A Fresh Perspective on Travel Every Day
The capital of the Philippines may not always be highlighted for positive reasons; however, if you are in search of a vibrant and often overlooked metropolis, Manila is poised to defy your expectations.
The city of Manila’s origins lie here, in a crumbling fortress north of the walled city of Intramuros near the mouth of the Pasig River.
In the Philippines, the San Agustin Church in Intramuros, Manila stands resilient. This grand Baroque structure, completed in 1606, has weathered numerous earthquakes, invasions, and typhoons. Despite the destruction wrought by World War II on the rest of Intramuros, San Agustin Church remains intact.
For hundreds of years, the walled city of Intramuros was Manila: the nerve center of the Spanish occupation in the Philippines, home to several thousand Spanish colonists, their families, and their Filipino servants.