Ah Manila City, the capital of the Philippines. It is a place other people love while some just choose to dislike. It is not perfect but from what I've seen lately it has definitely improved a lot thanks to the current mayor, Isko Moreno.
♦ The First Time I Went To Manila
I'm not exactly sure if I've ever been there as a child. Of course I didn't really know much, whenever my mom would bring me to places she went to, as a little kid. I don't even remember where I saw the Light Rail Transit (LRT) for the first time. All I know is I was fascinated as it quickly went by.
I remember looking up while it was approaching and my eyes followed it until it was gone. Somehow it has remained, etched in my memory. Perhaps it was in Manila, perhaps not. However most of the stations are in that city so I'm kinda sure I saw it somewhere there.
The next time I stepped foot in Manila was when I was already ready for college. I did an online search of universities that offered the course I preferred. Apparently most of them were in Manila. I don't know why but I think most of the schools I looked at are in there. No I didn't want to go to UP Diliman because my parents were from that university. They met, fell in love and the rest is history. 😅
So that's why I wanted to go my own way, choose my own school. We went to three institutions in Manila and one or two in Quezon City. My mom accompanied me to all the universities I chose to look at and she asked them about the enrollment process and such.
When I stepped inside a certain university, I immediately knew, it was the one. 😆 Yes folks, the one can be a place too! You can just feel it in your bones, that sense of belongingness, the finality of it all and the sureness of everything. And so it was decided, I would be a Manila girl. 😁
Thank God for my late grandma for she sponsored my college education. Yay! I was also allowed to stay in an all female dorm. Ah my grandma was such a blessing, God bless her soul.
And so for three to four years I considered Manila my home. Yes I would travel to Quezon City (QC) to stay at my relatives' house during weekends but that was fine with me. Everybody else in the dorm went home too so it was normal.
♦ My First Impression of Manila
I don't really have any first impressions of this city. Such thoughts were not in my mind back then. I was only focused on one goal - to get enrolled in a university and eventually finish my college education. But of course I would still notice bits and pieces of Manila.
More than a decade ago, I noticed how it would get flooded when there was a typhoon or continuous rain. Oh my, me and my mom even experienced walking in thigh and knee high flood waters just to get to where we were staying at the time. What an experience! We walked for several kilometers because no jeepney or other vehicles could pass by España Boulevard.
I think we walked from Welcome, Rotonda to near Morayta Street in Manila. Checking on Google Maps, it shows we walked around 2 kms. Oh well... It felt like it was longer back then. 😆
And then in front of my beloved alma mater, the occasional flooding would happen too. Albeit not as worse as in España but still it's bothersome whenever the rainy season came around.
Even until 2017, it was still flooding in front of the university I used to go to. I went there to get a copy of my transcript and look, nothing changed. 😂 It's just almost ankle deep so no worries at all.
(I've yet to see if it has improved since Yorme Isko got elected in 2019. Well España still gets flooded so maybe it's still the same along Taft Avenue...)
Well of course don't think it's all bad or terrible in Manila just because of the floods. Not all areas get flooded. Plus it doesn't happen all the time especially when there's no typhoon or heavy rains. The rainwater subsides after several minutes. I remember we just had to wait until the water was almost gone before we would go home.
Truth be told, back then I rarely went around the city for leisure. As I said I was too focused on my studies to enjoy life. 😅 Sometimes I kinda regret not doing lakwatsa (travel) at all. I wasn't the traveling type then.
If you asked me about online games (MMORPG) though I would gladly join and play the games with you at any cozy computer shop. 😆 That was my lakwatsa as there is no shortage of those in Manila.
Yes even today, there are many computer hubs around Manila. Especially if you go to the university belt, ah there are more of those in that area. But of course because we are in the midst of the pandemic since last year I doubt if those are still bustling with the same activity as before.
Other than that, I believe I only have one major Manila travel experience to share from those days.
♦ The First Time I Really Went Around Manila
Well, after school I would sometimes go to the mall near our university to buy some school supplies. And then our dorm was about three blocks away, near the well-known public hospital, PGH.
From there I would ride a jeepney on Fridays, anytime after school, all the way to QC and back again on Sundays. Along the way I would see all there was to see. That was the extent of my daily travel in Manila. I never even thought of going to any tourist spots at all! 😂🤦♀️
So anyway we had a photography class in college so of course they gave us some assignments from time to time. One of those was we had to submit photos with various photograph styles (Rules of Composition). Me and some fellows from class went "around" Manila to take pictures of various things. The around means only a few kilometers away from our university though. 😆
We didn't even reach Luneta Park or the National Museums. Haha~ I don't remember ever taking pictures of the famed Rizal monument then.
Wait, I wonder where the old photos I took went. I think I'm gonna have to rummage in my baul (chest/trunk).
Just to set your expectations, the camera I used back then was a 2nd hand Nikon SLR camera like the image above. Meaning that's a manual camera and doesn't have any automatic or digital features at all. We couldn't afford to buy a DSLR or a brand new one so my uncle got me a preloved one. I had two lenses though, one prime and a telephoto lens. Haha. I loved using both.
Oh, There's a Rajah Sulayman Park
Let's see... Okay I checked on some photos I took back then. Too bad everything is in black and white. That was the theme of the photos we had to submit so no choice everything has no color. Hehe.
