Wanderlust Heaven!

‘When the great lord passes, the wise peasant bows deeply and silently farts.’

-Ethiopian proverb

Just got out of an hourlong session with the travel agent. Had to extend my visa here – yet another extortionary lever designed to grease bureaucratic pockets – and also hoped to ease the torture of making bookings during Holy Week (week preceding Easter Sunday). The visa bit went fine, although not cheaply; the bookings were another story. I already knew where I wanted to go and stay, but wanted some help with transport and dealing with hotels, many of which were sure to be tight for the holiday. The agent tried her best – but she didn’t know the places I wanted, and when she came up with the latest package deals, they didn’t sound that economical compared with the prices I had in my guidebook. I hate packages anyway – they force you to eat all your meals at the hotel, and tend to be padded with all sorts of crap you don’t need. They’re good for families, not for indie travelers like me. So I just had her take care of a flight and then I got on the phone and spent an hour hammering everything out. Saved myself a fair amount and learned a lesson – travel agents are less and less necessary and helpful these days.  They sell their products – not solutions, hence the slogging of crap like package ‘deals.’ You might want to use one to book a flight if you don’t want to spend time comparing fares on the Internet – otherwise doing everything yourself is the way to go. I think I already knew that, but let the Easter holiday intimidate me into thinking that I’d need an insider’s help in sorting things out. As Borat would say, ‘Not!’

Had an interesting meeting last Thursday with a former Finance Secretary here. I wanted to get his perspective on the pharmaceutical business my friend and I are considering starting here. This fellow is uniquely well-connected and informed – and quite a nice guy too. Has an MBA from Kellogg, and has had a fantastic series of positions in business and government in the RP. He was positive about our idea – in fact, he mentioned that because of the high prices of medicines here in the RP, he buys his medicine from Walgreen’s in the U.S. Which is just fucking unbelievable. I mean, we Americans complain about our drug prices (although, to be accurate, our generics prices aren’t bad – it’s the patented/branded stuff that’s outrageous), and to have a Filipino (albeit a wealthy one) sourcing his drugs from the U.S. says a lot. And is depressing. So our idea seems to have promise…and I plan to pursue it further with his help and contacts – in fact, he said he’d introduce me to Senator Roxas, an up-and-comer whose grandfather was a former president, and who is spearheading the charge to lower pharma prices. At some point I’ll get this going, and perhaps forge ahead with the actual startup of the biz. But it will be a hell of a lot of work and I’m not yet sure I’m ready to dive in with both feet. Stay tuned.

He also owns a BPO (business process outsourcing company), that deals with U.S. medical records and credit card bill processing. He pretty much offered me a senior management job on the spot – which was flattering, but the time just isn’t right. Still, I plan to stay in touch with this fellow, he’s the sort of person I need to know here.

The meeting was in the exclusive Tower Club in Makati City – haven’t set foot in a place like that in some time, and wasn’t too sure my basic white shirt, black khakis, and brown docksiders would cut the mustard. But people are casual here and I fit in just fine. Lots of major players floating around in the club – I think I recognized the founder of Jollibee’s fast food chain sitting in a meeting room. While I’m not ready to become Joe Business just yet, I wouldn’t mind spending a day or so hanging out with the muckety-mucks at the Tower Club…

Left the meeting, and walked over to the taxi stand. Across the street was Ayala Tower One, home of Monitor Group and a trillion other small businesses. Thought about heading up to peek in and say hi. But consultants generally don’t like surprises – they tend to muck up the tight schedule and require the display of emotions – so I deferred and caught a cab back to Malate.

That night, had dinner with a friend of a friend, he’s an engineer on an oil rig that goes around Asia every few months. Lito, the engineer, is an old friend of my fraternity brother Todd, and they used to work together in Connecticut. I had dinner with Lito and his brother-in-law, who was very business-savvy and let me in on some of the things the government’s up to. I knew about a few things already…like the potential passage of House/Senate bills designed to allow parallel importation of patented pharma products. That would significantly lower the price of these types of products – but would probably not much affect the price of generics. Still, it would help people afford the newer meds and people here need all the help they can get.

The brother-in-law told me he’s diabetic (as is the former Finance Secretary – it’s a serious epidemic here, given the diet, genes, and lack of exercise), hence he’s fairly clued-in to the whole pharmaceutical debate. Still, we sucked back quite a few beers together. I would hope that he’s restrained most nights of the week…I don’t think he’d last too long eating lechon (fried pork) and drinking San Miguels.

