Manila for a Aussie

[Georgebob]

Guys I arrived yesterday in Manila 

I'm a Old Aussie guy with a Thai lady friend brought her to Manila for a few days 

Apart from the intrusive questioning yesterday by Manila immigration all is going well.....they demanded to see my return flight...I had log in again to the airline website etc 

Then they ,(a hard faced immigration woman ) asked why I was bringing a Thai girl here who is 45yo so not young ,does she intend to work etc 

Finally we got through 

So I'm glad I have you guys to guide me 

The jeepneys I got one yesterday first time ,the driver was great I was the only one in there so he spoke to me ,think it was something like 25 pesos for 2 of us ,he told me to get out to change buses 

But how do I pay ,do I actually get out similar to Thailand and pay the driver if the jeepney is full ?

Also what others should be in my list the next 5 days ?

I would like to try going to Tondo ,just the markets or walking experience, is there a mall there ?

I noticed Eastwood City from my hotel in Makati is 500 pesos in a grab ,is it worth going to ?

Yesterday I was in a lovely area walking De Rosa Ave ,seemed to be young foreigners there with expensive cars ,I'm not sure what that area was but seemed a lot of banks 

I checked out Chinatown,if it was the right one it's not big like other cities 

I travelled on the LRT or SkyTrain , Central terminal which is a small station to United nations 30 pesos 

Also is GRAB the only transport app?

I don't think they have Bolt here 

If I lived here I would have to learn the buses or jeepneys obviously can't afford grab everyday if you lived here 

Every bus seems to have S.cruz on the front any idea 

Also I'm in Makati can I get a bus to the Rizal park area or a SkyTrain ?

 

Thanks guys 

 

 

Edited May 19 by Georgebob

[scott h]

6 hours ago, Georgebob said:

Also I'm in Makati can I get a bus to the Rizal park area or a SkyTrain ?

NO! Busses here are not the busses you are used to. for the most part they are used as point to point transportation from the provience to the city where folks then transfer to other transportation modes. The one exception it the edsa carousel. But that is only along one main street here

6 hours ago, Georgebob said:

But how do I pay

You get in the back of the jeep, sit down, hand you neighbor your fare, he or she passes it up to the driver, who will pass back any change.

6 hours ago, Georgebob said:

I would like to try going to Tondo

What the Hell for!!!  Tondo has the worst reputation of just about any place in Manila! 

I will be perfectly honest with you. Manila has very little to recommend itself. Other than the few upscale areas you have already mentioned, Greenfield, Bonafacio Global city, Makati and the like which are high end business and commercial areas. Nice malls, wide streets, well dressed people (mostly). Then you have Rizal park as you mentioned, but it is pretty shabby compared to a park are in Syndney. Intramuros (the original Spanish settlement area, old fortress walls and Spanish style buildings). No if you like old, old churches and cathedrals there are plenty of those all over the country. If you a WW2 buff, a trip to Corregidor Island is worth a visit.

For our part (and most Filipinos I know) when we have family visit the first thing we do is take them OUT of Manila. To places like Tagaytay, or Batangas. In reality Manila is just one big slum. 

[Georgebob]

I guess being a City boy from Sydney living in King's Cross I love cities everywhere 

Manila is starting to grow on me , even though I'm heading back to Bangkok this week.

I had a few ask me for money here in Manila but not aggressive,in Sydney the beggars can be aggressive 

But I have a few days left here in Manila so I hope I can learn more 

[Clermont]

An old king’s cross boy, well Manila won’t have anything like the old Texas tavern or of old, the strip clubs with bounces at the door stopping sailors from entering but I know you’re not interested, there is still a fare scattering of poofters, most of Manila is pretty tame nowadays not like days of old, shopping is the go, one attraction they haven’t mentioned is the Mall Of Asia, shopping only and another thing take toilet paper with you everywhere. Well seeing your from an Asian part you’ll know the ins and outs of safety at night, so enjoy yourself, Manila is just as safe as Sydney if you respect it has undesirables living there, good luck and enjoy 

[MotorSarge]

3 hours ago, scott h said:

In reality Manila is just one big slum. 

[MotorSarge]

4 minutes ago, MotorSarge said:

Scott....We love of city of Manila....Sad to hear

the opposite from others.

Edited May 20 by MotorSarge

[scott h]

1 minute ago, MotorSarge said:

We love of city of Manila

I love it to Sarge,,,,,,,,,,,,at least the places that I go to.......The places where I dont............nuke it 

[GeoffH]

18 hours ago, Georgebob said:

Also is GRAB the only transport app?

There is ANKAS but that's motorcycle taxis, not so useful if there are two of you.

[driveallnight]

Hey Georgebob, I live in Eastwood City. While Eastwood Mall itself is nothing exceptional, EC has plenty of restaurants, bars, boutiques, etc. It is also both totally walkable and totally secure, with security officers posted up nearly every 100 meters. 

Edited May 20 by driveallnight

[graham59]

I have resided in, and been in and out of Manila for 34 years now, and I can think of dozens of places in the Phils preferable to that filthy, traffic-choked, polluted place. 

Widen your horizons people. 

Edited May 20 by graham59