entrance to the Santiago fort in the colonial district of Intramuros

Unlike other Asian cities, people in Manila are unscrupulous about wearing jeans and T-shirts, prefer to use cutlery instead of traditional rice rods, and are able to speak fluent English as well as read and write it.

Manila is famous for being a city where the ancient meets the modern. If you're passionate about art, you'll definitely visit the old colonial district of Intramuros where, despite the destruction of World War II, churches and buildings built by the Spaniards still survive in the shadow of modern glazing skyscrapers in steel and glass and huge shopping centers.

When to go

The best time to visit Manila goes from November to May to coincide with the dry season. The rainy season (from June to October) is advised against the highest probability of falling into a typhoon (bagyo). Every year, between 5 and 7 typhoons hit the city. Because of the heavy rains that accompany them, the neighborhoods on the banks of the Pasig River regularly go underwater while the sea areas are subject to violent storm surges.

Like other Asian capitals, Manila suffers from high air pollution caused mainly by the waste from burnt engines but also by the local habit of burning large quantities of waste that otherwise cannot be disposed of. Pollution causes the death of about 4,000 people a year. By far the most polluted district in Manila is that of Ermita, which passes as a tourist zone.

History

For more than three centuries, Manila was subject to the Kingdom of Spain as witnesses to military and religious architectures concentrated in the district of Intramuros.

Before the arrival in 1571 of the conqueror Miguel Lopez de Legazpi, there was a settlement on the banks of the Pasig River of Malaysian fishermen and traders who practiced Islamism. This settlement was called "Maynilad", referring to a mangrove, the nilad, which was alligating and alligating on the coasts of Luzon, sometimes forming real forests.

The Spaniards made Manila an important stop against the Portuguese and Dutch duopoly of the lucrative spice trade. The port of Manila had at the same time a significant strategic position on the world's around-the-globe shipping routes, roughly equal to the Spanish coast and the instigation of Panama. "Maynilad" was also very close to China's southern coast, to those of Malaysia and Borneo.

The Alysieans, who are currently at regular intervals and are constantly in intensity, known to Christopher Columbus, for their trips to the Indies were also exploited by Magellan in his first attempt to circumnavigate the globe. The Portuguese explorer serving the Spanish crown, landed on the nearby island of Homonhonnel and was killed by the indigenous people in the battle of Mactán in 1521, as his attendant, the noble Venetian Antonio Pigafetta.

Miguel Lopez de Legazpi (1510 - 1572), the conqueror who was also the first governor of the Philippines, settled in Cebú in 1565 and six years later moved the capital to Manila and died the following year. He is buried in the Church of San Agustín in Intramuros.

The port of Manila fell as a result of Spain's loss of almost all of its colonies in Latin America, and even more so because of the discovery of steam and the opening of the Suez canal, which made the reverse route tested by Magellan obsolete. It was at this time that Singapore overtook the port of Manila in maritime trade with Europe.

Spain's kingdom was able to retain its overseas possession until 1898, when it was finally torn away from the US, after a brief conflict in history's chronicles like the Spanish-American War.

During World War II, the Philippines was a bulwark in Australia's defense of the aggressiveness of Japanese imperialism, and Manila found herself on the frontline. The Japanese managed to occupy the city in 1943 and keep it until February 5, 1945, when US General Douglas MacArthur took it back after a month-long battle that led to the destruction of much of the city, including the colonial district of Intramuros.

Languages spoken

Filipino, a variant of Tagalog with which they share 100 percent of the grammar rules and 50 percent of the vocabulary, is the language in which the people of Manila communicate with each other. It's also the language of local TV, local movies and some of the press.

English is however extremely widespread and is also the official language of government, business and education. Lessons in university institutions and several private lower-level schools are provided in English.

The tourists who have just arrived will have no difficulty in getting to know the rumors about Vip and local government officials thanks to the presence of a large number of English - language publications.

Manila's third language is the Chinese you'll hear if you have the courage to get into the alleys of Chinatown.

The Castilian has practically disappeared and survives on virtually detectable language loans in the Philippines. At least 10% of Filipino vocabularies have Spanish origins.

