Sunday in the Mall with Gabi

Gabi and I spent the whole of Sunday afternoon in of all places, SM Fairview.

It was definitely not our first choice of venue for our Sunday"Boys Only" pasyal. That would usually be Starbucks for breakfast, where Gabi would have his honey-glazed donut and me, my tall hot cafe mocha. He would bring an activity book and markers. I would read the papers. But we would always end up talking about Bela's latest antics or the newest Bakugan toy.

But not yesterday. Gabi and I decided to bring Patty to her free-range chicken raising seminar in far off Fairview and then just while the time in SM Fairview and wait for her to finish.

So for the next three hours, Gabi and I braved the Sunday mall crowd in SM... And survived!

I am not a mall person. Not by a mile. Unlike many who go to the mall to relax, a trip to the mall for me is to be avoided at all costs. And when I do have to buy something that can only be found in a mall, I make sure I go to the shop directly and head on home right after. No time wasted just walking around window shopping. The few times I am tricked to actually spend more than an hour in a mall, I impose the condition that I be allowed to just stay in a bookstore, preferably Fully Booked, and not be made to do the rounds of all levels of the entire mall.

I just can't stand the crowds, the sea of humanity that drowns the malls especially on weekends. Sometimes I wonder if there really is a financial crisis. It certainly doesn't seem so with the number of weekend shoppers.

The mall on a weekend is to be avoided like EDSA traffic on a Monday morning.

Yet there we were. In a mall that we'd never been to. On a Sunday too when everybody and his cousin are around.

And we survived! And okay, I admit it, we actually enjoyed!



I let Gabi decide our itinerary.

We went to Tom's World where Gabi rode most of the rides and played most of the games.

We munched on donuts and cotton candy and french fries.

We shopped for toys and ended up buying a pink Care Bear for Bela (Gabi's choice) and a Bakugan for Gabi (also Gabi's choice).

And all this time we were chatting. And laughing. And just enjoying the time together.

I guess that's why people go to the mall to begin with. To spend time with loved ones. To bond.
To spend quality time.

Even if they don't buy anything. Even if all they do is walk around endlessly.

So am I now a converted mall rat? Nah, but at least I know now that my last trip to the mall was not a complete waste of time.