Please remember this is just my observations and not an attempt to be rude or argumentative.
We moved from the Palm Plaza Hotel to the Atrium Hotel. Got a terrific deal that Helen would like to share with the rest of ya’ll as well. We are paying less than half the P1500 we were paying at Palm Plaza and this view is awesome. There is something of a mall on the 1st through 5th floors but it’s not completely developed. The room is much nicer with better cable TV, a bathtub, a love seat and chairs but we did have to give up the free breakfast and newspaper.
The Atrium is right beside the LRT and we decided we would be adventurous and take a ride on it this morning. We need to go back to the Robinson Mall where I purchased some glasses last week (tri-focal progressive for only $200) and they should be ready today. Yes this means the “old meanie” won’t let me get the lasik surgery. She is just so afraid I’ll get hurt. You can see the Robinson Mall right out our 21st floor window. It appears to be about 15-16 blocks south. The LRT goes right beside the University of the Philippines, which is about 2 blocks from Robinson’s Mall. We have made the trip this way several times and it takes about 45 minutes to travel the 16 blocks in a cab at a cost of P75-90. It’ll be interesting to see how fast the LRT is and how much it costs.
We found out that our 35MM camera was screwed up and a great majority of our pictures were ruined. All of those we took back Davao and at the park Nayong Pilipino (pouting). Honey wants to go back and take pictures again at Nayong Pilipino.
Next day:
Yesterday was quite a day. We went to Nayong Pilipino again and no sooner got there than Howard’s wife started calling us. So we left and met them at Glorietta Mall. She seemed pretty sincere in just needing so money to get back home and had standby ticket for the flight just no money for a variety of small things like the tax and terminal fee and few odds and ends (like money for her family I guess). I invited them to my hotel room and let her call Howard (love waking that guy at 4 AM – hehehe). Then she said once she had her flight confirmed she’d come back here and call him again.
There appears to be a new scam with the cab drivers, or at least new with me. They refuse to start their meters and tell you to pay what you want. AT first I thought it’s was okay but now after about the 5th or 6th time I see it’s just a way to scam foreigners. So when they refuse to start their meters we get out and wait for another cab. The LRT was only P12 and took less that 5 minutes to get us back to the Robinson Mall. I wish I knew more about the LRT and MRT so I could use them more. Very little published info on them and I get tired of bass-ackwards directions I am given.
The hotel here has nice accommodations but boy is it expensive. They want $2 to wash and press a shirt!!! There is not “free breakfast” and our breakfast this morning was over $10. We asked for a cab at the door and the hotel wanted to charge us P350 for getting it for us. I think they think way too much of themselves.
We finally finished seeing Nayong Pilipino then went over to what we thought was a pretty good looking mall from the outside, Coastal Mall. It was like a junk flea market on the inside. No major retailers at all.
I called the Embassy a few minutes ago and they said that at this time no K-3 are being issued. So it can still be a long time before Honey can come to join me in the USA. But I think its going to happen real soon otherwise they would not have St.Lukes packed to the door overflowing with girls on K-3’s to take physicals. Still I don’t know how I am going to get on that plane without Honey again. We really thought we would make it this time.
Lots of Mag-Anakers getting together with us tonight, Marianne-on-fire, Mary324, Laarni and probably Helen and Lily (who BTW passed her interview today. Look out James cause here she comes!!! Only took James and Lily 2 years on an I-130 - gossshhh). Let you know how that goes later. Still planning to take a car to Baguio Friday and Saturday and then meet with more Mag-Anakers Saturday night. Fly out on Sunday morning.
More to come.
