The Queen of Manila

Let's get this out of the way: I am NO fan of Imelda Marcos.  But after 3 hours of walking this and that way with Carlos Celdran on his "Living La Vida Imelda!" tour, in which he revives the sensationalism around the Marcos couple from the 60s to the 80s, I got to wondering why I don't like the imeldific First Lady of the Martial Law era.  Moreover, where did I get the idea that she's downright despicable?  I was barely 7 years old when the Marcoses were booted out of the Philippines (and flown to Hawaii, of all places!).  At the end of the tour, I still wasn't a fan but I walked out of PICC with a newfound admiration for Imelda.  My friends and I were in a semi-daze; we couldn't stop talking about her over dinner.

Now, I have to warn would-be participants of this tour that you have to take most everything that Carlos says with a grain of salt (even he says so); the big picture he paints as the tour progresses is largely a metaphor.  But it seems only appropriate to present Imelda in that way, because she is kind of larger than life.  She will come across as a self-imposed queen who is tacky yet elegant, annoying yet disarming, and delirious (she refers to herself in the third POV, "Mrs. Marcos") yet charming.

What's amazing is that even with all the bad reputation, to this very day, sightings of Imelda Marcos around the metro is news.  The first time we saw her in the flesh was in Market! Market! in Bonifacio Global City (how so very ordinary is that?).  She was striding -- no, floating -- through the wide hallway, her head and signature butterfly sleeves poised regally.  She acknowledged a request from a group of young college students who wanted a quick photo-op with her.  This so-called "Iron Butterfly" was so gracious, patient, and accessible that, for a minute there, you will completely forget how much she symbolizes the joke that is Philippine politics.  You find yourself unable to look away.  Heck, based on some stories I've heard, it's even harder to challenge her reasoning.

According to Carlos, Imelda commissioned the Coconut Palace to be built using only indigenous materials (and you can't get any more local than the Coconut Tree).  Everything inside is made of coconut.  Imelda had it built so that people would have "no excuse for ugliness".  How can you argue with that?

What I'm really curious about though is why people are so quick to assume that she's evil (Maybe it's the 7,000-plus cases of human rights violations and billions of taxpayer money swindled?  Probably, yeah.  Not to mention those shoes!).  Anyway, I met the youngest Marcos daughter, Aimee, a decade ago when she was still dating a certain musician.  Having grown up believing what history and hearsay would have me (and most everyone) believe about the Marcoses, I was taken aback by the unexpected kindness and humility that Aimee showed to everyone around her.  But what was I expecting, really?  Would it be easier if she turned out to be an epic bitch after all?  A friend who knew her back in college said that someone actually asked Aimee how Imelda is as a mother, only to end up feeling shortchanged when she said that, despite the other factors, home life was normal and ordinary.  While we all see Imelda as the heartless loony who contributed to Macoy's downfall (I know now that that's not entirely true), to Aimee she is just her mother who personally attends to her when she's sick and makes her baon.  Wow, the truth can be really boring sometimes.

Maybe we'll never really know the entire truth even if you ask Mrs. Marcos, especially if you consider how she views herself based on these portraits that she commissioned.  I guess I can live with the extra quirkiness.  At least she's way more entertaining and classier than certain quasi-celebrities.