Manila is divided into sixteen districts each of which was an independent center before being "devoured" by the urban expansion of the capital, with the exception of the port. Below are the full sections but all tourist interest districts are located south of the Pasig River. Sick and hermita in particular still have some reputation among foreign visitors for their hotels, but both were eclipsed by the proximity of Makati, a much more modern and attractive conurbation city in the capital.

The Pasig River marks a kind of dividing wall between the districts of the south and the poor districts of the north. The latter are of limited interest, have entire neighborhoods made of thurghurs and are subject to regular flooding during the rainy season.

      Intramuros — Intramuros was the fortified city erected at the dawn of the Spanish colonial period. It was razed by carpet bombings but still has churches and buildings of the time.

      Port Area — The huge area of the Manila port includes not only commercial piers but also cruise ships and ferries to the other islands of the archipelago.

      Ermita — formerly known as the red light district of the Philippine capital, Ermita is now a highly touristic area thanks to a variety of attractions like Rizal Park, Manila Ocean Park, National Museum, and a historic hotel, Manila Hotel, which opened in 1909.

      Sick — Another tourist attraction district, she's famous for her many, very good hotels, both high-price and modest. Just on the border with Pasay district, on a piece of land ripped off the sea, is the Cultural Center of the Philippines Complex that resembles Beijing Tiananmen Square, Moscow's Red Square and Singapore's Navy.

      Binondo — Extended to the north bank of the Pasig River, Binondo is the oldest Chinatown in the world, famous for its Cantonese catering restaurants.

      San Nicolas — Commercial district west of Binondo, San Nicolas is renowned for its traditional markets where it has a large number of people, generally not interested in modern shopping centers in Malate.

      Santa Cruz — Another district in the north of Santa Cruz was very popular throughout the entire period of American domination. The Escolta Street represented what is for New York City the Fifth Street and Wall Street together. The Japanese couldn't destroy the neighborhood because they were forced to abandon it in haste, so many buildings came to us in their original form. But Santa Cruz is a pretty dilapidated area right now.

      Tondo — Tondo is a densely populated popular district and does not welcome tourists.

      Quiapo — In American colonial times, the district was the center of Manila and its central square, the Plaza Miranda, was what for London is Trafalgar Square. Today, Quiapo is known for its vegans and novelists, for its flower shops and electronic shops, for the herbisteries and for others who sell loving potions.

      Sampaloc — Known for being home to many university institutes.

      San Miguel — Headquarters of numerous universities and government buildings such as the Malacañan Palace, the district draws its name from San Miguel, Fábricas de Cervezas, the Spanish brewery based in Barcelona, which opened its first brewery on the territory of this district of Manila.

      Santa Mesa — predominantly residential area, Santa Mesa is the headquarters of the Polytechnic Institute of the Philippines. The district is also known for its motel and hotel by hour.

      Pandacan

      Paco — A working-class district that was born like a Little Tokyo since the Spanish colonial era.

      Santa Ana — The ancient Sapa, capital of an indigenous kingdom, the kingdom of Namayan, transformed with the arrival of the Americans into a high-ocated neighborhood comparable to the London neighborhood of Chelsea, but irretrievably deceased in the post-war period and turned into a working-class neighborhood.

      San Andres — also known as San Andres Bukid, or Camps di Sant’Andrea, is a market area which stands out in the same way as the very colorful fruit and vegetable beds.

Manila International Airport

View of North Harbor in Manila

By plane

• 1 Manila-Ninoy Aquino International Airport (IATA: MNL). Located in Pasay, about 7 km south of Manila, the airport has four terminals connected by a free shuttle bus.

Terminal 1 is used for international flights while Terminal 2 is reserved for national airlines Philippines Airlines. Terminal 3 is used for international flights operated by AirAsia, All Nippon Airways, Cathay Pacific, Delta Airlines, Emirates, KLM and Singapore Airlines. Three is the latest and largest of the four terminals in which the airport is composed. Terminal four is reserved for domestic flights operated by Air Asia, Seair and Skyjet.

Customs operations are quick.

Yellow taxis with a meter are allowed inside the airport. But taximeters are often tampered with to extort higher rates.

