Living the good life in the afterlife

The Chinese cemetery in Manila is, at the same time, fascinating and absurd. It's its own city with paved roads, small alleys, and mosoleums larger than the homes that the living of Manila inhabit. There are tombs and alters like the one above. I would consider that to be one of the more modest tributes to a former Manila resident of Chinese descent. And then there's what my fellow urban explorers and I dubbed "Main Street" -- a street lined with small mansions with air conditioning, glass windows, and well groomed yards.

We found one mosoleum bigger than a large church, apparently the resting place for an entire family. Some of the graves had clearly been visited recently.

Some looked forgotten -- like their families moved away long ago -- left to decay in the tropical humidity.