We arrived in Manila around 6:30pm and headed for our hotel, which is located in the Makati neighborhood to the south of “metro” Manila (I’m slightly unclear on the neighborhood / suburb distinction here – it’s clear that Makati is not “metro” Manila, but it is definitely regarded as part of Manila proper). I’ve wanted to visit the Philippines as an adult for a while now; I’ve heard amazing things about Filipino food from my friends at home and the mix of local and colonial influences here is fascinating. Since we were tired from a full-travel day (it somehow took about 10 hours to get from Bali to Manila, as the one direct flight was at 2:55am and that did not appeal to us – fortunately, however, our brief layover in Singapore allowed us to buy an ornament and try both kaya toast and nasi lemak!).

Upon arrival at the hotel, we decided to try the bar for dinner, as it claimed some Filipino specialties. We tried the Chicharrón (similar to Chicharrón you might get in Latin America, but instead of being a “chip” it retains some of the pork thickness; I’d liken it to the bacon equivalent of a good steak fry that is crisp on the outside and more tender and toothsome on the inside). We also tried a chicken pancit (fried noodles with veggies and a sweet / vinegary sauce), pork sisig (essentially a pork hash, made of delicious pork bites, globs of rendered pork fat, sauteed with onions and chilis, and a wonderful poached egg) as well as the Palawan-style kinilaw served with a coconut cream, which is similar to ceviche but cured in vinegar instead of citrus juice (Palawan is an island; the waitress explained that each island understandably has a different way of preparing the kinilaw). I know neither of these pictures look good, but believe me when I say it tasted fantastic. The emphasis here is definitely on taste instead of presentation, but everything is SO complex and delicious that it truly doesn’t matter. Trust me, you want to taste everything on offer in all its varieties.

Our first day in Manila, we decided to explore a couple neighborhoods within “metro” Manila, which is a sprawling metropolis. First things first, we hit the breakfast buffet (as my Filipino friend Marc keeps reminding me, Filipinos love a good buffet!) where we tried a variety of Filipino items, including danggit (a dried fish), longganisa (a delicious sweet, tangy sausage), and chicken tocino (I would liken the texture to bbq and the sauce to a lighter teriyaki with more acid). I also tried the Batirol, which is very similar to Mexican hot chocolate – thick, creamy, and hilariously difficult to pour out of the traditional vessel (as I unfortunately realized, destroying the display to the mild amusement of the server who watched me struggle with a knowing smile before sweeping in to do what was clearly their 300th cleaning of the morning).

Again, my photo is awful but the tastes were delicious – I apologize. After breakfast, we began our trek into metro Manila, taking the subway on the way in. The hotel concierge, Dennis, was extremely perturbed by our plan; I fear he has quit his job and retired to the Maldives as we have not seen him since and he was truly devastated we weren’t taking a taxi. To his credit… we took a taxi on the way back. The subway in Manila is an experience; there are a couple different lines, each of which requires their own single-trip ticket (and yes, every Filipino seems to also buy a single trip ticket!). Each single trip ticket can only be purchased with coins at the automated machines, as we discovered; none of the vendors want to convert cash to coins (once you find an ATM, which required a 10 minute sojourn to a local mall); sadly, the bill slots all seem to be nonfunctional and of course the bill-to-coin changer also seemed to be out of order. Hilariously, we found ourselves with 39 pesos worth of coins (one short of the 40 needed for our trip) and I gave up and just stood in line to buy from a human teller. About 45 minutes into our 45 minute subway ride and not yet on a train, we finally passed through security (every entrance has a metal detector, sadly no ceremonial swords allowed!) and made it onto the platform.

Once on the train, they are clean, well ventilated and well air conditioned, as well as on-time (they are also, however, a crush of bodies). One conductor even brought us to a private car reserved for the elderly and those with disabilities, which was a sweet gesture to ensure our comfort although totally unnecessary. Personally, I thought it was a great way of getting around for dirt cheap (~20 pesos / person per ride!), but I can see why foreigners spring for cabs instead. As we flew past Manila, we began to see this beautiful city’s architecture and engineering from above. The photo below is from Binondo, Manila’s Chinatown (which we visited later in the day), but you get the picture.

We alighted the train (Singapore’s phrasing!) at the United Nations stop, hoping to see the National Museum of Anthropology, National Museum of Natural History and National Gallery, all of which are located in Rizal Park (almost like Manila’s Central Park). Sadly, the park itself was closed for construction, and as a result, it was nigh impossible to reach the museums (the folks ahead of us in this picture were also turned away).

