Getting from one place to the next is often the most adventurous part of the day here in the Philippines. For the last several days, Desiree, her daughter Ina, and I have been getting around by means of Grab rides in automobiles, tricycles, motorcycles, on foot, and occasionally in a car owned by a relative.
I most favor catching rides on tricycles (potpots),
which you generally hail on the streets. The majority of these little buggies
have a canopy over your head and a front windshield of some fashion, but the
sides and back are open. Granted, this sort of travel would not work in a
sub-zero Montana winter, but here in the tropics, the air flowing around you
feels pretty good. I also like how you feel a kind of personal connection with
the ebb and flow of other traffic as you rattle and squeak along the narrow
streets. When out in the wilds of the province, I love the feel of the
countryside falling in all around you as you speed along.
While most tricycles are something like a
motorcycle and sidecar, others are more like a motorcycle combined with a wagon
and can carry a half-dozen folks if they squeeze in appropriately. Weirdly
enough, I even enjoy squeezy rides.
Here’s to getting there!
—Mitchell Hegman
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