The Philippines. Part II. Manila, Subic Bay, Corregidor, Taal
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September 11–14, 2012
It’s fairly challenging to get around in the cities because jeepneys, tricycles and people keep getting underfoot. Linking the cities, however, are excellent, very American-like highways.
Manila
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There are many places in the world which can be described as “a city of contrasts,” but Manila is special. These days, no one is shocked by the sight of destitute, completely naked children running around in front of five-star hotels begging for change.
A father and son cooking dinner in the kitchen. Seen things like this before.
A woman in her dwelling. Got almost the same thing back home.
This family is well-off: they have a junk van. Half their belongings are stored under the van. Also not that shocking.
Normal buildings exist here, naturally.
But vast numbers of people live in regular slums.
Despite the prevailing poverty, Filipinos don’t despair. Everyone is cheerful and non-aggressive.
There’s also one neighborhood here which is always very tranquil.
It’s a Chinese neighborhood.
There are no beggars here. The facades are well-maintained.
Protestants, Buddhists and Catholics live side-by-side.
Street stalls aren’t aggressively hawking their wares. The neighborhood is very quiet.
Chinese dogs guard the house entrances. The yards are all well-manicured.
Every house belongs to a certain family.
Tourists are few and far between.
Let’s step into an alley where the commoners reside.
What does a typical building here look like? There’s always a bathroom in one corner.
A modest kitchen in the other.
A portrait of the master of the house on the wall.
And the master himself in the middle of the room.
This is a Chinese cemetery.
Behind the wall, the bustling life of the metropolis continues.
Filipinos love karaoke so much that they sing right in the street.
Street signs.
House numbers resemble license plates.
Imagination runs wild when it comes to the design of the city’s street lights.
Water meters.
A cast iron, birdhouse-shaped fire alarm box that looks like it was lifted straight out of New York City.
The country’s postal system is dead. Plans are underway to turn the main post office into a hotel.
The only post boxes in the entire country are American. They’re located inside that very post office.
Somewhere, suckling pigs were being roasted.
Somewhere, a jeepney drove by.
Somewhere, street food was being cooked right on a tricycle.
Poor people in shacks built over the river were getting ready for dinner.
Somewhere, a woman was smoking while breastfeeding her already sizeable child. Which didn’t get in the way of her simultaneously playing bingo with her girlfriends.
Corregidor
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This island, located 50 km outside of Manila, was once heavily fortified. Then aviation was invented, and the island lost its defensive purpose. Preliminarily, of course, it was thoroughly bombed during World War II.
The giant Japanese cannons have never fired a shot.
All the storerooms and tunnels have rusted through.
Today it’s one big memorial. No saxophone playing, please.
Subic Bay
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One of the few places in the country where the local self-made public transportation vehicles are not jeep-based.
No one is fazed by bats in a church.
The hydrants here feature supernumerary nipples and are protected with posts on all four sides.
An aboriginal man in Crocs.
Instructions for the stop sign: the first one who stopped is the first one who gets to go. It’s all based on the principle of being gentlemanly.
Subic Bay was once home to a US military base. But twenty years ago, a dormant volcano became active and covered everything with ash, so the Americans moved. The city turned into a free trade zone. And acquired some recycling bins.
Taal
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This is the smallest volcano in the world. It’s located in the middle of a lake, and inside its crater is another lake which contains another small island. Which is all great, except that I was left with a very foggy notion of what it all actually looks like.
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