So, instead, we headed for Intramuros, which is effectively the “Old Town” neighborhood of Manila. This neighborhood includes many historical sites, including the Manila Cathedral, the Casa Manila, and a variety of other beautiful churches and an old fort.

Along the way, we enjoyed many of the sights, from the colorful and well-decorated Jeepneys (Manila doesn’t have a formal bus system, but these “Jeepneys” carry folks from place to place on a relaxed timescale) to the tuk-tuk drivers attempting to sell us on a “tour” of the sights (which, may I say, are all within 15-minutes walking of each other within this neighborhood). That being said, folks are friendly and eager to have tourists visit and to make sure they’re having a good time – we even saw the Manila PD taking out their AK-47s specifically to take a picture with some tourists!

Our first stop upon arrival was the San Agustin church, which actually had a wedding happening at the time (we actually saw 3 separate weddings happening during our exploration of Manila; it’s a Tuesday, so we need to see if there is any specific significance to the date or weekday). During our later exploration, we were able to pop in, and it was worth it to see the beautiful decor.

After that, we went directly across the street to the Casa Manila, a Spanish colonial-style home that has been preserved, highlighting some of the beautiful dark wood furniture and glass-work that would have been common in Manila back in the day.

After Casa Manila, we decided to head to lunch, which was at a wonderful restaurant called Ilustrado. We tried a variety of items including fried chicken in butter sauce, beef salpicao (tenderloin in a delish vinegary sauce), bagnet adobo with crab fat (fried pork with a delish seafood sauce), and chop suey (we asked for a vegetable side dish and somehow this was the biggest portion of all, including both pork and baby shrimps and baby squid!). Everything was delicious, unsurprisingly.

After lunch, we wandered northward. Among my favorite stops of the day (to get out of the brief rain!) was the Bahay Tsinoy Museum, which chronicles the history of the Chinese population in the Philippines from prehistory to near-modern day. It was exceptionally well done and I’d recommend it to anyone visiting Manila.

The museum chronicles a variety of interesting (and heart-wrenching) facts, such as:

• The Chinese have probably been visiting, living in and trading with the Philippines for as long as history has existed; there is evidence of Chinese and Filipino trade going back millenia
• Many Chinese migrated to the Philippines in the late medieval period, and by the mid-1500 / mid-1600s, there was a large Chinese population within what is now known as Manila; they were unfortunately relegated to “cities” that were effectively a ghetto (called a parian)
• While living in the parian, there were a variety of uprisings; unsurprisingly but horribly, these were often quelled by massacres of the population
• Despite this, the Chinese population persisted within the Philippines under Spanish colonial rule and into the period of United States colonialism (I did not realize that the Filipino population was also restricted as a result of the US’ Chinese Exclusion Act; as a result of this, many Chinese Filipinos took a Christian name or shared papers that would obfuscate their Chinese heritage. During this period, it was also common for men to migrate between China, the Philippines and the United States for work and family)
• One of the greatest legacies of Chinese migration to the Philippines is clear through the food culture. This is true in the naming of food utensils (e.g., bithay, bilao, siyanse), food processing methods (e.g., bihon, miki, tanghon, miswa, tausi, taho and tokwa) and the many delicious snacks that are still common among Filipino cuisine, such as biko, bitsu, hopia, tikoy, humba, batsoy, siopao, siomai and my personal favorites, pancit and lumpiya

The museum featured a number of interesting displays and artifacts, including old hardwood tables from the 16^th century that are still well preserved, recovered from one of the villages on a major trade route. It also featured a series of lifesize dioramas showing Chinese life in the Philippines, from selling vegetables to helping build the local cathedral, to living as wealthier families as time went on. There was also a great display of recovered Chinese pottery from around the Philippines (and from shipwrecks in Philippines waters).

From there, we wandered through Intramuros’ winding streets toward the Manila Cathedral, which is a massive structure that is oddly less ornate than many of the smaller churches we’ve seen. Yet again, there was a wedding happening, so we could only see in from the back entrance.

The Cathedral is situated just south of the old city walls and Fort Santiago, a historic citadel with a variety of interesting sites on the premises. As you wander through the fort, you come across a monument to Jose Rizal (a freedom fighter), as well as a shrine to him (located in what appeared to be a former prison cell of his). Other sights along the way included former US military barracks, an old cannon with much newer munitions, a lovely Christmas tree (not quite in season anymore, but festive!), and many lovely gardens.

As one other cultural experience, I popped into the restroom and, after soaping my hands, realized there was no running water – fortunately a local realized there was a faucet running in a closet, so rinsing off was an experience.

