Manila has always been infamous for its ridiculous amount of traffic on its streets. As somebody who grew up in southern Manila (locally referred to as “The South”) I’ve become accustomed to having to travel far distances to be able to get anywhere. Not to say that there’s nothing to do in the south, as a matter of fact it’s become more of a country of its own in the past 10 years, but my life is in the North and that is where everything I love happens. But I digress.
A lot of different euphemisms have been used in the past to describe what Manila traffic is like. “Hell on Earth” “The seventh level of Hell” “Death Trap” (wow, didn’t realize we were so dramatic about traffic) It’s always been really bad, but lately it’s been another level of bad. Take the worst day that you’ve ever had on the road, multiply it by 10, and you’ve got a good day in Manila driving from Cubao, where my old office used to be, to the South, where my house is.
I met a guy in Singapore who, upon hearing that I’m from Manila, asked me, “so what’s there in Manila?” And to be honest, the traffic was one of the first things that came into my mind. It’s that bad. Plus the fact that I was about to go home and leave behind the awesome traffic situation in Singapore to go back to my hourlong drives to work everyday. But I digress once again.
I’ve been trying to find a place to rent around the area of my office, something that I can just walk to and from with. It’s been hard, especially since my office is in the Central Business District of this city and the apartments are out of my price range. But yesterday, though, I looked at my the apartment of a friend of mine who is renting out a room, and it was great. Five minute walk from the office, lots of security and food places all around, and it’s quiet. Having lived in Katipunan for two years, you have to realize how much this means to me. So, I’m excited about that and I really, really want things to push through. Now, all I need is a roommate!
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