I am so sorry that I will be posting things out of sequence but I had some power and compatibility problems in Hong Kong and so I could not use my lap top while I was there.  Anyway, we are back home now and I will try to post today's adventures and backfill the other experiences as I get a chance.

This morning we got up early, at 6AM to finish packing and to get the kids up and ready to go on time.  Our flight was scheduled to depart at 11AM and the hotel had us scheduled to be picked up for a ride to the airport at 8:20 AM.  It seemed cutting things a bit close to me, but I figured since they do this all the time it should not be a problem.

We went to breakfast at the Marco Polo Prince Deli as we have every day and ate our free breakfast and I through in a few extras such as a fruit bowl and fried noodles.  After breakfast we went back to the hotel and checked out of the rooms.  We then waited for our ride.  About 8:40 a chubby Chinese guy came through with a list and asked who needed a ride to the airport, but we were not on his list so he left.  A lady then came through with another list, but that was to visit the ocean park.  Then a guy came through and asked if any of us were from room 726.  That was us and he directed us to a bus, the chubby guy's bus.  It is now 8:55 AM and we still have a long way to get from Shim Sha Tsui to Lantau Island, so I was beginning to get a little worried.  We finally got to the Airport at 9:30 and Laila found the Philippine Air counter almost immediately.  I picked a line with only one family in it and I figured we would go right through with a minimum of trouble.  Well I was really wrong there.

The couple I got behind either had some illegal items in their carry on, or they were overweight.  They basically repacked all their stuff right there at the counter.  In the meantime I am watching our valuable time slipping away.  They finally got out of there at about 9:45 and then it was our turn.  I had already put everyone's paperwork together, customs forms, passports, and immigration stuff was all in order, for everyone but me.

They asked me where my ticket back to the United States was, and I told them, on the bedside table, in Manila.  They asked me why I did not have it with me, and I informed them I do not carry things with me that would be the object of theft or loss.  They then told me I could not go to the Philippines without that ticket on my person.  I was of course staring in disbelief.  I showed them my Yahoo Itinerary my frequent flyers club number and all that, and though they saw that I had reservations and a ticket they said I would have to buy a plane ticket to take with me, and I could cancel the ticket and get a refund when I get to the Philippines.  I asked if that was a full refund and was told that where would be a charge, and they gave me a Hong Kong dollar amount.  Needless to say I was angry at the stupidity of it all.  What if I would not have had the money to purchase this extra ticket?  I guess I would be in some illegal immigrant camp or something, just because I forgot my ticket.

Anyway, after this fine exchange with another group of Philippine Airlines ticket counter people I have decided it was time to take my business elsewhere.  I will take Japan Airlines with a transfer to Cathay Pacific in the future.  I have just had it with the incompetence that has been exhibited by these people at Philippine Air.  Why couldn't they print me a copy of my ticket, or better yet look at the stamps in my passport and see that I just entered the Philippines last week and still had up to 21 days if I wouldn't have left the Philippines.  Anyway the solution to this one were too numerous to count, especially in these days of computers and all.  I guess the piece of paper would have cost them too much.  Oh and by the way when I went through Immigration they only gave it a glance.  They sometimes don't even look at it.

Finally after getting Laila and the kids calmed down, as everyone thought this guy was a bonehead, I bought a ticket and off we went getting on the plane, on time and all.  The flight was fine until we started our descent which was a little choppy.  Laila wanted to buy a tax free item, but when she first asked, the seatbelt sign was on and after that went out she asked again, but he item she wanted was out of stock.

We landed and got to our debarkation site at 1PM.  About 1:15 the flight crew announced that leaving the plane would be slightly delayed because there was only one shuttle bus and it was late.  WWWWWWWWWHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAATTTTTTTT?

Here we are riding a daily scheduled flight from Hong Kong to Manila.  It is a 747-400 with a seating capacity of 433 souls, and these idiots are going to deplane using on shuttle bus.  Granted, the plane was not completely full.  There were 20 or so vacant seats but there were a huge amount of people to get off that plane. 

