July 27
I had dinner alone because Edmund was with his high school classmates.
It rained hard after I came from the Metro grocery. I walked on the pavements to avoid getting wet.
I didn’t know where to have dinner because the restaurants in Atria are homegrown, not the more popular chains.
I went inside Ang Kamalig restaurant because their large posters on the window with huge food photos appealed to me. I wanted to eat something local.
This place daw is owned by a local politician.
It took me a while to decide what to order because I wasn’t hungry yet, I had no appetite. The waitress only spoke in Ilonggo so I asked the woman sitting next to my table to translate. I also asked her what ang namit gid means. It’s very good, or ang sarap, or it’s good.
The servings were good for two or three people.
I made friends with the couple dining next to me. They spoke straight Tagalog most especially the wife. She was originally from Manila, she just moved to Antique when she got married. Her husband’s from Antique.
I mentioned to them that we were going to Antique in two days. They advised me not to because there were some portions of the highway under construction. They told me it took them 4 hours by bus from their place to Iloilo.
The husband’s a policeman and my judgment tells me he is a good one. An honest one, true to his oath.
He told me the story of a criminal he captured and sent to jail in Muntinlupa. After three years the guy showed up at their police station to thank him. He was shocked. He asked the prisoner why he was thanking him for sending him to jail. The guy said his luck turned. He was appointed a debt collector by one of the leaders there and was paid a hefty sum every day. Based on the estimates, he earned some 57,000 a day.
Whew nakakalula sa laki. According to his story to the policeman, he was able to buy a nice house in Metro Manila, he has apartments, condos and was able to acquire farm lands in their hometown. His family lived a luxurious life. The leader asked him to retire to give the others a chance. He is now happily retired, enjoying his riches and sharing his blessings with his town mates.
For dessert, I got two pieces of turon with ube and passed the other two to the couple at the table right beside me. I forgot their names.
