I arrived in the Philippines on June 11 at 12:16 PM, and I was very excited to have had arrived in Manila safely. When I stepped off the plane, it was humid and hot, which instantly reminded me of the climate back home in the Crescent City. Upon entering the airport, there were people EVERYWHERE. Before getting my luggage, I had to, of course, pass-thru Filipino customs. Which was more relaxed than I had expected it to be because I know some of my international friends have had hard times passing through U.S. customs. Luckily, the longest part was waiting in line. I just had to show my passport, get my thumbprint scanned, and take a picture. I waited for my luggage in a sea of others who also were waiting for their belongings. There were so many people I was trying my hardest not to bump anyone with my overstuffed tactical backpack. When I saw my luggage, I politely parted through all the people where this man who I assume worked for the airport helped me get them from the conveyer belt. Bags in hand, I moved on to the exit and waited for the rest of my colleagues.
While waiting, I decided to go to try to get a local sim card. Until this moment I didn't realize that my phone was locked and wouldn't allow the reading of the Filipino sim. Not having a sim wasn't the worst thing in the world, the service providers here in the Philippines also sold pocket wifi, so I bought one. I just needed to contact my family to let them know I had landed safely in Manila. After securing the pocket wifi and contacting my family, I went to exchange my U.S. Dollars for Filipino Pesos. When the lady converted the dollar amount to pesos, I felt like a real high class. Feeling high quality was the least of my worries as I had lost my card before leaving the States. Now that everyone was through customs had their belongings and pesos, it was time to meet Tito Mon and the rest of the family to get us to Los Baños.