A different Philippines

I finally came to the Philippines, why do you say it is finally? Because I wanted to come to the Philippines a few years ago, I had booked round-trip air tickets and accommodation in Boracay Island. As a result, I was told before boarding the plane in Xiamen that my Philippine visa had expired for one day. It was also my fault that I was illiterate, and the combination of 26 letters was confusing. I couldn’t understand what was on the visa, so I couldn’t come. Not to mention losing money, the most important thing was that I still had an excited wife with me. I couldn’t ruin my wife’s happiness, so I decided to find a hotel that could fly from Xiamen at the Xiamen Airport. I wanted to go to a country in Southeast Asia that had a visa on arrival or a visa-free one, so I had an unexpected trip to Sri Lanka. This time, I didn’t even bother to apply for a visa. I used a Canadian visa, which allowed me to stay in the Philippines for seven days. I found a fairly cheap round-trip ticket from Shenzhen to Manila. It cost more than 500 yuan and it was quite easy to enter the country. I had my passport and Canadian visa copied together. Just tap a piece of paper and it's OK. The sun here is so harsh that it’s hard not to get dark. In addition, the people here are so thin that some people call Filipinos “little blacks.” Some people say it’s indecent, but I think it’s cute. Seven days, the capital Manila, and Clark, known as a man's paradise. Still using my mute English and ten gesticulating fingers, relying on Google Maps and translation software, I walked the streets and alleys, tasted delicacies, tasted snacks, saw old churches, climbed the ancient city walls, and walked around. We fired guns, fired cannons, and even flew airplanes. I was tired, tired, and excited, and finally saw a Philippines that was different from us!

The mighty and domineering jeepney

The brand-new jeepney on the street looks like Megatron in "Transformers"

Speaking of the Philippines, We must talk about jeepneys first. Jeepneys are roaring all over the streets in the Philippines. Jeepneys are a unique public transportation vehicle in the Philippines. Their appearance is dazzling. Why are they called jeepneys? Because it is a Jeep that was abandoned by American soldiers after World War II, and it was modified based on the Jeeps that were left behind when the U.S. military evacuated Clark Military Base. Some people say that it took 45 years to win World War II. Are there such durable jeeps? It's true. If you go to Myanmar or Cambodia, you can see the American jeeps that are still running around on the streets. The Filipinos modified this kind of jeep as they pleased, lengthened the body and painted it with whimsical graffiti, and then drove it to the street to pick up customers. They have a strange appearance. Each jeepney is painted with colorful and different patterns - some use the Virgin Mary to clear the way, and some have Superman and Spider-Man flying on the roof; they are equipped with different lights and tires, most of which are huge Mercedes-Benz and BMW cars. There are iron carriages with noisy signs dragging them around; and they all have interesting and weird names, such as: "JAMINMANILA" (stuck in Manila), "FILIPINEPERI" (Philippine beauty) and so on. People often proudly say, "You will never find two identical jeepneys in the Philippines."

Although drivers attach great importance to the decoration of their jeepneys, they don't care much about maintenance. Some of the fronts of the jeepneys are stained with rust. Even though they look bright and shiny on the outside, there is a ding in the driver's cage. There were random noises, some were equipped with modern steering wheels, and some were Toyota steering wheels. I actually saw a man welding half of an electric drill to the position of the rearview mirror to get his sunglasses stuck. As for the drivers, they usually wear flip-flops and vests, with five fingers on one hand filled with banknotes. They can also collect money and give change while driving, and one person can do all the driving, collecting money and giving change. There are station and road tables on the carriages, fixed routes are operated, and charges are charged by sections. I once paid four yuan for the fare, which was a few cents. Thailand also has similar vehicles for soliciting passengers, called songthaews, also called TT vehicles. The Philippine jeepneys are much more powerful and domineering than the ones in Thailand. They have enough horsepower to fill the streets with the roar of motorcycles. You can step on the accelerator and... I heard the popping sound of exploding exhaust pipes; the body of the car is long enough and can fit nearly ten or twenty people in a squeeze; the front of the car is powerful and powerful, with shapes like Mercedes-Benz, Rolls-Royce, and Optimus Prime There are many shapes, but they are taller than others. I once saw a big guy with three antennas on the front of the car on the street.

