Memoirs of a Wandering Nomad

Anilao - a divers’ haven in the Philippines It is unusual for me to spend a weekend in the Philippines, that too in Metro Manila. Typically I wrap up my work on Fridays   and head home on Saturdays. So even after several visits to the Philippines, I have seen precious little other than the old city, the Intramuros, the Santiago fort and the malls. But this weekend was different. I had the Sunday to myself in Manila and decided to make the most of it. Based on recommendations from local friends and colleagues, and a very extensive Internet research of exactly 10 minutes on Friday, I decided to try the beaches near Batangas in the south, a place called Anilao , about 90km from the city. So here I am, up early on the Sunday morning at 5:30am. A short taxi drive brings me to the Buendia bus terminal , from where several bus companies operate the route to Batangas. I’ve missed the first bus that leaves at six, so I get on the second one that leaves at six forty. This lar...

Carlos Celdran’s 3-hour Intramuros Tour is one of the few things that I can recommend heartily in the almost-negligible ‘to-do’ section of Manila. It’s not five star, but it is definitely something one must do when in the city. Before visiting this tour, I had been to Fort Santiago in my earlier trips, and had read some amount of history of the place. But there is a difference between reading and seeing it unfurl in front of you in the form of a performance, howsoever poignant the story is. And Carlos has a way to make the story come alive. He and his troop of 4 locals, who carry his bags and costumes and paraphernalia around the tour, and collect money, and look after the guests. But the star of the show is only Carlos. And what a star. Carlos has a way of telling you stories, like an older friend confiding in you and telling you some naughty secrets, all the time turning around looking to see if the teacher is at earshot. Like how the Spanish genes that the pe...

Well, I travel across Asia Pacific for a living, and must have been to Manila at least half a dozen times. So I guess at some point of time this needs to be done.  And what needs to be done is to review Manila and its nearby areas. Although I am not a big fan of the place, it does have its bag of chips, and so without pushing this any further, here you have a first-hand experience of traveling to Manila. First things first. It is a bustling city, and as unclean as cities go  - with overflowing sewers, unbelievable traffic snarls, parking nightmares and ugly neighborhoods, basically the works. Add to that the typhoons and rains that bring the city life to a complete halt for at least thrice each season, and you get the picture. There was a time I stayed at Intercontinental in Makati for two weeks, and the only way I could get out of the hotel for all that time was through the underground walkways to the mall across the street, as it was pouring oceans of rainwater from the...