TBK Travels to the sleepy city of Marikina in the Philippines

                                             TBK Loves Marikina

Some time ago during the Cov19 lockdown in Bahrain when I owed Chester some money for his Graphic design work he asked if I would pay it to his mother Elizabeth. At the time she was working as an OFW (Overseas Filipino Worker) in Bahrain as a Hairdresser. Her business was shut down for 18 months and she had no money. I did as Chester requested and was promised lunch in Marikina when I moved to the Philippines! So, with a few days to spare on my recent trip to Manila I headed up to Marikina by Uber. It’s just over an hours drive (not far- 21 km- but it’s a heavily congested route through the Manila suburbs )

                           My route for the Uber ride to Marikina

After been given a warm welcome at their house and meeting the family we had the legendary Beef Calderetta and some refreshing water melon and mango before walking to get a taxi into the city centre. We the went from site to site and Chester and his mum pointed out the places of interest and explained some of the history of the city (their family were among the early residents). Under his mother’s artistic direction ( you can find her vlog at Betsie's life Vlog ) Chester filmed me at the City Hall, Shoe Market, Central Market and so on. All I had to do is what my viewers and readers love best- tell the stories and Urban legends that have grown with the city of Marikina and handed down from Generation to Generation.

                               Elizabeth and TBK in Marikina

A Maputing Tao ( white man) visiting a close knit community like Marikina or Barutaan gets a few curious looks . If he is followed by a long haired cameraman with a fuzzy microphone and a lady with an Umbrella then they soon get boys and girls following them and acting up for the camera! If you want to see the Vlog then click on the image below ( and please like and subscribe!) 

Tell us about Marikina Kuya...

Well, po, it's claim to fame is as the shoe capital of the Philippines. 

"By the turn of the 20th century, Marikina emerged as a town of shoemakers. Honed by years in shoe manufacturing, the natives quickly developed a work ethic that had prepared them for the arrival of heavy industries in the 1950s. With the proliferation of industrial plants came waves of workers who had chosen to stay, rapidly increasing the population. In no time, shoe manufacturing flourished into a multi-million-peso industry, earning for Marikina the moniker, “Shoe Capital of the Philippines”."

Source: https://marikina.gov.ph/webmarikina/Our-City.html ( accessed 31.03.22)

We started at the City Hall where there are busts of the city mayors and I particularly liked the 2001 Mayor who was the first female mayor. On her plaque it says:

A great quote, I love cities that thrive on discipline ( or Palo sa pwet as its called in Tagalog!)

Marikina has largely been untouched by the rampant commercialization of the metropolis, There are two malls, and no more were allowed. McDonalds has a huge set of Golden Arches and even persuaded the council to name a street after it! 

          McDonalds Street in Marikina , in the shadow of the Golden Arches

However apart from a Jollibee and Chow King ( where we had a great Halo Halo at the end of our walk ) most of the city has changed little since those early days. So it has a laid back sleepy feel to it ( the words of a resident, not me!) . We strolled in the sun from City Hall to the Sports Centre to the Shoe Market, Central Market and down to the river.

       My Kuya Dino, in Bahrain, used to bring me Chicharron as Pasalubong!

I really enjoyed the market, one of the largest covered markets in the Philippines selling wet foods , fruit and vegetables and Chicharron! Sadly in April last year one of its oldest vendors ( age 72) died of COV19 and part of the market was shut down for disinfection, as the local paper reported:

"Mayor Marcelino Teodoro ordered the closure of the entire wet section, grocery, carinderia and fruit, vegetable and coconut sections to give way to the market’s disinfection until today."

Source: https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1261916/parts-of-marikina-market-closed-after-vendor-dies#ixzz7PAO6Ndkn ( accessed 1.4.22)

Our condolences to his family- one year on. It was another sad reminder that even though the Philippines are now open to tourists the Pandemic has affected so many lives and businesses here. 

I was wondering how Chester had put on so much weight ( it is not often someone makes me look slim!) but after tasting his mum's Beef Caldaretta, seeing all the Chicharron, having and amazing Ube Pandesal and finding out he worked at night doing freelance work on his brother's laptop I had the answer to my question! I was delighted when Chester commented on how much weight I had lost since I last met him in Doha, Qatar in 2016!

As the temperature hit 34 degrees Elizabeth marched ever onwards using her umbrella like a conductors baton giving Chester artistic direction-"        " meaning "photograph that shoe son!" as Chester fed me my lines.  " So po, Otto was a famous shoe maker many years ago and when it went out of business the mayor asked the company not to take down the sign on top of the factory" and then we would stop , wipe the sweat off my face and Chester would get the camera running and shout " Quiet on the set, and action!" ( I knew I would get that line in a blog one day Evan!"

Watching with dismay as they break every health and safety rule painting the cupola

Sadly the Shoe Industry that propelled the growth of Marikana centuries ago also helped lead to it's decline. 

"In the 1970s, Marikina River was rated as clean enough to be used as public water supply. By 2002, the overall water quality of Marikina River had deteriorated (LLDA, 2002), due to untreated domestic and industrial wastes discharged directly into canals that ultimately flow into the river."

Source: https://www.un-spider.org/sites/default/files/4-Flood_Mitigation_Philipines_ADPC.pdf ( accessed 1.4.22)

                          The first hotel I stayed at in the Philippines back in 2000

As I have travelled the Philippines since 2000 , when I first visited Makati on a work trip for Al Homaizi international in Kuwait, staying at the amazing Shangri-La La Makati Manila , I have seen and written about the same story over and over. I visited Boracay in 2010 and saw the overcrowding and pollution that eventually led to president Duterte closing it in 2018 for refurbishment :

"In a business forum held on February 9, 2018, President Rodrigo Duterte called the island of Boracay a "cesspool" and announced plans to close the island to tourists and conduct a rehabilitation on the island in June 2018 to resolve the worsening sewage conditions there. Duterte has directed Environment secretary Roy Cimatu to resolve the environmental issues in the island."

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_Boracay_closure_and_redevelopment ( accessed 1.4.22)

 

                                TBK grabbing the news headlines in Palawan back in 2019!

In 2019 I drew the world's attention to similar issues in El Nido in my infamous Blog called " If you are in search of Paradise, don't go to El Nido" read by 5,000 people in one week. The then Mayor complained in Palawan News that I did not know what I was talking about:

https://palawan-news.com/el-nido-mayor-defends-town-vs-travel-blogger/

President Duterte threatened to close El Nido,  DNER were sent in again and Cease and Desist orders were issued to many hotels pumping untreated sewage into the sea. Even hotel and retail Giants Ayala were prosecuted for illegal land grab and building too close to the sea at Lio Beach. 

Let us hope the river is restored to it's former glory and the Fiesta's can again be held on the River banks

The good news is that Marikina took action without the need for the President or The British Kabayan to intervene! As we walked along the river banks we saw the dredging works taking place to clean up the river as the elections approach!

You can read more about the pollution and flooding in Marikina by clicking this link

https://www.un-spider.org/sites/default/files/4-Flood_Mitigation_Philipines_ADPC.pdf

 

                                          Our 3 Halo Halo at Chow King , Marikina

Eventually we reached the end of our route march at the only 2 Malls in Marikana ( Bahrain could learn a lesson here) after the Mayor decreed no more Malls should be built! We had a very enjoyable Halo Halo in Chow King and then Chester ordered my Uber back to the Metropolis at 5 pm and I was tucked up in bed and asleep at 6 pm. 

Next stop- Paradise!

                 Join me for Coffee in Paradise in my next Blog and Vlog combo