Divisoria 'Misadventure'

Few more days & it's Christmas na! WOW! Time really flies! I didn't expect it to come this soon. That's why last weekend, after getting my 13th month pay I decided to head to Divisoria again to shop for some presents. Mind you I was suffering from dysmenorrhoea but that didn't stop me even if that meant I had to squat in LRT because of the excruciating pain. I didn't mind people's stares & I think my company that day, my sister was made little contact with me since it would mean total embarrassment. Anyway, the pain subsided after taking meds so although the day promised to be exhausting I faced it with so much excitement.

We took the MRT from Boni Mandaluyong to Cubao Araneta. Then we took the LRT line 2 going to Recto. We walked a few blocks then this was what welcomed us! 

1. This is the view from an overpass. 

2. So many people. (Look at the guy in blue waving. Wala lang. Nakaktuwa) 

3. Vehicles didn't know whether to turn straight ahead, left or right. Very unorganized scene. 

4. We literally elbowed our way through the crowd to find the best buys. After few steps there was no movement. We were in the  middle of a very dense crowd & I thought that if  there would be a bomb or a stampede we would be in danger. seriously. So we gave it up & just decided to go the 168 Mall for a more convenient shopping.  

The 168 Mall - [not my picture]

We arrived at the crowded mall & I was happy to see that there was a space to breathe & walk without bumping into some strangers. 

Inside 168 Mall

Inside 168 Mall

Inside 168 Mall - Cute printed bags

Me with my purchases

Inside 168 Mall

Inside 168 Mall - Some cute printed bags

I forgot to mention that I was also accompanied by my HS friend Nesie. We finished at around 9 or 10 pm na siguro when the stores were either cleaning their stalls or closing.

Oh look! A KALESA

We saw this one on our way to the LRT Recto station. I really wanted to ride on it. However, the darkness poses a lot of danger so we opted no to. 

Not my property. Not the actual picture.

We took a jeepney & I chatted with Nesie who I haven't seen for a long time. I don't usually talk when I commute. I don't know I just don't like but Nesie was very talkative so I got immersed with our conversation. My sister who was very quiet the whole time, was seated across us. Then in a blink of an eye, the guy who was sitting near the door tried to grab Nesie's wallet, said "Wallet mo Miss" & pointed a toy gun at her. I didn't have time to react. Everything happened in a flash. I just saw the guy still pointing the toy gun at my friend a few steps away from the jeepney door. Nesie was hit pala (slight lang naman) in the head but fortunately, nothing was taken from her since her purse was  too small to be grabbed. Ater a few minutes of calming down, the 3 of us just laughed at the absurdity, frustration & kabobohan of the holdaper! Waah! So people, be very careful when you go to Divisoria especially during this season. A lot of 'criminal minds' want a share of your 13th month pay. 

We were all very cautious but we all totally calmed down when we were already settled in inside the LRT. Then we passed by the Araneta Cubao again & saw the amazing lights which I blogged about here. We gave in to the tempting food stalls located at the area. 

Araneta Cubao 

Mimay, my sister was busy buying assorted foods like fried squids, tuyo, fishball, kwek-kwek and etc.. 

Shawarma

ME

There were also a few stalls which sold accessories! 

View of the giant Christmas Tree in Araneta Cubao 

There! I hope I was able to bring the scent of the coming Christmas here in the Philippines to bloggers & friends abroad like Ms. Jehan, April & many more. 

Sad Post

Kahit anong precaution pala ang gawin mo, kahit anong ingat..di ka pa rin talaga 100% ligtas sa mga halang ang kaluluwa. 

Nakakainis! Nakakapanghina! Nakakapanlumo! 

Last October 7 Friday, another terrible thing happened to me. 

It was raining heavily when I got off from the jeep. I just needed to walk a short distance to reach our doorstep when suddenly a motorcycle passed by. I usually get alarmed when I hear motorcycles at night because of what happened to me before. (I got mugged by 3 guys riding a motorcycle. They took everything except my clothes) So I got  an icky/scared feeling right away. But when I saw  the person manning it was a huge one, neatly clad in decent 'kapote', my fear suddenly subsided. He looked healthy/well-fed & decent-looking. But when he randomly stopped & stooped down to his motorcycle just more or less than 30 steps away from me, I got alarmed again. I stopped walking & started taking the the opposite direction. When he noticed what I was doing he brought out something & pointed it towards me. He made a gesture like he was holding a gun but I could see that it wasn't a gun. It was a small knife. Mind you I was like 8 meters away from him then but that didn't stop the overwhelming fear to succumb me into unexplainable panic. I ran as fast as I could while looking at him. You can imagine my body twisted somehow. My upper torso was facing the attacker while the lower torso was eager to reach the farthest opposite end. The rain pouring heavily made the road slippery so I tripped & became numb. At the sight of this, my younger brother (20 yo), who was waiting for me ran towards us & the next thing I saw was a brawl. My brother was avoiding an attack & he stumbled. Judging from his look, I knew he couldn't take the bastard down so we just decided to save our lives. Good thing the man just went to his motorcycle & opted to leave. 

