It was the eve of our month-long tri-country trip with our toddler—our first out of the country with the kid. There was still hesitation within me, knowing how hard this trip would probably be—our son being at the peak of his Energizer Bunny phase. But crossing fingers, we are indeed pushing ahead with Backpacking With A Kid 2023.

“Tatay, I thought we’re gonna ride an airplane? Why are we on a bus?” So went my two-year old son as we rode Cebu Pacific Air’s bus across the airport tarmac en route to our plane. It was A’s first time to ride one. And it was also his first time to really travel—being born just before the pandemic hit.

Fire! Out! Out! Out! We were herded outside J.J. Sports Bar Paranaque, not because the building was about to be razed, but because… Oh well, okay, there is indeed a fire, a fire dancer to be exact, waiting outside to twirl and spit fire to the ooohs and aaahs of the bar regulars. We all stood mesmerized by the performance as fiery streaks of light bloomed through one of Airport Road’s side streets. It was one of my favorite bars’ first anniversary, and it was turning out to be a hot one!

IT’S A PARTY AT JJ’S SPORTS BAR PARANAQUE!

DADA & VEICKA, EGGING J.J.’S CROWD

We arrived at J.J. Sports Bar at around nine in the evening. It was a Saturday and the place was packed to the rafters. People were already having a good time but the night was still young. Hoots mixed with laughter rang throughout the first floor area as the tandem of Dada & Veicka tickled the crowd’s funny bones.

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Guitar chords jangle through the room as I lifted a bottle of cold Red Horse beer to my mouth. The notes progressed into a verse and the crowd started to clap and cheer. It was almost nine in the evening and I was at the second floor of a posh bar somewhere along Parañaque City’s Airport Road, J.J. Sports Bar.

NEW COCKTAILS AT J. J. SPORTS BAR PARANAQUE

Craving for plate of classic tapsilog from Maty’s, my feet led me to the streets of Parañaque City once more. It was a long way from where I live but I simply have to sate my cravings before it drives me mad. It has been years since I’ve had it.

With nothing else to do right after, I decided to check out J.J. Sports Bar, a restobar I visited a few months back when I arrived too early at the NAIA Terminal 4 for a flight. My timing was spot on, it seems they’ve got something new up their sleeves, an acoustic night!

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A display cabinet filled with boxing, football, racing, and basketball mementos—some even signed by their respective sport heroes—stands right at the heart of a sports bar at one of the unlikeliest places in Parañaque City.

I was invited to cover this bar’s opening, which was graced by not a few PBA basketball stars, but I was on the northern part of the country, busy revisiting Vigan City. A few weeks after, en route to Terminal One of the Manila International Airport for a flight outside the country, I decided to visit the bar rather than wait at the airport and see what the fuss was about.

I kept waiting for a guard to approach me, ask me what I was doing, tell me that photography inside the church is not allowed and escort me outside.

I was attending a photowalk at Cavite and decided to pass by the Redemptorist Church in Baclaran before proceeding to the rendezvous point at the Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo Shrine. I used to pass this church a lot when I come home from the south end of the Metro and I’m always intrigued by its seemingly unconventional church facade.

Maty’s Tapsilog is a favorite among those living in the southern part of the Metro. This 24-hour carinderia tapsihan joint in Don Galo, Parañaque has been the king of tapsilog in the area since time immemorial.

I first heard about this place from a good friend from Las Piñas some years back. I was on my way home and she told me we should check a place out somewhere along Don Galo for some good old tapsilog. Always ready for a plate of tapsi, I readily agreed. I have been a fan ever since. 

Maty’s has three branches; they’re all on the same strip and just a few meters from each other. The reason for such arrangement has been a mystery to me up to now. If anyone has any idea why, do let me know.

Off the southbound lane of Parañaque’s Coastal Road is a small fishing village that makes it means via the polluted waters of Manila Bay.

I have passed through this strip of coast countless times, plying my way to and from Manila years back.

And every time, I make it a point to sit near the window, the sea within sight. I wanted to see the bay as my bus speeds along the highway.