It’s rare when I do one of these blogs that I, truly, struggle to know where to start. But, this is very different. I guess the best way to start, honestly, is just to think how much has happened in just 1 year. It’s hard to believe that just this time last year, I was talking about how I’d be completed my very first international flight, all on my own, which, would just be the start of, what, would become, a collection of trips, and, more. All for, of course, the one I love so dear. Despite knowing Hannah for quite some years, now, the trip to the Philippines, this March, was, most certainly very deliberate in its timing. Not only did this mark the 1 year anniversary of us being official, but, also, as we’ll get to shortly, if it wasn’t obvious by the title, it was going to be one that was going to be celebrated in style. 

Whilst, I think it’s fair to say, overall, this was probably the most, so-so, of the visits to the Philippines so far, in terms of things to report in a blog. The fact is, though, I’ve never once gone to the Philippines for “the Philippines”, plus it’s never been about the tourism; never been about seeing the sights there, feeling (and burning by) the unbearably hot sun, etc. To me, visits have always been, purely and simply, any excuse to, see, and, spend, as much time with my Hannah, as I possibly can. That’s not to say we didn’t do numerous things, whilst there, of course we did. But, this was certainly more of the, attention away from the place, and, instead, placed directly on the “us”. 

The real reason for going… 💍

Absolutely nothing was going to stop me being with Hannah on our “official” anniversary, which perfectly laid out the days I would be going to the Philippines, which would, consequently, also double, the length of time we spent together, compared to last March. The trip also had a very important intention in mind, which was, of course, proposing to Hannah. Whilst making subtle, and perhaps, not-as-subtle, hints to make her measure her finger last year, this year, was certainly when it was time to put things in to action. 

Before setting off to the Philippines, there were just 3 selections of people who knew what I was planning; select couple in Hannah’s close family, my parents, and, Chona (one of Hannah’s friends I’ve become good friends with). I’d discussed rather basic rough ideas with all of them, though, nothing really ended up making sense. This is the first time that I’ve ever, really needed, to take something like this so seriously. Of course, I wanted it to be special, with naturally romantic touches everywhere, but, it was was also important not be too, over-the-top, not be too, in your face, especially as Hannah is, actually, rather shy, in many ways. 

The rather nerve-racking side of things was, even when I arrived in the Philippines, I was actually, none-the-wiser, on how, not only how this was going to be pulled off, but also, what we were going to do, and, we didn’t even have a ring, at this point, so, I was certainly feeling, quite a bit, anxious. How would we resolve all this? Well, we’ll get to that, first, let’s travel… wait, what do you mean Qatar have no flights?? 😨 

The journey; a drift of anxiety, preparations and a change of Airline

During March, the UK saw it’s first real cases of snow, and, whilst none of it was going to stop travelling to work or school (though, anyone makes excuses these days), it, certainly, also didn’t stop, me getting rather worried, close to the flight. Literally the day before the Flight, my garden was covered in snow. Thankfully, that was not the case at Manchester Airport and, also, thankfully, the snow was clearing on the day of the departure. Although, from what we’ve heard, no flights were cancelled in this, our only major issue would have being actually driving to the Airport.

But, when we got to the Airport, it would not be the typical Qatar Airways I’d come used to flying with this time, oh no, the World Cup has, somehow, meant that they oddly now have less flights to the Philippines, for..reasons, I don’t know. So, instead we’d be taking our next option down the line and flying with Emirates. This would mean a few things would change, instead of transit in Doha, we’d transit through Dubai, and, we’d spend one of the flights, on a two-floor Plane, I know! 

This flight, itself, wasn’t exactly not plagued by its own awkwardness, as, even Emirates, didn’t have any flights that arrived back on weekends, so, this meant, I had to +1 everything, to arrive back in the UK, on the following Monday, rather than Sunday. This, of course, was annoying for work, but, beneficial in the Philippines, obviously, as that was an extra day with Hannah. As for whether I preferred flying with Qatar or Emirates, quite honestly, they’re more or less the same. There’s a few things here and there different, but, it’s mostly the same, typical Asian airline. I will say I preferred the Plane atmosphere and experience, ever-so slightly, more, on Qatar, but, the differences mostly, are very minor. 

The things that aren’t minor, obviously, is the completely different transit location, then obviously the flight durations, and times. With Qatar Airways, I was always simply flying to the Philippines, via Doha, whereas, with Emirates, I was flying through Dubai. Although, unfortunately, also, with Emirates, based on how they fly to Cebu, kind of as a rendezvous with Clark (which isn’t far off Manila), it meant that, when going home, I actually had to wait even longer, as we were, essentially, waiting, in a whole new location, within the Philippines. So, quite a few differences to look forward to… and, others, to not.

Getting to the Airport and boarding

I woke up rather used to the experience by now, of jetting off thousands of miles, to see Hannah. Quite the stark contrast to how I was, just a year, prior. But, there were still, a couple, differences to worry about, many, as we just mentioned, but, all-in-all, it was status quo. The Departure time was, more or less, the same as Qatar, so, the lift there with my parents, was kind of what they were expecting, although, we did travel, slightly, earlier, just in case the area of snow was still there. In the end, those concerns were in vain, though, as the roads were, honestly, perfectly fine. This did mean, it was good as we got there with no trouble, but, bad, as we got there very early.

Unlike my previous flights, however, another difference to this, was that this would be taking off at Terminal 1, Manchester Airport, rather than 2. So, this was my first experience there, and, let’s just, cut to the chase, T2 is much better. Terminal 1, by comparison, almost feels like going back in time, it’s nowhere near as modern, and, was much smaller, but, I guess you could say, functional. The, not as good reasons, why it was good I was early, were, unfortunately due to moments in the stomach being annoying, no more detail than necessary. Needless to say, I was, thankfully, able to “rid” of the problem, after I’d checked in. 

Once I had checked in, rather standard procedure, really, I then went to baggage collection, got incredibly frustrated, as my Suncream was taken off me (more on that later), but, made it through after, for the long wait for the Flight. It was at also, at this point, I knew I just had to message Hannah. At the time, it turned out, she was eating out, which meant, whilst we did later attempt a video call, it turned out to be, rather pointless, at that moment, as I couldn’t really hear her, but, was still great to see her. Pretty much chatted throughout the wait of the Flight, thankfully, later, had a more successful video call, whilst in the lobby, and then, it was finally time to begin boarding … or queueing. 

That’s one thing I will say about the Emirates flight, especially the one to Dubai, as it’s basically huge, that means A LOT more people, which means, A LOT longer queue. But, we were finally inside, ready to board, and then, we were off.

Dubai

Just like flying with Qatar Airways, with Emirates, there is also a boiling hot transit destination, in this case, Dubai. I was actually really curious to see what the Airport would be like, compared to the one in Doha. I will probably say the one at Doha is, a bit, more flashy, and, definitely has more places to see, but, at the same time, I would also say the one in Dubai is, still, decently large, but, more importantly, more practical. The Airport design of Dubai is essentially a very long stretch, whereas Doha Airport is kind of a dome, almost, or, it feels like that, when you’re there. 

As a man of simple pleasures, I found one thing inside the Dubai Airport, which made me, instantly, prefer it, over the Doha Airport experience, THEY HAVE A McDONALDS! Look, I’m the kind of guy who doesn’t like Asian foods, so, it’s incredibly frustrating with both Qatar Airways, and, Emirates, that all their Food is basically some obscure Asian disaster with rice, so, I literally never eat on the Plane. However, now, thankfully, at least if I fly Emirates, I will have, at least, some Food between the Flights, which is, of course, a lot better. Whilst I did have a healthy bowl of Frosties before setting off, I kind of, ideally, need a lot more than that, especially when this is a 20+ hour journey; Flight to Flight. 

Paying for the McDonalds wasn’t a problem, either, as I have a Monzo card, which, I’d tested previously in the Philippines, so, was able to purchase my usual order with no problems. I did, however, forget, to choose the UAE currency, and, instead chose to pay in Pounds. That may not seem like a bad thing, but it did mean, overall, I actually paid more than I would have done, due to Monzo not charging currency charges. It was cool, though, that the App notified me about it. This wasn’t a mistake a made going back, spoiler alert, I had McDonalds then, too, I choose UAE, and, saved. 

Having the ability to actually eat and drink at the transit destination, did have it’s slight drawback, in that you do tend to lose track of time, which actually goes quite quickly, when occupied. Having to remind yourself, oh yeah, of course, I have another Flight to catch, you know! And, not only that, it’s the most important one, the actual destination. So, finished my McDonalds, begun a chat with Hannah once I noticed it was a good enough time to communicate, then the excitement of finally seeing each other, after such a long time, was finally feeling real again, especially when we made it, to the Gate for Cebu / Clark. A Gate which I’d to, certainly, double-check, but, yes, the Flight to both Cebu and Clark were on the same Plane, and, Gate. Not knowing that, at first, made it very confusing, but once you know, you know.

The flight flew from Dubai to Cebu, then, if anyone was going to Clark, they would wait for everyone to leave, in Cebu, then it would fly Clark next. So, obviously, we got off in Cebu. Finally, after waiting a few minutes, whilst chatting to Hannah about how many internationals versus Filipinos there were, it was time to board, next stop, Cebu. 

Land in Cebu; this actually went smoothly, until we got something to eat.

Landed in Cebu, pretty much, right on time, though, like most Airlines, they do love to dordle about a lot unnecessarily. It’s crazy, though, even though this is the third time I’ve been to Cebu, that feeling of, “pinch yourself, we’re here”, it never leaves you. One thing that was striking about when I did get off the Plane, was, certainly, the impact of far-less Cebu flights being available to the Airport, it was DEAD. I mean, sure, I know I was arriving on a Sunday, around 3:30PM, but, still, there was basically no one here! Admittedly, coming from someone who generally doesn’t like people anyway, that may seem like an odd complaint, but, just pointing it out. Think it was more striking based on just how busy the Dubai Airport was, by comparison. 

Before we had set off, I’d got a new Luggage case for the journey. It was bright Red, so you certainly won’t miss it when it begins its journey down the conveyors. I still continue to use an  AirTag, in the back, though, just in case. But, I’m thankful to say this was about as smooth as it could possibly go. Went to Immigration, they basically said hello, then, was right to Baggage collect, and, after probably not even 5 minutes, there was my bag. I did… somehow, manage to forget where the exit was, but, that’s a minor thing that I can wait until I go to the loo to sort (or CR, as they like to call it). Afterwards, we found the exit, thankfully, then what happened next was, leaving straight out in to a moment which, unexpectedly, would become viral??!!! Wait… what?

