So, I just need to get off of this island sometimes. I've been desperate to go somewhere, and it didn't matter where. Maybe this was due to the anxiety I was feeling about turning 30?
On a recent afternoon walk, a friend mentioned shopping in Manila, and that was exactly the answer that I was looking for! Four of us planned to fly into Manila on a Friday night and leave late on Sunday night. Unfortunately, one of my travel companions was concerned about being detained, due to our US passports, for possible swine flu, so it ended up just being three of us in the end. We had a pretty nice Thai hotel reservation and a driver set up for the entire weekend. The Thai hotel had a fantastic spa, and we set up a massage appointment as soon as we'd checked in. Our driver, Rone, filled our days with sights and shopping. He was great; he bargained for us, translated, watched us like a hawk for pick pockets, and showed us around the town. Shops ranged from Banana Republic to a bartering market.
Brian Fletcher, a guy that I went to high school with, moved back to the Philippines about 4 years ago. He now he lives with his extended family in Manila, but he had lived in Savannah with his mom and sister when we were in school. I emailed him about our trip, and he picked us up for dinner on Saturday night! We had a great trip and here are some photos from out trip:
some shell fish for sale outside the Mall of Asia (largest mall in Asia)
these lanterns were everywhere and they are made from Capiz shells
Rone, Sarah, and me
a fountain at Fort Santiago
a church window
Cat was contemplating getting a boob job at the mall (right next to the burger place!)
Sarah, me, and Cat
another photo from Fort Santiago
this was a Jeepney and they basically work like mini buses
the Manila Cathedral
this was on a major road. notice the baby in the lady's lap on the passenger side!
Sarah, Cat, me, and Brian
No comments:
Post a Comment