SIGNS OF THE TIMES # 1: THE MANILA WE KNEW

Someone emailed me this nostalgic piece of article. Enjoy it---

To my friends who know..... and remember the GOOD times.... Balikan natin ang nakaraan---

This might reveal your true age...... Panciteria Moderna was the place to go for pancit miki and miki bihon already wrapped in their version of 'tetra pak'. Pancit bihon was the specialty of Panciteria Wa Nam. At Ma Mon Luk siopao was at 30 centavos; mami was at 70 centavos or 2 pcs of siomai (large) with unlimited soup was at 30 centavos. So with one peso busog ka na.

The Shangri-la in the basement of Shelborne Hotel (at the back) was the place to go for dates if you wanted a dark and cozy atmosphere. The Embers (in Cubao) of Bert Nievera was also popular. The Black Angel along Shaw Blvd near the corner of Kalentong in Mandaluyong was a very good place to listen to soft music (e.g. Fleetwoods, etc) and the lights were also quite low. With Php 30- 50 in your pocket you were in pretty good shape for a date.

'Bakuran' was the in-thing at parties with 'screening' from a friend to assist you in getting a dance with a girl who was very sought after.

Wack-Wack, the Sky Room in Jai-Alai, the penthouse of the Rufino Bldg. as well as the penthouse of the Sarmiento Bldg right opposite it were the favorite places for proms and balls. Sikat ang event if the Hi-Jacks; the Electromaniacs or the Technicolors was the 'combo' playing. Alta Vista along Roxas Blvd. was the favorite place for wedding receptions at Php 8.50 per cover!

Special ringside seats for performances at the Araneta Coliseum were at Php 5.00 per. So with Php 20.00 you could safely invite someone and still have enough for a snack afterwards or a game of 'putt and putt' at the mini-golf place located at the back of Araneta.

During early 60's, 5 centavos and 10 centavos ang bayad sa jeep. Manila and Suburbs ang lahat ng biyahe ng jeep noon na 3 seater lang at pitpit ka pagbata ka pagsumakay ka. Sa Avenida Rizal at Sta. Cruz, Blumentritt, Tayuman, San Roque Church, Espiritu Santo Church, Grace Park at monumento ang mga sikat na lugar.

Yung Good Earth Emporium pwede ring idagdag sa mga magagandang shopping mall noong araw. Yung Manila Grand Opera house, Odeon, Hollywood, Cinerama, Ideal, State, Lyric, Capitol ang mga sikat na sinehan noon. Sa Q.C ay sikat yung Max's Chicken at Dayrit. Ang dollar rate noon ay 3.70Php sa 1$ ang palitan. Ang Sarsi ay cinco centavos (5 centavos) 10 Centavos ang Coke.

Pero sikat yung Canada Dry, Uva at orange ang paborito namin noon. Pag pasko madalas kami sa Sta Cruz para manood ng palabas sa Manila COD para sa Xmas season. Noon walang chippy at potato chips, ang merienda ay banana cue, camote cue, palitaw, biko, pinipig, halo-halo, carioca, pilipit, butsi, hopiang hapon, hopiang munggo, hopiang baboy, bibingka, puto, cassava, cake o budin, suma n at mani.

Ang apple ay apat-piso ang benta sa Lawton Bus terminal. Mas mahal pa yung local na chico na pineras. Ang grapes, pear, at apple ang karaniwang binebenta sa mga bus terminal na papuntang south (BLTB). Ang bus noon ay bukas lahat yung isang side kaya doon dumadaan ang mga pasahero. Ang sikat na mga Plaza noon ay Plaza Goiti, Plaza Miranda at Plaza Sta. Cruz. Sa mga bakery sa Manila ay sikat yung machacao na tinapay.

May I add: Hallili Beer (sold to the Sorianos), Tody chocolate drink in cans, Horlicks malted milk tablets; Hallili bus, Super (dog logo) Transit, Yujuico, JD & MD buses; ShoeMart Carriedo (the first SM) followed by 2nd ShoeMart beside Ideal Theater and fourth was SM Echague with a revolving restaurant at the top floor.

Safari Club beside Manila Zoo at the height of the 'Twist' craze, Dance-O-Rama with Pete Roa & Baby O'Brien, Jam Session every 6PM on television.

