6 Things Modern Manila Warriors Hate about Commuting

Metro Manila is great; it has everything you need.

Looking for good [job] opportunities? There are Ortigas and Makati. Want education? There are a lot of good universities around the metro. there is even a place where several universities are situated. Need a place to chill with friends? There is Timog Avenue. where you can find a place that suits your vibe. Love to eat? There is Maginhawa Street where you would find numerous restaurants to satisfy your palate. Need something? Metro Manila is also know for its malls. In Quezon City alone you would already find two of the biggest malls, one across the other.

But with that, Metro Manila cultivates something that every modern manila warrior hates: COMMUTES. Here, you are dubbed a "Warrior" if you survive through the daily war.

What do these warriors hate?

1. Forever Traffic

(photo credit: eaglenews.ph)

Of course this is a no-brainer. Every person who lives in the metro is aware of this everyday battle. You go to work, BAM! Traffic. You go home, BAM! Traffic. Once, I had an 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. Saturday class and my professor then was always late because of the traffic. To quote him on this matter he said "You'll never know when and where the traffic is". It is a battle that no one can avoid. It is like random encounters in RPG videogames where you walk around a dungeon finding your way from point A to point B then BAM! A monster named TRAFFIC wants to battle you, delaying you of your quest and when you finally arrive your destination your full HP (Health Points) had become 50 HP, draining your life out before you can even finish the main quest (Work or School). What a jerk.

2. Jeepneys not going through its point A to point B route.

(photo credit: tenminutes.ph)

Fun Fact: Jeepneys were made from leftover US Military jeeps and were made to what it is now. 'Why was it called Jeepney?' I hear you ask. The vehicle is a General Purpose Vehicle or G.P. and when you read G.P. as a word it is pronounce as "Jeep". That's a good ice breaker for your blind dates.

Admit it, if there was a much cheaper or easier option you'd choose it over dreadful jeepneys. In my 8 years of stay here in Metro Manila, I have experienced every negative experience while riding a jeepney. I've been mugged, experienced a 2-hour ride instead of a 1-hour ride because the driver kept on stopping on every corner and waiting for a passenger; the driver arguing about the newly imposed P0.50 increase that was implemented and that we should already comply; and had to run to the jeep because the driver has his own stops. Trust me, I have experienced it all but of all the negative things what I hate the most is when the driver decided not to continue his route and asked to ride another jeep. This usually happens when you are the only remaining passenger and the trip is not even halfway. I would love to complain but it might take a day for me to finish so to sum it all up, Jeepney drivers are douchebags. Yes I know there are those who are not but most are douchebags.

3. The LRT/MRT rides.

(photo credit: gutterout.files.wordpress.com)

If you watched the Korean Zombie flick Train to Busan then you have an idea of what it is like to ride the LRT or MRT. Zombie-less but equally horrifying. Trains are old, older than my 5 year old niece! I think some of the trains are the same ones when I was 12. Some are so old that the white trains are now yellow, even the windows are yellow, heck, EVERYTHING IS YELLOW! It was so yellow that Coldplay wrote a song about it.

The trains here is famous for its long lines, how long? I once saw a line in the MRT North station that filled up half of the huge overpass that intersects the whole North EDSA and it was 6 in the MORNING!

In LRT 1 (Roosevelt to Baclaran),they have several types of trains: the short, medium, and long trains. The shorts one are the older ones whereas the longer ones are the latest ones but still older than my niece. So it sucks if you waited on a bad lane because chances are, the train is short and your lane is not covered.  They have the audacity to increase their rates without improving the service. Let's say by divine intervention you were able to ride the train, the joke's on you because you'll still have an unpleasant ride because the train is crammed, heck it's more crammed than a can of sardines. You came in a boy, you come out as a man. This is where the meme "Warrior" was born.

PRO TIP: When entering the train with eager people, don't force yourself in, let the people help you in and just go with the flow. Trust me it works.

4. Sardine Bus
Yep, just like the LRTs, buses are crammed as well. There are two types, the "Ordinary" which is the bus without air-conditioning and next one is the one with. During rush hour you're so going to experience this life changing event. The funny thing is, we still get to have a conductor on our public bus and surely enough they would squeeze their way in, to and fro, for your fair. Talk about invading your personal space.

5. King-like Cab drivers

(photo credit:facebook.com/librengkomiks)

Let's say you're tired because of work and just want  to go home without  battling your way in the train or bus, prolly you'd go for a cab. Well, well, well, jokes on you because cab drivers are one of the worst things here in Manila. It's hard to get a cab because they'll dictate on whether or not you get to ride in their luxurious 12 year old Toyota Vios. They'll decide if you're worth the trip. Reasons why they won't take you? Traffic. Uhm Kuya, the reason why we opted for a cab was because of the traffic. Destination. I thought you drive for a living? Don't complain if it's far.

The worst thing is, they'd ask you for an additional fee because they took you in during traffic. I guess we should be grateful because they were so generous. If your destination is far and at the same time has bad traffic, they'd ask you for a fixed rate which is usually around P500-P1000. Trust me, if they keep on doing this, in 5 years Uber and Grab would render their service obsolete.

6. Sheldon Cooper compulsiveness 

(photo credit: dumpaday.com)

If you watch the TV show The Big Bang Theory then you know how Sheldon can be cranky when he sits on a different chair (or spot) in their apartment. He doesn't want to give up his spot, oddly enough  you'd encounter this type of passenger on one of your bus ride. So what am I talking about? These passengers are the ones sitting on one end (the one near the lane) of a 3-seat chair who would not stand to give way, what they would do is they are going to face their whole body to the side so you could go through. They would rather do that instead of the easy way. You can find them in planes as well. To further explain this, I, with my God-given sketching talent, had provided an illustration:

In sum, commuting is really life draining here in Manila and is something that can ruin your day. Here's a PRO TIP for you, if you're running late, don't let Traffic know that you're going to be late because he will pop-up in an INSTANT. Works most of the time.

So these are the things Manila Warriors Hate about commuting. Had a similar experience or experienced it all? Do tell in the comments :)