Adela, a former radio personality, celebrates her 80th birthday alone in the slums of Manila, longing for her family and the stability of years gone by. Adela is surrounded by a sea of humanity and with it their problems, successes, and trivialities. While going through her daily chores, Adela gets swept up in the mundane and dramatic events of those around her. She helps to deliver a child in front of a crowd of onlookers. She watches the residents of the slum organize a political rally. She prays in church and runs into an old colleague, now a successful TV presenter. She visits her son in prison. She even sits for a short time at a karaoke bar for an impromptu birthday party. Ultimately however, eating her birthday dinner alone, she watches the sun set over the Bay of Manila, contemplating a life of disappointment. "With its art-perfect snapshot of a community-in-flux, Adela calls to mind Pedro Costa's similarly rigorous slum-life portrait Colossal Youth" (Village Voice).