Now anyone who missed those days can't really claim they've seen and tasted the best. Every generation has its own set of 'Aces'. Do you recall when: You tasted Fres Gusto, Cosmos 'Sarsi' Sarsaparilla, RC Cola, Yes Cola, Teem, Darigold Evap, Liberty Condensada, Choco Vim, Sunkist Orange (in tetra packs), Magnolia Chocolait, (pronounced chocolight), Klim (the word 'milk' spelled backwards), Big 20 Hamburgers, Foot-long hotdog, Tweet & Jiggs Candies(by Mr. Krieger), Sugus Candies, Tootsie Roll, Serg' s Chocolate, Blenda Margarine, kerosene-flavored popcorn and kropeck along Dewey Blvd, dirty ice cream, Magnolia Ice Cream sandwich, Selecta ice cream (now Arce Dairy) and their fresh carabao's milk, Magnolia popsicles in orange, chocolate and langka flavors, Sison Ice Drops in monggo, and buko flavors, Milky Way's buko sherbet, Acme Supermarket' s sundaes and Coney Island's 32 flavors?

You went to: Syvel's, Assandas, Arcegas at the Maranaw Arcade, Funhouse at Bricktown, Aguinaldo, Erehwon Bookstore, Alemars Bookstore, Bookmark, Botica Boie, Makati Supermarket (in Makati!), Rizal Theater (with its spacious lobby) with D'Bankers Barbershop and Leila's Coffee Shop, Tropical Hut (and its hamburger), Acme Supermarket, Cherry Foodarama, The Regent of Manila, Hotel Mabuhay, Manila Hilton, Christmas carnival (where Dusit Hotel now stands), Villa Pansol and Lido Beach?

Rizal what?' 'Who would be crazy to build a cinema in the middle of nowhere?' It turned out to be the best theater in the city of Makati (at the same site now occupied by Shangri-La Hotel).

And ate at: The original A&W along UN Avenue in Manila, Aristocrat across Malate Church, Italian Village, café Valenzuela, Bonanza Restaurant, Brown Derby, Little Quiapo, Country Bake Shop, Selecta Restaurants (owned by the Arce family), Taza de Oro; New Europe, Madrid, Cucina Italiana, La Cibeles at A. Mabini, The Plaza, Jade Garden Restaurant, Luau, The Makati Automat, Sulo Restaurant (in Makati), Makati Fastfood Center (the first ever), Bulakena, Casa Marcos, Au Bon Vivant, Salambao Restaurant, Dairy Queen along Buendia, Di Mark's Pizza, the elegant dining room of the old Army & Navy Club. Botica Boie in Escolta, Albas in Florida, Malate Brown Derby and their signature foot-long hotdog came with its special, extra tarty mustard sauce and a hot, crispy bun. We used to park at their drive-in bays after we were exhausted from all-night partying but with enough energy to gobble down sausages and soft drinks.

The Plaza was the favorite venue for all formal school and social functions. Food was not a big factor so long as cozy couples could have their special table for two.

You shopped at: Escolta, Harrison Plaza (when it was still clean and had the bump cars), Ali Mall, Rustan's in San Marcelino, Aguinaldo's in Cubao, Quezon City; Shoemart in Makati was a small, split-level affair.

The original Rustan's was the garage of the Tantoco's residential house which was eventually converted into a dazzling shop filled with eclectic things and collectibles.

Blockbuster movies were: Love Story, Mahogany, Saturday Night Fever, Grease, Planet of the Apes, Star Wars, Logan's Run, Battlestar Galactica, Paper Chase, Enter The Dragon, Jaws, Towering Inferno, Poseidon Adventure, Carrie, Willard (theme song was Ben sang by a young Michael Jackson), Exorcist, Love Bug, Tinimbang Ka Nguni't Kulang.

You wore, carried or used Denman brush tucked in your back pants pocket, Jordache and Sassoon jeans, Bata rubber shoes, Botak running shoes, Ace flexible comb, Ace clutchbag, Carrera shades, Ray-Ban, Photochromic and Ambermatic shades, Foster Grant sungl asses, Alaskin, tie-dye shirts and pants, double-knit pants, Sergio Valente, Vidal Sassoon, Fiorucci, Banlon, Ye-ye Vonnel shirts, Nik-Nik, Bang-Bang, Faded Glory, Jazzie, Puma Topfit, Tiger Onitsuka, Happy Feet, clogs, Wet look shoes, Pierre Cardin, Brut, Jovan musk oil, Aramis, platform shoes with bell-bottom pants and wide-buckled belts.

You had your hair styled or permed by: Flavio and Carmen, Nomer's, Lita Rio, Grace Lagman, Dick & Lucy, and Kayumanggi. That was the time of Aqua Net stiff, foot-high beehives, French twist and Kiss Me liquid eye liners and Pretty Quik instant facial blotters. You sang: Bobby, Bobby, Bobby by Jo Ann Campbell, Someday by Ricky Nelson, And I Love Her by the Beatles, Cherish by the Association, Because by Dave Clark Five, Distant Shores by Chad and Jeremy, Rainy Days & Mondays by the Carpenters, You've Got a Friend by Carol King, Hundred Miles by Peter, Paul and Mar y, Evergreen by Paul Williams.

