Day 77 and 78 - Manila - as dangerous as expected?

To put it bluntly: no! At least in Makati City and Pasay City and the shopping malls, it is neither dangerous nor extremely dirty or poor. Rather modern with many young people who all speak good English. Nevertheless, one must not underestimate the fact that Manila is one of the poorest megacities in the world. 27 million people live here, of which around 7 million live in the inner core of the original city. The area is about half the size of downtown Zurich. Around 6 to 8 million people live in the slums, on mountains of garbage and in the worst possible conditions. Attempts are being made to help through various projects and the burning mountain of garbage was removed and partly recycled in 2021.

We didn't see much of Manila. The Mall of Asia is huge, with all the brands and European shops you know. With lots of great restaurants, a huge food court and an entertainment area. There's even an ice skating rink here. Outside there's a huge fun and fairground with a Ferris wheel 🎡 and thousands of young people enjoyed the sunset with us.

There is also a mall that is supposed to be like Venice, even with a Canal de Grande and boat trips, but we didn't manage that in the short time we were there. Of course there are skyscrapers, but Manila doesn't have a real skyline or landmark. The national hero of the Philippines Jose Rizal has a statue in the center of the city, similar to the Mactan Shrine in Cebu. He was the first revolutionary against Spanish colonial rule.

So enough being a smart-ass… we’re heading to Krabi in Thailand, our last stop, before we spend three more days in Bangkok.