Commuter Notes: Masinag to Eastwood, Libis

This is the beginning of a series of notes on how to get from one place to another purely by commuting, not including commuting by taxi. Here I begin to outline my usual commute from Masinag junction, going to Eastwood.

There are many ways to get to Eastwood from Masinag. I'm going to show you one way, my preferred way.

First, take a jeep at Masinag junction. The jeep's signage should read Marikina Sumulong or Marikina Palengke. 

Map: Masinag Junction

Masinag Junction

Take this jeep all the way to its terminal at Marikina sports center. Walk along the sidewalk of the entrance to the sports center until you reach the corner where 7-11 is. You will see jeeps and a line of commuters (especially in the morning from 6am-8am), waiting for the jeep to take them to Pasig. Ride the jeep to Pasig palengke, or San Joaquin, or Rosario tulay.

Map: Marikina Sports Center

Corner of Shoe avenue, 7-11

People lining up at jeep terminal

Jeep signages: Pasig palenke, San Joaquin

Tell the driver to drop you off at C-5. On weekday mornings, this intersection gets congested a lot.

Map: Intersection, A. Rodriguez Ave. and Caruncho Rd--to C-5

From the intersection, find your way to Caruncho road. Keep walking until you see a line of red tricycles. They will take you to Eastwood or at the end of Industria street, where you will find yourself on C-5.

Tricycle terminal along Caruncho Rd.

To go directly to Eastwood, it's best to get off at Economia street. You can either walk or if all passengers on the trike are going to Eastwood, then you'd be taken all the way to Economia Street.

Map: Economia Steet

Where the trikes drop you off, Economia Street

Another alternative is to get off near the corner of Industria and  C-5. Walk along C-5 until you get to the C-5 entrance to Eastwood.

Map: Corner of Industria and C-5

Intersection opened, C-5, Industria street

Walking along C-5 to Eastwood city

Entrance to Eastwood from C-5

So this is the usual route I take. The advantages are:

1. All transport points are terminals, such as the Marikina drop and Caruncho drop. 

2. Transport fare is affordable. You only need Php30 to complete te entire route.

The disadvantages are:

1. Rush hour is really bad (I'd say in any route). But the route presented is the best way to avoid the congestion and riding problems along Marcos Highway. 

2. It does involve a lot of rides but 3 rides will guarantee that you could get there on time.

And there are many other ways to get where you wish to go. I'll share some of these notes too and hopefully you'd find them useful. Until next time.

Four Malls, Four Cities, One Highway (Marcos Highway)

The Commuter is back. Well, I wasn't really gone. My mini-adventures within NCR didn't stop. I did realize that despite my absence, the blog is still being read. Today, I'd like to share my mall hopping experience. Mind you, I didn't do all these trips in one day. The four malls are the ones  that are easily accessible to those who live near the vicinity of one of the busiest highways in the country--Marcos Highway.

Marcos Highway, in front of Robinsons Metro East; now cleared of the repairs and renovation

Last year, Marcos Highway was riddled with repairs and renovation (see blog Capture It! The Price of Progress). Now with the repairs all finished, it's the perfect spot for malls to thrive. And the highway cuts across four different cities, namely Antipolo, Cainta, Pasig, and Marikina. Residents of these areas wouldn't need to go so far to hang out in a mall when there are four malls easily accessible through this highway. Here, I give only general descriptions of what's inside these malls.

SM City Masinag (Antipolo City)

From the bridge way, sun setting at this time

Among the four malls, this is the newest that has opened. Located in Barangay Mayamot, Antipolo City, the mall is conveniently located close to the Masinag junction where terminals, a supermarket, a wet and dry market, as well as convenient stores make this area one of the busiest places. Just a few walks down from the junction, SM City Masinag is the mall that caters to those who live within Barangay Mayamot as well as other barangays close by such as Mambugan and Cupang.

The mall has three levels. On the third level are four cinemas and among the four malls, this one offers one of the cheapest theater rates. The mall has a variety of shops on the first and second level. The first level is filled with various types of restaurants and eateries such as fast food, casual diners / restaurants, bake shops, and dessert kiosks. More food choices and varieties are also found in the second level and the Food Court which is on the third level of the mall, next to the cinemas.

