About the only thing that distinguishes an office building from an apartment building in Binondo is the laundry drying in the balconies of the latter.
June 3, 2010
Jam-packed
The district of Binondo is Manila's Chinatown. It is a densely populated area, with more than twelve thousand people crammed into its .66 square kilometer (.26 square mile) land, according to the 2007 Philippine population census. Despite its narrow, crowded and oft-dirty streets, Binondo has one of the highest land values in the metro. No houses here, just cheek by jowl office and apartment buildings which are all at least three stories high. No matter what the building is, the street level spaces are all eateries, retail stores and commercial enterprises.
About the only thing that distinguishes an office building from an apartment building in Binondo is the laundry drying in the balconies of the latter.
About the only thing that distinguishes an office building from an apartment building in Binondo is the laundry drying in the balconies of the latter.
I cannot imagine that many people living in such a small area! Not for me...I like the wide-open spaces. But then, I also know a lot of folks don't really have a choice.
ReplyDeleteWhat a challenge it must be living there. Reminds me of the saying, that one bares to life every HOW if one has a WHY.
ReplyDeletedaily athens
I would expect that would a very interesting place to visit. I love the vitality of the 'big' city.
ReplyDeleteDo people grow cross sometimes, living so close together? Or do they love the sense of tightly knit community?
ReplyDeleteHow interesting to see Binondo buildings and read about the district. I guess Chinatowns around the globe have similar attributes of that tight spaced feeling, dense populations, and the ever-present laundry hanging from the balconey :-).
ReplyDelete-Kim
hee hee!
ReplyDelete«Louis» was going to write what Kim wrote!
He recently saw a photo of Chinatown in Havana, Cuba. Even after 50 years of Castro, the Havana Chinatown could be interchanged with the New York or San Francisco Chinatowns.
So busy place, I think they would be stressed all the time there.
ReplyDeleteLéia :)
It seems stifling to live in that location. All wires in the pictures pass a feeling of a densely populated place.
ReplyDelete很有意思!
ReplyDeleteWow. I remember when we visited, the traffic in Manila was so bad! I'm an open space kind of person. Even living in just the suburb of a major US city is too crowded for me.
ReplyDelete