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Published: November 14th 2022
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Sorry for the delayed posting. Still fighting jetlag as everyday I get back "home" at night too exhausted to do anything but jump into bed. Today is 11/14 and last night I spent the night at my 2nd cousin Joel's house in Filinvest Cainta near Antipolo and intend to NOT go anywhere during the day and get some much needed R&R before I meet up with my high school buddies tonight. Below is a recap recap of the past 7 days.
11/7
Arrived in the Philippines 10:30 pm after a 5-hour flight from Tokyo. But it sure felt like a 10-hour trip as I was in Economy. It also quite eventful before take-off as 3 rows in front of me, an tense episode occurred. An elderly American in his 70s was yelling (using foul language) at a younger American in his early 30s for not wearing a mask. Not even sure how the younger gentleman got on board but one of FAs heard the commotion and asked maskless passenger to don a mask to which he responded he didn't have one but would gladly wear one if provided. So the FA gave him one and and the
fella put it on. However, the old fella continued to cause a scene claiming he was spat on by the younger fella to which no one on board witnessed and the previously maskless man denied. This continued for nearly 10 minutes when the FA continued to apologize to the male "Karen" who shockingly spat on the floor under his feet to demonstrate how he claimed the younger man attacked him. Now the nearby passengers became vocal including myself when I asked "Karen" to please calm down to which he stood and proceeded to walk towards me as we were both had aisle seats. I prepared to defend myself, quickly unbuckled my seatbelt, clenched both fists but he was immediately stopped by the FA. To my surprise, the Japanese FA continued to apologize to the Karen in an attempt to diffuse the situation. She offered to switch the male Karen's seat so he is not sitting directly in front of the previously maskless passenger, He agreed to do so but continued to yell at the younger man saying he "would have kicked his f****** a** if he didn't agree to wear a mask" to which the younger man responded "I'd love
to see you try". The younger man was indeed built like a rock. After that, I told the passenger next to me that the episode would have had a much different result had it occurred on US land as both passengers would have been kicked out immediately. Wow - the perils of being in Economy!
The remainder of the flight remained drama-free. After a spending a few days in Tokyo, I've learned some useful Japanese words and expressions which I put to the test when food service came. The FA was so impressed and entertained saying my Japanese is excellent to which I returned the compliment saying her English is excellent. She was also surprised that my non-alcoholic drink choice was Kabosu - a Japanese citrus drink mixed with honey that I enjoyed during the flight from Seattle to Tokyo in business class.
Covid and customs check-in process at the Manila airport was smooth especially with the fast entry documents that I had. However, baggage claim was time consuming as it was nearly midnight (90 minutes later) when I walked out of the airport. Oh and I was so relieved that my new replacement luggage came in intact
and damage-free. I only spent a minute outside the airport when Joel yelled out to me. He and my Uncle Cid came to welcome me and drive me to my rented condo in Makati - a city outside Manila. But I was starving so we stopped by a restaurant that served Pares - a braised beef stew often served with garlic rice. Watched so many YT videos of such dish and I finally get to taste it - so satisfying! It was nearly 1:30 am when I finally got into my room.
11/8
Managed to go to sleep around 4am and woke up shortly before 7am. First order of business was to visit Quiapo, referred to as "Old Downtown of Manila" and known for its bargain-hunting marketplace. But I'm not there to shop. Instead, I'm headed there to for an early midmorning lunch at a popular food stall that serves Palabok - a rice noodle dish containing pork chicharron, seafood, hard-boiled egg topped with a bright orange shrimp gravy sauce. After that, I then proceeded to find a store that sells local sim cards. International service from Xfinity Mobile is just way too expensive with a
daily cost of $10/day. Getting a local number to communicate with my relatives and friends in town is the most affordable way especially with my proposed 21-day stay here in the Philippines.
Went back to the condo where I took a nap before heading out to a nearby restaurant for dinner. Then rested for an early trip out to Olangapo.
11/9
Stepped out of the condo at 7am to head of to the bus station. It was a 2.5 hour ride to Olangapo where I was invited to attend the 1 year death anniversary of the wife of an uncle. We didn't make it to the memorial mass but made it to the lunch reception right around noon. Uncle Dante sure has aged well as he is in his 70s and I hope I could age be like that when I get to that age 😊 After reception, I headed out to his nearby house to hang out for a bit and share what memories I had with him and his family. I was told my brother and I were ring bearers to his wedding though I do not remember any of it. It was
great spending time albeit a short one as I need to head back to Manila to meet up with a couple of high school friends for dinner.
11/10 thru 11/13
Checked out of the condo at 5:30 am to catch a plane into Siargao - an island located in Mindanao, one of the 1 of 3 mainlands of the country (the other 2 being Luzon and Visayas). It had a connecting flight in Cebu which is the birthplace of the Lechon, a whole pig roasted over an coal pit. So I took such opportunity to eat Lechon where it originated from. I spent 3 nights in Siargao where I learned to surf in Cloud 9 (the island's surf capital) and joined an organized island tour. Siargao is absolutely gorgeous with its clear blue and green waters.
Upon returning back to Manila, I then travelled to Tagaytay - a province known for its mouthwatering beef shank and bone marrow soup called Bulalo. I was joined by my cousins Maricel, Joel, and of course Cid. We were unable to check into any Bulalo resturant overlooking Taal Volcano as every single one was full of patrons with a
wait of over 1 hour to get seated. Therefore, we opted for a place without the view instead. Nevertheless, the food was amazing!
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Jonathan Olson
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Now that's where I want to be!
Gorgeous view Rick!