After the announcement I started shooting pictures with my digital camera just to get a sense of how much time it would take to get off the plane.  I got off the plane at 14:02 so basically we took a 1 hour 45 minute flight and it took us 1 hour and 2 minutes to get off the plane.

Taken by Laila at 13:30 21 Aug 2006

I took this one at 13:40 21 Aug 2006 while we were still waiting to get off the plane.

Hard to believe that in this day of superior technology and all that Philippine Airlines had to put it's passengers from Flight 301, 747-400 Hong Kong to Manila approximately 400 passengers on a bus to the terminal.  Taken 14:03 21 Aug 2006.

When we got off the plane everywhere we went Laila asked the people, who was responsible for the disaster?  Immigration didn't know, Customs didn't know, the Police didn't know, the Airline didn't know.  Even the baggage handlers didn't know.

Well after my past experiences with baggage and ticketing agents, and after today's fiasco I hold one of these two people responsible.  Lucio C. Tan Chairman & Chief Executive Officer of Philippine Air or Jaime J. Bautista President & Chief Operating Officer of Philippine Air.

So I hold them responsible and I will not use this airline again, as I have looked for signs of improvement and have seen none.  Basically I have had it, due to their support staff, and hold nothing against the crews, who provide excellent service.  It is a shame that they are so professional, but all the people you have to deal with prior to boarding don't have a clue of what customer service really is.

So please, I warn you, if you are going to visit the Philippines go by boat, swim, raft, or fly.  But if you fly do not deal with Philippines Airlines unless you don't mind dealing with total incompetence from their supporting staff.

I will get the rest caught up over the next few days.

Saturday morning came and we got up early so we could go have our free breakfast at the Marco Polo Prince Deli.  They gave us the choice of ham or sausage with eggs and a breakfast roll.  The place was quick and very clean.  I was quite impressed with the service and we all had a great time.

After breakfast we went back to the Marco Polo Gateway, where we were staying and I watched the news as we waited to meet our tour at 9:30.  We went down stairs and the tour folks were not there so I asked and the guy at the desk said they are always late but should be there shortly to pick us up.

The guide showed up right about 10 and we boarded the bus.  They had a Chinese guy that had a really bad accent and I barely understood what he was saying.  He did take some pictures that he had printed on some plates that we bought for a souvenir.

When we got to the part our guide went to get our tickets to the park and he was gone for what seemed like hours, though it was probably more like 20 minutes.  We got our tickets and were told that the bus would pick us up at 5 to go back to the hotel.  That seemed quite early for me but we were also told we could go back on our own if we wanted to, so we kept that in the back of our mind.

We entered the park and boarded the Disneyland Train to tour the park.  It was a fun little ride, and in the meantime Laila sent a text message to Eric Kwan and Lydia to let them know we were at the park.  In the mean time Laila was receiving text messages from Eric saying the cab would be at the hotel at 7PM, which were messages sent the night before. 

After riding the train we then walked over to Tomorrow land and the kids started checking out what rides they wanted to try.  I like to just let the kids run free and then make a place to meet, but when they were using the express passes for the rides the times were very late so we pretty much hung out together.

Laila and I did do some souvenir shopping check the hats when I add the links to the pictures.  Oh I have posted the pictures on Flickr but have not finished labeling and all, as there were over 400 pictures.  You can see them buy my picture link to other pictures posted.  Laila is much better at organizing and all so she will be grouping and categorizing them.

I managed to get quite a lot of good pictures of the Disneyland parade, and after the parade we had a snack.  Laila and I did one ride, and then we started walking to the gate to see if Eric and Lydia managed to get there.

Just before the parade started again we did run into Eric and Lydia and after the parade we hung out for a while and then Eric wanted to take his son to Fantasyland.  Laila and I were pretty tired by then and the kids were riding different rides as their fast passes came alive so we rode the train just to rest.

When we got to the Main Street Station Eric and Lydia were in line but did not get on our train, so Laila and I got off at Fantasyland and caught the train Eric and Lydia were on.  In fact Eric's son was made an honorary conductor.

5 o'clock had come and gone buy then and so we decided that we would treat Eric and Lydia to a dinner at Outback Steakhouse.

