Manila on My Mind

I am finding it hard to write again after a five-year hiatus, so I will restart with this post.  I did not really take a break from traveling and photography during this period of silence.  In fact, I visited a number of new countries and revisited some of my favorite cities to take photos of neighborhoods I failed to see the last time I was in those cities.  My photography and editing skills also improved during this time so I feel I am better equipped now to create new content.  My time however was spent mostly on learning new things outside of photography.  These are things related to finances, stock investing, and taking care of my health and future – a totally different set of subjects.  I am mostly self-taught on new subjects I wanted to learn (including my photography) and that longer path to learning new things explains the lost time for writing.  I also finally started monetizing my photography by making my photos available for licensing in Shutterstock.  I have been revisiting and re-editing my collection of images and will continue to add to that portfolio. 

Ok, so that’s about it for my warm-up.  This recent visit to my hometown was short (I am by the way, currently based in Singapore as a foreign talent).  I did not really plan to go back to Manila but was just forced to clear a couple of unused office time-offs.  So I just had a few days which were spent mostly on catching up with my siblings and trying out new restaurants with my wife and daughter.  I was also able to visit for the first time Manila’s walled city of Intramuros – a fortification which comprises a centuries-old district created during the Spanish occupation.  Yes, you read that correctly.  It was my first time to visit one of my country’s popular tourist attraction.  My other agenda of course was to experience rooftopping; not the extreme and illegal one but visiting rooftop bars and observation decks 🙂 .  As mentioned a few times in my earlier posts, I always bring home a photo of every new city taken from a high vantage point.  Manila always felt new to me as I don’t come back here often.  Airfare is always ridiculously expensive especially during holidays.  It is much cheaper to visit other Asian countries during these holiday periods and that is what I do.  Visiting Manila therefore, is a real treat for me.  

The photo above was taken at the Firefly Rooftop Bar of City Garden Hotel in Makati City – Metro Manila’s major financial hub.  I don’t know of many rooftop bars and observation decks in Manila where you can see a beautiful and panoramic view of the skyline. This bar I believe is the most popular and is the vantage point of many blue hour photos and postcard shots of this city.  I love twilight time but got tired of looking at so many versions of that photo taken at that hour.  So I decided to have dinner here with my wife and daughter so I can photograph it late at night.  We waited an hour for a table beside the glass railing so I can get this view.  I honestly can’t remember about the food but I am sure it was great.  There are reviews that will confirm that.   I was too busy taking a photo. 🙂

I am now back in Singapore and with Manila still on my mind.  I am also thinking about the other places I was not able to visit because of the lack of time.  I can always come back though but not during public holidays.  I am also thinking about what is happening in my country.  Seeing the news feels like watching a movie that either triggers your anger or disappointment because of the ridiculous things that the actors do and say.  I do not really understand what is happening to my country, let alone the crisis happening around the world now.  But I understand that I need to pray for it.  I had to because someday some of us will need to come back here.

So there you go.  My short and comeback story.  See you in my next post.  Cheers!!