Letters from Old Manila
- Jun 14, 2016
- 13 min read
Day 1 - June 5
We boarded the China Airlines flight out of Vancouver and headed to Taipei for the next 13 hours or so. It was a very comfortable flight as the economy class was almost empty. Airline staff at YVR gave us each an entire row to ourselves where we could comfortably lie down flat. As far as we're concerned, this is better than any upgraded class (aside from first class)., as we don't care too much for airline food, but any big space to sprawl out is always good. Despite my typical inability to sleep on flights, I was able to sleep well, and landed at TPE airport very early in the morning. All duty-free shops were still closed, so we spent the next hour talking to Diko who was already up. Amazingly, there had been massive flooding and water penetration just this week at TPE airport.
Flying over Manila, one cannot help but notice how big (and tall) it has grown. 40 years ago, there was a small concentration of tall buildings that could be seen over the Makati area, but these days, skyscrapers dot the view over the city along with elevated highways. Huge progress has definitely been made in this very concrete of jungles with a population of 13 million. We landed at 10:00 at the renovated old terminal that is now nice and bright. It was great to see a customs line with no line ups, too! Alice and Dennis picked us up where we headed home. We spent the day with J's mom, and enjoyed lunch prepared by Marcial (and Country Chicken). Nothing beats a home-cooked meal. Temperature wasn't too bad but humidity is typically heavy.
We checked into the Ramada Central Manila hotel in Binondo right at the entrance to chinatown (Ongpin) across from the old Binondo church. This is the world's oldest chinatown. For anyone who grew up around this area (our families did), it's a very old part of Manila settled by the Chinese from Fujian provine. They brought along customs, language, festivities and cuisine unique to the part of China they came from, and of which we have all inherited greatly as Filipinos and Chinese alike. In many other cities in the world, the room we have would be double the cost of what we've booked for, and includes buffet breakfast, wifi, parking. The room is a large corner suite with great views of the Binondo area. The room is very clean, the AC is cold, and after walking around Ongpin to buy stuff (snacks, water), so far a great place to crash for the night after a very long day. We picked this hotel as it is walking distance to family, shopping (Lucky Chinatown can be seen from our room), eats, and well, we hope easier for everyone else to find us, too. We had dinner at the "Cafe Mezzanine" after walking to where "Sincerity" was to find out that it had apparently closed permanently. This restaurant is at the corner of the block from where the hotel is serving typical Filipino and Fujian Chinese dishes. Proceeds benefit the Ongpin Fire Brigade. The hotel is also close to many Ongpin shopping malls and marts so it's very convenient to get around with no car. Day 1 is the start of reacquainting with family, friends and old favorite places. It's great to come back to the old city.
Day 2 - June 6
After hitting breakfast at the hotel buffet, we proceeded to go to the little market at Carvajal Street in Ongpin to buy fruit to take to J's mom's place. So along Ongpin Street we walked until we reached Tomas Mapua Street, to cross Recto. I'm sure anyone who has spent time in this part of old Manila knows "La Paz Funeraria", right? Well, it's now gone, and there's new condo buildings going up in that spot. So...nothing truly lasts forever, even for such an old venerable place like that. On Carvajal Street, there's a little eatery called "Quick Snack" where we bought "ku chay ah pao" to bring with us. It's been years since I've had these preserved vegetable-pork meat pastries and they're still very good. Lunch was cooked by Marcial and Tina and as usual, delicious. On the way back to the hotel in the afternoon, we bought a couple of "fried siopao" from "Shanghai Fried Siopa". To those who've had them, no one makes siopao better than the Fujian Chinese in Manila. Unlike the typical Manila-style siopaos, these are about half in size, and the bottom is pan-fried crispy. The meat ball inside is also lean and tender, unlike others.
