Major back-posting: August 19-23

Aug. 19-20: TRAVEL

Longest. Trip. EVER.

3 hours in NAIA. 10 hours Manila to Honolulu. 7 hour layover. 5 hours Honolulu to Houston. 2.5 hour layover. 3 hour delay (while sitting in the plane). 3 hours Houston to New York. 1 hour in La Guardia. 2 hours to Tita Shubee's place.

36+ hours of shuffling about, carrying bags and not being able to sleep on the plane. Haha I was exhaaauuuusted by the end of it, but there were little things in between that made me happy. :)

1. There was no "airplane smell" (the one that makes me nauseous) on any of the planes.
2. We got to explore a bit of Hawaii during the long layover. Lunch at Duke's Canoe Club. Chilling on Waikiki Beach (hottiiieeesss). Walking around Waikiki (which reminded me of Bora because everyone was half naked haha except they were dressed this way on the streets, too, and not just on the beach!) Visit to Tita Roselia's golf club in the mountains (which was b-e-a-utiful). Etc etc. Thanks, tita!
3. I got to call Tita Gen and Tita Micki on Y!M at the airport because I leeched off the free wi-fi of the Japan Air Lines VIP lounge hahaha.
4. My seatmate from Honolulu to Houston was a really funny and friendly guy. We talked a lot! David Serotko is his name. He's 29 and after our conversation he asked for my e-mail address hahaha.
5. The weather was perfect! Good transition between the Philippines and the US. It was so warm and sunny, but it was windy and cool at the same time. Best of both worlds! :)
6. Even if we got to Tita Shubee's house really late, everyone waited up for us. Tita was peering out the door, and as soon as the car pulled into the driveway, Sammy and Joey rushed out to greet us. Carmen wasn't home yet, and Katerina didn't come down because she was changing. I surprised her in the room, and she got upset that I saw her naked. She's 6 years old hahaha.
7. Tita Shubee's place is AMAZING. Far from the neighbors, hidden from the road, spacious and woody, with a lovely backyard. Pictures up on my Multiply :P


Aug. 21: NEW YORK

We woke up late, so we didn't get to do much, but it was still awesome. Tita Shubee dropped us off at the Princeton Junction station of the New Jersey Transit (NJT) Rail, and we rode about 40 minutes to the New York: Penn Station, where we switched to the subway. Got out and went straight to TKTS to get seats for a play in the evening. We wanted to watch Mamma Mia, but nothing was available so we got tickets to Spamalot instead. We had uber late lunch at around 4:30 pm at this restaurant called The Blue Point. The food was awesome, and it was a totally enjoyable experience save for this scuffle between a guy and a waitress. I think he asked if he could work there, and she joked saying they only hire women, and the guy was totally offended. He's gay, I think, so maybe that's why? Not sure. Anyway. He made a huge fuss about what she said, and he even called the manager over. Apparently the girl told him from the beginning that she was only kidding.

"I'm sorry, I didn't realize it was a joke."
"I'm sorry, I didn't realize it would be a problem."

Oooooh. Haha anyway, New York experience. :P After that, we headed over to the theater and met up with Kuya EJ. (Kuya EJ!! I missed him so much. He looked good and really happy to be in the East Coast, and I'm so proud of him for arranging all on his own the plans for him to study there instead of in California. Kuys, I'm so happy you're finally happy!) So it was him, me, my mom, my dad and Spamalot. Kasabawan to the MAXXX, pero enjoy pa rin haha :P

The most interesting part of that day was the train ride home. Mom and I sat behind a bunch of girls whom I thought were high school seniors because of the way they talked about "college people." I was listening to their conversation because I was amused with their accents. Exactly the stereotype you imagine from TV and stuff haha. Then I continued listening because I couldn't help it: they were so noisy, and they talked NON-STOP. My boyfriend this, my boyfriend that, I hate when he mentions the wife thing ---- WHAT. I thought I heard wrong and then I saw the ring on one girl's left ring finger. Apparently she (Sarah) and her boyfriend (Scott) [yes I know their names hahaha] are engaged. I'd tell you in detail how I found out the whole story because it's so funny, but this post is getting really long haha. Gist: she got pregnant senior year and they moved in together after graduation. Now they're raising their kid, I think with help from their parents, and they plan to get married after college.

The point of that story in this entry: friends whom I love so much, THAT STUFF REALLY HAPPENS. Please, please, please be careful, okay? If anything should ever happen, I wouldn't want anyone to commit murder through abortion so prevention na lang. Seriously, guys. Haha anyway.


Aug. 22: PHILLY

We decided to visit my campus! I can't describe what I felt when, as we were driving to West Philadelphia, I saw the huge sign: Penn welcomes you to university city! I started going, "AAAAHHH!! Get the camera, get the camera!" Haha we were a bit lost at first, but we managed to get around. The people there are so friendly and helpful. I got my PennCard, set up my bank account and bought my first Penn hoodie at the bookstore! Which is, by the way, huge and totally wonderful. I fell in love with the Stanford Bookstore, but Penn's is even better, I think. The cafe upstairs brews Starbucks coffee, mmmhhhmmm. Hahaha. The visit wasn't very long because I had to meet up with my cousins in the evening, but it was exhilarating all the same. I can't wait to start school. :)

After Penn, we went to the Franklin Institute (in honor of Benjamin Franklin, who btw founded the university I'm attending) and went around the museum with my cousins. Then Tita Grace picked us up and took us to Chinatown, where we had a most scrum-didilly-umptious dinner at the Imperial Inn.

Funny experience on the way home: I'm walking down the street, holding Katerina's hand, and she started talking to me in a serious tone.

Katkat: "The other night, I didn't want you to come into the room because I was changing."
Me: *silently nods*
Katkat: "I don't ever want to see you again while I'm changing."
Me: *jaw drops* *tries to keep a serious face*
Katkat: "I need my privacy, y'know."

Remember, she's SIX! :))


Aug. 23: BENGZON BONDING

Tita Shubs hosted a party in our honor, and a lot of my second and third cousins were there. Kakatamad to describe in detail, it was just like any other family get together. Except maybe I should mention my cousin, Gaby, who's going to Stanford in the fall. :) I'm so proud of her!

Highlights:
1. Super yummy food.
2. The discovery that Tita Grace is half Filipino, half French, and studied in UP. Kaya pala she can speak Tagalog :))
3. "I Have Never" with the older cousins. I lost. HAHAHA