Lydia called ahead and found that the one closest to the hotel did not have room for us, but found that the one at east Tsim San Tsui could handle us.

We got to then take the subway, and I think Laila's entire family was surprised by two things.  First was the efficiency and second that I knew where and how to use it.

We went ahead and got off the subway and then tried to catch a couple of cabs, but Lydia found a bus that would take us there at a much lower rate.

I ordered a few appetizers, but when it came to ordering the steaks Laila's kids had a few problems.  They have always been taught that bloody meat is bad, and when they asked for well-done sirloin the lady serving us freaked.  Anyway she was a Filipina and explained to them it was not a bad thing.

In the meantime Laila had mentioned that her sister wanted some special tea and Eric and Lydia knew where to buy it, so we went to buy the tea while the meal was being prepared.  While we were walking talked to Eric and his wife about how Laila and I met, we talked about blogshares and we talked about life.  We got the tea and headed back, and had a great dinner.

The kids also figured out that a little red meat was not too bad.  We had forgot to take pictures and so we took a few before Eric had to go home and we had to get back to the hotel. 

I have to say one thing right now to Eric and Lydia and that is thank you so much for your hospitality and friendship.  This is something we will remember forever, and we wish you and you family the best.

It is so wonderful to see people that you have met on the net, that are who they say they are.

Anyway we all went home and we were looking forward to meeting Laila's half sister Conchita on Sunday.

We went ahead and left the house early so we could make sure we checked in three hours early, but June, our driver was a little late and we also got stuck in traffic, so it did not matter that we left early.  Also in the typical style I have come to expect from the fine folks at Philippine Air, the check in lines were long and slow.  I have no clue, why I can get through a United, Delta, or any other airline ticket line in about 2 to 3 minutes, but Philippine Air takes 5 to 10 minutes normally and if you have a problem, look out for some big time delays, along with everyone behind you in line.

We finally got through the Philippine Airlines check in counter and got all our bags checks.  We then had to pay the airport use fee of $P 550 per person (about $6 per person) and then it was off to immigration.  We had no problems there and no problems with security, since I told the kids to take no carry on baggage.  We then went to the terminal with the idea of getting something t eat and drink.

The International terminal at Ninoy Aquino International really doesn't have much to offer in the way of things to do while awaiting your flight.  They have a couple of little stands that sell duty free stuff and a few little booths where you can but over priced sodas and cakes.

They could make a real killing should they open up a small coffee shop or even a McDonalds or something.  It just strikes me as off that once you go through security and are at the International gates, you are without anything to do other than wait for your flight.  In San Francisco they have a Pizza and Sandwich shop that charges $8 for a bowl of lettuce or a cheap crummy Pizza.  You would figure since all the people are bored and stuck there a business selling hot dogs or noodles would do great.  I would have also thought that some Filipino would have thought about it.  Maybe that is something Laila and I could start as a business.  This is just a thought.

Anyway I snapped a few pictures of the plane, the terminal and of the family.  We boarded on time and ate dinner on the plane.  They had chicken and fish. So I took the chicken and Laila took the fish.  As soon as she opened it op she wanted chicken as we had fried rice and the chicken looked appetizing where the fish didn't look too good and was served on white rice.

The flight was uneventful and smooth and we managed to land right on time.  I have not traveled internationally be fore as art of a group and I like to breeze through customs and all so when I get off the plane I like to hit the ground running.  Laila and the family like to hit the ground and stop and see all the sights, even though there was nothing to see.  As a result rather than me being way up in the front of the lines, here we were back in one of those roped off queue's waiting and waiting to get through immigration. 

We had made arrangements to meet with Eric Kwan and his family for dinner and we got a message from him that a cab would be waiting for us at our hotel at 7PM.  About 6:30 or so we managed to get through immigration.  Then we had to find our ride to the hotel.  We had a sheet with direct ions to meet in front of a Japanese restaurant, but we couldn't find the place.  Since I never ask for directions Laila did and we found the place.  We were directed to sit in a certain area until our bus came.  In the meantime we kept getting the same message from Eric that the cab would meet us at 7 and take us to his house.