Jeepneys have been regarded as national treasures in the Philippines, and there is a display of this kind of motorcycle at Manila Airport. The streets of Manila are full of such vehicles. I saw four jeepneys lined up on a main road, occupying the entire road. The seats in the carriage are just two long benches on both sides. There is no comfort at all. Sitting is uncomfortable, but it is cool and cheap. It is especially cheap. The cheapest one is less than one yuan. It is convenient and quick to sit and get off when you stop. It is estimated that the US military's jeep resources are almost exhausted. Now you can see jeepneys modified from pickup trucks and light trucks on the streets of the Philippines. These vehicles are longer, can hold more people, and are in better condition.

Jeepneys in the Philippines have penetrated into the remote countryside, pulling Filipinos around at low prices every day. I rarely see empty jeepneys on the streets. According to Chinese thinking, isn't this kind of car a road killer? No safety risks? Traffic safety is really scary on the streets of the Philippines. There are all kinds of vehicles on the narrow roads, including trucks, buses, jeepneys, three-wheelers, two-wheeled motorcycles, and bicycles. I also saw a large oil tanker on the main road in Manila. Although you squeeze in to carry the tanker truck, I rarely see any accidents or traffic police, but I don’t see any traffic jams. Their thinking should be that everyone has the right to travel, and every car has its own right of way. Rich people drive Rolls-Royces, those without money take jeepneys, and those who want to go faster take the side roads. Three rounds.

A poor person cannot be deprived of his right to travel because of so-called safety risks. I think it is precisely because the ubiquitous jeepneys provide low-income people with a low-cost and convenient way to travel that they can see a passionate Philippines!

The entire road is occupied by four powerful jeepneys

A variety of vehicles

Do you think there are only jeepneys on the streets in the Philippines? There are so many different modes of transportation. Another means of transportation is the tricycle. The motorcycles we are talking about are motorcycles that run fast on the streets. There are human-powered motorcycles in the Royal City of Spain to take you around the city.

These motorcycle guys all installed a side pocket on their motorcycles and modified them at will. I even tried riding them.

Taking a photo with the driver

Although the bag is small, there are many pretenders. It can fit five people, which is probably only possible for a dark and thin Filipino. The motorcycles are all similar, but the motorcycles also have their own personalities. They are yellow, blue, and have different shapes. I also saw a motorcycle equipped with a large subwoofer, which is expected to make a loud noise. If jeepneys are buses, then these jeepneys are taxis. You can wave to wherever you want to go. When jeepneys arrive in towns, if you want to go to a more remote place, you have to take a jeepney. I Going to the Flying Club to fly means booking a taxi. The price is more expensive than a jeepney, and even more expensive than Grab. When I went from DAU to the hotel, the taxi cost 200, but the Grab I ordered was only 154. They usually work at the crossroads, each with their own place, because I saw them lined up on the road in order, pulling people in one by one. There is a TV set in the place where they work, and when there is no work, there is Watch TV there.

Tricycle drivers watching TV

In addition to motorcycle tricycles, there are also human-powered tricycles. There are people waiting for tricycles at the entrance of the Royal City of Spain. They form a long queue. The purpose of following you around the royal city is to protect the ancient city, and jeepneys and gangsters are not allowed to enter.

The rickshaws waiting for people at the gate of the ancient city

In addition to rickshaws, there are large horse-drawn carriages with gorgeous decorations like jeepneys on the streets of Manila, near Rizal Park, Sunset Boulevard and Intramuros. So full of personality, it is suitable for two young lovers to sit on it, whisper to the clatter of horse hooves, snuggle tightly in the carriage, hold hands, and when the love is deep, one will be Bo'er, and one will be a little old man. Although the driver is very enthusiastic, I might as well skip it. I don’t know what the price will be, so I guess it won’t be cheap.

