Monday, Jan. 18, 2010

9. Binondo

Deliberately within firing range of Intramuros's cannons — testament to the siege mentality of early Spanish settlers — is Binondo, Manila's colorful 400-year-old Chinatown. Purportedly the oldest Chinatown in the world, it teems with jostling pedestrians and itinerant vendors. Foodies should duck inside fabled Chinese-Filipino eatery Ma Mon Luk, tel: (63-2) 733 7596, in nearby Quiapo, for a bowl of Manila's best chicken mami (noodle soup).