SailorJill and I Sail on the Orient Express a.k.a. Millenium's Immersion Cruise

One of the fun things to discover in Intramuros were the hidden courtyards. One could almost imagine couples promenading along the covered balconies and watching the people below.

Secluded walkways were paved with bricks and lined with lush vegetation. This was a delightful little restaurant off on the left where we enjoyed a glass of wine and did a little people watching.

A typical little courtyard - this one with a small souvenir shop and a little museum. As I mentioned before, everything in Intramuros seemed frozen in time. One gets the impression that little has changed since these were built in the 1800's.

This is the George Willman Center for the Knights of Columbus. George was born in Brooklyn and came to Manila in 1933. He was captured by the Japanese in WWII and put in a concentration camp and later freed by American forces. He assumed the leadership of the Knights of Columbus after the war and in 1975 was awarded citizenship by presidential decree for his "virtuous acts, compassionate and kind and loving service for the Filipino people."

Security was never a problem in Manila as there were tourist police throughout Intramuros. I could never get used to the color of the uniforms however. They sort of reminded me of a seersucker suit I bought when I was young and didn't know what I was doing.:D

This is the Palacio del Gobernador - one of the few modern buildings in Intramuros. This site was the headquarters of the Governor General during the Spanish Colonia Era but was destroyed by an earthquake in 1863. The current building was erected in 1976 and houses various government agencies.

Hi Jack.

I am going on my first cruise in November. One of the ports we are visiting is Manila. If the intramuros is within walking distance of the port,is it worth using that as my time on shore or book another excursion ?

Steve

I meant to post these pictures of the inside of the Manila Cathedral, so here they are. It really was quite beautiful inside and I tried, where possible, to avoid photos where people were kneeling and praying.

Hi Jack.

I am going on my first cruise in November. One of the ports we are visiting is Manila. If the intramuros is within walking distance of the port,is it worth using that as my time on shore or book another excursion ?

 

Steve

On our cruise, we were in Manila for two days so we had a lot of flexibility on what to do. Intramuros was one of the things we wanted to do in Manila and we looked at the ship's tour and the stops they would make. With the exception of the American Cemetery, it looked like almost everything was in walking distance - San Augustin, Manila Cathedral, Fort Sebastian, Museums, architecture, etc. For us, it just didn't make sense to get in a bus with forty other people and get stuck with that timetable.

You should look at your ship's tour and see if it covers things you want to see that you could not see by walking.

If you decide to walk, download a map from Google on Intramuos and use it as a guide. To get to Intramuros (at least from where we were docked), simply leave the port area, cross the main street and turn left. While you can see Intramuros from the Promenade you can't get directly there because of the golf course - so you will have to walk about ten - fifteen minutes to get around the golf course and get inside the wall to Intramuros. Once there just use your map.

Of course, your ship may offer other tours that you may find more interesting, but if not, a visit to Intramuros is well worth the time.

Jack

I don't remember how it started, but Jill's gag gifts from her friends involved chickens. We have chicken salt shakers, pot holders, candles, Xmas tree ornaments, etc. However, she would not allow me to add these to her collection.

I don't know if these were being sold for food or for pets, but they were being sold everywhere.

We stumbled across this bike rental place late in the day. Had we seen it sooner, we would have rented a bike. They also did bike tours.

This is the wall than surrounds Intramuros. One can imagine the fighting that went on here when MacArthur fought the Japanese in the liberation of Manila. We were told that this was the site of MacArthur's headquarters before he was forced to leave the Philippines for Australia.

Hi Jack.

I am going on my first cruise in November. One of the ports we are visiting is Manila. If the intramuros is within walking distance of the port,is it worth using that as my time on shore or book another excursion ?

 

Steve

I forgot to mention that the museums (at least the ones we visited) only accept local currency. There is a money changing place among the stores on the left hand side of the port exit just before you get to the major street. If you are walking and not on a ship's tour where they pay the entrance fee, you will want to get some local money.

Jack

Our two day stay in Manila is over and the local sculling club gave us a treat by staging their practice right beside our ship. They looked like they were having as much fun as we were watching the various boats.

In what may have been the first for us at a port of call, not only were we welcomed by a musical group, but we were bid goodbye by one as well.

The group included very good flag twirlers who threw their flags high in the air and then deftly retrieved them as they came down.

Very nice uniforms, a real age mix and a nice brass group made this band stand out.

Of course the percussion section was also outstanding.

But the big hit for those onboard were the dance routines. You can see some of the girls practicing in the background.

Jack,

You're a sick man. I love that in a person.

Dancers getting ready for their routine.

Dancers in action.

