Greenhills is the freshwater pearl mecca of Quezon City and there are great finds to be found there but not all vendors can be trusted. Berdori, at least, can be relied upon to be honest about the quality of pearls you are getting. They won't misrepresent imitation 'shell' pearls (essentially glass beads coated with mother of pearl) as the real thing or palm off a "Baby South Sea" (cultured pearls) as the more expensive South Sea pearls.
Pearls at Berdori can range from just a few hundred pesos to a hundred thousand or more. The price varies according to the category (we won't go into that here) but you can find a decent string of pearls for about a thousand. I would suggest buying a sterling silver or 14K gold clasp (the added cost depends on the clasp you pick) instead of the free stainless steel they would offer you for free. They do allow some haggling just to make you feel like a savvy shopper but don't expect too much of a price cut. Your Berdori pearls come with free lifetime cleaning and restringing, and the packaging (a taffeta drawstring bag inside a hexagonal box) is gift-worthy. read more