Exploring Makati City

Shopping Malls

Early this year, the Ayala group further upped the ante of shopping in the Philippines with the unveiling of Greenbelt 5 as an addition to the existing two cluster of shopping malls Greenbelt 1 to 4, and Glorietta 1 to 5. These malls are by far the most sophisticated, modern, and expensive shopping destinations in the country, featuring doezens of cafes, bars and fashion nooks, all overlooking a manicured green park with a domed Catholic chapel at the center.

There are also five big hotels in the vicinity which include the Makati Shangri-la Hotel, the Manila Peninsula, the Dusit Hotel Nikkō--Manila Garden, the Hotel Intercontinental Manila, and the New World Renaissance Hotel. Rising from Glorietta 4 is the Ascott Makati (formerly Oakwood), a luxurious hotel-apartment residence. Along the periphery of Glorietta are three department stores: SM Department Store - Makati, Rustan's, and the Landmark.

Makati City boasts of another elite, fully integrated "city within a city", a beautifully landscaped self-contained community that offers access to business convenience and leisure facilities and which features the large Power Plant Mall. As the newest and hottest city destination, the Power Plant mall has six cinemas, a bowling center, a new-concept supermarket called Rustan's Fresh, an amusement center and a variety of restaurants. Dine or walk along the cafe strip, a stretch of sidewalk cafes which has become a popular hang-out for both young and old. Rockwell's high-rise residential condominiums for businessmen and expats are just a short walk away from everything within the Center. It also houses the the Asian Eye Institute, and the Ateneo Professional Schools main campus, which houses the Ateneo School of Law, the Ateneo Graduate School of Business, and the Ateneo School of Government., the offices of Nestle and PHINMA, and the Rockwell Club.

A-venue Mall, with dozens of classy but affordable restaurants that cater to every dish and taste, is also found near the corner of Kalayaan Avenue and Makati Ave. Close to the area is the Makati’s night life distict (along Burgos Street) patronized by many expatriates.

Circa 1920s. View of the area where Our Melting Pot Backpackers Joint is closely situated. This was Barrio Poblacion, the Town's Plaza 13 de Agosto Area. Shown is the main road now known as J.P. Rizal Street.	Municipal Building, 1962 at Old Poblacion.

There are more shopping centers within the city, mostly promoting the bazaar concept. The Cash and Carry Supermarket in the west along South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) features many products at low prices. Makati Cinema Square, along Pasong Tamo Road, used to be a popular shopping mall with the residents, but is now mainly a centre for pirated DVDs and CDs. Adjacent to the Makati Cinema Square is the big and modern Waltermart Mall. The Guadalupe Commercial Center, along EDSA and Pasig River is a middle-class shopping center frequented by residents from the poorer areas of Makati. PureGold is another independent Supermarket located at the end of J.P. Rizal Street, Barangay Singkamas. Shopwise and Makro, the popular membership shopping malls in the Philippines are also found in the western part of the city.

Other Landmarks

Sta. Ana Race Track
Location: A. P. Reyes Street, Carmona The home of the sport of kings, the Sta. Ana Race Track opened to the public in 1930. Wednesdays to Sundays are for watching the horses kick up the turf at the tracks.
The Manila Polo Club
Location: McKinley Road, Forbes Park Where guests can watch equestrian sports such as polo, played by some of its very affluent and high profile members. Recreational facilities include polo fields, horse-back riding, racquetball, tennis, squash, bowling, swimming and softball. Guests must be sponsored by members. Another exclusive enclave of Makati's high-profile set is the Manila Polo Club, where Sunday matches are held regularly from December to May.
The Manila Golf Club
Location: Harvard Road, Forbes Park The exclusive Manila Golf Club is Makati's 18-hole golf course.
The Makati Sports Club
Location: Leviste Street, Salcedo Village The Makati Sports Club along Leviste Street in Salcedo Village offers facilities for swimming, tennis and other sports. It also boasts of a gym, a sauna, and a multi-purpose hall. Exclusive to members, honorary members, and their guests.

