Saturday, December 28, 2024

Is Manila really as bad as Filipinos say?

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YES and NO.

If you came from develop foreign country and you’re used to live in a quiet serene neighborhood, I suggest you'll do a planned booking at some posh condo or hotel in BGC or Makati and go straight there once you set your foot in the Philippines.

I don't live in Manila. But I occasionally went there. I went to Baclaran, Divisoria, Quiapo, etc. I also went to Makati, Pasay, BGC, Quezon City, etc. If you're a foreign keen observer, you can instantly observed the obvious inequalities of wealth among people. The rich continue to prosper, the influential people continue to blaze and their names forever heard on national tv, etc. You can see it everywhere, from the food peddlers, street vendors, to politician riding fancy cars, oblivious of the sorroundings.

It's not bad living in Manila, if, you have the means to live there. It's not also bad to live there, if you're street smart enough to learn the art of lifestyle of Manileños. Living there is like living in haze, people are always awake, working and earning enough to sustain the basic needs.

I remember going there taking a night trip from Baguio to Cubao. It's a 6 hours travel, and I arrive there at 2 am. I was literally hungry, starved. At the side of the terminal, there's this decent barbecue stall, yes, still operating at 2am in the morning! Serving a combo meal of rice and barbecue, stir fried vegetables with hot soup on the side. And here, costumers are lining up for an early chow. In the different places like my hometown, you can't see business outlets operating in the wee hours (except of course those 24–7 stores like 7–11 and Mercury Drug).

Manila never sleeps.

I'm not saying Manila is bad, but it isn't good either. One thing for sure is Manila isn't a place for the weak or incompetent to survive. It is a place for a real life show of life survival.

(The pictures below I took when I was strolling there.)

Take note, I didn't “handpicked” pictures. This is an average site you always see when you go in the metro.

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