And the tricycle unexpectedly stops at a dead end near the edge of a hillside. A thick fog, which had appeared out of nowhere a few minutes before had completely shrouded us in an eerie white smoke.
This tricycle, which I boarded from the main road more than a kilometer away sounded like its engines would go kaput at any moment. Perhaps, it was the weather in this place that made the sound rather strange from the sound of Tricycle engines I hear in Manila everyday. The road leading to the dead end was unlit and unpaved. I did not see any houses near the road and only the tall, impenetrable Cogon grasses and the silhouette of Mango trees nearby has made the geographical distinction of the place still possible.
The air is atrociously cold. It proves too unbearable for a body that is used to the infernal heat of the lowlands. I shivered a lot on our way towards my intended destination, and when we got there, the shivers that were slowly tearing my bones apart was replaced by a sudden feeling of brooding fear that struck deep within the core of my lost soul.
The driver gets off from his bike without saying a word. He then stands near the dead end for a few seconds, inspecting the pitch black darkness that stretches beyond. A few lights from the houses down the valley twinkle like distant stars giving off hints of an impending trouble. While I persistently resisted being overwhelmed by my growing fear of being left with a male stranger on a dead-end hillside road, my imagination was creating several animated possibilities as to why we stopped in a cold, dark place so far away from civilization.
Is he a robber disguised as a tricycle driver? Very possible. He might have sensed at the terminal that I'm a dayo there. If it's the case, then I should be ready to be killed by him as well.
Is he a serial killer who do a job being a tricycle driver? If it's the case, I can see that his plan is to lure me down the hill to stab me repeatedly and bury my bloodied body somewhere near the mango trees. How unfortunate my death would be. My only wish is that my badly mutilated body would be found and be given proper burial by my loved ones.
Finally, is he just a horny tricycle driver who wants to trip with me? Pucha, if it's the case, then I'd have the kinkiest sex ever on a pitch-black hillside dead-end road. I could just imagine these lines appearing on my entry.
"At pagkatapos ko siyang ni-romansa, pinahiga niya ako sa malamig na lupa sa piling ng matatalim na talahib upang ibaon ang kanyang naghuhuminding na... sa aking... habang ako naman ay nanginginig sa lamig at nakatirik ang mata't pilit nagbibilang ng mga bituin sa langit."
Very poetic huh? I wonder what my readers would comment in that entry.
But seriously, I was getting uncomfortable the longer he stood there looking at the darkness below. I was looking for any possibilities of an exit had my worst case assumption proved correct. For the first time in memory, fear really had a grip on me that the thoughts of self-defense never came up as a protection measure. He was way shorter and leaner than I am, but knowing that he had the advantage of being familiar with the terrain, I knew I could end up being dead no matter what I do.
Suddenly he broke his silence and asked me to follow him. He said that the resort I am going to might just be a few yards down the trail.
"Boss sigurado kayo na yan ang daan papunta sa Carillo Garden Resort?" I asked him nervously.
"Sigurado ako na eto yung daan," He assured me. "Madulas kasi at ginagawa pa yung kalsada kaya hindi ko na binaba yung tricycle ko."
The trail going down was dark and slippery. Talahib was all over the place and all I could hear aside from our hushed voices were the croaking of frogs and the humming of insects around us.
But just before I throw my bag to run back towards the main road shouting for help, I told the manong driver to wait for a few second.
I would have to call someone from PEx to confirm that my location is correct.
"Lostwan, yung kalsada ba sa resort eh ginagawa?"
He said yes.
From then onwards, me and the tricycle driver became chummies. He offered me a stick of yosi before we started walking towards the resort. From where his tricycle had been parked, it was like entering a black hole going down the trail. However, a few meters walk from the dead-end road and what greeted us were bright lights coming from the resort. It turned out, the lights were hidden away by the towering Cogon grasses growing on both sides of the trail.
The driver was kind enough to wait in case we set foot at the wrong place. He said that if he leaves and I found out that my friends were not there, it would be impossible for me to walk back in the dark. Besides, I've heard from the tricycle drivers' chatter at the terminal that the unlit road going to the very isolated resort was haunted by ghosts. Knowing that my third eye was slightly opened that night, I might have seen something that many others would never see.
So we waited until someone opens the gate. I could still hear the splashing of water and even sounds of laughter coming from the swimming pool area. It means that people were still up - even if they're not from PEx.
When the caretaker showed up, I immediately asked her,
"Dito po ba sina [insert the name of the organizer here]?"
---
At past 1'o clock in the morning, I was the last to arrive at the venue of the PEx Hanap Barkada's summer outing. It was my first time to leave Manila alone at 11 pm not certain of my destination. The fog, which shrouded the road going to Tagaytay was my first encounter, as well as the hair-raising stand-off with the tricycle driver, whom I first thought was a robber.
