Tuesday brought a fun and long awaited visit to the oldest Jeepney factory in the Philippines - Sarao Motors, Inc. This was a field trip for the boys (and me). Jim enjoys "tinkering around" with cars (okay, he rebuilds them) and my dad has the hairbrained notion that he might one day be the proud owner of the family jeepney. You can even check out his blog for more pictures and even a price list! We were told not to expect anything special, but it was interesting all the same and I think our expectations were in line with the actual product. It was a primitive factory with lots of very old machinery - possibly dating back to the opening of the factory in 1953. Only 14 employees are left building jeepneys as it was explained to us that the jeepney business is in a "slump" lately. While we visited, they were all on their break and my dad was a little disappointed that none of the equipment was running, but we did get to see an artist at work on the side of a new jeepney. A few had "sold" signs on them as well and we were able to see various stages of the production. In the past, tours were given, but as the industry continued to go downhill, so did tours. Nonetheless a productive and interesting visit.

Some of you may not know that jeepneys are the product of WWII, adapting old american army jeeps left after the war. These vehicles are now widely used as public transportation, though there are many that are privately owned as well. They are famous for being colorful, if not downright gaudy and for some delicious smoke belching, but they are probably one of the most common an affordable methods of public transportation used by locals.