A jeepney probably the most distinctive sight in The Philippines
By virtue of being married to a Filipina and in Benedict's case having a Filipino mum, and carrying a copy of the registration of our marriage at the Philippine Embassy in Bangkok, both Benedict and I were granted permission to stay in the Philippines for 1 year on our entry. We are only going to be here for a few weeks but, for instance, if the political situation becomes more dangerous in Thailand it means we can stay here without any complications or need to go through the usual bureaucracy, with its attendant costs, to have tourist visas extended. To my mind The Philippines must be one of the few countries in the region that actually makes it easy for non-filipino spouses and children to accompany their filipino significant others. In Thailand, for instance, other than for a simple holiday type visit where a visa on arrival can be obtained free, visas are required for a longer stay and that has some sort of cost attached to it and thereafter depending on the type of visa paperwork and verification of means are required.
The Philippines are caught up in a presidential election as we arrived so the streets and media, in fact just about everything that can be, is covered with campaigning material. This may make the place look better and take the eye off the ubiquitous litter and detritus of life. It is sad: look at any waterway in Manila and it is invariably covered in rubbish.
The Philippines are caught up in a presidential election as we arrived so the streets and media, in fact just about everything that can be, is covered with campaigning material. This may make the place look better and take the eye off the ubiquitous litter and detritus of life. It is sad: look at any waterway in Manila and it is invariably covered in rubbish.
We headed away from the grime of Manila to Los Baños in Laguna on arrival early in the morning. It was a 90 minute drive south-east of Manila made easy by light traffic. A smooth relaxing taxi ride with a very pleasant driver got us swiftly to the TREES hostel on the campus at the University of the Philippines' campus at Los Baños. More about our stay here on botab.blogspot.com but yes, the interest in this particular bolt hole was birds. The campus houses the Mount Makeling Forest Reserve and birds or no, it was a very pleasant and agreeable place to settle into our holiday: green, lush, forested, relaxed and plenty of students and young people.
After two nights in Los Baños we headed back to Manila on Saturday 17th April for the fourth birthday party of Luke Kelly, son of Tony and Maria Kelly, of Greenford, Middlesex. Peach is a filipina and originates form the Manila area but like my wife and thousands of others she is part of the filipino diaspora. We also connected with Luna's sister Tonette. So Benedict met his Aunt Tonette or should I say Tita Tonette! Tonette is awaiting a work placement in Saudi Arabia and is a blessing as she will provide help with Benedict.
In Manila we stayed at the Fersal Inn in the Sta. Cruz district. This is part of a chain of budget hotels and we booked this through www.agoda.com. In this case you get what you pay for and I was very satisfied with what we got: most importantly it was safe; unfortunately that is a paramount issue for travellers in a city like Manila. Otherwise the room was small, lacking a view but it was clean and comfortable and everything worked. I am not sure that the immediate vicinity would be that safe by night but not much of Manila is and it is not a place where nocturnal strolls are generally recommended for canos or indeed flilpinos. The Fersal Inn had armed security guards 24 hours a day, a common feature of life in this country.
We had a very pleasant reunion with Peach and Luke. Sadly no Tony as he is grafting in London and standing as a candidate in the local elections coming up there. This was the first time we were able to show off Benedict to friends from London. Luke's birthday party was held in Storyland in SM San Lazarro and it was nice to meet up with Peach's family. I hadn't seen either Luke or Peach for over 18 months. All I can say is baby boy has become a little man.
Retail is big in the Philippines as in much of Asia. The mall was rammed with people and the sound of music blasting out everywhere.
After two nights in Los Baños we headed back to Manila on Saturday 17th April for the fourth birthday party of Luke Kelly, son of Tony and Maria Kelly, of Greenford, Middlesex. Peach is a filipina and originates form the Manila area but like my wife and thousands of others she is part of the filipino diaspora. We also connected with Luna's sister Tonette. So Benedict met his Aunt Tonette or should I say Tita Tonette! Tonette is awaiting a work placement in Saudi Arabia and is a blessing as she will provide help with Benedict.
In Manila we stayed at the Fersal Inn in the Sta. Cruz district. This is part of a chain of budget hotels and we booked this through www.agoda.com. In this case you get what you pay for and I was very satisfied with what we got: most importantly it was safe; unfortunately that is a paramount issue for travellers in a city like Manila. Otherwise the room was small, lacking a view but it was clean and comfortable and everything worked. I am not sure that the immediate vicinity would be that safe by night but not much of Manila is and it is not a place where nocturnal strolls are generally recommended for canos or indeed flilpinos. The Fersal Inn had armed security guards 24 hours a day, a common feature of life in this country.
I survive armed robbery on the mean streets!
We had a very pleasant reunion with Peach and Luke. Sadly no Tony as he is grafting in London and standing as a candidate in the local elections coming up there. This was the first time we were able to show off Benedict to friends from London. Luke's birthday party was held in Storyland in SM San Lazarro and it was nice to meet up with Peach's family. I hadn't seen either Luke or Peach for over 18 months. All I can say is baby boy has become a little man.
Retail is big in the Philippines as in much of Asia. The mall was rammed with people and the sound of music blasting out everywhere.
Street life, Evangelista St, Quiapo
Manila is an amazing place. I am not quite sure why. Who knows how it works but it is most assuredly a place apart. It really is piss poor and dirty, no not dirty, absolutely filthy and it appears as if nothing gets thrown out. I love the jeepneys which provide an ever present cheap, method of getting about. You pile in and pass your fare down via other passengers to the driver and the change comes back the same way. We had a fair number of trips on them: you ask them if they are going somewhere and they say yes regardless of whether they are because they want the 10 peso fare. Anyhow this makes for an interesting way of getting round the city and quite literally rubbing shoulders and bums with the locals.
A Typical Jeepney
On Sunday we took about 4 jeepneys to get to mass in the rather rarefied atmosphere of Manila Cathedral. Later we headed to the Quiapo district which operates as a huge market. Never seen anything like it, dear readers. Most of Evangelista Street is devoted to videoke and karaoke machines. Of course karaoke is a national obsession here and is a major cause of murder and discontent due to the noise nuisance. Yup they like it loud! Apparently "My Way" leads to more murders than anything else! In Quiapo there is a big church which appears to have standing room only and seems to operate a rolling mass schedule throughout the day: there are quite literally thousands of people in the church. Ah the server is rejecting my photo files so no more pics for now.
Our Lady Retails...
Evangelista Street, Quiapo, Manila
Luna, Tita Tonette and Benedict on a jeepney
Luna, Tita Tonette and Benedict on a jeepney
1 comment:
Wee Ben is getting big..
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