MABUHAY...MAKATI !!

Gaint billboards flashed the word 'mabuhay' (greetings) as we drove down from the airport to our condo at Dela Rosa st. in Makati city.The condo was on the 24th floor much to Raheel's amusement. He was excited as we would have to use the elevator often to go down or up from our floor! I was pleased to find that mot of the staff in the building could speak good English. It was a relief since we faced quite a problem while we were in Bangkok in 2008. The hotel attendents hardly spoke any English.
24th floor gave me creepy feeling in the beginning since Manila is famous or rather infamous for its typhoons and earthquakes! I just prayed that no calamity hits the city while we are there!! The view from our unit(2403) was of course really fabulous. We can see the skyline of Makati from the glass wall once the blinds are pulled.
Having taken a qiuck snack(maggi noodles) I& Raheel slept like logs till it was evening. Mifu then took us to a supermarket where I did some grocery shopping. We headed to AIM next. The campus looked deserted as it was a sunday. Once we went in, I was amazed to see many Indian students lazying around in the lobby. I met a few of Mifu's classmates who were living in the dorm. Mifu suggested that we get dinner from the filipino lady(Jessica) who caters for the Indian students at AIM. Having taken dinner back at the condo, we decided to retire early since both Mifu & I had a busy day ahead.
Incidentally, Makati happens to be the business hub of Manila. So it has mainly corporate offices, banks, many condominiums & of course, plenty of shopping malls. I noticed that the people are all well dressed as most work in the corporate offices. There were hardly any shabby looking person around.
The first week went by in a busy way as I settled down in our new home(though temporary!) Fortunately there is a nice terrace with a green patch & jogging track on the rooftop of Asian Mansion 2 (our building). There are also swimming pools(one for the kids) on 28th floor. So Imade it a point to go up tp the terrace every evening to get some fresh air(its very breezy up there) and also do some walking at the same time. Raheel was happy to run about on the grass& play on the slide.
So began a new phase of life in Makati, far,far away from home!

New Home&New Friends....

The drive from the airport to our condo at the Asian Mansion 2, Dela Rosa st. in Makati, took about 20 minutes. Incidentally, Makati happens to be the business ditrict of Manila. So there's plenty of high rise structures all around.

Our condo(2403) was on the 24th floor much to my terror! I dreaded the thought of living so high up in a place known for its typhoons&earthquakes. On the contrary, Raheel was very excited as he knew that we would be using the lift each time we need to go down or up! However once I entered the condo, I was thrilled to see the Makati skyline from one of the walls which is all glass. Poor Mifu had tried to set up the basic things before we arrived.The owner was kind enough to provide all cooking utensils,crockery,etc. So we didnt need to buy any kitchen ware.I only carried a small pressure cooker with me. So I was all set to start a new home all by myself for the 1st time after we got married. Excited I surely was!

In the evening of 15th Nov, Mifu took us to a dept. store where I did some grocery shopping.Then we walked to Aim. Being a sunday, the campus looked deserted. When we went in, I was amazed to see many Indians lazying around in the lobby. Interestingly the maximum number of students in AIM are desis!! I met couple of Mifu's MDM classmates who stayed in the dorm. We bought dinner from the Filipino lady,Jessie, who caters for the Indians living in the dorm. We retired to bed early that night as Mifu had a busy day ahead&I had to unpack my luggage& set everything in place!

I felt that living here on our own gave a good scope to sharpen my culinary skills.I began trying out different preparations & much to my delight Mifu complimented on them. While I got busy with the household chores, Irealised that Raheel was getting restless& bored. Thankfully he soon met Andy, a 4yr old who also lives on the 24th floor.They became friends soon and Andy calls Raheel as 'Quiya' which means brother. Every evening we go to the rooftop gargen where they can play in the slide or run about on the green patch.

About a week after we arrived, Zahid Ka( Mr. Zahid Chistie) who is also doing his MDM, invited us for dinner. The Chisties live in another condo about 5 mins walk from ours. I was glad to meet Simi (Mrs. Chistie) who is almost of my age. Their 6yr old girl, Zaina, became friends with Raheel soon. Since Simi had come to Manila in Sept with her husband, she had a good idea about the prices in the different shops. So she gave me some useful tips. So there was Raheel & I getting new friends and settling down in the new home high up in floor 24 !

Flight SQ 910,Destination Manila!

The date 14th Nov '09 kept ringing constantly at the back of my mind since Mifu's departure to Manila for his MDM program in Sep'09.On 14th Nov,I and Raheel were to fly to the Philippines tp join Mifu.
There was just 2 months left and loads of work to complete!To make things systematic, I prepared a things-to-do list and put it up near my study table. Thankfully our visa formalities got over together with Mifu in September. I had to slog hard to complete my tutorial classes.My students looked worried fearing that I may not finish the syllabus in time.On top was my writing assignments with Bookland Publishers.Phew! I was tired. Every evening when I drove back home after a tiring day, I could see the worry in Ma's eyes. Time was flying by and still there was a lot to do! Mifu mailed me another long list of important tasks to be completed before I came. I followed everything accurately lest something is missed out.
Raheel was both excited&sad.Excited because he would meet Mifu after a long break,sad as he would leave behind his Aita&lil'brother Tirus. Rayan, Raheel's best friend, was quite upset to hear about Raheel's long absence.Things were getting pretty emotional on the home front.Ma would shed tears every time the topic of Philippines came up.I knew she would miss Raheel terribly.I was nervous too as it would be my first trip abroad with Raheel alone.However I tried to keep cool&concentrate on the more important tasks.I was sorry to leave behind Ma as I knew she was already missing Mifu and we were to leave soon. And of course, I felt really bad to be away from Baity & Saru for so long.I was given a few goodbye lunch&dinners from the dear mahis & pehi as I geared up for d-day!
The flight from Kolkata to Singapore was scheduled as 11.45pm on 14th Nov.Having checked in early, Raheel & I tried to catch some sleep in the waiting lounge.The departure was announced on time & we boarded a Singapore Airlines aircraft at midnight. I made Raheel comfortable in his seat with the pillows & blanket. He dozed off within minutes of our take off. I tried the late dinner served in the flight but couldn't enjoy it. I was too exhausted!
Around 6am Singapore time(3.30am in India) we landed at Changi Int'nl Airport. I had a difficult time to wake Raheel up. After much struggle he woke up with a grumpy face.But once we were inside the arrival terminal, he cheered up.The interior was really amazing. We freshened up in the clean rest rooms and then walked about in the spacious transit area. It was more like taking a walk in a mall with branded labels alluring the tired travellers!! Raheel was excited to find a shop displaying a model F1 race car and even posed for a photo with it. I sent a quick mail to Mifu from the free internet facility in the airport about our arrival at S'pore.
Around 8am, we moved towards the departure gate for the next flight to Manila. When security & customs clearances were over, we finally boarded Flt. SQ 910 to the Phils! Raheel was glad to know that we need not change more planes & will land directly at Manila. The flight took nearly 3 hours. I hungrily devoured breakfast, having eaten nothing much since the previous night. While Raheel dozed off again, I tried to take a bird's eye view from the window.The captain announced that we were flying over the Manila Bay. Indeed it was a beautiful sight from above! Once we touched down at the Ninoy Aquino Int'nl Airport, the customs clearance went by smoothly,although I was worried about it.After retrieving our baggage we walked excitedly towards the exit. Soon we saw Mifu standing outside with a big grin on his face!! Destination Manila accomplished.