Visiting Parishes #3

yesterday, i went again to visit some parishes. but this time, Brother Jean-Jacques from France accompanied me. he's just arrived from Bangladesh one week ago and he still need to learn how to go around Manila. and this will be his first time of visiting parishes.

so at the beginning, i want to visit two parishes in Tondo. after i alight in the nearest station, it's already 5.30 pm and we were looking for a jeepney to go to the parish. but it's like 4 - 5 jeepneys just passed us because they're already full of people. then we decided to take a tricycle but the driver don't want to take us because he said it's quite far away. crap!

so then Br. Jean-Jacques suggests that i should find another parish that more closer because it's quite dangerous to go to Tondo after the sun goes down. so i choose a parish that 2 stations away from where we were. so we went back to the LRT station on going to our first parish.

first parish of the day, quite near from the station. this will be a perfect welcome center. haha. so Br. Jean-Jacques want to join the daily mass and told me that i can visit another parish while waiting him. then i went to the parish office and it's still open. i talked to the lady in the office and she's very nice. i gave her the brochure and she gave me the youth coordinator's number. and afterward we talked a little bit about what i'm doing in Philippines and i told her that i want to visit another parish afterward. but then she said that it's better not to visit another parish because it's already dark and it's quite dangerous for foreigner to walk alone in Manila. wowh, that's the second time i heard that! just yesterday i heard it for the first time. then i think to my self, is it that dangerous?? but so far i'm fine. ahahahaha. but then i went to visit the second parish of the day.

second parish, and seems will be my last parish of the day. it's two stations away from the first parish but i took a jeepney because i have around 1 hour until i have to go back to the first parish to fetch with the brother. so, to take a jeepney that going to somewhere we don't know exactly, we have to gambling. just see on the sign in the side of jeepney that contains more or less the destination where we want to go. so i took this jeepney and checked my map every we passed any intersection. it should be just go straight to my destination. but suddenly in the middle of the ride, this jeepney is make a left turn. argh! so i have to alight immediately and take another jeepney. ok, second jeepney and i was hoping this jeepney will go straight away and not making any turn. and finally i alight in the spot where i have to continue my journey by walking.

The Philippines' Jeepney

so it's around 5 minutes walking and i arrived in this parish. there were a daily mass there. then i asked one mother who holding her baby where is the parish office, and she said it's already closed. but afterward she lead me to another lady that seems to be one of the worker of the office. so i talked with her and she leads me to another lady whom a secretary of the office. then i talked to this secretary, gave the brochure and she gave me the youth coordinator's contact number. great!

so it's 15 minutes away from the daily mass will finish. then i took a jeepney back to the first parish. i took it randomly, pay it, and the driver asked me something in Tagalog which i didn't understand. luckily there were one nice lady want to become my sudden translator. apparently the driver asked me where to go and i said Abad Santos. then the driver said something again and gave back my money. and the lady told me that, this jeepney is not going there. crap! ok i alight and find another jeepney. this time i'm more clever, before i took the jeepney, i asked the driver already, "Abad Santos?" and he said, "yes, Abad Santos!". fiuhhh.

after i alight in the nearest turn to the first parish and walk in rush. later i found out that the mass isn't finish yet and i found a few young people hanging around the church. great! so i approached two of them and make a conversation with them. apparently they didn't speak a good English and getting nose bleeding (the phrase that the Filipinos always express if they have to either talk or listen too much in English). and they lead me to the young boy whom one of the officer of the Parish Youth Ministry and the leader of the Worship Ministry. he's getting nose bleeding as well. ahahaha. then i saw Br. Jean-Jacques is came out from the church as the mass is already finish. he called me and introduce me to the priest who celebrate the mass. apparently the priest is the parish priest assistant and he can speak French! yes, he's already went to Taize and stay for five years in Paris. cool! afterward we approached a bunch of the young people who gathered around the church and talked with them about Taize and Pilgrimage of Trust. they seems very interesting.

and around 8 o'clock we have to say goodbye because we have to come home at least 9 pm to get our supper.

well, once again it was a wonderful closing of my visiting parishes day. met the priest who can speak French and already went to Taize? there's can't be better than that! ahahahaha.