On the last day of 2009, we decided to visit the Chinatown of Manila. The place is known as Binondo and is almost 45 minutes drive from Makati. The Chisti family also accompanied us. On reaching Binondo, the first thing which struck us was the crowded street! Leaving the cab, we walked through the narrow lanes of Chinatown. There were many shops that lined up on the pavement of Ongpi Street selling Chinese toys, electronic goods & feng shui items. The bigger shops sold beautiful Chinese crockery, towels, blankets, etc. The prices were quite high though and so I dropped the idea of shopping!
Our next stop was the old church dedicated to the first Philippine saint, Lorenzo Ruiz. It was a massive structure with beautiful paintings adorning the domed ceiling. There was even a wedding in progress when we went inside.
We headed for a restaurant as it was already lunch hour. I ordered Pancit Canton (noodles) with beef satay while Mifu opted for Beef ampalaya with rice. When we enquired about ampalaya, the waitress informed that it’s a green vegetable. Mifu looked awful when his dish was finally served. It turned out to be a preparation of beef in ampalaya (bitter gourd or karela) gravy!! So I had to share my pancit canton with Mifu since he detested karela. When I tasted it, it wasn’t all that bad.
After lunch, we drove down to the Manila Zoo as the kids were showing signs of boredom in Chinatown. Interestingly, there weren’t too many animals there. An elephant, a couple of huge pythons, some colorful macaws, monkeys and different species of birds were all that made up Manila zoo! The kids enjoyed the play area more than watching the few animals while we sipped coffee near the artificial lake at the zoo. By 6 o’clock, we rode a jeepney back home. We already had a plan to meet the Chistis for dinner at their place.
Having enjoyed a hearty meal, not to forget the ready- to- eat turkey which Zahid ka had bought, all of us took a walk towards the Greenbelt complex to find out if any special New Year programme was on. To our surprise, the place looked deserted except for a few young people loitering about. Mifu suggested that we go back to our building as we were told that there would be fireworks at midnight. The Chistis came along as well & all of us moved up to the terrace garden on the 30th floor! Many people living in our building were already at the terrace waiting for the firework display. And what a sight it was. Simply brilliant! The Manila sky lit up with amazing displays of crackling firework exactly as the clock struck 12 & it went on for almost an hour. People on the terrace cheered and greeted each other. Later we came back to our unit and Mifu logged on Skype to wish folks in Guwahati.. Though this New Year eve was a different experience, yet we did miss the family get together, Ma’s pulao and the bonfire back home!!
Our next stop was the old church dedicated to the first Philippine saint, Lorenzo Ruiz. It was a massive structure with beautiful paintings adorning the domed ceiling. There was even a wedding in progress when we went inside.
We headed for a restaurant as it was already lunch hour. I ordered Pancit Canton (noodles) with beef satay while Mifu opted for Beef ampalaya with rice. When we enquired about ampalaya, the waitress informed that it’s a green vegetable. Mifu looked awful when his dish was finally served. It turned out to be a preparation of beef in ampalaya (bitter gourd or karela) gravy!! So I had to share my pancit canton with Mifu since he detested karela. When I tasted it, it wasn’t all that bad.
After lunch, we drove down to the Manila Zoo as the kids were showing signs of boredom in Chinatown. Interestingly, there weren’t too many animals there. An elephant, a couple of huge pythons, some colorful macaws, monkeys and different species of birds were all that made up Manila zoo! The kids enjoyed the play area more than watching the few animals while we sipped coffee near the artificial lake at the zoo. By 6 o’clock, we rode a jeepney back home. We already had a plan to meet the Chistis for dinner at their place.
Having enjoyed a hearty meal, not to forget the ready- to- eat turkey which Zahid ka had bought, all of us took a walk towards the Greenbelt complex to find out if any special New Year programme was on. To our surprise, the place looked deserted except for a few young people loitering about. Mifu suggested that we go back to our building as we were told that there would be fireworks at midnight. The Chistis came along as well & all of us moved up to the terrace garden on the 30th floor! Many people living in our building were already at the terrace waiting for the firework display. And what a sight it was. Simply brilliant! The Manila sky lit up with amazing displays of crackling firework exactly as the clock struck 12 & it went on for almost an hour. People on the terrace cheered and greeted each other. Later we came back to our unit and Mifu logged on Skype to wish folks in Guwahati.. Though this New Year eve was a different experience, yet we did miss the family get together, Ma’s pulao and the bonfire back home!!
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