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Photos and stories from many of my travels in the past 5 years

Philippines: Day 9 – Cebu: Fort San Pedro, Basilica of Santo Niño, Taoist Temple

By Mithun Divakaran
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Oct 17, 2011
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Philippines, Travel

Date: April 25th 2011

I woke up really early today as I had to catch my AirPhil Express flight to Cebu at 7am. I checked out of my hotel and took a taxi from Pasay to the airport. It cost ₱70 ($1.6/€1.2) but I reached the airport in under 20 minutes and there were long queues because of the security checks. I checked in, got my window seat and whipped out my phone to take a few snaps.

NAIA Terminal 2 Manila airport — I paid the airport user fee of PHP200 ($4.5/€3.4), which Aimee told me is something every airport in Philippines makes travellers pay

Ninoy Aquino bust airport Manila Philippines — Philippines' main airport is named after this revolutionary

Ninoy Aquino history Manila airport — And this is his story

My flight was unfortunately delayed by nearly 45 minutes due to poor weather conditions (apparently), but it was better than hearing some flights being cancelled, leaving passengers frustrated.

Aerial photography cloud mountain Philippines — I asked for a window seat because I read online that one could see Mount Pinatubo on this route. Though I feel I ended up on the wrong side.

Aerial photography valley road Philippines — Not that the views were disappointing or anything

Cebu city aerial photography Philippines — An hour later, we were above Cebu

Cebu shallow waters coral marsh Philippines — Shallow waters along the coast of Cebu

Cebu airport Airphil Express flight landing Philippines — A little late, but the weather seemed perfectly fine

I called Aimee and informed her about my arrival and she told me where to get a taxi from.

Cebu airport ramp Philippines — Though there were taxis available where I was standing, Aimee told me to get a regular cab from outside this other building

Bridge to Cebu city Philippines — It cost ₱160 ($3.6/€2.7) from airport to where I needed to go

I had reservations at Sugbutel Bed & Bath for two nights. I chose this place because, as per the map, it was close to the pier. I needed it to close to the pier because tomorrow morning, I was to go to the island of Bohol by ferry. But when I arrived at Sugbutel, I must say, I had the look of disappointment on my face. It was bang opposite the pier, sure, but there was little else around it. No restaurants and it didn’t look like it was within city limits. Anyway, I checked in, paid ₱700 ($16/€12) for my dorm bed for two nights and went upstairs.

Sugbutel dorm bed Cebu Philippines — I got an upper bed. It was clean and had all the essentials - universal plug point, night lamp and an air-conditioned room. If you like shipping containers, then the view is fantastic!

Sugbutel dormitory floor Cebu Philippines — This is the dorm floor. Toilets are clean and large enough.

Since today was the only day I had to check out Cebu city, I wasted no time and took a jeepney straight to the first attraction on my list, Fort San Pedro.

Road to fort San Pedro in Cebu Philippines — The ride from Sugbutel took just 5 minutes (cost around ₱7)

Cebu pier ferry Philippines — I walked all the way to the pier to find out when the first ferry to Bohol was

Cebu pier ships Philippines — There are several ferry companies plying daily to the neighbouring islands

Fort San Pedro Cebu Philippines — I walked to Fort San Pedro, which is very close to the pier

Fort San Pedro Cebu Philippines entrance — There is an entrance fee of ₱30 to Fort San Pedro

Fort San Pedro Cebu Philippines flag — Fort San Pedro, built by the colonial Spanish in 1783, is one of the oldest in the country

Fort San Pedro lawn Cebu Philippines — Didn't look very promising from here

Fort San Pedro exit Cebu — And that was it! I was done with the fort in 10 minutes.

I felt it was a bit of a waste of money. Maybe it’s because I’ve seen countless forts, both in India and in other places like Malaysia. After a while, they all start to look the same.

Magellan's cross Bank of Philippines islands Cebu — Next up, Magellan's cross

Ferdinand Magellan was a famous Portugese explorer who became the first European to land in the Philippines. He ordered this cross be placed here signifying the arrival of the ~~invaders~~ explorers.