White taxis are not officially recognized by the port authorities but their drivers can be more honest and their rates much lower. You won't find them at the terminal exit, just at the departure level.

The buses are good for those who have little baggage. Several car lines provide access to Manila and satellite cities. The best of these is considered UBE Express, which makes stops near the best - known hotels not only in Manila but also in Makati, Pasay and Parañaque.

At present (2017) the airport does not have a railway station but you could still take a bus to the nearby Baclaran metro station on line 1 or another bus to Nichols railway station.      

By ship

Many passenger ships from the various islands of the archipelago arrive at the piers of South Harbor. Currently (2017) there are no ferries or passenger ships for neighboring countries (China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, but only cargo vessels. The company "Archipelago Philippine Ferries Corporation" (FastCat) operates several domestic routes with its fleet of ferries and catamarans and is looking to expand its routes in Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia in the near future.

By bus

Getting to Manila by bus from other centers in the country is easy, but getting out by the same means is a bit of a problem. That's because there's not a single suburban bus station. Typically, the cars have their end lines in various locations in Manila, but the more numerous are on "EDSA Road" (acronym for "Epiphanio de los Santos Avenue"), the highway ring that surrounds Manila. More precisely, they are following each other on the EDSA Road stretch between Cubao and Kamuning metro stations.

Other terminals are located at Pasay at the end of the same avenue between the Taft Avenue and EDSA subway stations.

2 Earnshaw Street in Sampaloc District

3 Blumentritt corner Dapitan Always in Sampaloc district

In addition to the end lines, you'll also need to know the bus routes and, of course, the destinations you need. Below you will find a list limited to well - established cars:

• Victory Liner to Baguio

• Philtranco with Legazpi destination

• ALPS The Bus, Inc. - They connect Manila with Batangas, an alternative port where you can board the islands and bathing centers of the Visayas archipelago.

• GV Florida Transport - The Florida GV buses stop at the end of Sampaloc Earnshaw Street and are bound for Banaue.

Manila metro map

Jeepney in the streets of Intramuros

Public transport

Manila has a subway system called MLRTS (Manila Light Rail Transit System) run by the state-owned Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA). The term light rail (Light Rail) is improper because it is a system of trains that are largely underground and no longer surface trams as they were originally. The network currently consists of three lines, one of which, the three serves other areas of the conurbation, in particular those of Quezon City.

• Green Line 1.
• Line 2 blue.
• Line 3 yellow.

The ticket is a kilometer and varies from 15 to 30 pesos (₱), which means it costs a small coin (a few cents). of €). There are variations in tariffs on the three lines but they are irrelevant. If you're going to make massive use of the metro and it bothers you to make a ticket every time you change trains, you might be tempted to buy a "beep" (smart card), introduced in February 2017. The daily banknote beep entitles you to use all three lines throughout the day and has a price ranging from ₱ 13 to ₱ 30 (year 2017). It can be purchased at major stations.

Most city buses end up in the Arroceros Street, in the historic Intramuros district, near the Central Terminal Station, the end of line one. The buses are not numbered, i.e. they do not bear the number of lines but, on the other hand, they bear the words on their sides and on their dashboard the words of the end lines and main stops.

You will still find in the streets of Manila an awful lot of "Jeepys", colorful trucks used by the American army during World War II. Because of their imaginative decoration, these obsolete means of transport are very photographed. They retrace the bus route and like the bus route, mostly end up in the vicinity of the Arroceros Street. An officer shouts the path of Jeepney just before his departure and as he shouts, passers - by huddled around the door of the vehicle like honeybees.

