VAMPIIRES IN MANILA
September 29, 2003 | 12:00am
The modern day metropolitan vampire is alive and well despite the Commander in Chief’s decree for a nightlife-style check. And although fangs and coffins are left rotting under yesterday’s tombstone, it’s quickly been replaced with gelled hair, black polos, fancy slacks and a grin wider than the equator itself. By the setting of the sun and the rise of twilight, the city is a changed world – offices close, clubs unlock their doors and bars open: Welcome to the Manila nightlife – the haunt of every busybody who aches to unburden the cross of being enslaved by his or her daylight chores.
Not to say that the nightlife in Manila is filled with disgruntled, middle-class cultists. But the contemporary vampire turns out to be a bloodsucker of a different kind, stalking the trail of a young and unfolding evening rather than pouncing from dark alley to dark alley to knock on his daily dose of hemoglobin. Of course the dark alleys are still there, but are usually found under the moody lights of Greenbelt 3, Intramuros, Libis, Malate and Timog, QC. There have been a number of fiery tragedies to supposedly ward off the prevalence of nighttime pleasure hunting, but as stubborn as Filipinos are, kung gusto may paraan, kung ayaw may dahilan. Playgrounds of the urban undead: harbors of huge amounts of alcohol and incomprehensible bass music plus a gyrating mob of wannabe Sexbomb dancers.
And more often than not, the most unassuming persons make the most surprising vamps. The transformation from slave of the cubicle to a wild, unrestrained creature of the night is usually far more sudden than most people realize. Little does one know that the quiet twentysomething by the water cooler is actually just nursing a hangover from last night’s escapade. Or that nervous tick your department head has is really just a side effect of one tequila too many. In a sense, the workload of the contemporary nine to five isn‚t too much to kill you, but just enough to bring you back from the dead. It’s an unexplainable phenomenon that while officemates complain about how exhausted they are by 5 p.m, it’s hardly worth asking if they still have enough energy to stay out ‘til 3 a.m.
By 8 p.m on a healthy night – especially a Sabado night – the first signs of life begin to stir in vampire-ville. And by around 10 p.m the crowds begin to muscle their way into whatever crowd they may seem to spot. However, it’s only by midnight that the true vamps are seen roving along the streets, only to be cleared by a dawning 4 a.m.
It’s a whole new twist to vampirism – sucking the stress out of a week’s worth of work. In a ritualistic sense, it’s simple economics. After having paid the country’s employees their wages, it’s only fitting that they be afflicted with Saturday night fever. The vampiric lifestyle is hardly cheap, paying as much as triple than regular for a good time. Whether it’s worth it or not is in the eye of the beholder, but with more and more men seeking solace in the arms of the night, there’s probably something going for it. In the last century alone, the cost of a vampiric lifestyle has grown exponentially, putting some serious pains on the savings account. With this in mind keeping the weekend down to two days isn’t cruel at all, since that’s all the fun most people can afford. Although this may be profitable for nightly leisure spots of the metropolis, it still leaves the working man a penny poorer than he should be. As they say, it takes triple the effort to save a buck than to spend it.
Taming the nocturnal beast isn’t as simple as some bawang and holy water (although a stake through the heart always seems to work). Even the light of day proves to have little effect, seeing that the trend nowadays is to always have an after-party-party.
This forces all those concerned to seek alternative venues for a solution. In reality the cure to the modern vampire is actually much simpler than the cruder methods of the days of yore. Quite plainly – a call from the wife is a blow to his supposedly invulnerable ego. And for a split second, it’s high school all over again. Nasaan ka na? Probably the second most lethal three words known to Filipinos next to I love you.
A vamp could always opt to have his wife be a vamp as well – but vamp couples are a rarity in most parts of the world. Having the wife tag along during office getaways is as all the bit as awkward as it is strange. Speaking frankly, it’s hardly bearable to look into the eyes of a woman who knows full well how much you spent on a night out with the guys. Most especially if that woman has to buy the groceries the next day.
So much for garlic and a cross. These days, the only truly free vampire is the unmarried one, though having a significant other might complicate one too many Saturday nights. If you’ve read enough Anne Rice novels, you’ll realize that vamps hardly come in pairs, and why women seemingly dig the dark and mysterious character at the end of the bar.
