Philippine Tourism: Lacking

You see it in those sugar-coated ads we see on TV about our beloved country. The white sandy beaches, the beautiful women, and the lush tropical sceneries along with scenes of festivities throughout our beloved archipelago of 7,107 islands. Then we'd have all these wonderful slogans that change every year from WOW Philippines to Fiesta Islands and after a few months it changes to something like "Your Home, Philippines". How inconsistent is that?

Seriously, the country lacks a lot in terms of cultural attractions. A foreign guest at the hotel once asked me a typical question coming from a foreigner; "What attractions could I visit around here?". The first thing that came to my mind was Intramuros, the Walled City composed of old buildings and a motley assortment of squatters here and there. I then suggested the SM Mall of Asia but he said he was sick of malls. I also suggested out-of-town venues but he only wanted to see city attractions. My mind then drew a blank as the guest said he'll just go to Thailand instead.

Now here's the question: What city attractions?

Intramuros is practically a half-assed way of saying "Hey, here's our colonial past have fun lol". Go to Intramuros yourself and amongst the admirable structures you could see these small squatter communities still trying to eke out a living within the historic walled city. You would see the beautiful Casa Manila in one street, and run-down shanties behind it, with pedicabs lined along the road to "transport tourists" and other people.

Rizal Park ain't much of a site to behold as well. Aside from the Rizal Monument, that's all there is. If you're lucky, you could see a few beggars here and there, as well as street children that are ubiquitous in Metro Manila's streets. Seriously, our cultural attractions are surrounded by such appalling conditions that makes it hard for tourists to visit. Another problem is that most historical areas were not preserved because both the government and the community have failed to realize its importance.

Remember the Metropolitan Theater near Lawton? Apparently it is one of the few buildings to have used some kind of Art Deco style of architecture. Where is it now? Rotting somewhere in Central Manila. Quiapo Church is plagued by locust-like devotees as well as other historic churches, in terms of modern attractions, why is Mall of Asia considered to be one? It's just some big effing mall, that's it.

What about our virtually empty museums? The docent gets so bored he would just play solitaire in his office! The only time they would be uppity is when they have guests! Museums and parks aren't very popular in our country. As long as it doesn't earn money, it sucks. People here have traded brains for monetary profit.

So that's all the city has to offer right? You have a bit of history here and there, then it's all shopping, shopping, shopping, shopping, and more shopping. Go ahead. Every neighborhood has at least one mall in it right? I mean, aside from shopping the closest we could offer in terms of tourism is sex tourism. Malate anyone?

What has caused this lack of attractions and culture? Well personally I believe Filipinos aren't exactly the brightest people on earth. I'd love to expound more on Philippine idiocy, but there is a time and place for that. Being a student who majored in tourism, I believe this would be the biggest problem in why we can't seem to get much tourists into the country.

I just don't want Manila to become a shop and sex hub in Southeast Asia. That's why we have Thailand for right? (No offense to Thais.) Now I ask you, the reader.

What can we do as a PEOPLE to create the Philippine standard of tourism?

Whatever it is, the tropical sandy beach stereotype is saturating.