Coconut palace

• 1 Coconut Palace. Also known as Tahanang Pilipino (House of the Philippines), it is a government building situated within the complex that is home to the "cultural center of the Philippines". The palace was commissioned in 1978 by the former first lady Imelda Marcos to host Pope John Paul II, whose official visit was scheduled for 1981, but the pontiff refused to stay in such a blatant setting, in view of the poverty of the majority of the Filipino people. Afterwards, Coconut Palace was destined to welcome political figures on official visits to the Philippines, but also personal friends of Marcos spouses such as Cristina Ford and Hollywood actors George Hamilton and Brooke Shields. The palace, in its octagonal form as a salakot, the traditional head cover of the Philippines, owes its name to the fact that it is entirely made of coconut palm wood. It was actually a celebration of coconut palm that in the Philippines, as in other countries of Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent, is revered as a tree of life. Even so, the chandeliers are made of coconut wood and the dining room table is made up of 40,000 pieces of coconut stained together. Each room of the palace is a homage to the traditional artisanal styles in force in the various provinces of the Philippines and draws its name from the country's various ethnic groups. One of the most admired halls of the palace is called Zamboanga, named after a region and ethnic group on the island of Mindanao for which it is said that the actor George Hamilton had a weak personality. The Iloilo room is the richest decorated room, with the intentions of Imelda Marcos in the pope's bedroom. It has the merit of possessing a magnificent veranda with the best view on Manila Bay and a vast bathroom entirely lined with wooden pieces of palm and bamboo, materials that are considered fragile for the furnishing and decoration of walls, but which stand well in wear when treated with suitable substances. In 2010, the complex was renovated for its official residence of the Philippine vice president.    

Malacañang Palace

• 2 Malacañang Palace. The Malacañang Palace, which is the official residence of the President of the Republic of the Philippines, is a massive construction on the Pasig River, commissioned in 1750 by the Spanish noble Don Luís Rocha as his summer residence. acquired by the state, the property became the residence of the Spanish governor from 1825 to 1898. The building was badly damaged by the earthquake in June 1863 but was restored and in 1898 General Wesley Merritt took office, a triumph of the Spanish-American war. The following year became the official residence of the American governor. A small museum has been set up inside the palace where memorabilia of the Filipino presidents is displayed. Gardens are also open to the public. The visit must be booked in advance of at least 10 days. You will be asked to photocopy a document which you will have to produce when you enter the museum. More details on the official website.      

Facade of the rectory building on the side of Spain's avenue

Central Seminar facade

• 3 University of Santo Tomás (Universidad de Santo Tomas (FSO)). The buildings of the university, officially called "The Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomás, the Catholic University of the Philippines" occupy an almost perfect square of 21.5 ha in the district of Sanpaloc. Despite the serious damage suffered during World War II and the inaccurate renovations of the post-war era, many constructions can testify to the pre-war splendor of Manila, when the city was known as the "Pearl of the East" and no one dared to disagree with the term. The FSO was founded by the first bishop of the Diocese of New Segovia (comprising Manila and part of Luzon Island), the Dominican and sinologist Miguel de Benavides in 1587, 16 years after the city was founded. The "Royal" attribute was granted by King Charles III of Spain in 1785, the second "pontifical", by Pope Leo XIII and the third "Catholic", by Pope Pius XII in 1947. In the early seventeenth century, the university functioned as a seminary in which lessons were learned in philosophy, logic, grammar, law, as well as theology. The Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy were inaugurated in 1871, and others followed in the following years. Since the building of the old seminary of Intramuros had become inadequate to accommodate the growing student population, it was granted to the Dominican order, which had run the university since its inception, a vast land in the district of Sulucan Hills in the district of Sanpaloc. In 1927, the rectory building was inaugurated and in the same year, students of the female sex were accepted. The darkest page in the history of the FSO was the Second World War, when the Japanese occupiers turned the university complex into a concentration camp where prisoners of war of American and British nationality were confined. A little more than 4,000 prisoners survived the hardship and harassment perpetrated by Japanese militias for 37 long months until February 3, 1945, when they were freed by American troops. Many presidents of the Philippines, national heroes and saints received a degree from the FSO. Members for the academic year 2013-2014 were 42,271. The international prestige of the University of Santo Tomás is attested by the visits made to the campus by international personalities. The Spanish royals went on two rounds, in 1974 and 1995. Mother Teresa of Calcutta in January 1977 and again in November 1984. It is the only university that has received four papal visits: Paul VI on 28 November 1970, John Paul II on 18 February 1981 and on 13 January 1995 and Pope Francis on 18 January 2015.      
  • 4 Rectorate building. The main building of the University of Santo Tomás, in addition to the various administrative offices, is the seat of the Institute of Private Law, the Faculty of Pharmacy and the College of Sciences. The arts and sciences museum has also been set up. It was created in the Neo - ascimental style between 1924 and 1926 on a project by Roque Ruño (1877 - 1935), a Spanish civil engineer who in 1894 took the vows and entered the Dominican order. It is a rectangular structure of 86x74m. with two internal yards. The main feature of the building is that it consists of 40 smaller structures resting on a single base. This was done so that the building could better withstand high-grade earthquakes. The building was designed at the time of the w:great Kantō earthquake that leveled the Japanese port of Yokohama and the other cities on the Kanto plain. The statues surrounding the palace are the work of the Italian sculptor Francesco Riccardo Monti (Cremona 1888 - Manila 1958). They are divided into five sculptural groups of 3: The first (left) depicts faith, hope and charity, the second (left) the doctors of St. Augustine's Church, Ramondo de Peñaphor, Vincenzo di Beauvais, the third (left) dramatists Pedro Calderón de la Barca, Sophocles, William Shakespeare, the fourth (Aristotle) philosopher, Sant'Alberto the Grande, One and the fifth, the comedians Lope de Vega, Aristophane, Molière.    
  • 5 Central Seminary Palace. This building of Art Deco has nothing to envy with European examples of the same style. It was created in the 30th century by the Filipino architect Fernando Ocampo (1897 - 1984). The building is home to institutes of the Faculty of theology and the parish church of the Most Holy Rosary, also built according to the purest canons of Art Deco. The temple was consecrated in 1942 during the Japanese occupation by the Bishop of Manila Michael James o'doherty of Irish nationality    

