TOUCHDOWN!

It's my second "official visit" to Manila. Admittedly, the feeling is a bit strange (pronounced STRAN-JAY like Shash, Xtine and I used to say it) when you're actually in your own country as a tourist. People in the hotel talk to me in English and greet me: "Welcome to Manila."

The girl who escorted me to my room asked me: "So Mr. Morales, have you been to Manila before?" And I said: "Yes, I've been before. I've been here 30 years before." Then the usual mock-shock-oh-you're-Filipino-schtick ensued. I'm getting really good at this chameleon thing.

By 8:00 pm, I was settled in my room. And the question was: "Now I'm in here, what am I to do?" I think what a person does in the first few hours reflects the kind of things he misses or looks forward to doing whenever he's out of the country. Much like how Biboy just wanted to hang out in the house when he came back from Georgia. To avoid the rush hour traffic, I told my siblings that i'd visit them around 9:30 to 10pm, so that gives me an hour and a half to do whatever I please.

The stuff I did was really unconscious and unplanned. Here they are, in chronological order, and let's see what it says about my personality:

1. Called my former office to check if my last paycheck is ready. Talked to our guard who had a bad health spell and checked if he was feeling alright now.
2. Walked along Ayala and savored the "calling it a day" atmosphere. Ran into Reg in front of LKG tower - he's one of the nicest people at Harrison.
3. Went to RCBC Plaza and headed to the office. Looks like the building guards still remember me because they didn't ask me to get a visitor's ID. Not bad for a guy who resigned 3 months ago.
4. Walked to Greenbelt 1 and checked out my favorite shops at the Greenbelt Plaza.
5. Went to SM Surplus Shop to check out all the stuff i've been missing. Got a couple of Superhero shirts, a steal at P299.75 each.
6. Went to SM Snack Exchange and bought Mango Juice, Orange Juice and chocolate cookies.
7. Walked back to the Peninsula to leave my stuff before I go back to the house.

Given that list, it's easy to see that i'm really such a mall rat and a clothes whore. Yes, some things never change!