I managed to get to the Westbound Bus Station in Cagayan de Oro at around 11:38 a.m. I traveled for about 18 kilometers from my ancestral home, which is near the eastern boundary of the city. I took two jeepney rides in the midmorning heat carrying,Eric , my flesh-colored Eastpak backpack, and, Leticia, my black medium-sized Racini trolley bag. I was going to Ozamiz for Christmas.
A Pussycat Dolls' song greeted me at the terminal entrance and followed me as I dragged, Leticia, on the white-tiled floor. As i emerged unto the platform with loads of passengers sitting on benches at my right, I scanned for a bus heading for Ozamiz. A man in brown polo shirt and khaki pants kept saying "Diri Ozamiz aircon.Diri Ozamiz aircon" and gestured to the bus on my left.
I asked the man to open the baggage compartment near the back wheel of the bus and stashed, Leticia, there.
I sat myself on the left side of the bus, in the second row beside the window. Ever since I started travelling from Ozamiz to Cagayan de Oro and back at four years old, I always make it a point to sit beside the window.
Going to Cagayan de Oro every summer vacation during my elementary and high school years had always been the highlight of my year. During our return trip home, I would look at the landscape and note the trees, the buildings, the rivers, the bridges and even the rock formations, as we rode farther and farther away from the City of Golden Friendship. I could still remember how my heart would shrink everytime I see a particular tree or river pass by the window.But, ever since I went to Cebu, Tacloban, Davao, Valencia, Metro Manila and other cities, this trip no longer has its charms.
As the bus pulled out from the terminal, I opened, Eric, and pulled out a pack of Mr. Chips. I didn't bother to buy lunch because I was in a hurry.
The bus conductor played a movie on the DVD player that featured a guy wearing a clown's mask. It had a very long title with the words 'Clown' and 'Payday' in it. The producer must have had hired a music video director because the movie had too many snazzy shots. The camera would focus on shoes, on the chin, on the space between two characters and other objects not related to the dialogue. There was also constant zooming in on cool cars, cool motorcycles, cool helicopters and cool airplanes. Every few minutes, there were EXPLOSIONS!EXPLOSIONS! and more EXPLOSIONS! The director employed the same techniques throughout the movie. It would have worked if it were only a five-minute music video. I got bored and stared out the window.
The lone coconut tree with a small nipa hut under it in the middle of very green rice paddies is still there. The rock formation near the road now has 'Cleanliness is next to Godliness' painted on it in white. It used to be covered in weeds and other plant growth. The small stream somewhere in Lanao del Norte still has clear water flowing towards the nearby sea. The small triangular rice paddy is still there amidst old coconut trees and tall nipa palms.
There are also more concrete houses along the bus route than before. Some of the springs have dried up. The town plazas are more populated and the mini stores now have plastic banners of Smart, Globe and Touch Mobile on their windows. There are also more trucks, buses and cars on the road.
Catherine Zeta-Jones and Sean Connery came on screen in Entrapment. When Sean caressed Catherine's naked back, I cringed. it's like watching Dolphy with young sexy stars in his numerous movies.
After four hours of travelling, the bus finally arrived in Mukas, Lanao del Norte. The bus was going to be loaded on the barge. Passengers were required to get off the bus to get their barge tickets and for safety reasons.
In year 2000, a bus, with passengers in it, exploded on one of the buses. That bombing led to the war against the MILF by the Erap administration.
After getting my ticket and writing my name on the coast guard's log, I carried, Leticia, by her top and side handles and, Eric, on my back as I wobbled up the three-foot wide stairway.
I sat myself on a bench and parked, Leticia, beside me. A boy with hair browned by constant exposure to the sun and sea air, wearing a red shirt and black shorts with thin orange lines on the sides, approached me and asked me if I wanted my shoes polished.
"No", I said kindly.
"I can bring back the brown to it. It's just for ten pesos", he told me with a look that said that I know zip about shoe polishing.
My shoes looked very dull and I haven't had my shoes polished by somebody else before. I agreed.
He first applied red liquid on my shoes with a small brush. After my shoes dried, he applied brown polish from a large Kiwi can with his hands. Then he brushed them vigorously and finished off by briskly rubbing an old sock on them. After each step, he would bang his wooden brush on the wooden box on which my feet alternately rested. My shoes shone a luscious brown. I gave him a twenty.
As I was about to go down the stairs and get off the barge, the shoe shine boy reappeared and offered to carry, Leticia, for me. She was wider and heavier than him. I said, no.I proceeded to disembark from the barge and pulled out Leticia's extendible handle and dragged her out of the pier.
Eric, Leticia and I disappeared amidst the traffic of tricycles and motorcabs of The Gateway of the Land of Promise.
No comments:
Post a Comment