Not user friendly

Metro Manila sorely lacks clean public restrooms. Even in the much-visited Rizal Park (and in most of our malls too, for that matter), if you want to use a clean restroom with toilet paper and soap, you have to pay for it.

For a rainy day

BPI Family Savings Bank is a subsidiary of the Bank of the Philippine Islands, the oldest bank still operating in the country. It is owned by the Ayala Corporation, whose extensive real estate developments I have featured many times in this blog.

Pun-ny no. 3

Miss Fit. A dress and alteration shop. The business had closed but the sign was still there.

"I love to hate puns," says Hilda in Manila.

The firm

Only a quarter of a century old, Puno & Puno Law is one of the best-known law firms in Manila. Like most other law firms in the country, they can handle almost any kind of legal case but their particular specialty is corporate and regulatory laws. Thankfully, we were at their offices because of an event and not because we needed their services.

The king of sending

The Philippines' answer to UPS and FedEx: LBC. Its international destinations are not quite as extensive but its fees are much cheaper. It also has two services which the other two do not offer, both aimed at our large population of overseas workers. The first is money remittance, which is necessary in this country where most of our people do not have bank accounts. The second is the balikbayan (returning countrymen) box, a box of a specific dimension which is sent from another country to the Philippines and which can be filled with anything and everything non-perishable no matter the weight. It is sent by sea so it can take up to six weeks before it reaches its destination but it's usually the only way to send heavy things back home.

Looking after the future

Metro Manila's sewerage system is one of the worst in Asia. We do not have sewers, only drains. Which means that we do not have a centralized sewage treatment plant either and that is why our rivers are all dead. The government-owned public utility company Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS), which was supposedly responsible for water distribution and sewerage but did poorly in both counts, was privatized in 1997. Manila Water holds the concession for the eastern half of the metro, which includes Quezon City, where my husband and I live and work. During its first decade, its main concern was to get water to those areas which still didn't have running water and to plug all the wasteful leaks in the system. It has done quite well with those particular tasks and, at the start of its second decade, it began the even bigger task of getting a proper sewage system in place. It has finally reached our barangay and we've been living with the noise of jackhammers for several weeks now. This is what the road which connects to our street looked like last week and our own street will look like it sometime in the near future. We're not complaining, and I have not heard of anyone in our neighborhood complaining either, which I think is wonderful. It will take a long time, but there is hope for Metro Manila's rivers and waterways yet.

Strapped

A new kiosk that I recently discovered in some malls here, Asprey (which has nothing to do with the British luxury goods store) has nothing except watch straps. They have straps in leatherette, rubber, plastic and real leather, all the colors of the rainbow, and a wide range of widths. Even if the way the strap is attached is unusual, they will accommodate the replacement request, spending time carefully slicing tiny portions out of the tough leather.

The little salon that could

Here's another post about something much closer to home. The salon I go to regularly is Marita's Wellness Center and, based on the name, I think you can guess that it's also a spa. It is located in a big house that got converted into a strip mall three blocks away from our house. If you look carefully at the reflections, you can see a tricycle waiting shed at the street corner, a couple of tarpaulin signs bearing the phone numbers of other establishments in the converted house, the restaurant and bar on the upper floor, and some of the spa attendants milling around outside (they were buying snacks from a vendor). It's nothing to look at outside or inside, but Marita's offers many of the services that big salons and spas have, at a fraction of the cost. It also has some services that even the big salon chains don't have, like eyebrow threading. After three weeks of lots of walking, I'm going to spend some quality time at Marita's this weekend. Anybody else care for a foot spa and pedicure for only 300 pesos (less than 7 U.S. dollars)?

See what's reflecting what at James' Weekend Reflections.

In our neighborhood

This is a typical section of our village's main road and shows well the wide mix of residents in our barangay. On the left is a big house, probably with no garden at all because the house takes up the entire lot; the house isn't new but it is very well maintained. Next is a smaller house almost hidden by the repair shop on one side and a profusion of plants on the other; the owner of the house either owns the repair shop or leases out the space for extra income. On the right is a bakery, which also sells softdrinks and other snacks; no fancy pastries and cakes here—just soft buns of different kinds: plain, buttered and sugared, or flavored with ube or chocolate. Our main road is supposed to have four lanes but as you can see, the businesses have staked out parking spaces from the outer lanes.

In my barangay

Last year, I showed the entrance to our barangay center, which includes our local government unit's offices and meeting hall, a senior citizen center, playground and sports facilities. The covered basketball court gets transformed into our voting precinct during elections. The small yellow building on the right is a gym which, for a small fee which goes into its maintenance, any resident can use.

Pampered

When I posted photos of the lovely suite that we stayed in at the Sofitel Manila over the Valentine weekend, I mentioned that the rooms were just the start of a fantasy. The pampering continued with an evening appointment at the hotel's luxurious Le Spa. This photo of the spa's lobby was taken from the reception desk, looking out towards the corridor.



We were a few minutes early for our appointment, so my husband and I were led to the wonderfully scented and relaxing waiting room…



where we were served sweet fruit tea in a black iron pot, with warm moist towels to wipe our hands.



When our spa room was ready, we were led up a stairway. You may have noticed by now that I have a fascination with lighting fixtures, and I just loved the pattern created by the bamboo shades on the landing.



The stairs led to a smaller lobby on the second floor, where all the spa rooms are located. You can see the open doorway of one on the right.



The dimly lit couple's room has a large bath strewn with rose petals overlooking the hotel's gardens and lagoon-shaped pool.



The pressure used by my masseuse was just right for me, but my husband says that he would have preferred a heavier and more vigorous treatment.

Pun-ny no. 1

X-trim Hair Fixers. A salon along Matalino Street, Central District, Quezon City.

"I love to hate puns," says Hilda in Manila.

After life

This would have been more appropriate for All Souls' Day last November 2, but as they say, better late than never. This is the Sanctuarium, the largest columbarium that I know of in Metro Manila. Aside from at least six levels of vaults for cinerary urns, it has three levels of wake chapels, a Buddhist temple, and it also offers funeral and cremation services.

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I apologize for the lack of visits this past week, but my schedule and work load has been a bit crazy again. I hope that things will normalize soon so I can see everyone's wonderful photos. In the meantime, I wish you all a very happy weekend!

Legoland

Since I always take the cooler route through Glorietta whenever I walk from the Ayala Station to Greenbelt, this was the first time I saw this building: The Link at the Ayala Commerical Center. The last time I was out here, the lot that it's standing on was still part of the open car park beside the Makati Shangri-La. I have no idea when The Link was built or what is in it other than the restaurants and service shops which can be seen on the two lower levels. I like how it looks though, like it was built out of Lego® bricks!