My summer outing had just begun, and for 24 hours, there will be so many priceless moments that made this summer vacation,
more endearing than the last one we had.
This tricycle, which I boarded from the main road more than a kilometer away sounded like its engines would go kaput at any moment. Perhaps, it was the weather in this place that made the sound rather strange from the sound of Tricycle engines I hear in Manila everyday. The road leading to the dead end was unlit and unpaved. I did not see any houses near the road and only the tall, impenetrable Cogon grasses and the silhouette of Mango trees nearby has made the geographical distinction of the place still possible.
The air is atrociously cold. It proves too unbearable for a body that is used to the infernal heat of the lowlands. I shivered a lot on our way towards my intended destination, and when we got there, the shivers that were slowly tearing my bones apart was replaced by a sudden feeling of brooding fear that struck deep within the core of my lost soul.
The driver gets off from his bike without saying a word. He then stands near the dead end for a few seconds, inspecting the pitch black darkness that stretches beyond. A few lights from the houses down the valley twinkle like distant stars giving off hints of an impending trouble. While I persistently resisted being overwhelmed by my growing fear of being left with a male stranger on a dead-end hillside road, my imagination was creating several animated possibilities as to why we stopped in a cold, dark place so far away from civilization.
Is he a robber disguised as a tricycle driver? Very possible. He might have sensed at the terminal that I'm a dayo there. If it's the case, then I should be ready to be killed by him as well.
Is he a serial killer who do a job being a tricycle driver? If it's the case, I can see that his plan is to lure me down the hill to stab me repeatedly and bury my bloodied body somewhere near the mango trees. How unfortunate my death would be. My only wish is that my badly mutilated body would be found and be given proper burial by my loved ones.
Finally, is he just a horny tricycle driver who wants to trip with me? Pucha, if it's the case, then I'd have the kinkiest sex ever on a pitch-black hillside dead-end road. I could just imagine these lines appearing on my entry.
"At pagkatapos ko siyang ni-romansa, pinahiga niya ako sa malamig na lupa sa piling ng matatalim na talahib upang ibaon ang kanyang naghuhuminding na... sa aking... habang ako naman ay nanginginig sa lamig at nakatirik ang mata't pilit nagbibilang ng mga bituin sa langit."
Very poetic huh? I wonder what my readers would comment in that entry.
But seriously, I was getting uncomfortable the longer he stood there looking at the darkness below. I was looking for any possibilities of an exit had my worst case assumption proved correct. For the first time in memory, fear really had a grip on me that the thoughts of self-defense never came up as a protection measure. He was way shorter and leaner than I am, but knowing that he had the advantage of being familiar with the terrain, I knew I could end up being dead no matter what I do.
Suddenly he broke his silence and asked me to follow him. He said that the resort I am going to might just be a few yards down the trail.
"Boss sigurado kayo na yan ang daan papunta sa Carillo Garden Resort?" I asked him nervously.
"Sigurado ako na eto yung daan," He assured me. "Madulas kasi at ginagawa pa yung kalsada kaya hindi ko na binaba yung tricycle ko."
The trail going down was dark and slippery. Talahib was all over the place and all I could hear aside from our hushed voices were the croaking of frogs and the humming of insects around us.
But just before I throw my bag to run back towards the main road shouting for help, I told the manong driver to wait for a few second.
I would have to call someone from PEx to confirm that my location is correct.
"Lostwan, yung kalsada ba sa resort eh ginagawa?"
He said yes.
From then onwards, me and the tricycle driver became chummies. He offered me a stick of yosi before we started walking towards the resort. From where his tricycle had been parked, it was like entering a black hole going down the trail. However, a few meters walk from the dead-end road and what greeted us were bright lights coming from the resort. It turned out, the lights were hidden away by the towering Cogon grasses growing on both sides of the trail.
The driver was kind enough to wait in case we set foot at the wrong place. He said that if he leaves and I found out that my friends were not there, it would be impossible for me to walk back in the dark. Besides, I've heard from the tricycle drivers' chatter at the terminal that the unlit road going to the very isolated resort was haunted by ghosts. Knowing that my third eye was slightly opened that night, I might have seen something that many others would never see.
So we waited until someone opens the gate. I could still hear the splashing of water and even sounds of laughter coming from the swimming pool area. It means that people were still up - even if they're not from PEx.
When the caretaker showed up, I immediately asked her,
"Dito po ba sina [insert the name of the organizer here]?"
---
At past 1'o clock in the morning, I was the last to arrive at the venue of the PEx Hanap Barkada's summer outing. It was my first time to leave Manila alone at 11 pm not certain of my destination. The fog, which shrouded the road going to Tagaytay was my first encounter, as well as the hair-raising stand-off with the tricycle driver, whom I first thought was a robber.
My summer outing had just begun, and for 24 hours, there will be so many priceless moments that made this summer vacation,
more endearing than the last one we had.
---
-tobecontinued-
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