Manila ??

[new2sg1]

Hi,

anyone here visited Manila and Borocay ??
Planning to visit these places in the next 2 weeks - and needed ideas on places to visit, shopping ?? food ? anything interesting ?
n good hotels ??

thanks

[Lestat]

Hi,

anyone here visited Manila and Borocay ??
Planning to visit these places in the next 2 weeks - and needed ideas on places to visit, shopping ?? food ? anything interesting ?
n good hotels ??

thanks

Manila? One of the most polluted and inconvenient cities in the world I must say. But the best food and shopping cos everything is so cheap.

Try going to the Divisoria area where there's lots of things to buy and at good prices. Problem is, you will almost certainly fall ill the following day cos the air is extremely polluted.

Get ready to be stucked in traffic jams for hours even during non-peak hours. Also, transportation don't come easy. Taxi drivers will go to your destination only if they feel that it's worth it, otherwise just offer them more money. Besides, the fares are so cheap cheap cheap.

Another good thing, stay in good expensive hotels, it's worth it.

Another bad thing, the customs officers are cranky and proud bunch of idiots. Just to relate one of many bad experience: Once I went by Clark Airbase. There were no signs whatsoever to guide you at the counters where you have your passports checked. So, I queued up in a line at counter 1 after an officer made an announcement in Tagalog to queue up at counter 1. I didn't understand Tagalog so I just assumed that I had to queue there since everyone went into the queue. When it was my turn to have my passport checked, the officer simply waved his hand in front of my face and said, "FILIPINOS ONLY", meaning the counter was for Filipino passport holders only. He just looked away and didn't even bother to inform me that I should proceed to counter 3.

Filipino men are very proud.

Most people are very stressed up in Manila. Don' think of them as friendly natives. This is too idealistic.

Positive side, the women are very very cute and pretty.

[shuriken]

Forget Manila. Go to Cebu. the place is more tourist-friendly.
it kind of reminds me of Singapore in a way that every attraction
is only a few minutes away but without the humid weather.
Beaches and Diving spots are breath-taking and it's not that far away from Boracay.
Shopping is as good as it is in Manila but without the traffic jams and pollution.
Popular malls in cebu are Ayala and SM city; both malls have taxi stands already lined up with cabs so it's hassle free.

Speaking Tagalog isn't an issue because only folks from Manila speak it
and English Literacy is suprisingly high in Cebu (call centers are sprouting up everywhere.)

Women in Cebu are not only prettier but smarter too.
(look out for those spanish chinese hybrids.)

[eddie_b]

Hi,

anyone here visited Manila and Borocay ??
Planning to visit these places in the next 2 weeks - and needed ideas on places to visit, shopping ?? food ? anything interesting ?
n good hotels ??

thanks

Manila? One of the most polluted and inconvenient cities in the world I must say. But the best food and shopping cos everything is so cheap.

Try going to the Divisoria area where there's lots of things to buy and at good prices. Problem is, you will almost certainly fall ill the following day cos the air is extremely polluted.

Get ready to be stucked in traffic jams for hours even during non-peak hours. Also, transportation don't come easy. Taxi drivers will go to your destination only if they feel that it's worth it, otherwise just offer them more money. Besides, the fares are so cheap cheap cheap.

Another good thing, stay in good expensive hotels, it's worth it.

Another bad thing, the customs officers are cranky and proud bunch of idiots. Just to relate one of many bad experience: Once I went by Clark Airbase. There were no signs whatsoever to guide you at the counters where you have your passports checked. So, I queued up in a line at counter 1 after an officer made an announcement in Tagalog to queue up at counter 1. I didn't understand Tagalog so I just assumed that I had to queue there since everyone went into the queue. When it was my turn to have my passport checked, the officer simply waved his hand in front of my face and said, "FILIPINOS ONLY", meaning the counter was for Filipino passport holders only. He just looked away and didn't even bother to inform me that I should proceed to counter 3.

Filipino men are very proud.

Most people are very stressed up in Manila. Don' think of them as friendly natives. This is too idealistic.

Positive side, the women are very very cute and pretty.

Forget Manila. Go to Cebu. the place is more tourist-friendly.
it kind of reminds me of Singapore in a way that every attraction
is only a few minutes away but without the humid weather.
Beaches and Diving spots are breath-taking and it's not that far away from Boracay.
Shopping is as good as it is in Manila but without the traffic jams and pollution.
Popular malls in cebu are Ayala and SM city; both malls have taxi stands already lined up with cabs so it's hassle free.