For dinner, we went to meet Shirley and family at "Lucky Chinatown" which is a 10 minutes walk from the hotel. This is a huge shopping complex in Binondo that used to be the site of both "Rajah Soliman" and "Abad Santos" high schools on Reina Regente Street. Imagine how convenient it would be to live across from this complex that has everything for the modern life. We went to "Mann Hann" which serves excellent Chinese cuisine. One dish one would never find in North America is the excellent Amoy Chinese "fresh lumpia". Fresh spring roll packed with veggies, with ground peanut sugar is unbeatable. Great to see my sister, bro-in-law Jerry, nephew Czyril and niece Czabrina. They're all grown up...except for Shirley ;-) After dinner, we decided that since Czabrina is now an employed lawyer with a hefty salary, she would treat us to after-dinner coffee. It's great to experience a lawyer paying for my drinks, instead of the usual other way around. It is amazing how fast time flies. Teaches us to enjoy and live life one day at a time.
Day 3 - June 7 - New Ho Peng Resto, AA Chemical visit
Googling good eats in Ongpin, we found "New Po Heng Lumpia House" which was a 1 minute walk from our hotel. If one doesn't pay attention, it is very easy to miss this hole-in-wall joint at 531 Quintin Paredes St. It's located right beside the "East West Bank". The joint serves traditional Fujian "home-cooked" dishes with the specialty being the fresh lumpia. For 50 pesos each, it's half the price at Mann Hann and much more authentic. Next time though, I'll tell them to cut the peanut sugar in half as I found it a little too sweet. Nancy and Trisha joined us for lunch where we also enjoyed "maki", "misua kok", and some forgettable calamari. Maki is that thick soup with chunks of pork, misua koh is fine noodles cooked into a soupy consistency.
After lunch, we walked along "Alvarado Street" to pay a surprise visit to J's uncle's office at "AA Chemical". Uncle, auntie, cousins Richard and Gerald were all in middle of office work but as always insisted we go somewhere to eat. We respectfully declined to set a lunch date for another day. It is always great to see them. I almost didn't recognize Richard, as he's slimmed down quite a bit, and uncle/auntie, still looks timeless. The small foot bridge over the creek is still there at one end of Alvarado Street. This is a more pleasant walk than on very busy Reina Regente Street.
We went to Lucky Chinatown for Starbucks drinks. From AA Chemical, the mall is a 1 minute walk crossing Reina Regente. J and I headed back to hotel not long after as I was beginning to feel run-down with slight fever. The combination of heat and exhaustion got the better of me. The evening was spent at Amah's 76 birthday dinner party of which I will do a separate post.
Manila certainly hits all your senses full blast. It truly is a non-stop city that has developed rapidly yet many parts of it still retain a lot of its colourful history such as here in Binondo with the Chinese enclave, having the world's oldest chinatwon (Ongpin). It is an area where all our families come from and intertwine, and where we still continue to meet and to get reacquainted. It can surely seem daunting when walking around but for those who ever spent time here, it doesn't take long to adjust back to familiar sights and sound.. It isn't always pretty by any means but for those who return, there's meaning beyond just what one can see or hear outside. It is the rekindling of feelings for those whom we've come to visit that makes such far and few trips all the more worthwhile.
Day 4 - June 8 - Mimi, Crisostomo's
Went for lunch at Ama's place, this time walking along Alonzo Street. Saw the venerable Ling-Nam wanton restaurant where Diko used to take me. People say this spot still has the best Ling Nam wanton noodles out of many Ling Nam's in metro Manila. At corner of Recto and Alonzo streets, old Arranque Market has been replaced by a building, but remnants of the old market remain. Maybe someone would know...is To Suy Hardware and Tee To Suy Hardware stores related? One is "King of Screw" and the latter is "Screw Master? Makes me think it used to be one store owned by the the same family that had a falling out. Curious that two stores almost have identical names and both are kingpins of the product they sell. (Sako-Tiu advises two brothers had a falling out and opened competitive businesses)
Also correction to previous post, Sincerity Restaurant in Ongpin is still open but closes at 2pm on Sundays when we went.
Late afternoon, our childhood family friend Mimi picked us home to go for dinner at "Crisostomo'", the one at Blue Bay Walk in Pasay. Crisostomo is a higher-end Filipino chain of restaurants in the same category as "Abe" or "Cafe Adriatico". The premises, service, and food are likewise typically excellent. Crisostomo didn't disappoint as we greatly enjoyed their "hot and spicy" crispy pata, kang kong, and prawns. For dessert, sorbetes and "sans rival" pastry were excellent. The sorbetes (sorbet) was scooped right out of the cart right by the main entrance....cool. The crispy pata was delicious, a cut above mainstream places in terms of flavour, texture, and tenderness. Of course, the highlight was meeting up with Mimi who was kind enough to meet us all the way from her home in Cavite! Traffic in Manila has a great benefit...it makes one spend more time getting reacquainted with friends and family. Manila forces one to slow down and this, in itself, is good. It has stared to rain here late night or early morning. This is a welcome thing as streets are cleaner and air doesn't feel as hot.
