Motorcycle taxis aren't for everyone. Not everyone opts to travel through ride-hailing apps for personal reasons (and that's totally okay). But these days, we can't really deny the fact that most of us commuters turn to these motorcycle taxis for a faster means of traveling—even Miss Universe 2022 R'Bonney Gabriel says so!
In a series of Instagram videos, the beauty queen posted about her experience using a motorcycle taxi, or in colloquial terms, habal-habal or angkas. However, of course, there are pros and cons to it.
Since there's massive traffic literally anywhere in Metro Manila, especially if it's rush hour, R'Bonney opted for the easier and quicker means of getting to her destination: to ride a motorcycle. She mentioned in her video, "When you refuse to spend 2.5 hours in the car with the traffic but now you have to worry about the upcoming four-way intersection with no light, everyone ignoring the lane markings, and making it home before it rains."
The 30-year-old beauty queen also posed a humorous but also Very Real Question from most commuters, "And do the honks mean 'hello?' or move out of the way???" LOL, we want answers too.
R'Bonney's statement isn't wrong though. Anyone who's tried riding a motorcycle taxi could definitely relate to it. The beauty queen's angkas experience didn't just end with her worrying so much about a lot of things while traveling. It also rained while R'Bonney was having her motorcycle ride!
In another video, R'Bonney said: "When you wanted a full bike ride experience but you didn't know that included an outdoor shower." LOL! Her caption to the post also read, "It was this or sit in the car for 3 hours [insert crying emoji] #manila #angkas #diaryofaFilAm"
R'Bonney, surprised with the rain, still had the energy to film her reaction, and as someone who rarely uses motorcycle rides like this, she did well coping with the situation.
Her fans and IG followers were very supportive of the beauty queen, who has been staying in Manila for a while. She has been in the country doing several projects with brands and also getting inspired and gaining more knowledge for her upcoming clothing designs.
One comment read, "'THE COOLEST' MISS UNIVERSE." Others were also in awe of how R'Bonney connected well with ordinary Filipino citizens. "The way you exhibit our daily life. So humble and relatable."
Like we've said in the beginning, riding a motorcycle like how R'Bonney did may not be for everyone. Another online citizen commented on R'Bonney's video post expressing how she found R'Bonney's adventurous spirit inspiring and heartwarming for Pinoys.
"Shame on me, I haven't tried [insert ride-hailing apps here]. Yes, R'Bonney is really impressive with her courage and adventurous spirit. For an international beauty queen to ride, it shows her openness to new experiences and her appreciation for the local culture. It's heartwarming to see these moments because it makes her even closer to Filipinos," the follower said.
R'Bonney Gabriel's Manila Experiencee
This is not the first time that R'Bonney shared a mundane moment with the public. Actually, scrolling through her Instagram feed, she's not someone who shies away from doing new things that would make her explore more of her Filipino roots. Even if it involves the simplest things like cooking Filipino food (she cooked sinigang and also ate balut!) and the staple: riding a jeepney.
The Miss Universe 2022 titleholder rode the traditional jeepney and also uploaded an amusing video of her onboard with the caption, "When you're terrified there's no seatbelt in the jeepney and you don't know what's your stop so you just accept your fate." It was such an unusual scene to witness: a Fil-Am beauty queen riding a jeepney while still looking so fresh!
Pinoys also got really witty and playful with their comments. Some made comments about how R'Bonney would ask the jeepney to stop a.k.a how R'Bonney would tell the driver, "Para po." After all, it's been an existing quirky discussion on what's the most accurate English translation of, "Para po."
A netizen implied that R'Bonney could shout, "Kuya, end me here!" so she could alight from her ride. Another commented, "Kuya decrease me there," when they probably meant, "Ibaba mo ako rito." Lmao!
We think we still haven't got the answer to it, but we're just glad that R'Bonney continues to try new things in the Philippines! Take care, queen!
