Quick hello
Hi world! Alas, there hasn't been an update in awhile because I have had pretty much no internet access since leaving New York a week ago. Thankfully, I am in a hotel in Baguio City (five hours north of Manila) using their business center.
Honolulu was awesome...dancing and eating, basically. The dancing was decent...nothing spectacular, but I probably had a better time than I usually do in New York. Plus, I got to see Holly, Kennly and Sean! I spent all the time that I wasn't dancing pretty much eating...Holly and Kennly made me try allllll the local food.
As for the Philippines, landed in Manila late Tuesday night...and my mom didn't recognize me when she met me at the airport. Sad. Otherwise, it's been going pretty well. It's a little weird to be here alone and my mom not working. So, basically I'm with my mom 24 hours a day...which anyone can admit, 24 hours with a parent for 10 days cannot always be fun times, though somehow it's not too bad. Definitely relaxing. More like being at home than being on vacation. It is also a little weird to have a maid and driver living with us and a masseuse who comes twice a week and my mom's best friend is her dance instructor, which they call here a "D.I." That's another weird pheonomenon...middle aged and older women go to ballrooms and hire a DI with whom they dance with the entire time at the ballroom. Most of them are gay (though my mom's claims not to be) and in their 20s or 30s and they're paid to hang out and dance with these older women. It's like escorts or something...very strange. Especially since my mom is good friends with hers. We're on vacation this weekend in Baguio City, a mountain town north of Manila. Our hotel is a resort that was originally an American military resort, but it's pretty fancy stuff. In addition to my mom and I, we brought the driver, the DI, the maid, and the masseuse. Fucked up, but it's okay. Last night I had drinking contests with the driver (Jim...who totally looks like a secret service agent or something, sunglasses and all, and is a really nice guy) and the DI (Adrien...who is fun, though acts like he's 15 and sure seems gay, despite being married with child and 36). Tonight mom and Adrien are going to some ballroom. Alas, I went with them to a ballroom in Manila earlier this week and I didn't really like it because no one does lindy hop, which just KILLS me. Why waste good music on foxtrots?? I did, however, learn to do the Argentine Tango (among a hundred other ballroom dances), which I may pick up in New York. Anyway, since I'm not going to the ballroom tonight, I'm going to attempt to go clubbing by myself (though Jim is coming as my "bodyguard" as my mom puts it)...it will likely suck, but maybe I'll get drunk enough to have fun anyway.
Other things that I will elaborate on sometime in the future (and if I don't, make me):
-Lunch with my mom's neighbor...who is a rich lady, old money style, with a gigantic fancy mansion with majong tournaments, multiple condos, philandring sons, and more
-Saw my aunt Joyce and my grandma (both on my dad's side)
-Obsessed over The Wire in the airports...really really upset that I only had discs through episode 7.
-Went swimming in the olympic sized pool in my mom's condominium complex.
-Eating WAY too much, as usual
-Visited the hospital at which my mom finished her residency (Quezon City General)...which definitely looks like it came straight out of a WWII era movie (crumbling walls and old school equipment and all)
-Saw Blood Diamond...pretty good. Movies here are only $2.50!!!!!!!
-Went shopping...bought too many pairs of shoes
-Rowed a boat
-Started watching Veronica Mars season 1, which Donna so kindly lent me...yet another show to be obsessed over. And this season is way better than season 3.
-Um...lacking hot water and toilet paper...
-May actually be able to construct sentencess in Tagalog now. In any event, it's all I hear now, since mom speaks to all the help in Tagalog. Thankfully, I understand fluently...ha.
Alright...can't spend too much time on here...lots of emails to weed through. Anyway, hopefully another update soon!
Honolulu was awesome...dancing and eating, basically. The dancing was decent...nothing spectacular, but I probably had a better time than I usually do in New York. Plus, I got to see Holly, Kennly and Sean! I spent all the time that I wasn't dancing pretty much eating...Holly and Kennly made me try allllll the local food.
As for the Philippines, landed in Manila late Tuesday night...and my mom didn't recognize me when she met me at the airport. Sad. Otherwise, it's been going pretty well. It's a little weird to be here alone and my mom not working. So, basically I'm with my mom 24 hours a day...which anyone can admit, 24 hours with a parent for 10 days cannot always be fun times, though somehow it's not too bad. Definitely relaxing. More like being at home than being on vacation. It is also a little weird to have a maid and driver living with us and a masseuse who comes twice a week and my mom's best friend is her dance instructor, which they call here a "D.I." That's another weird pheonomenon...middle aged and older women go to ballrooms and hire a DI with whom they dance with the entire time at the ballroom. Most of them are gay (though my mom's claims not to be) and in their 20s or 30s and they're paid to hang out and dance with these older women. It's like escorts or something...very strange. Especially since my mom is good friends with hers. We're on vacation this weekend in Baguio City, a mountain town north of Manila. Our hotel is a resort that was originally an American military resort, but it's pretty fancy stuff. In addition to my mom and I, we brought the driver, the DI, the maid, and the masseuse. Fucked up, but it's okay. Last night I had drinking contests with the driver (Jim...who totally looks like a secret service agent or something, sunglasses and all, and is a really nice guy) and the DI (Adrien...who is fun, though acts like he's 15 and sure seems gay, despite being married with child and 36). Tonight mom and Adrien are going to some ballroom. Alas, I went with them to a ballroom in Manila earlier this week and I didn't really like it because no one does lindy hop, which just KILLS me. Why waste good music on foxtrots?? I did, however, learn to do the Argentine Tango (among a hundred other ballroom dances), which I may pick up in New York. Anyway, since I'm not going to the ballroom tonight, I'm going to attempt to go clubbing by myself (though Jim is coming as my "bodyguard" as my mom puts it)...it will likely suck, but maybe I'll get drunk enough to have fun anyway.
Other things that I will elaborate on sometime in the future (and if I don't, make me):
-Lunch with my mom's neighbor...who is a rich lady, old money style, with a gigantic fancy mansion with majong tournaments, multiple condos, philandring sons, and more
-Saw my aunt Joyce and my grandma (both on my dad's side)
-Obsessed over The Wire in the airports...really really upset that I only had discs through episode 7.
-Went swimming in the olympic sized pool in my mom's condominium complex.
-Eating WAY too much, as usual
-Visited the hospital at which my mom finished her residency (Quezon City General)...which definitely looks like it came straight out of a WWII era movie (crumbling walls and old school equipment and all)
-Saw Blood Diamond...pretty good. Movies here are only $2.50!!!!!!!
-Went shopping...bought too many pairs of shoes
-Rowed a boat
-Started watching Veronica Mars season 1, which Donna so kindly lent me...yet another show to be obsessed over. And this season is way better than season 3.
-Um...lacking hot water and toilet paper...
-May actually be able to construct sentencess in Tagalog now. In any event, it's all I hear now, since mom speaks to all the help in Tagalog. Thankfully, I understand fluently...ha.
Alright...can't spend too much time on here...lots of emails to weed through. Anyway, hopefully another update soon!