Selling cigarettes by the root on the street

Vendors selling cigarettes on the street

Walking on the streets of the Philippines, you will see cigarettes, candies, etc. being sold on the roadside from time to time. If you look carefully at the scattered stalls, you will see a variety of cigarettes, all open. They are not cigarettes smoked by the vendors themselves. By the way, they are cigarettes for sale. Anyone who wants to smoke can just stop. At a stall, you pick a cigarette you like, and the boss lights it, takes a puff, and continues on your way. There are also cigarettes sold by the cigarette on the streets of Myanmar. If someone wants to smoke on the streets of Moscow, he can just reach out to the person walking by and ask for one. "NO SMOKING" signs are everywhere on the streets in the Philippines, and I didn't see anyone smoking in restaurants. There is also a sign saying that smoking is allowed, but it has the second half of the sentence, "I thank you for not smoking." The complete sentence is: You can smoke here, but I thank you for not smoking. I respect your right to smoke, but I advise you not to smoke! In fact, this method of selling cigarettes based on the root cause is still worth learning. It can control your addiction well and is economical!

Filipinos buying cigarettes

Beer bottles all come with condoms

Friends, don’t think wrongly, this condom is not the other condom. The Philippines has super delicious and cheap beer. I drank a five-dollar Tiger beer in Cambodia, but I thought it was too expensive. Later, an American special soldier I met took us to find a two-dollar Tiger beer, so we drank a few more bottles. Later, I thought it was too expensive in Malaysia. When I went to Singapore last month, I thought there would be cheaper ones because Tiger beer is produced in Singapore. However, I thought too much and found out it was even more expensive. I asked the guy selling beer why it was so expensive. Isn't it made in Singapore? The result was super funny. The young man asked in confusion, isn’t Tiger Beer American? Hahaha, I laughed like a pig! When I arrived in the Philippines, I finally saw all kinds of Tiger beer, all kinds of super cheap Tiger beer. There are 32p in supermarkets, and the most expensive one is only 42p, which is more than five yuan.

The restaurants also have 75 or 80p, the most expensive ones are about ten yuan, and the GOGO bar only costs 100p to drink and watch the girls. Drinking beer like this doesn’t make me feel any pain in my heart. I always feel the pain when I go back to the hotel from the street every day. Bottle Tiger, sometimes I buy a few yuan of peanuts, lie on the bedside, drink wine, eat rice, read the headlines, and enjoy it.

However, drinking beer in a restaurant is not just a restaurant. As long as you drink beer on the spot and have someone open it for you, the cap of the bottle handed to you will always be covered with a paper cap. It is simple. A simple lid-like thing made of napkin to cover the mouth of the bottle, like the picture below

I didn’t understand it at first, and didn’t ask carefully. Later I thought it was for hygiene, and I was afraid of it. Maybe something flew into the bottle while serving it to the customer.

This is the cover on the mouth of the wine bottle. If you drink in a bar and they hand you beer, not only does the bottle have a cover, but the bottle also has a cloth cover, just like the picture below

< p>The cover on the bottle mouth is for hygiene, and the cover on the bottle body should prevent your hands from feeling cold when you hold the beer. Maybe the beer in the bar is refrigerated in a large freezer, and the temperature is quite low. The beer will be too cold when you first hold it, and the taste will be cold when you drink it. Putting on the cover can slowly warm up the beer, making it taste better! However, I have to admire the merchant's thoughtfulness and consideration!

Security Stations with Mighty Guns

The streets of the Philippines are full of armed security guards. I initially thought they were the police, but they are not the police. Their uniform system is white, and the police uniform uniform is navy blue. uniform. Police are rarely seen on the streets, even traffic police are rare. Don’t underestimate these security guards. They are all heavily armed and located at airports, banks, bus stations, light rail stations, supermarkets, restaurants, and even at the entrance to toilets. Not only are they equipped with guns, they are also equipped with long guns, which are always in their hands.