Historical Sites, Museums and Other Interesting Places

The Ayala Center is actually not all about malls and hotels because overlooking the Greenbelt park is the small but interesting Ayala Museum (Tues-Sat 10am-7pm; tel 02-8121191 to 97). It has a permanent display of Philippine history [63 dioramas or three-dimensional portrait of half a million years of Philippine history, scaled down reproductions of native boats and foreign ships] and rotating exhibitions by artists, photographers and sculptors. It also houses a collection of ethnological and archaeological artifacts as well as excellent models of Southeast Asian watercraft, and oil paintings by Amorsolo, the country's most famous painter and has an interesting footage on the Philippine EDSA revolution. The museum charges a moderate admission fee and is surely worth visiting if the traveller wants a succinct introduction to Philippine arts and history.

The Filipinas Heritage Library (tel 02/892 1801) on Makati Avenue, opposite The Peninsula Hotel, is an interesting little piece of history. When US battled the Great Depression in the 1930’s, the Philippine economy experienced unprecedented heights. Many foreigners thus came to our shores, dubbed as the Peal of the Orient, and among those who came was Laurie Reuben Nielson, by way of New Zealand, who had great successes in businesses, especially in building an airport and aviation school in Manila. Filling up a void at the time the economy was in boom, his venture led him with other interested investors to secure a lease from Ayala y Cia for several hectares of land carved out of the vast Hacienda San Pedro de Makati. So the Library as we see now was actually the holding area for passengers in Manila’s first airport. It was then the largest and most modern airport in Asia. Paseo de Roxas is now where the runway used to be. Today, the Ayalas privately own the Library as well, but has a bookshop selling Philippine books and a quiet cafe with Internet access.

Museo ng Makati on J. P. Rizal Street in Poblacion is the repository of Makati's heritage and culture. The museo building itself offers a slice of Makati's history. Constructed in 1918, the building served as the town hall of Makati from 1918 until 1961. The community museum houses ethnographic and archaeological artifacts, including fossil remains of pre-historic animals and earthenware. The history of Makati is shown in a collection of rare photographs, dioramas, and murals.

Libingan ng mga Bayani. Within the Ft. Bonifacio Army Reservations is the resting place of 33,520 Filipino soldiers who were killed in Corregidor, Bataan and throughout the country during World War II. It is where the tomb of the Unknown Soldier is enshrined, as well as the headstones of Filipino statesmen.

On the edge of Makati in McKinley Avenue and adjacent to the Libingan ng mga Bayani is the American Cemetery and Memorial which stands as a solemn reminder of the heroism of American soldiers during World War II. It contains the largest number of graves of American military dead of World War II, a total of 17,206. Significant battles of World War II are engraved on the walls of the Memorial. Information on significant military events are depicted and recorded in the map rooms, with 25 intricately designed maps, and in the battle museum in glass mosaic mixed with tinted concrete and colored fine aggregates. Completed in 1960, architect and landscape designer Gardner A. Daly of San Francisco took pains in keeping its park-like setting perpetually green and bloom.

The Bonifacio Monument at the intersection of Makati Avenue and Paseo de Roxas St., in font of Mandarini Oriental Hotel, may not be a popular site but a significant piece of history in the heart of the city. Andres Bonifacio was the leader of the Revolutionary Movement of the Philippines in the 19^th century, at the height of the rebellion against the oppressive Spanish regime.

The other two corners of this green expanse in the intersections of three main roads (Paseo de Roxas, Ayala and Makati Avenues) are guarded by the statues of Filipino patriots Ninoy Aquino, Gabriela Silang and Pio del Pilar. Ugarte Field, a park at the back of the old Makati Stock Exchange Building between Makati Avenue and Paseo de Roxas, was named after Sebastian Ugarte , Executive Vice-President of the Soriano & Co., in 1945. When demonstrations started in 1983 after the assassination of Sen. Benigno Aquino, the Ugarte Field was the rallying point for many significant protest actions.

Guadalupe Ruins (Nuestra Señora de Gracia Church)

Doric architecture with massive buttresses to support its vault of hewn stones taken from the still visible but extinct Guadalupe quarry. Free from ornamentations, its walls are solid and stable and built in such a way that they still stand today as when the church was completed in 1629.

Saints Peter and Paul Church

Located at Barangay Poblacion, it was built in 1620. Architecture is typical of the colonial mission churches: a rectangular single-nave plan composed of the nave, apse and sacristy. A three-tiered papal tiara and keys, symbols of the Papacy, the first being St. Peter who, together with St. Paul, is the patron of the locality, dominate the façade. The altar with carved retablo is the focal point.