Tuesday Morning local time.. Well I am here.. 29 and 1/2 hours door to door.. This trip was by far the easiest so far.. Maybe I am getting used to it.. or it was easier. Due to the Earthquake / Tsunami in Japan back in February, I had to fly through Hong Kong instead of Japan. I also got to fly on Cathay Pacific vs Delta Airlines. I was kind of looking forward to this trip since I had heard that Cathay did a great job as an airline, and I also wanted to see Hong Kong. Of course there is always a downsize, and it is with Delta I got points.. and now I am a new member of World One which is Cathay and American Airlines among others. I think I will have to check out the airlines they are on before I choose my next vacation.. :)
I left Philly and it was fine. A short trip to Toronto. Toronto is a newer airport and quite easy to navigate through. The issue was there was NO ONE in the airport. It was a ghost town. I asked someone and they said that it is busy in the afternoon but in the winter it is reverse and it is busy in the morning. Took US Air to Toronto but they did check my luggage thru to Cathay all the way to Manila.. so that was good. I did do a double check in Toronto tho just in case. Sometimes you have to get your luggage, go 50 feet and then hand it back in for the other airline. But it was very smooth. Had lunch at Toronto... had a egg and ham sandwich on a croissant and they served it with french fries. So I confess.. I had more than 2.. but didn't eat them all. I figured my eating habits will be different here (for the better) so I indulged a little. After lunch I went to the gate, and found a seat with a plug and started to waste the few hours I had to go before I got on the plane.
Well I got on the plane to Hong Kong and it was not a full flight. In fact I was in the window and there was no one in the middle or the aisle. It was a very comfy flight... This leg was going to be almost 16 hours.. so I was thrilled when I had no seat mates for this long leg. I didn't do much, ate, slept, read, watched a little of the Green Hornet.. I can tell how it ended.. but now I have to see it somewhere. hopefully on the way back I will watch the ending. Before you knew it i was arriving in Hong Kong.
This airport is very modern.. easy to get through and I had a few hours to look around. You can get a ferry boat right at the airport for Macau.. very handy, you can also get to the mainland and the transfer to the Manila flight was so easy. I now have dreams to come back to Hong Kong and Macau for a vacation.. So I just need to find someone that wants to go on an adventure.. and do some research on these 2 places. I got to the plane for Manila.. and had no one next to me on that flight either. So this was such a great trip, just very long. I met a young woman on the flight and we talked. She was born in HK, lived in Canada most of her life and now lives in HK, and Dubai as well. She works as a consultant in the rail industry. She was coming to Manila to bid on a MRT route. We talked the whole way and now have a friend in Dubai. :)
We landed in Manila.. and it almost felt like coming home.. so strange when you are somewhere a lot, it feels like home. Tonight though was the worst for immigration lines. I think 4 or 5 planes came in at once.. and we unfortunately weren't the first. It took us over an hour to get thru the line. This was the same way coming from Paris a few weeks ago in Philly.. that day it took me 1 hour and 1/2 to get thru the line. Well I said my farewell to Janet, and will try to email her and maybe see her while I am here. I got out thru the gate and there was Narcisco and the Shangri-La folks to help me with my bags, and get me out of the airport to the hotel.
Coming back to the Shangri-La was great. I knew all the folks out front, and most of the front desk folks. It is a nice feeling when they say it is good to see me and I know on some level they are not saying it because they have to. The people here are the nicest people and it was truly good to see them. So here I am getting unpacked, clothes pressed and put away.. I turned on my switch B mode and slowly getting back into that mode of timing. I was going to go in to the office for a few hours, but I find myself a little more fatigued than I thought I would. So I think I will rest up, get to the gym at 5, and get back on track for walking, running and then get a good night sleep for tomorrow nights work.
So that's it for now.. I am here, and again.. feeling like one lucky guy. I do miss home, Tim, Molly and friends and neighbors.. But you have to enjoy life as you get it.. and know that what is back home is always going to be there.
