philippines

earlier this month, it was my turn to go with husband to the philippines. he had two back to back work trips only a week apart, and he was going to be celebrating his birthday alone in asia – we couldn’t have that! …so, i went along!

we have had such a busy month that the trip now feels like it was last year. funny how time can mess with your brain.

i think most mothers of the world would agree with me on this – but, i don’t mind the travel-time when traveling alone. meaning: without children. when we travel to the philippines, it takes 3 flights no matter how you do it, no matter what cities you route through = three. and, for those of you who ask – it’s not longer to fly from boston vs salt lake city. no matter where you fly out of in the U.S. to go to the philippines, you go over the north pole, and the flight time only has about an hours difference, west coast vs east coast or anywhere in-between. the three flights are usually: 2 hours; 15 hours; 4 hours. in that order. HEAVEN! long before i left on this trip i was planning my reading material, planning what videos i wanted on my iPod, planning how many naps i would take. don’t get me wrong, i am a fierce-lovin’ mother hen, but after devoting 14 years to motherhood, i can really appreciate a little break now and again.

…this all leads in to the beginning of my story.

we flew out of boston to nyc, and in nyc we boarded our long flight to japan. while waiting to leave, they announced that one of the cargo doors on the plane needed to be repaired. so, we waited.

and waited.

and waited.

and, i kept reading. and snacking. and smiling at my handsome husband sitting next to me. i didn’t mind at all, because i was already on vacation!

then we waited some more…

and, after about three hours of waiting, our crew a.k.a. flight attendants realized if they stayed on the flight they were going to be over their limit for hours of work that week, and they walked off the plane.

then, they came on the intercom again, and explained the situation to us – also said they were looking for a new crew.

4 hours. of waiting.

…they asked us to deplane.

and, we waited in the sky club to find out what to do.

and, our flight was rescheduled for the next morning.

so, because husband is platinum*diamond*elite whatever. you fly 300,000 miles a year – you do deserve some perks. they put us up in a hotel in nyc for the night. at first, we thought, “sweet!” we want to see a show – we’ll play for an evening.

bad news: husband was meeting a client in manila for a 4-hour meeting, and now that meeting was going to be missed. we had some tricky re-scheduling to do.

then, we realized it was a monday. Most of broadway is dark on mondays. meaning: no shows to see.

then, we went to our “free” hotel in queens. super sketchy.

then, we took a taxi to the nearest theaters in the bronx to see a movie. and, went through some serious security to get in to the theaters.

then, the movie was awful.

then, we made the best out of not having our stuff because our suitcases were still at the airport as checked baggage.

then, we woke up the next morning, wore the same clothes, and headed off to the airport again.

then, i finished my first book of the trip. i watched 6 episodes of “pretty little liars.” i watched 5 episodes of “FNL.” i watched the documentary/movie, “Inside Job.”

i always love flying in to the Philippines, there is this tropical sense of coming home. the hot-humidity warms my bones. we finally arrived, a day late & had the best chinese food at midnight. i love internationals cities and how they run on a 24-hour clock. i also adore that the philippines celebrates christmas-my-style. meaning: the decorations, lights, and music all appear in early November. if not sooner.

post-plane drama: still a happy momma on vacation!