Welcome to the "Little Las Vegas" - Day One in Manila
That is the term the real estate agent used when he shows foreign clients around the neighborhood for the first time. Among the dense skyscraper-filled skyline of Makati, Manila's central business district, a whole new scene unravels on the street-level. As one cuts into any one of the small side streets leading away from the impeccably maintained, tree lined, wide central boulevards of the country's premier financial district, a whole new world of dodgy entertainment and equally dodgy people hits the casual pedestrians unwittingly passing through, with a force that one simply cannot ignore.
To say the place is rundown is rather untrue. It is not clean like the main streets, but the occasional pieces of trash on the ground is not enough to make anyone disgusted. What is dirty is the sheer prominence of the particular purpose for why people are there in the first place. The image foreign guys have about this country is almost instantaneously verified by the sights of pimps chasing down guys walking around by themselves, middle aged white guys being intimate on the street with young Filipinas, and bars with no windows with names like "Arabic Nights."
But of course, the most developed part of the country is most developed for a reason. And that is reflected not only on the developed "entertainment" portion of the town, but also on the more "high-end" side. Five malls link together in one roof that literally stretches from one end of the city to the other, hosting every brand-name shop one can imagine. An international crowd of foreign retirees, expat businessmen, and trendy locals fill the mall to full capacity on a bright Saturday afternoon, snapping up goods at a rate in modern settings uncharacteristic of the country's status as "lower middle income."
It is that coexistence of extravagant spending on one side and "extravagant" marry-making on the other that makes this place just so similar to Vegas, where the Boulevard and the street blocks to both sides of it presents such vivid contrasts, not between rich and poor, but two kinds of lifestyles that both economically viable, and in some ways, morally suspicious. Yet, no one is bothered by such a sight. In fact, many seems to be proud of it. They speak of Filipinos as "friendly," "accommodating," and "down-to-earth," with knack for engaging strangers and welcoming them into their strangely oxymoronic world.
Perhaps it is the people that inhabit the place, rather than the place itself, that reminds one so much of the excesses of Vegas. With their distinctive Americanized accents (featuring the distinctive rolling rrrs), the people, both male and female, old and young, are simply so open to strangers, carrying on polite conversations with them...of course, ultimately trying to sell them something. Like Vegas, friendliness does rule, but like Vegas, the friendliness is used beautifully as a tool to ask for money, both as legitimate business, or in minor cases, as deceptions for crime.
Indeed, ask the real estate agent mentions, if there is any one quality that defines the average Filipino, it is the want for money. Money and lack thereof is an underlying force that seem to be floating just beneath almost everything that happens. It affects not only what the street scenes look like, but also relationships among people, locals vs foreigners, and businessmen vs customers. It seems to shape the fundamental direction of society in ways much more significant than your average Southeast Asian country, where religion and politics seem to play a bigger role in everyday life.
Of course, these are just first impressions of someone who has landed in the country for literally one day. It is highly partial and biased, spurred on with absolutely incomplete information, most of which are second-hand. But sometimes, the first impressions speaks volumes. That is certainly true of Vegas, where the lasting impression of Sin City is precisely what continues to draw tourists to an otherwise dusty outpost in the middle of a desert. And the same is true of this strip of urban Philippines where both locals and foreigners show no qualms in partaking in activities consistent with their sinful images.
As one becomes a long-term resident of the country, one is bound to see that it is as diverse and varied as its 7000-plus islands. And gradually, the constant touts of pimps and prostitutes, and disturbingly trigger-happy attitude of the locals with regard to high-end shopping will most likely be pushed to the background of consciousness. But for now, it is just as interesting and worthy of temporary cherishing to embrace all the shockingly in-the-face stereotype. It is no doubt a part of Filipino experience that no observant foreigner should avoid.
To say the place is rundown is rather untrue. It is not clean like the main streets, but the occasional pieces of trash on the ground is not enough to make anyone disgusted. What is dirty is the sheer prominence of the particular purpose for why people are there in the first place. The image foreign guys have about this country is almost instantaneously verified by the sights of pimps chasing down guys walking around by themselves, middle aged white guys being intimate on the street with young Filipinas, and bars with no windows with names like "Arabic Nights."
But of course, the most developed part of the country is most developed for a reason. And that is reflected not only on the developed "entertainment" portion of the town, but also on the more "high-end" side. Five malls link together in one roof that literally stretches from one end of the city to the other, hosting every brand-name shop one can imagine. An international crowd of foreign retirees, expat businessmen, and trendy locals fill the mall to full capacity on a bright Saturday afternoon, snapping up goods at a rate in modern settings uncharacteristic of the country's status as "lower middle income."
It is that coexistence of extravagant spending on one side and "extravagant" marry-making on the other that makes this place just so similar to Vegas, where the Boulevard and the street blocks to both sides of it presents such vivid contrasts, not between rich and poor, but two kinds of lifestyles that both economically viable, and in some ways, morally suspicious. Yet, no one is bothered by such a sight. In fact, many seems to be proud of it. They speak of Filipinos as "friendly," "accommodating," and "down-to-earth," with knack for engaging strangers and welcoming them into their strangely oxymoronic world.
Perhaps it is the people that inhabit the place, rather than the place itself, that reminds one so much of the excesses of Vegas. With their distinctive Americanized accents (featuring the distinctive rolling rrrs), the people, both male and female, old and young, are simply so open to strangers, carrying on polite conversations with them...of course, ultimately trying to sell them something. Like Vegas, friendliness does rule, but like Vegas, the friendliness is used beautifully as a tool to ask for money, both as legitimate business, or in minor cases, as deceptions for crime.
Indeed, ask the real estate agent mentions, if there is any one quality that defines the average Filipino, it is the want for money. Money and lack thereof is an underlying force that seem to be floating just beneath almost everything that happens. It affects not only what the street scenes look like, but also relationships among people, locals vs foreigners, and businessmen vs customers. It seems to shape the fundamental direction of society in ways much more significant than your average Southeast Asian country, where religion and politics seem to play a bigger role in everyday life.
Of course, these are just first impressions of someone who has landed in the country for literally one day. It is highly partial and biased, spurred on with absolutely incomplete information, most of which are second-hand. But sometimes, the first impressions speaks volumes. That is certainly true of Vegas, where the lasting impression of Sin City is precisely what continues to draw tourists to an otherwise dusty outpost in the middle of a desert. And the same is true of this strip of urban Philippines where both locals and foreigners show no qualms in partaking in activities consistent with their sinful images.
As one becomes a long-term resident of the country, one is bound to see that it is as diverse and varied as its 7000-plus islands. And gradually, the constant touts of pimps and prostitutes, and disturbingly trigger-happy attitude of the locals with regard to high-end shopping will most likely be pushed to the background of consciousness. But for now, it is just as interesting and worthy of temporary cherishing to embrace all the shockingly in-the-face stereotype. It is no doubt a part of Filipino experience that no observant foreigner should avoid.
Man, this post makes me crave lumpia so badly...
ReplyDeletecome visit soon!
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