The last leg of a trip to Mountain View College in the 1970's regardless of where one came from, was the most trying and wearisome - it being a jeepney ride through 15 kilometers of a dusty or muddy road depending on the season. The only comfort that it offered was the thought that journey’s end was just a few more hundred bumps away.
One thing that was a bit urgent for some of the students returning from a day out in town, as the jeepney inched its way up, was the need to de-scent, deodorize or to remove any trace of cigarette and alcoholic drink odor that could make entry into the boy’s dorm risky due to school policies against the consumption of these stuff. The usual Chiclets gum, Hall's candy or kalamansi helped although brushing the teeth and a face-wash with soap was the best choice. However, it required time and resources, which were not readily available at the bus terminal in those days.
On one particular trip there were three of us who were the only MVCians in the crowded jeepney. We only realized that we forgot to go through the ritual of de-scenting when the jeep got to San Carlos and we were quite in a quandary with our stop fast approaching. A quick search of our bags for a solution was futile until one guy realized that a can of sardines - Tinapa (the local term for the smallest can of sardines) might do the trick. He hastily opened it and stuffed his mouth with one sardine while handing the can to us. We followed suit and presto! our mouths smelled like tinapa - not cigarette. One thing though wasn’t addressed and it was the odor on the rest of the face and hair. That was quickly resolved with the sauce of the sardines that we dabbed on the hair, face and neck.
All the while the other passengers were amusedly watching us and the final touches to the hair and neck really roused the whole jeepney into fits of laughter. Suffice it to say, we got into our rooms without being detected, but mind you, the tinapa smell stayed on for a few days to our chagrin.
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