Manila: Home away from home
As far as travelling around the city is concerned, I found Filipinos to be generally friendly and hospitable.
As the airplane started its descent into Manila, I gazed out of the window and looked out onto dozens of waterways cutting through fields and populated areas.
I’d wanted to visit the Philippines ever since the department of tourism unveiled a new slogan which translates to “Philippines so beautiful,” in a bid to boost tourism to the country.
It took fourteen hours for me to travel from Karachi to Manila, but after all that I was still alert enough to be pleasantly surprised by the airport. We landed at Ninoy Aquino International Airport at around 4 pm — the airport is named after Benigno ‘Ninoy’ Aquino, a former Governor who opposed Ferdinand Marcos. His assassination in 1983 provided the spark for the people’s movement that swept Marcos from power. It’s one of the world’s busiest airports and is among the top fifty airports with the heaviest traffic. The airport has a great staff to passenger ratio, and we were able to get through customs and leave the airport in about 50 minutes.
The drive from the airport to our hotel in Makati was pleasant and took just about 25 minutes. There was not much traffic on the roads since most people were busy celebrating Eid-e-Qurban, a day before Eid in Pakistan was celebrated in 2010. This was quite surprising to me, since I had been told that 80 per cent of the population of the Philippines is Catholic, 15 per cent of the population belongs to indigenous groups and Muslims constitute just 5 per cent of the total population.
Makati City is the city’s main business hub — its business district is said to be rivalling the business districts of Singapore and Hong Kong in its capitalistic buzz. A lot of people I met strongly believe that a new Philippines is emerging — a country that is breaking with its past. Tourism and remittances are major factors contributing to the Philippines’ economic growth.
With remittances worth about $21.3 billion flowing into the country this year, the Philippine workforce has become the country’s biggest export. This makes the Philippines the fourth biggest recipient of remittances worldwide, trailing behind India, China and Mexico. It is estimated that 9 million nationals work outside the Philippines.
With a projected GDP growth of about 6.5 per cent this year, the country’s foreign exchange reserves are likely to touch $60 billion by the end of the year.
Some Filipinos, however, were of the opinion that official figures of growth are inflated and that corruption, nepotism and coercion are quite common. To my surprise, locals said that even in the capital city you will find roads full of potholes, blocks with no street lights, and poor sanitation. As for me, I didn’t see much that would have allowed to me form the same conclusions.
As far as travelling around the city is concerned, I found Filipinos to be generally friendly and hospitable. English is spoken widely and easily understood. The night life in Manila is vibrant, and Filipinos seemed to be very welcoming to foreigners.
While staying in Manila or Makati, Muslim visitors have to do lot of research to find places where Halal food is available. Driving to Manila’s downtown (to Quiapo - a Muslim District in Central Manila), where a number of restaurants and food outlets offer Halal Food is not hassle-free because a lot of traffic clogs the roads. Quiapo is located at the very centre of Manila and is home to a sizeable Muslim population, which is roughly around 16 per cent of Manila’s total population. Christians and Muslims live here peacefully side by side.
We were lucky to discover two places in Makati at walking distance from our hotel. The “Persian Kebab Inc” and “Al Batra” are both located at Makati Avenue where we had delicious continental dishes that were truly satisfying.
At “Al Batra” a large image of Quranic verses hung at the main entrance, much to our delight. Besides continental dishes, both food outlets also offer Arabic and Persian menus.
One day while walking to the restaurant for lunch we saw a vendor selling fresh mangoes in a basket made of straw. These mangoes looked similar to our ‘Chaunsas’ but were slightly smaller. We were so excited that we asked for mangoes after we were through with our lunch. These mangoes were pretty tasty but not as tasty as the ’Chaunsa’.
Downtown Manila is famous for its sea food. Here, grilled and steamed fish and shrimp are served with a selection of sausages and slices of lemon that can fully satisfy your craving for sea food.
Pre- Christmas buying had begun as early as mid November and people had started crowding super markets and departmental stores. A number of Christmas bazaars are also organised before Christmas at various places in the city outside the main markets. The stalls here sell the cheapest stuff and shoppers naturally gravitate here.
As continuous and heavy rain results in massive flooding in Metro Manila and makes life difficult, visitors to Manila are advised not to visit the city during monsoon season.
On my return to the airport, when I handed over my passport to the officer at the immigration counter at Ninoy Aquino International airport, he said brightly “Assalam-o-Alaikum!” He said he hoped I would leave Manila with pleasant memories, and I nodded in affirmation.
