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Friday, February 20, 2004
The Valentine Affair
By Jojie Alcantara
IT'S always fascinating when a special holiday is being celebrated in town. Take Christmas, for example. Suddenly, you see droves of people flock to the malls and streets, as if they suddenly materialized out of nowhere.
They create havoc, traffic, body heat, and more importantly, festivity in the air. That's when you feel it is a special occasion.
The same is true for Valentine's Day. While the 13th of February is already abuzz with excitement and events (a Valentine countdown at Matina Town Square, a concert at the Summit, etc.), you can truly sing the famous lines, "Love is in the air."
While the malls are crowded with people doing their last minute gifts from the heart on February 14, lodging houses, motels, inns and cinemas are crammed with couples, too. Dabawenyos aren't also afraid of wearing red on this day, despite teasing stares.
On the other hand, sales of flower shops reached peak levels as even the imported long-stemmed Columbian roses that sell for P300 each are almost sold out.
The nightlife is even better. Every outlet has a gimmick and each bar is faring well on a clear bright night. Armed with a cam, we decided on checking out the line of hangouts along V. Mapa road (because this is where I used to live and back then, it was a dead spot with nowhere to go chilling) and got a pleasant surprise.
The Venue compound is well lit and filled with people dressed fashionably for this special night. A band was playing under the giant umbrella. Chairs and tables were all occupied.
Inside the Venue, meanwhile, acoustic crooner Nyoy Volante set ladies heart a-throbbing with his soulful renditions of lovesongs, which he started off with the melancholy "ALL MY LIFE".
This elicited screams and sighs from the women. It was hard to maneuver your way through the thick crowd in order to reach the stage and get a good close up of Nyoy with his guitar and hypnotic voice.
Walking across from the Central Bank Auditorium, the bars are hot and heavy with regulars filling seats by the roadside.
There is Indiane, Angel's and Tricks, somewhat imitating a Malate-like atmosphere where you stroll into a residential area lined with small outlets, cool for hanging out. Music blared through each open place.
The last stop, further across the road, is the popular Cafe Jacinto, once a simple carenderia, which became one of the pioneers to visualize Mapa road as a potential landmark for a party joint. And indeed, on a red-letter day, trust the place to be brimming with customers, too.
If everyday is a red-letter day, though, think how fun and profitable it would be for Davao watering holes which go by the rule of the 2 a.m. curfew.
(February 20, 2004 issue)
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