I found this while googling...

http://www.travel-philippines.com/lo...ila/Manila.htm



I lived in Manila for 9 years and family and friends who visited me always enjoyed it here. That was easy for them because I had a large apartment to accommodate them, a car to drive them around in and I was their tour guide with lots of local knowledge. Coming to Manila for the first time as a backpacker tourist would be very different and I can't recall having met a tourist yet who really liked it here. I had the occasional tourists stay with me and never had much trouble in transforming their Manila experience into a good one.

If you you are staying in hi-end hotels like the Shangri-La Hotel, New World Renaissance Hotel, Intercontinental Hotel or Dusit Thani Hotel, you would be probably be shielded from most of the dangers and frustrations of Manila and your experience may be more enjoyable, especially if you are there on business and some locals will be there to guide you and take you out.

There are lots of beautiful places in the Philippines and Manila is not one of them. The humidity and scorching summer heat can be unbearable, especially given the pollution and the choking exhaust fumes. The city is filthy, ugly and grossly overpopulated. Getting around can be frustrating and traffic often slows down to only a few km per hour. Ask any Filipino what they hate most about Manila and it would be the traffic, the pollution and the crime.
for the complete text, click: http://www.travel-philippines.com/lo...ila/Manila.htm