Manila, Philippines

Eric and I just celebrated our 16th wedding anniversary!  Sweet 16!  And for us, especially sweet because this was the first anniversary in two years that we're together for and could properly celebrate (hashtag: army life).  Except that, because of the on-going government shutdown, we had to cancel everything.

We were going to do it "big" this year since it's our first anniversary in two whole years that we're together for.  We don't do anything big, but big for us was fancy dinner reservations and a stay-cation at a nice hotel on the beach.  

We were really excited about it.

Instead, we had to scale back our plans to a nice, but not fancy, dinner and then sunrise snorkeling the next morning.  It might not have been what we originally planned, but with so much up in the air right now, we couldn't justify frivolous spending.  Our anniversary was a fraction of the cost because beaches here are all free, and still as magical as we hoped it would be.  Living in paradise now, there's no shortage of magic here.

So the shutdown can suck it.

A lot has changed for us in the last few months!  We PCS'd for the 7th time and are having the time of our lives here.  But most of it we are choosing not to share - everything about this chapter feels too precious to post about.  

Mostly, we are relishing every second of being together again permanently and can't bear to be apart for more than a regular working day.  So when Eric was going to be sent to the Philippines for two weeks for work, we were absolutely heartsick about it.  I'll spare you the details, but pitiful doesn't even begin to describe how sickeningly heartsick we were at the thought of him leaving.

So we bought myself a ticket to the Philippines too!

Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined that I would be visiting my 28th foreign country and that it would be to Manila, Philippines: one of the very few places we have ever been to that we hated.

Aside from Manila being very English-friendly, and the food and hospitality at the 5-star hotel we stayed at being spectacular, I don't have a single other good thing to say about it.

I was extremely bothered by an aggressive interaction with a pedicab driver on my first full day there, and by the very young children begging for money (I don't think I will ever get over seeing a 3 or 4 year old little boy holding an infant begging for money).  And none of that I want to talk about, and all of that made it hard for my spirit to embrace Manila in a kind way.  Bad weather seemed to make it all feel worse and the only part that we got a kick out of was when we ordered room service, something Eric and I had never done before.

I don't care to ever go back. (To Manila.  The rest of the Philippines, yes, absolutely!  I want to make that clear in case the Universe is reading my blog.)  

So this is turning out to be a blog full of nothing since that's all I have to say about Manila.  

Or is that all of my blogs?  

Don't answer that.

You know the saying..."if you can't say anything nice about anybody, come sit by me."  

'Anybody' being Manila.

For now, Eric isn't going to be sent anywhere else for work, so you'll find us here...

...peaceful, serene, together, and preciously, privately, in the moment.