TREKKING TO THE METROPOLIS AND BACK

To the lion tamer and her aging pet, visiting their pride composed of three children and six grandchildren at the metropolis were previously done two ways; the first is via the ocean liner Sharon Cuneta advertised in TV and in the airwaves, while the second is via air travel that since two years ago has considerably increased in volume because of the phenomenal growth of tourists that were attracted by the scenic island of Bohol and its peaceful inhabitants; a business opportunity that goaded Philippine Airlines to increase its daily flights to two while Cebu Pacific used the Airbus to equal its competitor’s increased passenger capacity. On the first, the aging cat enjoyed the thirty six hour cruising time on state room accommodation sipping the dozen cans of beer he brought along watching the islands and the dolphins merrily jumping one the high seas on a binocular, while on the second instance he would boringly let pass the one hour plane ride that is spiced only by the two hour plane’s departure check-in time before he reached their destination at Tagbilaran City and eventually to the lion’s den at Guindulman town.

There is yet another mode of travel that was established lately to transport the riding public, a type of transportation that can easily discourage the faint hearted and those with discriminating traveling tastes but can excite those whose love for adventure and rugged thrills still reside in their veins. This actually is a combination of an arduous long bus ride that spans 1,100 kilometers that can easily cause blisters on your behinds and also make you wish you deserve a good sauna bath with sexy girls (remember Maalikaya?) massaging your entire body after the unforgettable trip. Added to this are two ferry rides, one at Matnog in Sorsogon that transports the bus to Allen in Samar and another in Bato, Leyte that takes the bus to Ubay town in Bohol to complete the exciting ride from and to its final destination.

Let us now relate those three modes of transportation to the most recent experiences of the lion tamer and her aging pet.

All through the year 2006, the lady with the whip traveled to the metropolis and back five times, two of which she brought along with her the equivalent of the pink panther that David Niven popularly portrayed on one of those humorous movies. And so let this writer now summarize these trips in chronological order.

I. First Trip- March 31 to May 11

She first traveled solo in March to portray the role of amah (yaya to those who cannot understand Chinese) to her two grandchildren at Valencia Hills as her only daughter had to be away from home for five weeks to attend to her one month study grant in Japan and a speaking engagement at Massachusetts in the United States. On this trip to the metropolis, she rode the plane both ways leaving alone her aging cat yawning feebly at his den.

II. Second Trip- June 7 to July 1

She next returned to the big city in June taking along with her a maid as her daughter-in-law by her youngest son was a about to deliver the cat’s sixth grandchild. Again, he opted not to join her as they already knew that the baby to be delivered is a boy; thanks, but no thanks to the scientific gadget called “ultrasound” that rob grandparents of figuring out the sex before a child is born. Staying in the big city for three weeks, she personally saw the boy and so returned home to their done again on board the airplane both ways.


III. Third Trip- September 11 to September 24

But it turned out the maid that she brought along with her also had a delivery schedule of her own. She (no, not the lion tamer, but the maid) had a tryst with her boyfriend before riding the plane accompanied by the fairy grandmother and so after three months time, was already loudly complaining of her household duties as her tummy was already showing signs of pre-natal activity. She was therefore advised to go home as it was apparent she could no longer assume her household duties and consequently a replacement had to be secured.

Having found a substitute, the lion tamer again returned to the metropolis in early September, but this time with her aging pet in tow. The latter wanted to see for himself if the boy looks like him or at least a semblance of how handsome he was during his early years. Ah, but what a wishful thinking! The young lad is a miniature replica of the father and none of the features of the aging cat appeared. After the usual amenities the lion tamer and her pet returned home after two weeks’ stay riding on the Philippine Airlines air facility.

But narration of the trip does not end with seeing and coddling the little boy. Seeing the opportunity at maximizing expenses and calculating that the cost of plane fare for two will equal the cost of three if land transportation is availed of, boarded the bus right at their hometown and experienced the thirty six hour ride for the first time in their lives. There they cruised not only several towns in Bohol, places they have never seen before, enjoyed the four your ferry ride from Ubay to Bato in Leyte, saw for themselves the well paved road of Leyte island and was mesmerized by the famed San Juanico bridge that the aging cat estimates spanned no less than a kilometer long. In addition, they also weathered the bumpy ride of the whole Samar stretch because it has been kept un-repaired probably since the road was installed, saw the majestic Mayon Volcano gently spewing out ashes when they passed Albay province and in fine enjoyed the entire trip like high school students witnessing for the first time an educational tour that life’s teachers have planned for them. In this trip, it also gave him the opportunity to see the still pristine and rural scenery that has managed to elude the raging and abusive debris that modern civilization usually expose to rural environment in the guise of economic growth..

IV. Fourth Trip October 26 to November 11

Her next trip occurred during the last week of October by again land as the young boy, it turned out had a congenital defect. Although definitely robust in physical appearance, he was suffering from intermittent fever every now and then and so was periodically being brought to the hospital where the attending physician diagnosed a kidney defect and advised that he be subjected to the knife. The problem was being relayed to the lion tamer almost on a daily basis and faced with the dilemma, prompted the lion tamer to return so that she may be of help. After several other tests and a trip to another doctor for a second opinion, the medical experts advised for a continued dosage of antibiotics to last for about a year and thereafter a decision whether to undergo the knife will have to be resolved. The cost of the planned operation, by the way, is expected to be no less than 200 Grand. Whew, from where shall his parents and grandparents get the amount?!

