Manila: First Flight

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off to Manila

Let me tell you a secret: I've never flown anywhere. I guess I've never been anywhere aside from Cebu and Negros my entire life. My travels have always consisted of long bus and boat rides to wherever I was heading. I've never been on a plane until early this year.

Due to my work as a writer in a local publication in Cebu, I get to travel and go to different places to attend corporate events. My editor sent me to Manila last February to attend Daikin's product launch. It was my first trip to Manila and my first time on a plane.

my view from the hotel room

I was pretty excited about the trip so I readied two rolls of films and my well-loved CD-R King film camera. I googled pretty much the places I wanted to visit within the vicinity of our hotel, the InterContinental Hotel in Makati. I guess the hotel's location made going around the city easier. I only had to walk around the area.

I was nervously excited about flying. It was that kind of feeling that makes you want to wail and puke at the same time. I also have acrophobia so flying was definitely scary for me. 

Aside from that fear of flying, I also had reservations about Manila. Although I know a lot of friends in Manila, watching all those news about robbery, murders, and accidents all happening in Manila was pretty horrific.

fishpond in Greenbelt

My colleague and I went around the malls in Makati, especially those near our hotel. It was just a simple stroll in their massive interconnected shopping malls. I visited the Ayala Museum, which probably was my best experience during the trip. I love museums and I especially enjoyed looking at their intensive gold collection. I was also able to meet up with a close friend, who now resides in Malate. He took me around the city and invited me to a late dinner at Aristocrat along Manila Bay.

I know I sound like a probinsyana in the city, but it definitely was invigorating seeing new stuff in Manila. I frequent provinces and the beach when traveling, and being in a bigger city than Cebu was a first for me.

looking up in Greenbelt

Manila was good to me despite that scary experience with traffic on the way to the airport and the taxi driver asking for more than what was due. I definitely want to be back and discover more of what the capital has to offer. What places should I visit next?

all photos taken with CD-R King camera x Fuji XTRA 400