Hannah’s viral TikTok moment

Before setting off, one of the things Hannah had, essentially, dared me to do, although it wasn’t much of a dare really, was to basically run to her, and, give her a massive hug when we first lock eyes on each other, leaving the Airport. As I say, that wasn’t really a hard dare, as, that’s pretty much the first thing you think of doing anyway, when you see someone you’ve not seen for so long. 

So, whilst I was in the Airport, I ended up bumping in to some random woman who was looking for the exit too, we ended up practically guiding ourselves to it, then, when I left, I did it. The second I saw Hannah, bag down and ran. I ran straight toward her lovingly and then… she ran away, I KNOW. What you doing?! She didn’t run far, thankfully, so was able to hold her close, lift her in the air, and, at that point just give her the massive hug I’d been waiting, months, to do. There we were, together again, and, I, honestly, couldn’t be happier. Until, of course, I realised I was being filmed, par for the course over there. 

One thing I certainly was not expecting, likely Hannah too, was for me running like some creepy dork, leaving the Airport, to be put on Hannah’s TikTok. Not only that, but what was definitely not expected, was that this would somehow get over a 1.2 million views (at the time of this post)!!! But, it did, it’s weird, I look stupid in it, but, that’s the way it is.

https://www.tiktok.com/@hannahjannahcutie/video/7210610945310166277Hannah’s TikTok of us meeting in Mactan Airport

View on TikTok

This is the first time I’ve ever posted both me, and, my other half, within any of my blogs, so, if you ever wanted proof that she is the one, you’ve got it right there. As much as I hate how I look in that video, as much as I, always, hate how I look, to be fair, when it comes to being with Hannah, I just don’t care about anything else. We are always so happy together, and, I think it’s undeniable the joy and happiness I felt when we held each other so tightly then. That, is true love. 

They stole my free cake !!! Plus, a very disappointing meal

Once landed, I headed to the, actually the same as last time, Hotel. Got checked in, made it to the room, unpacked, and, made the most of the first evening, and night, in Cebu City. 

Not, however, before discovering a little freebie I’d been given by the Hotel. By picking the same Hotel again, they ended up giving me 5 small pieces of cake, for some reason, and, of course, a little message of thank you for being loyal. Regardless, however, I never actually got a piece of Cake, as Hannah, and her family, helped themselves to it, all without giving me any chance to, even take, one bite! I know, how rude can you get, very.. boang 😜 

After, what was, honestly, a devastating loss of cake … OK, not really, but, let’s be honest, out of the 4 of us there at the time, I was the one in need of Food the most. 

Cake aside, it was then time for us to make a big mistake, the choice of going to TGI Fridays. There, I had, quite honestly, the most disgusting Fish and Chips I’ve ever had. The Fish, tasted like it was past its sell-by-date over 50 years, and the Chips, sorry Fries, tasted disgusting too. It’s not cheap there, either. I literally was forced to leave, everything, it was uneatable. 

Probably the only good thing, was finally tasting some drinks without Sugar Tax again. Over there, I can actually drink Coca Cola as it doesn’t have sweeteners in it. Something, I’m sad to say has also come to Pepsi this month, as they’ve sneakily taken 58% of Sugar from their blue regular “full fat” version, consequence replacing it with sweeteners, which, outside of the awful taste, now gives me a chronic headache. But, not in the Philippines, or countries not dictated by fat stupid morons like Chef, Jamie Oliver. 

But, once a very unsuccessful, TGI Fridays was done, we went and got me Jollibee instead, which, thankfully, wasdelicious, parted with the pair from Hannah’s family that went with her to pick me up, and then, settled in to the Hotel room. After that, what else, than to do what we both needed the most, holding each other tight and just felt that feeling of being close to the one you love, after so so long, heaven on earth!

A quick “hey” to the family before close the day

But, the day wasn’t, quite done, until one final trip, to see Hannah’s family. The visit, actually, ended up being rather amusing, and all for reasons, Hannah, didn’t know yet. So, whilst we did, still, have the same obvious, hey how are yous, at the same time, their was a lot of, wink-wink, nod-nods, to the ones, that knew, all about my plans. Whilst Hannah was preparing some clothes, for her stay in the Hotel, their was a quick talk, brainstorming some ideas with her family, all for which, wouldn’t really come to fruition, until, later in that week. Of course, all these plans are all well and good, but, before we began making plans, I do need a ring, and, a plan to get one.

Eventually, Hannah finally got all her stuff, after, what felt like, 50 hours, as usual, then, we made the short walk back to the Hotel, chilled, then had a goodnight sleep in each others arms.

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SOME RATHER AMUSING TIDBITS ABOUT THE PHILIPPINES

Now, we were all checked in, had a first night sleep, the next point of call was getting some Shopping done. So, out we went to the Robinsons Mall. Whilst I was there, I did notice some rather amusing tidbits, or to translate that; things that I found amusing or interesting that possibly no one else in the world does. So, here’s random section of the blog covering those 😁 

1. Not what I was hoping for..

Nope, this was not the return of the huge UK empire that was Woolworths. I did not find any pick and mix, I didn’t find any Toys and electronics that were so rubbish you just had to buy them. In fact, what’s really odd, is, I still don’t quite know what “Woolworths” even meant on this isle. This wasn’t the blast from the past, I had last year, when I discovered Toys ‘R’ Us was still in the Philippines after disappearing from the UK years ago.

2. HTC … make hairdryers now?!

Any early adopters in the Smartphone space, will have certainly obtained a HTC device in their time, or, at least, wanted one. But, the success of the Taiwanese company really fell flat when they were no longer able to compete well in the Android market, and basically disappeared from the Smartphone world in 2021 – 2022. Since then, the company has basically being relying on VR, with their Vive headset, but, it’s nice to see HTC aren’t just doing nothing, they also apparently make hair straighteners, I mean, oooo. 

3. Philippine pricing for water ₱ to £

Many people ask me, is the Philippines a cheap country to visit, and I’ll say this, it’s cheap … if you buy local. If you buy things that are imported, international goods, it’s either the same price as the UK, or, likely, more expensive. For me, personally, as I don’t like Asian goods, trips to the Philippines tend not to be that cheap for me, but, when it comes to drinks, you can’t really argue with the pricing. For example, water. In the UK, a 500ml bottle of Evian spring water is about £1, which equates to about 68 Philippine Peso. However, in the Philippines, you can get 500ml bottle of Water there for, just look, just ₱9.90, that’s insane. ₱10 is literally 15p!!!

But, as I say, context is everything. I tend to buy Cereal and Milk when I’m in the Philippines, and as they typically drink warm disgusting Milk that’s not refrigerated, I’ve to buy what’s actually surprisingly rare, imported Fresh Milk in Litres. The Milk is very expensive when compared to the UK pricing, and Cereal is also, a lot more expensive, than it is here, which is crazy as it’s got Sugar Tax and inflation to make it stupid pricing here. So, whilst I can get a 2 Litre bottle of Pepsi in the Philippines for a fraction of UK pricing, that isn’t true for everything, and if it’s a product that perhaps Philippine nationals don’t use a lot, or is imported, it’s actually quite expensive. 

4. What happened to Dunkin’

Is it just me, or has Dunkin’ Donut got rubbish. Sure, this might not be a Philippine related thing, but very early in the Philippines, we got some Dunkin’ Donuts, and, they were just, not nice. That’s all 😅

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In the Philippines, it’s always Christmas … well, it certainly is in this place!

Believe it or not, I really was March, not December I went to the Philippines! This is easily the most insane things ever, and, the most questionable. Why would anyone want it to be Christmas every day, all year round. I’m sorry Wizard, but this is just silly. Something, I’m sure, wasn’t there when I went last time, to the Philippines, was a place where it’s essentially always Christmas. In reality, it’s more of a model park of just weird items, free to enter to explore and look dorky, which, me, and Hannah, happily obliged. We have pictures of ourselves surrounding a miniature train set, rope hats, and more, really weird.

A picturesque park 

To cap off the first full day in the Philippines, we ended up going to a nearby Park, which is full of lights, and, generally, a nice picturesque place to go. I can’t, for the life in me, remember what the Park was called, my phone calls it San Roque, in my Photos app, but it certainly wasn’t called that. 

Regardless, this was actually one of the places I was, originally, in my head, thinking would of been a good place to do the engagement with Hannah, though, upon future discussion, that idea was, quickly, decided to be dumb hahah, bit harsh, but, that’s what I was told. 

One thing I will say, though, it was just a nice place to be, and a great way to end the first full day together, just in a Park, both together, sharing our own humour, and, just enjoying every moment of time together. One of the best things, I love, about my relationship with Hannah, is; whilst, we can, go out and see sights, with the usual myriad of things to talk about, at the same time, we can equally do absolutely nothing significant, and still have, just as much, laughs together. Whilst, those days, obviously aren’t the best to discuss in a blog setting, those are actually the days I love the most, because, it’s in that moment, that you just know deep in your heart, how lucky you are, as I am, to have this woman in my life, who I truly love so much. And, that, to me, is what it’s all about. 

Closing the day off, however, was one of Hannah’s dreadful movie choices, most of which included the same Actors, especially this one guy, talk about variety. Whilst we snuggled up, eat snacks, and then it was all about spending the night in loving embrace; perfection to me. 

A convenient birthday

Tuesday 14th March; a day with Hannah’s family use to celebrate Hannah’s Mum’s birthday. However, for me, it became a day that I, and a couple members of her family, used, to begin “operation engagement”. That’s right, unbeknown to Hannah, at the time, every part of the structure of that day, was aligned, so that I could go Ring shopping.

So, how do you say “happy birthday” in bisaya?Answer is actually, you just say it in English, but that didn’t stop amusement on my behalf

When we did arrive at Hannah’s house, I thought it would be important to, not only be nice, but also to try and say Happy Birthday to her Mum in a traditional Philippine way. So, I asked, how do you say Happy Birthday in Bisaya. It turns out, the way to say it is simply “Happy Birthday”, but that didn’t stop them from running through a confusing collection of iteratives. But, despite me looking like an idiot, at least her Mum was left smiling and laughing through it, so I’m happy with that.

