Malate – Ermita District : Part 1
Before I begin this retreat to the past, I must first apologize for using the old street names. It’s what I remember and those memories die hard. I have tried to reference the “new” names in parenthesis but I may have missed one or two. Please forgive.
Living in Manila in the Fifties and early Sixties was an adventure as well as a treat for me. Manila was still rebuilding itself from the damages of war. I still can recall seeing sunken ships out on Manila Bay when they were slowly being removed or perhaps made part of the reclamation of more land around Dewey Boulevard (Roxas Blvd.) The wide boulevard was not choked with traffic as today nor decorated with garishly colored bright lights.
Dewey Boulevard in the Forties
Backlit by the fabulous Manila sunsets, food vendors would sell kropek, warm chestnuts, and grilled corn from their small kiosks, lit at night only by the warm glow of kerosene lanterns;
the sorbetes or ice cream sellers would push their brightly colored carts that may have had little bells attached to the metal tops. Not to be confused with sorbets, this was referred to as “dirty ice cream” – I never wanted to find out why.
Dewey Boulevard in the late Fifties
My family and I lived in the Malate district on Remedios street just down from the Malate Church. Of course, as a kid I had no knowledge of how old that church was nor its infamous history during the Battle of Manila when the Catholic priests were murdered by the Japanese. All of that escaped me as I would take a jeepney that followed its route down the Dewey, past the American Embassy, the Bayview Hotel, the Elks Club and the Rizal monument towards downtown.
So, as I sit here in Seattle looking out my window on a grey, cloudy and a bit rainy day, I think back to my childhood when I would ride in a jeepney with the warm wind blowing through the open-aired cab, looking out over the bay perhaps going by the Manila Yacht Club and daydreaming of better things, I decided to make my neighborhood a part of this blog. I guess that’s what nostalgia’s all about.
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Dewey Boulevard was part of a comprehensive plan by the newly formed American occupational government to beautify Manila.
“The suburb was envisioned by Daniel Burnham in his vision for the design of Manila as an exclusive residential area. Burnham was a leading exponent of the then trendy City Beautiful Movement which began in the U.S. They believed that civic loyalty would come through the power of beauty to shape human thought and behavior. Many prominent American and Spanish families resided in Malate, among them the commanders of the American Army, then called the Philippine Department, and the Zobel de Ayala family. ” (source: Larry Ng)
Ermita district – 1935 (click to enlarge)
In the Fifties, Dewey stretched from the Luneta and ended about where the Baclaran Church stands but a 1934 map of Manila shows that Dewey ended quite a bit shorter at Cortabitarte at that time. South of that were residential homes, Harrison Park, and the old Manila Polo Club that stood right at water’s edge.
The photo below shows my mom and her cousins and boyfriends having a swim on the beach probably around Parañaque right after war ended. You can see the Army trucks and jeeps in the background.
It was then a quaint and picturesque neighborhood. Before the war, there were large homes on estates that immediately faced Manila Bay. Many prominent families turned to the Malate / Ermita district to build their homes, such as the Ynchausti residence on Calle Cortabitarte, the Zobel residence in the Spanish style detailed with bricks and white plaster located along Dewey Boulevard, and “El Nido”, the Perkins residence that won the 1925 Beautiful House contest, also on Dewey.
El Nido – the Perkins’ Moorish Castle
Forgive me if I digress, but I found this story of Perkins quite interesting and reminiscent of the Great Gatsby.
E.A. Perkins (right) checking a shipment of 5,400 ounces of Lepanto gold received from San Francisco (valued today at over $8M)
E.A. Perkins, was the first American representative at the court of the King of Siam and partner of the Manila law firm DeWitt, Perkins and Brady.
Perkins and his wife Idona had a huge scandal emanating from their divorce and subsequent legal struggles over jointly-held Benguet mining shares. Perkins was a quiet and unassuming gentleman while his wife “Polly” seemed to lavish her charms on other men. It was the talk of the elite social circles of Manila.
Unfortunately, their daughter, was made a pawn in this battle. Dora was spirited, stylish and drove around town in a stream-lined black Packard coupe. She lived with her father in their Moorish castle El Nido, a highly visible landmark on Dewey Boulevard, where two turbaned Sikhs in full regalia stood sentry at its main gate. Dora Perkins, born in 1914, was herself a highly prized broadcaster over Manila’s Radio KZRH, introducing classical music in her exquisitely modulated voice.
Both E.A. and daughter, Dora were interned at Santo Tomas during the Japanese occupation. Dora was pictured in LIFE magazine with her child when they were liberated in 1945.
Dora Perkins and her daughter Sheila (left) and unidentified girl (right) taken after they were liberated from Santo Tomas.
I interviewed another internee, Jim Rockwell, a few years back about his internment experience. His dad, James Rockwell, Sr. was the first president of Meralco, retiring from that post in 1949. He was also an active member of the Rotary, Manila Golf, Manila Polo Club as well as Manila Yacht’s first commodore. Their family had a beautiful home on Dewey Boulevard and he sent me a picture of it. It was, of course, a lovely home but what was interesting was the bomb shelter they had built to protect them during the Japanese air raids of December 1941.
Jim Rockwell checking out the family air raid shelter.
Ermita and Malate were slower paced residential areas. There seemed to be more space between homes and apartment houses; more breathing room as compared to the teeming crowds and commercial shops found in the Binondo, Tondo and Santa Cruz districts. The main streets ran north and south, Dewey Boulevard, Mabini, M.H. del Pilar and Taft Avenue. Shady trees lined streets such as on Padre Faura where the Ateneo campus and Manila’s Observatory were once located.
