Home sweet home

Mid pleasures and palaces though we may roam,
Be it ever so humble, there's no place like home. (John Howard Payne)

Back home from Bangkok, and I must say it was really a good feeling when the plane touched down at NAIA (as much as I hate that airport!). The trip back, unlike the trip going to Bangkok was shorter and relatively smooth. No major bumps along the way, just the way I like it.

After our meeting ended Tuesday afternoon, the new member of our team, Nuk, took me to Siam Center for a little bit of shopping. Nuk is very nice, and I'm glad to have her on our team. So many things, so little money to spend. That is the story of my life now. I found some cute t-shirts for a couple of nieces and godchildren. At MBK I also came across some Gameboy Advance, and they were selling relatively cheap. Wanted to buy Ben one but I couldn't tell if they were genuine Game Boys. Oh well, some other time. I'm going back again in March anyway, so if I haven't bought him one yet before that I'll see if I can in my next trip.

We also went to Suan Lum night market. Quite close to the hotel where I was staying. I'm pretty much familiar with that area of Bangkok, since that's where I mostly stay when I go there. I would like to visit for vacation though, without work getting in the way. There are so many things to do and see in Bangkok, a few days stay would be nice. Oh well, with Cebu Pacific offering relatively cheap airfares, maybe me and family and friends can plan a visit. That would be nice.

But now here I am back home, and I'm happy.

Hello from Bangkok

Hello from Bangkok. I’m here for a one-day meeting with my boss and other colleagues from work. The trip, delayed by more than hour back home, took even longer because we had to skirt our way around the typhoon that is currently brewing on the South China Sea, after a short and relatively calm stint in the Philippines. I guess the trip was relatively calm, although quite a bit bumpy at times. As I said in my previous post, I don’t really like flying (particularly when I’m traveling by myself), and running into bumps along the way can make the experience even more disturbing. And yet, despite that, I continue to want to see other parts of the world (which, because of the Philippines’ archipelagic nature cannot be reached by land travel, in which I’m most comfy) and in fact am planning to visit KL with Ben soon.

So, on the agenda for tonight is dinner at a Lao restaurant. Never had Lao food before, although if it’s kind of like the Vietnamese food I’ve had at home, then I suppose I can deal with that. Unfortunately for me, I’m not at all adventurous when it comes to food. Filipino and Chinese dishes are fine with me, thanks. But I guess it wouldn’t hurt to try. My bosses already know that I have trouble with really spicy food so I think they’ll order something I’m going to be able to consume.

By the way, we touched down at the new Bangkok Airport. I think it’s a bit further out than the old one, and I don’t think it’s really finished already, but what I’ve seen is quite nice. Sure makes me sorry for the sad state of the airport in Manila. Ay naku, I wonder if the Philippines will ever be able to catch up with our neighbors. Of the airports in SE Asia that I’ve been to (Manila, KL, Singapore, HK, and Bangkok), I’m sad to say that the one at home is the worst. And I don’t think the opening of the NAIA -3 terminal is going to help much. I think we need to build an airport away from Manila, like KL and Bangkok’s airports are actually far from the city center. They’ve constructed really nice roads to access them though. Traveling from the airport to the hotel this afternoon, I’m amazed at how much infra work have been done in Bangkok since the first time I came here in 1998. I’m sure when I visit KL I’m going to see improvements too…improvements that we can only dream for in the Philippines.

Still, I look forward to going home on Wednesday. I still have separation anxiety when it comes to Ben. I don’t like traveling and leaving him. At the airport at home, I already miss him, and now I miss him some more. I would love to be able to take him to various places too. Someday…

Here's hoping the trip back home will be much calmer than the trip this afternoon.

Off to Bangkok, dang...

Well, I'm off to Bangkok tomorrow for a meeting on the 12th. Unfortunately for me, there is a typhoon, and while it doesn't seem as bad as the last few typhoons, well, that really is no comfort to me since: 1) I don't really like flying, and 2) flying in the middle of a typhoon means I will not have a moment's rest while I am in the plane.

Oh well, here's hoping for a safe trip to and back. I am so looking forward to going home to Baler for the holidays.