Stuck In The Middle Of Nowhere...

We experienced some car trouble on our way back from the beach...

People of the Philippines, do not get stranded in the province. It is an extreme hassle and also quite scary.

We had two cars going back, an Innova and an Explorer. The Innova needed gas but the guys figured it still had enough to get to the nearest gas station in Tagaytay. It so happened that the Innova's gauge was broken. The car came to a full stop during our convoy from Calatagan. It stalled somewhere in Nasugbo. It was about 10-11 in the evening. FYI, gas stations in the province close by 7pm, some by 5pm. The nearest gas station was all the way in Tagaytay, a good 30 minute drive at more than moderate speed. Thank goodness we had 2 cars!

The guys stayed behind and we left to get gas with the driver. I felt pity for the men. Big as they were, you could see that they were quite frightened and unsure of the area as well. I don't blame them...it's really dark with no street lights. And for people from Manila, too quiet to the point of eerie.

So anyway, we got back with the gas but the Innova runs on diesel. Yes, we got diesel., but the thing with diesel run cars is that when they run out of gas, unlike gasoline run cars where all you have to do is refill and crank the engine, diesel cars need to be pumped. This took long! And because of the many attempts trying to start the engine. The car's battery got discharged. So in the darkness and solitarity of the place, we had to change batteries, series and put gas all with a flashlight and some lighters. To add to the drama of it all, while we were there trying to get the car to start, a group of men from the "perya" (fair) down the street came running past us calling out names to a second group running after them, the whole time throwing stones at each other. Scary! All those Carlo J. Caparas slaughter movies suddenly came to mind. Good thing they just ran past us. Shortly after, the car finally started and we were on out way back to Manila.