Cathy MendozaContributed by Escapes and Diaries
Where the hell did Irwin go?! The clock was ticking.
One detainee said, “Oh, he must have let you down. He’s not coming!”
I was completely anxious and stressed out.
The other one said, “Don’t worry, the office for releasing is open until 9pm. He’ll come soon.”
It was 4.30 pm. It was a Monday. We should be out. If he doesn’t come before 5 pm, we’re fucked up again!
Thirty minutes later, the police officer, who happened to be from my hometown, came in. Everybody was excited for me as they were aware that it would be my last day. (But, where’s Irwin?!)
“Am I really getting out today?” I asked.
“Just dress up,” the officer said.
I quickly ran to the toilet to button up my dress (the same dress I wore on the day of the photo shoot). To my excitement, I missed to do one button. The officer noticed and joked, “Maybe you want to stay longer and be jailed for your sexiness?” Everybody burst out laughing.
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I was animated to call out on Andreas on the other side.
“Andreas! Hurry!”
It’s a struggle for him to step out as it was too mobbed inside. We hugged each other tight, I was giggling like a happy child, because I knew it was the moment I was waiting for and I couldn’t hide my excitement! I got the feeling this is the moment even though there was even no shadow of Irwin.
And there he was outside, waiting for us. We gave him the biggest hug!
“Oh My God! Where have you been? Are we really, really getting out today?!!” I exclaimed.
“Yes, really, yes! Why, do you want to stay longer?” he replied.
“No! By the way, why didn’t you come over the weekend?! I was waiting for you!”
“Oh, didn’t I tell you I wouldn’t come here because I was loaded with work on Saturday? And Sunday was family day.”
“God, I didn’t know that! Really!”
“Yeah, you didn’t hear that because you were crying baby!” Andreas chuckled.
The process went smoothly. We got our stuff back. We were assured that we didn’t have any criminal records. Meaning, we could travel without any hindrances. We thanked all the officers who treated us well.
“Be nice. Don’t do another risky photo shoot again. And stay away from danger. Please don’t do it again. Rather, don’t ever go back to jail again!” one of the officers said.
“We won’t promise, but we’ll be more careful next time!” I replied.
They poked fun at us while still looking at the photos in our camera as we were about to leave.
The lady officer whispered to my ear, “Stay away from that guy. He’ll bring trouble into your life again. Are you sure he’s not your boyfriend?”
“Yes! We’re only friends!” I exclaimed. “He’s young! He’s not meant for me, but we’re awesome partners! Partners in crime!”
Then we bade goodbye.
I also bade goodbye to the people inside I spent time with. I promised them I would be back. Not to be jailed again, but to send them some goods.
Our case was dismissed.
I was the happiest girl that very moment. I felt alive and saw the outside world again. I could stretch out my hands, see the blue skies, and watch the sunrise from my balcony! One of the best things I terribly missed!
In the car, we were discussing our payment to Irwin, but he said he didn’t need any professional fee from us; he only asked us to pay for the stuff he brought for us. We insisted. Eventually, he agreed but gave us an incredible huge discount. Plus, he drove us to Andreas’s guest house to pick up all his stuff and to withdraw money. We had pizza, beer and rum cola afterwards! It was heaven! Andreas and I were drooling over pizza and drinks when we were inside. And we agreed to get drunk and go out on a trip together when we were set free.
We missed out on a lot of things when we were inside. I failed to submit my lesson notes at work. I didn’t work for days and missed the opportunity to join the sponsored trip to Puerto Galera which was planned with fellow bloggers. And the funny thing is, I suddenly disappeared but I got myself away from social media.
Looking back, the jail thing wasn’t worth it. No, not at all. But we learned some things out of that experience. And let me tell you one thing, being inside the jail wasn’t very pleasant but it was alright, the only thing that’s substandard was “the idea and the fact of being jailed”. And that’s the one that gives you chills.
People in jail are nice. When they were still outside, they had different statuses in life. Inside, though, they are all the same regardless of the crime or case you have had or committed.
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Meanwhile, I realised how reckless we were. We went inside the private property all the way up to the rooftop without thinking about the possible outcome. I trusted Andreas from the start and never blamed him for what happened.
