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I’ve lived in Manila all my life – except for a short stint in Melbourne, Australia – but still I keep finding out so much more about this place that I call home.

One thing I love about Manila is the nightlife. There’s so many clubs, bars, restaurants, videoke bars, etc that you can choose from! And the local music scene is totally awesome. Beer is hella cheap at Php20 (less than US$1!). My favorite haunts include 6 Underground, Cafe Saguijo and Conspiracy where a lot of up-and-coming local bands perform live every night.

For arts and culture, there’s always the museums – the National Museum and the Ayala Museum top my list. The Ayala Museum have a permanent exhibit of my favorite Filipino painter (Fernando Amorsolo) plus lots of international exhibits. The old city of Intramuros and Fort Santiago are great for history buffs – these date back to the Spanish occupation which lasted for 300 years (1500s to 1800s).

A short drive from the heart of the city gets you to quick weekend getaways ranging from the beaches in Batangas, the Taal Volcano (smallest volcano in the world) that can be trekked (volcano trekking is very popular here), the Taal Lake where a particular kind of fish can only be found here in the entire world, a butterfly farm in Marikina, and the La Mesa Dam where families can do a variety of activities (picnics, hiking, swimming, boating, etc).

Sunset in Manila Bay is famous all over, with good reason. They’re absolutely gorgeous. And lately, they’ve developed the area around the bay so that there are a lot of outdoor restaurants with live music lining up the banks (called Baywalk) which make for a great night out.

I also love Manila for the gastronomic pleasure it brings. Aside from Filipino food (of course), there’s Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Persian, Ethiopian, Thai, Vietnamese, German, French, Mediterranean, Greek, Spanish, Korean, fusion, etc. Not to mention the little informal shops that line streets where you can get cheap barbecued meat, grilled fish, fishballs, squidballs, grilled chicken intestines, quail eggs, duck eggs, and a whole lot of other “exotic” fare. It’s so hard for me to pick any favorite restaurant as there’s so many good ones out there – Antonio’s in Tagaytay, Cafe Breton with their delicious crepes, the native Filipino food at Kamayan and Dencio’s…there’s a lot!

Shopping is practically a national sport. We’ve got so many malls all over the place; I’ve never seen so many malls in one city anywhere else in the world. Aside from the malls where local (Bench, Human, Maldita, Folded & Hung, Kamiseta, and so many more) and foreign boutiques (which include top brands such as Chanel, Prada, Topshop, Charles & Keith, Nine West, Louis Vuitton, and so much more) stand side by side, we have so many bazaars and second-hand shops where you can get great bargains. Greenhills is the shopping mecca of any fashionista, where you can get branded items at a third of their prices and where everything from pirated DVDs, clothes, furniture, and jewelry are sold.

What I’ve finished so far since 2 weeks ago:

The Magician’s Guild by Trudi Canavan
The Novice by Trudi Canavan
The High Lord by Trudi Canavan
The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

All very good books that I could hardle put down. Word of warning though, some people may have difficulty reading Jane Austen at first with the somewhat archaic English language she employs. But the wit she displays is amazing.

I’ve been driving since 2003 and I can’t imagine life without my license and car! So much more freedom…now I don’t have to depend on someone else if I need to get somewhere.

Learned to drive using standard transmission but I’ve been driving an automatic since 2004. I definitely recommend learning to drive both – automatic’s the best for lazy people like me (and hey, traffic’s terrible where I’m from…I used to get leg cramps in traffic jams!!) but stickshift’s more reliable still especially if your car breaks down!