Jack,

 

You're a sick man. I love that in a person.

Thank-you??

Jack

Thank you so much for a walk down memory lane! First, I LOVE your writing. As an avid reader, I'm in for the book too! Such a laugh out loud joy! Then, you shared so many memories for me. We lived in Shanghai for three years and you did an amazing job capturing the vibrance of the city! A fellow co-worker (yes, of course, KFC and Pizza Hut expats!) lived in the Marriott where you stayed. She was solo, not the best for a family although I was quite jealous! You did a great job seeing the city in just a few days. People's park truly is amazing. Even enjoyed seeing the government buildings where I'd

Secure my work visa. Any chance you made it to Yu Garden? Xiao Long Bao (the world's best soup dumplings!) from Din Tai Fung? Jing'an temple on NanJing Lu? Xiantiandi for shopping and dining? Oh the list just goes on and on. Your pictures were amazing. Thank you for sharing!

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Another treat for us - a second band!

They didn't have as big a percussion section as the first band, but they played beautifully.

And they did have a really big tuba!

Baton twirlers getting ready.

The band and the baton twirlers in action. They put on a great show!

And finally, a battle of the bands. All in all, a great going away show.

In what had to be one of the biggest surprises of the day, these girls followed the ship all the way down the pier, waving and blowing kisses. We felt like we were leaving family.:D People of the ship were doing the same - it was probably the most fun we have had on a sail away.

Anyway, it was time to say goodbye to Manila and start planning for our visit to Viet Nam.

Thank you so much for a walk down memory lane! First, I LOVE your writing. As an avid reader, I'm in for the book too! Such a laugh out loud joy! Then, you shared so many memories for me. We lived in Shanghai for three years and you did an amazing job capturing the vibrance of the city! A fellow co-worker (yes, of course, KFC and Pizza Hut expats!) lived in the Marriott where you stayed. She was solo, not the best for a family although I was quite jealous! You did a great job seeing the city in just a few days. People's park truly is amazing. Even enjoyed seeing the government buildings where I'd

Secure my work visa. Any chance you made it to Yu Garden? Xiao Long Bao (the world's best soup dumplings!) from Din Tai Fung? Jing'an temple on NanJing Lu? Xiantiandi for shopping and dining? Oh the list just goes on and on. Your pictures were amazing. Thank you for sharing!

 

 

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Glad you enjoyed the review. Yu Garden was on our agenda, but, alas, we never made it over there. I guess it gives us something to look forward to on our next visit. This was our second visit to Shanghai and there is just so much to see and do there. I envy your three years there...glad go bring back some memories. Thanks for sharing your story.

Jack

As we had several sea days before Vietnam, and as we had the complimentary Ultimate Drink Package, we spent some time at the Martini Bar. The gentleman to the left was our go to mixologist and should you ever have the pleasure of sailing with him be sure to order the Abracadabra martini. It is his specialty and is not on the menu. We would have one with him before dinner - and sometimes after dinner as well.:D

The martini bar was really unique (at least to us). It had a metal top and was cooled to 32 degrees and then had a fine layer of water added - which resulted in the bar being covered with a thin layer of ice. You can see the ice in the picture below. The ice served a couple of purposes - you could write cute little sayings in it and it kept your drink cool.

If all the seats at the bar were taken, there was a secondary area to sit at -not as cool, but the ice in the center of the table kept the vodka cold.

Love it! I am your newest fan! Yes, you definitely should write a book, and I will definitely buy it!

We have arrived in Chan May, Vietnam. Chan May basically serves as the port for visits to Hue and other cities in Vietnam. We have arrived early in the morning and the sun is just now starting to lighten up the harbor.

Chan May is just starting to awaken. Fishing boats are starting to leave and off to the right you can see our escort tug coming out to greet us. This will be our second visit to Vietnam and is the first of two ports in Vietnam that we will visit on this cruise. While I would have liked to visit Hue, we have had so many friends that were stationed in Da Nang that we have decided to visit that city and save Hue for another time. Docking was extremely quick and shore tours started very early - primarily I think because the Hue tour involved very long bus trips there and back.

I read your whole review in one sitting- loved it!

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Fishermen throwing their nets out. It is not hard to imagine that this is the way they fished these waters 100 years ago.

Breakfast time.

Love it! I am your newest fan! Yes, you definitely should write a book, and I will definitely buy it!

Glad you enjoyed it! No book coming, but my other reviews are linked in my signature.

Jack

The drive down the coast from Chan May to Da Nang was quite picturesque, with great scenery and little fishing villages.

A very small fishing village located on a lagoon - formed by waters coming in from the ocean.

The platforms in the water are actually fishing stations.