A flourishing 16th century Malay settlement by the banks of the Pasig River awash with star-shaped nilad flowers became the nucleus of the city that was later named Manila by the Spanish colonizers who came in 1571, establishing a historical and commercial center that carries influences derived from a blend of Western and Eastern cultures.

Today, Manila is part of a larger political entity called Metro Manila which includes six other cities and 10 municipalities. It is also the captal of the Republic of the Philippines and home to some 20 percent of the country's 68 million Filipinos.

Spanish administrators established Catholic-run schools and universities (among these is the Pontifical University of Santo Tomas, which is older than America's oldest university, Harvard) and put up magnificent churches and government buildings in the heart of the city they built. Within fortified walls, they brought traces of Castillian architecture and a way of life for more than 300 years.

At the turn of the century, the Americans took over and ruled for 50 years. Manila underwent a facelift and, with the introduction of a new language, English signages stood side by side with the Spanish, if not replacing them.

A four-year occupation by the Japanese Imperial Army during World War II followed. Its mad culmination were the bombings and killings which destroyed the city and its people, making Manila one of the most heavily ravaged capitals in the world. The city rose from the rubbles of war and a devastated economy. And, as it did, thousands of migrants flocked to its gates.

Manila is a city whre fortunes are not only made but a city that also attracts both the culture- and leisure-seeker alike. The war may have leveled most of Manila but there are a few landmarks that managed to endure.

A Peek Inside The Wall City	A Ride Around Manila
Rizal Park	The One and Only Bamboo Organ
Manila's King of the Road	The Center of the Arts