Can motorcycles be humorous?  Well aside from the fact that this one might make you chuckle a bit when you see it, it’s name might provoke a little humor … once you understand that Filipino humor is often a little more broad and less staid than some of us are used to in the US.

Take a very commonly used term in Tagalong-speaking areas describing working one’s way through heavy traffic … Making singit … nosing your w ay into the tightest gap between cars in your lane, or even making your own lane between exiting lanes   … is a reference to the inguinal crease. (Google is your friend)

Many rural areas don’t have the level of traffic to justify using the common motorcycle-sidecar combination known as a tricycle.  And especially for longer distances the operator may not want the extra weight and fuel-consuming drag of a third-wheel … thus, the habal-habal.  Habal-habal, among other things is a somewhat broad-humored term for certain sexual intercourse positions.  But in the provinces, it isn’t “sexy” it’s the way many folks get around.

My motorcycle driving experience is limited.  I know enough, though, to know that riding with even one other passenger is a lot harder than riding solo.  What one of these is like to drive with a roof and who knows how many passengers on board I really don’t know … and I promise not to try to find out too soon.  How any passengers fit on a habal-habal?  that’s easy to define … like many other Philippine conveyances the answer always is, “one more”.

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