Magellan's cross chapel Cebu Philippines — The cross is housed inside this chapel

Magellan's cross Cebu Philippines — Magellan's cross, it marks the spot where the first Christian Filipinos were baptized

College St .Nino Cebu Philippines — It's right in front of this college

Cebu bakery sweets pastry — I got distracted by the sweet smell coming out of a bakery/eatery/other junk college kids eat/stationary shop attached to the college

Cassava cake Cebu Philippines — Ordered a Cassava cake as it sounded interesting to me. It was quite yummy, though I felt they used a little too much condensed milk for the sweetness

Basilica del Santo Nino church Cebu Philippines — I walked towards Cebu's most famous attraction, the Basilica Minore del Santo Nino, the oldest church in the Philippines

Basilica del Santo Nino red candles Cebu Philippines — Saw a lot of worshipers near these red candles

Basilica St. Nino candles Cebu Philippines — That's a lot of wax...

Basilica del St. Nino candle wax Cebu Philippines — ...which is recycled to make new candles I presume

St. Nino Basilica church Cebu Philippines — I walked towards the church

Basilica del Santo Nino ceiling paintings Philippines — Ceiling paintings

Basilica del Santo Nino Cebu Cathedral ceiling — The main ceiling

Basilica del Santo Nino prayers Cebu — It was time to leave

Basilica del Santo Nino Cebu cathedral open hall — Some courtyard right opposite the church

Osmena Blvd Santo Nino Jollibee Chowking Cebu — Across the road was a Jollibee (of course) from where I had lunch from

As I sat there, eating my burger, I wondered what to see next. It was only the afternoon and I… felt bored already. Maybe it was the lack of sleep. Anyway, I hopped on a jeepney and decided to go towards Robinsons Mall.

Osmena blvd traffic afternoon Cebu Philippines — I just hopped into any one going straight up the road

Osmena Blvd jeepney name Cebu Philippines — The names of some of these jeepneys 🙂

Cebu city North district pedestrian overbridge — I got down here

Robinsons Place mall Cebu Philippines — And this is Robinsons Place mall. Closed. Like, for good/for renovation/for demolition kind of closed.

I walked around some more, since I didn’t know what else to do.

Robinsons Cybergate Osmena Fuente Cebu Philippines — Robinsons Cybergate is an office building

After converting some dollars at a nearby plaza, I got into another jeepney and decided to head towards the Philippine Taoist Temple.

Cebu provincial capitol building Philippines — Cebu provincial capitol building; take a right from here

Escario street Cebu Philippines — I got down a bit further ahead

From the main road, I was instructed to cross over to a road on the other side.

Entrance to Beverly Hills road Cebu — There were bike taxis (licensed or not, who knows) who offered to take me up for 10 pesos. Since I didn't feel like walking uphill and not knowing how much I would have to walk, I got on.

Road to Philippine Taoist Temple Cebu — Took this sitting behind the driver

It was only a short drive and the driver dropped me at a guarded entrance from where on, he told me, I would have to continue on by foot.

Beverly Hills road Cebu Philippines — Apparently it's private property from here on and so, bike taxis aren't allowed

Philippines Taoist temple from afar Cebu — And that's where I needed to get to

Beverly Hills junction to Taoist temple Cebu — Took the left

Beverly Hills uphill road to Taoist temple Cebu — It's a good 10 minute walk

Philippine taoist temple entrance Cebu city — The entrance

Philippine Taoist temple garden Cebu — There is no entry ticket or anything

Philippine Taoist temple prayer hall Cebu — The prayer hall is to the left, but photography of the hall and the idols aren't allowed

Philippine Taoist temple red staircase Cebu — I went up

Beverly hills neighbourhood Cebu — Pretty posh neighbourhood

View from Philippine Taoist temple Cebu — The view from up here

Philippine Taoist temple steps down Cebu — Went back down

Philippines Taoist temple Cebu panorama — Panorama comprised of 6 shots

Philippine Taoist temple exit Cebu — I was done

Philippine Taoist Temple Inc. second entrance Cebu — I know this temple was built by Chinese businessmen but '... Temple Inc.'?

Cebu Beverly hills stone wall — A lot of rich people live in Beverly Hills, though I wonder which came first -- the name of the hill or the residents?

Villa Beverly Hills Cebu — Nice looking pads

Beverly Hills road downhill Cebu — Walked all the way back down

Cebu Beverly Hills horse riding Philippines — Rich people = own horses

Cebu Beverly hills slum shanty homes Philippines — But just like India, regardless of any fancy name, it doesn't take too long to come back down to the reality of the majority in Cebu

Locals near Beverly hills Cebu — I bought some credit ('load' is the term in Philippines) for my phone and had a drink from here

The bike taxis approached me again and asked me if I would like to go to a higher viewing spot, which was a bit further up from here. They said I could watch the sun set from there. I was honestly bored, so I said “No thanks” and just walked on.

