I recently bought some shoes. Now, normally I don’t wear out the soles before I’ve tired of the shoe itself, but this morning I took a good look at them and realized the heel of the left shoe has been worn down smooth. I guess it’s because I’ve been walking everywhere and taken to using the MRT commuting to and from work. This isn’t something really remarkable (most people use public transportation) until I realize that I only started doing this four weeks ago.

For most of my life I’ve been driven places I needed or wanted to go, and for the past five years I’ve been the one doing the driving. You can chalk this up to the parents feeling not just a little protective of me, as public transportation does have its share of unsavory characters. They’d rather I ride by myself in a ton of metal propelled by an engine running on miniature explosions of flammable liquid.

It’s meant a change of lifestyle for me. I’ve always been a light packer, but now I have to carry everything I need in one bag to minimize the risk of losing or forgetting baggage. I can’t wear anything impractical either, like skirts or low-cut tops, lest I attract the attentions of aforementioned unsavory characters. And I now have to deal with rubbing shoulders with masses of strangers (some washed and some unwashed). The last time I went through that was in my third undergraduate year in UP.

There are perks to this “whole commuting thing” though (do I sound Valley Girl enough yet?). The savings are great. Yeah I don’t pay for gasoline, but at least my parents’ pockets don’t have to contend with the fuel-sucking vacuum that is Makati at rush hour. I also don’t have to worry about finding a parking space and paying for it at Makati’s exorbitant rates. And I get a great workout just walking from Ayala Station to Salcedo Village — that’s easily 15 to 30 minutes of cardiovascular activity.

So, expect me to keep wearing my shoes out this way. Ü

Tags: Public Transportation, Railways

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