Our cruise stopped in Manila. For the third day in a row (third day in the Philippines) there were people to greet us on the pier. Since the port isn't all that far from Rizal Park and Intrmuros, I decided to go off on my own with no planned excursions. I left the port, walked through a lot of tuk tuk drivers to get away from the area, and then found myself a little confused as to where I needed to go. A man with a kalesa was trying to get me to go for a ride, but I just kept walking. Finally, at the outskirts of the park, I decided to break down and go for a tuk tuk ride. The driver, who said his name was Reagan, took me around for about an hour to see highlights of Intramuros, the old part of the city. I got out a few times to go inside the cathedral and fort. Manila didn't wow me with the sights I saw, but at least the traffic and weather were much more civil than I had anticipated. Later that day I took the free shuttle to the shopping mall. Other than having my backpack wanded for explosives, and seeing a beautiful Lunar New Year display, the mall was just about like any mall you'd see anywhere in the world. I even saw a Dunkin Donuts! But on my walk from the mall down to the water, I saw some pretty gritty and depressing street sights which contrasted quite a bit to the poshness of the mall. The Philippines is a pretty poor country.

On a brighter note, our room attendant and her assistant were from the Philippines, and they got to see their kids today in the port terminal. We were told there were almost 100 crew members going off the ship today to see relatives and friends. I was happy for them.

Note: Be sure to press "All" pages button so you can see multiple pages of photos.