Saved whole month's allowance P50 to watch the Beatles perform live at Rizal Memorial Coliseum in 1965.

It was hip to listen to: Bingo Lacson and Jo San Diego (past midnight) of DZMT, the singing sensations from Ateneo de Manila? RJ and the Riots, The Loonilarks, Joe Mari Chan and the APO Hiking Society and dance to live combo music garbed in cocktail dresses and dark suits.

DZMT was affiliated with the Manila Times and was the only broadcast station that stayed on the air past midnight. Jo San Diego was their anchor woman (she with the velvety bedroom voice).

And danced at: Manila Hotel's Jungle Bar, Stargazer, Bayside Night Club (with live music by the Carding Cruz band), and the Nile (and the Italian singing group Five n' Fives), Queue Disco, Circuit Disco, Where else? Altitude 49, Delirium (in Greenbelt), D'Flame, Rino's, and Velvet Slum, Wells Fargo, and Coco Banana.

After graduation, jam sessions were replaced by night clubs and Bayside was the place to go for live bands and non-stop dancing.

Do you remember when: Dollar to peso exchange rate was $1 = P7, Walang Tindigan buses charged a flat rate of P1, Love Bus fare was P1.50, family size Shakey's Pizza cost less than P40, Malate streets were named after US States (Pennsylvania, Colorado, etc.); Paranaque, San Juan, Makati, Pasig, Las Pinas, Taguig, Pateros and Muntinlupa were municipalities of Rizal province; DLSU was De La Salle College, Poveda was Institucion Teresiana, Adamson University was the original St. Theresa's campus, Robinsons mall was the Assumption Convent campus, Petron was Esso, Villamor Air Base was then known as Nichols Air ;Base, bancas were aplenty in the Baclaran side of Dewey Blvd. (now Roxas Blvd.) and traffic was non-existent in Tagaytay.

PLDT telephone nu mbers were five digits and you used your index finger to dial a number one at a time.

If you remember all these things, you're history in great company and I dare say, happy to be.

Since the writer was fleeting between two generations (60's-70's), you party goers surely remember the DynaSouls (dubbed the Beatles of the Philippines) , The Tilt Down Men (The Sotto brothers, Tito, & Val, favored the Dave Clark 5) Jaime Jose & the Deltas* (remember Maggie Dela Riva?) What about gate crashing a 'Tipar' (for party) and the ensuing rumble between feuding barkadas: The Havocs, Combat*, & Exotics, meron pang kanya-kanyang busina (car honking id).

Remember BMI (Baguio Military Institute)? That school was a dumping ground for kicked out students from Manila and kids that needed discipline. Let us not forget ang mga taga 'Baste' (San Sebastian). Ang daming siga noong araw.

Sure you remember playing Pelota... And drag racing along Ortigas and behind Meralco..

Sikat ka sa barkada kung may 'syota' (girl friend) kang 'Colegiala' (Assumption, STC, St. Scho, Maryknoll, Holy Spirit; and the other schools - St. Paul's, St. Joseph, Centro Escolar ). As proof, you should be wearing her high school ring in your pinkie finger...And dapat karta 9 ...You probably took her out to the Butterfly (at UP) to listen to folk songs and sip Butterfly Iced Tea.

Did you get to date a 'chick' from Brent (Baguio) and IS (Makati)?

Of course you should have enough cash for the gaso (gas), tsibog (food/dinner) , cover charge/drinks at the Flame or Rino's, konting damo, and for the finale, enough datong (cash) para sa 'biglang liko'. Or kung gipit for cash, park at the huge lot of Folk Arts and just do it in the car...Kaya lang dapat may 'Tapwe' (Singkuwenta pesos) pang lagay sa parak (police), and a handy calling card of a military officer with a hand written note in the back that 'you should be given utmost courtesy'... .jeesh...

Then in the late 70's early 80's came the CB radio phenomenon.. Tibs on Makati Ave. for beer and happy hour at the Manila Garden; always overflowing with beer and chicken wings...Tapos masahe sa Imperial Palace or Maalikaya... To cap the night, a stop at Birds of the Same Feather for smooth jazz courtesy of Eddie Katindig.

Tapos you get to do it all over again the following day.

('pag naalala mo at least kalahati ng mga nabanggit na lugar dito....at leasst PAGA SINGKWENTA OR MORE KA NA RIN...) he, he, he...!