There's always an element of trust when walking one of Asia's most populated cities.
I concede to Manila, every time I walk it's street, that I'll be respectful if she is.
So far she hasn't bitten.
It's like nothing I've ever experienced before.
That's a lie. Jakarta, Pontianak or even Surabaya has elements of fear to the city.
But Manilla is just an eye-opener.
The further you get away from downtown, the more it seems to resemble a city where it's residents live in crowded hovels down narrow side streets that cut across to the next major street.
I easily get lost.
But for some reason, I manage to find my way out. The tall buildings act as landmarks and the Manila Bay makes finding your way out of a paper bag a lot easier.
I walked down to the zoo today.
I wasn't mugged.
Not been mugged.
I was expecting a mugging in Medan, but it never happened.
That's a rough and edgy city and I wasn't in tourist town either. I had the Mujahideens to contend with. But they had nothing on the Batak motorbike guy who would win the lion's share of my cash. He was just a pain in the neck. But his company wasn't bad. I paid through the nose for it and when I wasn't paying attention he'd get angry. He'd even get angry when I paid him after a hard day of doing nothing.
But that's another story and another city.
Manila is opening up. It's an ugly flower at first but it's grabbing me by the balls. (Flowers don't grab you by the balls, do they?)
The Seven Elevens serve fantastic food and give the Thai Seven Eleven's a run for their money. Fresh sandwiches, fresh coffee, sweet bananas, cute female staff - what more could you ask?
I walked back from a little eatery on the side of the street.
It's owned by a lovely couple and it's open 24 hours.
I went this way, that way. Oh, this looks rough. Not a tourist in sight. I kept on walking. No one bothered me. No one pulled out their knife. No one snatched my bag. And if they did, there was absolutely nothing I could do about it. With a limp knee, running is out of the question.
Dear Manila, I'll caress and sing a sweet lullaby. Please keep me safe.
I concede to Manila, every time I walk it's street, that I'll be respectful if she is.
So far she hasn't bitten.
It's like nothing I've ever experienced before.
That's a lie. Jakarta, Pontianak or even Surabaya has elements of fear to the city.
But Manilla is just an eye-opener.
The further you get away from downtown, the more it seems to resemble a city where it's residents live in crowded hovels down narrow side streets that cut across to the next major street.
I easily get lost.
But for some reason, I manage to find my way out. The tall buildings act as landmarks and the Manila Bay makes finding your way out of a paper bag a lot easier.
I walked down to the zoo today.
I wasn't mugged.
Not been mugged.
I was expecting a mugging in Medan, but it never happened.
That's a rough and edgy city and I wasn't in tourist town either. I had the Mujahideens to contend with. But they had nothing on the Batak motorbike guy who would win the lion's share of my cash. He was just a pain in the neck. But his company wasn't bad. I paid through the nose for it and when I wasn't paying attention he'd get angry. He'd even get angry when I paid him after a hard day of doing nothing.
But that's another story and another city.
Manila is opening up. It's an ugly flower at first but it's grabbing me by the balls. (Flowers don't grab you by the balls, do they?)
The Seven Elevens serve fantastic food and give the Thai Seven Eleven's a run for their money. Fresh sandwiches, fresh coffee, sweet bananas, cute female staff - what more could you ask?
I walked back from a little eatery on the side of the street.
It's owned by a lovely couple and it's open 24 hours.
I went this way, that way. Oh, this looks rough. Not a tourist in sight. I kept on walking. No one bothered me. No one pulled out their knife. No one snatched my bag. And if they did, there was absolutely nothing I could do about it. With a limp knee, running is out of the question.
Dear Manila, I'll caress and sing a sweet lullaby. Please keep me safe.