The day overall, though, had begun fairly explanatory, Hannah had already been briefed that “we” would be going to her house to celebrate her Mum’s birthday, but, of course, Hannah would need to get some Cake, with the accompaniment of me and the couple that were my virtual “wingmen”, so to speak, for the day. We travelled via a very unstable and unsafe Jeepney. I, honestly, hate those things. But, we arrived safely, somehow, and they collected what looked like, quite a disgusting Cake, if I’m honest. Maybe it’s just me, but when it comes to a Cake, make it a Victoria Sponge Cake, if you have to make it stylish, bob a bit of icing at the top, then, leave it. That, to me, is a Cake. Not a bright sloppy thing, or what most use, which is Chocolate, covered in Chocolate and a base of Chocolate! … but that’s just me. 

Meet up, and, the next part of the plan, from work

Once the Cake was collected, it was time to do, what seemed rather standard, convenient, at the time, thing to do, and pick up the man would would be taking me out to look at, and hopefully get, an engagement Ring. By this point, it was me, Hannah and the wife of who we were meeting. He, as before, was going to have me clinging on for dear-life riding his Bike through the towns to look at Rings.

But, before all that, we needed to set up the scene, create an excuse for Hannah to go, and, for me to stay. This would come down to a simple thing, beer. Kind of amazingly, Hannah bought it, I wouldn’t have done hahaha. I’m not sure if that means that, maybe, she’s gullible, or, maybe, I’m just expecting her to see through it as I was so nervous. We ended up waiting at his work, had some Snacks, well, they had some Snacks, I just had a Drink. Then, it was time for Hannah and Reve to go, leaving me to wait for the end of Arnel’s shift, where we would, then, discuss, then, plan. 

So, what is the plan… I got nothing

Seriously, this was the one thing I was actually the most nervous about. Some people have their engagements all worked out in their head, but me, I genuinely didn’t have an idea in my head, or this “ideal scenario”, like some. I actually thought the idea in that Park was quite good, but, that was dismissed. Verbally, and, in person, I would say I’m a very romantic person when it comes to Hannah, but, I’m certainly not one with cliché moments. But, one thing I do know about Hannah, she’s a big fan of simplicity, bit like me really. Obviously, the moment still needed to have that wow, moment, and, the feels, but, there’s no need for, essentially, some rubbish Disney reimagined. Let’s just, be real, make it a surprise, then, set the scene … if we can. 

Then, we finally had an idea settled on. We were going to set up a surprise, actually, inside, the Hotel room we were actually staying at. Of course, I could have booked a function room there, but, that kind of ruins any surprise, you expectsomething if you’re drawn there. Whereas the room? Why would you expect anything different. But, first, we needed to ask permission. We can’t just galavant in to a Hotel room and decorate the place all willi-nilly. So, that was going to be something I’d need to worry about later. I’d have to be quick, though, the engagement in my mind, simply, had, to happen on Friday 17th March, as that was the day of our anniversary of being official.

Shopping for the ring 💍

Waiting patiently for Arnel’s shift to end, having a brief discussion of ideas, we were finally ready for off. We decided it best, to head to a big local Mall, and, once there, we began, quite literally, aimlessly looking around for Rings. I’m not saying I’m hopeless at stuff like this, but, this is literally the only time I’ve ever gone Ring shopping. I know, little, to, nothing, about rings, and, to make matters worse, we were not only against the clock (we had to get one today), but, I was also in a different Country. Although, being in a different Country, turned out to be rather beneficial, especially when it came to the price hahah. Though, despite the lower cost for Jewellery in the Philippines, don’t mistake that for me getting some “less than” product, it was certainly, no compromise, in terms of what I got, I went for quite the jewel! 

Hannah’s fingers are TINY

For those worrying about whether I knew was size Hannah was. That was, kind of covered last year. I knew, very early, that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with Hannah, a hunch, which, has just, continued, to be proved right. Knowing this, of course, meant I’d, already, checked what Ring size she was, “should I ever ask a question”, relating to one. In the UK, Ring sizes are arranged alphabetically with letters used for the general sizes. In the Philippines, they use numeric values, like Shoes really, but with decimal .5 options too, for… I dunno, those, in between, moments, or something. 

I’d already confirmed that Hannah’s finger was size 3.5. Now, for those who don’t know the sizes, let’s just say, that is verysmall. This was proving to be a bit of a problem. Not only were we against the clock, in terms of, we need to get one today, but, we also need to have one ready for Friday… and, NOWHERE, had any Rings, that small! The smallest Rings they offered were all size 5, and above… s**t. Now, obviously, I am aware that Rings can be resized, but, we don’t have time, right? Could that be done that quickly?

I need help with this…

It became quickly apparent, after going round multiple Ring shops, that I was struggling. When I told my Mum, back in the UK, that I would be going out looking for an engagement Ring, she said one thing to me, “bring a woman” 😅 That, certainly, proved to be very true advice. I’m not saying he was useless, but, when you ask what do you think of this one, or that one, and all you get is, “uh”, or, “it’s up to you”, that, isn’t really what you want… at all. 

So, in an emergency moment, we called upon the assistance of Arnels wife, Reve, who told Hannah, she was “getting some milk”, and, then, met us both in the Mall. By this point, we’d found a Shop which sold, really, the most Rings that I thought looked really good, but, what is good for an engagement Ring? Well, she was here to help. 

I’ve no doubt Reve, probably, thinks she wasn’t much help to me, but, trust me, she was. I thank her personally for helping me. We ended up narrowing it down to 5 Rings, which, were then down to me to decide. I later managed to, then, get it down to just the 2, rather similar ones. One was very straight, with the diamonds just around covering most of the gold, then, a second one, which, had a nice curve pattern, with a diamond sided etching. One thing I did instantly notice, about the second one, thanks to its added curvature, it made the gold shine, and the diamond flicker, so much more, in the light; that, was the winner. Of course, rooted above the ring, was the main diamond itself. 

Before I knew it, here I was, I was in the process of buying an engagement Ring! You know, I hadn’t even thought of how much I was willing to spend. I’m not going to be that guy and say how much it was, but I will say, if I got the same equivalent Ring in the UK, it’d be a bluddy lot of money, that’s for sure! 

The problem with the Ring, of course, was its size. Despite this place having some of the better collection of Rings, they were still size 5, as, even here, nowhere offered a Ring at the size of Hannah’s finger. We did mention did early, and, they told us they could resize it, and, thankfully, they were able to, before Friday evening. So, I signed the dotted lines, made the payment, in a very strange way, as, I left without the Ring I’d just bought, but, of course made arrangements for the two of them, to pick up the Ring once it was the right size. We’ll get to the delivery, and the day itself, later.

For some, weird reason, they threw in an absolutely colossally huge bag, with the Ring, which, itself, would be stored in a Small bag. I never quite understood that. As I’d spend way over a certain quarter, the Shop also threw in some Perfume. Now, I’m a straight man, what do I know about women’s perfume. But, they told me to pick, I just picked the Purple one as the others were all White?! 

Pretend all is normal 🤐

After a quick bite to eat, in between them getting a screen protector, or something, Reve, then, snuck back without us, so she could be back before us, takes a long time to “get milk” hahah. Then, we headed off back, ourselves. Hilariously, we actually forgot all about the beer, which, was a bit of a problem as that was the excuse why we were gone, so, we knew we had to get something. In the end, we actually ended up popping in to a very close-by 7eleven and just getting a few Cans there. The cover for not getting much wasn’t blown, however, as we’d actually, unintentionally, taken a lot longer than planned, so, we would have never had enough time to drink them all anyway. 

Then, as the celebrations came to a close, me, Hannah, and a crowd of others, slowly walked back to our Hotel, leaving us once we’d arrived. Then, we headed up to our room. It was so hard to just have this, straight face, stories of, ohh yeah me and Arnel just rode around Town, nothing special happened, not at all hahah. All this, whilst, deep inside, I’m all excited, but, unable to say a thing. We watched another movie, which, yes had the the same guy in it, and then, headed to sleep. 

Another quiet “us” day

If there’s one thing that I loved the most about the first week in the Philippines, was, that it was all about me and Hannah, almost, exclusively. I mention this every time and it remains true. I never go to the Philippines, because I’m going to the Philippines, I, honestly, don’t care about the Country. I’m going, because of Hannah, and that’s it. So, whenever we have days that could be anywhere, where it’s just me and her spending time together, doing in, some cases, absolutely nothing, that’s perfect for me, and, this is entirely what this day was.

Hannah did, at one point, want to watch a movie in the Cinema, but, I just wasn’t feeling it, plus, let’s be honest, it’s just far easier to watch a movie in your room. Also, when was the last time anything good was on in the Cinema … seriously, I’ll wait … exactly, sooooo long ago.

Asking the hotel permission … undercover… 😎

Ok, it wasn’t exactly “undercover”, but, I have to say, looking back, I handled this so much better than I thought I could. As the days were rolling by, I knew, we simply had to ask the Hotel permission, like-now! I’d already being messaging ideas, we’d all come up with a decorative idea, but, before, of course, anything, could be committed to, and, before I could put my money down, we needed to know we actually could, of course. But, I had a plan.

This trip, as you may have remembered, unlike the last couple, was a bit more awkward in terms of the days of my stay, so, I was going to use that to my advantage and tell Hannah that the hotel have buggered up, they’ve not included one of the days. So, we went downstairs to the reception, I begun the conversation about the days, then Hannah did exactly what I was hoping she would, notice this was an uninteresting situation, and sit down away from me, leaving me alone to deal with reception, perfect! 

It was, at this point, I discussed about the engagement. The woman behind the counter went from being, uhhh what do you want now, to, oooo interesting, they love a good love story in the Philippines. But, this was not something she could answer, so was going to ask for the Manager. This put me in a rather awkward position as I now, needed to basically notice the Manager, see him, but, make sure in a non-awkward way (it totally ended up being an awkward way) to step away from Hannah and talk. 

