It was a rainy July 17 morning. Just like any other day. Typical summer time in London when weather is whimsical and unpredictable. An umbrella is a must-have at any time of day for any sane Londoner. But in a sudden twist and turn of events, I found myself in the middle of the imposing Big Ben Clock taking snapshots of just an ordinary lass.. nothing extraordinary – its just ahemmm.. KC.. yeah, KC Concepcion.. She said she has this certain level of infatuation to monuments with clocks.
Where did it all started?
Im not a big fan of Philippine Biz.. let alone watch pinoy teleserye and news (watching TV Patrol depresses me more)... but very seldomly, I do enjoy watching pinoy TV shows that takes me off at the edge of my seat – laughing my ass off – stuffs like Gandang Gabi Vice, Showtime and Comedy Bar... Aside from the fact that I am admittedly jologs, I have a brimming and a whale of a celebrity crush on one gal in particular – KC Concepcion. I have been a fan of anyone that combines sophistication and humility and damn good looks.
So imagine my reaction when we (me and my buddy, momoy) have been told that we have been allocated the task of touring TFC (The Filipino Channel) celebrities KC Concepcion, Yeng Constantino, Mr. Johnny Manahan and Ms. Mariol (wife of Mr. M) all around the city of London. Apparently, they wanted a local resident giving them an insider glimpse of what London was like.
I was like, “is that for real? Weeeh. Baka naman si Janelle Jamers (of the defunct Wowowee) naman yan since she's part of the Barrio Fiesta stars!). I was not sure until we picked them up in a hotel in Hammersmith and saw eye-to-eye, nose-to-nose, cheek-to-cheek (California King Bed inspired) the super glamorous (sorry GLAMOROUS is the only term I could think of) KC Concepcion. So when Sir Mickey introduced us to them, we were just like smiling comfortably and apathetically. I was trying to avoid that look in my face when I look absolutely delighted or thrilled on meeting them. I told myself, “kalmado lang dapat, kunwari di ako nagagandahan sa kanila, kunwari di sila sikat.. bakit sikat din nman ako ah.. haha! Patay malisya lang dapat. Karaniwang tao lang din sila..”. But yeah, it was more of like I am with them just to complete the job designated to us. I was only there for that purpose alone. And I should be as objective as possible. I will not ask to have pictures with them. After all, it is their own time to enjoy the city. I am just a mere tourist guide rendering his services.
Enough of me, so how was it really like to be with KC Concepcion?
Imagine a female model on the cover of GQ magazine coming to life. It was how it felt like seeing her from every angle. Sobrang ganda sa lahat ng sulok. Kahit saan magpapicture sobrang ganda. Every pose she makes seem effortless. Alam mo yung pakiramdam na naghulog ng lahat ng blessings si Lord one night tapos lahat ng tao tulog pero siya lang yung nagising at sumalo lahat ng blessings. Yun yun! I couldn't falter her physically – no wonder most foreigners are giving her a second look.
I don't know how to approach her. I was too naïve to make the first move and start a conversation. But it was her who made the first stance. We were just about to get thru the ticket barriers in the underground station when she said, “alam nyo ba nung isang araw pinapasok ko yung oyster card (London travel card) sa may lagayan ng ticket (instead of tapping them) and ayaw gumana. Di ko tlga alam kung panu. Nkakahiya?!!”. I admired her even more. I just realized how grounded she was to start a conversation to us mere mortals and try to say something funny out of nowhere. Her humility mirrored all over the tube station.
Oh Boy, she loves coffee. From time to time in the middle of our marathon tour of London, she will whisper in a very sweet and seemingly-impossible-to-refuse way – “pwede po ba mag stop over ng coffee..” I couldnt care any less. I need to find her a coffee shop no matter how it takes. I will even give my own blood just to get her that espresso. Okay, that's a little bit too much. But yeah, in reality, one stop in a coffee shop in Tower Bridge was all it took. And I couldn't forgot what she said during dinnertime, “Sa sobrang pagkahilig ko sa coffee, di ko lam kung naglalakad ba ko dhil nagkakape ako or nagkakape ako dahil naglalakad ako..” It didn't make too much sense but hey, this is KC – everything has sense. Haha.
She loves brocolli and since Momoy is allergic to chicken and seafood, KC was kind enough to order brocolli with oyster sauce for the two of them. Mind you, she wants Momoy to get the first take on the plate when it came down at our table.
It took me a hell of a guts to finally ask for a picture with them when we were in a bar and said “Pwede pong magpakajologs at magpapicture po sa inyo?!?”. But she responded, “um-order muna kayo bago ako magpapicture. Kung walang order, walang picture.” I was taken aback and uttered, “Eh di wag” then giving them this witty and stern grin. Of course, I was again touched by how humble she is.
There are a lot more stories.
But its 3am here and I have work at 8am so I need to catch this article short.
In reality, I barely know her. What I know of her is from a very superficial basis. BUT SOMETIMES, IT IS IN UNGUARDED MOMENTS THAT YOU COULD DISCOVER ONE'S TRUE SELF.
Special thanks to Kuya Albert, Rex, Kuya Jun, Sir Mickey, and everyone on TFC for this chance.. And to my buddy, of course, Mr. Mark Jewel Bathan for one hell of an experience.
AND THEN there's this incident backstage in the toilet, but that's another story altogether. Haha.
