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Chinatown. Almost every country has
its own version of the Chinese district, which automatically conjures up
images of freshly steamed dimsum, bright red and yellow lanterns, and
fortune cookies.
Welcome to the Philippine version of Chinatown with a twist, Binondo.
Binondo Chinatown
Located across the Pasig River from Intramuros is the Binondo area. Why
“Binondo”? That’s because before the city was formed, Binondo sat on
marshy wet lands planted with tubers and surrounded by tributary systems
of the Pasig river called “binunduk,” which in Filipino, literally means
“hilly.” Probably because it is surrounded by water that the area’s
center seemed to “protrude” from the ground in those times.
At present, the entire district is filled with all things Chinese from
herbal medications to Peking Duck. It is also where Manila’s bargain
center, Divisoria market, may be found. It has been said that the
commerce in Binondo that starts at dawn in the market places and
continues throughout the day at the bazaars are so numerous that Makati
trade is nothing compared to it.
Walking along Binondo’s busy streets and getting the all-present whiff
of incense and different smoked foods to set the ambience make for a
walking tour that is unique to say the least.
Tourists may start their walking tour with Binondo’s Ongpin street
(also called 24-karat street for the large number of jewelry shops in
the area) which is lined with Chinese tea shops, traditional medicine
shops, jewelry stores, acupuncture clinics, kung-fu schools and mah-jong
parlors (mah-jong is a Chinese game).
From Ongpin, tourists may head on to Plaza Santa Cruz to visit the
Santa Cruz Church, a church set up by Jesuits to accommodate the
Chinese Christian converts. Here devotees are often seen walking on
bended knees to prostrate themselves in front of the altar as a symbol
of their faith.
Each street in Binondo caters to different clientele needs. Customers
looking for canvass and upholstery supplies may find the materials they
require in Sabino Padilla formerly Gandara Street.
An alley of Nueva Street called Carvajal, is host to fruit and vegetable
stalls where imported fruits like Chinese fragrant pears, grapes, dragon
fruit, fresh cherries and tangerines may be bought cheaply.
Also along Ongpin may be found La Resurrection, a store famous for their
old-fashioned chocolate tablets and cacao used for cooking cups of hot
cocoa in the way it has been prepared since Spanish times.
Further down the street, good luck talismans, red and gold charms,
incense and brass holders may be procured at numerous Buddhist religious
supplies stores.
Numerous gastronomic delights also await the Binondo day tripper.
Steaming hot congee, dimsum and assorted dumplings may be found at
either the more upscale restaurants or at the quaint sidewalk teahouses
similar to those found in Chinese market places. Chinese cuisine cooked
the Fukienese, Macanese, and Cantonese styles may also be found in
restaurant menus.
Pastries and sweet meats like the hopia (a flaky pastry with
purple yam or mung bean stuffing,) machang (rolled up sticky rice
with meat filling wrapped in banana leaf) may be bought at the bakeries
and food stalls scattered around Ongpin.
Street carts hawking snacks like fresh sugar cane and roasted chestnuts
are so plentiful that some even resort to occupying almost half of the
side streets.
Bottles of ginseng, shark fin cartilage, deer horn, dried snake, bird’s
nest and the occasional
“please-don’t-tell-me-that-is-what-I-think-it-is” animal testicles and
other exotic ingredients may be found at the apothecaries.
Apothecaries are
usually willing to help visitors to their shops by asking their symptoms
and recommending remedies, even telling curious customers what the items
on display are for.
Despite the availability of modern medicines from pharmaceutical
companies, a lot of people still swear by the efficacy of the teas,
brews and powders in Chinese traditional medicine.
Binondo church also houses the 18 inch black wooden crucifix
miraculous “Cristo de Longos.” Discovered in the 16th century by a
deaf-mute Chinese laborer while drawing up water from a well. The
crucifix has been credited with miraculous healing including that of the
laborer who found it who was able to start talking and hearing after his
discovery.
Binondo Church
It was venerated in the Chapel of San Gabriel till 1863 until an
earthquake demolished the whole chapel leaving the crucifix as the lone
survivor. After the disaster, the crucifix was then transferred to the
Binondo church.
A historical marker may be found on the site where the image was found.
Visitors may light joss sticks and candles in front of a large black
crucifix mounted on silver.
The Seng Guan Temple or the Temple of ten thousand Buddhas located at
Narra Street is the main temple of Buddhists in the Philippines. The
shrine complex has three huge and impressive halls: the Avalokishvara
shrine room for ancestors, the ornate lecture hall with multi-level
paintings of the earthly life of Gautama Buddha and the grand prayer
hall.
The wall of the grand prayer hall’s main altar, which also sits 5 Golden
Buddhas encased entirely in gold leaf is one of only three such altars
in Asia.
Tourists who may find the trip hard on the feet may rent calesas
(horse drawn carriages) for P250-P300 to take them for a tour of Binondo.
Alternately, bicycle cabs may also be hired for this purpose at lower
rates.
Calesa
Getting there:
From Taft Avenue of Ma.
Orosa Sts., in Manila, hail a jeepney bound for Divisoria. The Jeepney
goes straight to Binondo. Get off right in front of the church and start
your walking tour.
What to wear:
Simple, comfortable
clothes and shoes/sandals. Tourists are advised to dress as
inconspicuously as possible and take along guides when available for
safety and security reasons. It is advisable to bring ready cash for
expenses as most stalls and bargain outlets cannot process credit cards.
Money changing booths may be found around the area for that “Got no more
pesos but just gotta have that…” moment.
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