I stepped into a nearby mall, mostly to get some air-con. I dropped by a travel agency and asked them how much a tour to Bohol island tomorrow would cost. They quoted just over ₱3500 which I knew was exorbitant, since I did look it up online and had a fair idea as to how much the tours approximately cost.

I messaged Aimee telling her I was bored in Cebu and she told me to go check out Ayala Mall. So I got into a jeepney and headed to Ayala.

Cebu business park Ayala Philippines — Got down at an area that looked like a business park

Cebu business park IT office building — A lot of IT offices here

Wipro Cebu office Philippines — Well look who's here! (Wipro is an India IT/BPO major)

Ayala mall interiors shops Cebu Philippines — Anyway, this is air-condi... I mean, Ayala Mall

Ayala Mall Convergys call center hiring banners — Call center hiring is all over the mall

30 minutes of store-hopping, got bored (again) and left. I was pretty sleepy by now and decided to just take a taxi back to the pier instead of a jeepney.

Supercat office Cebu pier Philippines — Came to the pier for Supercat's office & to know when the first ferry to Tagbilaran (Bohol's capital) was

The tour of Bohol when purchased from Supercat themselves cost around ₱2800. I opted not to buy the tour package and instead, decided to do it myself.

I left the pier and walked back to the main road. As soon as I got to the main road in a minute, I realized why I booked at Sugbutel. You can literally walk to Supercat’s terminal from here.

Pier road Sugbutel Radisson hotel at night — If you don't like Sugbutel's budget offerings, you can move up to the Radisson up ahead

I dropped my camera bag back at the dorm and stepped out again wondering where I could have dinner. There are hardly any eateries outside Sugbutel.

Pier area at night Cebu — The surroundings aren't exactly what you'd call 'great'

But walk all the way up to the Radisson Hotel and right next to it is one big-ass mall!

SM City cebu mall restaurants — Felt stupid just wondering a few minutes back, where I could get some decent food! No dearth of options here.

SM City Cebu mall Philippines — SM City is the biggest mall in Cebu!

SM city Cebu mall foodcourt — I ate from here

SM City Cebu mall shops — Walked around the mall a bit. It was past 8pm and many stores were done for the day.

I walked back to Sugbutel, freshened up and hit the bed early. Tomorrow was going to be another early wake-up call.

I know Cebu residents will be going “Oh, there’s more to Cebu than just these sights you saw!” and you’re probably right. Aimee told me if I headed up north in a vehicle, I could have explored the beaches and other sights Cebu has to offer. But I’m keeping all my “beach and sea” experiences for Palawan, which is why I only used Cebu as a stopover point to get to Bohol and then fly to Palawan.

Previous posts in this series:

Philippines 2011: Day 8 – Manila tour: Rizal Park, Intramuros, Manila Cathedral, China Town

Philippines 2011: Day 7 – Leaving Angeles City for Manila, Mall of Asia

Philippines 2011: Day 6 – Good Friday in San Fernando, San Pedro Cutud Lenten Rites

Philippines 2011: Leaving Sagada for Baguio, and arriving in Angeles city (Days 4 & 5)

Philippines 2011: Day 3 – Sagada’s Lumiang burial cave, Sumaguing cave, Hanging Coffins of Echo valley

Philippines 2011: Day 3 – Banaue town; heading to Sagada via Bontoc

Philippines 2011: Day 2 – Banaue rice terraces; trekking to Batad village

Philippines 2011: Day 1 — Manila American Cemetery and Memorial, Fort Bonifacio

Philippines 2011: Flying over South China Sea for the first time

Other posts in this series:

Philippines 2011: Day 10 – Bohol tour: Chocolate Hills, Loboc river cruise, Tarsiers, churches

Philippines 2011: Day 11 – Arriving in Puerto Princesa, Palawan

Philippines 2011: Day 12 – Puerto Princesa Underground River tour, Palawan

Philippines 2011: Day 13 – Puerto Princesa to El Nido by bus

Philippines 2011: Day 14 – El Nido island hopping tour A and sunset at Las Cabanas beach, Palawan

Philippines 2011: Back to Manila, shopping, and my final thoughts about the country (Last post)

Singapore 2011 – F1 week, a teaser

By Mithun Divakaran
/
Oct 06, 2011
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Singapore, Travel