Central Post Office

• 6 Central Post Office (Manila Central Post Office). A major Neo - classical building, built between 1936 and 1940 by the architects Juan M. Arellano and Tomás Mapú. Seriously damaged during the battle in Manila, it was restored in the immediate aftermath of the war, trying to preserve as much as possible the original project. The location of the post office on the south bank of the Pasig River at the crossroads of important roads in the district of Ermita, just east of the historic Intramuros neighborhood, was a non-casual choice affirmed a couple of decades earlier by W:Daniel Burnham, the famous American architect who had designed many buildings in Chicago. The reason for the choice was twofold: letters and parcels could be sent more quickly using the waterway represented by the Pasig River, and secondly because the site, being at the crossroads of important communications routes, could easily be reached from the suburbs of the city.    

Religious buildings

Church of St. Augustine

• 7 St. Augustine's Church. One of the very few buildings in Intramuros survived the American carpet bombings to raid Japanese troops that had barricaded themselves in the historic center of Manila, refusing to hand in their weapons. In 1973 the temple was declared a national monument and 20 years later it was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The church is home to the city of Manila, having been raised by the Augustinian fathers in 1571, the year of the founding of the city. But it was a simple bamboo construction that was destroyed four years later during a raid by Malaysian pirates. The first Diocesan Synod of the Philippines was rebuilt in 1581. Four years after a fire, he reduced her to ashes. It was reconstructed in stone between 1586 and 1606 by architect Juan Macias who inspired the many churches built by the Augustinian order in Mexico, and particularly at the cathedral of Puebla de Zaragoza. This Renaissance facility has managed to reach us almost intact by surviving repeated and strong earthquakes, one of which, in 1863, led to the collapse of a bell tower. The facade of the church is modest and has been criticized for lack of charm. The interior is on the Latin cross with 14 side chapels and a ceiling painted by the tropes-l'oeil technique, by Juan Dibella and the Italian artist Cesare Alberoni. In the crypt near the altar are the tombs of the conquerors Miguel López de Legazpi, founder of Manila, Juan de Salcedo and Martín de Goiti, as well as several Spanish governors and archbishops. During the Japanese occupation of Manila, the church was used as a concentration camp. The monastery annexed by the church was destroyed during the bombings but was rebuilt in 1970 under the direction of the architect Angel Nakpil. The church was restored in 2013 and with the occasion the natural color of the stone was returned to the outside.      

