Business Is Not As Usual - A Wednesday Walk Contribution

This is my contribution to the #wednesdaywalk Challenge this week hosted by @tattoodjay. If you have not heard about this initiative or would want to know more about it simply click on the link here and share your Wednesday walk with all the other members of our community all across the globe. Don't miss out on this.

For this Wednesday I would like to share some pictures I took while waiting for my wife to finish her groceries for the week. The supermarket where we went is located downtown. Now under the ECQ (Enhanced Community Quarantine) rules only one per household is allowed to shop for groceries. So my wife went in while I parked and waited for her. While waiting I did a little walk and took some pictures along the way.

The photo below is the Apo View Hotel, one of the oldest hotels in our city.

From a modest 15-room lodging facility made mostly of wood in 1948, it went through a series of renovations and changes in ownership over the years. It is now has 185 rooms and is being managed by Icon Hotel, an affiliate of Global Comfort Group Corporation.

One of the hardest hit businesses in our city, and I guess all over the world for that matter, is the hotel business. With people quarantined and foreign travel mostly banned, there are hardly any guests booking and staying in these places. Well the Apo View is not exempt from this crisis.

Notice how there is hardly anyone seen in the entrance of the hotel and even the parking lot. Before the pandemic, this area is just full of vehicles, cars, delivery trucks and shuttle services going in and out of the hotel. Finding a parking space in this area was a nightmare. How long this hotel can hold on is anyone's guess.

Across the hotel, is another business that's been affected by the pandemic, the Ducati showroom. For those not in the know, Ducati is a famous and expensive motorcycle brand made in Italy. Picture below shows the Ducati frontage with the Apo View Hotel reflected in the glass enclosure.

Here's another shot of the Ducati showroom.

And right beside the Ducati store is another high end motorcycle showroom, the KTM brand. KTM is another pricey bike of Austrian make and is known for its off-road motorcycles.

A few meters from the Ducati shop and also across the street from Apo View Hotel is this old and majestic mango tree, growing right along the street beside a house converted into a restaurant.

A shot of the top of this mango tree shows that the house was built around the tree in order that the owner did not have to cut it down. Notice also how the tree top has been pruned and trimmed in order to avoid disturbing the electric lines going through the street.

And finally, the photo below is the facade of one of my favorite restaurants here in the city famous for its "Tokwa't Baboy", this means tofu and pork in our vernacular, and eaten with rice porridge or what is called "congee" in Chinese restaurants. It's just a few meters away from the KTM showroom. It is allowed to operate but no dine-in's. Only take out or to-go. They offer delivery services though.

That's it for this edition of my Wednesday Walk. I'd like to thank you for visiting my blog and sharing this walk with me. Although it appears bleak at the moment, things are about to look up as we expect our Enhanced Community Quarantine downgraded to General Community Quarantine which will allow these shops to open and do regular business again. Perhaps we can now expect some local tourists or businessmen coming in and jump starting the hotel business. At the moment all we can do is hope and do our part in curbing the pandemic. Stay home, wear a mask and observe social distancing if you have to leave home, and always wash or sanitize your hands. Have a blessed day!

(All photos are mine.)