First Impressions—My First Visit to the Philippines

Taking a detour from my usual work because I’m on vacation/on assignment doing research for my book… in the Philippines!

I’ve made a few discoveries:

—JAL Airlines may be the friendliest airline I’ve ever flown, and that includes some very good experiences on Virgin Atlantic and JetBlue. I have found that all flight attendants are courteous and friendly, but the JAL folks seem to have down to an art, right up to making you feel good about waiting to disembark after a 13 hour flight.

—And the JAL food isn’t bad either. Yes, the choices are limited, because, well, it’s airline food, but it still works the entire palate, and that goes a long way toward satisfying hunger in a real sense—quality and diversity over quantity.

—The friendliness and hospitality of Filipinos is legendary (to some of us), and it really is true, from Roy, the attendant at Ninoy Aquino International who tended to a family member with mobility issues, to MJ and Jam, our tour guides, the hotel staff, along with the grandmother, the young woman from central Luzon, and the business woman on a return trip, all of whom I chatted with on the flight in, friendliness abounds here. This is the land of my mother and grandmother, and I feel welcome already.

Traffic: I’ve navigated Chicago, NYC, Atlanta, and Philadelphia, among other cities in the US (well, most of the ones east of the Mississippi, anyway), but look down from my hotel room onto a large intersection with five lanes in each direction, I do feel a little unnerved watching the driving.

Of course, the one challenge I have here is one that no one can control: it’s hot. I’m am already well-practiced in the art of sweating, but I think I will be challenged in new and exciting and even more moist ways this coming week.

Well, doing a bit of sightseeing in the old city, and maybe taking in a Museum. We’ll see what today brings.