making the experience so memorable and so wonderful.

the second place in manila i visited again was the roxas boulevard area which is actually the shore of manila bay. i remember coming to this area quite often when we were small. my father used to bring us to manila bay every weekend to breathe in the fresh air coming from the bay as we wait for the sun to come up and then have a picnic breakfast in luneta area and then play until it is midday before we head back home. but after a while when developments in manila bay was peaking and air quality was dropping, we stopped going there. no more weekend picnic family outings! so when i came back and saw some difference in roxas boulevard, i felt so happy just being able to walk near manila bay again (tho the air quality has not increased yet i must say!)...but never mind at least it was more fun now with restaurants along the bay and wooden swings and safe free parking. very important for tourists as well as for locals.

the third area i visited was malate, which used to be an upscale old rich residential area but now has been transformed into block of bars and restaurants. quite nice to walk there as well and cafe havana, i must say looks a lot better in malate than in makati city. so classical and more in keeping with its name. i had fun dancing with two other friends to latin music. so much part of our culture and our psyche: music and dancing.

the last but the most fun was when i visited divisoria, which is that part of manila where you can find anything and everything under the sun at the cheapest price. from LV bags and shoes to the latest edition of Lego toys. all things there can be bargained and can be bought at wholesale price. with one condition and only one condition. you will have to be prepared to have your face changed with another face or your wallet taken stealthily or your clothes pasted to your body (because of so much sweat) or get lost from your friend or your companion for no reason other than there are just ttttttooooooooo many people who go there to shop. it really beats cha tu chak in terms of price and variety....and after being there for half day, i was ready to die from heat and hunger and dehydration....thank God i came with a friend who is so well versed in the culture and environment of one of the oldest trading places of manila. kudos to you dada for spending your hari raya holiday accompanying me on this impossible journey!

so next time you want to buy cheap goodies but of better quality, then come to manila and experience the wondeful charm of filipino hospitality and filipino ingenuity! only in the philippines really!!!!!!!!

yes goofy, i did manage to get out of makati city during my last trip back home.

yehey, i've been to south thailand again

i am just so happy that finally after months of dry spell from traveling, i got out of singapore and traveled to phuket island in thailand. this was not my first time to the south but this was the first time i went there really like a tourist and not on some business meeting or conference. a huge difference in terms of how you prepare as well as how you act! as a tourist we had a full schedule from dawn till midnight....so tiring and yet so fabolous...

phuket it seems is being developed very well with all types of hotels and resorts scattered around its more than 20 beaches. i must say i was impressed with the infrastructures. and the shops are so much fun. it is only in phuket that i experienced shopping until midnight! as in i feel like it is a sin to sleep at all in phuket. not when you see tons of people walking to and fro, moving in and out of bars and shops. wow, really a wonderful experience. and i had so much fun bargaining. and i did not buy anything more than 500 baht. all my colleagues were even saying that i won the award for being the best bargain hunter! imagine buying birkenstock imi sandals for only 220 baht? or buying a pair of pearl (cultured) earrings for only 50 baht and pearl bracelet for only 100 baht. ayyooo, my feet really had so much fun wandering from one corner of patong beach to the other end of it. all in the name of finding the cheapest stuff to bring home. and it is not as if i really need anything. but i guess it was also the fun of bargaining and knowing that at the end you paid for something you know you like but do not really need and would most probably end up being given away to friends at a price you dictated? never felt so dictatorial. hahahahhahaha....now i know how it feels to be a shopping dictator!

we visited two well known islands out of the so many islands surrounding phuket. one was the james bond island, which is located in phang-ga bay. so spectacular the boat ride. and speaking of boat rides, now i know that i prefer motorized boats than speed boats. they are less bumpy and more comfy and more classical. the speed boat ride that took us to this island called coral island was so choppy and so bumpy that i felt like telling myself, never again will i ride in a speed boat. a bit scary i must say....

back to the islands....james bond island (after the movie was shot there they gave it this name) is nice but i must say i have seen more beautiful islands in the philippines. coral island is better and more beautiful. the water was not that calm so we just stayed near the shore. but even then we got to see fishes of various colors and sizes. they must have thought we had food with us! so sorry not to have any food to give to them. and we had our seats under this huge tree so we were spared from direct rays of the sun. tho of course, my skin still suffered from being under the sun and i am now again swarmed with red marks on my neck and arms, something i expected already. i just wished the water was a bit calm so we could have had a better time swimming and playing in the beach.

one other interesting thing was of course finding that the band which plays in this bar nearest to our resortel was a flip band. so funny but not so unexpected! flips are really everywhere......

the simon show was a huge hit with all of us. yes, it is true some of the transvestite are prettier than us...aaaaargggggggggghhhh! what to do? but some still looked like they swallowed one huge mango or durian seed.

the fanta-sea show was also a hit........wow, i never realized that elephants can be so cute despite being huge! or perhaps because they were in the stage and i was seating in the middle of the theatre so they do not look so huge but so cute, most especially when they do all those tricks....wow, the thais are really so good with animal training. they even had dogs, chicken running from one end of the stage to the other end. and some birds flying as well right in front of you on the stage. hmmmm....maybe my animal rights activists might be wondering i had gone bonkers that i can now enjoy animals being told to sit down and raise their feet and do all sorts of tricks just to wow us audience....and i must i was really wowed and awed by them....i just hope their keepers give them their dues by making sure they are fed well and taken cared of properly.....hmmmm...i wonder if my unionists friends in manila would want to go to phuket and unionize the elephants, the dogs, the chickens and the birds? just to make sure their rights as animals are not being trampled upon....well i don't know if anybody would dare trample an elephant...not if you still want to live, i guess....

so after four days of stay in phuket, yes, we only stayed there for four days....sure not enough , but at least it was almost free and my colleagues were all so fun to be with....and phuket island is really a beautiful one....

if you're the type of person who likes to walk a lot, shop a lot and swim sometime, then phuket is a good place to visit....but if you are like me who likes to swim a lot, sit under the shade on the beach and could afford not to shop till you drop, then this island is not for you....

in the end, i enjoyed phuket so much that i might just go there again for more bargain hunting and some swimming.....but it still did not beat boracay as the best beach for me!

what say you?