Manila - A city of contrasts (Manila)

Member Name: will-owl

Product:	Manila
Date:	26/01/01 (131 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: friendly people

Disadvantages: dirty, polluted, beggars.

MANILA, a city full of contrasts, from the rich beautiful buildings of its
colonial past to the present day corrugated roofed patched wooden
dwellings. Where child beggars turn up their dirty palms to shiny black
Mercedes benz cars waiting at the traffic lights.Where it takes six months to get a phone line but one day to make a best friend. This is Manila, the capital city of the Philippines.

No review of Manila is complete without mention of Manila's traffic
jams. If you think you have seen the worst of jams, visit Manila and
you will very soon change your mind. The city has had to come up with ingenious ways of reducing traffic, including barring odd and even numbered registered vehicles from entering the city on different days of the week. So, if your car registration began with a '6' for instance, you might not be allowed to drive in the city on a Wednesday.

Shopping is good in Manila and cheaper than Singapore or Malaysia,
for instance, especially for well known brands. Among the city Malls
that could hold an attraction for the visitor are Glorietta and Gaisano Mall.

Above all, the best thing about Manila or even the Philippines are its
people, they are the friendliest, most easy-going people in the region,
even though deeply religious. Nearly all taxis are adorned with a Jesus o Mary figurine and sermons and prayer groups regularly take place in city parks.

Remember to have a nick name ready for yourself when you visit the
Philippines, you will definitely be asked to give one. If your name is John, you'll probably get called Johnny or Jo-Jo or something equally cutesy. Its a sign of the trust and friendship that they have for visitors to their country

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