It was one of those weekends when I got the urge to revisit some old routes that I’ve not been to for quite a while. This time I thought of running along Manila Bay via Roxas Blvd. from Quiapo, Manila to the SM Mall of Asia, Pasay City.
This tour includes a magnificent view of the sunset at Manila Bay!
It has been a long time since I was running on the road and since I had no race or group runs for the weekend I decided to do one of the routes I’ve long wanted to do: traverse Metro Manila from East to West. Like my first road run along EDSA which followed MRT-3 this long run followed the route of LRT-2 closely except that I skipped the first station (Santolan) which was a bit off my route, and it didn’t follow the tracks to the service line but instead included the original LRT-1 route for some distance.
This run was supposed to start early Sunday morning but early morning rains ruined my plans so I decided to use the rainy weather to my advantage and defer it for another afternoon run. Unfortunately with this change of plan and time constraints I had to cut my route by a few kilometers from the original target of SM Mall of Asia to UP Manila. Nonetheless it was slightly compensated by starting in Commonwealth Market instead of the original Ylanan Gate of UP Diliman.
2:58PM I started my long run adjacent to Commonwealth Ave. This would be an exceptional time to start a run which was only made possible by the very cloudy weather. I had a little difficulty starting this run because of strong winds that blew against me so you may think of it as a unique challenge.
To make this route more interesting I also included one of my newly discovered routes, Zuzuaregi, to get to Katipunan Ave. and from there it was straight towards Katipunan Station of LRT-2.
.jpg "LRT-2 goes below ground towards Katipunan Ave.")
LRT-2 goes below ground towards Katipunan Ave.
Following LRT-2 via Aurora Blvd. was interesting but immediately I realized that it wasn’t easy—sidewalks were ample but the problem was the air quality. It was very difficult to breathe along Aurora Blvd. because of the huge traffic that goes on this narrow road. Then there was Cubao—people traffic was a concern so running was virtually impossible.
.jpg "Crowded Aurora Blvd. below Cubao Station of LRT-2")
Crowded Aurora Blvd. below Cubao Station of LRT-2
Cubao is a highly developed urban area in Quezon City and with so many structures covering the road there’s hardly any sky in the area of Aurora Blvd. in front of Gateway Mall and as a consequence there’s no GPS signal in the area. I was only able to restore my GPS signal after the Cubao Station of LRT-2.
.jpg "A common sight in Aurora Blvd. are jeepneys known as “patok.” These jeepneys are not for the faint of heart.")
A common sight in Aurora Blvd. are jeepneys known as “patok.” These jeepneys are not for the faint of heart.
.jpg "After the crowd and traffic of Cubao Proper Aurora Blvd. which leads to…")
After the crowd and traffic of Cubao Proper Aurora Blvd. which leads to…
.jpg "…the infamous Balete Drive")
…the infamous Balete Drive
.jpg "Gilmore—the best place to buy gadgets in the Metro")
Gilmore—the best place to buy gadgets in the Metro
After a few meters from Gilmore I enter San Juan where there are hardly any changes. After San Juan I re-enter Quezon City where most of the changes in the route occurred.
.jpg "One of the newest landmarks of Sta. Mesa (Quezon City) is the Mezza Residences (with a passing LRT-2 train below) which could probably be one of the tallest residential buildings in the country…")
One of the newest landmarks of Sta. Mesa (Quezon City) is the Mezza Residences (with a passing LRT-2 train below) which is one of the tallest residential buildings in the country…
.jpg "…which is just across SM City Sta. Mesa (still in Quezon City), one of the oldest SM malls")
…which is just across SM City Sta. Mesa (still in Quezon City), one of the oldest SM malls
Just after SM City Sta. Mesa is the border with the City of Manila. Sta. Mesa, Manila is close to my heart as it was a second home for me for about 10 years. Here Aurora Blvd. ends and continues to Ramon Magsaysay Blvd. This segment of the route from Cubao brings back a lot of memories as I used to pass through here, riding a “patok,” everyday during my College days.
.jpg "A typical LRT-2 train which looks a lot like those seen abroad")
A typical LRT-2 train which looks a lot like those seen abroad
.jpg "The new trains of PNR—looking a lot more like an LRT train")
The new trains of PNR—looking a lot more like an LRT train
.jpg "The very busy intersection of Nagtahan")
The very busy intersection of Nagtahan
Eventually I reached the very busy Recto Ave. Even on a Sunday there are so many people here reminding you that indeed you are in the City of Manila—the densest city in the Metro. To be honest I was afraid to run in this area because I might look like I was running away from something.
.jpg "LRT-2 Recto Ave. Terminal Station")
LRT-2 Recto Ave. Terminal Station
.jpg "LRT-2 service tracks crosses the LRT-1 line")
LRT-2 service tracks crosses the LRT-1 line
For some distance I was able to follow LRT-1 and amazingly my GF405 was able to track my location (to a certain extent) despite the limited GPS reception in the area. Unless you ran on Rizal Ave. itself you’re basically running indoors in this area. Finally after Carriedo Station (Quiapo) of LRT-1 I can see the sky again.
.jpg "Finally a view of the sky")
Finally a view of the sky
.jpg "Crossing Pasig River (can you see how dirty the air was?)")
Crossing Pasig River (can you see how dirty the air was?)
.jpg "The Post Office Building as seen from Pasig River")
The Post Office Building as seen from Pasig River
.jpg "View from the front")
View from the front
.jpg "The newly re-painted clock tower of Manila City Hall")
The newly re-painted clock tower of Manila City Hall
From Manila City Hall it was the typical Roxas Blvd. route for me and like I mentioned earlier I ended this long run near UP Manila via Padre Faura, 23K in total distance, 1,400 calories burned. Here’s the complete route:
My Route
It was more difficult than I expected (humidity, air pollution, very bad sidewalks, people and vehicle traffic) and I wasn’t able to maintain a decent speed throughout this route (“pic-stops” and walking)—but it was worth it! Despite gobbling up more dirty air than all my previous road runs I was able to revisit routes that I no longer pass through and my dream of “traversing” Metro Manila from East to West was now a reality. Frankly I don’t think I’ll be doing a re-run of this route but for those who’d like to give it a try you have my full support! I hope you had a great weekend as well, run safe!
