A Manila Trip is Never Complete Without a Stop at....

Chinatown!

Well, that's the case for me at least :P

I love, love, love Chinatown! So many things to see, so many restaurants to eat in, little trinkets here and there. Don't even get me started on 168. LOL

My first stop was of course, Eng Bee Tin!

Eng Bee Tin hopia is the only hopia I eat. I couldn't live without these when I was pregnant with Lucas. Back then, Eng Bee Tin hopia could only be bought in Chinatown. Imagine how I would nag Jigger (the baby daddy) when I ran out of my supply. LOL So maybe that's why Lucas has chinky eyes too? hehehe Anyway, I was overwhelmed at the plethora of flavors available! But I only got these 4...

Yeah, hopia mongo is my favorite. hehehe The thing with me though, I cannot get too much of anything even if it's my favorite. I end up not paying them any mind when I've already eaten one. The custard ube is new to me and I regret only getting one packet. It's delicious!!!

After Eng Bee Tin, I headed to my other favorite place...

I have been going here for pancit since I was 17! I'm very independent, you see. With no parents or guardians watching over me, I pretty much took care of myself. So as young as 14, I would commute from Las Pinas to Manila to "soul search" while walking around. Yep, walk. LOL I walked from Recto to Chinatown btw.. but only because I didn't know what jeep to ride and I was too kurips to take a pedicab. hahahah!

Anyway, this is the inside of Manosa..

The ground floor is not air-conditioned and the staff would be peeling vegetables at the next table. The second floor however, is a little more desirable. When I say a little, I do mean a LITTLE. Not table cloths or anything but at least it's air-conditioned and there's no open kitchen up there. Anyway, I ordered these for take-out because I wanted to get home to my little monster already. He's not used to waking up without me beside him. :(

Huge siomais (100/4pcs and special mikimihon (205 for a large order). They don't look appetizing but I promise you, they are! And the servings are huge! Their menu is very limited but I've tried their Maki (shown in the top picture above this one. yep, that brown thing in the pot), fried rice, and Sweet and Sour pork. I don't like sweet viands so I usually snub anything that has "sweet" in its name.. but I loved their Sweet and Sour pork. Prices are pretty affordable. And oh, the place is always packed despite lacking in ambiance. :)

This concludes my Manila adventure today.

I hope to be able to write more interesting posts for you guys in the future. :)