The security guard at the entrance of the Happy Bee fast food restaurant

The security guard at the entrance of SM

We may have some misunderstandings about loaded guns and live ammunition. I am from the Procuratorate, and we all are There are small pistols such as 54, 64, and even 77. The guns have been stored in the warehouse many years ago, for fear that someone would snatch the gun and commit a crime. As for the front-line police, they basically have no tasks and no longer carry guns. We regard guns as a dangerous factor. In fact, the streets are full of police with live ammunition. I think those dangerous elements must always be in fear. It is a kind of deterrence. Just like in today's peaceful and prosperous times, there are very few wars. However, why does a country Why do we still need to raise so many troops? What about atomic bombs? It is also a kind of deterrence, so that those dangerous elements dare not act rashly. Moreover, a long gun is definitely safer and more intimidating than a small pistol. Even if he doesn't fire, giving him a gun butt will not be comfortable. In terms of safety, the long gun is always on the body and is not easily snatched away. Even if it's taken away, it's not easy to hide. Heavily armed security guards not only have long guns but also carry first-aid kits with them. This is probably more effective than that kind of intimidation. They should all be trained in first aid operations. In case of sudden illness, a first aid kit can definitely save lives.

This kind of thinking should be something left by Americans. I have never been to the United States and have not seen it personally, but there are scenes like this in Hollywood movies. So far, after the Americans evacuated from Clark Military Base, they have left at least three things to the Philippines: jeepneys, security guards with live ammunition, and the City of Angels.

Dazzling street snacks

How many street snacks are there in the Philippines? There are too many, corn kernels, peanuts, boiled eggs, grilled chicken, scones, fried oyster mushrooms (looked like it, but I didn’t eat it), fried dough, fried spring rolls, fried skewers, etc. Anyway, the varieties are complete and fried. There are a wide variety of ways to cook and cook, it’s cheap and delicious, and it only costs about one to twenty pesos for a few bucks. The key is that it’s super convenient. It can be found anywhere on the street, on the roadside, under the shade of trees, at crossroads, etc. There is no so-called urban management. There is nothing you can’t think of and nothing you can’t eat. In fact, seemingly dirty streets can best reflect a real society. The primary function of a city is to provide living space for the people living in it. It is those seemingly dirty snacks that reflect a fresh and messy society. small civil society!

Peanuts are not a dish

Peanuts are too common for us. The best dish to go with wine, also known as naitao, is delicious fried or boiled. In the Philippines, peanuts are really not a dish that goes with wine. It is the most common street snack in the Philippines. Just like the popcorn we eat, you can have a portion at any time and eat it on the go. There are countless snacks here, and peanuts are the most common. There are many varieties, fried, marinated, skinned, and naked. Some stalls have ready-made hot oil pans for making on site. For 20p, I will give you a small paper bag of peanuts, which will be packed and handed to you according to your taste and preference. Peanuts are common on the streets. Even in supermarkets, peanuts are considered to be the most diverse food. They are all bottled and look high-end!

I have eaten it casually a few times, but I am sure my hands will be greasy after eating it. I don’t know how Filipinos do it. I still like to eat it as a snack. One night I bought it for 50p, took it back to the hotel, and bought a bottle of Tiger beer in the supermarket. I sat on the bedside, eating peanuts, drinking cold beer and making headlines.

Eating Fruit Dip

Have you ever seen fruit dipped in salt, pepper, chili and unknown smelly dipping sauce? I really experienced this and tried this strange way of eating in the Philippines.

The picture above is the most common fruit on the streets of the Philippines. I don’t know the name. It has been peeled and cut into small pieces, but the core is still attached. It is packed in a small plastic bag. You can use Eat with bamboo sticks.

Sour, sweet and a bit astringent. There are two kinds of dipping sauces, one is a mixture of salt and chili pepper, and the other is a black dipping sauce that smells a little smelly. I started to eat the salt and pepper dipping sauce. One time I wanted to try that kind of dipping sauce and asked for one. It smelled like stinky tofu, so I threw it away without trying it. I am really not used to eating stinky tofu and the like. I once saw a little chubby girl spreading this dipping sauce on fruits at the entrance of a middle school. It looked dark and I didn't know how she started eating it.

What was soaked in the jar was green mango. I tried it once, but it didn’t suit my taste, so I never ate it again!

The streets are like wet markets

I lived near a light rail station in Manila. The station name is Pedro Gil. The light rail station is on the upper floor. When you walk down from the light rail station, you will One foot stepped into a small supermarket.

