Philippines 2004

We have just returned from a short, short, short trip to the Philippines. Wish we could have stayed longer but we had work and meetings waiting for us in Shanghai and Hong Kong.

Anyway, want to try to recount the trip...

DAY 1: We left in the early morning of 08 May and arrived in HK on time. We met up with my sis, Angie, and her family at the HK airport. We got the same flight to Manila that same afternoon. Manila immigration was a bit of chaos - too many people and few counters. Even with all the counters open, the speed of getting through immigration was really slow. Getting through customs was same with chaotic baggage check. We managed to get to the hotel in Makati alright. We were given VIP treatment when we arrived - there was some customer service rep waiting for us at the door and got ushered up to the club floor to check in rather than at the lobby! So Simon was really impressed as we did get very good service!

We were told that it was the last day for campaigning so there were a lot of people near the hotel. FPJ, one of the presidential candidate, was at the Mandarin Oriental (where we were staying) as he was due to have a rally that night. Simon wanted to check out the bookshop right away! We went to Glorietta to check out the National Bookstore as well as to find a shop that does embroidery. We wanted to get our company logo embroidered on some shirts; that we managed to do. The National Bookstore was a disappointment so we decided to find some place to eat around Greenbelt - a lot of shopping malls and shopping areas in Makati - when we ended up at another bookstore, Powerbook, which seems to have a better selection of books. Simon loved it!

After dinner we tried walking back to the hotel but halfway there we ended up where FPJ's rally was going on and there were lots of people. We ended up going back to near the restaurant and getting the hotel to come pick us up. Back at the hotel, a movie actor - Richard Gomez - got into the same lift we were in! I was debating whether to get him to sign an autograph but the the lift was too crowded. Was trying to tell Simon in Chinese that that guy in front of him was movie star. Unfortunately he did not quite understand what I said!!! When we got to our room, my sis called and I started telling her we saw Richard GOmez in the same lift and we started giggling like kids.

DAY 2: The day was for meeting up with relatives, a bit of shopping and sightseeing. We went to my aunt's (my mum's sis) place in Pasig to see the relatives but most of them were out. So we headed off to the SM Megamall to meet up with Angie and my other cousins. Simon and I headed to the Powerbook outlet again; Simon bought more books while I went straight for the record shop to check out some local CDs.

We had lunch at a restaurant known for serving traditional Filipino food. It was packed but food was great. After lunch we headed off to Intramuros to do a bit of sightseeing. I was surprised with the changes in that area - a lot of interesting restaurants has opened and the old Spanish-style houses have been restored. Unfortunately there were some squatters living in some of the smaller streets. Took Simon to the Manila Cathedral and Fort Santiago. A lot of improvements made on these 2 places which was great to see.

Not to be missed were the campaign posters everywhere! Simon noticed that a lot of the candidates had mustaches!

DAY 3: Check out and headed off to the domestic airport. Not much has changed. Still a bit chaotic with the fences and getting through the doors. We had to wait a long time for my younger sis, Ade, as she was late. We were able to get away with the excess luggage weights since we were able to show our international boarding passes. Great!

The flight was okay. It was exciting to see Tacloban from the air as we were coming in to land. It felt great to be back!!! Weather in Tacloban was very hot. There was a mix up with the arrangements made on transportation so we had to find another means of transpo to get to our home. My parents were so sweet that they hung a sign saying 'Welcome Home' at the entrance to our home.

After lunch, we headed out to do a bit of sightseeing in downtown Tacloban. Saw a lot of familiar places and also some new buildings, shops, etc. I've also noticed a lot of places seem to look a bit rundown. But there still is the familiar feeling of 'home' in the air...

Our alma mater - Sacred Heart School - has recently been renamed to 'Sacred Heart College' since it has started offering it's first ever college course. The school looked smaller than I remembered. My sis, Ade, kept commenting how everything looked quite small now than when we used to live in Tacloban. Since it was the summer break, the school was empty except for the security guard. Was trying to point out to Simon where our classrooms where and the quadrangle where we did the morning ceremonies, etc.

DAY 4: We decided to go for a quick swim at the beach close to our home called White Beach. Don't ask me why it's called 'White Beach'. We had a bit of a picnic, as is a typical day at the beach in Tacloban. Lots of local kids were trying to do their own version of 'surfing' and trying to catch the wave but it was not high tide so the waves were quite small. Anyway, they seem to be enjoying themselves.

Our uncle came to pick us up in his jeepney. And we decided to head off to Palo where the McArthur Park is located. The park is right by the Red Beach - the beach where Douglas McArthur landed to liberate the Filipino people from the Japanese. I see a lot of improvements done to the park which was nice to see. Of course not to be missed was the photo sessions.

Simon and I headed to downtown Tacloban later in the day. I wanted to let Simon have a taste of riding in a real public jeepney. I think he enjoyed it. He kept asking questions though about how to pay and what about getting off, etc. Walked around downtown Tacloban. For some strange reasons, I thought it was more crowded than how I remembered it. The thing that Simon liked about Tacloban was the fact that he hardly got stared at compared to Shanghai!