Digging further my hole of deception hahaha. I told Hannah, that, ahhh this is annoying, they need to check with the Manager as blah blah blah, this isn’t something you can do normally blah blah. Again, amazingly, she bought it. So, we both waited for him. He finally came, he kind of spotted me looking around and went, are you… Ben. A moment of pause emerged as we both seemingly looked at Hannah for a second, then I looked back and went, yes, that’s me. All of this, whilst, unintentionally, pushing him, very promptly, away, to the Reception area. Thankfully, he quickly grasped as to why, with the quick “so, it’s her” and, “so, she doesn’t know”. Those kind of filled him in, enough. 

Now, if I wanted to spend a fortune, I could of got a function room, as predicted, I could even of had them do it all out for us, but, we already had our plans, had ordered the stuff, and, he was very agreeing to it, even saying if there’s anything else they can do, let them know. So, that was that, all agreed; let’s go! 

The rest of the day, honestly, was rather a blur for me, if I’m honest. I was just, at this point, getting so excited for what was to come. Whilst spending great moments with my beautiful Hannah, who was, still, unknowing to what was so quickly coming soon. She did catch me, well, hear me, typing a speech, which was set for the engagement, being all “who you messaging” hahah. I gave nothing away, just said, I’m not messaging, she asked, what, and, I just said, elusively, you’ll see. 

The big day

After finding out the Ring was “ready” in the correct size … or, what I was hoping was the correct size, when the day finally dawned, I was soooo nervous. I was definitely in a state of being extra extra EXTRA careful, not only about every move we did, all day, but I would need to, for the last time, spend a day with Hannah, focused entirely on the, choreographed around, plans. Those included, when she was allowed to be within the Hotel vicinity, and, more importantly, when she was not allowed to be!!! And, so much more.

I was deliberately vague upon what I wanted to do today, as far as Hannah was concerned, I just told her that this was our anniversary, and, I want it to be a day that we can share with each other. Little did she know, quite how, rememberable, it was all set to be. 

Jollibee, obviously, with a sneaky twist

I don’t quite know how I’d survive in the Philippines if it wasn’t for, the Philippine founded, fast food chain, Jollibee. These were introduced to me, almost on a whim, last March, by Hannah, during my first trip to the Philippines. Since then, they’ve been a pretty good lifeline ever since. Of course, I can to get McDonalds Fries everyday, or live on Sandwiches of imported (correct) bread and butter, but, a Jolly Hotdog, it’s bluddy good, you know.

As you’ll probably have noticed numerous time in this blog, when I’ve no idea what to do on a day, I always say, well, let’s get something to eat first. So, that was what led us to Jollibee. Hannah got some spaghetti, I, obviously, got my Hot Dogs, but, not until a lengthy wait. But, it was within these waits, I was also, secretly, looking for opportunities. I was going to, essentially, need to leave for about a minute without Hannah’s suspicions. First opportunity rose when she wanted a napkin, but …ughhh they’re not ready yet, so, got her one with no fuss. Then, they were ready. Who’s ready? I hear you ask, well, my delivery. 

Undercover collection 😎 … with a bit of a problem

During the, what appeared, perfectly, innocently, trip to Jollibee, there was something, rather important, going on in the background. That very important thing, in essence, would be going on all day, across multiple messages in the background, making sure multiple plans were ongoing, deliveries of things were go, and, more. In this instance, I needed to collect something incredibly important, the Ring. But, how could I possibly collect the ring without Hannah knowing? 

Now, with Hannah, literally, sat, at a deliberate table in Jollibee, what do I mean by that? Well, where she was facing, not only, was away from the counter, but, also, within a wall covering the outside, so, she could see nothing. Meaning, everything was set up perfectly. But, the napkin opportunity hadn’t gone well, so, we only really had one fail safe, toilet … sorry, CR. Arnel was secretly waiting in the same Mall, on the same floor, for an opportunity for me to pick up the Ring, he’d earlier collected. Once Hannah had, I don’t think “allowed” is the right word, more, bought, in to, me, going to the toilet, whilst she continued eating her food, I was off. 

I left the Jollibee, and almost ran aimlessly, somehow I’d forgotten where the toilets were, but, did, thankfully remember, using your eyes is a good method. Around the corner in the entrance to the toilets, there he was. Quick discussion how things were, and asked what time things were going to begin. Everything was, generally, going to be late afternoon, to early evening, where the room had to be empty, Hannah could not be in the room between 2-3PM, and beyond. 

Collected the Ring, with its usual black casing and … then we noticed a bit of an obvious problem, carrying it discretely. Being in the Philippines where it’s boiling everywhere, you don’t wear Jackets, you don’t wear pants with big pockets, either. I’m wearing a t-shirt and shorts, so, the Ring was INCREDIBLY OBVIOUS. But, I told Arnel not to worry, I’ll think of something, so, then, he headed off, to get all the plans ready, wishing me good luck and see you later.

A convenient pair of socks … which, I’ve actually since, lost, somehow

I managed to make it back to Hannah in Jollibee within acceptable toilet time, and, focused on finishing off the food. The food was mostly for me, she just had a small snack there as I’d promised we’d get something more for her later. But, I had a little problem, well, a big problem, a huge bulge in my shorts … no, not that, you dirty biscuit, I’m, of course talking about a disguised Ring in it’s box. But, I had a plan, thankfully. 

I’d told Hannah over the course of the last couple days that I probably need to get some more socks. I don’t, actually, need socks at home, but, it’s true that I do in the Philippines as I ended up wearing shoes a billion times more than I wore my sandals, mainly, as sandals are awful… and, I’d packed presuming I was, always, going to be wearing sandals. So, we made a quick stop to Penshoppe, which is, essentially, a Philippines version of, like, Primark, or something. It was also, conveniently, the first shop I saw, after the first escalator, since Jollibbe. At this point, it was becoming, increasingly hard, and, risky, hiding the right pocket of my shorts. Incredibly, though, Hannah never noticed. Hannah’s never struck me as someone who’s gullible, but, I swear, it’s moments like this I do look back on and think, how??!

We then, went in, and asked where the socks were. Thankfully, despite passing mirrors where I was never going to be able to hide my pocket, Hannah was too distracted on forcing me to buy clothing I’d never normally wear. She’d already pushed for me to have a Pink … sorry, “Red” T-shirt a day or so ago, which I, subsequently, was wearing, to make her happy. But, it was clear I wasn’t going to leave this Store, just, with a pair of socks. Ended up getting a green and bague combo shirt… thing, looked better than it sounds. But, main thing about all this, we got A BAG. This was huge, not the bag itself, but this meant, finally, I had somewhere I could put the Ring! So, I did. Whilst paying, Hannah was distracted looking at other random unimportant things, I, oddly struggled but, did manage to, get the ring out of my pocket, placed it in the Bag, under the t-shirt, so, I was now worry free, right?! 😁

An unexpected trip to the Hotel Room, Hannah’s inconvenient TikTok run… OK, we really do have to go!

Once we’d a place to put the Ring, I didn’t care what we did, but… Hannah wanted to go back to the Hotel, eeekkk, to put some things in there and collect some stuff. This was a bit, daunting, for me, as I wasn’t sure when things were going to be touched, changed, etc, in the Room. So, whilst walking closer and closer to the Hotel, I panickly messaged out and confirmed it was safe to go to the Hotel, phew. 

Hannah decided to choose now as the time to collect some things to go back to her house, eek, can we even go there, at the moment. But, before all of that, to Hannah, there’s always time, to spend, in the hotel, for TikTok.

Consuming some drinks, few toilet visits later, Hannah decided it was TikTok time … which, is rather unavoidable when she’s in the mood for it. But, we were on the clock, so, I decided it would be, increasingly, quicker to join in, enjoy the moment together, than say no, cause an awkward moment, or, worse, any delays.. So, we recorded quite a few TikTok moments, some of which would be later shared. Who knows if the others will, knowing Hannah, they will.

From meows, too, quite a few videos, involving cut-sequences, slowed down recordings, sped up after, to be fair, we actually had a lot of fun together recording them. But I did know that time was ticking… TikTok..ing, OK that was bad. But, we needed to really think of going.

I managed to get Hannah out of the room, by mentioning the fact that we’d, already previously, been too late, before, which meant our room never got cleaned. So, let’s avoid that and go now! It was, at this point, I realised we were going to Hannah’s house … why?! Another quick message, and, thankfully, we were fine to go there too. Honestly, the stress of her movements were certainly becoming, testing, to say the least, with the pressure hahah, but, this was the last time it needed to matter. 

We then arrived at her house. It then became pretty obvious, especially by the faces of everyone on me, that, whilst Hannah went to the toilet, everyone knew what was coming today. This, of course, just built up the excitement inside me, but, of course, the pressure of keeping it zipped, must continue. 

SM distraction

One thing that we’d refused to do a few days ago, was, ironically, about to prove to be a perfect opportunity. I decided to tell Hannah we should go to SM, and, whilst in SM, we could spend some time together. She’d be able to eat some ChowKing, which she likes, and, of course, we could, after Food, watch a movie at the Cinema. Of course, this was for two reasons, one, she previously wanted to, and, two, obviously, this killed time and kept her away from the hotel whilst things were being set up. 

A dreadful Marvel movie … yeah, another

For some reason, every time me and Hannah go to watch a film in the Philippines, all that’s on is Marvel movies, I don’t know why. Despite the fact I look like someone who likes Marvel, I, also, apparently, look like someone who likes Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter, despite hating all 3 of these things. But, nothing else was really showing so, here we go. 

So, what did I waste my money on this time? Shazam….

Dreadful movie out of the way, we headed back to the Hotel. 

Preparing the speech, to the big reveal…

As you will have known from earlier, I did have a speech prepared. This was something I was, initially, going to read right at the engagement. However, it was rather long and it was becoming increasingly obvious that Arnel wasn’t alone in the room waiting. This did go against my initial plans, I had wanted the engagement to be far more intimate. So, as a compromise, I kind of went between the two things. I then, as we got closer, informed Arnel we were heading in the lift up to the room, that way everything would be prepared.

When we made it all the way up to our 11th floor, I begun to stop Hannah in her tracks of rushing back to the room. I began a speech to her, which, she didn’t quite understand why I was doing, which was both, perfect, as she obviously had no idea what was going on …and, not perfect, as, I really wanted her to pay attention. But, the penny dropped eventually.

