Manila (1 of 6)
Manila, a massive, clamorous conurbation that covers 600+ square kilometres and is home to almost 10 million people. At first sight Manila is intimidating: noisy, unkempt and with appalling traffic. There are few open spaces and only a handful of remarkable buildings. Manila has no proper city centre. To some Manilenos, the central business district of Makati is the city centre, to others it might be Quezon City or the Roxas Boulevard/Manila Bay area.
Manila prides itself on the quality of its nightlife and the ability of its residents to kick up a good time. For many visitors, this will be their enduring memory of the place: funky bars and nightclubs in areas such as Malate and Makati.
When Manila was in its heyday, Manila Bay must have been a sight to behold, with its dreamy sunsets and sweeping panorama across the South China Sea. It's still fun to watch sunsets from the harbour wall, but Manila Bay is really trading on its romantic past, the golden era before the war when this was one of the finest promenades in the world.
Comments
Domingo Panaligan | July 15th
Love Rizal Park... I never been to the Philippines for 12 years, and I miss this place so much.
