Drivers of public utility jeepneys (PUJ) always got me intrigued since I was a kid. On trips with my parents I would somehow manage to find a seat beside the driver and would imitate his moves and imagine that I was the one behind the wheel. I finally got my chance to drive a passenger jeepney when I was teaching in Cebu and this would be my occupation during weekends and during the Christmas break.
This was a time when the Bee Gees, The Bread, The Stylistics, Donna Summer and the rest had their heyday, and passengers were very choosy and would rather ride the jeepneys with booming speakers blaring their favorites. There were two routes that I did: Carbon-Lahug via Ramos and Talisay-Colon. Another plus for this type of job was good-looks of which I apparently fell short of, but I still managed to attract some pretty co-ed passengers.
The day would start with my commute to the house of the owner of the jeepney where after a quick check of the engine and the wheels I would drive off to my route and start waving at potential passengers by the road and at the same time barking out my route - "ay Baling, Basak, Tabunok, Talisay derecho" or "ay Lahug Lahug Lahug!" It was not long before I knew which street corner had the most commuters and what strategy was best to get there before the other jeepneys. When it was hot I had a small towel around my neck to wipe off the sweat forming on my brow. I also discovered the restaurants by the road at Tangke where the jeepney drivers could get a cheap meal of corn grits rice, inun-unan and tinunu-an monggos. I also adapted the cebuano slang which is typical of Cebu and I could have easily stayed there as a driver with nice profits if it were not for my insistent mother who convinced me to take the medical college aptitude test in Davao.
When my acceptance to medical school in a different island arrived, I had to say goodbye to the jeepney, the sweet smelling co-eds and the sweat and smoke that I learned to love and enjoy, not knowing yet that when I got to Davao I would still have the exciting chance to get behind the wheel of a Sarao jeepney. The last 2 years of medical school are not very demanding and this was when I found time to drive the Davao-Lasang route. This time I would be barking "ay Bajada Sasa Panacan Tibungco Bunawan Lasang!" There was one instance when a good friend and classmate - Hargoon in his spic and span white uniform was waiting for a taxi for duty at Brokenshire and I happened by. I stopped the jeepney and called out - "ay Bangkerohan Bangkerohan! but he shook his head without looking up expecting that as usual the jeepney would just proceed. I then shouted... "are you going to hop in or not?" This was unusual so he looked at the driver only to discover that it was me. We had a good laugh with the rest of the passengers as we rode to Bangkerohan and I made it a point to take him up Madapo hills right at the front steps of the hospital.
A common sticker on PUJs goes this way: "Basta driver, sweet lover" and I swear to the truth of this slogan.
This was a time when the Bee Gees, The Bread, The Stylistics, Donna Summer and the rest had their heyday, and passengers were very choosy and would rather ride the jeepneys with booming speakers blaring their favorites. There were two routes that I did: Carbon-Lahug via Ramos and Talisay-Colon. Another plus for this type of job was good-looks of which I apparently fell short of, but I still managed to attract some pretty co-ed passengers.
The day would start with my commute to the house of the owner of the jeepney where after a quick check of the engine and the wheels I would drive off to my route and start waving at potential passengers by the road and at the same time barking out my route - "ay Baling, Basak, Tabunok, Talisay derecho" or "ay Lahug Lahug Lahug!" It was not long before I knew which street corner had the most commuters and what strategy was best to get there before the other jeepneys. When it was hot I had a small towel around my neck to wipe off the sweat forming on my brow. I also discovered the restaurants by the road at Tangke where the jeepney drivers could get a cheap meal of corn grits rice, inun-unan and tinunu-an monggos. I also adapted the cebuano slang which is typical of Cebu and I could have easily stayed there as a driver with nice profits if it were not for my insistent mother who convinced me to take the medical college aptitude test in Davao.
When my acceptance to medical school in a different island arrived, I had to say goodbye to the jeepney, the sweet smelling co-eds and the sweat and smoke that I learned to love and enjoy, not knowing yet that when I got to Davao I would still have the exciting chance to get behind the wheel of a Sarao jeepney. The last 2 years of medical school are not very demanding and this was when I found time to drive the Davao-Lasang route. This time I would be barking "ay Bajada Sasa Panacan Tibungco Bunawan Lasang!" There was one instance when a good friend and classmate - Hargoon in his spic and span white uniform was waiting for a taxi for duty at Brokenshire and I happened by. I stopped the jeepney and called out - "ay Bangkerohan Bangkerohan! but he shook his head without looking up expecting that as usual the jeepney would just proceed. I then shouted... "are you going to hop in or not?" This was unusual so he looked at the driver only to discover that it was me. We had a good laugh with the rest of the passengers as we rode to Bangkerohan and I made it a point to take him up Madapo hills right at the front steps of the hospital.
A common sticker on PUJs goes this way: "Basta driver, sweet lover" and I swear to the truth of this slogan.
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