Iloilo Anti-Tour Guide(1st Part)

The last time I was in Iloilo City was four years ago. We were on our way home at the airport with some of the provincial media. It was the old airport then, similar to Baguio's Loakan Airport except for carabaos on the horizon. I think Raul Roco was in that flight. Anyway nothing much happened in that flight until we reached Manila. We were waiting for our luggage at the airport carousel when the mediaman beside me, an editor from Mindanao who seemed to know everything (earning the ire of those who really did) yanked his bag. A clip on the handle of his bag got snagged and this is the horrible part: all his clothes spilled on the carousel. I remember the soiled briefs, man. I really wanted to laugh right there while helping him collect his laundry going around and around. I can't help it but I was really laughing then and so were the other passengers.

So last month from Cebu City we took the plane to Iloilo. It wasn't that full so Choy and I were brought to the back of the plane to balance things out. Ha ha ha We landed on the new airport which is much farther from the city. We were met by Mr. J P who worked with the tourism office. He was the anti-tourist guide, pointing out the old houses and churches that were destroyed by restorers on our way to the office. Mr. J P turned out to be an artist and the next day, we went to his pad in Jaro. He also turned out to be an art collector. He painted his walls fiery orange and used capiz windows in the inner walls to create a confusion of inner/outer. He undermined the worth of his painting colelction, saying that some were bought for P100 each. His house was a treasure box so he earns the right to bitch about how his province had been going headlong to the future without looking back to its illustrious past.