Exploits of a City Dweller

A Quick Guide to the Philippines and Metro Manila 

For the benefit of the uninitiated, I will be dedicating this page to translations and/or explanations of the more arcane words used in some of the entries in this blog. Terms and phrases will be added periodically as deemed necessary. If I miss out on anything, feel free to leave a comment. 

• Buhay Kyusi - Translation : Life in Quezon City (which is where I live and have no intention of moving elsewhere.) Located north, it is one of the cities that comprise Metro Manila. Kyusi being the street slang pronunciation of the abbreviated form QC.
• SLEX – South Luzon Express Way. The Philippines’ version of an interstate highway heading south of the Metro. Gets oven-like in the summer. Traffic-prone due to ongoing construction. Then again, what else is new?
• Kris Aquino – local talk show host / actress. Youngest daughter of former President Cory Aquino and the late Benigno Aquino. Known for her strange method of interspersing Filipino words while speaking English (and vice versa…most of the time, we are left guessing what language she’s inclined to use. It depends on her mood I guess. To clarify, I am not a fan.)
• Puerto Galera - a popular vacation spot among beach bums on a tight budget. Located on Mindoro Island, just south of Batangas. It’s about three and a half hours away from Manila by bus and boat.
• SM – One of the most popular local malls owned by business tycoon Henry Sy. Abbreviation of Shoe Mart, the name being that it started out as a shoe store and expanded to practically every type of merchandize man has thought to invent. The Philippines is mall country. If you’re not Filipino and plan to come here on vacation, you’ll be surprised at the number of these monstrous (I’m serious, they get bigger every decade)  establishments we have around Metro Manila and just about every major city in the country.
• EDSA- Abbreviated form of Epifanio de los Santos Avenue. Metro Manila’s main highway that spans from Caloocan City in the north to Pasay City in the south. If you’re not familiar with the twists and turns of Manila’s streets (like I was when I first came here) and you find yourself lost, EDSA is your target as it is the easiest to figure out direction-wise.

more has come….

• Isaw – barbequed chicken or pork intestines on a stick. One of the more popular street food found in the Philippines. Usually eaten dipped in vinegar. Before you cringe at the thought of eating animal guts, consider this: The French eat snails, the Spanish eat bull testicles and The Brits eat jellied eels. To each his own.