154. PINOY CONNECTION

This visit was about Manila and surrounds. I stayed at a place in Mandaluyong City, popped into Makati next door, explored Intramuros a second time, the suburbs of Laguna and Los Banos, drove South to Tagaytay...

 

Lake Taal and its dormant volcano look serene in the morning mist. Tagaytay is about an hour's drive from Manila but traffic is bad - if it wasn't for that wonderful give and take in such chaotic cities, we'll get nowhere...mind you nobody toots their horns only the occasional bus drivers ...

 





Hot beancurd on a misty cool morning is most welcome - with palm sugar and sago balls...

...and the food..meat, meat and more meat! These are hardcore carnivores! Tawilis - a salted sardine and their well-known pork roasted over a pit fire - lechon, bulaluo a beef marrow stew - it's hard to get vegetarian meals here - I had it just once, in their Chinatown..

 







Didn't think ginger flowers can be this beautiful - looking like lotuses growing on land...

Hosted to dinner at this lovely home with a large lawn - the socialites must do this often - it's a gracious, thoughtful setting - I got to see how their rich live...



 


Manila's Chinatown is this tacky untidy area that looks like old Singapore of the 70's. Parts of Singapore's Chinatown is  still like this. I heard dialects been spoken! This stone lion has a pig face!

Family home of Jose Rizal - perhaps their best known patriot and hero. Clearly from a wealthy family. The extension to the house is a museum and gift shop...

Sarabat stall - once upon a time in Singapore, this is where we could have a good cheap breaky or tea on the go - good ginger tea, teh tarik, bread toast and more - this one was just by the hotel offering fried noodles, coffee, unfortunately 3-1 packet (nobody drinks tea here), bread rolls - cheap and quick! The original fast food!

They have a sense of humour never taking life too seriously living one day at a time. This vendor has a very small business selling those very small items, I'm sure she just gets by. She was chatty and friendly and helpful, loan me her umbrella which I took till nightfall, returning it the next day with a tip which she didn't want to accept, I insisted...

'Handsome and Sexy Store' - didn't I just mention they're a 'fun' people with a sense of humour who know how to take things easy...?  She's the 'Sexy' in the store's name...for bringing a smile to my face, I bought a juice...wasn't sure if the ice is from clean water but heck, I survived that one!

 

Carabao is their buffalo...the Malay equivalent is kerbau...this large estate is a theme park privately owned by a wealthy family with old money - the Escudero family 

Close-up of the family church, now a museum.

The descendents live on the estate - it takes courage to paint such large buildings bright pink but the results are quite beautiful. I've always thought of the Filipinos as creative, artistic, musically inclined and they are...

I've always thought the merlion was a Singapore invention but here I see it on this old fountain...!

 







The family church houses a bunch of old artefacts, quite priceless I'm sure. The place has become a warehouse, dusty in parts, dim and spooky in others. I sensed in dark cobwebby corners lurk unseen inhabitants...
Photography wasn't permitted but I sneaked in a few shots - how can I tell my story without pictures - folks prefer to look at my pics instead of reading my narrative... 

I re-visited the Ayala Museum as it showcases local history, culture and arts - it's located smack in Manila's CBD, Makati, a nice area. Photo taking wasn't permitted inside its galleries...as if that's going to stop me when no one's looking! I spent some time checking out its new exhibits. The Ayala Museum is privately run - once more I see how their wealthy families...

..have given back to their societies but definitely more can be done to uplift the lives of the ordinary folks who aren't spending any time visiting museums or theme parks. The gap between the rich and poor is a yawning chasm...progress is slow but perhaps the time is not right yet...under Duterte things might gain momentum but first let him clean up the streets...

 

I sneaked a picture of this sketch by their aboriginals as it was deeply esoteric - to think it came from a tribal person...not the text...

At this lunch place, everybody gets their feet wet... above this waterfall is a reservoir...

Nice behind!

 

I detest theme parks but when I'm not in control I float along like a dead fish...and make the most of it...

Wow real giant clams!

 

Raft to nowhere...

Spotted in a mall - looks like the Singapore brand name is attractive here too - I thank them by buying one...

Their jeepneys are as ubiquitous as India's autos. For a few centavos, they transport commuters over a wide area. There are no stops, one just hops on hops off by shouting out 'stop' and hop out or board in the middle of the street. This is easy to do as there are jams everywhere. There's order in this chaos....

