October 13, 2007 (Saturday) - When MeAnn had concerns about navigating Makati and Oselle commented about the RCBC building, I thought maybe I could take the time later to take pictures of the buildings in Makati where I live and work....it would give those who have been away from the Philippines for some time to know how various cities here look now and how these other cities show that we have also a cosmopolitan face to offer to the outside world.
On Saturday morning though, I had to be at my previous company by 9 am to return the borrowed videocam. The route I usually took before when I worked in Ortigas and lived in Makati is what I call my "store-route", since I pass 6 malls/stores on my way from/to work from Monday to Friday.
But this Saturday, God had in store (pun intended) a pleasant surprise for me. Not only did I get a chance to browse thru the "tiangge" (open-air market) on Emerald Avenue but I had a Multiply "serendipity moment"!
In the "tiangge", once can bask in the smoke from the barbecued meat, get entangled in the various "anik-anik", be amused in the size of sausages being displayed (bigger than a man's forearm, I swear!) and have the chance to haggle with the vendors when one picks thru the various items on display for those who have the bright idea of buying Christmas gifts this early.
After going around with my ex-officemate (who interrogated the vendors about this gluta-thingie soap which would supposedly make one whiter), and eating ice cream and pizza, I just popped in to say goodbye to the people working and started on my way back home.
I reminisced wistfully about this route. Since I regularly took the MRT ride from Ortigas station to Ayala station...I could not believe how I long I survived walking that path every morning and evening for almost 2 years, during rain, blazing heat, typhoon, weekdays and weekends.
Crossing Emerald Avenue and sashaying thru Ortigas park, where couples would usually entwine themselves with each other during the cold December nights, I walked by the side of Malayan Plaza and ended up on the parking lot between ADB Building and The Podium.
Walking on the gravelly path of that parking lot had taken a toll on my old shoes so I decided to take the "air-conditioned" route to MRT. I went thru the Podium (one of the more upper class stores) to take a look if any of the brand stores had any sale. I occasionally lingered over chairs, columns and escalators and was turning away from taking a picture of the shiny displays when my eyes bulged (yes, like a fish too).
I stuttered and said..."Choie????!!" This smiling lady was sitting on a table with a man (oohooo..I though it was another future -ex ehehehe)...who turned out to be AJ..another architect who Choie described as being very prolific (I take it to mean that Choie meant his works)...
Choie said she was leaving on October 14 (Sunday), and I was quite happy to bump into her, exchange hugs and get another picture taken of our meeting. How serendipitious (if there is such a word) are my and Choie's encounters, eh? Bump into each other in Napa Valley, and then another bump into each other in Ortigas of all places....*happy smile* (why can't I bump into Prince Charming the way I bump into her? hmmm...)
I excused myself from their tete-a-tete and sauntered thru different stores. I finally ended up buying something which wasn't on sale...and right there and then, I determined to continue to St. Francis Square...another "tiangge" building (which is slightly "classier")..and coincidentally stood cheek-by-jowl on Podium's other side.
Sometimes I think one doesn't have to go to Divisoria anymore. With various tiangges dotting the areas...you don't have to sweat it out if you want to get cheaper items. SFS for example has lots of pirated dvds (9 in 1, 20 in 1, 24 in 1)..ooops..sorry..hehehe...and clothes and shoes as well as various accesories on sale. While I wanted to buy some, I realized I had little cash left and would probably find cheaper clothes too once I went home to Cebu..so I contented myself by buying dvds containing Ratatouille and Bourne Ultimatum, thanks to Chito's comment on the latter.
SM Megamall was directly across the exit from St. Francis Square...and if only the 3-day sale was this weekend I would have walked from one end to another to browse the sale...(no easy feat since the 2 annexes from top to bottom are enough to give you sore feet for 1 week).
I went inside to take the cooler route to the Ortigas train station and puffed my way up the flight of stairs....boy!....working in Makati has made me such a slacker...whereas before I would just sweat..now I huffed and puffed like an overfed Garfield.
From Ortigas, the train disgorged me at Ayala station, which connects with SM Makati. This is where I usually pay my bills..and I also make it a point to pay a visit here to their herbs area - my rosemary and oregano potted plants which used to decorate the top of my a/c came from their display (I woke up one day to find that I was again a victim of the birds...they had eaten all the leaves...this has happened three times already).
There were a lot of people milling about and buying Halloween decorations as well as candles so I proceeded to Glorietta since I remembered there was an appliance sale ..the usual installment madness promo. After struggling thru the weekend crowd, I exited on the door directly across Landmark's entrance.
Doing grocery and ending up lugging rice and other bags, I rested at the shoe area of Landmark then exited on the pathway overhanging Makati Ave. This pathway connects Landmark to Greenbelt 3...where you can find branded stuff (see Louis Vuitton and Ferragamo store pic below) and different restaurants favored by the hip, yuppie crowd.
Walking thru this long path and exiting thru the escalators beside the ongoing Greenbelt 5, I managed to slowly make my way towards the building where I lived and collapsed on the steps to rue the decision I made in buying that 5 kg bag of rice.
Coincidentally, my building (I sound as if its mine) is across Greenbelt 5 (still being constructed)...reputed to display more brand-name stores...and hopefully to be finished by early 2008. This is where the Max fried chicken restaurant stood..along with older quaint shops (a pottery school for one)..but they tore it down in the name of progress.
I decided to take a nap after depositing all my bags inside my "looks like a bodega" unit and thought happily of how fun a Saturday it had unexpectedly turned out to be.