Published in The Express Tribune, Sunday Magazine, February 27th, 2011.
I’d wanted to visit the Philippines ever since the department of tourism unveiled a new slogan which translates to “Philippines so beautiful,” in a bid to boost tourism to the country.
It took fourteen hours for me to travel from Karachi to Manila, but after all that I was still alert enough to be pleasantly surprised by the airport. We landed at Ninoy Aquino International Airport at around 4 pm — the airport is named after Benigno ‘Ninoy’ Aquino, a former Governor who opposed Ferdinand Marcos. His assassination in 1983 provided the spark for the people’s movement that swept Marcos from power. It’s one of the world’s busiest airports and is among the top fifty airports with the heaviest traffic. The airport has a great staff to passenger ratio, and we were able to get through customs and leave the airport in about 50 minutes.
The drive from the airport to our hotel in Makati was pleasant and took just about 25 minutes. There was not much traffic on the roads since most people were busy celebrating Eid-e-Qurban, a day before Eid in Pakistan was celebrated in 2010. This was quite surprising to me, since I had been told that 80 per cent of the population of the Philippines is Catholic, 15 per cent of the population belongs to indigenous groups and Muslims constitute just 5 per cent of the total population.
Makati City is the city’s main business hub — its business district is said to be rivalling the business districts of Singapore and Hong Kong in its capitalistic buzz. A lot of people I met strongly believe that a new Philippines is emerging — a country that is breaking with its past. Tourism and remittances are major factors contributing to the Philippines’ economic growth.
With remittances worth about $21.3 billion flowing into the country this year, the Philippine workforce has become the country’s biggest export. This makes the Philippines the fourth biggest recipient of remittances worldwide, trailing behind India, China and Mexico. It is estimated that 9 million nationals work outside the Philippines.
With a projected GDP growth of about 6.5 per cent this year, the country’s foreign exchange reserves are likely to touch $60 billion by the end of the year.
Some Filipinos, however, were of the opinion that official figures of growth are inflated and that corruption, nepotism and coercion are quite common. To my surprise, locals said that even in the capital city you will find roads full of potholes, blocks with no street lights, and poor sanitation. As for me, I didn’t see much that would have allowed to me form the same conclusions.
As far as travelling around the city is concerned, I found Filipinos to be generally friendly and hospitable. English is spoken widely and easily understood. The night life in Manila is vibrant, and Filipinos seemed to be very welcoming to foreigners.
While staying in Manila or Makati, Muslim visitors have to do lot of research to find places where Halal food is available. Driving to Manila’s downtown (to Quiapo - a Muslim District in Central Manila), where a number of restaurants and food outlets offer Halal Food is not hassle-free because a lot of traffic clogs the roads. Quiapo is located at the very centre of Manila and is home to a sizeable Muslim population, which is roughly around 16 per cent of Manila’s total population. Christians and Muslims live here peacefully side by side.
We were lucky to discover two places in Makati at walking distance from our hotel. The “Persian Kebab Inc” and “Al Batra” are both located at Makati Avenue where we had delicious continental dishes that were truly satisfying.
At “Al Batra” a large image of Quranic verses hung at the main entrance, much to our delight. Besides continental dishes, both food outlets also offer Arabic and Persian menus.
One day while walking to the restaurant for lunch we saw a vendor selling fresh mangoes in a basket made of straw. These mangoes looked similar to our ‘Chaunsas’ but were slightly smaller. We were so excited that we asked for mangoes after we were through with our lunch. These mangoes were pretty tasty but not as tasty as the ’Chaunsa’.
Downtown Manila is famous for its sea food. Here, grilled and steamed fish and shrimp are served with a selection of sausages and slices of lemon that can fully satisfy your craving for sea food.
Pre- Christmas buying had begun as early as mid November and people had started crowding super markets and departmental stores. A number of Christmas bazaars are also organised before Christmas at various places in the city outside the main markets. The stalls here sell the cheapest stuff and shoppers naturally gravitate here.
As continuous and heavy rain results in massive flooding in Metro Manila and makes life difficult, visitors to Manila are advised not to visit the city during monsoon season.
On my return to the airport, when I handed over my passport to the officer at the immigration counter at Ninoy Aquino International airport, he said brightly “Assalam-o-Alaikum!” He said he hoped I would leave Manila with pleasant memories, and I nodded in affirmation.
Published in The Express Tribune, Sunday Magazine, February 27th, 2011.