He also assured me that what we did wasn’t morally wrong, because we only followed our passion. We just looked for an adventure. Those were the ingredients of the adrenaline rush we were looking for. But at the back of my mind, I realised that it would be perfect and fun if no one would get hurt.
When we got busted, my first concern was the security personnel might get fired. Fortunately, they weren’t, but they were reprimanded by the general manager.
We also got a glimpse of how every character in the story acted and carried out their mission. We witnessed how the general manager supervised his staff. We got to see how the police work, how our lawyer friend defends his “clients,” how due process flows, and how detainees live inside. We never imagined that one day in our lives, we would witness all of these.
As Andreas and I promised, we visited the prisoners three days after we got out. We brought them some food and stuff. They were all glad to see us again. The happiest among them was a woman in her 50s. She looked after me while I was inside. She washed my clothes, cleaned my space, massaged me, and prepared my food. She made sure I was alright.
Then, Andreas and I decided to go out on a short trip to the mountains and to the beach. We continued our photo shoot, and this time, it was more daring. We tried nude photography. But, we were more conscientious.
We became real good buddies and tagged ourselves as partners in crime. Andreas is genial and an interesting person.
I will never be ashamed of being jailed because I was never a criminal, not a drug pusher nor a user. I’m an adventure seeker. The experience is not something I can be proud of either. But I will never consider it as a horrific event. After all, trust and friendship were established between me and Andreas. I’m beyond thankful for his compassion and honesty, and for caring for me during my darkest and weakest times.
Everything that went through taught us lessons—although, we learned the hard way. From living completely opposite lives to interacting with prisoners, to knowing who real people are. And real people are the ones who loved, supported and hated us, but never left us. It was, indeed, a great opportunity to face the world with a new perception about life—valuing your time, passion, people and everything in between.
One thing that Andreas taught me was that we can always push ourselves to our limit to see how far we can go, but I tried to weigh his stand and theory. We’re humans. We’re limitless. But whatever we do, we should consider the people who love and care for us. It’s fun to do things that test our boundaries but always see to it that we’re not hurting anyone. The choice is always yours but make sure to do things not only for our own sake but also for the people we truly value.
It’s true, this is our life. We own it. We are young, wild and free and we think that everything is for fun. But doing things for fun and doing fun things are different. Learn to know the difference.
And if it compromises innocent people, think a hundred times before putting it to action. To which, Andreas and I share the same sentiment.
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He told me that he has been doing this rooftop photography for 6 years now and he never encountered anything like this. But I believe, there’s always a first time for everything. Take the risk, but you must know where you stand and consider the worst possible outcome.
We don’t regret anything that happened. We even enjoyed some of it. No kidding. Like the handcuff was cute! We’re so adorably disgusting! 🙂
We thank all the people who were there for us. Especially our dear friend lawyer Irwin who never left us. He was very supportive from the first night up to the moment we were released. If not for him, we would not survive. Thank you so much!
And to the staff of the property that we disturbed, sorry and thank you. Of course, to the second tallest building in the Philippines, you etched a special memory in our hearts!
On a personal note, I thank Andreas who got my back all throughout. Just like Irwin, he’d been there for me (even though he was the root of everything, haha). He’d took care of all the expenses incurred from the beginning. He was also more compassionate than I expected. He is funky to be with. Again, we’re not lovers. We became the coolest buddies and partners in crime!
Many unexpected things can happen. One day, a person is a total stranger. The next, you’re in a moment that could change your life, forever.
In a nutshell, the whole experience was something we never want to venture into again, but it’s a memory to keep for the rest of our lives. Indeed, anything that doesn’t kill us makes us stronger.
To top everything off, if we survived being jailed, then we can conquer other challenges in life. The spirit never dies!
Here’s to a more fun, adventurous and tremendous journey this beautiful life has to offer!
Thank you so much for reading and following our story. You are awesome! If you missed the first 3 parts, you can always check them out.
- Part 1: How a Heart-Pounding, Breathtaking, Fierce Photo shoot Landed us in a Cell
- Part 2: We Were Escorted to the Police Station and Hospital ( The Rooftop Photoshoot that Started it All)
- Part 3: Irwin, The Lawyer – What’s with Him? Don’t Blame it To The Photoshoot