Well 7 came and went and there we sat.  Finally the guy came over and started reading a list of hotels, but ours was not on it.  I asked him about ours and we were told to wait some more.  Finally our guy showed up and several other families accompanied us as we headed toward the bus pick up area.  The guy leading us to the bus walked really fats and he was hard to keep up with.  I was practically dragging Laila all through the airport because I did not want to get lost.

We got to the bus about 7:25, and all the while we kept getting the same message from Eric, that the cab would pick us up at 7PM.

The bus trip was pretty long and we ended up getting to the hotel just before 8PM, were assigned our rooms and dropped off our luggage.  We got in touch with Eric on the phone, and we then caught the cab he sent for us to his house where we met his wife Lydia, his Filipina housekeeper and his babysitter, and Eric's two boys.

We chatted and told some blogshares stories and then Eric suggested we go to eat dinner.  He took us to a place called Hung Lee Seafood Restaurant.  I do not eat seafood myself, but Laila and some of her kids do.  So Denis and I had chicken, beef and pork dishes, while the rest had seafood.  This was a place where you pick your fish out of a tank, and then the catch it and cook it.  I can definitely say we had an excellent time that night and it was fun meeting Eric, as in the past we only knew him on chat.  It was like we were all old friends.

Laila in the meantime was still getting copies of the text message about 7PM, and we deduced that it must be her text message provided Smart Communications.  Since they as a subsidiary of PLDT I call them Dumb Communications, and the whole trip we would receive the text messages late and multiple times.

After dinner we all decided it was a little late and that we all should get to bed, so we caught cabs back to the city while Eric and Lydia caught cabs home.  We agreed to meet at Disneyland the following day.

Another reason we decided to leave after dinner was because rain was coming and we wanted to get back to the hotel before that started.  We got back to the hotel, and I left Laila and Denis with the cab while I ran in and changed money so I could pay the cab driver.  I then paid for our cab and then JunJun, TinTin and Pearl came up in the second cab but when I tried to pay I found that Eric had paid in advance.

I had put the in room beverage and bar service off limits.  I can not see paying $4 for a $1 bottle of water, and I also didn't need the kids running around Hong Kong drunk so we made an agreement to buy our drinks at the 7-11 across the street.  When we got back everyone was thirsty so while Laila, Pearl and TinTin went up to the rooms the boys and I went to 7-11.  As we left to cross the street is started raining.  We got what we wanted to buy and then headed back across the street to the hotel and by then the whole sky had opened up and there was lightning and thunder all over as well as rain.  We ran across the street to the hotel and went up to our rooms totally soaked to the bone.

The room was awesome as the decor, was great and the room size was large.  I also liked the bathtub with hot water.  They seldom use hot water in the Philippines as there is seldom the need to use it, but as a westerner, I need my hot water.

We then went to bed and looked forward to Disneyland on the following day.

Yesterday was a busy day.  We went shopping to get a few things for the family to take on the Hong Kong trip, and then we had a quick bite to eat at a Chinese restaurant.  After that we went bowling, which I have not done in a very long time.

I used to bowl all the time on my first ship.  I carried a 180 plus average and I would on occasion bowl as many as 20 or so games a night for something to do.  In between my first duty station and my tour of instructor duty up at Great Lakes, I broke my right wrist and was not able to bowl for several years.  Towards the end of my tour there I started bowling again and even joined a few leagues.  My scores started going up but then I transferred to a ship and did not have time.

When I went to my next shore command, we started a bowling in a lunchtime bowling league.  I usually bowled well, but I was not consistent.  I also used a lot lighter ball after breaking my arm and it did not carry through the pocket the way the old 16-pound ball did.

Anyway after leaving SWOS and going back to ships, I never really got into bowling, and last night was the first time since about 1989 that I have been bowling.  Boy did I feel very uncomfortable.  First with my bad back I do not have the flexibility to bend like I used to, and then since I am so out of practice I had difficulties getting spares, though I did get a few strikes.  I scored a 99 the first game and 135 the second game before we were ran off so the leagues could bowl.  I was pretty saddened by the low scores but at least I broke 100 on the second game.

