I have been in the Phil all my life. And I love it! But sad to say I am not proud of how Manila became the way it is. Lack of environmental awareness might be the reason for this.

Although you might not find something special in Manila, it is not as bad as the cities named here: http://www.forbes.com/2007/11/29/environment-green-blacksmith-biz-man-cx...

There are a lot of wonderful places in the Philippines that are miles away from Manila. Being in such places are qualified to have a tag like: "Things that money can't buy."

If you are willing to sweat for a 3.5 hour trekking of a 1300-meter climb.. go here:
The Crater: Mount Pinatubo

Haven't been there yet.. but my friend did. :)