Luneta Trivia!

Luneta is where the country’s national hero, Jose Rizal was shot by the Spanish authorities.  It is located near the historic fort Intramuros which was built by the Spaniards in the 16th century.  Intramuros literally means “within the walls”.  It is vibrant and full of history.  But most of the people have already forgotten its storied past.  In front of the guarded Rizal statue (referred to as kilometer zero), traffic snarls. Across Roxas Boulevard is the Quirino grandstand where most of the monstrous rallies and protest marches originate.  Beyond is Manila Bay with its legendary sunset.

People from different parts of the country and the world come to Luneta to rest and admire, and reminisce the great courage and struggles for the country’s independence against colonial domination.  People mill around, engrossed with themselves and with the many different mini parks within Luneta in the midst of a bustling Manila metropolis.  Not far from where we are is a group of animated strangers.  We came closer to investigate, hoping to take a piece of the action.  What we discovered came out to be a truly unique and fascinating experience.

We gathered in a circle, and in turns, each one asks a trivia question.  Whoever gets the correct answer gets a reward from the one who asked the question - a one-peso coin.  It is not much and it might be unintentional, but the coin has Jose Rizal in it.  You will not believe the kind of questions asked.  They range from ancient civilization to modern gadgetry, from sports to bird migration.

A street sweeper was able to answer a question about a computer terminology.  A carpenter knew about a vanishing tribe in South America.  And who knows Maun?  It is a quiet town that sits where the Okavango River Delta meet the Kalahari Desert.  I didn’t know that!  And who asked the trivia question?  A vendor selling candies and cigarettes who happened to be nearby.  Wow!

After a while, not content with just listening, I tried asking a trick question:  Who are the three presidents carved on Mount Rushmore?  But it came out too easy, all of them knew it, and it’s not three there were four: Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt.  I felt like a novice!

Time flew.  We didn’t realize we were there for three hours already.  We had such a wonderful time in the company of total strangers.  But it seems that a strong bond of friendship was forged that night.  We said our goodbyes.  But I will be back again, armed with fascinating trivia….

Coincidence

This afternoon I was in a shop buying ink cartridges for my printer when I received a text message from my brother.  He excitedly told me that the Sequoia seeds already sprouted.  It almost sounded like a miracle considering that Giant Sequoias grow in the very cold Northern California.  But I was so impressed with the huge Sequoias I saw in the Avenue of the Giants, that I took my chances and brought the seeds here in warm Philippines.

On New Year’s Day, we placed the seeds in a mini greenhouse inside the refrigerator following instructions from the kit that goes with the seeds.  And that after 20 days, it should be removed and placed in a sunny area.  Refrigerating supposedly gives the impression of winter, and that sunshine after 20 days signals spring, which is the time for new growth and budding.  And that is exactly what happened! And we were thrilled!  However, there were 6 six seeds in the mini greenhouse, but only one sprouted?  A few minutes ago, my brother text again and he said that there is another sprout, and probably another in the morning.  This is truly fascinating!

But here’s more  - The shop where I bought the ink cartridges is called Great Sequoia Enterprise.  I was inside the shop when my brother text me about the sprouting Sequoia seeds. . . .

Vietnam

Tomorrow I am flying to Vietnam via Philippine Airlines.  But first I have to hop in for an early flight in Cebu Airport to Manila then on to Saigon, now Ho Chi Minh in southern Vietnam.  Finally a Pacific Airlines flight will take me north to Hanoi which means “the city on the bend of a river”.  I never knew such 5-letters could have an 8-word meaning.    

Wondrous Sight

As we were driving along the expressway by the side of one tributary of the Great Han River, I noticed several little houses like miniature communities in little valleys sandwiched beneath gentle slopes by the river. What a wondrous sight! That scene is forever etched in my memory.

Highway Lunch

By this time, I have perfected my Korean greeting and passed off many times as a Korean. I thought I got away with it till the lady was skeptical about the way I hold my chopsticks and asked my host. She smiled at me, and I said Oh shit! I thought I fooled her by keeping silent after the flawless annyung haseyo greeting and the respectful bow. The chopsticks gave me away. I returned her smile in surrender….

Clouds, Landscapes And The Rising Sun

The Philippine landscape I grew up with are coconut covered mountains, rice fields, open meadows and a river running through it.  Up above are cloud formations that changes every second.  Early mornings is when they are at its best and with the most bright colors.  Sometimes when you’re lucky, in the afternoon you see low lying clouds pierced by the sun’s rays, a spray of light coming out from thick cloud cover.  There are also those that lit the horizon especially at dusk.  They are usually spread out horizontally in thin skeins of bright red, orange and blue.  And just when the sun disappears, there is a brief moment of increased illumination before the sun finally sinks in the horizon. 

It is quite different further north of the equator.  On summer days, the sun stays until 9 o’clock in the evening.  It starts to drop at 6 o’clock, but somehow lingers in the same spot for a couple of hours.  So you have a lingering twilight that seems to have no end.  I noticed this while driving along the arid Arizona desert.  The glowing illumination and the strange cloud formations highlighted the canyons and turned the desert into a surreal lunar landscape.  In the arctic, the sun rises but never sets.  You will miss darkness. I wonder how it is in other parts of the globe….