From September 19th to 26th, I visited Singapore for a second time. Here are a few photos:

Stamford Raffles mall interiors Singapore — First order of business, collect my Singapore GP ticket from the Swissôtel The Stamford

Merlion Park fountain statue Singapore — I then walked all the way to the Merlion Park for the obligatory ‘Yes, I’m in Singapore’ shot

Gears of War 3 Singapore release Funan IT hall — Second order of business – head to Funan IT mall to buy a camera backpack. There was a Gear of War 3 launch event going on as Singapore was going to get the game a few hours before the rest of the world did. A few hours early is a big deal to gamers when you go online dammit! 🙂

Day 1 went according to plan. Got my Kata Owl DL-272 from John 3:16 for SGD185, nearly Rs. 2000 cheaper.

Jurong bird park lory loft parrots — Day 2, I decided to go to Jurong Bird Park, which I couldn’t do last year

Jurong bird park heavy dark rain Singapore — Unfortunately, it began raining heavily (dark clouds and all). This was taken on my phone.

Jurong bird park hornbill Singapore — But eventually the heavy rain subsided and I continued shooting. It wasn’t easy though. Holding my Canon 7D with the heavy 70-200mm lens in one hand and an umbrella in the other hand. I tried my best.

I was nearly done with the park when disaster struck. Because of the wet grounds, I slipped on a downward slope and fell on the ground. I tried to break my fall as I didn’t want to damage my camera… but …

Mithun Divakaran injured hand Singapore — Long story short, this is what my hand looked like at the end of the day. It hurt. But what hurt more was that the filter on my 70-200mm lens dented in so badly that nobody could remove it by hand. Eventually Canon service had to carefully drill two holes on the side without touching the main lens and remove it. Cost SGD130 though.

Day 2, obviously not according to plan then.

Singapore bus ride — Day 3 was supposed to be Sentosa & Universal Studios but with my 70-200mm lens still at the service center, so I couldn’t go there without it. So instead, I hopped on a bus and see where it would take me.

Global Indian International school Singapore — I basically wanted to see the inner parts of Singapore and the more residential areas. Not just the usual commercial areas every tourist sees.

Singapore dark clouds bus ride — The weather looked gloomy today as well

Singapore botanic gardens Orchard road gate — In the afternoon, ended up going to the Botanic gardens because I told myself I can’t justify this trip unless I take a lot of photos!

Singapore botanic gardens swan lake pigeons — Even though such places aren’t really my thing, I ended up liking the gardens a lot

Singapore orchid park flowers — Then ended up clicking quite a lot of photos once inside the Orchid Park. Really worth the SG$5 fee!

Aimee angel ring Singapore Lucky plaza — Left the gardens and met my friend Aimee on Orchard Road. She’s no angel, that’s just Photoshop.

Day 4, I got my lens back and decided to go to the Marina Bay Sands Hotel & Casino. Played $65 at the casino — and lost it all 😛 Photography isn’t allowed inside the casino, so I have no photos, but take my word for it — it was impressive!

Marina Bay Sands Singapore Infinity swimming pool — After the casino, went up to the skybridge

Marina Bay skybridge view panorama — The views from up here… worth the $20 fee! The Marina Bay Sands Skypark is even higher than the Singapore Flyer.

Singapore Flyer view from Marina Bay skybridge — Didn’t feel like going to the Singapore Flyer after this

Marina Bay The Gardens barge ships panorama — From up here, you can see why Singapore Port is one of the busiest in the world. Oh, they’re also constructing more attractions at Marina Bay.

Marina bay sands hotel Infinity pool Singapore — The famous pool at the hotel. Hopefully one day I can afford to stay in this hotel, just so I can use the swimming pool 🙂

Day 5, met up with Aimee again as she showed me around Chinatown.

Buddha temple Chinatown Singapore — Last year, myself & Loiyumba only strolled through Chinatown at night, so I didn’t even know about this Buddhist temple

Boat Quay bread ice-cream Singapore — Finally had bread ice cream by the Quay. Durian flavoured ice cream that too!

Charice Singapore F1 Friday concert — Oprah loved her, David Foster promoted her and ‘Glee’ made her even more famous. It was Pinoy fever as Charice kicked off the concerts on Friday night. What a voice she has!

