The Juned Sonido Manila Tour

Disclaimer: I justed named the tour after my dear friend, Juned, because he gallantly volunteered to be the tour guide for us and not because it is an "official" tour.

My friends from Davao flew in last week for the iBlog4 Summit and mentioned that they wanted to tour Manila. Being a Manilenya I just took it for granted that all the "Old Manila" places are just around. At one point in my career I was there almost everyday, so I really didn't notice much what was in Binondo and Intramuros.

So last Sunday off I went with my friends to Binondo where we walked from Savory through Quintin Paredes where the Binondo Church is located. After taking photos of the famous church we traversed Ongpin to the Estero where we had a sumptuous lunch of Chinese food. A quick walk around Binondo proved that there weren't any "Quickly" stalls in the area so we turned back towards Quintin Paredes when we reached Reina Regente.

We then proceeded to Intramuros for a quick look of the place and settled at the San Agustin Church where we witnessed 3 weddings in less than 3 hours. I must admit there were a lot of makatindig-balahibo places at the museum and a photo just mysteriously showed up in my camera when I was downloading photos (creeepyyy!!!). There were a lot of beautiful relics though made of ivory and gold. I cannot imagine how the olden priests wore those gold-laden robes, mabigat na, mainit pa! Security was quite strict about photography in those places.

After Intramuros we rushed to the Mall of Asia to catch the 5:00 p.m. Manila Bay Cruise. Yes! Seriously! A cruise on Manila Bay. The Metrostar Ferry claim that the cruise is, "Scenic. Romantic. Relaxing." After the long day walking around Binondo and Intramuros I must say that the three adjectives describe the cruise appropriately. Too bad though, there was only a semi-sunset. Boohoo.

Here's my vlog about the J.S. Manila Tour -



Some tips if you want to do the tour:

Binondo: Go on a Sunday, most establishments would be closed, but it's easy to park. Park at Savory and just take a walk down Quintin Paredes and then turn right at Ongpin (by the Binondo Church). You can also buy gold jewelry at the many shops in the area. We spent around PhP200 each for food.

Intramuros: We parked beside Casa Manila and just crossed the street to the San Agustin Church and Museum. The museum fee is PhP100, students get a discount.

Manila Bay Cruise: The Metrostar Ferry terminal is located behind the SMX at the Mall of Asia (beside the church). The Manila Bay Cruise cost only PhP120. Schedules: 11:15 a.m., 3:30 p.m., 5:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. If you go on the 5:00 p.m. trip on a Friday or Saturday the ship docks near the fireworks barge. Tel. No. 632-4078826/26 or 0928-6774221.

On a Hot Day

Mall of Asia is indeed a really, really HUGE mall. It'll take you more than a day to go through it (give it a couple of days). Have you been to the San Miguel Baywalk at the back of the mall?


You can just walk and walk and walk...


And when you're tired from walking you can always go to an ice cream parlor...


And eat yummy ice cream.


And just hang-out.

The Wonder of Wanders

I still don't know what to say exactly about the show... I am...

Awed
Elated
Mystified
In shock
Stressed out
Freaked out

Well, here's preview of the show. You won't find any viewer videos because the venue was very strict about bringing in cameras. Anyway, you would really have to watch it live to appreciate the show -



Anyway, Wanders has been showing the past few months here in Manila at the Pagcor Theater in Paranaque City and I had the privilege of watching it last night with Sweetie and his parents (super duper thanks Tito and Tita for inviting me!). I was in the brink of exhaustion when Sweetie fetched me at work yesterday and I was scared that I might fall asleep during the show so I tried to conserve as much energy on the way to the theater.



I've never been to Pagcor (to think it's just a few minutes away from where I live) so I was quite excited about finally setting my foot in the place. I didn't know that they had a theater and was surprised that it was fairly big, had good equipment and is well-maintained. The ushers were also dressed up in suits and managed to hustle and bustle people about. Entering the theater though was quite an unruly experience. It was a bit embarrassing to see yourself on the video screen as you enter the hall. Anyway, Sweetie and I settled in our seats comfortably and managed to chat a bit with his parents before the show started. I think though they should have closed the doors before the show started since it was quite noisy because they were still letting people in.

The show actually started from the back. The stage wasn't just the stage, but the whole theater was the stage. It was definitely a visual feast with performers coming out from different places - the back, little nooks on the wall and even from the ceiling! It was actually better to be seated from the back because you'd manage to see everything.

I don't actually know how to describe what I saw. Visually, I didn't actually know where to focus anymore since there were many things to see (and I mean that in a positive way). The first "act" mainly showcased the whole cast - acrobats, Russian dancers, the singers, contortionists, fire-breathing dragons, dancing snakes... oh I'm just kidding about the last two. I cannot remember the chronology of events, and the myriad of colors, dancers, sounds is now all just a blur to me, but I do remember feeling awed, elated, mystified, shocked, stressed and freaked out all at the same time... and awake.

Here are some key things I remember:

1. The contortionists - they did not seem to have any bones at all. I personally cannot bend over without hurting my back. You'd see some of the stuff they did in the video above. However they did it looked totally effortless to me.

2. The drummers - it looks like it was the Manouevers who performed this segment. They were very funny and very Filipino. The drum beats sounded a lot like the ABS-CBN summer spiel. I wonder if it is the same or copied?

3. The white-clothed trapeze/dancers/acrobats - I don't know what to call them, but there were two sets of these performers. It's quite hard to describe what they did, but one managed to bend forward ala Michael Jackson without falling off. The other "couple" did a stint similar to the performance I watched at Prince of Jaipur last week, but it was more scary and dangerous. Sorry but I just can't seem to find the right words to describe it.

4. The acrobats - I think it's safe to assume that most (if not all) of the acrobats were from China. They actually got me stressed out because they were doing things that could possibly break their necks. Imagine swinging on polls and then flying through the air to another poll. They looked like Spiderman swinging from one building to another. I also cannot imagine how they managed to go through rings like what dolphins do.

5. The singers and dancers - aside from the singing an dancing I got dazzled with the costumes. The set design was also awesome. I would mention the "Tarzan" act too, but I watched something like it in Hongkong Disneyland and I think "Tarzan's" act was better, but no less dangerous. The "Wanders Tarzan" though could go to the top of a rope in just a few seconds (I'm sure he'd beat coconut climbers with no sweat).

I don't think I have done any justice to the performance given by the Wanders cast. The show was just ultimately awesome and cannot be described. No video or write up about it would do justice... JUST WATCH!

Davao F.A.T.: 3-Days of Non-Stop Eating!

These 4 vlogs chronicle the grand time I had in Davao -



Read more about Davao F.A.T. Day 1: Heavenly Food at Lachi's.



Read more about Davao F.A.T. Day 2: Homestyle to Sowsi Gastronomic Delights.



Read more about Davao F.A.T. Day 3: Eden Nature Park.



Read more about Davao F.A.T. Day 3: Just When You Thought it was Over.

Special thanks to: DavaoFoodTrip.org, MyDavaoCity, AngDabawenyo and TheUsualSuspects.

Photos & Videos by: Aileen, Jay and Andrew

My New Lakbayan Rating

The last time I took Eugene's Lakbayan rating exam was around June last year and after all the places I've been to the past three quarters I thought of taking the test again and here's my new rating:

My Lakbayan grade is B-!

How much of the Philippines have you visited? Find out at Lakbayan!

Created by Eugene Villar.

Wow! I now get a B-! I hope I get to see more of my country this year!