Speaking Tagalog isn't an issue because only folks from Manila speak it
and English Literacy is suprisingly high in Cebu (call centers are sprouting up everywhere.)

Women in Cebu are not only prettier but smarter too.
(look out for those spanish chinese hybrids.)

===========================

ok. just to clarify some myths and facts about manila base on the above statements:

1. majority of the whole country can speak both tagalog (including those in cebu island) and english. so there is no worries in communicating with the people. there is no need to be stressed in learning tagalog since almost everyone can speak and understand english. 2/3rds of the population in the northern island can speak in tagalog, english and their local dialect (ilokano, bikolano and kapampangan being the top of the list) while the 1/3rd can speak tagalog and english.

2. air quality in manila is waaay below standard. so dont stay long unless you have the lungs that can tolerate the pollution.

3. manila has a wide array of food choices. from to international, you can find it here. as to cheap or expensive, that is relevant from where you would came from. some people told me that it is cheap, some people told me it is expensive. there are some hole-in-the-wall type of eateries that are good and really cheap and you cant find those in any travel guide book. you may be able to find them in blogs.

3.DIVISORIA, not a good tourist spot unless you have a personal local friend to guide you and give you the tips. otherwise, you're better just settle for virra mall. i would never recommend divisoria as a bargain center to tourist.

4. being stuck in traffic are time killers.

5. Transportation are cheap, that is why taxi cab would choose their passengers or avoid a certain area altogether. their tax-free income can only cover their simple day-to-day expenses with little or no loose change to spare. on a good day, the average income of a cabbie is Php2,000 less taxi rental of Php1,500 = Php500 income. average daily expense is approx Php600. hope you get the idea.

6. you can report to the transportation office (or maybe to the hotel office) any taxi cab that would charge you extra, or those that would reject you. (give them the name on the side of the cab, plate/taxi number. extra charge (off the meter charges or no metering) and passenger rejection are illegal and can be brought up to proper authorities.

7. stay in good expensive hotels, it's worth it. -- this is soooo true. unless you have a local friend who can open up their homes for you, that would be super cheap.

8. the customs officers are cranky and proud bunch of idiots - also true, but not all of them. it just happens that the idiots are being place at the wrong shifts at the wrong time at the wrong day, practically 24/7.

9. Filipino men are very proud. --- hmmm depends on how you ask them and where they came from. it they came from a traffic jam, they tend to be cranky, proud, arrogant, irritable and so on and so forth. dont ask the guys, ask the ladies, they are more open minded to tourist inquiries.

10. "Most people are very stressed up in Manila. Don' think of them as friendly natives. This is too idealistic." if you happen to live in a place where you can be caught in a cross fire by political unrest, economic turmoil and/or natural disaster on an almost day to day basis with below minimum wage and an ever increasing cost of living, who wouldnt be stressed up?!?!?!

11. "Forget Manila. Go to Cebu. the place is more tourist-friendly." i would agree on the "forget manila" part. i would rather that you go to the provinces. these are more tourist friendly.

12. yes, women are prettier, nicer and sweet in the philippines.



if you happen to have some filipino friends, do ask them to be your host or guide in manila. they can recommend you some good places to go other than the usual.

[Asian_Geekette]

Hi,

anyone here visited Manila and Borocay ??
Planning to visit these places in the next 2 weeks - and needed ideas on places to visit, shopping ?? food ? anything interesting ?
n good hotels ??

thanks

Hi!

I'm from Metro Manila. Despite what was written above about Manila, there are some interesting places here.

If you're interested in history, go and visit Intramuros (the Walled City) or the Corregidor Island (you need to be in Manila to get to this island).

For shopping, there's the Mall of Asia (the biggest shopping mall here). There are lots of shopping malls in Ortigas City and Makati City. For the Ortigas Area, there's SM Megamall and Robinson Galleria. For Makati, there's SM Makati, Glorietta, Greenbelt and Landmark.

If you're a culture vulture, there's the CCP (Cultural Center of the Philippines) for plays, concerts, etc. The University of the Philippines (Diliman campus) also has theatrical productions. There's the Metropolitan Museum in Manila (art stuff).

