perfect spot

finally, i found a perfect spot to hang out in manille all year round -- the harbor square. it's right across the cultural center of the philippines.

during summer, it is cool and light. the manila bay nearby is sparkling like a thousand pearls, its blueness calming. in december, it is even colder and the sea calmer.

it's even lovelier during the rainy days and nights. more romantic. with the sea and the sky all grey and forlorn, as though they were abandoned by their lovers.  yes, there's nothing more romantic than be reminded of a love affair gone awry.

seagulls and other birds have made it their home, resting on top of the boats, on ropes, while waiting for their prey, the school of tiny fish underneath the sea.

too, the boats decked beside the concrete walls are post card perfect, adding to the miami like ambiance. in fact, a tourist once commented that the view reminds him of his city in florida.

but more than anything else, it's the breathtaking sunset that makes the place even more special, the major reason why tourists flock in this part of manille to take a photo of it, or just to stare at its beauty, mesmerized by the sea of bold colours that envelope the sky.

of course, there are bars, restaurants and starbucks. places where the food is affordable and unpretentious. no overrated celebrity chefs here and their equally overrated, expensive and overhyped dishes and food that are excellent in presentation, but que horor in taste. or maybe my pedestrian tongue is just not used to these exclusive, highly coveted couture food.

please don't ask me what's my favourite restaurant and bar in the area because you can usually find me hanging outside, just sitting on a concrete bench, eyes on the sea, while at the same time trying to finish a book and listening to the conversations around me. ah you'll be surprised at the stories and snippets that you will hear from strangers. i won't repeat them anymore. it's up to you to find them out.

(in short, apart from the reliable starbucks, kfc, gerry's grill, pancake house and hap chan, i have not tried anything else here.)

anyway, here are some photographs of the place that i took a while ago so you will see what i mean when i say that the place is simply divine (an understatement, i know). because sometimes, words are just inadequate to describe its charms. and photographs, well they do paint a million messages. right?





(an eager photographer who keeps on appearing in my frame. i let him. for all we know, he might be one of the wandering ghosts of the sea, whose lover was killed in a shipwreck.)









that's all vaklush!! vavush!!!

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