The big reveal

I made sure to be at the concluding parts of my speech, right as we reached the door. I do regret not telling Hannah to, perhaps, cover her eyes, or close her eyes, perhaps, but, I was so excited and nervous I didn’t, honestly, think. The door was opened and we walked in. The room was darkly lit in a blue shimmer, so it was very clear to Hannah, immediately, things were not as they seemed. It was rather amusing seeing, a lot of her family hidden in the bathroom area, as I pushed to that side of Hannah as she was walking in so she wouldn’t look that way. She did notice Arnel filming from the side of the bed, but, I mean, that was never going to be able to be hidden. But, the bigger thing she noticed, of course, was the room decoration.

Two sidewards shimmering lights revelling a collection of balloons of red and white, flower pattern on the floor in the shape of a heart, up to a square reveal of further balloons. Then, right in the middle, our picture, and a message of “Happy Anniversary, I love you”, then, of course, the big most important message, balloons spelling WILL U MARRY ME all around. There was also one balloon in the shape of an engagement ring, just in case it wasn’t obvious what this was, somehow. There was also a Cake for the celebration … but, as we’ve become used to, at this point, all Cakes for me get stolen, and… yep, this one did too. 

I know, from speaking to Hannah since, she, basically didn’t hear much of my speech, but I concluded as we walked in the room. She then was stood in the centre of it all, as I looked in her eyes, intended on bending down on one knee (though, ended up more falling down on it), then, once on one knee, having already got the Ring out of the bag that had been with us all day, I opened it up, looked her in the eyes, said her full name, and asked “Hannah…, will you marry me?”

She said… nothing, then, a mumble of a….YES!!!

When proposing, I was expecting the joy of a Yes, or the disappointment of a no, but, I certainly wasn’t prepared for nothing. Seriously, there was a silence which felt like forever. To the point, where, I literally had to say “you have to answer”. But, eventually, from a quiet mumble, confirmed with a yes, I stood up, hugged her tight, and the reveal of just how many were hiding in the bathroom area, became, very obvious, helped too with the very loud shrieking of screams as everyone celebrated the moment. 

Then, of course another big moment … does it fit… does it… yes it does, a perfect fit. The Ring size was correct and we were set. This was the first time Hannah had seen the Ring, and, she, visibly, instantly loved it. Everyone was asking it’s specs, was like yes it’s a real diamond on it, yes that’s real too, no it really is 17 carat gold, yes. I don’t know why they somehow thought I’d got her some cheapo thing, this was, and is, a real deal Ring for her. Though, not David Dickinson Real Deal hahaha, a UK joke. 

But, I wasn’t done. A promise I’d made Hannah, something that would make everyone I’ve been with in the past, shiver in disappointment hahah, but, I’d listened to her wants, I knew her wishes, and I did. I had Hannah some prepared Flowers for the occasion, upon giving them to Hannah, I was treated to the most beautiful and cutest thing in the world, Hannah blushing. 

The moments after, I think we were both kind of in a moment of craziness, all seem like a bit of a blur, at this point. I had told, and promised, that we would basically get some Food, the lot of us, after the proposal was done (and, if it was a yes). Though, I will say this, this was all presuming there was, like, the 4 of us, with the odd few extras, like, seriously, their was some that turned up I didn’t even know who they were, anything for a free meal, eh. But, nah, nothing was going to ruin this moment, and we went to a place, I never eat at, Choobi Choobi, but, everyone else did, of course, and we all celebrated the moment. I think Hannah’s family realised just how much more there was, than ideal, when the bill came up, even with a gazillion Senior Citizen discounts …but, like I said, nothing was going to impact this moment together. 

Because everything is fast-paced over there, everyone was already discussing the Wedding day, obviously. We’ll talk about that later, but, for now, I’ll say what I said then, one step at a time. I’m serious about this engagement, as I genuinely, do, want to marry Hannah and spend the rest of my life with her. 

So, there we go. Friday 17th March 2023 – Engaged to the beautiful Hannah. We headed back home, we had another look at the room, which was, still, covered in balloons and celebration. Hannah kept looking and looking again at the Ring which was really sweet. We both showered to finish the day, watched some movie (though, can’t remember if the same actor was in this one, or not), then ended what was easily one of the most incredible days of my entire life, so far! 

A somewhat uneventful followup

I suppose I shouldn’t have really expected the day after, such a huge day in my life, to be able to compete with that, though, it’s fair to say, looking back, this was a, particularly rubbish day. It did, at least, start decent. 

We woke up from the incredible night before, still with the Hotel full of balloons and everything, though a clear up was already planned. Then, in the meantime, we headed down to Hannah’s home. We decided to keep the engagement Ring balloon, took some funny selfies with it, and waited for things to get ready. 

Then the day was just, honestly, downhill from there. Hannah, for some reason, thought it would be fun to go to a Park for a day. This was, however, not the Park we went to before, with all the lights and speciality, this is more, just, grass in what looks like some shoddy Council Estate. We’d gone here, previously, back the year before when Hannah and Chona had their confrontation, but, at least that was amusing and concluded a fun day. This day just ended up being a day of taking selfies, in between, essentially, babysitting. 

We went to a rubbish Mall, had a dreadful Jollibee where nothing was correct, or done right, the drink was off, the Staff were bad, the atmosphere didn’t feel great at all. Then, we went outside to a Park area for children, which, just made me more and more frustrated. This put today on the list, for sure, as one of the worst days I’ve spent in the Philippines. Not, really, what you want to follow an engagement day, though, suppose this is a perfect example of what goes up, must go down?! 

A failed attempt to TOPS the day before

After what was, honestly, a very frustratingly rubbish day, I feel like Hannah was trying to make for a better day. This would be great, though, it’s obvious, numerous times, she’s not always got an idea how to do that, with the direction this day took, versus the way it was originally proposed to be. This was one of a few days, and, in to the second week of the visit, where familiar faces would be making an appearance. Admittedly, I’d enjoyed spending time just with Hannah and me, but, she always insists on bringing others along. 

I was happy to see that one of those guests would include Grace, who, I’d not actually seen since, damn, since, last March. When we last saw each other, we were basically Karaoke in her, then, house. Unfortunately, however throughout thisvisit, I’d caught something since arriving in the Philippines, which had basically shot my voice, which was annoying as this meant Karaoke wasn’t an option and … alternatives were not great.

The meet-up, long wait, quick meal

I was actually rather happy to see Grace again, we didn’t see each other last time I went to the Philippines due to “drama”. Hannah has a good tendency to fall out with her friends, create enemies, sometimes, whether, intentionally, or, perhaps due to her stubbornness. This can extend other peoples problems with her, but, details unimportant, they’re back now, and there she was. 

At this point, actually, for quite a few days, we didn’t make the engagement official, so, outside of Hannah’s immediate family crew, Grace was the first person to find out we were engaged. But, wasn’t just her for the day, and, after a billion hours of delay and getting lost, the whole gang for the day were here. Once again, as is par for the course, days always begin with a quick meal. We then had a quick Jollibee, where the topics of Marriage, and, of course, the whole Engagement day, began.

I’m happy to talk about the Engagement, a million times, I still can’t believe looking back just how much Hannah didn’t clock what was going on, on the day. We enjoyed, yes, a Jollibee, then before we knew it, the meal was done, they did some … weird dance in the middle of the Mall as I got some Cash out, then, they decided where we were going… not!

Welcome to the middle of nowhere

It was decided, not by me, that we were going to Tops, which, means absolutely nothing to me. The only Tops I can think of, is the infamous Top Of The Pops, the cancelled, once, must-see, iconic music show in the UK for the latest charts. Moving away from, ageing myself, Tops is actually a high peak in the Philippine Cebu island. 

Unfortunately, either the Taxi driver didn’t know this, or, something else, because, we certainly didn’t stop a Tops. Instead, we oddly, stopped, in the middle of nowhere. Surrounded by a collection of Biker guys who were, quite honestly, disgusting people fitting of all the stereotypes you think. They were checking out all the women, they dared to accuse me of being an American, my very abrupt, “I’m British” was a good way of saying, ohh shut up. 

Eventually, we, for some reason, had a second Taxi, spent more money than I wanted on the visit to Tops, and back, all to find out… it’s not open. Great…

The, not Tops, but nearby Pizza place with garden… location, yeahhh

Instead, we ended up just stopping off at a nearby “Lavie in the Sky” branded place, which, to be fair, was, at least, rather picturesque and surrounded the areas we could of gone, that was, at least, something. But, from what a very quick search of Tops can get you. I, definitely got short changed today.

If Tops, was defining the top of where the location was, this, you could argue, was, Middle. At least there was, a decently decorated Garden to stay at. This was a perfect excuse to re-enact one of the many TikTok dances me and Hannah had done, whilst in our room before the engagement, the meow meow. This did, rather amusingly, mean Grace was a victim, somehow, to falling over in one of the takes, but, was at least a good bit of fun. 

After a collection of photos ranging from us appearing like a Phoenix, to a collective of lights, it was then time for something to eat … but, as usual, that would be, others and not me. This time it was an overpriced Pizzeria. I, already, wasn’t too happy, about spending so much on a location we never even got to, to only end up at basically a Restaurant and garden. I think this was something Hannah clearly noticed, whilst she paid for their food. 

Everyone then exchanged the huge collection of Photos they’d taken throughout the day, kind of norm in the Philippines, then, it was about time to get going.

It was dark after they’d finished their Meal. Cebu was now a collection of lights upon the night sky. Though, in the Philippines it’s dark by 6PM, so, whilst that picture may look like 9-10PM, it was actually 6:30PM 😅

We then, took a Taxi back, said goodbye to everyone, it was nice to see them again, but, I think everyone will admit, it would of been a damn site better, if we actually go to where we wanted to go. I was just a bit unhappy with how much the day cost, for, what became, nothing, really. 

Hopefully, next time I see them, it will be less wasteful. But, hey, anything was better than the day before. Then, we headed home, enjoyed spending time together, watched a movie together featuring… is he, yes he is, then headed to sleep.

Trip to the Pharmacy, leading to Hannah’s inability to twerk on display!

Once the day was nearing its close, came one of those moments during the end of the day, where you remember you could probably do with a bit of extra supplies, a quick Supermarket shop was in order. You know, it’s crazy, one of the hardest things to get in the Philippines this trip, was actually Milk, wild, isn’t it. Anyway, getting slightly distracted by rants I’ve already done, this was also an opportunity for Hannah to see one of her friends, Ime, who actually works in the Pharmacy within the Mall our Hotel was, essentially, attached to. This time, however, wasn’t just for Food needs, more on that, shortly. 