The lion tamer returned November 11 and for the first time in 36 years celebrated her birthday on November 6 without her aging pet at her side. But he was not missed at all; her three children saw to it that she celebrated her birthday better and more memorable than all her other birthday celebrations combined all together.

On this trip she rode the bus going to the metropolis and although the trip took a full 44 hours travel, she did not mind it at all and even have quite a number of interesting anecdotes to tell.. Going back, she again rode the plane.

V. The Fifth Trip- December 10- December 29.

The trip to the metropolis during the advent of the Christmas season became mandatory for a number of reasons. First was the desire to see their youngest cub and see for themselves how he had progressed on his medical treatment. Second was the traditional gathering of the entire brood at the ancestral house during this special event and the side trips to the lodge to fraternize with the brethren. But what made the decision final was the offer of our daughter that she will foot the airplane ticket! And here’s the start of the narration of the trip.

It was on December 10 at 11:15 in the morning that we boarded the PAL plane at Tagbilaran. Already one hour and fifteen minutes late when compared with the scheduled departure time, the lion tamer was restlessly fidgeting on her seat as the plane took off the runway. And with good reason, for at that very moment, typhoon Seniang was mercilessly lashing at the Panay island which is at the very path of the airplane’s route. Silently, the cat, who was seated right beside the window noted that the plane, instead of flying straight (remember the maxim the nearest route is via a straight line?) made a right turn thus making visible below the towns of Maribojoc, Loon and Talibon of the island of Bohol. Presumably, the pilots are veering away from the typhoon’s wrathful path by flying at the airline’s route somewhere near the Pacific ocean. And then as suddenly, nothing can be seen outside the window except white clouds. In addition, the airplane’s motors where humming noisier than normal, which made the lion tamer ask: “What is that?” and to which she received the classical reply from her pet that “the airplane has not yet reached the desired altitude and therefore had to exert more power than is normally needed .”

The plane finally landed after one hour and thirty five minutes aloft, which is longer by thirty minutes when compared with normal travel time and all the while , the aging cat never relayed to his tamer his observation, well, not until they were already safely on the ground waiting for their checked-in baggage at the airport. With an additional remark: “Whew!, I thought the sharks may be feasting on us and the other passengers on board later!” Reaching the house, we monitored the news broadcast on the ongoing onslaught of typhoon Seniang over the airwaves and could only conclude, they are still lucky, the plane landed in the same specifications and condition as when it was made airborne at Tagbilaran City earlier that morning.

Unlike their previous visits however, their schedules in the big city became different. Their two grand daughters who by now are already conversant with the use of cell phones would ask (read as demand) that we stay with them for the night, and consequently will alter their own schedules. The aging cat was, however, able to attend the stated meeting of Rafael Palma Lodge No 147 at the Capitol Masonic Temple and thus was able to fraternize with the brethren in attendance gulping several rounds of beer. In addition, he was able to honor a lunch invitation offered by Bro. Tony Limpoco, the president of the Travelers’ Tribe of Bahrain and together with Sis. Edith, his charming wife, and daughters Nicole and Hannah, enjoyed a sumptuous lunch at SM North EDSA on December 26, the aging cat of which is also accompanied by the lion tamer and her favorite grandson Mika. Bro. Tony by the way just remitted P5,000 early December to the lion tamer’s charity assistance projects.

And so save for the thought that the lion’s pride again celebrated their traditional gathering at the ancestral house in Project 8 with the newest addition being treated as teddy bear by the five older grandchildren , the other events will no longer be narrated as it might bore the readers to death and so will proceed immediately to their trip home to the lion’s den.

Not having purchased a plane ticket and deciding that going home via the Super Ferry ocean liner would not be as exciting, the two decided that taking the land trip will be worth another experience and so sent a text message to the bus business coordinator at Guindulman that the VIP seat that is generally reserved for the bus conductor be used by them. This was done and so on the 27th of December

The two promptly rode the half-filled bus at Cubao and from there it inched its way to Pasay. Which made the aging lion muse that they are in for a leisurely ride as the conveyance is half empty. To his consternation however, an equal number of passengers clambered up the bus but not after the baggage boy has neatly tucked their seemingly innumerable cartons of baggage inside. To maximize space, the passengers who were supposed to seat at the backseat willingly vacated the space allotted to them and sat on the aisle that were likewise stacked with cartons so that more baggage may be accommodated. When asked, the conductor lamely explained that technically, the bus cannot be declared as “overloaded” as indeed the number of passengers did not exceed capacity. The fact that there are more cartons of baggage that the bus carry could not be helped, it happens every Yuletide season when homecoming provincianos would take along with them old clothes and other things that can still be used by awaiting relatives. And when asked what will happen should the engine burns and putting the bus in flames replied “Oh, well, let’s hope it doesn’t!”

The bus finally arrived home delayed by no less than ten hours because of the accumulated delays at Pasay, at deciding to take the Camarines Norte route that elongated the distance by some seventy kilometers and the consequential delays at the ferry rides at Matnog in Sorsogon and Bato in Leyte before finally crossing the ferry and finally docking at Ubay that earned blisters on the aging lion’s behind.

But the trip was still worth it all. It gave us a glimpse of how travel drastically differed when compared with the usually unexciting plane ride.

But not the plane ride that was just discussed above!