Bookstores, hardware stores, appliance stores, pharmacy, health and beauty, and a host of services (driving institute, beauty salons, courier services, laundry service), make this mall an all-in-one convenient shopping place. This mall also boasts of housing one of the biggest supermarkets in the area. Located on the eastern section of the mall, it is housed in its own building.

Sta. Lucia East Grand Mall (Cainta)

The original mall, along Marcos Highway

From the newest mall, we go to the oldest mall and the first that was ever built along Marcos Highway--Sta. Lucia East Grand Mall. The mall has undergone two extension phases. The original mall can be seen easily from the highway. As the years passed, its developers decided to add sections and eventually a bigger building that now houses the Grand Mall.

At the Grand Mall, the cinemas (after its renovation) are the only ones that still have a separate pricing for the upper and lower section of the cinema. Catching up with its newer counterparts, it also has a 3D and 2D theater. If you feel like having a coffee break after the movie, Figaro is conveniently located within the vicinity of the cinema section. On the same floor, one could move on to the mall's recreational center--World's of Fun. Snack time is a breeze in this area too with a host of snack kiosks surrounding the place.

The department store has three levels. Stepping out of the department store, one can have more shopping choices with two levels housing a variety of shops and boutiques. There are two appliance centers in the mall--one located on the second level and the other located on the mall's lower ground floor or basement.

The basement is busy as a bee with a flea market (Tiangge) offering easy to afford goods and services. The mall's food court is also located here. And this area has a huge empty space that serves as an atrium where concerts, variety shows, and holy masses are being held. The lower ground floor also houses the mall's supermarket. In time, it also constructed a smaller but still complete supermarket at the older Sta. Lucia mall.

Robinsons Metro East (Pasig City)

Newly renovated Robinsons Metro East

If you really want to mall hop, there's no other place to conveniently do it than here. Literally located beside Sta. Lucia, a walk around the corner will take you to the mall's landscaped walkway. Newly renovated, the mall was redesigned to house newer restos and shopping boutiques. Fitness buffs thrive in this mall with the presence of Fitness First. The cinemas were also renovated and now have 2D and 3D theaters. The fourth floor houses the recreational center, the cinemas, and church communities.

The department store is at the middle of the mall and is housed in two levels. The third level houses the hardware, the fitness and health centers, and the cyber section of the mall. The upper and lower ground levels house various types of restaurants, diners, and fast food chains. A bookstore, clothing boutiques, a video and DVD shop, and the chains of food stores make the upper ground level a place that's filled with shoppers and diners.

The supermarket is located on the lower ground level. It's well lighted area and wide spaced aisle make it a relaxing place to do your groceries.

SM City Marikina (Marikina City)

Captured from the platform of LRT-2 while I was waiting for the train; the sky is clear and the clouds are puffy

This is the mall located beside the riverbanks of Marikina River. Going there is quite easy via jeepney. It is also walking distance from the Santolan station of LRT-2, the purple train.

The mall is divided into three levels. The topmost level houses eight cinemas and the recreational center. The second level houses a variety of shopping boutiques and restaurants. It also houses the department store. The first level houses SM Cyberzone, and a host of diners and fast food chains. This is also the level where the supermarket is located. It is one of the biggest in terms of floor area. On a non-crowded day, the wide space and aisle make it quite a relaxing place to walk around and do your groceries. If you happen to get hungry right after shopping, then there are several food kiosks located just outside the supermarket.

There you have the ultimate mall hopping experience: four malls, four cities, one highway.

Capture It! Scenic Views from LRT-2 Platform

Continuing our journey from that traffic-ridden area of Marcos Highway (see blog post, June 11), I was on my way to LRT-3, fondly called the purple train. It's quite a walk from the jeepney stop all the way to the platform itself. You have to climb and cross the pedestrian overpass, go down and enter the main lobby of the terminal, line up to purchase your ticket, climb or hopefully catch a ride at a moving escalator, then finally, this scene welcomes you.

Underneath beautiful, cumulus clouds is the busy, busy highway that is Marcos Highway. While we see a row of green trees separating the two lanes of the highway, we see the signs of progress: the busy traffic, the factories and other establishments nearby, and if you notice a little further off, you'd see SM City Marikina. Well, the train tracks seem to be an eyesore in all this. Let's take a 180-degree turn and see what's on the other side.

