We started off not quite knowing where to go when we decided to go inside Intramuros, the walled city. We stopped to visit a church turned into a museum, when I saw a calesa (a horse-drawn carriage) so I went to take a picture of it before going in. Well, the driver sold us on taking a ride for just PhP250 ($5). He said it's just a 20-minute drive if we don't stop. But he slowed down so I could take some pictures.
The calesa we rode at Intramuros. more pics
Then, we got to Fort Santiago and we decided to go in. We had to walk in (after paying for PhP45/person); the calesa driver said he would wait for us.
Fort Santiago is where Jose Rizal, the national hero, was imprisoned before he was executed. We walked on the grounds and on the wall, saw Jose Rizal's cell, peered into stairs that led to the dungeons, tossed coins into pots and missed, looked inside a museum that had some of his furniture and writings, and took lots of pictures.
Then we went back to the calesa and headed back, passing by the cathedral where Cardinal Jaime Sin was buried when he passed away only a month ago.
When we got back, we paid the driver twice the fare he asked for, since he waited for us for a long time. The church-museum had closed for the day, so we went for a driving tour instead, through EDSA, Makati, and Ortigas.
We stopped for lunch at Kamayan, a Filipino/Japanese buffet restaurant in Quezon City.
There are many words in the Filipino language that have different meanings depending on the context. "Kamayan" is one of them. The root word "kamay" means a hand. It can mean to shake hands, although the more common form is magkamayan (mag-ka-ma'yan). It can also mean to use one's hand to eat; that is, without utensils.
The restaurant had two floors and we went upstairs, where we were met by a young lady in a kimono. We ordered mango juice and water and went to the buffet. It wasn't very big, but the selection is fairly large. They set out only a small portion of each entree. Unfortunately, the entrees are not labelled, so you have to kinda know what the dish is. One side had a salad bar and the Filipino dishes, including lechon (roast pig). They had the head of the suckling on display. The center island was full of native desserts and ice cream. Another side was the Japanese cuisine. And then, there was still a sushi bar.
The mango shake was very good, and it came with a little teddy bear. I tasted one sushi that was very tasty, and the rest of the food was so-so. The best feature of the restaurant, however, is the quartet that goes around at each table to serenade the patrons with a Tagalog song or two. When they got to our table, I just had to record them. Then we gave them a tip afterwards. Derrick said we were lucky because the quartet isn't there everyday.
Total cost of the food was PhP1500, including a smaller tip (since it's buffet).
Afterwards, Derrick dropped me back at my hotel since he had a meeting to attend. In the evening, I met with my maternal cousin Zaldy. His mom and my mom are sisters. He said I look and sound like my mom. I said he looks like his dad and sounds like Uncle Jun, my mom's youngest brother. We went to a restaurant that I don't remember the name, except it starts with an "M". The food wasn't that impressive either, but the fried rice was presented very well. It looked like an Alaska bomb where the fried rice was covered by a thin crepe made of scrambled eggs. Cost: Another PhP1500 ($30).
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