Having traveled 20 hours, we were pretty exhausted and we actually managed to get a good nights sleep despite the heat and stuffiness. The next day our friend Galen met up with us to show us around Manila. The first stop was Robinson's Mall in Malate to purchase a cell phone. As we walked around the mall we noticed that it was exactly like any mall that you would find in the States. We were surprised to find KFC, Burger King, Wendy's, Pizza Hut and similar types of fast food joints that we have back home. But just like Vincent Vega says, "They got the same s*#t there that they got here, except there it's a little different".  We weren't expecting to see rice served at a KFC. The Malls in Manila (they are MASSIVE) are a refuge from the relentless heat and humidity. We stopped in at a few cell phone stores and remembered that in The Philippines, almost any price is negotiable. Luckily we had an expert doing the haggling for us, and we ended up purchasing a simple cell phone for contacting our friends here, and making reservations days in advance for 1000P ($20). After purchasing the cell phone, Greg realized he needed a shave and a haircut, so he stopped inside a barber shop for a trim for only 350P ($7.19). What a deal! 

Afterwards, we took a taxi to the Victory Liner terminal to purchase bus tickets to Baguio City. We ended up getting tickets for  the 11:55 pm bus for the next day, and then headed over to Galen's to hang out with a few Red Horse Extra Strong beers. These beers are part of the San Miguel beer family. San Miguel Beer in The Philippines is what Budwieser is in the States. Red Horse Beer has a higher alcohol content at 7% and is more full flavored than their pilsner and their San Mig light. 

From the apartment Galen took us and his fiancee Siara on the LRT (light rail transit system) to Mall of Asia (the largest mall in Asia, truly a monument to consumerism), and went to Padi's Point. Padi's Point, a restaurant/club has a few locations in Manila and the one at Mall of Asia is right on Manila Bay. They serve beer from a large cylindrical tube with a tap underneath it. All you do is press your glass against the tap to start the flow. The tower of beer can serve about four people a few times. We had the crispy pata (deep fried pork meat with fat), the perfect accompaniment with all the beer we were drinking. After the tower of beer our heads were spinning and our stomachs were full so we decided to call it a night. We took a taxi back to Malate Pensione to sleep off all the alcohol.

After around 20 hours of travel time, we arrived in Manila's Ninoy Aquino International airport tired and with sore tailbones and necks. However, the flight had pretty good food and we watched movies in the headrests in font of us. It was fun to chart our progress on the maps on the airplane channel. Customs was easy. 

Our driver from the Malate Pensione was waiting for us with a sign with Greg's name on it. On the ride to the Pensione we began a friendship the driver Jun, who proved to be very helpful during our stay and we chatted about family and life. The streets were filled with buses, cars, taxis, jeepney's, pedicab tricycles driving extremely aggressive, trying to fill every gap. We were wondering about the traffic laws and what you could actually get pulled over for. As we pulled up to the Malate Pensione, an armed security guard and a porter helped bring our luggage inside the lobby. We had come to find that there were armed security guards at almost every building, all were very friendly and smiled and greeted us sometimes along the way in later walks around the area.

Upon entering the lobby of Malate Pensione, we were greeted by two very friendly ladies behind the desk. Our friend Galen had already called and they had a note for us from him. One of the ladies was ready to allow us to use her cell phone  it had unlimited minutes instead of paying to use the Pensione phone, but unfortunately we were unable to call his cell phone from her phone. Instead we paid 110P to call him from the Pensione phone which equalled less than $2. The ride from the airport was 500P and one night's stay was 750P for a room with a fan. We were also able to get one hour of staggered internet to be used in a 24 hour period for 90P, which of course allowed us to email our family and let them know we had arrived safely. They provided several other services such as laundry, shuttle service, cell phone loading, luggage storage and security boxes and provided much guidance. Best of all, there was a Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf attached to the lobby so we could easily get each day started.

The lobby was fancy with a big marble desk and an old wooden staircase leading up to the entrance to the rooms. Christmas preparations starts early in the Philippines, so there was a big Christmas tree with lights and decorations at the top of the staircase. As soon as you stepped through the door towards the rooms, we were immediately hit with the smell of old wood and lacquer and the moldings, staircases, and simple decor emitted the history, Malate Pensione was established in 1974. The room was definitely cozy, simple, and humidly stuffy but it fulfilled our needs with the rotating fan on the ceiling. SInce the Pensione is undergoing renovations, of which you can also see a new building and rooms in a partially complete building adjacent in the courtyard, we used a bathroom and shower in a private room down the hall. We also met the owner Jay and had a nice chat. Jay modeled the Malate Pensione after the pensiones in Italy and he wanted to make a good welcoming place for travelers to come and meet.