This is an intersection, with cars coming and going, and a lot of people. A few tricycles are waiting for people on the roadside. What is moving is people and cars, and what is not moving is the small market under the light rail station. , food, clothing and water are all available. Cigarettes, candy, socks, glasses, bags, peanuts, fruits, cold drinks, you step off the platform, buy a pair of socks to put on your feet, buy a cigarette to hold in your mouth, eat a bowl of food, drink a glass of soda, perform Live the lives and livelihoods of ordinary people in the city.

Excellent shopping experience and super attentive service

SM CITY is a famous commercial center in the Philippines. Clark’s SM is located in the center of Clark. During the past few days in Clark I would wander there when I had nothing to do. I had food, drinks, and fun. Everything was cheap and complete. I bought a pair of Hush Puppies for more than 400 yuan at a discount. You know, there are probably no Hush Puppies for less than 500 yuan in China. I bought three pairs of socks. . I also bought three short-sleeved tops for 150 yuan. Tell me about your shopping experience. You just have to choose, change it if you can, try it on if you can, if it's OK, the thing is yours, no need to invoice, no need for anything, the shoes are the guy who probably thought I didn't know how to check out, so he helped me. . When you buy socks, you hand them to me directly and you find a place to check out. Unlike in our country, we issue an invoice for you, you go to check out, and then come back to pick up the items after paying. I am afraid that you will run away with the items. I will finish the check. I still think I should tell people, but they will ignore me. In fact, there is no access control system at the gate like a supermarket. If you take something away, will anyone notice it? have no idea. Another day, I shot a three-wheeler and went shooting. It’s not what you imagine. I shot 30 rounds of AKM9. Then I went back to SM for dinner. The fare was 200. There was only 1,000. The driver couldn’t find it, so he handed me the money. Give it to me, let me change the money on my own, point me in the general direction where I am waiting, and I just take the money and walk away. However, I didn’t take advantage of it. I bought a cold drink and went back to ask the driver to give me the money. It took a lot of effort. When I went out, I saw the driver waving to me. I couldn’t live up to others’ trust in me. That would be underestimating my own personality. At this point, I understand that the SM checkout experience and the driver handing me money should be based on trust in human nature. They feel that I should pay what I deserve for what I get, and I should not get something for nothing or take things that I don’t deserve. What you get is as a matter of course, it's as simple as that. The ease of staying in a hotel is unparalleled. In our country, a deposit is required for check-in, and a room inspection is required for check-out. I stayed at the red rose hotel in Manila for a few days. There were all kinds of snacks piled on the table in the room. You could pick them up yourself. At the end of the check, I was about to leave. I was asked, have you eaten? Just after hearing my word NO, I could walk away. What does it feel like? There are benches at the checkout area of ??SM Supermarket for customers to sit down and wait for their checkout.

The mall provides wheeled strollers, as well as small trains and carousels for your whole family to enjoy.

SM has things you can’t think of, such as building materials, hardware, and even cars. They don’t display them like we do, but they really sell cars. I focus on selling cars because they sell cars. Our Chinese Haima car! Haima V70!

Finally, there is one more detail that will let you feel their thoughtfulness and attentiveness to their customers. I don’t know if you have ever done such an embarrassing thing. You bought bottled stuff from the supermarket. When you were tired from walking, you wanted to sit down and rest, so you put down the shopping bag, and there was a crash, and the bottle hit the concrete floor directly, so, When something is gone, other things suffer as well. You are here, the merchant has thought of it for you. I bought a bottle of beer and was going back to the hotel to drink it. I found that they put a cardboard in my plastic bag and handed it to me. I walked out of the supermarket and touched the bag. It was really... No more fear of a crash. We hope that our services can also be so pleasing to the eye!

