Phoenix To The Philippines

At The Manila Hotel, Shabnam Minwalla experiences luxury from a bygone era.

- Shabnam Minwalla

Blame it on the high, polished ceilings. The swish of silken gowns. Or the tinkle of a grand piano and spoons on porcelain cups.

Whatever the reason, to step into The Manila Hotel is to slip into another era. An age of debutantes and balls; smoking rooms and telegrams. A time when passenger ships glided in from the Pacific Ocean and disgorged traders, soldiers and women in hats and long dresses. When horse-drawn carriages ferried guests from the port to the green-roofed, white hotel presiding over Manila Bay.

Our arrival at the grande dame of Manila is rather different. We straggle into the lobby on a Saturday afternoon, frazzled after a delayed flight and traffic clogged drive past the blocky buildings and strip malls of Metro Manila. We know that we are about to enter one of the great colonial hotels of the East. An edifice that—like Raffles Hotel in Singapore, the Peace Hotel in Shanghai or the Taj in Mumbai—has witnessed history first hand.

Even so, we’re taken aback by the massive lobby with its rich woodwork; the smiling hostesses in emerald gowns; the bustle and festivity.