There are several things to dislike about the Philippines just as there are also several ones to love about it. The following are my take on my likes and dislikes in living here.
LIKES
1. the people - fun to be with, friendly and know how to party :P
2. the weather - can get too humid sometimes but it's better than getting depressed over several days of gloomy or cold weather
3. the provinces - reminds one that Manila is not the Philippines; ergo, life is sometimes really better outside of Manila
4. Makati - don't know where else I can find lots of really pedestrian-friendly sidewalks; plus I like walking so its sidewalks help a lot. ;)
5. beaches - one can find them almost everywhere. They make for an easier excuse to go out of town on weekends. hehe!
6. a bottle of cold San Mig Light - great taste, good for chilling out, especially when I was in Boracay
7. Malate - I like that this area is a hot spot of all sorts of interesting places as well as people (artists, bohemians, professionals, rich and poor) and not just elitists/ wannabes/ and pretentious people. It has a character that's all its own.
8. Bohol - am glad this place doesn't aspire to be as urbanized as Metro Manila or Cebu; plus it's so clean, no garbage to be seen anywhere
9. Manila - despite its certain unattractive factors, it's the only place in Metro Manila that holds more historically significant edifices, institutions, streets/avenues, districts; thus salvaging my pride in whatever's left of my cultural identity. Plus its old districts are still more walkable than later-built cities.
10. those makeshift swings and benches made of bamboo and hemp near Bom Bom Cafe in White Beach, Boracay at night
11. that a weekend or day trip outside of Manila is easy to arrange
DISLIKES
1. politicians - Life is full of governmental politics in Manila that I've almost ceased to care about Philippine politics and would rather leave them to their bickerings.
2. Metro Manila pollution - makes one really feel unclean after spending the whole day out on the road
3. garbage - in Metro Manila, that is.
4. ugly sidewalks in Metro Manila.
5. the fact that I haven't truly appreciated where it is that my taxes go to. All I appreciate is that it goes somewhere (or to someone else) infinitely less desirable
6. the craze over basketball when most of the populace is vertically challenged relative to their foreign counterparts for such a sport; the only time I enjoy it is when it's the UAAP games (competition between unversities) between my alma mater and another team
7. Filipino time -- tardiness is my pet peeve
8. when the President reiterates that poverty causes terrorism when in fact it's the thieves in congress/senate who should be identified as the culprit. It's because of their corruption in government that makes poverty continue to exist pervasively in the first place. Maybe she should state instead that it's the graft and corruption in the country that's the cause of terrorism.
9. inane noontime variety shows - there's just so much song and dance numbers and contests one can take.
10. when people take things more personally than most or make a big deal out of nothing and start politicking on a rather insignificant matter
11. when people hedge or beat around the bush whenever he's asked a question with a yes or no answer; thus making one's plans go haywire when it was so easy for those plans to not have gone that way from the beginning
12. hailing cabs at the Ortigas center, or rather, the high number of picky cab drivers at the Ortigas center - I swear, for a supposedly urbane business district, I've never had as much trouble hailing a cab from the Shangri-La Mall to a building (less than 10 mins. away) in the Ortigas Center as when I did so here. Both locations are within the same vicinity. Hailing cabs in Makati to go to another place in Makati is a breeze compared with hailing a cab in the Ortigas Center to go to another area of the Ortigas Center. I wonder why this is so?
0 comments:
Post a Comment