Last night I found a bar/restaurant where the live music was brilliant. So I spent a very pleasant few hours enjoying the sounds in the company of 3 Jacks that would make a certain friend very jealous! I, however, stuck to beer as usual but was still a bit fuzzy this morning!
On the way back to my hotel I was accosted by a very attractive ladyboy who asked me, in a very high and somewhat squeaky voice, if I wanted any company. When I replied with the stock answer “Sorry but my wife’s waiting for me in my hotel room” his/her voice dropped a couple of octaves and in a deep bass said ‘ OK darling. Have a good evening’!
Having fully recovered from this encounter, this morning I battled through the horrendous traffic once more (it really is very, very bad) as I was determined to visit Intramuros, the walled city built by the Spaniards as their Philippine HQ after they had conquered the country at the end of the 16th century. It is an area rich in history both old and, thanks to WWII, quite new. To get the most out of my visit I employed the services of a local 24 year old and his trusted cycle taxi
who proudly told me he had been working as an Intramuros tour guide for 8 years!! His knowledge of the area was truly encyclopaedic. He confused me at first by saying that he had been born in the USA until, with a smile he told me this meant Unofficial Squatters Area
very close to some fine examples of Spanish architecture.
This one is now owned by a wealthy Chinese gentleman who insists on repainting it in some fairly un Spanish colours every year for good luck!
There are not so many well preserved buildings in Intramuros but there is one which shows in what style the ruling Spanish lived whilst poverty existed all around them and to some extent still does today. Beautifully appointed accommodation
with splendid courtyards
patios and terraces.
Unsurprisingly, churches abound here, one of the oldest being that of San Augustin which was opened in 1607
where today a wedding ceremony was about to begin.
The outer walls of Intramuros somewhat curiously adjoin Manila’s city centre’s golf course
which my guide told me was ‘only for the rich people’. As there was not a rich person in sight, I was in no danger.
The battle for the retaking of Manila in 1945 from the Japanese was a truly atrocious affair. Much of Manila was flattened including many of the beautiful old buildings in Intramuros. Either through lack of desire or lack of funds (or both) there is still much evidence of the devastation and unbelievable barbarism meted out mainly by the Japs.
This battlement originally sat on the water’s edge before post war reclamation work began and regularly filled with tidal water. The Japanese held American and Filipino prisoners here. When the tide came in, those who could not swim drowned. And those who could were shot anyway. Charming!
The battle for the liberation of Manila took a heavy toll. It is estimated that more than 100,00 civilian men, women and children died in the fighting between February and March 1945.
I’m now off for a beer to cheer myself up!
Phileas
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