After that, a few guys went out of their houses trying to know what the commotion was about. One guy asked me "Bakit di ka sumigaw te?" They thought it was just a brawl between drunkards. I asked the same question to myself. "Bakit nga ba di ako sumigaw?"

The heavy outpour of the rain overpowered me. I felt like I couldn't win against the screaming drops of water. I felt helpless. 

The next day, my father texted my brother & asked about when I got mugged. I was surprised coz I haven't told them about it & I didn't have any plan to do so since that would just surely drive them into panic. Someone saw my bag somewhere & got my father's number from my company ID. So I was able to retrieve my bag containing my kikay kit, atm, and wallets sans the money and thank god my IDs' .

I'm still reeling in shock.

To Give or Not to Give.

Have you experienced soundly sitting inside a bus then suddenly a little girl or boy put an envelop on your lap?

Yeah. I had that experience numerous times already. Usually passengers would refuse to take the envelop but their strategy is to just put it in your lap so that yo wouldn't have any chance to say NO or refuse. 

The envelop usually reads "Paumanhin po. Hihingi lang po kami ng tulong para sa aming pag-aaral."

In this situation, I usually take a look at the kid/person and ponder on it. Sometimes I'd give coins but more often than not, I don't. Why? It's not that I'm cold & heartless. I know how it is to starve, and go to school without any baon. It's the 'kalakaran' here in Manila that usually forces me to refuse charity. I see on TV how some kids, & elders are exploited for this kind of syndicate. I know that there is also a possibility that they are sincere. They must be really starving or their relative might really be dying. But hey I just don't want those syndicates to proliferate. Or am I just looking for an excuse?

4 years ago, when I was just new here in Manila, I saw this crippled man in one of the overpasses in Sucat Parañaque and I gave him money. Then after a few hours, when I passed by the area again I saw him smoking a cigarette. I felt like I condoned his vice and I felt very bad. 

So can you blame me if I've turned this way? 

Photo credit: HERE. 

photo credit: HERE . 

So if a little kid does this gesture: 

Will you let your cynicism or compassion override you?

Ang Panganib na Dala ng BER Months

Let me share how my cynicism helped me today. 

1:12 pm --- nasa loob ako ng air-conditioned Taguig Metrolink Bus papuntang Ayala, Makati. 

Mamimikit mikit ang mga mata ko sa antok..kaya ayun halos mauntog na ako pag biglang preno ng bus. Isang normal na araw, nakaupo ako sa upuan na pangdalawang tao at siniguro kong malapit ako sa binatana, kung hindi, for sure mahihilo at masusuka ako. May isang mamang tumabi sa akin.Kadalasan kapag may tumatabi, di ko tinitingnan ang mga mukha. 

[All pictures in this post is from google images]

Parang nananaginip pa ko nun ng bigla akong maalimpungatan. Napansin ko si kuya na nakasuot ng :

Tama! same exact jacket as the one posted above. Mukha siyang disente at malinis..pero naramdaman kong iniipit niya ko papuntang bintana. NakaCROSSED arms siya. 

Tulad ng nasa baba pero mas mataas. Yung tipong halos yung kamay niya ay ipit na nag kili-kili niya: 

Umandar na ang pagka maduda kong tao dahil kung nagbabasa kayo nito..dalawang beses na po akong naholdap. 

So ayun na nga..lumipat ako ng upuan, mas malapait sa driver. 

Pagdating ng Farmer's Cubao, yung babae at mamang nasa tabi ko eh bumaba. 

At gulat ko ng tumabi uli saking si "Ateneo guy" na parang di mapakali. Pero dali na naman akong lumipat ng upuan at tsempo naman siyang bumaba na lang. 

Sabi ko sa sarili ko "Paranoid lang talaga ako". Ikinokondisyon ko na ang sarili ko na wag masyadong paranoid...na di lahat ng ominous-looking people ay holdaper/snatcher..

 nang biglang...

... may isang babae na sana ay bababa ng Farmer's pero sabi niya ilampas na lang daw siya. Yung si "Ateneo guy" daw kasi tinabihan siya at dinudukot side ng bag niya. Di siya umalma..Pero natakot siya baka daw abangan siya pag baba. 

Sapul!!! 

Tama ang hinala ko. 

Holdaper si "Ateneo guy"

Natulalala na lang ako at nagpasalamat sa panginoon na di ako o sinuman sa bus ang naholdap. Ilang buwan ko palang nagagamit ang bago kong ellphone..at buo ang pera kong dala nung time na yun. 

