Malls, Malls, Malls

From San Francisco to Hong Kong, it is 14 hours...to Hong Kong to Manila it is 2 hrs..so counting a layover which is about 1-2 hrs, that 18 hours to get to the Phillippines. We arrived in Manila at about midnight February 7th. The airports that I have been to, which is a grand total of 6 (most of which in the US of A) there seemed to be organized chaos - meaning there was a whole lot going on, but there was a system in place. In Ninoy Aquino International Airport, it was just chaos. So you have all these people with their huge luggage and balikbayan boxes scrambling about with no order; it almost looked like people were looting.

Most people who have been to the P.I. tell me the first thing I would notice about Manila is the smell...and man did I ever. When we stepped outside to meet our ride, the smell of sewage slapped us in the face then humidity began to suffocate us. So it was a quite violent welcoming into Manila. Anyway, it seemed like everyone and their mom was waiting to be picked up...people had signs and cars/taxis just parked pretty much anywhere in the terminal. It was amazing to me that at midnight the airport would be this crowded.

Luckily before we got swallowed by the crowd, Hansen was able to find us. Driving in the Phillippines is some scary shit. There must be only one traffic law because people dont drive in lanes, or signal they just speed and honk. He took us down Roxas Ave which is basically hedonism central..which is bars, casinos, and quickie hotels - a quickie hotel is a hotel in which you have a quickie. They are advertised like its the Hilton, but supposedly they are clean. We all went to a massage parlor called Wensha. Dressed in robes, we got our backs, shoulders, necks, legs and feet massaged. It was funny watching Carlos get massaged by a dude especially when the dude was massaging his inner thighs. My first meal in the Phillippines was regrettably spaghetti carbonara..but it was free and I was starving. So I got a massage for 650 pesos which is roughly $12. And I also got a free meal.

So we are staying (for now) in Pasig City at Hansen's condo. He lives in a very nice sort of upscale compound. He has indoor plumbing and hot and cold water, which I hear are luxuries here in the P.I. His "entourage" includes Manang (his maid), Mon (his 20 year old driver) and Bugoy his wing man/fellow celebrity.

Seeing as how he lives in Metro Manila, we had to go to malls. I really didn't want to travel half way around the world to spend time at a mall but apparently the malls are the place to be. We went to Market!Market!, SM Mega Mall, the Fort, and Glorietta. The first two are where the "masa" (the commoners) go and the latter two are supposedly more upscale. As far as I'm concerned the malls were like all malls..crowded and with a lot of stores..However here in the Phillippines everyone is at the mall, or so it feels like. There were three enjoyable things at the mall: seeing people gush over Hansen (who was a contestant on a reality show called Pinoy Dream Academy-think Big Brother meets American Idol- he didn't win but has built up a loyal legion of fans), the air conditioning, and the food kiosks. The were stands for deep fried sho mai, ensaymada, empanadas...seeing them all made me want to stuff my fat American face. I did try this stand called King Corn, basically its corn kernels with melted butter and the same cheese used in the Kraft Mac and Cheese boxes..doesn't sound like much but it was pretty damn good and about .50 cents.

Hansen is very friendly with upper crust of Taguig ( a city which is part of Metro Manila) and on Saturday night they had an anniversary party for their own home grown political party called Kilusang Diwa Taguig...what they stand for, not to sure...but they know how to throw a party. The party was pretty much a bunch performances( a mixture of singing and dancing numbers) and speeches. Filipinos and singing(and or dancing) go together like peanut butter and jelly; the talent show is part of Filipino culture.

What I've taken in so far is that there are a lot of people in the Metro Manila area, I mean shit loads of people. People just walking around (weaving between cars, walkin along the freeway, on the jeepney at the mall) It never seems to die down; even at 4am there are folks on the street. My favorite scene is kids playing near the construction sites. I know they can get crushed by machinery or a piece of concrete could knock them unconscious but its really cute. I have to remind myself that I'm in a third world country, meaning the division between the rich and poor is very noticeable. There are expensive high rises and a block away you see shanty towns and people digging through heaps of garbage. I've seen it in pictures and TV, but its feels more real when its in front of your face. This is a trip I've been waiting for my whole life and this is a trip I may not get to take very often. With that said I intend to see as much of the Phillippines as I can and absorb as much of the culture as I can. So next we will be travelling by bus to the following: Vigan, an untouched Spanish colony in Illocos Sur; Baguio, college town with a climate similar to San Francisco; and Banuae home of the rice terraces.

Yes, the food here is cheap, but we haven't found anything too memorable but then again its only our third day here. Photos to come...