Jeepneys

I will also add some things here about jeepneys. I mentioned them in another section, but will give you a bit more detail.  They derived from the old jeeps used during WWII.  They built those jeeps left behind into small passenger jeeps, then through the years, seeing their potential locally, stretched them out to the full length version of today. Now they can be 12 to 15 feel in length, with bench seats lining the insides to make more room for passengers.  They can easily get 15 to 20 people into a jeepney. Now there are factories that produce them en mass. Some of the fancier ones have cool uphostery, running lights, decorations all over (including fancy hood ornaments), stereo systems, and padded seats and back rests. When my family and I are going some place, and taking people with us (like the beach), I rent out my neighbors jeepney for the day. It usually costs 1500 pesos a day ($30).  The driver stays with you the whole day, and you need to feed him too; that's part of the agreement.
We also use a jeepney; the ones used for set routes; to take our groceries to our store when we buy in quantity. We just pick the jeepney at the station that is going past our house.  They will stop and drop off the boxes for you.  You only pay them 10 pesos per box taken. All the jeepneys that go past our house (maybe around 6 to 8 daily) already know us, and know exactly where we live. They also know where everyone else lives that are along their route. We shop in Calapan City, which is the nearest BIG town to us, and about an hour away. We sometimes ride in the jeepney with our boxes (which can be put on top; large rack), or, if we have more things to do, they will take them to our house for us. The jeepney is heavily used all over the P.I., and you can see thousands of them in Manila (the capital). It's cheap, it's easy, it has set routes if you know where you're going. And if you want to get out anywhere along the route, you just say "Para", which basically means stop. With these jeepneys all over, you don't have to worry about driving, or parking, or police.  Just pick your route, jump in, and go!

With the advent of the jeepney also came the stainless steel jeeps.  They are usually the original size of a regular jeep, but all the body parts are made of, yep! stainless steel! They are very shiny, as you could imagine, in a tropical sun.  The reflection alone can blind you. What is the purpose of stainless steel jeeps? Two main reasons; 1) personal transportation, and 2) rusting. Everything steel here rusts, and rusts quickly. We are surrounded by salt water, and a high humidity rate.  Stainless steel does not rust so easily; as long as you keep it clean. So it is about prolonging and perserving the life of your transportation. Here that means money saved; something that the locals fight to do every day!