Tourist Attractions In Manila

Named for Jose Rizal, the national hero who helped win freedom for the country, Rizal Park  is probably the Philippines’ best known- and most beautiful- public space. It’s a large park, which includes an artificial lake, a Chinese garden and a Japanese garden, a monument dedicated to Jose Rizal, an amphitheatre, a skating rink, and a children’s playground. The park is in the form of an oval which is better known as Luneta (derived from the word lunette, or small moon).   Monument in Rizal Park

It’s a good place to spend a quiet morning in (afternoons and evenings tend to get very crowded, so if you’re looking for seclusion, the morning is the best time), but if you’re there in the evening, you can watch the daily Son et Lumiere show. The show is an enactment of Jose Rizal’s execution (by a firing squad in 1898), and uses special light and sound effects, along with life-size statues to replay the event.

The usual `cultural village’ which is so common in many South Asian cities, Nayong Pilipino is Manila’s solution for the tourist who doesn’t have the time to fit all of the Philippines into his or her itinerary. The Nayong Pilipino is a representation- three dimensional- of all that’s famous in the Philippines- all the sights you should see, all the food you should eat, and all the handicrafts produced in the country. It spreads over 32 acres, and has replicas of Magellan’s Cross, the Chocolate Hills of Bohol, Mayon Volcano, and the Banaue Rice Terraces- among other sights. Along with these are traditional miniature villages, depicting the life of each of the regions in the country. There are food stalls scattered across the village, and museums too, with a good collection of cultural and ethnological exhibits. All in all, a fair enough overview of what the Philippines is all about.

Intramuros, the 16th century walled city of Manila, is virtually a slice of the past come alive. Intramuros was built by the Spanish aristocracy in Manila to keep out unsavoury elements- a term that generally covered everybody who wasn’t blue-blooded. The wall, which is 8 ft thick and 3 miles long, enclosed residences, churches, gardens and streets- most of which are intact even to this day. To add to the effect, horse-drawn carriages ply through Intramuros, going from one sight to another.
Fort Santiago  Some of the best known medieval buildings of Manila are in Intramuros: the Manila Cathedral, with its beautiful stained glass mosaics and rose windows (dating back to 1581), the San Agustin Church (the oldest in the country- it has some very valuable pieces of religious art), and Fort Santiago, which was, at one time, the main headquarters of the Spanish- the place where Filipino rebels were held captive.

Also within Intramuros is the Casa Manila, a fully furnished Spanish nobleman’s house, a museum in itself. Lying within Sta.  Cruz district in Manila, in and around Ongpin Street, is Manila’s Chinese enclave, Chinatown. It’s really a very Oriental part of town- so much so that you’d be forgiven for thinking you are in China and not in the Philippines. This is where you’ll find red-tiled Buddhist temples and shrines, shops and stalls selling all sorts of wares- from Chinese medicines (some of them might seem very far-fetched!) to chopsticks and elaborate brocades, porcelain, lacquer ware and jewellery. Within Chinatown too, you’ll find some of the best Chinese restaurants in Manila- so if you’re going to be here during a mealtime, treat yourself- you won’t find better, at least not in Manila.

If you’re not scared of crowds or finicky about cleanliness, Quiapo is the place to visit to get a true taste of what Manila- the Philippines and Asia- can really be like. Quiapo is a small district, more a marketplace than anything else, on the edge of the Quiapo Church - the shrine of the Black Nazarene is journey’s end for many pilgrims. You’re unlikely to find a more busy and bustling locality in Manila than the Quiapo marketplace - you’ll see hawkers and vendors selling their wares- medicines (a lot of it is quackery so don’t get taken in), amulets and good luck charms, clothes, home ornaments, flowers, fruit and vegetables, and even handicrafts, such as rattan ware and `capiz’ shell lamps.

The Cultural Centre of the Philippines (CCP) Complex, a 1700-acre seaside area, encompasses various buildings and establishments related to the preservation and promotion of Filipino culture. There are interesting museums with a good selection of ethnological and cultural artefacts-some of them priceless; a Folk Arts Theatre, where regular performances of traditional Filipino dances, music and drama are held; the International Trade Centre Complex, which acts as a bridge to foreign trade and also is a good showcase for local arts and crafts. Also part of the complex is the Coconut Palace- probably the only large building in the world that is crafted almost totally out of parts of the coconut tree.

There are regular guided tours (conducted in English) through the CCP, and it’s a good way to get to know the country better.