The Wet Season in the Philippines Lived up to its Billing! Part 2
The weather was pretty poor but I did manage to trek out to Makati, which is considered to be the upscale part of town. Makati is like stepping into the world of the rich and famous compared to Manila. Indeed, Janette and I wondered through the Glorietta shopping district and it is certainly upscale. For whatever reasons my pictures did not come out at Makati.
We went to Intramuros on Thursday and toured the walled city. "Intramuros is
The oldest part of Manila is the medieval Spanish walled enclave of Intramuros on the southern bank of the Pasig River, packed with historic buildings and churches, many of which are being or have been restored. The reconstruction of Intramuros has allowed for the inclusion of several parks and performing venues, art galleries, souvenir shops and restaurants, so that the area has become an attractive, entertaining and interesting tourist Mecca. Fort Santiago, for example, was where political prisoners through the ages, from Spanish to Japanese occupation, were held, tortured and sometimes executed. Today it is a lush park full of flowering trees and homing pigeons where visitors can take a ride along the promenade on a horse-drawn carriage. Then, in the Barrio San Luis along Juan Luna Street there are five colonial residences that have been beautifully restored"
While there, some sort of filming was going on. Anyway, I managed to get a picture with Jenylyn Mercado who was the Philippines Idol (a spinoff of American Idol) and she is now a big movie actress in the Philippines.
http://www.igma.tv/celeb.php?celebid=10
Finally the weather improved on Friday and we were able to head up to the Taal Volcano in Tagaytay. Tagaytay is 2 hours by bus south of Manila and of course a 20 minute boat ride to the volcano island. Add another 30 minutes or so riding a horseback up the hill and it was quite an adventure. This was the first time I had been on a horse in a LONG time. You pay less than 10 bucks for the horse and guide. Spend the money if you go -- the trail is narrow and if you walk you'll be steping in horse droppings. Of course the rain began to dump once we got to the top, naturally. Still I managed some nice photos of the crater lake and I got a shot of Janette and myself.
Me at the top of the Taal Volcano
Janette at the top of the Taal Volcano
Other pictures of Manila and Tagaytay. The Jeepneys are really neat. They are old jeeps turned into mini buses and the drivers deck them out with all sorts of graffiti like imagery (Trish would be amazed). You can go from one side of town to the other for about 25 cents. Don't expect comfort however.
http://www.tropicalisland.de/travel_philippines.html
We went to Intramuros on Thursday and toured the walled city. "Intramuros is
The oldest part of Manila is the medieval Spanish walled enclave of Intramuros on the southern bank of the Pasig River, packed with historic buildings and churches, many of which are being or have been restored. The reconstruction of Intramuros has allowed for the inclusion of several parks and performing venues, art galleries, souvenir shops and restaurants, so that the area has become an attractive, entertaining and interesting tourist Mecca. Fort Santiago, for example, was where political prisoners through the ages, from Spanish to Japanese occupation, were held, tortured and sometimes executed. Today it is a lush park full of flowering trees and homing pigeons where visitors can take a ride along the promenade on a horse-drawn carriage. Then, in the Barrio San Luis along Juan Luna Street there are five colonial residences that have been beautifully restored"
While there, some sort of filming was going on. Anyway, I managed to get a picture with Jenylyn Mercado who was the Philippines Idol (a spinoff of American Idol) and she is now a big movie actress in the Philippines.
http://www.igma.tv/celeb.php?celebid=10
Finally the weather improved on Friday and we were able to head up to the Taal Volcano in Tagaytay. Tagaytay is 2 hours by bus south of Manila and of course a 20 minute boat ride to the volcano island. Add another 30 minutes or so riding a horseback up the hill and it was quite an adventure. This was the first time I had been on a horse in a LONG time. You pay less than 10 bucks for the horse and guide. Spend the money if you go -- the trail is narrow and if you walk you'll be steping in horse droppings. Of course the rain began to dump once we got to the top, naturally. Still I managed some nice photos of the crater lake and I got a shot of Janette and myself.
Me at the top of the Taal Volcano
Janette at the top of the Taal Volcano
Other pictures of Manila and Tagaytay. The Jeepneys are really neat. They are old jeeps turned into mini buses and the drivers deck them out with all sorts of graffiti like imagery (Trish would be amazed). You can go from one side of town to the other for about 25 cents. Don't expect comfort however.
http://www.tropicalisland.de/travel_philippines.html
posted by Richard Austen | 9:06 p.m.
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