A Pinoy model based in London shared a serendipitous encounter with former vice president Leni Robredo, who he described as “down to earth” and “simple” despite having been a public figure before.
Model Terence Alcantara, Tetet for short, shared on Instagram that he had the “craziest encounter” in his bus commute in the British capital.
While he is a regular “urban bike rider,” Alcantara had decided to ride London’s “world-famous double-decker red bus.”
He said that he had already seen Robredo while he was waiting for the bus to arrive, describing her as a “Filipina-looking lady.”
“I can spot them from a mile away,” Alcantara said on October 13.
The model added that while Robredo looked “familiar,” he did not give it another thought and decided to board the bus.
“When you reach the top floor, you have a wide view of who are there and which seats are available. There she was again, caught my attention. We swapped positions. This time, I walked passed her sitting peacefully, so, this very moment, I felt really curious and thought really hard to remember who she could be! I gave up, excused myself politely and asked if she was a Filipina,” he said.
“She replied, ‘Yes.’ I told her she looked very, very familiar. She just gave me a friendly smile. Thought to myself, I have to get to the bottom of this! I apologized and kindly asked again where I knew her from. She responded [by] whispering, ‘I was the former Vice President of the Philippines,'” Alcantara added.
He admitted that his “jaw dropped” but that “everything made sense.”
The model said that he and Robredo “ended up sitting next to each other” and “exchanging life stories.”
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In the comments, Alcantara said he found it “refreshing” to see how “down to earth and simple a public figure of her status can be.”
“Jumping on public transport, blending in well with the public. Welcoming. What a great example to show,” the model continued.
“To this day, I still feel like she could be the right fit to lead the Philippines! The what-ifs never end,” he said. He also admitted he is a “Kakampink” or a supporter of Robredo in the 2022 national elections, where she ran as president.
Robredo saw his post and responded in the comments.
“It was great meeting you, Terence. It was the first time somebody asked me if I was an actress. Haha. Thanks for the compliment,” she wrote with emojis of smiling faces and a grinning face-with-sweatdrop.
“Indeed po, artistahin ang effects!” Alcantara quipped with a grinning emoji. “It was a great pleasure to have spent a bus ride with you, what a pleasant journey that was. I am still trying to calm down with the Hype.”
In an interview with Esquire Philippines, the model said that Robredo “was on a brief visit with her daughter who works between New York and London.”
“Leni was out and about to meet friends for lunch. She, as well, showed curiosity and asked what I did and where I was headed to. I replied that I was going to attend a casting call,” he added.
The report said Alcantara has been working as a professional model in London for a few years already.
Meanwhile, Robredo recently shared on Instagram outtakes of her trips to some European countries with her daughters Aika, Tricia, and Jillian.
They have since visited Spain and Portugal.