Being literally the weekend following our engagement, and, at this point, we’d not made it official to the world, Hannah had the opportunity to tell another friend about it in person. We’d actually spend quite a bit of the end of the shift with her, and the, very eager, but shy (it is the Philippines), work colleague with her, discussing, joking, having a laugh, the usual spiel.

End of the evening trip back

Once Ime finished her shift, she actually ended up spending some time with us. We never got to spend a full day with her, but, it was, at least, nice to see her again, outside of the Shop. But, of course, two Filipinas in a room with space and opportunity, it’s only a matter of time before … yep, TikTok. 

Videos begun by Ime, being the next inclusion in to the meow video, but, something that certainly was rather amusing was when they decided to dance to some music and Hannah… attempted, twerking. It was honestly, rather hilarious. It was pretty funny seeing Hannah’s reaction when Ime unexpectedly added it to her Story on Facebook for all to see Hannah’s attempts.

Ime Rose – The “I don’t want this food” person for Hannah

So, yeah, back to something I said earlier, what did I mean about the Foods. For some rather amusing reason, any time me and Hannah would go out somewhere, they’d be some Food purchased, obviously, and occasionally, seemed like every time, there’d be something Hannah didn’t want, didn’t like, perhaps, just never needed, and, there was always one place it was bound to end up, with Ime. It started rather innocently, by me straight up getting her something to eat, alongside what me and Hannah were getting. But, then Hannah, basically found any opportunity possible, throughout a number of strange moments, where Ime almost became the Dog of the house with the left overs. 

Don’t worry, Ime, I’d never consider you a Dog hahah, it was literally an impression. But, was certainly something I found strange, and, amusing. 

Speaking of Pharmacies, I certainly was in them a lot

Yeah, an unfortunate, mostly frustrating, part of the Philippines trip was of course my health. For some reason, almost, immediately, after landing and saying there, I built up, what became, an entire-long cold. This meant my voice was shot, my nose was annoying, and, I had a bad cough … just what you want during a limited time stay, not. 

Eventually, it became apparent, well, more Hannah insisted, that I should probably get some medicine, or at least something to ease the problems. Now, look, when Hannah was in the UK, she got a cold, took some of our medicine and cured quickly. I got sick nearer the end of when she was here (I wasn’t anywhere near as bad here, though), but when I got some medicine, cured quickly. Philippines medicine…not so much.

I don’t want to say their medicines are crap, but, no they are crap. Whenever I felt better, or worse, was certainly not dictated by the medicine provided. Was practically useless. In fact, on one day I just straight up used the Paracetamol and Ibuprofen I’d brought emergency supplies of in my Luggage, and that did more. So, yeah, Philippines medicine sucks, but not as much as being ill there did.

Day to ourselves, leading to; “I think you should have a ring, too, Ben”

Traditionally, or, should I say, more often than not, during an engagement, a women wears a Ring, whilst the man, honestly, doesn’t. It’s pretty unheard of for it to be any other way. Now, that’s not to say people don’t, and, then there’s a second question in regards to which hand they wear it. Believe it, or not, some men choose to wear an engagement ring on their right hand, as opposed to the left traditional, whilst others stick to the same left hand Wedding finger. The idea for me to wear an engagement Ring, however, came down to Hannah. I think, to be honest, she’s the kind of person who likes everything to be a “couples” thing, in regards to, being a shared thing together. We’d previously being wearing these beads, which Hannah got, which had a magnetic connection between mine and Hannah’s. Trouble is, it was getting a bit weaker, paint was coming off the magnets, and, by virtue of it being magnetic, proved very uncomfortable and inconvenient in rather common scenarios. So, it then became, a going out thing, then became, a sometimes thing. So, I think it’s fair to say, this Ring also served as an additional purpose to replace that tradition with something far more significant.

The idea surrounding me wearing a Ring, was entirely Hannah’s idea. As I said before, men wearing engagement Rings is, more or less, unheard of here. But I, at least, welcomed the idea, as I’m proud to be engaged to Hannah, and, having a piece of our relationship everywhere we go, sounds perfect to me. Admittedly, I’m glad she came up with this idea in the Philippines, and not the UK where anything Silver, Gold or Platinum, costs about the price of a Car. 

Trip to SM

Regardless of the getting of the Ring, I was, at least, thankful to be spending a day, once again, with just me and Hannah. I really have missed that experience together over the past few days, so it was certainly a day I enjoyed so much more, just for that. This was aside from the fact it was a romantic day in search of a Ring … though, this time, it would be Hannah doing the picking, choosing, and getting, for me.

SM was also a good excuse to be able to go somewhere, where, once again, Hannah could get the Food she wants, aside from being essentially forced in to Jollibee to accommodate for me 😅

Once we arrived in SM, it was clear, from very early on, that we didn’t really know where we were going, but, I didn’t when I went to get Hannah’s Ring, so, familiarity was real in that regard. Whilst, I don’t think Hannah quite knew why, it was clear from some of the Stores we went to, that a man getting an engagement Ring, truly is, even unusual in the Philippines too, as all were basically trying to sell “Wedding” Rings … or just, anything that was expensive as, “ooohhh look, here’s a non-local”.

Rather early on, I did notice the same company I got Hannah’s own Ring from. I, admittedly, at first, didn’t really want to go to the same place for my Ring, but, it was clear from looking around at other places that … me, Arnel and Reve picked a good place, in the end. 

After looking around a collection of very … rubbish Stores, we realised we were lost. So, it most certainly took us, quite a while, to find our way back to somewhere significant. But, not before a bit of illuminations took our distraction.

“Women Power” neon Love lights 💜💙

If there’s one thing you can’t deny when in the Philippines, they do like to add a sense of “flash”, when it comes to touristy areas, and, they looovveee neon lights. Whilst, I don’t think either of us knew why there was a section at SM filled with these neon Heart shaped lights, which, of course, proved a perfect photo opportunity for about a gazzilion photos, as well as a nice memorable moment just before, what was, a very heart-shaped gesture, to be done very soon; I, also don’t think, we really cared, as this was just a bit of fun and another memory for the day. 

The lights, also, proved to be a very useful guider to find the Jewellery shop we were going get a Ring from, as … we’d kind of, already got lost, a few times, and it turns out the nearest Stairs by the lights, was where the Jewellers was. 

A ring for me

If I was going to wear an engagement Ring, which, I was, and am, very happy to do. It had to be one picked by Hannah. Of course, for a man, it’s never quite as flashy as a woman’s, as, we kind of prefer the more simple look. But, Hannah, had Gold in mind, and looked until she finally found the one she liked.

Once the Ring was picked, it was rather important to know my size. As a man, of Straight preference, I don’t really look at Jewellery, of any kind, so, I don’t know anything really. This was, most certainly, why I was in need of Reve’s womanly help, when it came to picking the best options for Hannah’s ring. So, of course, had no idea what size I was. Turns out, whilst Hannah was Size 3.5, I … was 9! 

Now, I know sizes don’t literally mean what they are numerically, good job, really, as this would mean I have literally 3x the finger size of Hannah! But, I can assure you, I don’t. I will say, unfortunately, upon wearing this Ring for a couple weeks now, I do feel when it comes to the big Wedding Ring, I may go a size lower. It’s not that the ring is too slack, in that I feel like it’s going to fall off, but, could definitely be lower. Keep having to adjust it, every now and then.

When it came to the purchase of the Ring, I was there getting my Card ready, stopped in my tracks. Turns out, you got an extra discount to buy the Ring using Cash, so, that was the easiest excuse to do just that. After a finicky ATM, in SM, we were done. As a mans Ring is more muted than a woman’s, mine, for example was lacking Diamonds or any extra fillings, like Hannah’s does. This meant, it was a fraction of the price of Hannah’s, but, still looks good, I’d say. And, there we have it, we both, now, have our own engagement Rings. Admittedly, most think mine is a Wedding Ring, but, that’s not too important, as, let’s just say, that will be something to come for sure! 

Hannah’s hilarious mock proposal…

When the day was done, we had some Food, both our preferences were served, then we headed back to the Hotel. There, we just enjoyed each others company, which is easily my favourite of all the times me and Hannah share together. When it’s just me and her, just doing, honestly, nothing, of any meaning, but just being us, that’s when I love her the most. 

That’s also when the fun times roll. What do I mean by that. Well, now that Hannah had got me a Ring, too, it was a perfect opportunity for Hannah to act out how she would instruct the perfect proposal …ohh how amusing this was. In multiple videos that will remain private, we recorded some, pretty hilarious, attempts of Hannah proposing. My favourite, of which, included where Hannah, somehow, locks her hand in the box for the Ring, pushed hard, flings the Ring in the air, so all you hear is the TING TING TING of the Ring falling on the hard surface of the Hotel! Let’s just say, it would have been very amusing, if Hannah did the proposal, and not me!!! 🤪

A quick visit to Hannah’s, Beach planning, and, Wedding “requirements” getting real!

Following our day out at SM; Ring obtained, Hannah’s amusing proposal reel was done, it turned up next, we were heading to Hannah’s house. Most of the time we do, I, never, quite know why. But, this time, the reason came down to preparing what the family wanted to do, which, was go to the beach. This certainly came as a perfect opportunity to have those final Cans of those Beers, me and Arnel, bought. I mean, might as well, right. 

One thing I certainly wasn’t expecting from the visit to Hannah’s house, was a, rather abrupt, letter I was handed. The letter itself, almost like, an instruction manual of how to walk, when you’ve been walking your entire life, certainly seemed rather redundant. Then, of course, you remember… the rather OTT instructions, and requirements, for, even the most basic things; common place here. Whenever you propose to someone, I think it’s safe to presume, the only thing you’re thinking about, outside of the love and dedication you have for them, obviously, is, getting married itself. What you don’t think, is of a billion other requirements, and “permissions”, most, of which, you never have to do in any other modern country in the world. But, this is the Philippines, after all. 

For me and Hannah to get married in the Philippines, there would be requirements, which, I mean, sure, but there’d be more than just what you’d expect. 