Demak River

 
A community lived by the banks of Demak.  The locals use the river’s water for cleaning their dog, for washing clothes and dishes, and for washing themselves.  And also for brushing their teeth and for cooking food.  And take this: It is also the place to go when nature calls!  And you can see all these activities openly because Demak is just beside the highway, and for most parts, the water is brown.  I saw an old woman trying to clear the river with impurities by warding off floatsams before scooping water and pouring into a kettle.  For tea?  Yeah, maybe!  There were plastic cups, a coke bottle, shampoo sachets and old newspapers.  I see dragonflies, and flies, and a snake crawling past thick grass and duckweeds near the shallow ends.  And today we are supposed to clean this river, about thirty international volunteers and a company of the Indonesian Army among us.

I do not think words can give justice to the filthiness of this river.  While the others carefully pulled weeds by the banks, I slipped and fell over, and only my head bobbed about.  Surrounded by water lilies, flies buzzed around my head.  I swallowed ten right away and one was stuck in my throat.  I tried coughing it out, but it lingered at the tip of my tongue before I was able to spit it out.  Then something crawled inside my shorts, and I sensed movements underneath my feet.  I thrash about and tiptoed toward the shallows wary of any fanged creature lurking at the bottom. Moments later, another volunteer fell over, and another, and yet another, until half of us scoured weeds and trash in the shoulder high filthy waters.  Shouts and splashes and laughter echoed.  It turned out to be fun.  Yeah, dirty fun, literally….

Star Apples

There were round and violet star apples perched on big branches of a huge Caimito tree, reason enough to stay one late afternoon in elementary school.

As if taunting, the best ones came perching at the end of the branches, and you need to slowly move inch by inch towards where they were.  I knew the branches were weak and can not hold much weight.  So I coaxed my friend who was smaller than I was to be the one to move towards the end of the branch. We will shake the branches together and pick up the fallen fruits on the ground.

He did as told ever so carefully, and then we both shook the tree while holding on to smaller branches for balance.  As we shook, leaves swayed and fruits fell, then the branch cracked. I held on to the tree trunk while my friend plummeted to the soft earth below!  I thought I saw blood, and I became as light as feather as I climbed down that tree.  I feared he died, and that it was my fault, so I shouted for help.  Then things started to move in slow motion as people gathered around the boy with blood oozing out of his head.  They brought him to the hospital.

I was still dazed and sweating as I walked briskly towards my mom’s store in the market.  She asked what’s wrong?  I said I’m fine, and she let me be.  But I was still shaking because I thought I killed a human being that day.  Did I?

A few days after that fateful afternoon I saw a boy with a mammoth bandage on his head, and he was climbing that same Caimito tree. He beckoned that I come pick some.  I shook my head and said, No thanks, not today my friend.

A Tale Of Two Barangays

Just when the rain let up, we checked out a subdivision project at the back of an old churh.  This project covers three sites spanning two barangays traversing a mountain crest which is its natural boundary and we have to hike up the ridge to see the entire area, and a peek of the city. At the time, I was in my office barong and shiny black shoes. I hesitated for a moment, but I reckon I will be putting my mountaineering skills to shame if I get intimidated by the mud sticking to my shoes.  So we hiked up the crest, enjoyed the view of the city, and answered the call of nature in the bushes.  I felt funny and privileged as I watched it slowly trickle down both slopes toward the two barangays below….

Homeward Bound II

 
Sometimes there is such an urgency to go home, the place which offers unquestionable comfort. That was what I seek, and this is one of such times. 

I packed my backpack and headed for the pier. I was catching a boat to Ozamis City. It was almost 8 o’clock, and the boat usually leaves at 7. When I arrived, the boat has left. I hurriedly checked the ones for Cagayan de Oro City but the boat has just left too as it was past 8 o’clock. But there was one more boat docked, and the crew started to raise the gangplank. I ran for it and hopped in. I knew it was going somewhere near my destination. 

The ship leaves for Nasipit, a municipality a few hours away from Cagayan de Oro. That means, I will arrive in my hometown the following day, in the middle of the night, and I will be on the road the whole time.

I scanned the Cebu City skyline as the ship moved away. The city looked quiet, and lonesome and innocent from a distance. For a few days I will leave her, but I know I will be back soon. This was a big ship, and I was at the topmost deck gazing on the dark horizon ahead. I long for home….

We arrived early morning in the port of Nasipit and I was taken by its strategic location. The ship entered a cove with an opening just big enough to allow the passage of a passenger boat. It was absolutely beautiful, just a few square kilometers of seawater, encircled by land and hills. It even felt like a private docking facility. But the clean and fresh water I initially thought abruptly disappeared in the form of a factory built smack in the middle!

I followed the other passengers going out of the pier and a tricycle brought us to the bus station. This was going to be a three-hour ride to Cagayan de Oro City. There was nothing unusual in this trip except that I noticed several papaya plantations along the way. I never imagined such plantations existed. Papayas are usually grown in the backyard. And it grows fast and easy, and gives you several years of good fruit before the fruits get smaller, and the tree itself grows thin which eventually dries up and dies.

The trip lasted for a day and I spent the night in Pagadian City. The following morning, I took the 40 minute bus ride to all that is familiar: The vast open space, blue skies and green fields, the smell of mud and drying rice stalks, carabaos, tractors, the old houses and streets, and familiar faces. Ah, this was heaven on earth. I was home!