Seungri Singapore F1 Friday concert — Then I got my K-pop fix with Seungri first taking the stage

GD&Top Singapore F1 Friday concert — And later, fellow BIG BANG members GD&TOP ended the night with a stellar (albeit short) performance

Day 6, had lunch at Boat Quay and had my first taste of Singapore Chili Crab.

Singapore chili crab after — After (Disclaimer/just saying: There were three of us at the table)

Man sleeping Marina Bay Singapore afternoon — I was in no rush to enter the gates when it opened at 3pm just to get fanzone passes to be closer to the stage today. But I still ended up getting them at 3:30pm.

Rick Astley singing Singapore concert Marina Stage — Waited for this man to perform at the Marina Bay stage. Yes, Rick Astley. He still sounds great!

Rick Astley beer bottle Singapore concert — He was also quite funny. Drenched in sweat (like the rest of us) he asked for some chilled beer for him and his band. The organizers handed him one bottle of beer, to which he pointed out that it looked like something else 🙂

Rick Astley Eddie Jordan drumming Singapore F1 concert — Rick Astley was later joined by racing supremo Eddie Jordan on drums

Mithun Divakaran with Rick Astley Singapore F1 — Mithun Divakaran, officially ‘Rick-Rolled’

Shakira Singapore F1 Saturday concert — Next up, the incredibly sexy, talented Shakira. But all her writhing about and moaning got a bit annoying for me after a while.

Shakira hip dancing on stage Singaporean girls F1 concert — Four lucky Singaporean girls got a chance to shake their hips with Shakira as well

Brazilian samba dancers Singapore F1 performance — They also flew in a Brazilian samba dance troupe. Never seen hips being shaken so violently before! I don’t know how they do it, but I hope to see the Rio Carnival in person one day.

2011 Singapore grand prix concert stage — Finally, closing out Saturday’s entertainment…wait for it…

Shaggy Singapore F1 Saturday concert — “Singapore! Remember me?…. No? Aw, come on!…”

Shaggy concert Singapore F1 2011 — I didn’t bother staying too long for Shaggy’s set. As with all rap/reggae/urban artists, half the time it was instructions: “throw your hands in the air!” “say woahhh” “do this, do that!” -_-

Shaggy back-up singers bored Singapore Saturday concert — “Oh just give it up Shaggy”

Day 7 was the big race on Sunday.

Forbidden Broadway Singapore show lion king spoof — Sunday’s entertainment for me began with the off-broadway show Forbidden Broadway. A musical spoofing pretty much every popular hit broadway show from The Lion King to Wicked and more. Pretty funny, if you got the jokes that is!

New York off-broadway Lion King spoof — They mostly made fun of Disney’s infiltration of broadway with their properties and how Disney fool people into thinking everything from The Little Mermaid to Mary Poppins (both of which they also spoofed) are any good on live theatre.

Red Bull Racing Singapore grand prix F1 race day — Watched a bit of the race from the corners where I could manage to take a few decent snaps

Linkin Park Singapore F1 concert — But I headed back to the concert stage so I could get close enough to see the main reason why I booked my tickets in May itself: Linkin Park!

Chester Bennington Linkin Park Singapore F1 concert — Chester actually had a cast on his arm but performed on stage without it. Needless to say, he was his screaming best. What an incredible vocalist!

Mike Shinoda guitar Singapore Linkin Park concert — This is why I can’t do without my 70-200mm lens. Hardly did any adjustments to make this photo look any better.

After feeling great about getting my SGD138 worth of entertainment, I took the last train to Marina Bay to go see The Chemical Brothers perform at the Avalon Club.

Avalon Club Singapore F1 after race party — After dancing for more than hour to hits like “Star Guitar” “Don’t Think” and “Do it Again,” I kept wondering why the smoke machine was on until Boy George began his set. Made me question if The Chemical Brothers were even there! I felt cheated in some ways.

Day 8, I went to IKEA for some shopping before heading to the airport at 5:30pm.

IKEA lunch food pizza meatball fries Appleberry — Finally had lunch from an IKEA and tasted their famed Swedish meatballs

Anyway, there’s a lot more to say and hundreds more photographs to put up. I will begin this Singapore series once I complete my Philippines series.