1. Certificate of No Impediment ✅ – This is a document, alongside what’s legit called a “Marriage License”, which allows you to Marry in another country. The Certificate, essentially presents your records of whether you have ever married, are divorced, etc. So, this one, I completely accept 
2. Permit or Recommendation from Catholic Parish ❌ – This, is the one that just is weird and seems so unnecessary. The UK, for example, is considered a Christian Country, though I dare you to openly state that these days. But, regardless, there’s no restrictions upon non-Christians (whether Atheist or other religion) to go about things however they choose. In the Philippines, of course it’s a Catholic country, but the same points certainly aren’t true there, at all. You don’t have to become a Catholic, obviously, as I think, even the most devoted person of Religion, would never call for people to be forced in, anymore, but, you do need a Permit and Recommendation, almost like a Referral, from a Catholic, which, is just really odd. For obvious reasons, we’ll go through with this, but, it’s clear as day this is WEIRD. This is required, “even if Foreigner belongs to other religious sects since he/she is marrying a Catholic this time”. It is worth reiterating, this is getting Married in a Catholic Church, requirements. You can get Married in the Philippines otherwise, but, for Hannah, and her family, I think it’s fair to say, this is a must, and that I have to abide by their accepted traditions.
3. Confirmation Certificate ✅ – Makes sense
4. Birth Certificate ✅ – This kind of speaks for itself, and, is requirement for Marriage anywhere you do it, so, obviously

The requirements also, though crossed out, mentioned Baptism. I can tell you for a categorical fact, you do not need to be Baptised in any Religion, it is always a tradition, but never mandatory, and, so, naturally, is not a requirement in Marriage, either. 

But, yeah, was certainly not what I was expecting. But, things happen in weird ways, sometimes. This, of course, wouldn’t be the last time Marriage was brought up. But, it was, at least, interesting, to see some of the ways this would need to be implemented, if it was done in the Philippines. Granted, if we got Married, in the UK, they’d still need to be the whole Marriage Visa process, so, suppose, it’s never simple.

Beach planning

I can’t, for the life in me, remember what the Beach was called, whether the one we went to, or, the one we were, originally, going to go to. Look, to me, a Beach is a Beach, I don’t really care. But, apparently, the new choice was much cheaper to go to. We would be heading there, in the early dawns.

And, with that, it was pretty clear we should, probably, head out, get home, and, certainly, get some sleep. Hannah brought some stuff to bring back, so, it was me Hannah, as well as Arnel and Reve, who would join us back in the Hotel. By this point, we’d already told them about something’s not going to well in the Room. We’d noticed in the morning in regards to the Air-con not being quite perfect, so, Arnel wanted a look.

A message from the Hotel, before it went wrong…

When we did get back to the Hotel, one thing I didn’t mentioned before was that we had a little surprise from the Cleaners … no, not that they had actually cleaned this time, that should never really be a surprise, but, that we got a letter from them, basically congratulating us on our successful Engagement! Sure, it was nothing really significant, but, it was at least nice of them to put that through. 

The house keeper was called Hanna, with no end H. Only the best ones in the Philippines deserve the full palindrome spelled name like ‘Hannah’ does, cos she’s so much more special and important than any “Hanna”, could ever be 😁

Bye bye Air-con, hello problems…

Just, as we were beginning to credit the attention and assistance given by the Hotel, the room decided to be… rubbish. All rooms in the Hotel have Air-con, and, for good reason. But, something wasn’t quite right. In fact, it was actually starting eventually to get hotter with the room Air-con, it was clearly, broken!

Now, considering the fact I wasn’t that well, whilst in the Philippines, this was not what I needed. This, admittedly, did, put some stress on me, which, did impact what was a very early start of the day, which we’ll get to shortly. 

Action needed to be taken, and immediately. I was not going to be able to stay, especially days, in a boiling room, we were sweating at this point. So, we rung Reception, went to Reception, did all the complaints necessary to get this sorted. It was rather amusing when Reve did the call, saying good morning, afternoon and evening in one call … who even knows what time it is, anymore 😅 

Eventually, it was agreed for us to switch rooms. At this point, there was me, Hannah, Arnel and Reve, who I thank them for explaining to the Hotel that this really wasn’t good enough. After quite a while of plodding on, we were going to switch Rooms.

From 1 problem to a few more…

Yep, barely in to the second week, not even at the end of it, here I was packing! Crazy times. Though, I will say, not exactly neatly. It was definitely a, can we balance this bag and carry it, sort of packing, rather than, this will be safe on a Plane. 

Eventually, a member of Staff came to the Door with a Baggage carrier, we put all our stuff in, then transported it over to what, would be, our second room of this same visit;

Moving from 1115, to new 8th floor equivalent of 815, you would expect that the experience we would have, would be one of back to normal. The rooms are fairly identical in terms of layout, though, from the instant walk through the door we could tell the Air-Con did work! But… things sometimes don’t always go quite that smoothly, do they.

Regardless, I was cool and that was most important, so we said goodbye, and, it was back to me and Hannah. We, then, for a second time, unpacked and re-setup in this new room, which, obviously wouldn’t have any problem whatsoever right… right?!?

THINGS WRONG WITH OUR SECOND ROOM

1. Broken Shower

That’s right, in this new room designed to make us feel like, the minor Air-con problem, was nothing to worry about, so let’s just forget about it … this room had a broken Shower bracket! So, yeah, we couldn’t even wash the sweat caused by the last rooms temperature … ughhhhhh!!!

This was later fixed, manually by calling on handymen, after the day after was done, but, it would have been very nice to not have to go through that. We’re talking basics here.

2. A Water-less Toilet

Yep, nothing like going in to the Toilet, pulling it up and seeing … just a surface, no water. Whilst this one, did kinda, recover itself after a few flushes, first being a forced wakey-wakey, it always filled just that too much to make it a bit daunting.

3. No TV Remote

This really annoyed me, because this was something incredibly obvious to work out and resolve. For some reason, no one at the Hotel could work out why a missing TV remote was, first of all, significant, and, second of all, even true. It was sooooo frustrating, getting this sorted.

BUT, days later, waaaaaaayyy too many attempts later, and a free Cheese slice as a thank you offered by Hannah (for some reason), we did get that sorted too, but daannnggg.

It is worth pointing out, that the problems were discovered and mostly unresolved, before we went to the next big Trip, shown below, and resolved when we got back, and the consequent days that followed.

Day at the beach with Hannah’s family

One thing which was made clear by Hannah, and, quite frankly, everyone, was simply everyone was missing the whole Beach experience, admittedly, except me. Personally, I’d of, happily, gone through this trip without going on a Beach. It’s not what us British blokes really care for, and, it’s never been something I’ve ever being, particularly, bothered about. But, despite this, it certainly was something Hannah was bothered about, essentially insisting upon it, so, it was arranged. I didn’t really want to let her down, so it was agreed upon.

One thing that’s actually really rubbish about the Philippines, is that all Beaches are chargeable to visit. This is something which, I just find really really dumb. You’ve a Country fit with all this natural space and area, and in the World where it’s always hot weather, but then you go and ruin it for profit. There’s nothing wrong with having on-beach facilities that charge, sure, having refreshments, food, sure, but charge for entry? That just seems so stupid to me. But, we had to pay, as we also had to pay for a way to get there and back, as all their Beaches aren’t easy to get to … of course by we, I mean, me. 

When we first woke up, for the day at the Beach, I wasn’t exactly in the best of moods. Yesterdays combination of the Air-con failing, new room having its own list of problems, plus, not being really happy at being pressured in to spending a ton of money, of which I didn’t have to spend; renting a large Van for Hannah’s entire family, entry to a Beach, of which I didn’t really feel like going to, at all. On top of this, ALL on a Trip that I wanted to save money on, where I ended up spending more than every last one, combined. So, that’s why I wasn’t happy. Whether intentionally or not, it’s not too hard to see the obvious signs I am taken advantage of when I’m there, numerous times… 

Being the stubborn Miss that she sometimes is, Hannah, decided, instead of listening to my, not only mostly obvious issues, not to mention that I was already unwell, she instead, though it’d be better to just leave the room and go down without me … OK. Eventually, she stopped being silly, and I was ready to leave, went down, and I entered the Van to go to the Beach. I think, me being unwell was really getting to the boiling point of annoying her. Besides, we never needed to be that early, as was proven by the journey time.

The Van itself was actually, fairly, decent, actually. Definitely a better one than the Meg’s Dad rent-Van, from last March’s trip, though the same familiar feelings about its bookings were still a thing. It featured free WiFi built in to it, which was pretty cool, as well as something called working Air-Con! I’m joking, of course, this isn’t rare in the Philippines for any vehicle, but I was, of course, referring to missing it for the short span of time already thanks to the joy of the Hotel. I’m always extra appreciative anywhere it is. By this point, I’d, also, still, not had a shower, due to it being broken, until it’s eventual fix the end of this day… so, combination of things were indeed contributing to why I wasn’t, exactly, chipper. 

Ahhh, don’t you just love it when things go smoothly.

It didn’t actually take that long to get to the Beach. I will say, once we did get there, I wasn’t exactly impressed, wasn’t the most impressive Beaches I’ve been to. In fact, I’d go as far to say, it was actually quite bad really. Full of stones everywhere, no smooth sand, like previous Beaches I’d visited in the Philippines, bit bad really. So, this meant Sandles were, the absolute minimum, even for a dip. Stark contrast to the last Beach visits there, which I actually remember being free…hmm, plus, I remember, I could dip bare foot (as I had no sandles on that visit).

One thing the Beach did have, however, was plenty of shacks to set up your location. Everyone was provided Karaoke machines, which, I’d of, probably used if I actually had a voice. Plus, as you can see from the picture above, also had a Shaded area looking out to the sea. It also featured a completely huge boiling beacon of fire in the sky, which I believe people commonly refer to as…the Sun. This Sun would, of course, prove to be my enemy, once again. BUT, it wasn’t entirely just because of that Sun. It was more thanks, to a stupid, probably #sponsored woman in a Shop we went to, on a previous day, getting replacement Suncream. For selling such absolute garbage, grr, I’ll find you, woman!!!

