Class 1975 X'mas Party in Manila

Jimmy, I see you finally got to see Dennis and Richie. Maybe sa next mini reunion, kami naman na hindi nakasama, no?

I must forewarn you - this will be a long e-mail because I have lots of kwento from my trip so brace yourselves. If you don't have time to read and be tied down I suggest just printing it.

Before I begin I want to extend my heartfelt gratitude to a few members of our e-group - Jovie Lotho, Dode Arcilla, and Lilibeth Pascual who were a part of making my trip to Manila very memorable. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Hope I can return the favor in the very near future. Come and visit us in the States, okay?

Now for the kwento about my trip. To quote Noel, I too enjoyed my visit "immensely" and the night life as Noel put it was "pure energy". I went out almost every night with classmates/friends/batchmates. Jovie, Baybee and Hermie were excellent hostesses and host. They somehow made sure there was "gimmickan"(term they use there for happenings or outings) every night. I met, saw, talked to, hung-out with so many of our classmates/batchmates. See if you guys know any of them - Jovie Lotho-Sison, Baybee Lourdes Abello Tolentino and her husband Lawrence, Hermie Garcia, Manny Reyes, Tirso Gutierrez, Dode Arcilla, Aida Custodio-Yuvienco and her husband Delfin, Beth Velasquez-Contreras, Emil Contreras, Pat Ocampo, Lhu Soichi, Raffy Galvez, Jun Marfa, Edwin Co, Leo del Rosario (my dance partner at the christmas party - he almost had a heart attack :-) Mon Del Rosario (another dance partner) Luis Dado, Ferddie Tirol, Jun Policarpio, Nonong Rodriguez, Dick Ayson, Butter Navarro, Chat Silayan Bailon and husband Mike, her brother Carlos Silayan, Isabel "Bang" Mariano-Lobaton, Tessie Mangilit-Gomez, Concordia Valguna, Chari Fernandez, Rowenda Conda, Elani Gaite-Flores, Lilibeth Pascual, Menchie Dantis, Rita Estrada-Yukingco, Ruby Colina-Panis, Benjie Uy, Alex Israel, Marivic Magsalin, Ruben Francisco, Alex Ferraz, John Gaddi, Irma Uy-Besa, Annabelle "Beng" Salvino-Tabernero, MD, Cecil Reodica, Grace Ramos, Angel Sarmiento, Malou Suarez, Jerry Bersabe. Ang dami ano?

I have tons of pictures which I am sending to Dennis to post on our website. So you guys will get to see them. Needless to say, I did not have time for my family til two days before I left. Medyo naghinanakit na nga but I promised when I get back next year I will spend more time with them. I really felt I was back in highschool at talagang enjoy. Everyone was really nice and accommodating. I attended two meetings prior to the main events -Pabingo and Homecoming. Puro lokohan and tawanan ang nanagyari ang saya talaga. Wala kaming ginawa kundi tumawa. More importantly it was great to see the old school again. To me the place has changed so much. After 24 years it felt very different. There was a McDonald's across, the street Paz was jam-packed with vendors. Somehow, the parking lot seemed a lot smaller than I had remembered it. We passed by Dennis' old street Perdigon - remember Dennis?

The Christmas party was a riot. It was again like in highschool - the guys hanging out on one side and the girls on another. We also had some girls (mga dalaga) na talagang ayaw makipagsayaw eventhough hinihila na nang mga lalaki. mahinhin talaga. can you guys guess who? the songs played were mostly 70's songs kasi kapanahunan natin. the exchange gift was a riot as well kasi, the giver and recepient had to identify themselves so guys and girls or guys and guys had to either give a hug or kiss each other, nakakatawa talaga especially the guys to guys 'no? Some people I suppose stayed til 6:00 am the following morning. Talagang enjoy!

We went out any day of the week. Wala talagang patawad kahit na may pasok. Pero bilib ako because even on weekdays, marami parin ang tao sa bars and dance places. Leave it to Filipinos to have fun. We stayed out sometimes til 3:00 am just having fun sometimes seeing a live band, sometimes going dancing or just having dinner and making kwento. Some of the places we went to were ZU in Shangrila Makati (we went here on 3 different occasions), on Mondays pala may DI (Dance Instructors) sa ZU just a tidbit for those who want to learn some dance moves or yung swing, Street Life and Hard Rock in Glorietta and Conservatory in Manila Peninsula. I also got to go to the Fort in Makati. This place is lined up with clubs/bars (no dancing tho so it was not my cup of tea coz I love dancing). I also went to Pampanga for quiet time and unwinding and to Villa Escodero. Plans to go to Tagaytay and Baguio did not materialize due to lack of time. And to think I was there for almost 3 weeks, kulang pa rin. Originally I thought I was going to be bored out of my brains but when I got connected with a bunch of people, kulang talaga sa get-togethers lang. So keep that in mind if you guys plan on a trip. To me it was mission accomplished because my goal was to get reconnected, get acquainted and that's exactly what I ended up doing.

The shopping, restaurants, and hotels were great too. Whenever I was in those places, it felt like I was in the states. They have everything we have here and more I think. Very impressive. But then when you go out on the streets, you realize you are in fact in Manila because of the terrible traffic and driving and crowds, lots of them. Ewan ko ba naman kung saan ang punta nila palagi.

I stayed at Shangrila Makati and Century Park in Manila for a few days just to be pampered. It was great. I also recommend staying at a nice hotel even for a few days when you go home. On the other hand to really experience Manila, you need to ride the jeepneys, tricycles, cabs and go to the palengke and "tianges" (don't know if this is how you spell it, but these are booths of vendors in Greenhills and Berma in Baclaran), which I did during the day when I'm not out enjoying the nightlife. I took pictures so my kids could experience them even through photos. I felt that was the essence of being in the old country. So I enjoyed the nightlife, the good life, as well as the real life back home. And I owe the experience to those friends and batchmates who made them possible for me.

I can say physically we all may have looked a little or a lot older, but if you really look into the eyes of our old classmates/best friends/batchmates, you can readily tell that it is still them, the way you remembered them in highschool and elementary. My leaving was bittersweet. I hated to leave because of all the renewed friendships and the fun I experienced but I also missed my kids terribly so I knew I had to come back to reality. But there's always next year to look forward to, right? For all of you planning on attending the reunion next year, I can assure you based on my experience it will be time well spent. If you have any questions or want contact info on any of the classmates/friends I mentioned above, let me know.

Til next time ......

Reina/Boots/Stoob