What a bustling day in the city, the aroma of coffee in the café situated at the corner. The freshness of the flowers that just have sprung from the earth. The working population running back and forth to their respective workplaces. Students of different schools and universities go to their alma mater thus expanding their horizons in the field of education. But what you least expect is a vehicle, side by side with your car, crowded with different kinds of people, from the working class to the modest, from students to teachers, from laborers to clienteles. This vehicle you see is what the Filipinos tag as “dyip” or more dominantly known as the ‘jeepneys.’
Jeepneys are part of our culture, race and is distinctively Filipino. History says that it came from our fathers of democracy, the Americans. It was then primarily for soldiers of the great Second World War who were commuting from one base to another. But the Filipinos did not think that the jeepneys are only for the soldiers, so they made their own variety, a variety that until now and forever will be part of the Filipino heritage.
Jeepneys are an economical way of commuting. You can go to the city’s different points like Divisoria, Quiapo, Pasig, San Miguel, San Juan, Cubao, et cetera at a very inexpensive amount of money. Most of the time, the passage money is only a peso and fifty centavos, which is very low-priced compared to the different kinds of transportation you can witness around the cosmopolitan.
The vehicle is also a good way of having a hearty laugh. I mean it practically. Inside it, you can see different catch-phrases that will make your head whirl, like ‘Basta driver, sweet lover’(Drivers are sweet lovers) and ‘God knows Hudas not pay’(God knows if ‘Judases’ does not pay). Sometimes you will also see tags that betoken the driver’s labor in buying the jeepney for business like ‘Pawis ng Saudi’(Sweat of Saudi). You will now see the bond between the families by the names of the relatives of the driver etched on the canopy of the vehicle.
For the vast majority of the Filipinos, jeepneys help save the milieu, because the passengers will not add to the pollution in the urban. It saves time too, and it somewhat how decreases the traffic.
It also causes some nuisance in our society. To be more precise, because it dominates 48% of all vehicles in Metro Manila alone, jeepneys causes some problems in our community. Reckless drivers of this jeepneys tend to abuse their capability in the society. We can see some reckless drivers who just loads and unloads their passengers in the middle of the road, thus giving jeepneys an unfavorable appearance. Then we tend to question ourselves on how to prevent this kind of catastrophe.
Riding a jeepney is not only peaches and cream. It is also sometimes very frightful. It is because that many embezzlements happen there. Robbery, abduction, and homicide happen there. So be also careful in riding one of these vehicles. Be sure that all your personal properties are kept in a bag, placed in your pocket, or better yet, do not bring them no more. Never show large quantities of money. Remember that it is good to be humble at all times.
Now, you have discovered about the ‘jeepney’. So would you care
to ride one? Jeepneys, anyone?