Different sides of Manila, the Philippines’ chaotic capital

The good

The city of Manila is a sensory overload. It's frantic and hyperactive, vivid and energetic, yet one description stands out above the rest when describing the Philippines' capital. The fantastic anarchy and delicious chaos, the chaotic charm, and organized chaos, are all mentioned by travel writers and bloggers. Tourists are even urged to revel in the enthralling pandemonium. Who'd have guessed that turmoil could be so much fun?

Binondo is the starting point for your sightseeing tour. The commercial and dining attraction is home to some of the most valuable real estate in the Philippines, as well as the world's oldest Chinatown. Intramuros, the hub of Manila during Spanish colonial times, is located across the Pasig River. The walled city, which was built in 1571, is best explored on a bicycle. One made of bamboo would be ideal. Gawad Kalinga, a community-based development organization dedicated to ending poverty, employs employees to make "bambikes."

Begin your two-wheeled Intramuros tour at the Philippines' oldest church, San Agustin, and then go to Manila Cathedral. Fire has destroyed the principal port of call for visiting popes, and typhoons and earthquakes have demolished it, only to be reborn again and again.

Fort Santiago served as a barracks and a prison, as well as a defense against a naval assault. In 1896, nationalist hero José Rizal was imprisoned in the citadel for two months before being marched to Bagumbayan Field, where he was shot by a firing squad. Rizal Park, which was renamed in his honor in 1967, is a tranquil park with lovely gardens, monuments, and fountains.

Not all prominent Filipinos are held in such high regard by their peers. The ruling Marcos family was forced to flee the country in 1986 and relocate to Hawaii in the United States. Imelda Marcos, the wife of President Ferdinand Marcos, is said to have left behind 3,000 pairs of shoes. Some estimates were higher (7,500 pairs), while others were conservative (1,060 pairs). Regardless of the exact number, 749 pairs of shoes once owned by the Philippines' first lady are on exhibit at the Marikina Shoe Museum, which is guarded by a portrait of the unofficial patron saint of footwear herself.

The expanding economy of the Pearl of the Orient has lifted people out of poverty and produced a growing middle class with money to burn in recent years. Manila has over 100 shopping malls, complete with gyms, medical clinics, and churches where shoppers can attend Mass before going shopping.

The Mall of Asia is the Philippines' largest shopping mall: in addition to a bowling alley, ice rink, IMAX theater, a 20,000-seat arena, the shrine to consumerism is well-positioned for visitors who want to watch the sunset over Manila Bay. Arrive an hour or two early and visit the Desert Museum, where a tour of eight rooms themed around confectionery costs 699 pesos (US$13), minus future dental charges. Before photographing the sunset, remember to blow the icing sugar off your camera lens.

The bad

If you're only in town for a day or two, the capital's bustle may be "charming" or "delightful," but it's draining, unpleasant, and frustrating for inhabitants. Similarly, the Department of Tourism statement "It's more fun in the Philippines" may be true if you're cooling down in a turquoise waterfall on Palawan or playing volleyball on a pristine beach in Pagudpud, but ask a commuter in Manila. No, don’t.

According to Waze research, Manila has the worst traffic in the world, which is exacerbated by a particularly Philippine approach to the Uber and Grab platforms, which just adds to the congestion.

Rather than regular people utilizing their automobiles as taxis, affluent business people purchase fleets of vehicles and hire their own drivers. Every month, an estimated 25,000 new cars enter the country's highways, with many of them ending up on Manila's already congested streets. Metro Manila, according to a top counsel at the American Chamber of Commerce, is at risk of becoming uninhabitable in four years if road and other infrastructure are not renovated soon. The issue is that he stated it in January of 2016.

Manila's inefficient and fractured public transportation system is approaching a breaking point. Commuters may have to wait up to two hours for a train during rush hour (and you thought Admiralty MTR station was busy). Accidents on the road or flash floods paralyze the city; a proposed urban cable car system can't come soon enough.

Despite improved living standards for some, the gap between affluent and poor appears to be wider in Manila than in other developing countries, possibly due to its density as one of the world's most densely inhabited cities. Parts of the Tondo district are as poor as any African shantytown, with many of the district's 80,000 residents lacking access to sanitation, health care, education, and jobs. Bonifacio Global City, on the other hand, might easily be mistaken for a Scandinavian city.

Sunset over Manila Bay is a must-see, but don't get too close. The country's most polluted stretch of water, the large natural harbor, is a toxic stew of industrial effluent, home sewage, oil spills, and farm chemical run-off. It's doubtful if the trash dump, which serves 13 million Filipinos, can be adequately cleaned up — talk of a Boracay-style rehabilitation program sounds outrageously optimistic. Swimming in Manila Bay, according to a former health secretary, is like "drinking other people's urine and ingesting other people's feces." While you're visiting the Dessert Museum, try not to worry about it.

It's not like things are a lot better when you're not in the water. Manila was ranked 55th out of 60 cities in the Economist Intelligence Unit's Safe Cities Index last year, based on four variables. Be cautious who you give your credit card to because the city scored poor grades for health security and digital security (hacking and cybercrime). It also did poorly in the infrastructure security category, which is unsurprising given that Manila has the world's highest natural catastrophe fatality rate.

The ugly

Personal security is the fourth and final Safe Cities criteria. Although Filipinos are known for their friendliness and hospitality, hostage situations, shootouts, and police standoffs occur regularly enough to keep tourists on their toes. Only in the Philippines can you attend Mass in a mall before honing your shooting skills at a basement shooting range.