Monday, July 2, 2007

Going through a hodgepodge

goinginside

As the famous line goes: You can buy (almost) everything in Quiapo.

Quiapo, being geographically located at the very center of Manila, is referred to as Manila's downtown. It is known for cheap prices on almost all items ranging from electronics to native handicrafts. The place is ALSO notorious for pickpockets, robbers, huslers, etc. These people know who to rob and when to get it. Being robbed in a crowded place is a cliche already. They can steal from you in a snap, you wouldn't even know your valuables are gone already.

My friend got her bag sliced while walking the street. She didn't even realize it until a few minutes later. Fortunately for me, I've been to this place hundred times already and never did I lose anything. I guess, I really look "poor" to them. :-)

Anyway, the photo (above) is Carriedo St., one of the most diverse streets in Quiapo and third among my favorites. Most of the items sold here are clothes, hanky,slippers, sheets, curtains, even undergarments. My favorite street (of course) is Hidalgo St., tagged as Photographers' Haven. Another favorite is the Arlequi St. Now for those who are regulars of Quiapo, you know why I particularly like this street. :-)

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I am still having an overdose of The Transformers, so much so that I am paranoid that every automobile I see would suddenly transform.

The transformers, more than meets the eye! The transformers, robots in disguise!

See? I can't even stop from singing...

10 comments:

pieterbie said...

Very nice piece of street photography. Love the way the woman looks over her shoulder to you. Good depth in this photo as well. Difficult exposure and yet you got the shadows and highlights just perfect.

Anonymous said...

I used to walk everyday in Quiapo long long time ago... Yup right there in Arlegui Street... :-) Went back to Quiapo again 2006 with my father in law ("Photographers' Haven" <--- korek kaya kami nagpunta...) Una ko naisip pag kakita ng kuha mo... you shooting this with your dSLR... tapang! Love the look of the girl... worried din siruo sa camera mo... hehe

Anonymous said...

sounds like a dangerous place to be in. not the kind of excitment i'm looking for if i want to go overseas for holidays...lol. but i love the photo, as usual. i'm running out of places to snap pictures...

idjang said...

hoy! kelan ka ulit pupunta ng Quaipo? Sama ako!!

Anonymous said...

quiapo, that's a second home to me, hehehe. i frequent that place due to cheap anythings...and it's near raon, wehere i also frequent because i'm an electronic technician and of course, hidalgo street... :)
i also watched transformers last saturday, i didnt know the second line was "robots in disguise", i learned something new to day...
:)

my gulch said...

Peter,
thanks! i was trying hard not to be noticed but the lady saw me. ;-)

diong,
lagi kong iniisip kung Arlequi ba yun o Arlegui? hehe. ang alam ko din Arlegui pero may nagkorek sa akin...Arlequi daw yun. anyway, at least alam natin pareho kung saan at paano puntahan ang street yun ang mahalaga. hindi DSLR to, hehe. may biglang nanghahalbot ng camera sa tabi-tabi kapag na-ispatan ka. nakakatakot. dapat yung mga madaling itago lang. compact digi lang dala ko. di nga lang masyadong makapag-eksperimento ng shots.

Tien,
but if you're the adventurous-type, you'll love going to this place. plus, the joy of buying goods at their cheapest is such an immense feeling. of course, it also comes with a strategy. vendors can easily sense if you're a first-timer. and they usually gives a higher price to foreigners.

unwritten,
hala, kakagaling ko lang dun pre. 2 consecutive weeks. kaka-canvass ko ng DSLR. haynaku. samahan na lang kita pag nagawi ka kyusi.

lino,
ah Raon! onga, naligaw ako dun nitong weekend lang at nalula ako sa dami ng murang electronics, hehe.

actually, ganito ang lyrics ng The Transformers:

The Transformers,
More than meets the eye
Autobots wage their battle to destroy the evil forces of the deceptions
The Transformers
Robots in disguise
The Transformers
More than meets the eye
The Transformers


ulit-ulitin mo lang yan. hanggang sa ma-Last Song Syndrome (LSS) ka, hanggang sa hindi mo na titigilan ang pagkanta. hanggang mairita na ang katabi mo. ganun.

Anonymous said...

leche, kanina pa ako nagpopost dito ayaw tanggapin. ang saya-saya! ang galing-galing ng mga robot na naguupakan!

miss ko na rin ang quiapo. sa sobra kong busy di na ko nakakpasyal dun. boohoo! pero mapapadpad din ako sa hidalgo one of these days kasi magpapatulong bumili digicam ate ko.

uy natry mo na ba yung lomo? parang type ko...

Anonymous said...

sounds so dangerous. You know what? when you go these places, it's best to put on the I-have-peanuts-in-my-pocket look. Malaysia has a similar place called Petaling Street. You gotta be careful there.

I like this shot. It's amazing, after you've told us how scary it is, you managed to take a good shot and not have your camera stolen. :)

and we are allowed to be a little high from transformers because transformer is like the ultra cool cartoon from our time!!! ahhhhhhhhh

Anonymous said...

She really looks worried! nice framing by the way, good capture! that place sounds like a bit of fun place to purchase on the photography heaven! jajaja

my gulch said...

luthien,
di ko pa na-try ang lomo but i don't think i am that entice to try it. it's in 35 mm format right? the premise of lomography is "don't think, just shoot". pang-snap shots talaga siya, mape-preserve mo yung spontaneity ng mga kinukunan mo. ang gusto ko lang talaga sa lomo ay yung fish eye camera nila na mahirap ma-achieve although sabi ng mga anti-lomo, pwede na rin itong ma-achieve kahit sa photoshop. lomo is more on the effects of the image, mostly highlighted by blur, saturated colors, etc.

Ling,
Petaling Street? I've been there! I was there early last year. A friend of mine who was from KL brought me to that place to buy some cheap stuff. I bought a wall decor and some souvenirs there. Fortunately again, nothing bad things happened to me. but it was a good experience.

Tony,
well, she looks offended to me. she got scared by the flash. she was thinking maybe: why on earth would this girl take a snap of this place? or at least that was the look she gave me after i hit the shutter.

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