Well CAM-bodia! A non-valentine's day post on Valentine's Day

I thought of a fancy introduction for this post, but, no, I shall go straight to the point.

Recently, I took a trip to Cambodia with friends.

It was months in the making, thanks to my friends who made a conscious effort of thinking of me whenever Cebu Pacific announces a sale.

So, Siem Reap, Cambodia it was.

Thanks to my blogger-volunteer-friend who made all the planning.

I'll let the pictures do most of the talking.

Inside a dome or pyramid in one of Siem Reap's many temples

Simply beautiful

Majestic hallways

Imposing structures

Sunset

 I have to say something about the picture above and the two succeeding pictures below. The Tourism Officials of Cambodia seem to have perfected the idea of selling sunset viewing as a touristic activity. There is this temple atop a hill or a mountain where the sunset view is to die for, they say. Before thirty past five in the afternoon, tourists make their way up to get a good view of the sunset. I never thought that tourists would be very interested in sunsets. My group went early, hoping for a good view, and a good spot we had.

After taking the almost sunset picture above, I went down because I don't want to join the hundreds of people heading their way down back to the lowlands! On my way down, I took the picture below of people waiting atop the temple for that perfect sunset photo. My friends are there in front somewhere.

 On my way down, there were smaller stations where smaller groups of people convened to take their own snaps of sunset. Perhaps I wasn't the sunset-kind-of-person. I got interested however in what was in the tourists' minds that made them go all the way up to the temple on a hill for a brief moment with the day's departure.

Interestingly, our group woke up very early the next day to catch the sunrise in Angkor Wat. Hehe. The sunrise crowd drew the same amount of tourists as the sunset tour.

Wedding pose

Shopping at the Art Centre which opens only at night

Strings of hotels in Siem Reap

Shopping bags on board a Tuk-tuk

The National Museum

Airport at Siem Reap whose architecture is reflective of its culture

Airport post

Checking in at Zamboanga International Airport

Zamboanga Airport

At Zamboanga International Airport 1/1/12

Morning flights to Manila were diverted to Diosdado Macapagal International Airport in Clark, Pampanga because of the heavy smog enveloping the airport area, the three airlines announced in their Facebook accounts. I was alarmed upon learning about this in the early morning of the first day of 2012; I am flying back to Manila in the afternoon. At nine in the morning, I was relieved to find out that the operations in the country’s premier airport had been back to normal. I just imagine the celebrations, the smoke, in Manila the night before. Zamboanga, of course, had its share in the revelry. When the morning broke, our maid, Manang, already cleared the house of any remnant of the revelry, and I partook of what’s left of the Media Noche dinner, took a bath, packed my things and readied myself for my flight back to Manila.

Again, I am writing this blog post at the airport. It’s an hour before my estimated time of departure, and there is no way of saying if we are leaving on time. Airline advisories have informed passengers that there might be delays brought about by the closure of the Manila airport in the morning.  I am not going to be surprised if our flight is delayed. I shall make use of the time contemplating and doing other things to while the time away.

The pre-departure area is slowly creeping with people. ABS-CBN’s ASAP is on, and my attention is divided between finishing this post and watching the dance and song numbers. And if I have a short post, please understand that I have chosen to watch TV. Hehehe! It’s ten minutes before our scheduled boarding, and there has not been any sign of a plane leaving. I think we have a delayed flight. 

For a 40-peso terminal fee, you get a fan in a not-so-well-lit pre-departure area.

I shall post this in Manila the moment I get an Internet connection. For now, I leave you with this greeting: “Happy New Year! May 2012 be a great source of many things for us!”

 In Paranaque 1/1/12

 I arrived safely; the sky was clear and not a trace of the smog that caused the airport to close. Oh well, a new year has begun. And yes, our flight was two hours delayed.

No tube for us. The stairs we must take.

In view: Cebu Pacific Baggage Carousel

I like how the fluorescent lamps reflect on the floor

Mass at the airport

Checking-in!

