David Beckham spends the day with homeless children as he visits the Philippines again
DAVID Beckham showed off his softer side today as he embarked on his second relief trip to the Philippines.
The 38-year-old star spent the day in the storm-devastated Philippine city of Tacloban as part of UNICEF's relief efforts - and was surrounded by homeless children who were thrilled to see him.
The central city is still struggling to deal with the impact of super Typhoon Haiyan, which struck on November 8 and killed more than 6,200 people and left tens of thousands of survivors still homeless.
As the children surrounded the father-of-four, they were seen high-fiving him and making pictures together.
They are currently living in United Nations-provided tents outside a stadium - one of which Beckham decided to visit.
The former LA Galaxy football player removed his shoes upon entering a tent where a family has been living, stroking a sleeping infant's hands as he spoke with family members.
Officials and UNICEF staff did not say what he and the family members talked about during his 30-minute stay.
Zafrin Chowdhury, spokeswoman for the UNICEF office in Manila, said Beckham was touched by the typhoon's impact and wanted to meet displaced children and their families.
It is Beckham's second trip to the Philippines as a UNICEF goodwill ambassador, after he toured a shelter for former street children in Manila during his first visit back in 2011.
"He felt very touched by what happened and that he wanted to come back, not do anything else - no meeting, no media - just to focus on children and meet them, encourage them and see for himself the situation," Chowdhury said.
The British star was also scheduled to visit a warehouse of the World Food Program in nearby Palo town, which was also heavily devastated in the typhoon.
He and his wife, Victoria, had donated some of their best designer clothes and shoes to raise funds for the typhoon victims late last year.
The typhoon displaced more than 4 million in more than 40 provinces in the central Philippines and at least 1,700 are still missing.