Update – Read this series here:

Singapore 2011: Day 1 – Landing a second time; walking around CBD

Singapore 2011: Day 2 – Jurong Bird Park and… *ouch!*

Singapore 2011: Day 3 – Bukit Timah and Singapore Botanic Gardens

Singapore 2011: Day 4 – Marina Bay Sands Casino and views from the SkyPark observation deck

Singapore 2011: Day 5 – Chinatown, F1 Friday (Charice, Seungri and GD&TOP concerts)

Singapore 2011: Day 6 – F1 Saturday (Rick Astley, Shakira and Shaggy concerts)

Singapore 2011: Day 7 – Little India, F1 Sunday race, Linkin Park concert and Avalon Club

Leaving Singapore, and discovering certain truths about this famous city state

Philippines 2011: Day 8 – Manila tour: Rizal Park, Intramuros, Manila Cathedral, China Town

By Mithun Divakaran
/
Oct 03, 2011
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Philippines, Travel

Date: April 24th, 2011

Sunday, the concluding seventh day of my first week in Philippines. Today’s itinerary involved meeting my friend Aimee, and then letting her show me around Manila’s famous landmarks.

UN Avenue metro station Manila Philippines — Aimee asked me to get down at U.N. Avenue MRT station (taken on my Nokia E72)

After meeting her at a nearby 7-11, we stocked up on fluids and Aimee told me why its named U.N. Avenue.

UN Avenue Manila Philippines — The World Health Organization has an office here

Aimee first took me to Rizal Park, one of Manila’s largest public parks.

Rizal Luneta park Manila Philippines — It's also called Luneta Park

Rizal Park islands geography display Manila — This used to be filled with water. When viewed from higher ground, it's the geography of the Philippines

Rizal Park Sunday morning Manila Philippines — We just walked through the park

National Museum Rizal park Manila Philippines — The National Museum building

Rizal Park Lapu Lapu statue Manila Philippines — That's a statue honouring Lapu Lapu, considered to be Philippines' first national hero

The Orchidarium Manila Philippines — The Orchidarium and Butterfly Pavilion

Rizal park Philippines National heroes Manila — More national heroes

Chinese garden Rizal park Luneta Manila — The Chinese Gardens. They have a Japanese garden too.

Rizal Park Luneta monument Manila Philippines — This monument is in honour of Philippines' greatest patriot, Jose Rizal. It was on these grounds the revolutionary was executed by the Spanish, who colonized Philippines at the time.

Rizal park map layout Aimee Marie Manila Philippines — Aimee checks where we are

Jose Rizal park Luneta monument Manila Philippines — It was time to leave Rizal Park

Rizal Luneta monument Mithun Manila Philippines — Aimee took one of photo of me and we moved on

Kilometer zero Rizal park Manila Philippines — The clock structure you see on the left is called Kilometer Zero. It serves as a point from which every road is measured.

Horse chariot ride Roxas boulevard Manila Philippines — They have horse cart rides around this area, in which they take you all the way to Intramuros and other tourist attractions

Manila Hotel Roxas boulevard Philippines — The oldest hotel in Manila. Manila Hotel has seen everybody from The Beatles to John F. Kennedy among other famous guests. In other words, a very expensive place to people like you and me.

Plant trees outside Intramuros golf club Manila Philippines — We walked to Intramuros next

Tree plantation Intramuros golf club Manila Philippines — There's a golf course just outside Intramuros

Intramuros pavement sun shade Manila Philippines — It was scorching hot by the way

Intramuros main entrance Sunday Manila Philippines — There is no entrance fee for Intramuros

Intramuros entrance panorama Manila Philippines — Panorama comprised of 9 shots

Intramuros literally means “walled city” and was created during Spanish colonial rule. It’s the oldest district in Manila and one of the city’s biggest tourist attractions. It was built to keep invaders away, although, it eventually failed to do so as years progressed).

College of Nursing Intramuros Manila Philippines — There are many colleges and other educational institutions in Intramuros

Colegio De Santa Potenciana Manila Red Cross Intramuros Philippines — This building was formerly the Colegio De Santa Potenciana, the first girl's college in Manila. Now it's used as the office for the Philippines Red Cross.

Patio Victoria Intramuros Manila Philippines — This is a really popular venue for weddings and events

NCCA office Intramuros Manila Philippines — Office of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts

Intramuros filipino children playing Manila Philippines — A few people still call Intramuros their home

San Agustin church back walls Intramuros Manila Philippines — There are two main attractions inside Intramuros. One, the Manila Cathedral and two, the above -- San Agustin Church, the oldest church in Manila.

