Listing places in Manila meant a possibility of discovering something about the Philippine capital that other tourists may have missed. If you haven’t been to Manila, this is a good time to explore the city. From the parks to the historical sites and places to dine. There is so much to discover and rediscover about this city that some travel guidebooks may have missed. Ready to get a renewed look?
Places in Manila
iChill Theater Cafe
iChill Theater Cafe is one of the few places in Manila where the original Spanish version of the twin best-sellers Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo are found. Both novels are written by national hero, Dr. Jose P. Rizal. A theater cafe that occasionally serves as an art gallery. It soon housed a library that challenged the level of thinking of visitors that hung around here. It isn’t surprising to find this theater-themed cafe by the university belt area. An ideal place to take advantage of the budding liberal arts education coupled with a warm environment to welcome students and book lovers alike.
Places in Manila
Intramuros
Literally translated as “walled city”, much of the fortress once found in Manila is still around for tourists to roam around with. It has a certain European look that fascinates tourists local and foreign. It must have been the churches, the cobblestone sidewalks and museums that lined up the streets. Modernity has arrived Intramuros through the bamboo bikes that give you an option to bike around the vicinity. It cannot be helped as Intramuros alone is more than a handful that you can take.
History nerds would take pride in walking around here. It is the closest thing that they could get to embracing the Hispanic era that clutched the archipelago for 3 centuries. Most sites that are preserved are aligned with some of the best maintained gardens in the area. Various statues are found around here as solid proof of the colonial past that overstayed its welcome. Not that it’s a bad thing. Intramuros won’t be one of the top places in Manila if people authorized to maintain it did not do a good job at doing so.
Places in Manila
Fort Santiago
Adjacent to Intramuros is Fort Santiago. It often gets mentioned in Manila tourist guidebooks as the site where Philippine national hero was imprisoned prior to his execution by firing squad. There is a haunting quality to the surroundings. As if a reminder among places in Manila that served as a grim reminder of all the Filipinos that risked jail time in their quest for freedom.
Some passageways looked like tunnels. There are even some cells that reminded tourists of the period films set in Europe. The Philippine Department of Tourism even refurbished some areas significant to its most important prisoner ever. It is one of the places in Manila that easily comes to mind when exploring the final hours of Rizal.
Places in Manila
Rizal Park
Once known as Bagumbayan, it was renamed Rizal Park. If Fort Santiago served as Rizal’s death row prison, Rizal Park was home to Rizal’s place of death. At the heart of this park lay the remains of the late hero transferred from his original burial site at Paco Park. Soon, other monuments paying homage to other national heroes like Lapu Lapu are found in this park. Among the places in Manila, this serves as the main site of commemoration rites during Rizal’s death anniversary dated way back in 30 December 1896. Done once a year, it has become the ground zero for government officials to welcome foreign dignitaries interested in remembering one of the greatest Asian heroes of the 19th century.
Places in Manila
Manila Bay
After spending all day roaming the places in Manila listed here, you take a much deserved rest waiting for the sunset. An area lined up with cafes and bistros. Much of the problem lay in picking a spot with which you can get a better view of the sunset. It’s the kind of sight best enjoyed with family and friends. Anyone special in your life that you can take by the bay would be great too. A very romantic view to set the mood indeed.
Who would have realized places in Manila would assemble a simple itinerary on your first visit in the city? You can start at any point mentioned in this article. Knowing them is the first step to an enthralling journey. More insights on Manila to come in the following week. So might as well click “Like” on our official Facebook page, The Philippines Web. And follow us on Twitter @pinasamazing. We’d be expecting you.