After that we went to Slimmer’s World where Laila has been working out.  I was surprised at how many folks were there and we got a pretty good workout.  They assigned me a personal trainer and after UI explained my back injury, we took it slow and did stretching, leg and upper back lifting, arm lifting, abdominal exercises and pretty much anything that did not involve twisting of the lower back.  I even did 30 minutes on the treadmill.     

We then came home and kicked back and watched part of the first season of CSI that I brought from home.  We have also still been moving files back and forth between Laila’s old computer and her new one, so that has been slowing us down a bit on posting and doing pretty much anything else online.

Tomorrow we leave for Hong Kong and I will post if I have time.  If not I will write the posts on my laptop and post them when I get back to Laila’s in Quezon City, before I depart back to the states on Tuesday.

We will be having dinner with Eric Kwan and his family tomorrow, so that will be very cool.  After hat we will hit Disneyland on Saturday and I want to take Laila out to Ned Kelly’s for dinner one night while we are there, but we will ditch he kids that night.  Besides they will like McDonalds and all better.

Well that is it for today.  Have fun everyone, and I am sorry about the hit and miss posting.  We have just been really busy.

Today we got up early, took a shower, said the rosary, and then went back to sleep until 10:30.  We then ate breakfast and then talker to her sister on the phone about the travel arrangements to Hong Kong.  We managed to get all the arrangements and then set off to Mikati to pay for everything.

When we got there they wanted us to put down a 1 thousand dollar deposit in cash and then pay the rest when they confirmed everything.  We both felt that this was pretty unacceptable, but I broke out my credit card and was about to just charge it when I was informed that there would be a 6% additional charge for using a credit card.  I just about said screw it and walked out.

I am getting so sick and tired of being nickel and dimed in this country.  As a visitor and tourist I feel abused and ripped off.  I could have reserved these same seats and this same hotel from San Diego, and would have had the tickets in hand before I left.  I just decided to do it here because it would give us more options and I did not have the kids passport information when on line in San Diego.  Also I did not carry much in the way of US dollars because I do not like to invite the possibility of being robbed.  We have always been advised to not carry cash so I paid down all my cards to zero balance, and now I am being screwed over for playing it safe. 

Here I find that none of the main travel sites work.  It is as if the IP's are blocked.  The same is true of a lot of regular services I use back home.  They are just not accessible here.  Sounds like censorship to me.  If I am ever over here again and have to make reservations for anything I will have my daughter make the reservations and then send the tickets tome via DHL.  This has been ridiculous.

Then another incident happened that kind of drove me nuts.  Laila decide to make sure her international roaming plan was up o date and paid in advance, meaning she would pay them for future service.  She went to the counter and was given a number.  We then went and got an iced tea and sat down and drank them, while watching the numbers not move.  This places was kind of set up like a California Department of Motor Vehicles number system.  You know one set of numbers for licenses, on set for sales, and another for registrations and so forth. 

Laila's number was 1075 and they were on 1060 when she started We drank out iced tea and checked and saw that they wee still on 1060, and also 2050, 3055, 4065, and 5045.  The others are just examples.  We then went into an appliance store and looked around it there for quite a while.  We actually bought a few items while waiting for our number to come up.  About an hour after we arrived 1074 came up twice.  The 1073 came up, and in the meantime the other number groups were cruising right along.  Laila asked the guy at the counter about it, and he didn't have a clue.  The lady who had been manning that position was missing in action and I finally asked Laila to forget about it and lets just get some prepaid phone cards.

I think that I have figured out the reason that certain businesses get away with poor customer service here, and that is the Filipino's have grown accustomed to bad service as far as some of these companies go, and just accept the bad service.  If the people would   quit using these companies with slow and poor service, they would be forced to go out of business and the competitors would get the message.

You are going to their business to spend your hard earned cash and you should demand fast competent service.  If you do not get the service you expect then take your business elsewhere to send them a message.  They do not have the right to take your money for services not provided or the right to treat you badly.  You are the customer and as such you are always right.

