Random? monsoon travels

Namaste Readers,

Using public transportation here in the Philippines may be economically sound but time consuming.  What is lost and/or found when time is spent waiting for a bus or a tricycle in extreme weathers, OR riding in jam-packed Railways or an air-conditioned FX?

Going home from a fiesta in the province, I was about to settle down with my mp3 player when the bus stopped by the side of the road.  I thought it was picking up more passengers, but instead it broke down.  Summer, giving its' last heat hurrah, didn't want to give in to the rain.  As the hours passed, its intensity grew.  When the next bus finally came along, already full of passengers, it didn't matter that I was standing ( even if dehydration happened later ); we were going home.

The downpour slowed down the tricycles creating a long line extending half a block.  Umbrellas in the air like tulips drenched still giving color in a dark world of water-beads rolling along electrical lines and pitter-pattering and slitting the tarpaulin.  My feet ensconced in rubber sandals partly dried up in open air; other parts squished in ground water.  I couldn't wait to soap and scrub them later.

The MRT was 2 pesos cheaper, and in less than 10 minutes I'd reach my destination.  But unlike the LRT 2, this railway line packed people like sardines.  The cool air fanned one's face, while exposed skin rubbed against the sticky, salty, or sweat-dried skin of another.  Opportunities for pickpocketing abound.  If I didn't hold onto dirty poles, I'd get carried away by the crowd.  Action spoke louder than words, so I pushed through like a salmon swimming upstream just to get out in time before the jaws of the doors closed in on me.

Accepting the traffic reality seemed better than complaining about it and its accompanying air pollutants that could choke or illicit a cough.  Music helped tremendously especially when diving in the throng of taxis, jeepneys, and other vehicles.  Condensation on window panes distorted the outside, where smog blended with an overcast sky.  Tires parted the water, while a drizzle misted and smeared headlights and windshields.  It had been a long day but inside the FX, I sat back and looked up at the modest skyscrapers.  And breathe.