ALTERNATIVE ROUTE TO AVOID TRAFFIC CONGESTIONS IN QUEZON PROVINCE

Several times in a year, a great number of people take the Manila South Road (used to be known as the Philippine-Japan Friendship Highway) now known as Asian Highway 26 (AH26) to visit their family to celebrate Christmas, New Year, Holy Week, Fiestas, long holidays or simply conduct business in the south.

Many of them have no other choice but to travel by land, especially those who would only go as far as Daet, Camarines Norte or the Province of Quezon.

The nearest airport in the area is located in Pili, Camarines Sur which is just after Naga City and there are only a number of flights per day. The only other airport is in Legazpi City in Albay.

 So most travelers going to Lucena City and beyond have to take the AH26.

Those who take this route have to pass thru the towns of Sariaya and Candelaria, where traffic seem to be getting worse every year! To avoid these bottlenecks, alternative routes were opened and one of them is featured in a video below.

 

What to do when you have to stop midway in uphill drive

One of the most problematic, if not most stressful, situation for newbies who are just learning how to drive is having to stop in an uphill position - especially if there is a vehicle in front of them and behind them.

The situation is made worse if the vehicle in front moves in reverse when they are supposed to stand still (if not move forward again) -  and its driver is unaware of what is happening.

Nothing can be more frustrating than watch your car about to hit by another car that is inching backward and there is nothing you can do to stop it.

The video below, though, might help prevent such things from happening.

A faster way to NAIA Terminals 1, 2, 3 to Solaire, and MOA via Macapagal Ave

The new elevated road that can still get you faster to NAIA Terminals 1, 2, 3, MOA and the Philippine Senate via Macapagal Avenue. Check the Youtube video below.

Apparently, this route has been open for about nearly a month already at the time of this publication.

I passed the portion of it from Macapagal Avenue a few weeks earlier than its final completion but I was hesitant to try again for fear that it was not yet fully completed and I might just end up in some part of this area where traffic congestion is like 24/7.

But finally, a little voice urged me to try it yesterday and the result is what you will see in the video.

The toll fee is P45.00 for light vehicles. The ramp is just almost immediately after you got off from the older Skyway.

THE SIMPLEST WAY TO DO PARALLEL PARKING for Newbies

Like any endeavor, big or small, parallel parking a car in tight spots can be done easily. It is just a question of approach or how you try to do it.

New drivers who are just beginning to go on their own, especially if they have not been exhaustively taught,  may find it hard to do squeeze their car in parallel parking since they have the tendency to do it by driving into the slot.

That would be okay, if the space is wide enough and the car is small, but it will not work if the conditions are reversed.

The best way to do it is by going into the slot reverse as shown in the video below.

HOW TO PARK A CAR BACKWARD AND WHY YOU SHOULD

First, let's learn how to do it...

Now, let’s talk about “why” we should park backward into a parking slot (when It is allowed).

Actually, if you have been parking front first or “facing the wall” you will already have a good idea why it is better to park “Butt First” and NOT “Facing the wall.”

But if you are clueless, or if you are too shy to tell your friends why, let me say it for you: “Because, most of the time, we are surrounded by “Pea-Brained” drivers you’ll wonder how quite a number of them passed the bar, or PLE, or any kind of board exam, or even just qualified for master’s degree!

 Why do I call them pea-brained, or hare-brained, or bird-brained (or anything similar) drivers?

Well, forgive me, but if you are “facing the wall,” because that was how you were instructed to park by the parking operator, or building owner, and you are sandwiched by two big cars or SUVs nobody should expect you to see any moving vehicle coming towards the direction of your exhaust pipe! 

(Uh, unless  you are the smart aleck who installed his car's exhaust pipe right smack into his face, where his eyes are and where his nose is!)

And yet, most of the car drivers who notices a vehicle that is getting out of a parking slot “butt first” (umaatras) will just keep on driving across the path of the said vehicle.  And some will even do so with one hand pressed hard on the horn – like it was the other guy’s fault that they (the guys who are passing thru) are morons! 

Know what I’m saying? (Hindi po ako galit, just stating some facts, matter of factly :-D )

“Boss naman, umaatras yung isa eh, NAKATALIKOD, may harang na ibang sasakyan ang bawat gilid, paano ka makikita nun?”

The whole story will be different if those guys who are passing thru will just be a little generous and allow the umaatras na guy to be able to get out first. Lahat kasi, pa importante, dapat laging sila ang nauuna!

Now, if you park “butt first,” at least, you will see if anybody is about to cross your path as you are getting out of your parking slot. Hindi ka makaka aksidente, kasi mas kita mo ang daan mo.

Ordinary Pidro is born today...

Ordinary Pidro has just been born today.

Okay, let's try to clarify that a bit.

Ordinary Pidro is not like your ordinary infants who were born in their birthday suits. He was born today fully dressed, at the age of Nevermind.  Yap, Nevermind.

You may want to write that in two words like: "never mind"  and it will mean the same thing.

There is no secret to his age of Nevermind, except, he doesn't like numbers especially in relation to the time a person spends in this world.

After all, it is just a number.

And what is a number if it is not absolute?

And, of course, you know how an "absolute" value of a number is defined. It is the distance of that number on a number line from "Zero" and that goes to all directions and therefore, an absolute value is never negative.

But let us stop here because it doesn't really matter.

If you want another argument why it doesn't matter, think of an immature 80-year-old guy and then, think of a five-year-old kid who can beat you in music or mathematical skills.




And, if you ever so wish,  let's also consider progeria, shall we?

All of those, however, are not what the Ordinary Pidro is all about. Those are mere arguments and circumstances that needed to be expressed.

For the time being, Ordinary Pidro is about Minute lessons on Practical Driving.  Short, simple, practical driving lessons. Like what you will see in the video below. No PhDs here, no Masters degrees. All we have are bits and pieces of knowledge gained from hundreds of thousands of driven kilometers in the major areas of this 7, 100 island country.

Yes, driven. The last vehicle he used logged some 350,000 Kms. It negotiated concrete and dirt roads in most of Luzon from Matnog, Sorsogon to Aparri and Gonzaga, Cagayan. Crossed Northern Luzon from Magapit Bridge in Lal-lo, Cagayan to Patapat Bridge in Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte then traced the way back to NCR through many different routes from there. The Mountain Provinces of Kalinga, Ifugao, Benguet, Abra. The Western Provinces of La-Union, Pangasinan and Zambales and back again to Bicolandia thru Camarines Norte and Sorsogon.

It took ro-ro rides and traversed the lands in Mindoro, Romblon, Antique, Aklan, Capiz and the different provinces in the islands of Samar and Leyte. And when Ordinary Pidro takes a plane on his trips and cannot bring his vehicle, he rents a self-driven vehicle wherever it is available in Negros Island, Palawan, and Mindanao.

And for another perspective, if a normal average car registers 10 to 15 thousand kilometers annually, his One (1) year old car has just gone over 45,000 kilometers!

So, we believe he can give a little bit of driving tips.

Eventually, the topics will change. But, hey, we are just being born here.

Lesson #1: