Manila

---

Manila, Philippines

On Feb. 26 we arrived in Manila at a port just outside the city. Shuttle buses took us to the Mall of Asia, the largest mall in all of Asia, we were told. We hadn’t scheduled a tour here, as most of them went out of the city so we took the shuttle. Traffic is horrible now that almost everyone has a car, and the bus ride took over 45 minutes. This mall is indeed gigantic and very modern since it is not more than 5 years old. Security was tight we were told because there was a US merchant ship due in port while we were there. Don’t know if that was true or not, but in any event, every entrance to the mall had armed guards - really armed with long rifles - and we formed two lines, male and female, to be checked. Actually, they just checked our purses and packages then let us through. No one checked anything when we left, strangely enough.

Since there were outside and inside shops, we were going in and out frequently, and saw many security guards (only armed with pistols) walking around. When we wanted to know how to get somewhere, one of the guards actually took us there. The whole place was immaculate, and so many interesting shops along with every name brand you could think of, and every fast food place and then some more. Everyone was so polite and so helpful and pleasant -. always smiling. We all got haircuts (again). My shampoo, cut, and blow dry cost $5 with tip, and so did Bruce’s. We were the envy of many people on the ship.

The shopping was good and the prices quite low. We picked up a couple of things but not much. Lunch was fun. We sat outside and found a Philippine restaurant where we began with a San Miguel beer that Bruce L. remembered to be supreme. It was good, but he said not quite as he remembered from his navy days there in the 50’s. Anyway, we four ordered a platter of food containing just about everything: meat, fish, shrimp, rice, and all sorts of dipping things. It was all delicious and we managed the chopsticks quite handily, if I do say so.

By the time we finished, it had started to rain so we decided to head back to the ship. We had a wee tour on the way back as we passed the US Embassy complex and the new performing arts building. The return trip brought us into the beginning of rush hour traffic and it took over an hour to return. We had our last sail away with B and B as they were leaving in Hong Kong, our next port.

---