DAY 5: The day for the house blessing of our new home. Activities started as early as about 5:00am with the arrival of the Taoist priest first. There were some ceremonies and rites going on but Simon and I just couldn't get our butt off the bed that early in the morning... :-/

A lot went on as the day wore on. My mid-afternoon our home was packed with old women who has come to pray the novena. Right after that, the priest who used to be at our parish came to do the blessing of our home. There was also the throwing of coins and candies as well as a light snack. Afterwards, there was a procession to bring the image (statue) of Our Lady of Fatima, to the church. The house went a bit quiet after that but I had to clean up all the mess esp. all the candle wax that dripped on the floor everywhere!!! Argh!

By 6pm, guests started arriving for the party. Unfortunately my family weren't back yet from church and I had to attend to the guests. Most of them I know by face but don't remember the names. The Chinese community who came tried speaking to me in Fukienese but of course I was stumbling for words since I spoke more Mandarin these days than Fukien. (sigh!) Was trying to introduce Simon to the ones I know but it was not very easy since I did not know the names! Fortunately, my family returned not long after so I was lucky not to do the entertaining. Simon felt lost with what was happening around him. I introduced him to a lot of relatives so far and he now thinks that everyone in Tacloban is related to me one way or another!

Anyway, majority of the guests left by around 9pm after they had their fill. Some who stayed were friends of my sisters and parents. Cousins whom I haven't seen in ages were also there. Some already married and with kids! Made me feel really very old! Where have time gone?

DAY 6: Another full day. Activities started very early in the morning. This was the day of the 'fiesta' at Fatima Village (area where our home is) and mass was to start at 10:30am (or was it 10am?, I've completely forgotten). Anyway, the only thing I remembered from that mass was my mom, who was the 'hermana' (sponsor for the whole celebrations), was very late and everyone else was waiting for her to arrive before the procession before the mass could start! Very embarassing but also very typical of my mom! The mass went ok and there was some photo shoots with the priests.

Then there was chaos when food was distributed to the parishioners. Fortunately I did not stay to witness what went on. Simon and I headed back home to have lunch there instead of at the church. Anyway, as typical Filipino habit, there were some people who came over to join in the 'fiesta', which we locally call 'patron-nizers' (patron meaning 'fiesta' or the patron saint's feast day; and 'nizers' is just to make it sound English to mean the people or person. Actually I am not sure I am explaining it right, so if anyone of you can explain it better, please do send me a reply.). Towards the end of the day, I was just dying to get have some peace and quiet... Simon was happily surfing the internet connecting via bluetooth on his mobile phone. Without being able to surf, he was feeling rather bored! Which is why he has a title: 'Chairman of the Bored'.

The only interesting thing that happened that day was when a couple classmates came over in the evening and it was really nice seeing them again after all these years. And of course I they were all married and with kids. So, a 'grand' reunion for our class in 2006 which means I have that to look forward to. A long time away but still...

DAY 7: Finally! I couldn't wait till this day arrived. A day for relaxation and some beach time. We decided on checking out the beaches in Samar (neighbouring island) after some 'consultation' with the locals. We started off as early as we could. Just us, family, and the driver. My dad decided to stay at home and clean up the house. The trip was a little over an hour from our home but interesting. Simon saw the very rural areas of Leyte and Samar.

We arrived at the Leyte Park Resort in Marabot, Samar. It was really nice but we were being charged a lot for the rent of a cottage. So we decided to head out to the other resort called Jasmine that other people recommended we try instead of Leyte Park. We got there and was a bit disappointed because there was no 'beach' but rather a raft where you can have a picnic in and they will tow you out to the middle of the sea. Not good especially since we have 2 kids with us. So back to Leyte Park and we were glad we did because we had the whole resort to ourselves as it was a weekday. The resort is also a bit secluded in a cove so it was just great!

After lunch everyone went off to the beach. The water was really great!!! Warm. They had netting over an area to keep jellyfish from swimming in - it was jellyfish season. The kids - my niece and nephew - enjoyed the water a lot. Simon found his patch under the coconut trees to sit and read for a while. Willie, my brother-in-law, was not joining us in the water and has instead decided to do some 'fishing', netting the swarm of fishes swimming along the shore.

It was a perfect day to 'end' our 'vacation' in Tacloban. Simon loved the view and the even asked me how much a property like that would cost! Wow! We have to get our business successful and profitable first before we can start 'dreaming' of buying a beachfront property :-)

After we returned home, I was dying for a tall glass of 'halo-halo'! I couldn't believe that we are going back without having even had the chance to have one! So dragged Ade to downtown Tacloban even in the evening and went to Chowking and since it was late, they had a couple missing ingredients...Decided I gotta have one so brought some back home to eat. Yummy! I really wish I had some more days to eat the food I missed.

DAY 8: We (everyone was leaving that day except for my mom) had a very early flight so everyone was ready when my uncle came to pick us up. A couple other relatives came to see us off. My godmother was also there to send off some relative. Then some more last-minute photos... Then off to the waiting lounge before boarding. The great thing now with travel domestically is that there is competition between some airlines so flights now depart right on the dot.

We arrived in Manila on time and my cousin, Amy, picked us up to bring me and Simon to the International Airport; the rest of my family was not leaving until the following day. Fortunately we decided to go the airport really early because when we got there, there was a very very long queue at the check-in counter. A very long wait indeed. We had ample time around the departure lounge so I had my last 'halo-halo' at one of the kiosk. Not much has changed inside the pre-departure area. Anyway, last chance to buy some Filipino food so bought some 'ensaymada', tamarind, and chicharon. Of course things at the airport were a rip-off but no choice.

Anyway, we arrived in Hong Kong all ready to go out and do some shopping right away.... :-)