Manila's infamous pedestrians

Superman versus Lex Luthor. Professor Xavier versus Magneto. The Road Runner versus Wile E. Coyote. Marimar versus Angelika. We'll always have our classic match ups - enemies constantly facing up against each other in fierce, heart-pounding duels.

We have our own real-life adversaries here in Manila, which is the grand stage for the relentless clashes between motorists and pedestrians.

I write this, ofcourse, from a motorist's point of view (which does not necessarily assume motorists as the protagonists and pedestrians as the bad guys, I must say.. in fact pedestrians have the lower hand since they risk life and limb, whereas motorists risk well, a bent fender at worst).

Who the good guy and the bad guy is, is not the point. What matters is the struggle we all share everyday. Due to the lack of sidewalk space, specified pedestrian lanes, sufficient traffic lights, traffic enforcers, and most of all, discipline from motorists and pedestrians alike, we cannot avoid close calls, near-hits and clashes with each other. Here are some of the most famous road-trekkers of that jungle called Manila...

1 the walking-on-sunshine folks
They hum and they sing and they hopitty-skip towards the other side of the street. Or at least they seem to. Unmindful of the incoming cars and buses and jeeps and tricycles, they cross the street at their own relaxed, zen-insipired, slog-along pace. Alam mo 'yung papadaanin mo kasi may kasamang bata tapos tatawid nang pagkabagal-bagal?!? Oo, 'yun nga!

2 the Hopscotcher (for lack of a better term in Tagalog - ang nagtutumbang-preso)
They're the ones who grab a split-second opening in the road to dash to other side. Remember the last time you exclaimed, 'Susmaryosep!' and felt your heart jump out of your chest? 'Yun, siya nga.

3 the Angas ako, paki mo types
They look through the corner of their eyes just to see if there's incoming vehicles (pasulyap-sulyap, kunwari hindi tumitingin..). If there are, THEN they will move a little to the sides. But if the road's open, they'll be using up that space. They usually traverse in packs of five or more young binatang bagets in loose shirts and puruntongs.

4 the Kings of the Road
And you thought the title belonged to PUJ drivers alone... They're like the Angas types, except they don't like giving way to passing motorists. Too much of a hassle to step aside a few feet, I guess. Yes, sila ang kadalasang nasa statistics ng mga na-hit and run na siko (yes, elbow). Not by me, ofcourse, I just happen to witness elbows being hit by side mirrors. (sira ulo talaga mga drivers ngayon... tsk tsk..)

5 the Wedgies, er, Edgies
You're coming up a highway at 60kph. You notice a pedy (pedestrian) attempting to cross the street ahead of you. You also notice the heavy pack of cars behind you and decide this is not a good time to give way for his own sake. So you speed ahead. The pedy decides to move along and walks inch by inch, closer and closer to the road space you're about to occupy. When you speed by, you notice his hips do a little hula just to evade your rear bumper. Then he calmly proceeds to cross the street. Sila 'yung akala mo mahahagip mo na sa lapit, pero hindi. Talent lang nila ang tumawid.

6 the Mafia bosses
I say this because they give you no choice but to yield. They raise their palm regardless of the flow of traffic, or of the speed of incoming vehicles, and trudge right ahead. Well at least they signalled their intentions..

7 the Monks
They most often assume the frog position (you know, sitting position with feet flat on the floor, knees fully bent, arms folded and resting on knees) and gather in droves of three or more. They like to sit close to the edge of the sidewalk. Oh, and this is when they're not having a drink atop monoblocs in the middle of the street.
Actually, I'm not so sure if they qualify as pedestrians, since they're not on the move, but what the hell. I see them more often than I see any of the others anyway.

There. I shall update if I recall anybody else.

In case you feel like I'm a self-righteous judgmental bitch, Don't crucify me yet. I'm just noting down my own observations. This is not a rant. Just simple observations from an sometimes-motorist, sometimes-pedestrian civilian.

Hey, I forgot one. The Clueless ones. They're a rare breed, really, but they're the ones who REALLY run for their lives, because hindi marunong tumawid. They just run like hell and pray to God nobody hits them. Now if u really want to get to the other side, you should try looking like this type (cue: reuse pic)