This might be one of the reunion/trip that is already overdue for so long.
I haven’t seen some of my college friends for so long well; I haven’t seen Faith after we visited Olongapo for her wedding in 2017 and the Scammers was in 2019 when we went to Baguio and La Union.
Rachel wasn’t ask for the Baguio/LU trip and she constantly bug as when we will see her again because she wasn’t invited on that last trip. Well we know she’s busy. Lol
Anyway, this was planned early June so it will be an early notification for some if they will be available on what date as well. We settled on June 25th and as classic as it can be most of them can’t join us. Rachel, Fae and I agreed on that date and there’s no backing out for the 3 of us.
Few days later, Fae said that Faith will be in Manila for that day as well so she can be able to join us. Unfortunately for Rachel it became unsure since there’s a family emergency.
Fae told me to meet them at FEU which is a good start for such reunion but at 10am, uhm I’m not sure that I can make it that early! Haha
Due to some events happened I almost back out as well but I’m also the other person to agree first on the date so, I know that I can’t back out on this. I planned to be at FEU by 10am I know to myself that it is somehow impossible and I don’t know if I calculated right the time travel that I should allot so I can make it.
I left at 8:30am and thankful that it didn’t rain that morning as well as the whole day. Surprised that I didn’t encounter traffic on a Saturday morning and I was able to try the new Marikina-Pasig LRT station.
I was in FEU by 10:30am but as this is a day with some Scammers, as early as 10am, I thought we are talking about the specific Jollibee that’s located on Gate 4 but then they are on Jollibee Recto. I don’t have much expectation on this trip so I don’t like to be making a big deal out of that but still, communication! So nostalgic to be back on that side of Manila where we literally live for 5 years or so. Took some pictures since I think it is somehow safe as the pandemic changed that place so much. Most establishments are closed and there are less people, there are no students. I haven’t seen that place daily for the last 10 years but I know how it looks like for an early morning until late night.
Since I started walking at Gate 4, I was able to experience walking at Recto again. Reminiscing is one of the goals this trip.
Meeting them at Jollibee Recto and then took a while to decide where to go next, we decided to look for Fae’s hotel so she can drop her bag. From Recto we walked to LRT1 - Doroteo Jose and we took the train to Pedro Gil then walked to Adriatico Street since her hotel is there
then we ate lunch at Robinsons Manila.
Faith will still be back in Olongapo that day and probably will join us until afternoon but then she got a call that she needed early in Olongapo. We separated ways after lunch and then later we found out that her bus will leave by 6pm. I wish she was still able to join us even on one museum.
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Manila photo walk or sightseeing is one of the planned trips with friends for years but never happened until last Saturday.
I searched prior to that day and I was a little bit confused with the buildings of National Museum. I know at some point I’ve been to one before but I can’ remember much. Upon researching, National Museum for Fine Arts is closed for almost a month for preparation of the inauguration on June 30th. We still have option which are National Museum of Anthropology and Natural History. We started at 2pm with National Museum of Anthropology.
Original itinerary included Intramuros and Ocean Park but we started late and since Rachel wasn’t able to make it, we decided to stick to the museum so we can still have reason to go back. One museum took us 2 hours and I was looking for the recent one which apparently was the Natural History. I checked the time and it was already 4pm and they will close by 6pm. We quickly walked around the Anthropology so we can transfer to Natural History. Both museums took us 4 hours and we weren’t able to visit yet the Fine Arts. Now we know that we should really start early and if you want to visit 3 museums then you should start as soon as they open.
We did too much walking and by the end of the Natural History, it is already tiring. We know that we can’t do Intramuros anymore and Ocean Park also closes at 6pm. If you are planning a Manila tour it is either start early morning or yet check-in to a hotel and do a 2 days trip. You can’t visit everything in a day. If you want less people, visit on a weekday just be sure that the places you will visit isn’t closed that day.
After Natural History, we decided to go to MOA already since Fae will be meeting someone and I haven’t been to MOA for 2 months now. Good thing there was a UV from there to MOA. It was also a Saturday and there are events here and there for Pride month, it was so traffic going to MOA and I can feel my tiredness. lol
Fae don’t want coffee so I told her that I wanted to try the 19 degrees at MOA Food Court and she agreed. 19 degrees is now one of my favorite a must try.
After eating we separate ways and I went around MOA very quick just to check some store and how it looks now since I’ve been there during UAAP but no chance of going around.
I can’t find what I’m looking for and malls doesn’t have an appeal to me anymore for so long unless I’ll buy something.
Took a bus to PITX before 9pm and I don’t know this new bus route. Apparently, you have to change bus at PITX to the one that will go back north. It’s free anyways but I should have gone down to Ortigas since there are bus stops that will require you to walk KM. The walk from the stop in Cubao to SM took me almost 1KM and let’s be honest that the Philippine sidewalk are the worst with no light and not as friendly as it can be.
I was home before 11pm.
Thankful that it didn’t rain and I was able to explore Manila with scammer friends.
Till our part 2!
My Photographs: Manila
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