Okay, I made it back to Barretto safe and sound, but I’m in a rush, so I will do an abbreviated update post about the trip from Siargao to Manila.
We scheduled a van through the hotel to take us to the airport. The same one that brought us from the airport last week, non-stop. Not this time. After picking us up, the driver made four additional stops for passengers. I was sweating it, but we arrived in plenty of time to depart as scheduled.
We had a three-hour layover before our flight to Manila was scheduled to depart. What to do? Well, we found a comfortable place to hang out for a while.
We departed Cebu bound for Manila just a few minutes late.
The airport in Manila sucks, and it sucks even more when you fly on Cebu Pacific. We taxied for about 10 minutes after landing before reaching our gate. But we actually didn’t reach a gate. We deplaned onto the tarmac, then rode a bus to the gate. When we re-entered the actual airport, we had to go through security again. That meant waiting in a long line for the single scanner, removing my laptop from my backpack, and taking off my belt, then repacking on the other side. Oh well, at least we landed wheels down.
All our bags arrived on the carousel, which is always a relief. Jeff and Davina do the Grab ride thing, so we dragged our baggage to the Grab pickup area. Except that no Grab drivers were available last night. So, it was back to the arrivals terminal for a wait in the taxi queue. And we needed two cabs to carry us to our destination, the Coco Hotel in Makati. When we finally arrived and got checked in, it was 9 p.m. Jeff was bushed and called it a night. I had a bit of hunger and thirst to assuage, so Swan and I paid a visit to Shooters, conveniently located right across the street from our hotel.
Shooters is a nice enough hangout, and it appeared to be full of locals. It was nice seeing old folks like me out and about after a week of mingling with young tourists in Siargao. Swan ordered something Filipino, and I went for the wedge-cut potatoes dish. They had Zero beer, so I enjoyed a cold one or three while we waited. And waited. Swan asked about the order’s status, and the waitress returned to say it was being “plated.” But when the plate came out, it was only Swan’s dish. It seems they had forgotten about mine. They offered to make it, but it was late, and I was tired.
Back to our room, and we called it a day.
And now that I’m home, I need to get ready for Dave’s memorial service.
Back to regular posting tomorrow. I’ll try to fill in the remaining gaps from my trip.
Back with minimal fuss. I hope the fêting of Dave goes well.
They had Zero beer, so I enjoyed a cold one or three while we waited. And waited. Swan asked about the order’s status, and the waitress returned to say it was being “plated.” But when the plate came out, it was only Swan’s dish. It seems they had forgotten about mine. They offered to make it, but it was late, and I was tired.
I guess that’s fine as long as they didn’t bill you for what they didn’t serve.
Ignorance… arrogance… I’d put incuriosity up there as well—when people don’t have the gumption to find out the answers to questions that pop up in their heads, don’t wonder how the world works, and stay comfortably inside their own bubble because they think they know. Sure, we all have things we “bubble up” on, and we all have our comfortable routines, but when it gets to a point where we just settle and mistake that for contentment, that’s when things get bad.
We could all use more Siargaos and Bohols in our lives.
Shooters food is questionable and the service even more so. It is full of Lima Bravos as well. A couple streets over ( away from Makati Ave) has much better places. Next time in Manila try IM hotel, great breakfast buffet!
The joys of traveling. LOL. But as you said in so many words, any landing you walk away from is a good landing.
As popular at Siragao seems to be, it is surprising that there are not any non-stops from Manila. (Maybe there are, but did not fit your schedule?)
HaHa. The steam must have been coming out your ears like a cartoon character when them poor lasses at the Red Planet didn’t get your grub on the table in time. But seriously, If you are experiencing feelings of anger and frustration that are difficult to manage, consider talking to a mental health professional.
Trapper John was more of a qualified doctor – and patriot – than the old pimp. Glad he didn’t touch anymore lives with his padlocked fire exits because smoke kills in seconds, fire kill in minutes and there is no smoke without fire.
Brian, yes, there are direct flights from Manila to Siargao. Also, Philippines Air has just launched a nonstop Clark to Siargao flight. That’s definitely the route I’ll take for my next trip.
I didn’t make the arrangements for this trip, just followed the plan. We learned some things the hard way, but overall, the good far outweighed the bad. All this online technology was a new challenge for me, but I managed to get booked, check in, and use a QR boarding pass on my phone, so I’m learning.
Brandon, yes, I was not impressed with the “dining” experience at Shooters. Never again! I had wanted to try that Filling Station place again, but it was late, so I went with convenience.
It took me a minute to figure out what you meant by “Lima Bravos.” 🙂 But I did spot a couple during my Shooters visit.
Kevin, Dave’s memorial was a nice send-off for a special man. I’ll post some photos from the event later today.
Nope, I checked to make sure I wasn’t billed for what I didn’t get.
Ha! I hadn’t thought of Bubble Up in I don’t know how long. I was curious *ahem* to see if it was still being bottled, so I used that Google thingy to find out the answer. It is! Kiss of Lemon-Kiss of Lime!
Yep, I’m going to see out new adventures for as long as I can.
Aloysius, nope, no anger at the Shooters staff. Shit happens.
Your disrespect for a dead man who did so many things to assist those in need is nothing short of disgusting. It is one thing to be ignorant of the good deeds of a man you obviously know nothing about, but to blame him for a fire he had absolutely nothing to do with reflects very poorly on your character.
I had no idea what “Bubble Up” was until I clicked the link. I was simply inventing a phrasal verb to be shorthand for “ensconce yourself in a bubble.”