If you're looking for anything camera related, there is only one place to go to - Hidalgo in…read moreQuiapo. While you might think that it is such an unsafe place to get camera equipment that costs thousands of Pesos, the whole stretch of Hidalgo has been home to everything photography related for decades. Admittedly it can be quite chaotic and dirty since there are street vendors plying their trade on every conceivable square inch of the street, but I prefer to add it to the whole charm of the experience. Don't get too cocky and think that the shops don't have what you need just because they look run down. Mayer Photo, Henry's, Avenue, and 24K all have the newest and most expensive lenses and camera bodies out there. If for some reason they don't have it, you can order it. If you decide on buying something, BPI and BDO branches are nearby for you to get cold hard cash.

If there is a Divisoria for clothes and almost all general merchandise, there is a Hidalgo Street…read morefor cameras and accessories. Prices here are significantly cheaper than when you buy in malls. I bought two cameras here and I saved around P4,000 or more each. And this street does not just have camera shops, but really cheap street food, with pancit for P10. They also have kakanin like puto. There are stalls where you just order take-out or eat standing up, and there are stalls with makeshift wooden stools where you can sit while you eat. There are also clothes stalls here - I saw some nice bolero vests for P100, and I would have bought one had it fit me. Just be careful, though. It's ironic that that Quiapo, which is ripe for pickpocketing, is where Hidalgo Street is at. After I bought a camera, I immediately placed it in my backpack before going out of the store. I realized a guy was following us, though, as I wove through the food and clothes stalls. My companion had to stare straight at him to let him know that we knew he had been following us. He stopped shortly afterwards.