Missing out on some, hitting it home with others

Of the three trips I’ve made home since I moved to New York in 2000, this previous trip saw me seeing less people, going around less, but it has left me feeling I had done more of what really matters like spend time with my family.

I didn’t even get to visit the much talked about Trinoma (only because it was on the other side of Metro Manila by SM North EDSA, I heard), and although I had wanted to shop at SM MegaMall, the farthest I got was Shangri-la Plaza.  (So okay, I missed out on my usual Tan Gan shopping binge.)  We did manage to visit Mall of Asia which, owing to its size, really has to be visited at least twice to enable one to appreciate its length and breadth.  I saw the breathtaking view of Manila Bay when my friends Jonathan and Jo took me to Tagaytay Highlands Steak House on my second Thursday.  (More on this when I write my Food Notes.)

We did get to see Manila Ocean Park which was really quite impressive considering we caught the soft opening only, and after missing out on a visit the last time in 2006 (even as we stayed a block away from it only), we finally managed to go inside the new Ayala Museum.

We pretty much confined ourselves to Makati where we stayed, but Alan got a trip to Alabang courtesy of his high school friend, Danny, and I got my Divisoria trip more out of necessity as I shopped for additional goodies for Angelo’s loot bag.  We had our share of culinary treats so we don’t really feel like we missed out on a lot

Unlike my second trip when I even did a day trip to Manaoag and Baguio, my only out-of-town trip this time around was Laiya in San Juan, Batangas. 

I did frequent Greenhills Shopping Center where I literally grew up in, and I just couldn’t get enough of it.  While it has changed by leaps and bounds, Greenhills is Greenhills.  You’d understand what I’m trying to say if you grew up in the area like I did.

So what did I do during this trip besides lounge around Makati?  I spent time with my Dad in Kalentong (the San Juan side) and I just went around with my siblings.  I made sure Angelo spent more time with his cousins Audrey and Art with whom he is absolutely in love with.  It was so heartening to see him being the “kuya” to his almost three-year-old cousin, to the point that older Ate Audrey was beginning to feel bad that Angelo didn’t want to play with her anymore.

I visited Serendra and the stores of Bonifacio High Street with family, and I can’t help but be awed that we have such development despite what everyone says is a country steeped in desperate times.  But what made it special wasn’t so much what I saw or what I ate or what I did but rather who I did these things with.

I missed out on quite a lot of people who I would’ve wanted to see but just couldn’t zero in on time to do so because my schedule kept changing at the drop of a hat.  There is always a next time, I kept saying.  It can’t come soon enough.

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