Summer Destination: Philippines

I've been to the PH four times already, but I haven't visited any major sites or landmarks. Since the country tries its best to promote its tourism, with a motto "It's more fun in the Philippines" I decided to ask my cousins to help me visit some interesting sites in Manila.

I travelled about eight hours to reach Manila from Ilocos Sur. It has been a long and tiring trip, but definitely worth it. The picture above was taken at Fort Santiago, Intramuros. It is one of the oldest Hispanic stone fortresses in the country. I heard that it was originally the site of Rajah Soliman's fort, and was used by the Spaniards under various governor generals who continued to modernise it.

To be honest, I did not expect a lot from this fort. This is mainly due to the fact that I grew up in Greece where ruins and ancient buildings can be found almost everywhere. However, I was fascinated by it, not because of the architecture but rather due to its aura. It looks very old, but preserved. The carvings at the front reminded me of the ruins built by the Mayans in South America.

As you can see it was raining during my visit and it was completely empty. I was so glad that we had the whole area for ourselves.

TTFN