It’s my last night in the Philippines. I’ve spent the past few days at my cousin Beauty’s house. It was originally supposed to be a big family affair, but life seemed to get in the way. My mom’s cousin from her hometown was supposed to be in the city for the holidays, but she had a family issue that came up and was unable to come. Beauty’s brother Ronnie and his family were supposed to also be here, but they had a scheduling conflict and also had to cancel their plans to come. Abdul (who lives in Manila) and his family were going to come over and spend time with us, but his wife is set to have a baby any day now. She wasn’t feeling well and was reluctant to be too far away from their place. We did stop by their house briefly, so I did get to see them for a short time. So, it was me, and Pet Pet’s (Beauty’s sister) family hanging at Beauty’s house.
We didn’t really get up to a lot. Christmas vacation seems to be the same no matter where you go – a chance to just relax, unwind and do not much. So, we got up late, stayed in our pj’s until late, watched a bunch of movies and occassionally went out. When we did go out, the traffic was crazy. One time it took us 40 minutes to travel 1 km. So, staying home and vegging was actually pretty good.
Went for a big seafood meal for my last supper here. It was masarap!! I definitely haven’t been vegetarian or a raw foodist while I’ve been here in Manila : ) it’s been nice to be with family and I love how quickly they take me in despite the fact we haven’t seen or communicated with each other for many years. Thanks Valdarrama clan!!
One side of the family will be dropping me off at the airport tomorrow, and the other side of the family (my dad’s brother) will pick me up on the other end when I reach my final destination in Hawaii. I’ll spend a few hours with them before we head back to the airport to pick up B-Rod. I’m pretty excited!! New Year’s Eve in Hawaii, here I come!
Goodbye Palawan. I will REALLY miss you.
Unfortunately Manila doesn’t look quite as appealing.
At Abdul’s house. As you can see Lani is about to burst any minute now!
I got to see Dane one more time before I go. She’s such a cute,mellow little girl.
This was my view for a lot of my time in Manila.
Went to a park/shopping area outside of Manila. Here’s everyone except …
… George. He seemed to prefer being the photographer.
Halo Halo is a famous desert in the Philippines. I finally tried it on my last day here. The purple ice cream (which I’ve seen everywhere and was a bit reluctant to try) is ube flavour and was actually really good.
Went to a mall in a newer area of the city. I felt like I was in the States.
Bought some fish at the market, then …
… waited for the restaurant to cook it, then …
… admired the finished products, and finally …
… punished that seafood and stuffed ourselves silly!
