When I left the house for work yesterday, it was windy but not raining. Minutes later, near Ramon Revilla's walls (I say this because no one I know has ever seen the house/mansion, just white-washed walls) was when the rain poured down hard like it was going to punch holes through the roof of the vehicle I was in.
As we advanced towards the city, certain parts of the highway would be heavily drenched while others were just damp. The winds along Coastal Road were particularly scary because it was wide open on either side of the highway and the vehicle's height would make it easy to get toppled.
I got off at near Pedro Gil and saw how tall crashing waves licked the tops of the coconut trees along Baywalk. No rain though, just strong gusts of wind.
Walking to our building around the corner was like walking on ice. My shoes didn't exactly grip the wet pavement friction so I found myself tip-toeing in certain areas.
When I got to the office, I got a full view of just how bad it was.
Yesterday morning
Yesterday afternoon
Later that day, at around 2 o'clock, chismis went around that work was going to be suspended for the rest of the day. It turns out Malacañang had already ordered the suspension sometime during lunch hour, effective 12:01 PM in fact. They didn't tell us until it was almost 3 PM. It didn't matter though because the whole dang office was cleared less than 15 minutes after it was announced on the PA system.
I didn't get to leave until past 4 o'clock because I had some stuff to finish which were due for release the next morning. On the jeepney ride along MH Del Pilar, I thought things were a bit disappointing because there was neither drizzle nor flood.
Then I got to Pasay and that's when the misery started. It's as if Manila was the sanctuary and you were on your own against the elements when you cross its boundaries.
Anyway, the sky finally let loose, unloading on scurrying yokels on Harrison and Buendia. You almost felt sorry for these people. They're so used to discomfort that it's become a leisure activity. The rain just kept pouring down for an eternity.
Under the Roxas-EDSA flyover, I could see there was no way to stay dry. The jeepney stopped at a precarious spot and I hurried to the exit. These drivers get furious when they're unloading out of place. As if my life couldn't get any worse, the whole area was a river! I hopped off the estribo and into floodwater. Goodbye, cheap shoes.
I quickly skipped to where the Imus jeepneys made their U-turn and waited with the rest of the stranded folks. Again, more wind.
Two college students--from the nearby school I had attended--swaggered around laughing.
Girl 1: Parang gusto ko dun sa kabila.
Girl 2: Bakit?
Girl 1: Parang mas maganda ang tayo nila don.
The opposite side of the U-turn drive also had people waiting and looked like they were posing for a photo.
After fifteen minutes a jeepney came and folks swarmed it as soon as the barker yelled it's destination. I climbed up to the front seat knowing full well that I was going to be smudged with rain and dust when we hit the high road. Didn't care. Must get home.
Sure enough, my extremities were soaking wet minutes after we sped off. I tried propping up my umbrella to try and shield myself but it was useless, I knew it. What with it being too darn small and the metal ribs were bent out of place. I just resigned myself to the fact that I was on the final stretch home and water in my face was just a small hitch. Wouldn't you know it, when I got to Imus it had stopped raining.
I walked leisurely to our house, looked up, and wondered about the dark cloud hovering above. Seconds after, it rained and water seeped through parts of our house as if to say "Guess again, fooh!"
As we advanced towards the city, certain parts of the highway would be heavily drenched while others were just damp. The winds along Coastal Road were particularly scary because it was wide open on either side of the highway and the vehicle's height would make it easy to get toppled.
I got off at near Pedro Gil and saw how tall crashing waves licked the tops of the coconut trees along Baywalk. No rain though, just strong gusts of wind.
Walking to our building around the corner was like walking on ice. My shoes didn't exactly grip the wet pavement friction so I found myself tip-toeing in certain areas.
When I got to the office, I got a full view of just how bad it was.
Yesterday morning
Yesterday afternoon
Later that day, at around 2 o'clock, chismis went around that work was going to be suspended for the rest of the day. It turns out Malacañang had already ordered the suspension sometime during lunch hour, effective 12:01 PM in fact. They didn't tell us until it was almost 3 PM. It didn't matter though because the whole dang office was cleared less than 15 minutes after it was announced on the PA system.
I didn't get to leave until past 4 o'clock because I had some stuff to finish which were due for release the next morning. On the jeepney ride along MH Del Pilar, I thought things were a bit disappointing because there was neither drizzle nor flood.
Then I got to Pasay and that's when the misery started. It's as if Manila was the sanctuary and you were on your own against the elements when you cross its boundaries.
Anyway, the sky finally let loose, unloading on scurrying yokels on Harrison and Buendia. You almost felt sorry for these people. They're so used to discomfort that it's become a leisure activity. The rain just kept pouring down for an eternity.
Under the Roxas-EDSA flyover, I could see there was no way to stay dry. The jeepney stopped at a precarious spot and I hurried to the exit. These drivers get furious when they're unloading out of place. As if my life couldn't get any worse, the whole area was a river! I hopped off the estribo and into floodwater. Goodbye, cheap shoes.
I quickly skipped to where the Imus jeepneys made their U-turn and waited with the rest of the stranded folks. Again, more wind.
Two college students--from the nearby school I had attended--swaggered around laughing.
Girl 1: Parang gusto ko dun sa kabila.
Girl 2: Bakit?
Girl 1: Parang mas maganda ang tayo nila don.
The opposite side of the U-turn drive also had people waiting and looked like they were posing for a photo.
After fifteen minutes a jeepney came and folks swarmed it as soon as the barker yelled it's destination. I climbed up to the front seat knowing full well that I was going to be smudged with rain and dust when we hit the high road. Didn't care. Must get home.
Sure enough, my extremities were soaking wet minutes after we sped off. I tried propping up my umbrella to try and shield myself but it was useless, I knew it. What with it being too darn small and the metal ribs were bent out of place. I just resigned myself to the fact that I was on the final stretch home and water in my face was just a small hitch. Wouldn't you know it, when I got to Imus it had stopped raining.
I walked leisurely to our house, looked up, and wondered about the dark cloud hovering above. Seconds after, it rained and water seeped through parts of our house as if to say "Guess again, fooh!"
Great post Cristina! I loved your descriptions, especially of the people at the jeepney stop and their conversation. Very atmospheric.
ReplyDeleteComing from you, that's like my Pulitzer! Thank you.
ReplyDelete