I think this was the first touristy enough spot that we saw when we walked towards Manila Bay from our school. We went around on a weekend so we had enough time to sometimes loiter and look at anything wherever we went.
Actually I didn't remember the name of this place at all until I checked Google Maps while writing this article. Since I only had the picture, I searched the map for which church is near our alma mater. 😅 When I found it guess what I finally saw? No wonder I could not find a Lapu-Lapu statue because it's actually Rajah Sulayman! 😂
Look at that. Welcome to Rajah Sulayman Park (a.k.a. Plaza Rajah Sulayman)! Haha. This has a fountain with the tribal chief statue as well. Yes that's Rajah Sulayman and not Lapu-Lapu. He's one of the chieftains of Manila back in the 16th century who fought bravely but lost against the Spaniards. 😥
Maybe I should go there again one of these days. Unfortunately there's already a towering photo bomber behind the church. If you check the map you will see how the view is already ruined. Ugh I really hate developers who don't care about heritage conservation and historical places. Ugh, even Luneta Park already got ruined. Pffft. 🤦♀️ (Maybe I will make an article about that...)
This park is near Manila Bay or fronting Roxas Boulevard. We took some pictures of this and the surrounding areas. I don't remember the rest aside from the pictures I have.
Hello Manila Bay
Since the bay area was just on the other side of the street, of course we walked there too. I was lucky to find some people to photograph.
Look at this one. It's part of the Manila Bay sidewalk also known as Baywalk.
Kinda emo right? Haha. To avoid showing his face the guy looked away. Oh I'm sorry about that... I wouldn't tell him to get out of the way of course. He was there first. 😅
And then curiously I saw some people near the walled part of the sidewalk. Hey they were doing something. Oh hey look!
Oh what a catch! Got lucky to be at the right place and time. Haha. I captured this truly triumphant moment. 💕 Ah such a momentous shot as I didn't know people fished there. Thought the water was too dirty but there we were...
After I took that photo I think we decided to go somewhere else. But wait there's more! Perhaps while waiting for a jeepney ride I took another photo of Roxas Boulevard.
What do we have here but a kalesa (horse drawn carriage)! Yes folks, we still have this in Manila. You can still see these sometimes, clip clopping along the streets.
The only other place I know that has this mode of transportation is the City of Vigan in Ilocos Sur province. That is also where one of the historical areas in the Philippines is located.
Anyway, I'll show you a more recent photo in the next article. Hehe.
Intramuros, the Walled City
From the park I believe we took a jeepney going to Intramuros. It was too far to walk so I doubt we would've done it. 😆 We were able to get inside and see the various old buildings too.
And of course we went inside Fort Santiago. This is a fortress built by the Spanish conquerors in the late 16th century. It is famous for having been the place where several Filipinos were jailed. Most notable of them all is Jose Rizal, our National Hero.
According to historical accounts, it doesn't end there. During and after the Spanish rule, the British, Americans and the Japanese invaders also used it as a military stronghold. Hundreds, maybe even thousands have gone inside its dungeons. Of course many of them were killed too. Ugh, tough luck Philippines huh? 💔
Anyway there was no tour at the time so we just went around the place on our own. I have a few photos from there but none of them of the truly historical ones, I think.
Here's a keyhole to one of the dungeons inside Fort Santiago. I have never gone back there since then so I am just basing this on what I put as photo caption when I submitted it. 😅
Oh my, why did I take a photo of a dungeon though when it's a scary old place. 😵
Then of course I also took another photograph just for the heck of it. This is a group of people going up to the higher part of the fort.
We also went up there to take more photos. From where we were we could see outside of the fortress. One of the things I saw is part of the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila. It is one of universities inside Intramuros.
We took a few more photos until we all got the shots we needed. I think we all went our separate ways after we said our goodbyes. Or perhaps we then went to Quiapo to have the films developed. I don't remember anymore. It is more likely we did the latter so we could have everything ready by Monday.
Ah yes I have forgotten all about that other famous Manila area. I was also able to go to Quiapo several times and saw the famed church. Didn't go inside or take a picture of it though.
The reason we went there was because F R Hidalgo street is just a few steps away from the church and the jeepney drop off point. Why did we have to go there? Well if you are not aware, it is where photographers go to get photo supplies and everything else related to photography. It is the go-to place of photographers, whether a newbie or a professional. 😄
Everyone goes there because it is more affordable or you can get discounts and such. It depends on the store you go to. At the time, we always went there to have our camera films developed. They probably still provide that service since it is a Mecca for photographers.
Oh how scandalous would it be if people couldn't have any films developed anymore. 😅 I still have a lot of negatives from all the photographs we took in college. If ever I decide to have some printed again I would definitely go to Hidalgo Street.
And I was also able to go to Recto, Binondo and Divisoria even before and during those days! Ah now my mind is suddenly being flooded of the places I've been to in this city. Perhaps I will add those in my next article. For now this is the end of my college memories of Manila.
In my next article I will share with you more recent photos of my trips there last July and this month.
So what do you think about Manila now? 😊 Have you ever been to the places I mentioned too?
XOXO,
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(Lead/header image by Art x Stephanie Rue)
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picture location is good