Today woke up with a really bad side ache and constipation. I don’t know what’s worse being able to poo or the pain from not being able to poo. Anyway, the side ache had me really worried it could be appendicitis…but I haven’t really had any other symptoms and I still have a pretty big appetite. Right now my side is kinda sore but not as much. It’s probably something we ate or drink because Don is feeling a little sick too.
Don’s mom and I went out to get food and medicine and then came back and Jonathon was here. We wanted to go out and do something but didn’t know what. Jonathon convinced us to go to a spa. I’ve never done anything like that. We got full body massages. It was kinda weird for me at first but then it was good. I think I want to get a foot massage next.
Then Jonathon, Don and I ate a Filipino restaurant. Then we came back to the hotel. We are invited to go out to karaoke but I don’t know if were up for it. I just feel so out of it. I hope things get better for the resort tomorrow. I don’t know how much more of this I can take.
Woke up a little later around 8. Layed in bed and finished my book. Then had McDonald’s for breakfast. Don’s Aunt and Uncle came to pick us up around 11 and we went to the Peninsula Hotel to visit some family. Then we went out to eat. After eating I starting feeling a little sick.
We checked into our hotel,the BSA, and while most everyone went shopping we stayed in. We went across the street to the mall Greenbelt and walked around. Went to a museum and learned about Philippine history. Then we ate at Wendy’s because I wanted something American. It wasn’t that great, and then I got the craps.
At 9:30 I was so exhausted but all the cousins wanted to go out. We went to a couple bars. Reagan, Robbie, RJ, Justin (Liz his wife), Mariel, Francis were who we went out with. Ended up doing some shots and having beer. Came home and pretty much passed out. We slept til about 1 pm! We both woke up with diarrhea and I have a headache and my throat feels funny. Hopefully tomorrow we feel better.
We went out to eat at Chili’s because we woke up late and didn’t want to go shopping with the others. Then we came back to the hotel and decided to try out a zoo. The zoo wasn’t very clean and smelled like poop and made us feel sicker. The area was kind of sketchy and our cab ride home was crazy. At one point the cab driver got out and took a pee alongside the road…never seen that in NYC hahaha.
So now we are in the hotel, don’t know what to do next.
Today we woke up around 6 and had breakfast. We laid around for awhile. We thought we would be picked up today to be taken to Los Banos, where Don’s mom is. There was no one available to pick us up today though so we will spend one more night with Don’s dad.
First we started watching a bootleg version of the Clash of the Titans. I was tired so I took a nap instead. Then we decided to go to the mall to the internet café. Once we got to the mall we decided to see a movie since we had all day. We saw Prince of Persia. It’s different here because you actually pick seats before the movie. So it’s like reserved seating. People were dressed up like the characters from the movie and I took a picture with them.
We did some shopping of course. Shopping is weird here because at just about every section there is a salesperson there, watching your every move and trying to sell to you. It’s kind of annoying.
After the mall we just went home and chilled out. Ended up taking a nap and it rained really hard. First rain in a long time. Then we had McDonald’s. Then Don’s dad put in a DVD that has copies of a bunch of Bruce Willis movies on it. We started watching 16 Blocks. I got tired of it, since I’ve seen it and decided to write this…
Today we woke up and had Mcdonald’s for breakfast. Showered and learned that there has been a drought in the Philippines for the past 6 months, so from 2 pm-8pm the water is turned off. Don’s dad keeps a bucket of water in case we need to wash in between those times. So it’s important when you’re showering to try to conserve water by turning it off when you’re lathering up.
Then we went to a mall in Manila to meet with Don’s Aunt, Tita Nitz. She had to have us bring our ID to make some corrections on the airline tickets for our resort we are flying to next week. First, while we were waiting we had a drink at Gloria Jeans hahaha! Then we went to an internet café so I could email my family and Don could check some work stuff.
After we got the stuff done with the airline we had lunch and then got a cab to go to some tourist attractions. We went to Fort Santiago. It was very cool. I took lots of pictures. We went to a museum about Jose Rizal, he was a writer who wanted the best for his country and ended up being executed.
Then we walked to a park, saw a lot of people that were begging. One beggar came up to us, he was really dirty and asking for money. He wouldn’t leave and a cop came over and hit him over the head with his hat. I was kind of shocked by this. It’s really different here. There are tons of stray animals (dogs and cats) and roosters crowing. There’s a lot of poverty. I feel bad.
We went to an aquarium after the park. It was pretty cool because we recognized some of the fish we saw snorkeling. I wish we saw these snorkeling.
Then we at a place called Max’s Restaurant. Don’s dad really likes the place. We had fried chicken and chop suey.
The driving here is crazy. Some places there are no lines to distinguish between lanes and when there are lines they don’t matter. There are tons of motorcycles. It is scary to be in a cab! We were almost hit several times. At most intersections there are no stop signs or traffic lights so people have kinda just formed their own way of knowing when to go and usually that means just pushing your car out into the middle and making people stop for you. It is way worse than anything I’ve ever seen. I don’t even think I could do it! I drove in NYC for 2 years and that is NOTHING compared to this. People will just walk out in front of the cars…like 4 lanes of traffic and just start walking. It isn’t like this is a small city or town. This is a city like I think with more population than Chicago and NYC. I will look it up later…and no stop lights. No traffic rules really at all. Just drive.
Had breakfast at the hotel around 8 am and then walked around and did a little shopping. Then I went swimming for a little bit at the pool and we laid out on the beach and went in the water a little. Mostly we were just waiting around for our bus to pick us up at 1 pm to go to the airport. At 1 a guy in a little van/truck came to pick us up to go to the port. At the port we got on a boat to go to Catcilan to catch a fight to Manila. This time we didn’t have a 2 hour bus ride! For some reason the plane was allowed to leave from the closer airport.
When we arrived to Manila, Don’s dad and his friend Jackie Chan (a retired cop) were there to pick us up. They were excited to take us to Mall of Asia. It is the biggest mall in Asia. The mall was really cool because in the middle it didn’t really have a roof top, it was pretty open. There was a fashion show going on. The mall had an ice skating rink and a beach like area with restaurants. Kind of like a board walk.
Then we went to Don’s dad’s apartment and will be staying here for the next few days.