Manila Cathedral

• 8 Cathedral of Manila, Plaza de Rome. The Manila Cathedral is the see of the Archbishop of the Philippines and at the same time the official ceremonies of the government of the country. Built in 1581, it was destroyed eight times, the last one in 1945, during the battle in Manila. What we're seeing today is a building in 1958. In 2012, it was closed to the public because of work aimed at ensuring greater resilience in the event of major seismic shocks. It was reopened to worship in March of 2014. On January 16 of the following year, Pope Francis Mass celebrated in the presence of the Filipino clergy and without public participation. The Cathedral was the only of the seven churches present in Intramuros to be rebuilt in situ. Of the others, there are only a few remains or simple commemorative plates.    

Museums

National Museum of Fine Arts

• National Museum of the Philippines (Pambansang Museum ng Pilipinas), ☎ +63 2 527-1209. Inaugurated in 1900, the National Museum includes two sections (Fine Arts, Anthropology), which are housed in two different buildings in the Rizal Park area.      
• 9 National Museum of Fine Arts (Pambansang Museum ng Sining), Father Burgos Avenue (on the eastern side of Rizal Park). The Fine Arts section of the National Museum includes paintings and sculptures of Filipino artists such as Juan Luna, Félix Resurrección Hidalgo and Guillermo Tolentino. The collections are presented in the spaces of the congresses' palace, a massive neoclassical style building in 1921, which follows the government buildings of Washington DC.      
• 10 National Museum of Anthropology (Pambansang Museum ng Antropolohiya). Filipino archeology and folklore collections set up in the former department of finance. The wreck of the Spanish San Diego prison, which sank after a battle with Dutch ships under the command of the pirate Olivier van Noort and recovered from the seabed in 1991, is also exposed.      
• Museum of Political History of the Philippines (National Historical Institute Museum), T.M. Kalaw Ave. A small museum with photographic exhibitions of the heads of state of the Philippines plus a collection of cars used by the Filipino authorities during official demonstrations.    
• 11 Metropolitan Museum in Manila (Met Museum), Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Complex, Roxas Blvd (In front of Manila Yacht Club.), ☎ +63 2 521 1517.   Mar-Sab 09:00-18:00. Set up in a central bank complex building (Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas), the museum is home to eclectic collections from the prehispanic to the contemporary era.    
• 12 Bahay Tsinoy, 32 Anda Cor. Cabido Sts., Intramuros. Inaugurated in 1999, the museum documents the history of the Chinese community in Manila.    
• 13 Pambata Museum, Roxas Boulevard cnr South Drive (next to the US Embassy in the district of Ermita), ☎ +63 2 523 1797.   ₱ 100.   August-March: 08:00-17:00, April-July 09:00-17:00. Museum designed for children who have the chance to interact with real objects. Inaugurated in 1994, the Pambata museum opens up Children's Museum in Boston.    

Black Nazarene Procession

The most fervent celebrations in Manila are:

• 4 Black Nazarene Procession (Negro).   January 9th. The Black Nazarene procession is the most popular event, with millions taking part. The Black Nazarene is a carved wooden image of Jesus of Nazareth, exposed to the veneration of the faithful in the church of Quiapo (official name of the temple): Basílica Menor del Nazarene). The sculpture is considered miraculous by devout Catholics. The original was brought to Manila by a Mexican carpenter who boarded a galleon that left Acapulco. According to tradition, the dark color is due to a fire in the prison that caused the face of the statue to be blackened, but there is also a variant that wants the anonymous artisan to intentionally give the statue the olivastic color of its skin. In 1650, Pope Innocenzo X approved the cult of the image while simultaneously creating the fraternity of Nuestra Santo Jesús Nazareno. Afterwards, plenary indulgence was given to those who prayed before the statue. Three times a year, the image is carried in procession through the streets of Manila: the first of the year, 9 january and holy friday. The most popular procession is that of 9 January, which lasts several hours and also has the sad first record of the highest number of deaths caused by suffocation or crushing. The stampede that is produced in an attempt to touch the statue takes exasperated forms of collective hysteria. One of the most exciting moments for the participants is when the statue passes in front of the Church of San Sebastián where it meets with the procession of the Virgen del Carmen, another image venerated by Catholics. Tradition has it that the image of the Virgin arrests itself in the atrium of the Temple of St. Peter. Sebastian to see Christ Negro's procession pass. This moment is called "Dungaw" in the Philippines and "la Mirada" in Castilian.    
• Easter. 
• Independence Day (Independence Day).   June 12th. 
• Boniface Day.   November 30th. National heroes party. 
• Rizal day. 

