Sunday, January 13, 2008

Coming To Manila, Day 5: Going To Bacolod

So when we woke up Thursday morning to get breakfast, I looked out our window and saw that it was raining cats and dogs. I mean, it was pouring HARD, which I thought did not bode well for traveling without a hitch today.

Where were we travelling to? We were flying from Manila to Bacolod at around 4 PM that afternoon; Bacolod is where my Dad's side of the family is from, and my Tito Bamboo still lives at our ancestral home over there. My Tita Thelma (who is like a second mother to me and my sister) was also in Bacolod, as she splits her time between New York and the Philippines, now that she is retired. Their (and my dad's) youngest brother, my Tito Tony, also still lives in Bacolod, albeit not in the family ancestral home anymore.

So after breakfast (again at the Jeepney), TJC and I went back to the room to pack our respective luggages, however grudgingly we felt about it. After that, we just chilled at our hotel room til it was time for Rodel to pick us up to go to the airport. He picked us up around 1 PM, and off we went. The traffic was INSANE because of the rain. Normally, it would take about 20-30 minutes to go from the hotel to the airport; it took us well over an hour.

We get to the airport, go through all the security rigamarol and check-in. We find out at that point that the flight was delayed about an hour or so. It was very surprising for me to see how much the Domestic Airport in Manila had changed since I last saw it back in 1994. It looked so much more modern now compared to back then (I remember when I was a kid, it was straight out of one of those island airports you see in the movies). I give Tito Bamboo a call that our flight is running late, and proceed to try to find something to eat, settling for 2 hot dogs and a soda.

We get on the plane, and we get to Bacolod in about 45 minutes (getting to the friggin airport took longer!). There was some turbulence along the way and this poor little baby in front of us got airsick and threw up all over the aisle and would not stop crying. I felt bad for her, all that shaking must have been horrible.

We get to the Bacolod airport, and this one still looks the same as I remember it (see previous "island airport" comment 2 paragraphs before). While waiting for our luggage, I get a text message from Tito Bamboo: "We're on our way!". It cracked me up; unlike the Defensors (my Mom's side of the family), efficiency and effectiveness when it comes to time is not a sterling trait of my Dad's side, the Tonogbanuas (and everyone knows it). I thought to myself: "Yup, I'm with the Tonogbanua side of the family now!". When I relayed the story to my folks after I got back, they got a huge laugh out of it. In the immortal words of Homer Simpson: "It's funny cuz it's true."

It wasn't a big deal, because our house was only 10 minutes away from the airport, and even before our baggage arrived, Tito Tony, Tito Bam, and Tanya (Tito Tony's daughter) were there. We drove back to the house, and some of the places still looked familiar to me. What DID NOT look familiar to me at all was the house! I had no idea we had parked in front of it already, it was that different. Last I saw it, it was one of those old Spanish style wood houses, similar looking to this. Our house did not have the garden in front (it was inside), and the wood looked much much older than the one in the picture, but imagine something similar if you can in terms of structure and look.

But now, it was all white, and in concrete! It was due for a renovation, as it was really beginning to look old, even though the interiors were beautiful still. I was downright amazed at how different it was. And when I finally got inside, even the interiors were completely changed as well (All for the better, of course)! I wanted to go up to the 2nd floor to check it out, as that's where I spent most of my summers when we visited Bacolod. My Lola Tiba's (Lola is grandma in Filipino) room was in the 2nd floor before she passed away, and I used to sleep with her in her room when we came to visit, so it held a lot of fond memories. The 2nd floor was also where the dining room was, where we would eat all the fabulous dishes my Lola would whip up for us, as she was without compare with her cooking. I was banned from going up there though as my Tito Bamboo's Christmas Village (which I will talk about in the next post) was not done being fixed up yet, and it was due for its soft opening in 2 days.

So we all ended up just sitting outside in the garden, drinking beer, along with Tita Bec (my dad's cousin).

Here are Tito Tony and Tita Bec:



And here are Tito Bamboo and Tita Ma:



After about an hour or so of doing that, we all went to dinner at this Japanese Hibachi restaurant whose name escapes me now. After dinner, we go to one of the Bob's (Bob's is one of Bacolod's iconic eating places) for dessert and coffee. After that, Tito Bamboo insisted that he take the guys to Royal Spa for a massage. I admit, I was a bit wary of a massage place that was open 24 hours, but it was all good. We got there almost around midnight, and there's this huge room inside with rows of massage tables and you just pick one and lie down and get the knots kneaded away. It was pretty good, very relaxing (so relaxing, at one point the entire room could hear Tito Bamboo snoring away). Then, they started stretching the bejeezus out of you, and I felt like I a contortionist at one point.

I felt great though, and we drove home and after taking a shower, I slept like a baby, looking forward to seeing good old Bacolod during the day.

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