May 16, Intramuros, Manila - Since my friend from Cambodia together with his other friends will be going to Manila, I felt like that, I need to show them around and show them the Philippine hospitality even if I do not know where to go. I was searching the internet for what to see in Manila for the past days since I, myself, do not know what to see here even if I am from Manila. Almost all the travel sites that I have went to said that it is a must to visit Intramuros while in Manila. I always have the opportunity to go Intramuros but it is either I rejected it or skipped it. I have been a foreigner in my own town ever since due to too much traffic and heat outside, so all I know is just Mall of Asia, Glorietta, Bonifacio Highstreet, and more; just name a shopping mall, and I know it. So, it was my first time to visit in Intramuros my whole life.
Before we went to Intramuros, we visited first the Rizal Park. We walked around the area first then walked going to Intramuros. It was a good idea to drop off at Rizal Park since we walked faster going to Intramuros than the cars and cabs beside us. It was all our first time in Intramuros so when we got there we literally felt lost. We asked a pedicab driver where is Intramuros and he told us that we were already at Intramuros. Awkwarrddd!! I did not know that Intramuros is literally a city, all I just thought is it was just a wall ruins from the Spanish era war. I was living in a lie ever since. Thanks to Kuya JP, the pedicab driver who told me about this.
He offered us Php 150 for every half hour tour including the pedicab transportation around the walled city since maybe he can really felt that we were lost that time. We decided to grab the offer since we all do not know where to go. Our first stop was the Manila Cathedral. Before we got to have our photos taken, we got bits of history from Kuya JP. Oh! And Kuya JP speaks very good English, so we have understood the whole trip! Anyway, Manila Cathedral has just been re-opened last April 2014 due to renovations and constructions for the past years. After the Manila Cathedral, we went to the facade of the Palacio del Gobernador, which has been once the official residence of the Governor General during the Spanish regime. After the short lecture from Kuya JP, we hopped on again to his pedicab and went to Memorare Manila Monument. It was just a short stop in the Memorare Manila Monument since it was just a monument built to commemorate the innocent who died during the war. Also, the monument has a time capsule in it to be opened by year 2050. We went to San Agustin Church after. It is one of the four Philippine churches to be included in the UNESCO World Heritage. It was really a good architecture since I, myself, love Gothic and Baroque architecture, just like in Europe. After the short lecture of Kuya JP about the church, we went to Casa Manila where my friends bought some souvenirs. We decided to finish the tour there since we wanted to avoid the traffic going back to Mall of Asia. But Kuya JP told us that we still have one spot left to go.
Our last stop was of course the wall of Intramuros. Oh yeah, what's the sense of going Intramuros without visiting the big walls of Intramuros. We just have few photos up the wall then Kuya JP drove us going to the nearest cab terminal. Our whole trip took us about 1 hour and 30 minutes. We should have visited Intramuros earlier if we just knew that there is someone like Kuya JP offering such a wonderful and informational tour around Intramuros. I must say that he is really a good tour guide since he knew Philippine history way way more than me, and he knew which spot and which corner to take a picture to have that candid shot around Intramuros. Oh yeah, he is two-in-one, a tour guide slash photographer too!
Thanks again Kuya JP for this trip. You surely made our Manila trip as memorable and as interesting as possible. We have not gone all around Intramuros but, surely, I will go back there next time to continue my trip and to feel like a traveler in my own town with you as my tour guide again.
You may contact Kuya JP for Intramuros "pedicab" Tour here: +63-920-530-8911
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