Tutuban warehouses in the Divisoria area

SM City North EDSA shopping center

Skating strip within the "SM Mall of Asia"

At the airport you will find 24h bank and ATM bank counters. If you want to avoid heavy bank fees, you'd better ignore them and use the ones in the city or turn to one of the many cash changeovers like Filipino immigrants do every time they come home on holiday. However, tourists who emulate them will have to take some small precautions. As far as ATMs are concerned, you will find them all the time, but the only ones exempt from charges are those of HSBC Bank, which unfortunately are not very frequent and completely absent at airport terminals.

Forms of traditional and popular trade

The Manila markets, which are popular among residents for everyday purchases of goods, are crowded, as in the rest of Southeast Asia. Many of the stands on the ground also sell pre - cooked food, but you'll have to be a watchdog before buying it. Many of these stands do not even have a refrigerator, and ingredients and food are stored with the help of large sheets of ice.

If you happen to watch people in the streets of Manila dressed randomly but with international signatures on them and wonder how this might happen in such a poor country, the explanation is simple and it's in the chain of shops "Ukay-ukay" that has proved to work better than the Salvation Army or Catholic Caritas. It's a chain of shops that sells random items, mostly second - hand. Explanation is the contraction of the word "Hukay" in Tagalog, which means digging. In this particular case, it indicates the continuous gesture that you usually make with your hands when you search the cartoons for the perfect used dress. However, the items displayed in shops in the chain are no longer bulk in cartons but are hung on crutches or put in order on shelves. Ukay might be the case for practical travelers who carry luggage on the side, preferring to buy the necessary items on the spot, but then dispose of them when they leave.

"Tiangges" correspond to our flea markets in the sense that they market the most unthinkable and curious objects. Rurring through the junk of one of the many Tianges scattered around Manila, you might find the right souvenir to bring home, like handicrafts, antiques, jewelry, etc.

Divisoria is an immense open - air market renowned for the sale of a wide range of low - price products. The market extends along 1 Recto Avenue and adjacent roads on an area of approximately 1/2 km². The name Divisoria is undoubtedly derived from the Castilian and seems to have been referred to an edict by the Spanish governor prohibiting non-Catholic merchants from selling their products in the city within the walls. The provision forced Chinese merchants to carry out their activities on the banks of the Pasig River, in today's Binondo district. Today's flea market is known for its poor products, which contravene the most basic health rules. For example, toys contain a substance that is harmful to children and there are a whole range of items that are not recommended for purchase. However, since 1993, a large number of department stores have been set up, including by those with a high or medium purchasing power.

Business centers

In addition to these traditional forms of trade in Manila, you will find huge western-style shopping centers offering a variety of international and non-international brands. The shopping districts are Ermita and Malate by name. In the first you'll find the vast Robinsons Place Manila, and in the second you'll find the Harrison Plaza, the most glamorous but still fashionable of all.

Currently (2017) the largest shopping center in Manila and the Philippines, ranked fourth in the world rankings, is 2 SM City North EDSA, conveniently located on the same motorway on the border with Quezon City. 3 SM Mall of Asia follows with 600 shops (200 less than the previous one), on the same avenue but on its final section, on the border with Pasay. Both centers are truly cities with all sorts of entertainment imaginable inside them as a movie theatrical with IMAX screens, ice skating runways, hotels and even museums.

Mall of Asia Arena. 2016 FIBA basketball meeting France Philippines

Spectacles

• 1 Mall of Asia Arena. Arena with a capacity of 20,000 people inaugurated in 2012. In addition to being the alternative location for the PBA Basketball League and NCAA University Sporting Association, it tends to be frequently chosen by international artists as the venue for their concerts. The first ever performer was Lady Gaga with a double concert sold out on May 21 and 22, 2012 during her Born This Way Ball Tour. Madonna's double concert for her Rebel Heart Tour on 24 and 25 February 2016 has become the most expensive in the country, with an average price of ₱ 34,913. The exhibitions include: Taylor Swift, Bruno Mars, Rihanna, Imagine Dragons, Ed Sheeran, Jennifer Lopez, Mariah Carey, Ariana Grande and Britney Spears. In 2017, it hosted the 65th Miss Universe.      