It is just this kind of service that had Laila drop PLDT for Bayantel, and for me to stop using Staples, Starbucks, McDonalds, and a few other local businesses.

Anyway we are leaving for Hong Kong on Friday.  That should have everyone up to date, and oh, by the way, the posts were delayed while Laila was updating her new PC with all her software programs.

After taking a nap yesterday we set off to attend mass.  We were late and wound up sitting in the Mezzanine, couldn't hear anything, nor see anything, but we at least made it to church.  Most of the mass was in Tagalog so that didn't help matters much.  Anyway, I was still pretty sleepy but we then went out to Dad's buffet for dinner, and to meet some more members of her family.

The food was good and it seemed like everyone had a great time, it was just by that time I just wanted to go and lay down.  I was so tired I was kind of nodding out and I kind of did that all through the night last night, since I am not adjusted here to the noise yet.  I kept waking up and going back to sleep.

This morning we were going to go to the mall and get some groceries but instead wound up at a travel agency to try and book our Hong Kong reservations.  Instead we then found out I did not bring enough cash to pay for her PC and still take some US cash to Hong Kong.  The clown selling her the computer wants to charge an additional 6% for using a credit card.  I will be using the credit card because I don't like carrying large amounts of cash in a foreign country.  This place is robbery, charging extra for the use of credit cards, not paying face value for traveler's checks.  If I come here to live permanently I will remember who was cool and who was not as fair as this price stuff went.  Credit and cash are the same thing, same as traveler's checks.  If businesses continue to rip people off, especially foreigners, then people will stop shopping there.

Anyway, now I am trying to figure out how the heck I will pay that if they do not accept credit cards.  Oh well, I guess I will have to go somewhere to use my ATM card or something to get some cash.  Oh well, that is life. 

I am in Manila now, or should I say Quezon City.  It was a really strange flight after some delays and changes and all, but I got here after all, so I guess it is not so bad.  I got off on Friday somewhat early and stopped by the bank to get some cash and all.  I then went home and posted my final messages on my blog after making sure that everything was packed.  I then started waiting on Cloud 9 shuttle and was really worried when they were 15 minutes late. 

I then got to the airport and went to the ticket counter.  There was no waiting but the lady behind the counter was very new and had a lot of confusion over how to handle an International passenger.  I finally got through her after her manager helped her out and I got through customs very quickly.

After that the flight to San Francisco was uneventful and quick.  When we landed I set off for Philippine Air and again that is where the hold up started happening.  The lines were ridiculously long and the people behind the counter were ridiculously slow.  Also friends and family were cutting into line at the front and the whole thing was a good demonstration of incompetence, but I have learned to expect this from this carrier.  After all that the plane was going to be delayed for 2 hours and would be bypassing Guam, and going straight to Manila, getting there an hour earlier.  I went ahead and went through security there since it had huge lines and all.  I figured I would send Laila an e-mail telling her what was up, but then when I got to the International Terminal they only had WIFI, and since I did not have a WIFI device that was all over.

So finally we got on the plane and off we went I figured I would try and get some sleep on the plane, but some guy with some really bratty kids was sitting across the isle and they kept making noise until they finally started to sleep.  Then the younger of the two started having nightmares and that woke everyone up. 

Eventually the kids woke up again and started disturbing everyone again.  Anyway, I had just given up on sleeping.

When we landed I was behind some smart ass from business class that decided that he had the right to hold everyone up because he spent a little extra for his tickets.  Anyway I waited for him to finish taking his good old sweet time and then when we got off the plane, since I knew where I was going and this guy didn’t I was in and out of immigration before he ever got to the counter. 

After that was the standard Philippines Airlines “where is my checked baggage game”?  It was good that we got to Manila n hour early because I had lots of time to stand around and wait, until Laila showed up.  Well baggage took acre of all that extra time I had.  I waited and waited, and my one bag never appeared.  Finally it looked like all the baggage from my flight was unloaded so they directed me to the next carousel over and there was my bag.  It had managed to book itself on another flight.  At least it made it.  When I got outside Laila appeared almost immediately and then we headed for home and I took a nap.  I was so glad the travel day was over and that we could get rested up and start spending some time together.