May 1 - Labor Day

Today, I visited my one of my college friends Tin or Christine. It was going to be a baby shower for her.

I was hesitant to go since I wasn't that familiar with the place. I asked around people that I know where it was and how to get there.

From Ms. Babes: It's at the back of FEU.

From Larryh (the delicious or lucious?): It's in Caloocan. (Oh no, Kankaloo?...noooooooooooooo. Ang layo.)

But according to Yumi, the fastest way to go there is through LRT.

What?????????????? Oh no. Scary....I had the chance to try the LRT years ago. The first time was way back college. We started out in Baclaran and by then it was kind of full. And Baclaran was the end of the line. You can just imagine how crowded it was going to be. Plus the "horror stories" that I've heard from people who tried it. I'm sure you've heard of maniacs or your clothes getting all mussed up from the sea of humanity that go in and out.

Tin finally texted me and said I should try FX that goes to Monumento or MCU. Oh no. From here going to Monumento? It's like from one end to the other. So I finally decided to try the LRT.

Yumi assured me that there was a women's coach so at least you won't be manhandled. Okay, that's a little reassuring. I was still confused about which entrance to go to and which stop to board. I know that there was a connecting walkway from MRT to LRT. But I didn't want to go there. I asked my ate and she said I should try the one we see when we go to Taft. Hmmmm...sounds okay to me.

Just to be sure that my mom and ate would know where to find me, I told them that I was going to R. Papa. My ate said I should bring an ID just in case. Hehehe. Just in case what? At least they'll be able to identify my body.

On the day itself, I still had misgivings but I wanted to go. I rarely appear at gatherings with my college batchmates so this seemed like a really good occassion.

I was supposed to leave the house around 12:30 so I wouldn't have to rush but as usual. It took me longer just to get dressed. I left the house by 1 I think and went to SM. It was traffic since it was Sunday. I bet everyone's in the mall spending their paycheck...hehehe.

I went to French Baker and bought brownies, macaroons and cream puffs. We were going to bring Snack food as well so Tin wouldn't have to prepare a lot of food.

I left SM and boarded an aircon bus. I was still debating whether Baclaran or LRT and decided the latter. Surprisingly, the bus was full.

I finally saw my stop and got off the bus. There was a Goldilocks outlet close by. Next time, I won't have to go to SM to buy food. I was a little excited and scared as I went up the stairs. I just hoped that I was on the right side.

When I got to the station, there weren't a lot of people there. I paid fifteen pesos and I saw that R. Papa is the third to the last stop before Monumento. There was Monumento, 5th and R. Papa. The stop before that is Abad Santos. In my excitement, I forgot to check what stop I was in. I walked a bit further and found the Female area and stayed there to wait for the coaches.

Finally it arrived and we were all standing. At least it wasn't that crowded. Probably because it was a Sunday.

Travelling through the LRT is quite interesting. You get to see a different perspective of Manila. Mostly old buildings, old houses, cemeteries. Then again, maybe because I am not from there nor am I that familiar with it. Although the names are familiar, Gil Puyat, Carriedo, Vito Cruz, etc. And they do have a Central station. I wonder where that is. From the LRT in the Carriedo stop, I could see where the NBI was.

Finally, I saw Abad Santos and knew that I was close by. I got off R. Papa and went down. I looked at the street and saw the Andok's letchon. Tin said that it was one of the landmarks. The street was quite busy and it took me awhile before I could cross. The jeeps had signs and were heading to MCU, Letre, etc. Wow, it really was closer to Monumento. I finally crossed the street and saw the tricycle terminal. I told the driver the street name that I was going to. I walked a few steps and checked the house number. The gate was closed so I called Tin. It turns out that her house was at the side.

Wow, I finally arrived!!! I was so so happy. Whopee!!! Another extra challenge accomplished.

We stayed until past 4 I think. I got to see Tin's sister. Turns out she's married and has a baby boy whom I saw. He was really cute too. Yumi was there with her daughter Leia. Leia looks much bigger than her age. I didn't think she was 3 years old since she was much taller.

Seeing Tin in person was reassuring. I was really worrried about her after reading her email. We also took some pictures and had snacks. She finally opened the presents we got for her. I got her a 3 CD set of nursery rhymes and educational songs. Now she can sing to her baby and her baby can sing when he grows up. Hehehe.

We got to see the wedding pictures too. And a picture of her baby. The marvels of technology. Tin says he looks like Jhey.

We left afterwards. Yumi also took the LRT. She was going to get off in Taft and I was planning to get off any stop along Taft. At least the bus there wouldn't be full yet.

It was certainly a day to remember.