Fortune-Telling at Quiapo Church

Wheels of Fortune

Have you ever had your fortune told by a fortuneteller? I have. Thrice. It all started when I went to Quiapo with my classmates. At first, we roamed around the area, passing through several allies and passageways. We discovered varying stores selling different kinds of things ranging from fake diploma makers to army equipment stores to bake shops and to imitation stores. We then passed through the famous Quiapo Church, and finally caught a glimpse of the numerous fortunetellers spread across Plaza Miranda right in front of the Church. When I first laid my eyes on one fortuneteller, she made my eyes stick to her while she mouthed the words “Halika rito, marami kang malalaman.” At that moment, I immediately felt a certain attachment to her. But then, I realized that all other fortunetellers, with their hands constantly gesturing for people to come to them, said the same words to everyone who passed by, leaving with them an attachment. Just like the fake diploma makers and the stores selling imitations of famous brands in Quiapo, I think most of the fortunetellers I’ve experienced in the area were also fake primarily because of their appearances, behaviors, and predictions. When we would imagine a fortuneteller, the image that would appear in our minds would be a person wearing a purple bandana on his/her head, heavy dangling earrings, gold bangles, loose clothing, and a magic crystal ball. There in Quiapo, most fortunetellers followed that appearance. All that was missing was the magic crystal ball. They looked like frauds because they seemed to try so hard just to look authentic. While there were those trying-hards, there were also fortunetellers who looked normal. But the problem is, they wore shades, covering their eyes and almost half of their faces, us not knowing if they were lying or not. They were even on the phone for most of the time I was in the area so it also gave me an impression that fortunetelling might have been their