Pantawid Gutom - The food you sell on the street is called "Pantawid Gutom" - the essential food to keep up, to keep quiet about the rumors of the stomach. Banknotes and stands sell food of a variety of varieties. The most frequent ones are Balut, (poppy egg with embryo), fish meatloaf, Kwek-Kwek (chicken-soaked eggs, poppy or quail covered with an orange pastel which are then fried in boiling oil), Isaw (grilled hen's intestines), Banana kyu (Cooked Bananas coated with sugar (caramelized) and many more.

Carinderias - It sounds like a Spanish word but it's not really. Carinderias could be called hot tables, if you want to find a similar Italian term. These are popular restaurants with tables and chairs, although often extremely small, little more than a hole in the street. Their clients are mostly workers, jeepney drivers and low income students. Of course there's no list of food. The food shall be presented behind a transparent banknote and placed in large aluminum pots or in square-shaped containers of the same material, if of a higher class, by pointing the finger. Panaderias is, as you can imagine, the equivalent of our bakeries that sell beyond bread, cakes and pasta. Very often the Panaderias are not associated with shops and could be classified as street food. A well-known chain of panaderias is "Goldilock's Bakeshop" operating both as 24h open restaurants and as entrance-free shops serving food only on the street side (stands), sometimes in this latter form, even in department stores. Dunkin' Donuts or Mr. Donut is another well-known brand with the same philosophy, working either as a dining room or as a stand in a dining room.

Street food - The street food category also includes sellers who do not have a permanent place but run certain streets with their carts at certain programmed hours of the day because the food they offer can be as good as midday snacks as it can be as afternoon snacks. Street vendors beat neighborhoods with schools and kindergartens because pupils and young children generally do well for their business, as well as office areas where they have a working women's clientele. There are very few foods offered by street vendors in Manila, and they are reduced to just over a handful of items listed below:

• Taho - a kind of soft tofu cheese available all over Southeast Asia as well as Taiwan. The Filipino variant wants the tofu to be sprinkled with caramelized sugar and accompanied tapioca meats. Everyone's crazy about it, but most of all, the kids before they get into school.
• Mais - Roasted corncobs sell well from the first to late afternoon.
• Binatog - maize grains sprinkled with coconut milk and grated coconut sugar.
• Bola Bola — fried fish, small hotdogs, etc.
• Absorbed fruit
• Dirty Ice Cream - The ice cream in the Filipino variant is sold on colorful carts and the ambulance announces its presence with a bell that looks like a collection piece. Tastes are local - mango, carabao, pandan fruit and yam.

Like Dhaka and other Asian megalopolis, Manila has run out of neighborhoods and other events of the tuguri. According to statistics, 50% of the population lives in slums. It is not the case that the streets should be paved with carefree loitering because of their unpleasant performances.

Given the mild nature of Filipinos, assaults and physical violence are sporadic. However, there have been reports of abductions. The malicious prefer to use tricks to get the credit card of others and the related pin. Some of these scams, like pretending to know the passer-by who denotes his identity as a tourist, may have taken on naive types who stop when they are apostrophed in the street by strangers, rather than ignore them and draw straight.

In addition to being targeted by fraudsters, tourists must also defend themselves from pickpockets, very active in the crowded streets of the decrepit Manila. Western visitors are the favorite prey of both groups, probably because they do not have the opportunity to mix with the local population. Those in other Asian countries, while recognizable in the eyes of local furriers, are generally rejected in favor of Western countries.

When you walk on the street, you inhibit the unconscious gesture of pulling smartphones out of your pocket or whatever, because the technology devils are able to attract more of the attention of petty thieves to the crowd.

If you want to visit the "Divisory" market, you'll need to take a number of precautions, such as leaving valuable items in hotels and even backpacks, bags, or bags and keeping cash and credit cards in indoor pockets never in outdoor pockets.