Philippines: Manila

 June 8, 2023, Manila, Philippines

Our ship arrived at the capitol city of Manila at 7 am. Manila is home to 14 million people, centrally located on the eastern shore of Luzon, the biggest island in the Philippines. In the 1500’s Spanish galleons followed trade winds to run spice from Manila to Acapulco four times a year. (The Manila Galleon Trade Route is a designated world heritage site.) Our ship ran a complimentary shuttle bus to the Robinson Mall. 

It was after 9:30 am when we walked off the pier, seeing Filipino crew members reuniting with family and friends, cars coming and going from the port gate. We spoke to some family members who drove quite far to see their loved ones. 

Another sweltering day in Southeast Asia, we could hear a marching band warming up. Down the street, outside a Coast Guard building, were rows of men and women in uniform. A poster board on an easel indicated an officer was receiving a promotion (he stood out from the rest in a white uniform). We watched from under shade trees lining the street, hoping to hear the band again. The speeches droned on. We had to get going.

Swearing in at the Coast Guard building

We only had until 3:30 pm to explore, so decided to concentrate on the Intramuros district, the walled city area of Manila. It was too hot to walk so we took a tuk-tuk to Fort Santiago, now part of a historical park. We arrived outside the gate alongside pedicabs, horses and buggies, and “jeepneys”—colorful, crowded, stretched-out jeeps that work like buses and are very cheap. 

Jeepney

Horse and buggy

Pedicab

The large green plazas and the ruins at the fort seemed far from the hustle and bustle of the city. We climbed up stairs and tagged along with a tour group for awhile, breaking away to explore the ruins on our own. The grounds included a museum dedicated to Jose Rizal, a national hero whose political writings inspired the Philippine revolution. He was imprisoned and executed here by Spanish colonizers.

Grounds of Fort Santiago

This ancient gate was a favorite photo op spot for tourists 

Lots of ruins with raised walkways

Charlie’s been having his picture taken on cannons since his childhood at Woodland Park in Seattle.

Life-sized Jose Rizal, writing from his jail cell.

The Manila Cathedral was a short walk away. We saw many people from the ship taking the official tour. The cathedral dates back to the 16th century. It’s been been damaged, destroyed, and reconstructed many times mostly due to earthquakes. It was reduced to rubble during World War II. The 8th and current version was consecrated in 1958 and has an impressive facade and simple interior.

The Cathedral’s facade

Beautiful stained-glass work inside

Back outside in the Plaza de Roma were lots of pedicab drivers vying for their next fare. We tried one, but it was a rough ride on the cobblestoned streets. We could walk this fast. We got out and compensated the driver, then walked to Silahis, a shop full of wondrous things. Recommended by the art historian on the ship, we ran into many other people from our ship who had attended his lectures. I bought some gorgeous fabric. They had fans running furiously around the store, but it was hot and we decided to move on.

The plaza outside the church

Our short-lived pedicab ride.

On to the Manila Hotel via tuk-tuk. This upscale hotel is nearly 100 years old and lovely. In the lobby, there was a pianist banging out American pop hits and standards on a Yamaha grand piano. We had an excellent lunch of gyozas and spring rolls. Unfortunately I left my sun hat in the lobby restaurant. We tried to track it down, but it had not appeared at the lost and found by the time we left. Re-homed, perhaps?

Pianist in the hotel lobby

We wandered outside to check out the view, our ship visible from a walkway above the pool area. We talked to a young Chinese couple—she was a dancer, there to perform that evening at the hotel for the president of Indonesia.

Pool area at the Manila Hotel

Our ship from the hotel

Young couple from China

Despite the heat and humidity, we walked the relatively short distance back to the port, this time checking out the vendors outside the port gate. Charlie bought a red necklace and was wearing it on the ship when Simon, the ship’s jeweler, asked where he’d gotten it. Later, we realized there were identical “designer” necklaces in the ship’s gift shop for 10 times as much!

Charlie & vendor with red necklace in plastic zip lock bag.

We made it for the 3:30 pm all aboard. A band and dancers were on the pier to send us off as the ship departed. Many of the Filipino staff were visibly happy about seeing family and friends that day.