The fare is passed along to the driver in the front - nobody in my jeepney that day tried to hitch a free ride. The one I went into had 26 passengers, people shuffle their backsides to fit in more, it's butt cheek to butt cheek, nobody complains there's no more space, they accommodate one another - it's good they are petite...

This jeepney was hired to take us around...the public bus service may not be good as jeepneys seem to outnumber every vehicle

The interior is spacious - folks seem to carry a lot of stuff...

This is the way to ride a jeepney - hang on to the bars and hold on for dear life...

Whilst exploring Intramuros, it poured, I took shelter in Manila Cathedral and this very grand wedding unfolded...it wasn't a young couple, they were middle aged, obviously well-to-do...the groom and his male guests of honour were in military finery and this guard of honour too...I was a shabby uninvited guest...

Inside Manila Cathedral, I chanced upon this room, financed by the Who's Who of the rich and famous in their society. It's a doll's museum showcasing the fine detailed work of a local atelier Rafael Lopez. The gowns are truly beautiful, the attention to detail makes each piece a work of art...they do look like well decorated cakes, too lovely to eat...

   

Their art - these are a creative people good with their hands - their ethnic goods are beautifully original...

Here, woven baskets make a rustic, warm and homey chandelier...

Necessity is the mother of invention - when there's not too much dough around but plenty of plastic waste, they recycle that into really nice xmas decorations...

They are so good at this, like the Thais. Unlike Thailand, it's not an industry that provides their people with a decent income - why is that? On a previous visit 7 years back, I noted that as a travel destination, this country has a lot going for it but there's a lot that needs fixing. Now I'm back here, Manila does seem busy with an energetic buzz and more Filipinos are able to travel for leisure to Singapore, so perhaps they are getting there, albeit slowly...but time is not on Duterte's side...

The barong tagalog blouse is woven from pineapple fibre, pina, although I think what I bought is organza done up in the style of their national dress and embroidery work. The real deal is an exquisite work of art and craftmanship, unfortunately, not widely used these days for at the wedding above, nobody wore it

Their shell creations are legendary - their items made from kapiz shell don't seem widely available too, it's such a shame for they have artistic people...in a nice modern mall near the Ayala Museum, I didn't see any local handicrafts - even the museum gift shop didn't carry any ethnic work...sigh! I might have better luck in Cebu...This little shop the driver took me to at least had a small collection of handwork

 

Visited this family at home...adore this cradle

 

Pinoy sisterhood...made a new friend in Singapore (right) - she's from Cebu - we exchanged Christmas gifts...

 

Finger-licking good! Back home, lunch is served as I join this group of domestic helpers for lunch...brought along a gift of pastries...

They had their charges with them - old and young...for an hour or so, there was much noisy chatter and laughter - they could totally be themselves on a weekday afternoon...

 

I showed up in my barong tagalog blouse they had on I luv SG shirts! Cool!

 

They thought of everything - a piece of fabric in the season's colour acted as tablecloth, gingerbread man for the kids to decorate...

...and a raffle! There was just one prize, a stuffed plush which was conveniently won by the youngest kiddo so I think that was rigged! Kelong!

The Filipinas are tough resilient smart cookies - highly adaptable, flexible true survivors - throw them into any environment, they'll float. They have left home and family to work for people of a different culture, language and temperament, in hostile environments even, to earn something that support their clan back home. Many have managed to pay for a decent home and put their kids through school. Still others paid with their lives. Many are single mothers.

When they have time off, for a day, for an hour, they enjoy that to the fullest. They have this joy de vivre which I share, living very much in the moment. I have a hugh respect for them...

Another group I feel for - our migrant menial workers. I had enough pastries to go around they were profuse with their thanks. We do have men who never got to see their children been born and grow up, yet they are good decent people despite the hard work they do and at times the poor treatment meted out to them by others. These are another highly adaptable flexible tribe. In our public transport, they are the first to give up their seats to those who need it more.

I sent these pics to one of them - he sent me his sketch wishing me a happy new year accompanied by a few words in perfect English. Beaut!

 

My last do good feel good deed for 2016 - cakes and coffee for our invisible workers - the maintenance crew that keep my estate clean...I look for them in the utility center when I need a strong pair of hands...!