Just less than a week after I took a Cebu Pacific flight to Manila from Zamboanga, I'm taking the same carrier tomorrow, January 7, this time, to Vietnam! It's going to be my first in Vietnam! I don't know what to expect, really. I'm just happy that I'm adding a stamp to my colorless passport. hehe. I dread the expenses, though. The holidays have just ended, and holidays usually render me penniless. Sigh. I should have prepared more for this. Depending on the kindness of strangers and non-strangers does not exactly appeal to me. I could hope, though, that Vietnam is not as expensive as Singapore. Nevertheless, money should not be a deterrent in having fun wherever one is! Who am I kidding? hehe.

I haven't even stepped inside the airport, yet I am already faced with a minor problem. Cebu Pacific has this online check-in thing and my friend is supposed to do that for us. Guess who left his passport at home? The passport number is important for the online check-in. No one is home and I can't leave work! Bummer! I know that online check-ins are supposed to make traveling more convenient. This part of any airplane experience poses to be problematic to some travelers; I am not spared. I remember last year during the presidential elections, I went to Zamboanga to vote. Yes, I wanted to be a part of the historic automated elections! I checked-in a little late at the Philippine Airlines counter. I pleaded to let me in, but they weren't very friendly. Since it was long weekend, flights were all fully-booked. I resorted to transferring to the Mabuhay class! I had to shell out three thousand pesos to upgrade my Fiesta class ticket! I did that all for the love of Noynoy Aquino!

Anyway, it was a thrill to be in first class of a flight. I was separated from the common folks! hehe. I was offered a complete meal by the ever-friendly flight attendant who kept on asking if I wanted anything else. I did want one thing, though, but I couldn't tell her. How do you tell an attendant that a foreign-looking passenger across my seat had a smelly feet because his feet were exposed? I didn't pay P6,000 for a stench like that. But my Asian sensibility told me to keep mum about it. Besides, what could be done about it? Can they tell a person to put on his shoes because his feet stink? I really wouldn't know what they would do. So, I endured an hour and a half of first class foot aroma!

Oh well, I have digressed. As of presstime, no one is home to give me my passport number. I'll have to personally check-in tomorrow, and enter Vietnam airspace seated away from my friends. I shall learn from this.

Will I see these sights in Vietnam also? These are photos taken in Zamboanga.

Holidays and plane rides

Common early morning airport scene

 I have lost count as to the number of times I boarded a domestic flight. In my younger and poorer years, taking the plane was an event reserved for the privileged few. Cebu Pacific came and every Juan started flying. My recollection of my early flight experiences was filled with eagerness. A plane ride for me now is still met with excitement, but it has also evolved into one introspective journey. You see, I fly home to Zamboanga, my hometown , usually alone. I can’t seem to get tired watching my city’s landscape from that small airplane window as we land. How I love it when the flight attendant announces “Kakalapag lang natin sa paliparang pandaigdig ng Zamboanga. Manatiling nakaupo hanggang ang babalang sinturong pangkaligtasan ay naiangat na” or something like that. Then, I’d hear a Nokia message alert tone immediately after. Welcome to Zamboanga! The moment the plane touches ground, I can't wait to get my bag from the airport's single baggage carousel.

I go home during long breaks, special occasions and holidays. Every homecoming is wonderful. Every member of my family is there. Of the brood of five, I seem to be the only one determined to live away from my folks. The result is enthusiasm every time I take a plane ride home. However, the same cannot be said as I board the plane back to Manila. Every visit back home means play while Manila always means work.

Every December is faced with anticipation since I book my holiday tickets months in advance making sure of a seat and a cheaper fare. I see Zamboanga as my home still despite having lived in Manila for more than ten years. I have been living in my own unit for close to three years now, yet I cannot claim it as home. Although I complain about my lack of privacy when my relatives are around, it's only when they are with me that I get to feel a semblance of home in my small abode. I'll have to start making my 30-square meter palace my home, with or without family. I am not supposed to subject myself to melancholia and nostalgia every time I am away from my family.

My mom was suggesting that they spend next Christmas with me in Manila. I think that's a good idea.



Pre-departure scene



My nieces