From Manila to Cavite, with Love

I’ve been living in Cavite for a couple of months now, and it’s quite a commute to go home. But I love the road, and all the things I see. I try taking photos of them, and while I’m no expert, I like the idea of documenting the things I find striking.

From Manila, I usually take Aguinaldo Highway to come home. The bus passes by Macapagal and Coastal Road, bringing Manila Bay into view.

Here is a confession: I am secretly in love with Manila Bay. My grandfather tells me stories of its good old days when it was still clean and welcoming, and they would go out for picnics and take a refreshing dip amidst the afternoon sun. I’d try to picture the stories he tells me, but how can one really justify a non-existent memory in their heads? I am nothing but envious. The bay full of trash and its arsenic smell are all that I have, and these are just the painful remains of its former glory.

But despite all of its drudgery, Manila Bay is still captivating for me. When I am at my most pensive, I’d wonder why we let such a gem go, and why we aren’t doing anything about it. Sometimes, I am tempted to just stop the bus (in the middle of Coastal Road, yes), make friends with the unwanted tenants there, and just pick up trash. But I want a bigger movement to happen.

I am contemplating for a solution as the bus rushes on, and I soon find myself viewing Cavitex from Aguinaldo Highway which is quite lovely. 

I think that if there was a place that could summarize what Cavite is like, it would be Aguinaldo Highway.

I don’t think Cavite expected itself to boom and bloom in as little as two decades, so this very important artery of a road are only at two lanes per direction, given that drivers play fair decide not to counterflow. Sometimes, the lanes are even less when there are road projects and excavations from our favorite water supplier. But darating rin ang ginhawa, and I believe that whatever hassle Southern folks are experiencing now will be for long-term betterment.

Aside from the traffic, vendors are persistent with whatever knickknacks they are selling, while others scour through the clutter to be more creative and productive.

In between malls and groceries are vast green fields with a backdrop of start-up villages. I appreciate the open spaces, the cows, and the carabaos. They now seem out of place to this developing land, but it gives an idea of what it was like when Cavite was focused on agriculture which is now becoming a hidden past.

I like my long commutes, my thoughts and photos aboard old, ordinary buses. I feel nothing is mundane about being in transit, admiring the view, and contemplating about life. I hope you find wherever you are fascinating as well. :)