Day 5 - June 9 - Ong Family, Hope, Masuki, Binondo Church
We went for dimsum with our go-chiak at Royal Garden at corner of Gandara and Ongpin street. The dimsum was ok, and perhaps it explains why the place was empty almost the whole three hours we were there. We were guessing other places have taken over, but at least it was quiet and food was cooked just for us.
After lunch we walked over to Ama's place this time taking Benavidez Street. Hope Christian High School is still there and looked very well kept and bigger. For those of you familiar with Metropolitan Hospital, it is now the Metropolitan Medical Center with a tall tower. I believe some of you may have been born at this place.
We met Gochiak, Gochim, cousins Terry (Agui) and Yasmin (Abin) at Lucky Chinatown where they treated us to drinks followed by noodles at Masuki. Masuki (formerly Ma Kong) had one joint in Binondo, but now has sprung up all over Metro Manila malls. Their sauce that comes with the noodles seems to go with all their dishes such as siomai and siopao. The rest of the evening was spent talking about old times and life in general. Seeing my cousins, well, they're not really cousins as they're more like my sisters as we had all spent time together in the same household raised by Gochiak and Gochim. Gochim used to bring us to the original Ma-kong noodle house on Sunday afternoons, all of us kids living on Melchor Cano St. Now, it's us "kids" bringing the parents for the same noodles. How people and places all change but some things never do, eh. Took some photos of a lit up Binondo church. Our hotel is the building right behind the bell tower. Another great day had by us and we are thankful to everyone who has made time despite busy lives to visit us.
Day 6 - June 10 - A long walk, Churches, University row, Escolta, Livestock
Gochiak decided that he and I would walk to Quezon City to attend the wake of Tsim Chi Ko's husband (Chua Ching Chuan) at Sanctorium. We started around 06:30 from Binondo and arrived at 09:00 met by Dominique. "Ko tiu" had passed away June 7. I've not seen Dominique in years, good to have seen him again but sad under the circumstance. We often lose track of people and usually only see them again in either good or bad occasions. This was one of the latter ones.
Along the way, we passed by universities, churches, Avenida, Recto, Mendiola area. The best way to see and feel a place is by walking its streets, and Manila certainly offers plenty of places to see if one doesn't mind the sometimes maze-like walk (uneven sidewalks, traffic). We also took smaller side streets of quieter residential areas where it was easy to tell that residents had pride in their homes and clean streets. From Quezon City, we took a jeepney back to Lawton, and over to Escolta, which was once the glamourous shopping and business district of old Manila. There were still a few old buildings dating to the turn of the last century but many have been torn down. Oh...the once popular Savory Chicken restaurant across Jones bridge has burned down. After Escolta, Gochiak and I had lunch "Delicious" resto in Ongpin, specializing in beef maki, miki bihon, and other traditional Fujian Chinese home-style dishes.
We had a late dinner at Livestock in Quezon City. This place is popular for its crispy pata and every table had this dish. The pata was very good (tender), but I prefer the one at Crisostomo because it was more garlicky, spicier. Really just comes down to personal preference.
Day 7 - June 11 - Chinese General Hospital, quick eats
The day was spent mostly at the Chinese General Hospital keeping Amah company. She was admitted the previous evening for observations and tests, and will be there for a few days. Amah is doing well nevertheless. Dining consisted of take out and quick eats. For one thing, finding delicious food in Manila is usually not too difficult. There's always something good to eat for reasonable cost within walking distance of anywhere. Alice bought some "Tim Ho Wan" style chasiu buns from "Ying Ying" dimsum in Ongpin. They were very good imitation surprisingly. For dinner, we went to "Mae San Cake and Pastries" where we had one dish meals. Cheap but real food, and convenience to boot.
