i’m a big big girl in a big big world…
jeepney riding through the eyes of a novice —– just recently i took a jeepney home by myself for the first time ever. (embarrassing as it sounds, it’s true!) as much as i hate to sound like a sheltered princess, i am, at least when it comes to commuting. my parents allow me to travel to other countries alone and explore remote and dangerous places with total strangers, and yet, i am not allowed to get around my own metropolis without a trusted chaperone. at least until now, i guess they finally realized i am well enough to be let out in the jungle that is – metro manila. or better put, i finally realized that i’m old enough to be out there commuting-meaning lrt-jeep-jeep-tricycle thing.
being a first-timer, i asked my friend maan to help me out, tell me which jeepney to take, what to do, how much to pay, how to tell the driver to stop so i can get off ("manong, para po!"), and all that jazz. she refused to accompany me saying, "samahan sana kita, pero gusto ko gawin mo tong mag-isa (i’d go with you but i want you to do this on your own)." she was excited and worried at the same time, i thought she would even take a picture of me boarding the jeep. it was embarrassing, but i really wish that she did so i can attach it with this post.
wary but excited, i entered the jeep, handed over my 5 pesos and 50 centavos like a pro, “manong, bayad po! estudyante” and sat back, ready to immerse myself in the world of the jeepney; which i have heard of and seen almost everyday but never got the chance to experience until now.
i gazed at the people i was riding with, students like me, old ladies, corporate people and a gay man; and they stared back in that same way as i was – speculating, that’s the word i was looking for.
i looked at the tacky, neon stickers of religious people placed side by side hooplas of naked women reminding you to pay; “God sees those JU-DAS not pay”; “barya lang po sa umaga”; and the ever popular phrase “basta driver sweet lover”. the red and yellow light bulbs, the wooden boxes full of change on the dashboard. i so badly wanted to take pictures but didn’t want to look like a gullible kolehiyala and a very frantic first timer.
"Kasya pang lima! Dalawa sa kanan tatlo sa kaliwa", barked the driver as he made a stop. five people got on, handed over the money, and waited as the driver counted out exact change while simultaneously navigating the vehicle through stop-and-go traffic amidst the very busy street. he handed me a wad of bills. "heto yung sukli ng 100!", he said and the change was passed down the row of people to it’s owner. how does one drive, while making sure every single person has paid, and gotten their change back, all at the same time? if i was on the driver’s seat i wouldn’t know where to begin multi-tasking. driving alone stresses me out and lets out all the bad aura in me especially when crap drivers are sharing the same road and traffic light wit ya… you know ‘crap drivers’ – drivers who think they own the road, and everything else you see on it, yup that includes you! they’re road hazards!
the jeepney is a subculture on it’s own. there’s an unwritten rule of conduct to follow, and linggo you have to learn. “manong, para! paki-abot po! dyan lang sa tabi…”
the jeepney operates on a principle of trust. as there is no appointed person to make sure you have paid the fare, the driver trusts you to pay, just as you trust him to give you back exact change. there is no formality, no receipt, not even a ticket.
as a passenger, you have to trust that the person seated beside you isn’t a hold-upper or celphone snatcher. you trust that the other people won’t steal your change as it is handed down the line to you. because there are few official jeepney stops, you have to trust that the driver will let you get off where you want to, when possible at least. there are no safety or security measures, no protection from possible crime or theft. you ride at your own risk.
it is a third world operation in its truest form, and twisted as it may sound, it is what i both love and hate about the Philippines. we live in country where the only rules we follow are the unwritten ones. the only deals we trust are under-the-table deals. we find formality cold and suspicious. it is both despicable and wonderful. why? because there’s unity and camaraderie in it – two traits i thought we Filipinos have forgotten ages ago.
soon, i’ll be living in a country where formality is everything. the very idea of a jeepney there would be absurd.
i will surely miss jeepneys… i have a year or so left to get the most out of this subculture, i’ll immerse in it while i still have time. i don’t want to leave the Philippines and never have experienced all these. at least by the time i leave i have my own jeepney story to share. a story about a certain Filipino subculture, our subculture.
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mood inspired by Emilia’s "big big world" ::..
mood inspired by guns n roses’ “Live and Let die” ::..