Having said so much, there are always some unsatisfactory things and people when I go out, especially for a guy like me who doesn’t understand English very well. I can’t take it lightly, so I have to make complaints about it, which will also be used later. A reminder, my friends. A street vendor in the Philippines will quietly give you a bunch of change you have saved at once and hack it into his small coin box. There are many coins here in the Philippines, including five yuan, one yuan, and ten cents. There are also two kinds of five yuan coins, gold and silver. As we become more developed, we no longer have the habit of using coins at home. It is not in line with the Chinese character to jingle in our pockets every day. Here, there are always a lot of coins. Sometimes when I buy snacks or a bottle of cold drink on the street, I don’t bother to ask how much it costs, so I take out the coins and spread my hands for Xiao Hei to take as he pleases, which means to take what you deserve. Just pick it up. Who knows he will collect all the money at once, maybe he thinks it's all a piece? I bought a bunch of grilled bananas at Rizal Park. I don’t know how much they cost, but he charged me dozens of dollars. I didn't react at the time, but thinking about it afterwards, it was probably intentional. I was taking the bus to Clark and was about to buy a bottle of water, but the water seller took away a handful of coins. It was a woman, and she even counted them.

I forgave her. Firstly, she was a woman. Secondly, she was at the station, one of the places where she could easily be hacked. Thirdly, the key point was that she didn’t have a few dollars. Even if the hacker took a hundred dollars, it would be equivalent to more than ten dollars. I always brag about RMB. Now that I have money, I don’t care about ten or eight yuan. One day I was finally confirmed to have been hacked. I waited for the Grab I ordered at the DAU station and bought a glass of coconut juice. I highly recommend it. It is refreshing and sweet. The little black guy charged me ten yuan, but the driver handed me five yuan. In just a few seconds, It was still a three-on-one affair, and this time I was hacked for five pesos, which was less than a dollar. I still didn’t expose him, and it was still less than a dollar. If you could understand English, this probably wouldn't be the case. As the saying goes, ugly people should study more. I suffered the loss of being uneducated.

Furthermore, I want to complain about taxis, and the world is as dark as crows. I was going to Clark that day, and my English was really bad. I asked many people but still couldn’t figure out how to take the bus to Clark, so I stopped a taxi on the street. Who knew I’d be charged 500 pesos for opening my mouth? It’s like a scam in China. I closed the car door hard, and the guy kept making signs for me. Finally, he had three fingers left, and he was still ready to make signs. I glared at him fiercely for a few times, and then he drove away. Finally, as someone pointed out on Baidu, "You can take a bus from Passay Station to Clark Dau Station. There are usually buses from Victory and Five Star companies. The buses are very air-conditioned and the journey takes about 2 hours. Then from Dau Station You can go where you want to go." As for how to get to Passay, you can take the light rail and get off at ED station. The two characters at the beginning of the station name are ED. Anyway, it is the penultimate station of the light rail. Exit the station and follow the flow of people. There is a long section of overpass that goes down to the ground. There is a bus stop at the entrance. Just ask which bus to get on. The fare is 160 pesos.

Finally, I want to complain about Grab here. Grab is similar to our Didi and Didi in Southeast Asia. It can effectively prevent being ripped off by taxis. You enter your destination and the price is automatically generated. You just pay according to the number. In this way, I still met a few guys who didn't play by the rules. That day I wanted to go to a flying club and try to fly a plane, so I searched for the address and available cars on Google Maps. Unfortunately, there were no buses or jeepneys, so I had to take a taxi. Taxis were afraid of being ripped off, so I had to take Grab, which costs 450P. Okay, fifty or sixty yuan. Soon, the driver showed up, but the message he sent seemed to cost 900p. I didn’t understand it at first. I thought the driver meant 900p for a round trip. It’s more than a hundred yuan, which is acceptable. Who would have known that when I was picked up, the price was actually 900p for a single trip. Grandma’s p, the price was doubled. I sternly refused, and the driver immediately canceled the order, leaving me messy under the scorching sun, and walked away. So, I went to Grab again. Soon, a driver took the order and asked questions. I didn’t understand, so I called him. Oops, I guess I’d better pay more. I didn’t understand, so the other party hung up the phone again and canceled the order. . This is obviously bullying us foreigners. I didn’t believe that I couldn’t reach the flying club by myself. Finally, relying on Google Maps and being shameless to ask questions, I ran the 24-kilometer journey for one day and flew into the blue sky perfectly.

The Philippines is really a different country, worth your visit. It has monuments, the sea, volcanoes, airplanes, AKs, delicious food, and more!