Manila - Day 1 - The taxi and the Patty

The Philippines has shown me so many faces that I can't just write one post about it. Before arriving I was so anxious. Finally I would get to eat all the fruits that were once normal for me but have now become 'exotic'. I was looking forward to jackfruit, all different types of mangoes, rambutan, mangosteen, sweetsop and soursop, among others. I soon found out that Manila was not the place for these fruits. I had to buy fruits in a supermarket in plastic wrappings just like in countries that imported them. I had wanted to simply walk through markets and buy lots of appealing fruits, but that was not to be. 

Jackfruit from the mall

Upon arriving in Manila, I proceeded to the airport taxi section. I had read that the airport taxis were a bit more expensive (maybe 500 or 600 pesos) but safer than regular taxis. At a taxi booth, we were given the license plate number and taxi name on a piece of paper. This seemed very official.The taxi driver was great. He pointed out places along the way, maintained lively conversation and was just overall pleasant. However, the meter seemed to be broken. The main screen was off. The driver explained that it was fully functional and that the main screen would light up when the meter was stopped. The traffic was bad. When we finally got to our destination, the fare was more than 1200 pesos. We were surprised, but what could we do? We paid then asked at the hostel if that price was normal. We were told that usually the price from the airport to the hostel is around 200 pesos. So, we were 'officially robbed' by our first Filipino. In response to this, the receptionist at the hostel smiled and said 'welcome to the Philippines!'. What a welcome!

Jamaican Patty in the Philippines

Thank God the hostel was nice and safe. We later took a stroll in our immediate surroundings and found Jamaican patties that tasted authentic. Woohooo! That wiped away the sins of the taxi man and left me in heaven. For years now I've been dreaming of patties, so this was literally a dream come true! (My dreams are pretty unambitious, haha. I know.) 

So my first day ended with a bang for me. I was looking forward to day two :).