Dewey Boulevard

They say that on a clear day, you can see forever.

While officially named Roxas Boulevard, the short strip between the American Embassy and the Cultural Center of the Phillippines is sometimes still referred to by its old name, Dewey Boulevard (named after Commodore George Dewey, who triumphantly sailed into Manila Bay right after the Spanish fleet fell apart).  The strip is known to be the best place to see the famous Manila sunset; around 5-6pm, you can actually observe the red-orange glow extinguishing itself, slowly sinking into the cold blue sea.  Nightfall soon takes its place, and the blaring music of the honky-tonks around the area snap you out of your reverie.

The night clubs of the sixties and the seventies are gone, and while the area used to be the toast of the creme-dela-creme, the strip today has been overtaken by time itself.  To the younger set, obviously Metro Manila has so many new places to offer.

Still, it was refreshing to sit back and watch Dewey Boulevard at noon time.  The port area seemed to have more cranes.  A lot of ships were anchored in Manila Bay, waiting patiently for the berthing dock pilots to take over (I heard the congestion at the pier has caused some shipping lines to skip Manila altogether).  You can see the cargo trucks all lined up. The Manila Yacht Club didn't seem to be that big though.  The coconut trees have been there for ages.  Plaza Rajah Sulayman and Malate Church look the same, no change at all. Tourists?  Nah, don't see any of them anymore.

True, the glory days of Dewey Boulevard have long passed.  The area could use a lot of redevelopment.  But the waterfront view evokes a lot of good memories, and the Manila sunset is still a powerful draw.

Yeah.  On a clear day, you can see forever.