Life is good. Eating food at a tiangge is good. Unexpected encounter is good.....and walking with a 5 pound rice bag in one hand is good. *grin*
On Saturday morning though, I had to be at my previous company by 9 am to return the borrowed videocam. The route I usually took before when I worked in Ortigas and lived in Makati is what I call my "store-route", since I pass 6 malls/stores on my way from/to work from Monday to Friday.
But this Saturday, God had in store (pun intended) a pleasant surprise for me. Not only did I get a chance to browse thru the "tiangge" (open-air market) on Emerald Avenue but I had a Multiply "serendipity moment"!
In the "tiangge", once can bask in the smoke from the barbecued meat, get entangled in the various "anik-anik", be amused in the size of sausages being displayed (bigger than a man's forearm, I swear!) and have the chance to haggle with the vendors when one picks thru the various items on display for those who have the bright idea of buying Christmas gifts this early.
After going around with my ex-officemate (who interrogated the vendors about this gluta-thingie soap which would supposedly make one whiter), and eating ice cream and pizza, I just popped in to say goodbye to the people working and started on my way back home.
I reminisced wistfully about this route. Since I regularly took the MRT ride from Ortigas station to Ayala station...I could not believe how I long I survived walking that path every morning and evening for almost 2 years, during rain, blazing heat, typhoon, weekdays and weekends.
Crossing Emerald Avenue and sashaying thru Ortigas park, where couples would usually entwine themselves with each other during the cold December nights, I walked by the side of Malayan Plaza and ended up on the parking lot between ADB Building and The Podium.
Walking on the gravelly path of that parking lot had taken a toll on my old shoes so I decided to take the "air-conditioned" route to MRT. I went thru the Podium (one of the more upper class stores) to take a look if any of the brand stores had any sale. I occasionally lingered over chairs, columns and escalators and was turning away from taking a picture of the shiny displays when my eyes bulged (yes, like a fish too).
I stuttered and said..."Choie????!!" This smiling lady was sitting on a table with a man (oohooo..I though it was another future -ex ehehehe)...who turned out to be AJ..another architect who Choie described as being very prolific (I take it to mean that Choie meant his works)...
Choie said she was leaving on October 14 (Sunday), and I was quite happy to bump into her, exchange hugs and get another picture taken of our meeting. How serendipitious (if there is such a word) are my and Choie's encounters, eh? Bump into each other in Napa Valley, and then another bump into each other in Ortigas of all places....*happy smile* (why can't I bump into Prince Charming the way I bump into her? hmmm...)
I excused myself from their tete-a-tete and sauntered thru different stores. I finally ended up buying something which wasn't on sale...and right there and then, I determined to continue to St. Francis Square...another "tiangge" building (which is slightly "classier")..and coincidentally stood cheek-by-jowl on Podium's other side.
Sometimes I think one doesn't have to go to Divisoria anymore. With various tiangges dotting the areas...you don't have to sweat it out if you want to get cheaper items. SFS for example has lots of pirated dvds (9 in 1, 20 in 1, 24 in 1)..ooops..sorry..hehehe...and clothes and shoes as well as various accesories on sale. While I wanted to buy some, I realized I had little cash left and would probably find cheaper clothes too once I went home to Cebu..so I contented myself by buying dvds containing Ratatouille and Bourne Ultimatum, thanks to Chito's comment on the latter.
SM Megamall was directly across the exit from St. Francis Square...and if only the 3-day sale was this weekend I would have walked from one end to another to browse the sale...(no easy feat since the 2 annexes from top to bottom are enough to give you sore feet for 1 week).
I went inside to take the cooler route to the Ortigas train station and puffed my way up the flight of stairs....boy!....working in Makati has made me such a slacker...whereas before I would just sweat..now I huffed and puffed like an overfed Garfield.
From Ortigas, the train disgorged me at Ayala station, which connects with SM Makati. This is where I usually pay my bills..and I also make it a point to pay a visit here to their herbs area - my rosemary and oregano potted plants which used to decorate the top of my a/c came from their display (I woke up one day to find that I was again a victim of the birds...they had eaten all the leaves...this has happened three times already).
There were a lot of people milling about and buying Halloween decorations as well as candles so I proceeded to Glorietta since I remembered there was an appliance sale ..the usual installment madness promo. After struggling thru the weekend crowd, I exited on the door directly across Landmark's entrance.
Doing grocery and ending up lugging rice and other bags, I rested at the shoe area of Landmark then exited on the pathway overhanging Makati Ave. This pathway connects Landmark to Greenbelt 3...where you can find branded stuff (see Louis Vuitton and Ferragamo store pic below) and different restaurants favored by the hip, yuppie crowd.
Walking thru this long path and exiting thru the escalators beside the ongoing Greenbelt 5, I managed to slowly make my way towards the building where I lived and collapsed on the steps to rue the decision I made in buying that 5 kg bag of rice.
Coincidentally, my building (I sound as if its mine) is across Greenbelt 5 (still being constructed)...reputed to display more brand-name stores...and hopefully to be finished by early 2008. This is where the Max fried chicken restaurant stood..along with older quaint shops (a pottery school for one)..but they tore it down in the name of progress.
I decided to take a nap after depositing all my bags inside my "looks like a bodega" unit and thought happily of how fun a Saturday it had unexpectedly turned out to be.
Life is good. Eating food at a tiangge is good. Unexpected encounter is good.....and walking with a 5 pound rice bag in one hand is good. *grin*
- Oct 13, '07 9:44 PM
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