Food here is an interesting mix of Mediterranean (the Philippines was once a Spanish colony for more than 300 years!) and South East Asian influence. Look for Gerry's Grill, Dencio's and Via Mare. Check out the featured Filipino restaurants from these links:
http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/94d4c/1540b4/2/
http://dessertcomesfirst.blogspot.com/2 ... il-05.html

Yes, pollution is a problem here. But people with asthma here do survive. Just don't come on the first day of January since there'd lots of smog from the firecrackers used during the 31st of December. Oh wait! You'd be here in the next few weeks... then it's ok. You'll survive.

About Divisoria, it's crowded and you better make sure you go with a local friend to help you with the haggling.

I suggest you fly PAL so you would land in NAIA (Ninoy Aquino International Airport) Terminal 2. Yeah, there's a monopoly here. It's only PAL which gets to use the new terminal. Immigration lanes are clearly marked in this terminal. If you want to fly to Boracay, you should take advantage of the PALakbayan tours of PAL. Though I'm not sure if foreigners get the discounts.

For hotels, it depends on where you'd be flying to.

Next week, I'm flying off to Cebu for work. But it's also the height of the Sinulog Festival. Most hotels are fully booked now and have raised their rates. But if you fly 2 weeks from now, the rates would have gone down to their usual level.

About being stressed out... yes, it can be stressful for me to commute for at least 1.5 hours to get to work. BUT if someone is asking me nicely for directions, I take the time to help them out. It's really about the way you ask your questions. When I first got to Singapore and talked to Singaporeans I found that they tend to speak too quickly. Once you're here in the Philippines, just relax and slow down when you speak English. The Filipino or Filipina you're talking to may not be too accustomed to fast speakers.

Let me know if you have other questions. Feel free to PM me.

Cheers!

[juanlxndr]

hello I am a Filipino if you have some question regrding my country i would be happy to reply for you

[adaone]

Hi all,

Saw ur post on Boracay. I am planning to go in Nov 09 1st week.
But i have no idea how to go abt booking flights and all.
Am afraid what if i miss the transport (boat and bus transfer to accomodation for Caltian).
Can anyone give me feedbacks and ideas??
Or any agency that does the arrangements? (at not too high price)

email me at adaontheb@hotmail.com

[jiovan]

"Most people are very stressed up in Manila. Don' think of them as friendly natives. This is too idealistic."

Depends on who you were talking in Manila. You might have met the unfriendly ones or those who are really clueless in dealing with foreigners. But the matter of fact is, most of Filipinos tend to become friendly (or awkwardly friendly) to "western" or white foreigners, not just any foreigners. And let me tell you that in Manila, there are different classes of people there: A, B, C, D and E from what I still know. A are the elite ones, educated, rich and classy. B are mostly the middle class (I tend to be classify myself here). Not rich, but educated, and like living in suburbs back in our country. C-E are the "masa" or most live to nearing poverty to total poverty. Frankly, most are still uneducated because of lack of means to go to school.

You might have met the classes C-E, I assume. And I just assume this is where you formed your conclusion as not friendly.

But anyways, just to clarify, you need to move out of Manila (and fast, as I always tell my non-Filipino colleagues here in the office) and enjoy the company of other people in the Philippines before generalizations can be made. With that advice, most of my officemates enjoyed their stay in the Philippines and fell in love with the country.

[ecureilx]

But anyways, just to clarify, you need to move out of Manila (and fast, as I always tell my non-Filipino colleagues here in the office) and enjoy the company of other people in the Philippines before generalizations can be made. With that advice, most of my officemates enjoyed their stay in the Philippines and fell in love with the country.

no sir, it depends upon where in Manila you are, and who your friends are, that makes the big difference between relaxing holiday or a stressful holiday ..

Then again I have been driven mad in places far from Manila too .. then how ?

yah, you are generalising .. as you are advocating otherwise ..

[the lynx]

"Most people are very stressed up in Manila. Don' think of them as friendly natives. This is too idealistic."

Depends on who you were talking in Manila. You might have met the unfriendly ones or those who are really clueless in dealing with foreigners. But the matter of fact is, most of Filipinos tend to become friendly (or awkwardly friendly) to "western" or white foreigners, not just any foreigners. And let me tell you that in Manila, there are different classes of people there: A, B, C, D and E from what I still know. A are the elite ones, educated, rich and classy. B are mostly the middle class (I tend to be classify myself here). Not rich, but educated, and like living in suburbs back in our country. C-E are the "masa" or most live to nearing poverty to total poverty. Frankly, most are still uneducated because of lack of means to go to school.