Heard a funny story about standing up for your rights. Seems that Nikita Khrushchev was giving a speech in Moscow in the 50s or 60s, and chastised the audience for being meek and not speaking their minds – thus not contributing to the betterment of government/society. Someone in the audience yelled out ‘Where were you when Stalin was purging thousands?’ or something along those lines. Khrushchev thought for a moment, then stared at the crowd and said ‘Who said that?’ And no one fessed up. Talking about proving a point succinctly…

Had dinner with an old friend from Monitor on Tuesday night. Met at the Shangri-La Makati City, a fine place where I used to stay back in the day. Went to noisy Conway’s Bar, found a semi-quiet corner, and caught up. Hadn’t seen each other in more than a year. I won’t open the kimono on certain parts of our conversation, but I will say that he and I have been excoriating the Bush Administration since Day One and it’s nice to sit back with a beer and go over it all again. Depressing, perhaps, but it gets things off your chest. Part of our discussion centered on the inherent disability/distaste of Republicans for any meaningful debate, or criticism of their candidates. If someone criticizes Bush, they’re automatically unpatriotic and disrespectful of ‘our boys over there.’ Of course, the Democrats seem to be the party that’s fighting for better body armor and protection for the troops – the Republicans can’t be bothered with those mundane matters. I recall reading a piece in the foreigner magazine Metropolis in Tokyo back in 2004, before the US Presidential election. The heads of the Democratic Party Abroad-Japan and the GOP equivalent each wrote a brief piece lauding their respective candidate. The DPAJ guy – an Italian-American from the Northeast, I think – was pretty balanced on Kerry. Certainly not a puff piece. The RPAJ writer – a blond lady from the South – had the most execreable garbage in her piece, claiming that Bush had saved us from the terrorists and had the courage of his faith or some drivel like that. The contrast was stark. But predictable. And Republicans can be mean fuckers, too – remember Rush Limbaugh mocking Michael J. Fox’s TV ad, accusing him of faking his Parkinson’s tremors for political effect? That’s cold…and Rush is in no position to make fun of anyone, given his various drug addictions…

My Monitor buddy told me about an article in The Atlantic Monthly in which IQs of past Presidents were compared. Not sure where they got the data – but you can probably guess the highlights. Smartest recent Pres? Clinton, easily. Dumbest? Bush II, by a mile. How depressing…

We also traded ideas on stocks and our finances. He recalled a pointer that my father once gave me, and that I mentioned once to him – ‘the best way to make money is in your sleep’ – taken from the world of real estate. And while that pointer is by no means airtight, I’ve always remembered it and taken it to heart. ‘Sweat equity’ is a term that strikes fear in my heart. My father is good for a few zingers like this one – another, mentioned previously in this Slog, is that ‘people always have money for what they really want.’ And when I left Boston last year, he told me that I shouldn’t deny myself the little things and live too austerely – that chances like this aren’t always available. That was excellent advice, and I don’t shy away from pampering myself from time to time.

I’ve been keeping up with the latest round of news from Washington on the Scooter Libby trial. What a mess. My DC-based friends are vastly more informed, and have more sophisticated opinions, though, and allow me to share those of one with you here – check out this writing:

‘The freak show here is veering to the macabre. Like C-Span airing political versions of Hieronymus Bosch dreams 24/7. It’s either time to load the Potomac Fever Kool-Aid into the dialysis machine – and plug in — or heavy up with ammo and start a new Kraal in Canada.’

Sounds like bit like things here in Manila.

Visited Plaza Miranda last Sunday. Decades ago, Plaza Miranda was the Trafalgar Square / Speaker’s Corner of Manila – vicious political debates were the order of the day. Former President Magsaysay always asked ‘how will it play in Plaza Miranda?’ when he was considering legislation. That all changed in 1971, when an explosion tore the place apart. President Marcos then enacted martial law…leading the thinking man to believe that Marcos had done the explosion himself. Which was probably the case. And we all know how things went after that. Miranda sat in ruins for many years, but has been spiffied up recently and is chock-a-block with little markets. And the place is in the shadow of the very nice Quiapo Church – like many places, bombed to oblivion then rebuilt. Here it is:

Plaza Miranda’s not the most scenic of places, but it’s worth a stroll. Perhaps the best thing there is a building bearing the name of the former Archibishop of Manila, Cardinal Jaime Sin. Cardinal Sin. I love it.

After Miranda, took a cab over to the Presidential Malacanang Palace, which sits on a quiet side street near the Pasig River. You can walk down the street and peer through the gates – but no photos allowed. So you’ll have to find a pic online, shouldn’t be hard. You used to be able to take tours, but given the two ‘People Power’ incidents – each of which resulted in the overthrow of the President – officials have gotten understandably nervous and tightened up the security. There is a nice little park across the street commemorating the Battle of Manila in WW2, here’s the statue and plaque – quite dramatic:

Took a cab that night over to Makati City for dinner with a friend. My cabbie was a wizened fellow who told me he used to work in the mines in Angola, during the long civil war there. I told him I once met rebel leader Jonas Savimbi at the Heritage Foundation in Washington. Not that I was proud to say I’ve set foot in that right-wing nuthouse, but hey, Savimbi was ‘our man in Angola’ back then and he was fighting the goddamn Commies – or that was the line, anyway. Angola’s yet another depressing example of a country that should be rich – the oil and mineral deposits are astounding – but 5 people skim all the money.