Urdaneta house Intramuros Manila Philippines — Intramuros still retains many of the colonial architecture

Jojie's jasper classic photography building Intramuros Manila — Despite the modern offerings, the overall classic look is still retained

San Agustin church cars parked Intramuros Manila Philippines — I wanted to check out San Agustin church, but unfortunately (for me) there was a wedding scheduled for today, being a Sunday that too.

San Agustin church world heritage site Intramuros Philippines — San Agustin church is a UNESCO World Heritage Site

Barbara's hotel Intramuros Manila Philippines — Hotel Intramuros inside

Ironcon builders road to Manila cathedral Intramuros Philippines — We walked towards the Manila Cathedral

Manila Cathedral front Intramuros Manila Philippines — We went in

Manila Cathedral hall praying Intramuros Philippines — While Aimee prayed, I continued shooting

Manila cathedral hall gothic architecture Intramuros — I love gothic architecture. Heck, I like all good architecture.

Manila Cathedral interiors ceiling dome Intramuros Philippines — Panorama comprised of 8 shots

Manila Cathedral mother mary statue glass art Philippines — Panorama comprised of 4 shots

Manila Cathedral organ pipes panorama — Panorama comprised of 6 shots

Manila cathedral Christian glass art window Philippines — I have always been enamored by glass art like this

Manila Cathedral pipe organ history — A little bit of history about the very old pipe organ

Manila cathedral pipe organ musical scores — There's a section of the church dedicated to historical trivia and relics

Manila cathedral glass painting church Philippines — More wonderful glass paintings

Manila cathedral pillars panorama — Panorama comprised of 5 shots

Manila Cathedral hall benches Intramuros — We decided to leave

Manila cathedral door carving Philippines — Carvings on the heavy wooden doors of the cathedral

Manila Cathedral Intramuros Philippines panorama — Attempted the fish-eye look

Walking out of the cathedral and past some of the ‘No to RH Bill’ banners around, I couldn’t help but turn the conversation about the controversial RH bill. Aimee told me how, even to this day, the Catholic church has such an influence over the people and policies in Philippines. The RH bill is basically aiming to promote the use of contraceptives and family planning in a bid to control population growth.

But what was even more shocking news to me was when Aimee told me divorce is yet to be legalized in Philippines! I mean, I considered a predominantly Christian country to be far more progressive in many regards, besides being educated. Clearly that wasn’t the case in Philippines. Now all the single pregnant women I saw across Philippines made sense. It’s like men abuse the law (or the lack of it) because they know there is little the woman can do.

Intramuros way to Fort Santiago Manila — Aimee took me next to Fort Santiago. Entrance fee was a steep PHP75.

Fort Santiago wall Intramuros Manila Philippines — The fort is of historical importance because it was where national hero Jose Rizal was imprisoned before his death

Fort Santiago wall path Intramuros Manila — We walked along the walls

View from Fort Santiago Manila — The view from the Fort

Fort Santiago prison cells Manila — Chambers used to hold prisoners

Pasig river behind Fort Santiago Manila Philippines — Got distracted by Pasig river

Pasig river slum children swimming Manila Philippines — There were children jumping into the river for a swim

Anyway, back to Fort Santiago.

Fort Santiago coins prison Manila — People throw coins into these chambers now... I don't know why

Fort Santiago dungeons Manila Philippines — Walked around to the side where you had these dungeons

Jose Rizal statue Fort Santiago Intramuros Manila — The man himself, Jose Rizal

Jose Rizal's steps Fort Santiago Philippines — They re-trace Rizal's final steps before he was executed by the Spaniards

House near Fort Santiago Intramuros Manila — We left Fort Santiago

Manila Cathedral zebra crossing Intramuros Philippines — We walked past Manila Cathedral again

We walked back to San Agustin church hoping the wedding would have been over by now…

San Agustin church door wooden carving Intramuros — ... but it wasn't. So I took a photo of the door and left.