Thank you Lord at ginising Niyo po ako!!

Nasabi ko sa sarili ko na di pa ako nakakarecover from the traumatic experience I had..sa mga nasasaksihan ko sa paligid. Parang nawawalang na akon ng pag-asa na may magbabago pa. 

Kaya gusto ko na lang ibahagi ang aking mga naranasan sa iba para at least maiwasan nila.

Sa JEEP/BUS: 

1. Huwag magtetext o maglalabas ng anumang mamahaling gamit pag nasa loob na ng jeep.

2. Iwasang maupo sa duluhan. 

3. Huwag hayaang masiksik o mapagitna ng dalawang kahinahinalang mga mama. 

4. Kapag naramdamang parang naipit ang bag mo..maalarma ka na. Pwedeng 'laslas bag' gang na yan. 

5. HUWAG MATULOG! 

6. Tumabi sa mga mapagkakatiwalaang mukha. 

Sa MRT: 

1. Kapag madami na..huwag nang piliting makipagsiksikan sa pwesto ng mga lalake. Pumunta na lang sa area ng train na assigned for women. Madaming manyak ang naglipana. 

2. Siguraduhing ramdam at nakikita mo ang iyong bag. 

Hindi pong masama maging alisto minsan. Lalong lalo na po ngayong BER months na. 

'Palakasan' from tv5theeveningnews

I saw this video shared by a colleague on Facebook and I couldn't deny the brutal truth. Wondering what I mean? Go watch this video and tell me about what you think.

Ready?

Are you going to DENY or ADMIT?

Vacation For Them, Work for Us

We all get so annoyed every time we encounter traffic, and so many people while we are in a hurry going to work. But last August 29-30 (Monday and Tuesday) was a different case. I actually yearned for the busy streets, jam packed buses and crowded Makati underpass. 

While the rest of the Philippine population was either staying at home on a very rainy day or having out of town vacations...we were at the office, sweating our butts out. It could have been just a typical day, but friends' 'vacation' FB posts  and empty streets made all the difference. I can't express the feeling exactly..so let me just show you pictures.

This is in Regalado near SM Fairview.

 Here's the almost empty bus I was telling you about. On a regular day, this would be jam-packed.

Noticed the empty seats?

Here's the Makati underpass that's usually very crowded on a typical working day. 

 Another one. I had it all for myself.

The stairs.

..and the not-working elevator at our building (The Enterprise)

While I was climbing this steep elevator...I felt so lonely, the same way I felt when I had a nightmare about the world meeting it's end. It was like I was the only living person in the planet and the rest of the world has perished.

It was so surreal...in a negative way. 

Since it was raining cats and dogs, I opted for a loose sweatshirt-turned top paired with warm black leggings.

Mugged/mobbed

How can I even start sharing a traumatic experience without breaking down to tears?

.....

June 10, 2011 - 12:30-1:00 am

The tragedy happened. I was just a few blocks away from our house when the incident happened. I was mobbed & mugged by four men riding in a motorcycle. Two (I guess) of them were wearing full-faced helmet.

I really can't continue...... But I just want everybody who can read this to be very vigilant & careful all the time.

Be careful

Fortunately I wasn't hurt. physically. but I think the trauma is even worse than physical harm and this will surely linger for an indefinite period of time.

My brother was quick to respond when I shouted. He along with a concerned neighbor even tried to chase the 'bastards'. When I saw my brother attempting to chase them I tried to block his way. I was worried he'd be harmed. or he could harm. He was in a 'devil mode' that time, and it was the first time I saw him like that. I wasn't sure what he could do. Even I was afraid of him. It was also the first time I appreciate him as a brother, although he's younger.

This experience somehow taught me many things.

1. 'Life' is still more important than any material things you possess. And...

2. I love my family more than ever.

3. These are the times I feel so helpless. I had always been a staunch believer of strong will. That nothing can be an excuse if you really wanna do something. But then...at that moment..

4. ....no matter how strong I willed...there are still things beyond my control.

5. That if we are wise, 'holdapers' are wiser (in some way) - when 'they' were groping me, I realized they knew where we could possibly put important things. They even tried to search under my bra. Good heavens not on the 'sensitive part'. Even my shoes & ears were checked.

I hate to accept these kinds of moments.

But that's life.

Pondering about Life from a Window Seat

I happened to accidentally ride an air-conditioned bus this 12 midnight. It was a bit drizzling & chilly. I don't usually take the air-con for few reasons..first money wise & second I easily feel nauseous there. (esp if I watch TV inside)

but anyway I was already there so I had no choice. Kasya pa naman pamsahe ko. I hate it when they use their TV's inside. I get to be tempted to watch as well..even though it makes me so dizzy.

The movie 2012 was playing...I couldn't help but keep glancing at the idiot box. I was more drawn to it when it was playing the EARTH's destruction starting from California.



