Last time I introduced some of Philippine’s best vacation spot. The places that I listed weren’t even half of what you can see in the Philippines. Since I already started introducing about my country, I decided to write more about it. This time, I will share about the common (but unique) transportations you will see only in the Philippines.
Jeepneys are the common and popular transportation in the Philippines. Honestly, these jeepneys were originally given or sold by the American troops to the Filipinos after World War II. To accommodate more passengers, they made it 2 meters longer and putting two long seats, one on each side from the front to the back. It is manned by two people, a driver and a conductor; the conductor manages the passengers and takes the fare collection. Originally, jeepneys don't have air-conditioning; instead it has 2 long windows on the side and run by a gasoline. Bu, these past few years, Filipinos started using LPG and electrical jeepneys; both are cheaper and environment friendly.
Tricycle is a motorcycle with a sidecar which will be the passenger’s cabin. This is the most popular means of transport in small towns and cities, especially in the rural areas. They are also known as auto-rickshaw. Commonly, tricycles contain 5 passengers, 3 on the side car and 2 passengers at the back of the passenger. Some tricycles utilizes even the back of the sidecar that can already accommodate up to 7 passengers. Same with jeepneys, some tricycles were already converted to electrical tricycles; cheap and environment friendly.
regular tricycle
7 passenger tricycle
Pedicab,unlike tricycle, uses vinyl-covered sidecar mounted to a bike. Pedicabs are useful for carrying cargo that is too heavy to hand-carry, or the journey is too congested for motor transport. Like a bicycle rickshaw, this form of transportation is powered by human pedal power. Pedicabs are particularly welcomed on a hot day when the jeepney drops you blocks from your destination. Along with the jeepney and the tricycle, the open air of the pedicab provides pleasant relief from the heat.
Kalesa (calesa) is a horse drawn calash (carriage) introduced by the Spaniards. A kalesa looks like an inclined cart. It has two round wheels on each side and two rows of seats that can accommodate four persons. The driver sits on a block of wood located at the front of the cart near the horse. Among all this kind of rides, this is my favorite of them all. It’s really fun to ride especially when you are the driver. Unfortunately, kalesa’s can now rarely be seen in the cities but some provinces still preserve this and made it part in the history of that province.
Jeepneys and Kalesa are looks fancy and I can say it could work (be more useable) for the tourists to show them nice places and attractions. Something similar to Kalesa we have at the Griffic Park, Glendale. Sometimes I take my kids there for a horse and a train rides, they love to go there.