Ateneo campus on Padre Faura-1932
Around 1949, we lived in an apartment on the corner of Mabini and Tennessee (Gen. Malvar) streets. Mom would walk me to my kindergarten class at St. Paul’s College on Herran St. (Pedro Gil) where I’d have to face those very stern nuns with the heavily starched cornette (headpiece) every day and possibly risk a slap on the hand with a ruler as I was quite a headstrong young lad when I was 5.
St. Paul’s College
That’s me in the 3rd row, 3rd from left. (click to enlarge)
I found the film below at the U.S. National Archives. It was taken early during the Japanese occupation, probably around 1942. As you will see, Manila still operated “business as usual” but things were to change drastically within the next year as basic staples such as food and gasoline were confiscated by the Japanese Army.
Ermita seemed to have a gentle, more people-friendly appeal. The ACME on Padre Faura was one of the first modern grocery stores I can remember, specializing in imported foodstuffs from America, Europe and Australia.
Acme Super Market-1953
Dress shop on Mabini (click to enlarge)
There were small, quaint dress and gift shops on M.H. del Pilar and Mabini streets. Women of that day like my mother, would prefer not to shop at the large department stores of the Escolta, rather they would cut out a picture of a dress style out of Life and Look magazine and bring it down to their local modista (dressmaker) to fashion out the garment, tailored to fit, within a few days.
There were also some pretty respectable restaurants such as New Europe, Swiss Inn and a lovely coffee and merienda shop called “Taza de Oro” owned by Mrs. Hazel Hedrick. Hazel came to Manila in 1936 enticed by an offer to manage the dining room at the Bay View Hotel. When war broke out, she was interned at Santo Tomas by the Japanese. After the internees were liberated in 1945, Hazel bought the Taza de Oro and operated it until she was 80. She sold the restaurant and moved to San Jose where she died in 1990 at age 97. 
Interior of the Swiss Inn (click to enlarge)
Swiss Inn – the best place for Wiener Schnitzel and Nina’s Papagayo which served a complete Mexican menu.
Nina’s Papagayo – Mexican Cuisine
Readers have also reminded me of the Country Bakeshop, Cucina Italiana, and not to forget the Dairy Queen on Taft Avenue that served the best soft ice cream chocolate sundaes with chopped nuts.
Di’ Mark’s on Menlo Street
Di’Marks on Menlo Street a minute walk up from the American School where we would go for lunch and have those wonderful pizzas and San Miguels.
One of the fancier restaurants I remember going to was Guernica’s on Mabini founded by Jose Hormacchea, a retired pelotero, in 1955. They had a marvelous trio that sounded like Trio Los Panchos, excellent paella, and a huge selection of wine. Then La Cibeles on Mabini, the A&W drive-in on Isaac Peral, the Garden Terrace at the Bay View hotel, and the Aristocrat, one of the most popular spots on the boulevard which was billed as a “restaurant and soda fountain”. Doña Engracia “Aling Asiang” Cruz-Reyes, wife of Justice Alex A. Reyes, started it all as a mere snack mobile operation and has since grown to a food network with branches all over Metro Manila. This restaurant has the distinction of making what was then considered everyday fare so attractive that people would dress up and leave home for some home-style cooking.
The Aristocrat around 1960.
Walking along the seawall, one would see the double-decker Matorco buses, winding their way from the Luneta up to Parañaque, chocked with kids and families always vying for the top deck. Was it a more carefree time or perhaps it was just because I was a kid enjoying the simpler pleasures?
Matorco (click to enlarge)
I usually caught the latest movies at theaters down at the Escolta or on Rizal Avenue but you could also catch a second-run show, complete with newsreels and cartoons, at the Gaiety Theater, located on M.H. del Pilar. It was designed by Juan Nakpil in 1935, then owned by an American, H. Brown.
“The Gaiety movie theater’s main attraction had always been its ticket prices – much less expensive than the more modern, air-conditioned movie houses in downtown Manila. Karl Nathan, after many months, finally obtained permission from Japanese authorities to reopen the Gaiety, which at the time was owned by a prominent Filipino family with whom Nathan had struck an agreement, provided he could get the Japanese permit.
The project equipment was, however, stored in Baguio. More negotiations with the Japanese official were necessary, but finally the movie projectors and films came together with the permits – and a lease agreement with the Filipino owners – and the Gaiety could open. People streamed in to sit on the woven-straw, lice-infested seats and watch American westerns. Each performance began with serials of Dick Tracy or Flash Gordon, to the delight of the younger viewers, who eagerly followed the adventures of these comic strip characters from week to week as the serials progressed. When the available inventory of westerns was exhausted, they were simply shown over again – and again.” Frank Ephraim, Escape to Manila: From Nazi Tyranny to Japanese Terror
“The Gaiety was our neighborhood cinema. Tickets for small people were only 15 centavos but as we grew older they increased to 25 centavos. Still, it was a bargain price to pay for second run movies, at least better than the enormous price of 40 centavos for the downtown air-conditioned theaters.” Source: Larry Ng
Gaiety Theater today
Gaiety Theater interior.
It was still operating when I was in Manila in the Sixties. I don’t remember when it shut down although it still stands today albeit in sad disrepair.
This is the end of the first part of the Malate – Ermita post. Please look for Part II coming in the next few weeks.
If any of you would like to share your stories or photos of Manila, please write in the comments below or email me at:
I would love to hear from you !
Lou Gopal
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