As I was watching it...I have reflected on myself & my lifestyle. If I'm ready for such thing. I have planned a lot. I have avoided 'worldly' things to just stay focused on y goals. As a result I ended up a bit loner & indifferent to a lot of things. I am deprived of everything fun. I have asked myself if those sacrifice are worthy. and it was undoubtedly NO! NOT!




I have also realized that surely everything will come to an end. I have pondered deeply about life inside the bus while everybody was enjoying it.

When it was time for me to disembark I was genuinely grateful to GOD that I was setting my foot steps on to a solid concrete street.I was also a little surprised at myself.(coz you know in the movie...the streets were totally smashed to pieces.)

so there. Thank you Lord for the life you gave me. I may not be able to fully justify my existence but I am working hard on it.

.panganib.

photo credit

(magbigay galang sa pag-aari ng iba)

Minsan..alam na natin ang panganib sa palagid pero iba pa rin talaga pag naranasan o muntikan mo nang maranasan.Nakakatrauma.tsk.tsk.

MRT experiences.

MRT - Metro Railway Transit

MRT is a haven for those who are always in a hurry... Although there are times na "nagkakatulakan"..pwede na rin.

"Survival of the Fittest" na lang.

mula sa takbuhan para makahabol...hanggang sa siksikan sa loob...MRT has already been a part of my life.

It is where I spend my 'kawalan' moments...where I get my 'observation' subjects..and where I meet many different faces of all ages.

so sa mga di pa nakakaexperience..I think you are missing something so try it. But I don't promise a good ride. Its like a way of life.

Sometimes it's smooth..sometimes it's 'shaky', sometimes it's bumpy and sometimes it's heaven.

try it for yourself.

*****

in this post..I just wanna share what I have experienced so far in this mode of transportation.

THE TICKETS

Aside from the ticket we can buy from the MRT booth there are also other mediums.

1. This Kit Kat CARD - based on my experience this is not really a good one. I've tried using this. At first it was heaven. SO easy. You just have to tap it in front of a scanner or something. But there was a time where the station's (ortigas) scanner was OFFLINE. So i couldn't use the CARD. What are you suposed to do? purchase a TICKET. This is just a HASSLE.

I was really in a hurry that time so I couldn't really forget this KIT KAT CARD experience.

and by the way the CARD is for 50.00 with KIT KAT chocolate and I think it has 1 ride free inside. In order to reuse this..you have to reload it from LOADING STATIONS that are almost NOWHERE to find.

2. There's also the G from GLOBE. - I haven't used this so I have no specific details.

3. The tickets from vending machines - kadalasan mahaba din nag pila dito.

guards are everywhere to ensure the safety of the passengers. Kahit minsan nakakainis at nakakatakot sila manita.

I've been an MRT & STORED VALUE TICKET user for almost 2 years now but I've just learned today it's policies/guidelines mentioned below:

1. Stored Value Ticket is valid for 3 months from the date of purchase.

2. Multiple Rides Ticket

3. with last Ride BONUS - eventhough you only have 1 peso left on your card, you can still use it for another ride. Be it to the farthest destination.

4. Folded or Damaged tickets will not be accepted for refund

5. Lost tickets shall be charged from he farthest destination.

6. Passengers MUST exit within 75 mins. (allowable stay) from the time off enytry.. Additional charge equivalent to the maximum fare shall be charged for overstaying - now this is something really new to me. This means "bawal tumambay" sa MRT.

This is my STORED VALUE TICKET now.

The MRT STATIONS:


1. NORTH AVENUE
2. QUEZON AVENUE
3. GMA-KAMUNING
4. ARANETA CENTER
5. SANTOLAN
6. ORTIGAS AVENUE
7. SHAW BOULEVARD
8. BONI AVENUE
9. GUADALUPE
10. BUENDIA
11. AYALA AVENUE
12. MAGALLANES
13. TAFT AVENUE

OTHER POLICIES

1. No food, drink & pets allowed!!

I was on my way to the Quezon Ave Station when I decided to buy a BIG GULP from 7eleven.

I arrived at the gate where the bags are to be checked and I was so annoyed (at myself) I think when the guard told me it's not allowed inside. I tottaly forgot. I glared at the lady guard for not letting me in. I was displacing my anger to her. Since I was in a hurry again..I decided to just throw the drink away. nakakainiss yun!

2. Baggages are to be checked. STRICTLY.

small bags & packages are sometimes 'nakakalusot'..

but BEWARE. If you have big luggages expect to be annoyed by the guards. They will really check it inside out. Even the wrapped gift.

They will really insist on opening it. So the nicely wrapped surpise will now look torn & old.

sk..tsk..tsk.

......

and I think that would be all for now.

I'll update this post when I get to experience something new again.

The pictures used in this POST are not MINE. I randomly copied them from the web.