Manila, Philippines is an incredible city to say the least. Manila is the capital city and tops the list of the most densely populated cities in the world with around 1.6 million people jampacked in an area of 16.56 sqm. Toward the end of World War II, most of the Manila was destroyed due to intensive aerial bombing. Massive reconstruction efforts had to be done to restore the city to what it is today.

With such an amazing city, it may be surprising to learn that we didn’t do much of anything here. We had originally planned to do an 8-hour excursion to see old and new Manila, but we ultimately cancelled the excursion and opted to just make it a relaxing day without much sightseeing.

In fact, we pretty much just did two things. First, we went to Robinsons, a huge mall located in the heart of the city. Our ship shuttle dropped us off here and it was almost overwhelming. As the mall’s website states, “Robinsons Place Manila is a 7-level shopping complex that offers the widest range of merchandise and services from over a thousand local and international retail shops, dining outlets, entertainment facilities and service centers.” There were literally hundreds of stores, with so many dining options. We wound up spending more time here than we would have imagined, in part because we saw the prices (super cheap!) and decided to pick up some things (like a new pair of sandals for Matthew, some socks for John, etc.). If you know me, you know I hate to shop, and in some ways this was “just another mall” but it has been a while since we’ve been in a shopping area this big and it was interesting to wander around and see all the various stores and food options. Apparently, there was an even bigger mall nearby that many of the cruise ship workers went to. Remember that fact about Manila being densely populated? We witnessed this in just the mall!

After we left the mall we walked to Rizal park in the center of Manila. This area was constructed to honor the country’s national hero, Jose Rizal. A fun fact is that the flagpole near the monument serves as a Kilometer Zero marker, a starting reference for every Philippine highway, route, or location.

That’s really all we did. We wandered a mall and went to a park. However, along the route we walked it was interesting to see ‘normal’ life stuff. Like the Jeepneys that are common in Manila. These unique-looking vehicles serve as the main means of public transportation in the Philippines. According to Wikipedia, “They are known for their crowded seating and kitsch decorations, which have become a widespread symbol of Philippine culture and art.” And they really were cool to see in all their glory.

We also saw some oddly manicured trees:

And here are the power lines in the city… just seemed insane to us:

So, yeah. We didn’t do much here but not because there wasn’t a lot that could be done. Just walking around was fun and the people were all friendly. Temperature was comfortable and we felt safe along the route we wandered. All in all, for a “nothing” day it was still fun.