Marine Officer's Seamen Union Philippines Manila — HQ of the Associated Marine Officers and Seamen's Union of the Philippines

Houses Intramuros Manila Philippines — We decided to have lunch

Filipino food chicken gravy beans rice Intramuros Manila — Stepped inside a small eatery and had some Filipino food. Totally came to PHP62 ($1.4/€1)

Intramuros alley Manila Philippines — We resumed our walk

Intramuros exit entrance Manila — We finally decided to leave Intramuros

Intramuros entrance under the bridge Manila — We left via another exit

Manila post office building fountain Philippines — Manila Post Office building

Manila Metropolitan Theater Philippines — The Manila Metropolitan Theater, renovated many times over but hardly in use nowadays

Way to Chinatown Manila — Aimee and I now walked towards 'Chinatown,' known locally as Binondo

Chinatown bridge Manila — We walked across a bridge

Bridge to Chinatown graffiti Manila — The bridge was decorated with lights...and graffiti

Pasig river Manila Philippines — Pasig river

Way to Chinatown fountain Manila — Not a very glamorous entrance, but apparently Manila's Chinatown is the oldest in the world

Arch of Goodwill Chinatown entrance Manila — This is the most famous street in Chinatown

Ongpin street Chinatown Manila Philippines — Ongpin is what it's called

Ongpin jewelry center Chinatown Manila — A lot of jewelry stores here

Chinatown betting OTB locals Manila — Betting on horse races is a popular pass time for many (broke) locals

Hopia mooncakes Filipino sweets Chinatown Manila — We (okay, okay... I) got distracted by the sweet smell of fresh hopias (mooncakes) being made at this bakery. Ended up buying a pack.

Aimee Marie Chinatown vegetable market Manila Philippines — Aimee, my wonderful 'guide' throughout Manila. She enjoys walking a lot just as much as I do.

Election posters criminal mugshots Chinatown Manila — Those photos make them look like wanted criminals. Oh wait, politicians, same thing.

Manila Chinatown Mithun Divakaran Philippines — One shot of yours truly before leaving Chinatown

Chinatown purple fire engines Manila — Chinatown gets cool looking purple fire trucks!

Chinatown Ongpin street security cameras Manila — Since a lot of affluent businessmen in Manila are Chinese, kidnappings are high. Aimee told me they have security cameras installed on this street.

Binodo church Ongpin street Manila — At the end of Ongpin street is Binondo church, also known as Minor Basilica of St. Lorenzo Ruiz

Binodo church Sunday prayers Manila — Today was Easter Sunday

Binondo church Chinatown Manila Philippines — The church was first erected in 1596, making it one of the oldest churches in Manila

Aimee decided it was enough of walking. She and I got into a jeepney and we thought of watching the sunset at Manila Bay.

Pedro Gil road to Robinsons Place Malate Manila — We got down near Pedro Gil MRT and walked up the road

Philippines Supreme court Manila Malate — Passed by the Supreme Court

Robinsons Place mall Malate Manila Philippines — We went inside one of Manila's most popular malls

Robinsons Place mall Cabalen Malate Manila Philippines — Plus we felt like soaking up some a/c

Robinsons Place mall elevator fountain Manila — Despite being a few years old, Robinsons Place is still very popular

Malate jeepney trike — We stepped out of the mall and made our way towards the bay

Roxas boulevard road Manila bay evening — Roxas boulevard

We sat on the ledge and gave our feet a break.

Manila Bay American Embassy Philippines — The white building is the United States Embassy

Manila Bay sunset Aimee Marie Manila — A big thanks to this girl for making the most of my day. I don't think I could have seen everything that I saw today for less than 100 pesos if it weren't for her.

Hotel H2O Manila Ocean park Philippines — That's Hotel H2O, part of Manila Ocean Park

Manila sunset golden sea Philippines — The sunset was wonderful, as always. Look how golden the water is.

Manila Bay Dog walking Philippines — The whole experience is a nice one, even for dogs

Except for a tiny incident which abruptly disappointed me… but I promised Aimee I wouldn’t mention it in the blog. So anyway, time to leave.

We walked back to Malate.

Malate Church manila bay Philippines — Malate Church

Malate Church sunday evening mass Manila Philippines — Easter Sunday prayers still going on

Robinson Place levels Manila Philippines — We went back to Robinsons Place because I now needed to look for something for my lens *cough*Aimee'sfault*cough*

Robinson Place mall stores Manila Philippines — Scanned a lot of electronics stores but no luck

Jailbreak services chicken Robinsons Place mall Manila — By the way, saw this at some store at Robinsons. I get everything mentioned here... except for the 'chicken' part. Could somebody tell me what it is?

We eventually left the mall as it was getting late for Aimee. We said our goodbyes and she told me which jeepney to get into to head back to Pasay, where I was staying at the Kabayan Hotel.

So that was my Sunday in Manila. Lots of photos, I know! Tomorrow, I begin the second leg of my journey across the Philippines and for the next seven days, it’s all islands. So here come the blue waters!