But what matters most, really, in prowling the passions and pleasures of the night, is one’s capacity for candor the morning after. There must be some glory in the thought that, pardon the parody, alam ni Misis (or Mister) itoh.
Not to say that the nightlife in Manila is filled with disgruntled, middle-class cultists. But the contemporary vampire turns out to be a bloodsucker of a different kind, stalking the trail of a young and unfolding evening rather than pouncing from dark alley to dark alley to knock on his daily dose of hemoglobin. Of course the dark alleys are still there, but are usually found under the moody lights of Greenbelt 3, Intramuros, Libis, Malate and Timog, QC. There have been a number of fiery tragedies to supposedly ward off the prevalence of nighttime pleasure hunting, but as stubborn as Filipinos are, kung gusto may paraan, kung ayaw may dahilan. Playgrounds of the urban undead: harbors of huge amounts of alcohol and incomprehensible bass music plus a gyrating mob of wannabe Sexbomb dancers.
And more often than not, the most unassuming persons make the most surprising vamps. The transformation from slave of the cubicle to a wild, unrestrained creature of the night is usually far more sudden than most people realize. Little does one know that the quiet twentysomething by the water cooler is actually just nursing a hangover from last night’s escapade. Or that nervous tick your department head has is really just a side effect of one tequila too many. In a sense, the workload of the contemporary nine to five isn‚t too much to kill you, but just enough to bring you back from the dead. It’s an unexplainable phenomenon that while officemates complain about how exhausted they are by 5 p.m, it’s hardly worth asking if they still have enough energy to stay out ‘til 3 a.m.
By 8 p.m on a healthy night – especially a Sabado night – the first signs of life begin to stir in vampire-ville. And by around 10 p.m the crowds begin to muscle their way into whatever crowd they may seem to spot. However, it’s only by midnight that the true vamps are seen roving along the streets, only to be cleared by a dawning 4 a.m.
It’s a whole new twist to vampirism – sucking the stress out of a week’s worth of work. In a ritualistic sense, it’s simple economics. After having paid the country’s employees their wages, it’s only fitting that they be afflicted with Saturday night fever. The vampiric lifestyle is hardly cheap, paying as much as triple than regular for a good time. Whether it’s worth it or not is in the eye of the beholder, but with more and more men seeking solace in the arms of the night, there’s probably something going for it. In the last century alone, the cost of a vampiric lifestyle has grown exponentially, putting some serious pains on the savings account. With this in mind keeping the weekend down to two days isn’t cruel at all, since that’s all the fun most people can afford. Although this may be profitable for nightly leisure spots of the metropolis, it still leaves the working man a penny poorer than he should be. As they say, it takes triple the effort to save a buck than to spend it.
Taming the nocturnal beast isn’t as simple as some bawang and holy water (although a stake through the heart always seems to work). Even the light of day proves to have little effect, seeing that the trend nowadays is to always have an after-party-party.
This forces all those concerned to seek alternative venues for a solution. In reality the cure to the modern vampire is actually much simpler than the cruder methods of the days of yore. Quite plainly – a call from the wife is a blow to his supposedly invulnerable ego. And for a split second, it’s high school all over again. Nasaan ka na? Probably the second most lethal three words known to Filipinos next to I love you.
A vamp could always opt to have his wife be a vamp as well – but vamp couples are a rarity in most parts of the world. Having the wife tag along during office getaways is as all the bit as awkward as it is strange. Speaking frankly, it’s hardly bearable to look into the eyes of a woman who knows full well how much you spent on a night out with the guys. Most especially if that woman has to buy the groceries the next day.
So much for garlic and a cross. These days, the only truly free vampire is the unmarried one, though having a significant other might complicate one too many Saturday nights. If you’ve read enough Anne Rice novels, you’ll realize that vamps hardly come in pairs, and why women seemingly dig the dark and mysterious character at the end of the bar.
But what matters most, really, in prowling the passions and pleasures of the night, is one’s capacity for candor the morning after. There must be some glory in the thought that, pardon the parody, alam ni Misis (or Mister) itoh.
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