Last Day in Manila

Hello Everyone!

Today is our last day in Manila and I can’t believe our trip is over, time has been flying. We decided to go back to intramuros so that we could visit the churches and buildings we weren’t able to enter during our night tour because they were closed. We started at the Manila cathedral and there was an actual wedding inside but they didn’t stop tourists from coming it. It was so strange! But also really nice to see some of a traditional wedding here. 

You won’t believe it but the cathedral now has a cafe in part of the tower, so we stopped for some fries and coffee with a view. The locals like to joke it’s for a tax break, which may not be too far off lol. This cathedral was built in 1581 and has since been rebuilt multiple times because of a typhoon, fire, earthquakes, and even WWII bombing. Hard to believe that they kept building in the same space, I would have likely give up the second time but this cathedral has been rebuilt eight times!

Afterwards we walked to San Austin’s church where we stumbled upon a local market for food and crafts. They even had a live band so that people could sing karaoke. This church is interesting because it has Chinese lions here in an attempt to convert the immigrated Chinese population to Catholicism. They also have carved pictures of Chinese people on their wooden doors. If you look at the ceiling you’d think that this little church was more opulent than the famous cathedral. However upon second glance you might realize that it’s all paintings! The artists did a great job tricking the eye with their fresco. 

We ended the day at a very special dinner with my Auntie Kristine and her sister. They happened to fly into Manila right before we left so we met up at the famous Shangri-La hotel. Then we all went back to the very first mall of our trip, the Rockwell, for a dessert tour where we got our last taho, halo halo, and the street famous dirty ice cream! Don’t worry, the ice cream isn’t actually dirty, that’s just what they call ice cream in the street carts here. We were all in a total food and sugar coma by the time we said goodbye. And just like that, with our bellies and hearts full, we ended our time here in the Philippines. 

Until my next trip!

Lots of love,

Carolyn