PINOY Observer

Russia vs Bangladesh

𝗗𝗢 𝗬𝗢𝗨 𝗟𝗜𝗩𝗘 𝗔𝗟𝗢𝗡𝗚 𝗠𝗨𝗡𝗧𝗜𝗣𝗔𝗥𝗟𝗔𝗦𝗣𝗜𝗭𝗔𝗣? 🌊

Many celebrate the feast of St. John the Baptist (June 24) by bathing in waterbodies or getting wet. In celebration of his feast, let's once again take a glance at Metro Manila's three major river systems flowing through the heart of this bustling metropolitan.

The 𝗠𝗔𝗡𝗔𝗧𝗨𝗧𝗜 (Malabon-Navotas-Tullahan-Tinajeros) River System drains the northern region of Metro Manila, starting from Quezon City’s La Mesa Water Reservoir and stretching around 27.145 km through CAMANAVA and into Manila Bay.

The 𝗣𝗔𝗠𝗔𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗔𝗡 (Pasig-Marikina-San Juan) River System, covering 54.077 km, drains central Metro Manila and links to both the Upper Marikina River System the Laguna de Bay, and Manila Bay, crossing major cities like Pasig, Marikina, and Manila. This is perhaps the most famous and historical of the three.

Just as how long its name is, the 𝗠𝗨𝗡𝗧𝗜𝗣𝗔𝗥𝗟𝗔𝗦𝗣𝗜𝗭𝗔𝗣 (Muntinlupa-Parañaque-Las Piñas-Zapote) river system, is the longest in Metro Manila which runs 102.745 km and runs through southern cities, acting as a natural boundary between Metro Manila and Region 4A.

Once vital lifelines, Metro Manila's river systems once supported livelihoods and provided essential resources. However, as the city's population grew, urbanization took its toll. Many waterways were neglected and turned into dumping grounds, with rivers like the once-majestic Pasig River falling into decay.

𝗦𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗥𝗘 𝗧𝗛𝗨𝗡𝗗𝗘𝗥𝗦𝗧𝗢𝗥𝗠 𝗢𝗩𝗘𝗥 𝗠𝗘𝗧𝗥𝗢 𝗠𝗔𝗡𝗜𝗟𝗔⛈️ Intense (matinding) hanggang sa Torrential (buhos na ulan) ang nararanasan ngayon sa iba't ibang bahagi ng Metro Manila at mga karatig na lugar dahil sa thunderstorm na kaakibat ng #habagat. ⚠️ Bagamat kadalasang nagtatagal lamang ng 1-2 oras ang mga thunderstorm, ang matinding buhos ng ulan ay maaaring magpabaha sa mga lugar na madalas nakakaranas nito. Ingat po!

𝗧𝗥𝗨𝗘 𝗦𝗜𝗭𝗘 𝗢𝗙 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗣𝗛𝗜𝗟𝗜𝗣𝗣𝗜𝗡𝗘𝗦🇵🇭

Though we may appear tiny on the world map, the Philippines is far from being a small country. To put things in perspective, here’s a simplified visualization showing how our 300,000+ km² archipelago compares to some well-known countries based on their true sizes.

Many of the maps we often encounter, in textbooks, websites, and classrooms, use the Mercator projection, a popular but highly distorted type of map.

The Mercator projection preserves shape and direction, which is useful for navigation, while dramatically enlarging landmasses near the poles, making those near the equator relatively small. As a result, countries like the Philippines can appear deceptively small, while regions such as Greenland seem far larger than they actually are.

The Philippines has a total land area of over 300,000 square kilometers, making it larger than the United Kingdom (around 243,000 km²) and many other European countries. Meanwhile, Greenland, which often appears to rival the size of Africa on a Mercator map, is around 2.1 million km², only about seven times bigger than the Philippines, not dozens of times as it may look.

Though maps give us a glimpse of reality, they can also distort our understanding of the world. That’s why it’s important to always consider the context, such as the type of map projection used, to better interpret the information we see and gain a more accurate view.

𝗦𝗔𝗔𝗡 𝗕𝗔 𝗠𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗗𝗜 𝗔𝗡𝗚 𝗧𝗥𝗔𝗣𝗜𝗞 𝗦𝗔 𝗠𝗘𝗧𝗥𝗢 𝗠𝗔𝗡𝗜𝗟𝗔? 🚦

With the planned rehabilitation of EDSA underway, many motorists and commuters are bracing for what could be an even messier Metro Manila gridlock. But where exactly are the congestion hotspots?

Here's a map showing the average Congestion Levels (%) across Metro Manila and surrounding areas in 2024 based on the data published by TomTom Traffic Index. The Congestion Level reflects how much longer your trips take due to traffic compared to free-flow conditions. For example, a congestion level of 40 means that trips took 40% longer than they would with no traffic.

In 2024, the average travel time per 10 kilometers in Metro Manila is around 27 minutes and 18 seconds, stretching to more than 36 minutes during the evening rush hour. While the region’s overall congestion level stands at 41%, some areas, particularly parts of Pasig, Mandaluyong, Makati, San Juan, and Quezon City, 𝗿𝗲𝗴𝘂𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆 𝘀𝗲𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝟱𝟬%, 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝟭𝟮𝟬% 𝗱𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗸 𝗙𝗿𝗶𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰.

They say time is the one resource we can never get back, and 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿, 𝘄𝗲’𝗿𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝟰 𝗱𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝟳 𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝘃𝘆 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰. That’s nearly a week of lost memories, missed moments, and wasted potential.

Katakot. 🥺

From Bryan Recabuelto: “Near corner Recto and Abad Santos. Magdadalawang buwan na po yan.”

At Dinosaur Valley State Park in Texas, falling water levels have revealed dinosaur tracks — the latest discovery as bodies of water around the world dry up amid a drought.

“They’re spectacular,” one paleontologist said. “You can see the toenails.”
https://nyti.ms/3PKf5mb

From a reader: “Are you wondering why Bulacan roads are all cracked? These dump trucks are loaded twice their capacity. No plate numbers, no side markings, and no one apprehending them. So why the sh*tty roads? We elected sh*tty officials doing sh*tty enforcement.”