Makati Prime Tower Suites Manila

... Centre and met sister Carmen and brother Yu. Brother Yu is a very old man on a wheelchair and he was reading someting in Chinese. One trainee came to translate for us. There were so many old photos on the wall. My dad attended Malabon training 12 years ago. That's why we went there to meet brother Yu.

... looks like I should be in time for Sakura next ...

... catch up with the family, and a race started. We kareened through the roads, honking and yelling, and finally we overtook the other tricycle in the streets of Numancia. The excitment was all for naught though, the passport was right where it was supposed to be.

We arrived a bit early at the airport, and although the sky was threatening, we stood outside with the family. It will be a couple more years before they see Allan ...

... was the very last gate as far as I could possibly walk. It was terribly crowded so I found a spot on the floor and sat for a while, writing up this post! The first crowd got up and lined up, they were going to Daveo, then the sign changed for Ilolio, and didn't change after that although flights for Cebu and Daveo apparently also went out. I was getting concerned that my flight had changed gates, or I would miss it. I tried listening to the announcements ...

... old cathedrals, forts and churches most of which had been destroyed numerous times by earthquake or warfare and then rebuilt, however the San Agustin Church and museum is the oldest original church in the entire country. From the outside it looks tired and slightly neglected and well it might; it has weathered 7 major earthquakes, the Seven years war, the Spanish American war and the Battle of Manila during which the Japanese turned it into a concentration camp for ...

... in another blog. For right now I want to talk about how the city wears on you and the trouble we've had trying to get out to "greener" pastures. We're used to living in the country. Trees, rocks, babbling brooks, deer, turkeys, squirrels. Mostly what we find in Manila is concrete and asphalt. Sure there are some parks and empty fields here and there but the only wildlife I've seen is a couple of rats scurrying from one place to the other ...

... s warm here all year long. Wait a minute, what month is this? I know time flies but Christmas already? No, I didn't fall into some kind of time wrap or black hole, and NO for those of you who know me, thinking that I might have lost my mind and am only hearing Christmas music in my head. Well maybe I have lost my mind but yes Virginia they ...

I must belong here now because I got my toilet paper allowance at the office today. The guy came by with a big box and gave me three rolls. Toilet paper is not available in many restrooms unless you are in an upscale mall or restaurant. The exact reason for that hasn't been revealed to me yet. Maybe people steal it and take it home? I was also told that maybe ...

... spared all the usual problems of being mugged. The fact that I only had 1000 piso on me did not impress them however so they gave me a kicking for good measure. After relieving us of our money they picked up the two gun shot victims, threw them in the back of their van and drove off with a friendly wave. This I also thought was incredibly funny but it hurt to much to laugh so I abstained. We beat a hasty retreat to the nearest bar with other sailors in it and got ...

... money. Our wandering was finally rewarded when we found our way to the falls. That night we took a night bus to Baguio, the former summer capital in the Philippines under American rule. In Baguio, we explored the local market and strolled along the big park in the town. No one wanted to do too much walking because we were all so sore from the mountains the day before. We got back to Manila and I hung around there for a couple more days. My dad finally made it in on ...