Clark Airport: A More Relaxed Alternative to NAIA

To avoid the traffic nightmare of having to go to NAIA's different terminals, I have been using the Clark airport for the past few years and this is the first time that I just used the Trinoma bus, instead of bringing a car.

My flight was still at noon but I had to be there before 7am. The bus leaves on time, around 6:55AM, so don't be late. You just pay the 250 pesos on the bus.
 
They renovated na pala the DMInternal Airport (Clark) since it's much bigger now and there are now flights to all important hubs like HK, SG, KL and Doha. I was beside a couple nga who was going to London via Doha. Pwede na rin pala dito.
 
I've actually preferred this airport after the Ondoy tragedy where many people were caught stranded in NAIA. Ako, I was able to go home in one piece because the NLEX was not affected. Di na-problema si Larry maghanap ng streets na hindi binaha.
 
The ambience of the airport is also very relaxed, not quite the harried atmosphere you get from T3 or even T1. Yun lang, you have to make sure your flight's departures and arrivals fall within the Clark-Trinoma bus times, unless Qatar Airways ka which has its own bus. 
Otherwise NAIA ka pa rin.
 
Good thing also, I only paid 250 pesos to the airport. If I had to take a cab to NAIA, malamang 700 - 1000 ang ichacharge sakin plus the 2-3 hour ride going there.
I took a picture of the flights departing from it just in case you want to try the airport as an alternative going to your planned destinations.

Visited U.P. Town Center for the First Time!

Our gang is back, this time, to celebrate the birthdays of the August celebrants! Their treat was at the Dulcelin Gourmet restaurant at the UP Town Center.

We all had to brave the always problematic mall traffic and hard-to-find parking space as well as the incessant rains during yesterday's holiday. Pero maganda naman pala sa UP Town Center! Walkathon lang from the parking to the mall.

You can't wear fabulous clothes kasi ma-Jinet Jackson. Stick to the laid-back summer look na lang, and refrain from going in and out of the building kasi sisipunin ka, moving from biglang lamig to biglang init - a design which many malls have already adopted.

Marami ding cute na boys walking around kasi nga nasa Katipunan area ka so you can spend the whole evening just boy-watching (or girl-watching for that matter). Yun lang, bring money kasi walang pang-masang restaurant or cafe sa mall.

The truth is, if malls were the only basehan of how well the Philippine economy is doing during the Aquino administration, one could argue that it was during this administration that the middle class really grew in numbers (at least in Metro Manila).

UP Town Center, Robinson's Magnolia and Fisher Mall are three smaller upscale neighborhood malls within the periphery of my residence and they're all full during holidays and weekends! Agawan sa parking, waiting sa favorite restaurant mo, pila sa Potato Corner, frankly, it would lull you to thinking, akal ko ba naghihirap ang bansa? - everyone around me seems to have so much extra money!!

Ayun, ang friendship caption ko naging social commentary. That's how extreme the trajectories my brain projects all the time!

Enjoying Filipino Short Stories!

I admit I rarely read fiction or short stories written by Filipino writers. It's so lopsided towards foreign writers which was exacerbated by the fact that when I was still in school, there was so much focus on English competency that nobody really bothered about Filipino literature except perhaps the novels that Rizal wrote.

I tried to remedy that situation last year when I bought several books written by local writers and finally reading one, a compilation of short stories written by Palanca winners in the 80s.

This collection is actually an 'embarrassment of riches" as I've discovered some writers here who happen to fit perfectly into the type of stories that I'd love to read. My most favorite was 'Our Lady of Arts and Letters' by Eli Ang Barroso, but I found the stories of Charlson Ong's to be the most intriguing!

Actually, most of the winners are the who's who of contemporary Filipino literature, yun lang, I'm not so sure if all of them eventually wrote novels, which to me, would be the best barometer for a writer to be measured in terms of achievement (unless of course, if he's a poet or essayist).

I don't know yet if they have the anthology for the 2000s but that would be an interesting read as well, because this anthology of 80s short stories truly depicts the decade and the themes that were popular during that particular decade.

Misplaced Priorities and Attention to Detail

As I was reading this article today - http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2015/07/16/1477609/lrta-throws-lavish-party-amid-trains-leaking-roofs - I couldn't believe that heads of these agencies, especially the one manning the public transportation system of this country can just waste money on lavish parties and yet not have any budget to fix the existing Light Railway Transit system!  

The head is also very strict with the implementation of the dress code but is not meticulous enough to check the safety systems of the LRT service.  Tumutulo na nga raw ang mga trains e!

Enjoying the Remaining Open Spaces Here in Quezon City

It's been ages since I've been to the Quezon Memorial Circle.  I think it's been 20 years since I've set foot on it.  I decided to visit it again yesterday since Dylan and I needed a place to exercise.  And the Quezon Memorial Circle is just the perfect place for it!

You can actually jog around the monument of the Quezon Memorial Circle.  It was an ordinary Wednesday night but there were many people there - mostly students on a date, or just hanging out, enjoying the cool wind.

Ayun, I enjoyed the experience as well although I wasn't able to jog much due to Dylan's preference to walk.