Safe in Manila

I arrived in Manila late Saturday evening, after a long series of flights (Boise to Seattle to Tokyo to Manila). The 24-hr journey was long, but relatively comfortable and uneventful. I met up with one of my colleagues, Eugene, in Tokyo, where he graciously got me into the Delta Lounge with him (note to self: start earning more frequent flier miles--that place was sweet!). Got to the hotel around 12am, my body still believing that it was 9am.

I've been a little disoriented and tired from the journey, but it has been nice to have a day to adjust to the changes in time, climate, culture, currency, etc. It's hot and muggy, though not unbearably so (probably in the low eighties), and my hotel has a good little air conditioner. I have a kitchenette and a small living room, in addition to bedroom and bath, so I'm quite comfortable here.  I have lovely free WiFi, and was even able to Skype with Ryan briefly this morning (the time change, though is going to be a beast in terms of finding time to talk once I start working!). Despite the hotel being in a crowded, bustling area of Manila, roosters woke me up around 6:30 this morning.

I was surprised, on the way to the hotel from the airport, at how Westernized Manila is. We passed a Starbucks, KFC, and Krispy Kreme, and Visa appears to be accepted everywhere. This is a far cry from my Peace Corps experience just five years ago. I've seen iPads and iPhones and other iParaphenalia aplenty. It really does feel like you could find just about anything you might dream of wanting in this city. It's a huge, metropolitan place, and I'm looking forward to exploring some of its hidden gems.

The four of us (Eugene--a CDC EIS Officer, Chinyere--another PHPS fellow like me, Jackie--a Canadian Field Epidemiologist, and I) ventured out from the hotel a little before noon, and found the enormous Robinson Mall just a couple of blocks away. This is a mall unlike anything I've ever seen. Five floors of stores, a mixture of American, European, and Japanese chains mixed in with local stores, kiosks, food stalls, a movie theater, and a full-sized grocery store. A hustling, bustling place. We had delicious and slightly mysterious pan-Asian food, which we selected using mostly the pictures in the glossy menus. Jackie and I tried calamansi soda, which was like a less-sweet (better!) version of Sprite (calamansi is a native fruit of the Philippines, something like a cross between a lime and and orange). We then wandered the massive mall for a few hours, gawking at just how very much was there. We found some groceries, including a tremendous variety of tropical fruit. I am going to eat more than my fair share of mangos and pineapple during the next few months.

Things still feel just a little overwhelming, though I think that the Philippines will be very easy to negotiate, when all is said and done. People seem to be very warm and friendly, and English appears to be spoken widely. I'm sure that this will be a pleasant place to be!

We will meet with the WHO Country Office tomorrow morning, and I hope that I'll then have a little more information about what types of projects I might be working on. They have a series of site visits scheduled for us at the end of next week, so it sounds like we'll be jumping in with both feet!


I'm enjoying the quiet warm afternoon. I'm boiling some drinking water, enjoying a sweet snack of pineapple, and relishing the down time after a busy couple of weeks getting ready for this trip, and after the long journey itself. I have no doubt that there is plenty of work to keep us busy over the next twelve weeks. I'm excited to get started (and I'm sure that a good night's sleep tonight won't hurt either!).

Robinson Mall, Manila. The lanterns are in preparation for Chinese New Year, which is next week.