This is the skyline of Eastwood City, Libis, Quezon City. We're seeing this from the platform at Santolan station. Look at all that cluster of buildings, which somehow forms the background of the lower buildings you see here. If you notice the purple building on the left side of the picture, that is part of the garage where the trains cool off, recharge and are maintained. The other buildings are mostly factories. But it's nice to see that there are green trees surrounding the area.

Well, my train's here! Where will my next stop be? Well, find out in my next blog! This is Antipolo commuter...boarding the train!

The Buzz at Masinag Junction

Here we are! After that ride to Marikina, we tell the driver to drop us off at Masinag. This place is a busy intersection. This is where the two major highways meet: Sumulong Highway (which we talked about in my previous blog) and Marcos Highway. Let's cross the street at the pedestrian lane and go to the other side.

 

Okay, now were on the other side. From here, you could see the reason why this place is called Masinag--the Masinag Wet Market has been around since my family moved to Antipolo. We are at the lower part of Antipolo--Baranggay Mayamot. We're still far from Antipolo proper. This also became a buffer zone for commuters from Cogeo, Marikina, Padilla, and Antipolo. There are terminals here formed by various transport groups. Some commercial establishments make it a very busy district, such as pawnshops, drugstores, hair salons, fast food chains like Jollibee and McDonalds, and convenient stores like 7-11.

Super 8 is a supermarket just across the Masinag wet market. This is also the reason why this area is heavily flocked by lots of people. You have choice between buying your goods in the supermarket or the wet market. In both places, you'd have lots of food stalls and kiosks that serve snacks and light meals: dimsum, siopao, siomai, noodles, fish crackers, kakanin (various types of native delicacies made of sticky rice), pizza, and a whole lot more. This road we see is already Marcos Highway.

 Marcos Highway is currently undergoing some serious improvements and construction. That is also the reason why traffic has been quite heavy in this area. A series of road widening projects and installation of new water pipes are all in preparation for what I think is another major transportation project.

And that is the buzz at the Masinag junction. We'll be walking down this road--yes, this highway with all the construction and stuff. Not to worry though, we'll tread carefully. After all, it is a Sunday, which is the best way to have a walk along this highway where the traffic is light. Again, not to worry...the Antipolo commuter will be with you. Ciao!

Sumulong Highway: Just a Neighborhood Walk

I've lived in Antipolo for 20 years. This highway is familiar to all who live there. Yes, believe it or not, this is a highway, consisting of only two lanes which doesn't seem much. Yet, the volume of traffic here does have its usual rush hour peaks. This is Sumulong Highway, a few meters from where I live, just outside of the subdivision. It is a Sunday morning and I saw it as the perfect time to take a picture of it. These vehicles headed my way are heading towards Antipolo proper. There are many establishments and factories here. See those coconut trees across the road? Behind those trees is Otto Shoes Factory and Factory Outlet. When you live in this area, buying a good pair of shoes is just a matter of crossing the highway.

Turning 180 degrees to my right, this is the opposite side of the picture I've taken earlier. That jeep is heading towards Marikina City. Sumulong Highway connects Antipolo to Marikina. Across the street, you can see a typical sari-sari store, which is also a canteen. You could also see a view of the mountains from here. Let's see if we could capture it.

Well, I did try! I was trying to get a closer view of the blue skies and the mountains. It was a beautiful day that morning. It wasn't hot nor cold. These clear blue skies are a welcoming sight.

Traveling along Sumulong Highway, you could see a beautiful view of the Metro Manila. From where I was standing, it was quite difficult because a lot of subdivisions have been developed along this busy Antipolo highway: Valley Golf, Kingsville, La Colina, and Francisville to name a few. This picture was taken from the highway, from the entrance of a subdivision. And there are the blue skies again.

My focus was literally on the road or highway itself. This is where I usually take a ride towards another highway that's even busier than the one you've just seen. This highway intersects Sumulong and that area forms a commercial junction. More on this when we get to that junction. This is the starting point of a neighborhood walk. For now, let's take ride...yes, on the jeep that you saw earlier, going to Marikina. We're gonna commute and you'll join me, the Antipolo commuter. Now let's hurry and cross the street, but watch both sides first!