Walked into a 7-11 to get a candy bar – once a month I have a craving for chocolate. Picked a Hershey’s with Almonds – then noticed that, in the heat, it was drooping and soft. All of them were. And I can’t imagine that’s an unusual outcome. Who’s minding that store?

On my way home that night, walked down a street near my hotel and heard some yapping. Turned out to be a small colony of dogs…two of which were little puppies scrambling on top of each other in an attempt to climb up onto the sidewalk. Not sure what they wanted to do…but it was both cute, and heartbreaking, to see these two tiny furry balls of energy jockeying for position on the ladder of life. Probably vying for a tiny morsel of food…just scrambling to survive on the mean streets of Manila. Good luck, little guys.

Played golf yesterday with my friend’s father-in-law. Did I mention that I’m reasonably well-connected here? Pretty funny. Anyway, we played 18 holes at his club, the Wack-Wack Club (greatest golf club name yet) in Mandaluyong City. I started horrendously…hadn’t played in 9 months. My transgressions were various – complete swing & whiff, massive divots, hooks & slices, 20-foot drives, you name it. Started to settle down a bit after 5 holes, but had developed a brutal blister on my right hand and every swing was painful. We took a break after 9, had a San Miguel beer, applied a band-aid, and went back out. Played far better after that. Started to crank the ball off the tee – using my 3-wood, my go-to club – and my putting calmed down. Still sucked with the middle game, i.e. the wedges, but that’s true to form. Even birdied a hole – really surprised Mr. De La Cruz, who plays twice a week. I managed to get through 18 holes and enjoy myself. I always have a bit of trepidation at the start of a game – playing 18 holes takes 4-5 hours, a length of time I’m generally loathe to commit to. And my crappy golf skills don’t exactly help. But things almost always get better after a few holes and I can put together a series of decent swings. And I have to admit that it’s a nice way to break up the week, you can’t do much on the course besides talk and play. The mobile can intrude, but at some point you’ve gotta put it down and swing your clubs. I really should try to play more often, I’d probably develop my game pretty well…and I’ve gotta say that it’s nice to have a caddy and the course pretty much to yourself…

A few shots from the day on the links:

But it’s getting time to depart Manila for other shores. I’m starting to go native here and I need to shake free. Am heading on Monday to Puerto Galera, a diving hotspot which I’ve never visited. Supposed to be some fantastic wall dives, caves, and fishies thereabouts. After that, a week in Boracay – another place I’ve never been. Easter Week in Boracay – that sounds about right. And then on to the Cebu region, where the possibilities are endless. Should make all the travel agent bickering well worth it.

Let me end with a few thoughts on the Holocaust musings from last entry. Reader Johann had the following reaction:

‘Your views on the Holocaust and revenge lead me to pose the following questions – is there a statute of limitations on using history as justification for current violence (Serbs vs. Bosnians)? Should there be a number below which future revenge is unacceptable (Jews in Holocaust vs. Arabs in Gaza / West Bank)? And which side gets to take revenge on whom (Muslims vs. Hindus). To quote M.K. Gandhi, an eye for an eye only makes the world blind – that’s the saintly view. I prefer to take the following tack – living well is the best revenge.’

I like the bit on living well – that hits home for me. As for a statute of limitations…in my opinion the only factor there is the memories of people involved, or indirectly affected. A Japanese bartender once asked me when the Chinese and Koreans would stop bringing up Japan’s WW2 behavior. My response was: ‘when all the participants are dead.’ But even that’s not right. We Jews still talk about escaping our Egyptian oppressors from 2000+ years ago. It would be nice – and incredibly naïve – to put the past behind and start afresh…something that many of us (including myself, obviously, as I was the one kicking off this debate) are incapable of doing.

I do think that the world is making progress, in fits and starts, with racial and ethnic equality. But time does funny things to us…I once read a recap of a book called After Dachau, the premise of which was that, 5000 years after WW2, the world has become a completely Aryan place and WW2 is naturally far in the rearview mirror. Some tales survive from those ancient days – one is that the Germans defeated their old enemies the Jews at Dachau in A.D. 1945. Later on, Germany developed the A-bomb and forced the U.S. to sue for peace. And now, 3000 years later, people remember Dachau as a real battle where the German Army defeated the Jewish Army once and for all. Not as a death-camp where Jews were gassed by Nazis. Chilling stuff. Haven’t read the book, but it’s on my list and you might want to pick it up. Makes me wonder what bullshit we now believe from 5000 years ago. History is rarely objective. Egyptian oppressors…hmmm….

See you next week.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 21st, 2007 at 11:26 pm and is filed under Travel. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.