Rediscovering the Philippine Map (literally!)

Come May 20, get ready to see the Lazarus Magic in Rizal Park! That is, see the reborn of the iconic Relief Map of the Philippines from a very fresh and new perspective.

Many of you don’t know this yet. A huge section of Rizal Park in Manila is actually occupied by a pool-like feature that showcases the islands of the Philippines. From anybody’s eyeview, no one can actually see and appreciate this because the small view deck had been closed since the 90’s and was eventually torn down without replacing that cheapo structure (talk about priorities!). Its quite an irony, there was a huge map in the middle of the city that nobody could actually see! Both funny and sad.

But now, with an army of motivated gardeners and construction workers, the new director for Rizal Park (correct name of her office is – National Park Development Committee), Ms. Jett Villegas has been making lots of great improvements on the area and has transformed and brought it back to the people as a very, very significant social amenity for 16 million people. I know, its quite cryptic and probably only social scientists could understand what a social amenity is. But believe me, every decent civilization needs an open, green and well-landscaped space to help keep the happiness and sanity of its population.

Instead of rebuilding a viewdeck, a boardwalk is now constructed in the middle of the lagoon which should make people closer to the map and make them better appreciate the islands and the territories.

The map is located near the area of Agrifina Circle, where the old, American-style buildings of the Department of Tourism, the former office of the Department of Finance (which is now a museum), and the giant Lapu-lapu statue are located. For the oldies, the hero’s place used to be where the globe fountain was located. Its also in the Taft Ave. section of the Park,.

The launch will be at 7:00 A.M. of May 20 and another ceremony will be held in the afternoon of the same date.


Director Jett Villegas with her staff. Making sure that the relief map will be a proud feature of the park.

A Day in Quezon Memorial Circle

For somebody who spent most of his life in Quezon City and earning all his street smart badges, a visit to the Quezon Memorial Circle can be a very welcome knowledge trip.

The photo above is a far cry from how it looks now. There is now a good amount of trees and the ultra-wide road that encircles the property.

It was president Manuel L. Quezon who opened up this frontier of this part of Metro Manila more than 50 years ago.

The park has more than 20 hectares of property divided into activity centers, playgrounds, dining areas, and the memorial tower.

A nice surprise for the old-timers who have not visited the area for many years is the underpass that straddles the wide and very busy (and dangerous for hard-headed pedestrians!) rotunda road.


This place also hosts a good number of dining facilities that current diners are enjoying by themselves now.

The memorial tower.

Inside the memorial tower is a museum of many things about Manuel Quezon. Entrance is free, but bring a few pesos to drop in the donation box.

That's our man, El Presidente Manuel L. Quezon

This painting reminds me so much of the usual socialist illustration of progress. We go marching forward!!

What?! He kicked Culion to oblivion? Yeah, must read the whole story before thinking of anything. It was a simple case of trying to kick leprosy by finding some sort of a cure for the disease. Culion is an Island in Palawan Province where a leper colony was established. Now that there is a cure for the disease, the colony is now also gone.

You can say your final respect to the man. It was actually a good feeling hearing some locals who ventured into the museum and whispered that it was a nice place, after all.... and that they learned a lot. I saw some who were taking a peek inside the dark chamber leading to the museum and thinking twice whether they would go inside or not. THe guard had to repeatedly tell them that its totally alright to go inside, ha ha... really funny.... and a bit sad...

Much can still be done in the area to make more people take back the park for themselves, and in the process learn and appreciate the land and the man who made Quezon City a prosperous territory in the Philippines.

Pasig River - A Gem Covered with Muck

Two days from now (Oct 10) ABS-CBN Foundation will attempt to make a world record on running, the primary purpose of which is to bring awareness to the plight of Pasig River.

Its actually not that difficult to clean up the river..... yes... Money is always there (it just gets diverted elsewhere), there are enough people who can help. Its really about the national leadership and mayors of Metro Manila willing to step up to clean up the river. They've done it in so many other countries, there's no stupid reason why we cannot do it here.

Although tourism will benefit from a clean Pasig River, at the end of the day, it is really not about that industry. Its about the people living in a cleaner and more pleasant environment. A cleaner environment that attracts more investment and growth, a cleaner environment that improves the quality of life of the population, and yes, a cleaner environment that will define who the Filipino really is.

This is quite difficult to believe - despite its present condition, Pasig River holds some charm for those willing to discover it. I've got some level of confidence that I actually included the Pasig River as a tourist attraction in Manila through our travel website and iPhone app -

http://mytravelphilippines.com/pois/102878-Pasig-River.

If you don't believe me, lets set a date to discover the hidden beauty of Pasig River :D

Brochure - Orange Place

Mall of Asia - Timelapse

Here's my timelapse movie on the Mall of Asia. Because of its giant size, it has actually become a tourist attraction in Metro Manila. Many visitors are impressed, and some cannot believe that the Philippines can have a mall this huge. Shot with a Nikon D80 using a remote control timer. Shakes were caused by my sons who occassionaly bumped the tripod. It was a great moment to spend time with them, though plus doing this thing.

