Expecting a hectic conference schedule, I purposefully left home early, that’s 7AM, to make it to Marikina without harassing myself. Surprisingly, the drive to this town city from Paranaque went very smooth except for the slight traffic along the Skyway construction area along South Expressway.
C-5 Road was a breeze. Now I realized how helpful the elevated U-Turn interchange is in easing the traffic situation at the C5-Kalayaan intersection, however horrible it looks, aesthetically speaking.
I reached Marikina Riverbanks at exactly 8AM. Having arrived early, I parked my car and took a stroll at the Riverbanks, taking some photos along the way.
One can easily see the marked improvement in Marikina. It was clean, green and pink! A lot of people are walking or jogging along the paved riverbanks. I noticed a bike station for rental bicycles but there were no takers. I guess the kids are still asleep in this part of the world. 🙂
On my way to the Marikina Convention Center, I stopped momentarily at the Marikina Sports Center. It was a wide open space ideal for soccer and baseball. Next to it is another open space with a nice water fountain, and an arch inscribed with the great Marikina values: Discipline, Good Taste and Excellence.
As I re-traced my way back to the main road, I noticed a free car wash service sponsored by the local government, cleverly named Marikina Carwash Free or MCF, which coincidentally stands for the chief executive’s initals. Talk about good taste.
Street signs abound in Marikina. It is a thoughtful gesture for motorists and visitors, to be guided by helpful street signs telling one not only of the street names but also of what lies ahead of the road. Although not yet reflectorized to be visible at night, these street signs made it easier for me to find my way.
But there are also unhelpful signs in the streets of Marikina. These are clutter that distracts the motorists’ view and provide no visible benefit but to be a perpetual reminder of who runs the city. I was talking about the MCF signs that are posted in electric posts all around Marikina. Sayang!
riverbanks is close to where i live in pasig and it happened that one of my friend lives in marikina and so, i’d drive her back to marikina and that’s how i ended up going to this place. it’s nice and at least it’s a start and i hope they do the same thing sa Pasig River esp in the Rosario part
hopefully they do. ive read that abscbn bantay kalikasan is strongly pushing for the rehabilitation of pasig river and its riverbanks. lets support that initiative.
the orderly marikina you have described in your blog is no more. unfortunately. it’s so painful for us marikenios because it was painstakingly rebuilt from the mess that was marikina several decades ago. typhoon ondoy ravaged all this in just a matter of hours. floodwaters reaching 30 feet deep. practically what used to be a bustling riverbanks center and parks are now a ghost town. it will take months and perhaps years to rebuild it. we keep our hope high because marikenios through the years have become excellent and disciplined in taking care of their streets, with lots of good taste. but of course we need your help.
im one with you on that, willi. hopefully, the rebuilding will make all of us stronger, and a lot wiser. steel gets tougher in fire. see?
GORDON-BAYANI for a BETTER PHILIPPINES!
Sorry, it’s Noy-Mar!
many of us filipinos here in grand cayman are praying for gordon-bayani victory..for a real change towards progress.corrupt free, thief free philippines.
Same here dennis. We have the same aspirations but i truly know that a noy mar tandem can best do the job. Thanks for dropping a comment.
to choose less evil is not easy because all of them are tainted with pork oil.