You might have met the classes C-E, I assume. And I just assume this is where you formed your conclusion as not friendly.

But anyways, just to clarify, you need to move out of Manila (and fast, as I always tell my non-Filipino colleagues here in the office) and enjoy the company of other people in the Philippines before generalizations can be made. With that advice, most of my officemates enjoyed their stay in the Philippines and fell in love with the country.

Wow did you forget to check the time stamp? It is an old thread from 2009!

[jiovan]

Wow did you forget to check the time stamp? It is an old thread from 2009!

Uhh, does it matter if this is an old thread if I need to give my two cents and some friendly advice?

Anyways...

@ecureilx: Yes, it's true also that your stay in Manila will become memorable, less stressful and more relaxing depending on where and which part you are staying in Manila (or Metro Manila). That includes to whom you are talking and staying with.

I'm also basing from the reactions of my non-Filipino friends and some acquaintances here in SG who went to Manila. Most did not like their stay there but enjoyed more outside of Manila like the islands and different provinces. But as I always tell them, always be careful and alert when you are in an unfamiliar place.

Yah, we are all prone to generalizing, my bad. Well, to each his own, just enjoy your stay and keep good company in the Philippines.

[the lynx]

Wow did you forget to check the time stamp? It is an old thread from 2009!

Uhh, does it matter if this is an old thread if I need to give my two cents and some friendly advice?

Chill bro, there's no need to roll your eyes at my friendly chide (see the triple tongue emoticons?)

Well this thread is still OK because the context in discussion may still be relevant to the current time. Sometimes we get people who dig up old threads that discussed things that are no longer applicable to the current time (for example PR requirements, pass laws etc) and boy, how tightly they hold onto them 'because it says so here'.

Nevertheless I'll be flying to Manila and Boracay this end of the month for work. Looking forward to experience/observe the much-talked-about buzz in Manila.

[jiovan]

Wow did you forget to check the time stamp? It is an old thread from 2009!

Uhh, does it matter if this is an old thread if I need to give my two cents and some friendly advice?

Chill bro, there's no need to roll your eyes at my friendly chide (see the triple tongue emoticons?)

Well this thread is still OK because the context in discussion may still be relevant to the current time. Sometimes we get people who dig up old threads that discussed things that are no longer applicable to the current time (for example PR requirements, pass laws etc) and boy, how tightly they hold onto them 'because it says so here'.

Nevertheless I'll be flying to Manila and Boracay this end of the month for work. Looking forward to experience/observe the much-talked-about buzz in Manila.

It's ok bro. At first it seems like an insult, but anyways, let's forget about it. Yup I'm chillin now. Still new to the forums but I've been reading about it for the past two years.

I know what you mean about people still asking about PR requirements and stuffs like that in other forums. It can be grating indeed.

I just got envious when you mentioned you are going to Boracay. I've never been there, but always wanted to experience the beach and party life there that every visitor has been telling us about. Wish I could visit that place someday, hopefully next year or two, but work plans keep piling up in the office, sigh.

Anyway, I'll have my chance so to visit Cebu next year in January and join the street party and parade there.

Cheers. Enjoy your stay there in Manila + Boracay.

[ecureilx]

Nevertheless I'll be flying to Manila and Boracay this end of the month for work. Looking forward to experience/observe the much-talked-about buzz in Manila.

not a good time to go to Philippines .. says me

Come Christmas, everybody is asking for donations .. and Christmas collections - legit and otherwise

Well, if you gonna hit Bora, try to go prepared, with a big umbrella - this is rainy season .. so unless you are planning to dive, you are good to go ..

[the lynx]

Nevertheless I'll be flying to Manila and Boracay this end of the month for work. Looking forward to experience/observe the much-talked-about buzz in Manila.

not a good time to go to Philippines .. says me

Come Christmas, everybody is asking for donations .. and Christmas collections - legit and otherwise

Well, if you gonna hit Bora, try to go prepared, with a big umbrella - this is rainy season .. so unless you are planning to dive, you are good to go ..

Are you talking about beggars and donation boxes? I don't understand your post, sorry.

Well, if you ain't getting wet in Boracay, you ain't in Boracay indeed.