Day 8 - June 12 - Aristocrat, Tzu Ji Buddhist Temple, and back to Lucky Chinatown
Breakfast was spent with great friends Sandra and Rita at the famous Aristocrat Restaurant on Roxas Boulevard. Traffic on Sunday morning is vastly different in Manila compared to weekdays. One can actually drive and go instead of the constant log jam compared to weekdays. June 12 is also the Philippines Independence Day so there were festivities in Rizal Park (Luneta).
For lunch, Auntie Sally (Imko's daughter in law) invited us to the yearly fundraising lunch at the Tzu Chi Buddhist Foundation Temple in Quezon City. We wanted to see auntie Sally and her family as we had not seen them in years. Coincidentally Imko is now in Canada so we will be sure to see her when we return. The dishes as expected were vegetarian and all the ones we tried were delicious. I was only joking when I asked Auntie Judy where the fruit cakes were. Well, an hour later, she gave us two boxes of fruit cake! Apparently she'd asked her driver to go get them. Seriously, I was only joking knowing she makes the best fruit cake. Uncle John gave us a tour of the temple and we learned a little bit more of the history, purpose, of Tzu Chi buddhism. It was a very interesting and educational way to spend lunch, plus was great to see Auntie Sally and family again. They've always been amazingly kind and hospitable to us. We sure were full!
The day seemed as if it consisted of non-stop eating. From morning to night, we were seeing people and it meant sitting down to eat each time. Dinner was no different. Shirley and Jerry invited us to Tao Yuan resto in Lucky Chinatown. Joining us was mama who came from Batangas where she lives. As usual, the food, stories, all make up the good times we will always treasure. It was great to see Mama. We will visit her next time in her home in Batangas to also see Sheila and Chester (Shirley and my younger siblings).
Day 9 - June 13 - Gerry's Grill with Angngoching Family lunch, Hospital
Lucky Chinatown became our meeting place with almost everyone we've met due to walking proximity of hotel to this mall. Everyone knows this place as it has plenty of eateries. This day was no different as we were invited by the Angngoching family to "Gerry's Grill" for lunch. The food was great, but with the Angngoching's, be prepared to be fed a lot of food. Both Richard and Uncle Robert will gang up on guests until there's no food left. This lunch was no different. Always great to spend time with J's uncle, aunt, and cousins. Today, her cousin Andy also joined us for lunch, then drove us to Chinese General Hospital where we spent the rest of the day/evening with Ama. Doctor also informed us that Ama would be released from hospital the following day, which was great news. Ama couldn't wait to get home.
Day 10 - June 14 - Last full day in Manila
With our last full day in Manila, we spent most of the day at the "Mall of Asia" otherwise known as "MOA". The hotel provides a free shuttle service to this mall that's about 30 minutes away. This mall is big enough to warrant spending many hours with enough places to eat and shop to fulfill anyone's desires. Trisha met us there and we headed for lunch at a Filipino resto called "Sarsa". The food isn't your typical Filipino but a great mix of traditional and modern. Every dish we had was great starting with the "isaw" or grilled chicken intestines, to the crispy "hito" or catfish. This place proves to me that Filipino cuisine is under-rated and truly should be as popular as Thai or Malaysian. A bit of a shame that most people overseas know almost nothing about the great variety of cuisine found throughout the Philippines aside from adobo or pancit. There's much more variety, complexity and depth to this country's cuisine if only one were to look beyond the typical fare. After a full day at MOA, we joined the Ang family at Ama's place to have our last dinner together. Chinese roast pork was ordered and delivered as the main attraction. All dishes were very tasty, but alas, time in Manila is almost over.
Paalam, Pilipinas!
We went to see Ama in the morning to say "see you later" but not goodbye. We've had a great time in old Manila getting reacquainted with family, friends and places. The most important thing for us was to be there for Ama and to see her getting better every day. Despite challenges, the people and the country continue to move forward to a future that everyone hopes will be better. Things are sometimes rocky but one could easily see that there's been a lot more progress in this busy city than not. Definitely not for the tame of heart, and not for the "backpacking" type of visitor but to get a true feel, one has to walk to experience this old city. It's not a place to see from inside a bus, not for us anyway. The ties that bind can only be made tighter by coming back to this old home and spending time. xoxo
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