After ambling back through the fort, we decided to hit one final stop before leaving Intramuros for Binondo (Chinatown) across the river. Making our way through side streets among groups of high school and college kids just getting out of school (and a new road being built completely by hand!), we found the Destileria Limtuaco Museum, which is the site of the Philippines’ oldest distillery (and the brand continues today!).

Set back against what appeared to be a more residential area, the distillery highlights the process of producing rum and whiskey, showcasing the older techniques (using a water buffalo to crush the sugarcane) and the more modern techniques (using a steel, square-shaped barrel lined with imported oak wood from the United States). It also includes an overview of the owners’ lives, starting with the patriarch back in the 1800s and the four subsequent generations of owners. They also have original copies of the “white horse” marketing (which featured Filipino supermodels riding on white horses).

Dangerously, the 200 peso ticket (~$2.50) includes a sampling of 6 drinks for each participant (half-shots, but still!). The mandated tasting included their “ready-made” cocktails (which taste much better than some of the cheap ready-made cocktails I’ve tried stateside!). After that, you are free to choose from their huge selection, which includes everything from dragonfruit wine to medicinal Chinese-style wines to rums, whiskey and a variety of liqueurs (which are delicious – they have wonderful coffee, chocolate, kalamansi lime and orange flavors, among others). Of course, we wanted to try a number of things, so for an extra 100 pesos, we shared another 6 samples. Unfortunately, they don’t ship to the US yet, so we’re hoping to pick some up at Duty Free before our return flight home.

In good spirits, we headed for Binondo, which is Manila’s Chinatown, located right across the Jones Bride over the Pasig River (and with nice views of the more modern Binondo-Intramuros Bridge). Binondo is definitely more of a “lived” Manila experience (although once you get off the main street in Intramuros and away from the many tuk-tuk drivers offering a personalized tour on the “Lamborghini” of tuk-tuks, the neighborhood is definitely impoverished); the traffic is chaotic, streets filled with pedestrians and vendors of all kinds, and the wiring is a cultural experience all of its own.

Within Binondo, there are a variety of sites to see, from the Binondo Church (absolutely beautiful, and yes, holding a wedding!) to the vendors to the chaotic traffic, with Jeepneys, tuk-tuks and every variety of other vehicle intermingling. Since we were later in the day and most of the museums were closing, we headed to the Lucky Chinatown Mall, which was bustling with people. Filipinos love their malls here, and it was wild to see such a built-up structure next to the discolored wooden shacks lining the river right next door.

The mall itself wasn’t super exciting, but it did have a nice Lunar New Year display as well as cute little train that circulates the floor. There was also a lovely outdoor food hall, reminiscent of the hawker centers in Singapore (but much less crowded and much more curated, obviously).

From the mall, we decided to head back to the hotel for dinner. Catching a taxi in Manila is an experience in and of itself – lots of folks have recommended using SE Asia’s version of Uber (called GrabCar), but it was unfortunately so busy that no cars were available. Instead, we paid a local to flag down a taxi for us, and once we’d negotiated our fare, set out on our hour+ drive back to Makati (which is hilariously like 5 miles from metro Manila).

For dinner, we decided to hit the hotel buffet (the luxury hotel buffets are actually perceived as a relatively “fancy” dinner option here, so many locals visit them for special occasions). We tried a number of Filipino dishes, including:

• Pancit (fried noodles; similar to lo mein but with a thinner glass noodle, topped with everything from pork to chicken to seafood)
• Bistek Tagalog (similar to the beef salpicao I tried for lunch, essentially steak with a tangy sweet sauce)
• Pork menudo (a flavorful pork curry)
• Gising-Gising (wing-bean salad with coconut cream sauce)
• A “salad” of salted egg, fresh red onion and tomato I thought was lato; one of my Filipino friends corrected me and added the context that this is actually a traditional condiment for soup, as the salted egg and fresh tomatoes go best with the tangy broth – I’m hoping I’ll get the chance to sample said soup!
• Pandan buko – similar to some of the desserts we’ve tried in Singapore and elsewhere in Asia, this is basically cubes of pandan jelly and other fruit jellies, in a cold, creamy and sweet broth

Overall, a wonderful first day in Manila! A number of people have expressed curiosity about whether or not Manila is accessible for travelers, and I’d absolutely recommend it – you definitely need a little planning and to expect the lack of some conveniences (especially when it comes to bathrooms), but the people are so warm, friendly and welcoming and the food is absolutely incredible and unlike any other southeast Asian cuisine I’ve experienced. I’d highly recommend visiting Manila even for a day or two if you find yourself in the region (or heading to one of the Philippines’ beautiful resort islands, as we are!).