Brochure - The A. Venue Residences, Makati

Brochure - Prestige Cruises, Manila Bay

Brochure - Lancaster Hotels, Manila & Cebu

Brochure - Bellevue, Alabang

Brochure - La Mer Catering, Manila

Bonifacio High Street

One thing with this new landmark in Metro Manila is that it gives you a real fresh feeling, both visually and olfactory. The landscaping is great and really sprawling in the middle. This is matched by some modernist/eclectic/artsy works that make the scene really quite something out of the urban squeeze. Quite expensive to eat and buy things in the place, though. But there's the more pocket-friendly Market Market! a few meters away!



I was having a good time doing my first few clicks when an arrogant guard approached me when I pointed my camera at these buildings. He said I'm not allowed to take photos of the buildings! Whhaaaa??!! No point in arguing with that guard, he was just following orders.

Ey, what can I say about that policy? Stupid, stupid stupid!!! Well, some well-educated, intelligent people may have retained the stone-age mentality of their ancestors.

Aliwan - Before the parade, there came a heavy downpour

Aliwan Fiesta is a yearly event in Metro Manila awaited by many. Its actually a contest for various street parades participated in by different provinces and cities. So you could just imagine about a thousand street dancers dressed in various and impressive costumes, complete with floats and indigenous and lively dances.

This year, Aliwan is held on May 3 - 5. I came on the second day, the highlight of the event. What greeted me was very, very different.

Almost at the time when the parade was supposed to start (4:00 P.M.), the heavens poured down millions of gallons of rainwater and drenched the parade grounds.

Many thought that the whole thing would be cancelled. The dowpour lasted for more than one hour. Many got wet and shivered in the cold rain. Some street kids paraded half naked and taunted the the audience and participants huddled in some tents and whatever sheds they could find (including me). But when the rain stopped, everybody went back to work, fix the floats, re-arrange the mechandise, and secure a seat or a vantage point. Apparently, the rain only delayed the parade. I interviewed a parade participant who came from Bicol and he said that cancellation is not an option.

Well, that's showing you one kind of Filipino spirit in having great fun.

Strong winds and rain forced everybody to seek under whatever shelter they could find.

Floats were repaired in the midlle of the heavy downpour.

I wondered whether these chairs and tables were be of much use later on.

After the rain, some people went on a camera picture picture! frenzy with the costumed parade participants.

Well, you really have to expect the unexpected in a parade. Here a street beggar suddenly went to have her photos taken.

The clean-up begins, even in the middle of the rain.

People started securing prime spots even in the middle of the rain and more than two hours before the parade came to the area.

Thought that this is a nice way to end this blog....

Greenbelt, Makati

Although its quite far from my house, and I say to myself that I will try to avoid going to Makati because of the usual traffic, one-way streets (I really promised myself never to drive in that part of Metro Manila), there are actually some very good greens in the central business district. Like this landscape made between Greenbelt 3 and 4. what a refreshing way to be reminded of nature. Its like a tiny oasis in the middle of huge buildings that look like dipterocarp, concrete trees that try to outgrow each other.

Mall of Asia

Whether we admit it or not, the malls in Manila are now officially part of the tourist attractions in the country. Foremost is the Mall of Asia where there are hundreds of shops and the property actually extends to a kilometer in length. The place is actually visited by both foreign and domestic visitors and they are all awed by the immense size of the behemoth! Heck, my mouth was wide open when I first explored it on the first week it opened.


Its really a bit disorienting when you walk its wide halls, specially when there are few people inside. But when the throngs of people fill the mall, then things can get a bit crazy. Ey, if you want to enjoy the mall with the least number of people, go there when its doors just opened. And stay there, say until lunch time. If you want to experience real Filipino mall culture, go there on a Friday - Sunday afternoon, you'll see what I mean. Oh, there's a bonus on Fridays and Saturdays. At exactly 7 in the everning, an amazing fireworks display goes off at the bay side of the mall. Yeah, I just put in the word, "amazing" for the kids and guys like me who would like to think that we are not yet jaded on the old-style fun things.


The best way to get to the MOA is by cab (talk about.... okay, hit me!).

But if you want to save on money or just want to experience local transport, one of the best options is to take the elevated rail (MRT or even LRT line 1). Get off the Taft Avenue station (the last station of MRT), then get on a (very small) jeepney stationed near the steps of the MRT. If you're using the LRT1, you can either get off in Taft Ave. or Buendia (aka Gil Puyat) station. Same thing, there are small jeepneys (actually called multicabs) near the Buendia station going to MOA. Buses along EDSA going to Baclaran also pass by the mall. If you take a bus (air-conditioned, never ordinary - you'll know what I mean when you try the ordinary bus), you must bring a lot of patience as those buses really take their time moving to earn more fare.

Macapagal Boulevard, Pasay

From part of the sea where I used to swim in polluted waters in the 70's (i was a veeery young kid then, okay?), this section of the Metropolis is now a sprawling ground for various facilities. And some are actually great tourist finds - like this Dampa style, food galore, section. This is where you buy raw food stuff (ala-palengke), then have it cooked in one of the restaurants in the area. Tip: you get the best value for your money if you come with a minimum of four persons in your group.

If you don't have plans to get a gourmet adventure in this part of Macapagal Avenue on a Friday night, I suggest you take a different route as the traffic can become a poster shot of how a traffic looks like in the Philippines.

Another great find is the Balikbayan shop where you find local crafts and great souvenir items. The stuff they sell actually look pricey. But here's a tip: ask for a discount and most likely you'll get a good rebate (except for the t-shirts, and maybe some other stuff).