Revisiting Manila: a day in Fort Santiago, Intramuros

Despite the bad news we hear about the Metro – crimes, overpopulation, pollution, and of course traffic jams – we Filipinos still are in love with Manila. From the family ties, bonding with friends, crowded parties, looooots of delicious food. Also one of the many reasons why we still are in love Manila is it’s natural wealth in culture and history. Hundreds of spots and building architectures are inspired by the classic architecture that influences us until now.

So it’s really a good thing Fort Santiago will be extending their hours for us to enjoy staying and learning (and taking pictures, of course) in the famous historic place! From the previous 8am-7pm, the gates will stay open until 11pm starting January 13.

Admission fees are P75 for adults and P50 for children and students. You can avail your tickets at the ticket booth until 9pm.

Also sooooo excited to share that I decided to take a step forward and start creating videos to better give you these “feels” in my trips. This is my first video on Facebook (and where ever) so please excuse my unprofessional skills. I promise to get better at this asap!

The “walled city” of Intramuros in Manila is now a popular destination for historical walking tours and photowalks as they call it, and cultural performances, it’s nice to know it’s also home of good Filipino restaurants and streetfood ready for you to try.

But yeeeeaaaaars before what we see now, Intramuros was built to be the Spaniards’ political and military base in Asia. Intramuros (Latin for “within the walls”) 0.67 square kilometers (0.26 sq mi) historic walled area within the city of Manila.

One of Intramuros’ main tourist attractions is Fort Santiago. Originally built by the Spanish in 1590, Fort Santiago now has beautiful gardens, plaza, museum, walls that are great for your selfies, and most importantly, small restaurants.

Fort Santiago, or Fuerte de Santiago, was built in 1593 by Spanish navigator and governor, Miguel López de Legazpi. As part of the walled city of Manila, the fort is one of the most important historical sites in the Philippines and several lives were lost in its prisons during the Spanish Empire and World War II. Jose Rizal, was also imprisoned here before his execution in 1896.

All photos credit to J. View more on VSCO: Fort Santiago 2019

I went to college in one of the universities in Manila, so back during those years, I’ve got to see Fort Santiago and Intramuros almost every day. It’s just nice to finally have time to revisit Manila and it’s famous spots.