PUWEDE KA BANG MAKIDNAP?


We didn't sleep at all Wednesday night, hoping that it would help us slide through the time zone more easily. Surprisingly, I wasn't sleepy at all the whole night. There were so many things left to do, perhaps, that there was no time to think about sleep. Funny, in between packing things and making sure the house is well stocked, in between organizing our luggage so that we wouldn't have to bring down all our bags in every house we sleep in and making sure I keep the kitchen as simple for Papa as possible, there was always this mental note that I should water the plants before I leave. Really, the things we could never just let go.

The flight was pleasant even if I was seated between Papa and a bumbay (who got the window seat and I usually get the window seat). I found it interesting to note how we really couldn't make generalizations about people just because they belonged to a certain culture. See, the bumbay I was seated next to didn't smell bad at all, and he was so nice, waiting until we went to the loo before he went himself so we wouldn't have to stand up just to let him pass. The row fronting us seated another bumbay family and they were a different story altogether. I couldn't understand this need they had of reclining their seats all the way back which left a very small breathing space for us. We didn't want to do that knowing it would inconvenience the people behind us the same way. And did they really have to be told that come mealtime, they had to pull up their seats in consideration of those behind them? At one point, I was so pissed off that I almost smacked the back of the chair in front of me, if not for Papa who caught my hand right in time.

Alright Sassy, so you are right. Minsan nga maldita din ako.

Anyway...

Past the conveyor belt, and who do we see meeting us but... the Ca t!!!

'Miss, puwede ho ba kayong ma-kidnap?'

I was so startled with this lady I didn't recognize as somebody I knew who was there talking to me about abducting me! And then I looked a little closer and...

Ca T?!!!???? CA T!!!!

And kidnap us she did. We planned to go straight to Monterey where we were spending the night. But to hell with that. Here was a blogger-friend we've never met taking her time to meet us at the airport! I was so touched by what she did cause she never even gave us a hint. We went to lunch and talked, and talked, and talked. Oh, and we even got to talk to Tatang over the phone I don't think there could have been a better way of spending our first day here.

And maybe we would not have decided to go just when we did, if not for the fact that my face was inching its way to the plate of unfinished chow mein dish in front of me. All of a sudden, I felt this unbearable lethargy and no matter how much I shook myself awake, it just wouldn't budge. Papa literally had to hold me up.

And so we parted ways, happy at the thought of finally meeting another online friend in the flesh. We checked in at Days Inn and decided to have a look see around Monterey. It's a very quiet little city with establishments named as something like Monterey this and Monterey that. It's picturesque and the people are nice (at least the motorists are) and they have this lovely park with a big natural pond in the middle.

And surprise, surprise! What do we find but another Deny's Restaurant, a few blocks away from our hotel, just like in was in Auckland!

Now that is what I call a 'deja brew.'

Oh, and let me not end this without thanking another person for taking the time to call us... thanks, Ting-Aling!