A day of walking in Manila

Greetings from Manila. I spent the day yesterday walking - trying to tire myself enought to sleep last night. It worked. It was hot and humid, but the rain held off.

Here are a few shots from the day. In the morning, I did a self-guided tour of the area of Intramuros - the 17th century walled area of Manila and then to the National Museum of the Philippine People. The late afternoon I spend walking along the bay walk - and beyond - further than I had anticipated!

As in many large cities, traffic is a mess. You truly take your life into your own hands legs to cross many streets. I loved the colorful jeepneys, remnants from the US military presence here, that serve as small buses for the majority of the population. This is one of the more tasteful ones.

Manila has preserved its old city walls, some dating back to the 17th century. Manila's, however, are surrounded by a golf course. Intramuros (within the walls) is a good sized area that contains, among other sites, Fort Santiago and the Manila Cathedral.

I love street art. This reminded me of that which was everywhere in Rio de Janeiro. The Hispanic influence?

This smiling guard protects Fort Santigo that once guarded the mouth of the Pasig River and the city. All the police in the Intramuros area were so uniformed, some with realistic looking rifles. One guard assured me they were only cap guns. 

One of those grizzly remnants from the past - a powder room (too wet to be useful) sometimes used as a dungeon. As I remember, one form of execution was to place prisoners in these cells and then allow them to slowly drown as the tide rose.   

Nature will be here long after humans are gone. From the walls of Intramuros. 

I love walled cities - Xian, Rothenberg, Talin - especially those that have been preserved. The completeness of Manila's wall is rather miraculous since with the exception of Warsaw, Manila was the most completely destroyed city of WWII. (The net in the upper right keeps golf balls from hitting the tourists.)

I really enjoyed the National Museum, not just for the AC, but for the attention paid to the indigenous tribe people of islands. These burial jar lids supposedly carry the likeness of the one inside. Hoping to experience a little more of the aspect of the Philippines as I travel in northern Luzon after the workshops. I was amazed by the number (like over 100) separate tribes scattered among the islands. And each with its own language.

Rizal Park is a narrow stretch of greenery, fountains and statues than must be a half mile long in the center of the city. Heavily used by citizens, including these students practicing some kind of dance - or maybe exercise.

I walked the Bay Walk later in the day to watch Manila's reputedly beautiful sunset. Winds were whipping up about 30mph or more but it didn't keep the people in. 

 

This kid was climbing the palm for coconuts along the bay. As with most big cities in Asia, Manila has a fascinating, if always disturbing, street life. Open cook fires on the crowded, crumbling sidewalks, shysters, child and adult beggars, tons of litter, constant noise, and direct sexual solicitations are all a part of it. It's an interesting place to visit, but I don't think I would do well living here. I couldn't climb a palm tree if my life depended on it.

And yes, there was a beautiful sunset - just past the Manila Yacht Club.

So off to Subic this morning. Driver should be here in an hour. Enjoy the photos, but don't give up your subsciption to National Geographic just yet.

Comments

[Beth]

This is really sweet! I grew up in Manila many moons ago and the fresh pictures are wonderful. Your insight is awesome and spot on, decades later. I see very little has changed. I hope the workshop goes well!

[Linda]

Great photos of Manila. We were there about 8 years ago. The sky is lot bluer in your photos than when we were there. We're in San Antonio now since June 2010.