I’m not saying the Suncream was bad, I’m just saying, well, put it this way; out of how many now, ahh yeah, EVERYONE, that used it, they burned. Coincidently, those that didn’t, didn’t. Naturally, I burned the most. I’m not from this climate, but, you get the idea, it was about as good as painting my skin with Orange juice. After a quick bite to eat, and, it was quick, for me, though, less so, for them, it then time to begin to use the Beach itself. Hannah had paid for some Food for her Family, they were all eating Lechon, with Rice a plenty. So, yeah, generally disappointing grub if you’re from anywhere else in the world. I had some Bread and butter I’d got before. Well, technically margarine, which became, fairly, unusable, after being exposed to Philippine Sun.

As every moment is a Photo moment with Hannah, we did get a few Photos taken together, before a brief paddle in the water. It was, at this point, that Arnel informed us of some further activities, available at the Beach. These included a Banana boat, which, we were initially, wanting to go on… until we realised it was pathetically overpriced for what it was. Second up, was a Jetski, which, admittedly, I was even less keen on, being the not a fan of water person I am … BUT, that didn’t stop me, in the end.

Riding, and driving, a Jetski … no really, I did.

As with everything, their was a bit of a charge for it, but, after it was becoming rather disappointing, to, not, do something other than dip in the sea, I decided to go for it. So, coming soon, was our ride on the Jetski. In true Philippine fashion, that also meant a million recording Cameras, which were, all ready, at the lens, covering every moment.

Me first … SLOOWWW DOWWNNN

You’re probably thinking it was me screaming that to the Driver, but, no, it was ironically, the other way around. We rode the Jetski individually with a Driver, and, I was up first. I got on, but, not before people insisted Hannah got on behind me for some Photo shots. Then, it was just me and the Driver.

Now, I’d never rode a Jetski before, or a motorbike, so, the thrust of a peddle was new to me, when it came to that, something especially true on water. So, I just went for it! I was powering my way across the sea, I surprised myself, actually, as I’d no idea (at this point) how deep the sea was, if anything went wrong. Everyone told me, when I got back, they could see I was really going for it going really fast. It was actually, honestly, a blast, had a great time on it. I did, stall it, maybe a “couple” times, but, it’s all good. I, also, eventually, realised, it was pressured on the peddle, so, I was able to, more smoothly, head back to the Shoreline, when he said, do you think your girlfriend would like a go, and, of course Hannah was next.

Hannah, next

Hannah, then followed. I spent most of her trip filming every last second. Did talk to her family about how it was, it was a lot of fun. Hannah was certainly far more, reserved, than I was. She was more a, calm, cautious driver, from what I could see, compared to my, rather, unexpected, wrecklessness. She didn’t look like she enjoyed it, quite as much, but, didn’t get much time to ask when she was back as EVERYONE else wanted a go, suddenly. Looking back at the video, she was, oddly clingy with the Driver, something I mentioned after. When she saw the footage back, amusingly, she had to agree.

One thing I didn’t get chance to do, as Hannah was so quick to leave, was to take any Photos of, just her, on the Jetski, but, suppose it’s not the end of the world.

It was rather funny that Reve, then Arnel, then the girls, all, got goes on the Jetski. Especially when, I’m sure, I only paid for 10 minutes. Maybe the driver was really bored, and, just wanted something to do, perhaps.

A float that doesn’t really float, closing the day

Once the excitement of the Jetski was done, it was finally time to just enjoy the sea. It was BOILING outside, so, the refreshment of being in water was actually, very pleasant, to be honest. The water was, also, actually, rather shallow. Or, at least, it was if you’re my height, so, I felt far more comfortable just being in the sea, really. 

It was then decided, whilst Hannah did a whip-round, to get one, that they were going to get a Float to use in the sea. A Float is, probably, giving it a bit of a compliment, it was literally a flat piece of polystyrene, basically. It did, subsequently, break, during its use, though I feel like that intentional by design. But, whilst, for people that weighed less than Sugar, it did float, for everyone else…yeah, I was happier off it. 

I, actually, ended up spending more the time, being a driver for the Float, transporting people around the sea area. We always seem to go to this borough, where everyone would get off, then, fool them to thinking we were leaving them behind. 

Time to go

As the hours past by, it was becoming, increasingly clear, to me, that I was, basically, burned … everywhere … again. Though, I will say, I don’t think I was quite as bad as the last March, last year, trip. So, whilst, yes, I did end up pealing like crazy, especially by time I got home, at the same time, not as much as before. But, still bad.

As I mentioned at the start, as a Beach, this was a bit rubbish. But, let me tell you, that doesn’t even come close to how it is, as a place to clean! For that, it was, basically, a dump. It was really not good! So, it’s fair to say, if we have to go to a Beach again, let’s … not go there. 

Hannah, and a few others, had an ice cream to end the day. It was, whilst consuming the ice cream, we saw a sign ahead stating “No parking”, with a Car parked right next to it. It’s that kind of obedience to the law that just makes Philippines, well, the Philippines! 😅

Back at the Hotel – Mission: Fix Everything!

We then headed back to the Van, then dropped off Hannah’s family off where they lived. I got the impression, looking back, that Hannah really wanted us to go in with them, but, I, really, just wanted to get back. Plus, we had quite a number of things needed to be done. 

What needed to be done? Well, as I mentioned, earlier, the Hotel was basically, broken. So, now, was the time for fixing it. We’d reported to them multiple times with no reply, this time I’d had enough, so, we got them to send up some Maintenance Men. Based on the fact it was, the same two people, every time, I’m going to assume, they are all, and the “only’, Maintenance for the entire Hotel. The longer job was, of course, fixing the Shower, as it really was, broken physically. Whilst, it did get replaced, it still wasn’t as reliable at the angle of the last room, so, it still made Showering, yes, possible, but, not as good. 

Fixing the TV, wasn’t really a thing, it was more, hey we need a remote. Amazingly, this took multiple attempts, but, eventually the solution was … let’s just steal it from the 11th Floor Room that had the broken Air-con! 

Movie and chill to end the day

Once we’d got everything fixed, it was Movie and chill to end the day, time. Back to where I prefer things, just me and Hannah, spending time together, holding each other close, and, embracing our love. Unfortunately, the Movie in question … yep, he was back, that random actor who appears in every Movie Hannah chooses, for, reasons.

Quiet day for some shopping

We’d done numerous days, just hanging around, getting bits and bats, me and Hannah, but, I will say this, it is nice sometimes to just, not have a plan for a day, this day, was one of those. Though, Hannah did need something, so we ended up in a Clothes shop.

It was in there, that, whilst Hannah was trying somethings on, I found easily the scariest mannequins in the world;

Nightmare fueling mannequins, I’d say. But, those aside, we had a quiet day of just me and Hannah. Then, of course, came a rather sad realisation, that the final week in the Philippines, truly was, nearly over. A shame, really, but, suppose that’s just how it is.

Our Hotel Pool was… everyone’s Pool this time

Whilst we were out Shopping, and, terrifying myself with those particular mannequins, and, actually, previous days too, something rather amusing was taking place. In many cases, we, especially Hannah, were, essentially, renting out our free indoor Pool that came with our Room, to other people. It was given to Arnel and Reve, most of the time, but, that wasn’t all, it was also used by the girls, then the onus came on to Hannah’s friends too. In the end, pretty much, everyone, seemed to have it for some time. Though, except, actually me and Hannah. We did use it last year, when we were there, but, Hannah just never seemed to want to this year. 

I do recall, one, rather, hilarious moment, which took place when we went down to the Ground floor on one of the Lifts. We’d just picked up some of Hannah’s friends who’d used the Pool, so obviously, it was lift down to reception. I’m not sure if Hannah pushed the wrong button, or, what, but, the Helper for the Lift started talking after Hannah pushed something. Hannah was shocked and didn’t know what to do, and, ended up acting, almost, like the Lift itself was talking to her. “How can I help you?” … Hannah just paused and went “…ground floor?!!!” 😂

A day with Chona

Whilst the friendship between Hannah and Chona is about as unpredictable as the British weather, in Spring, regardless of which Season we’re in, it was actually Hannah, herself, who actually brought up the idea of, potentially, seeing her. So, messaged and made it so. Unlike the last times, when we did met Chona, she was, actually, on her own, which was a nice change. Was a bit of a messaging adventure getting her here, though. Originally we were going to meet at the Hotel, until she realised she’d no idea how to get there. So, in the end, her dangerous Jeepney, brought Chona to meet us in SM, instead.

In true, I never know what to do, fashion, the day started as most do, with… let’s get some Food. We had a bite to eat at, you guessed it, Jollibee. It was during the Food, when it became apparent that we may have some, additional guests, later. Although, it turned out, not to be until much later. 

Once we’d finished our Food, we then went on a Bus, I know, a Bus in the Philippines, though, it really was more like a Coach. Upon a completely unfathomable chat shared between the two of them, Hannah had then decided, she wanted to go Ice Skating … why? I don’t know, but, she did. So, it was me, Hannah, and Chona, on a bus, heading to, another, SM, though, this time the Seaside one, for some Ice Skating. (yey??) 

Felt really left out

Now, I’ll be honest with you, this was, most certainly, not, what I was wanting to do. Especially on a day I was, actually, really excited and happy about, at first. I’d wanted to spend a day with Chona, who’s being, easily, one of the most consistent, and, best friends, I’ve met through Hannah. But, on this day, I can, honestly say, I just felt, very, left out.

Not really since it was the entire F4, together, which was ironically last March, last time I I felt this way with them; just feeling so invisible. I think, really, for the same reasons as back then, to be honest. Instead of a collaborative day, with everyone joining in, instead, it was just very one-sided. Everyone was speaking Bisaya, never English, even though they could if they wanted to, then, on top of that, just doing their own thing, regardless of me being there. 

So, that just summed up, what became, the entire rest of the day, really; Hannah and Chona doing what they wanted to do, resulting in a day where, I, honestly, might as well not have be there. Not, how I wanted to feel, especially on what was, the second-to last (full) day I had, in the Philippines. So, as you can imagine, this made me pretty upset, and, quite annoyed, to say the least, really.

But, because Hannah can be dense, and, distracted easily, a lot of the time, she never even noticed. This meant the day just continued in that disappointing way.

Ice Skating … I mean, why?

As is typical on days that aren’t very good, this too, ended up with over-the-top unwanted expenses. This time, of course, was the very Ice Skating itself, and, guess what… it was s**t. By this point, I was, already, unhappy about the entire day, as the two of them were leaving me out, so, add on to that something I knew, and certainly didn’t in the end, enjoy, even for a second; that just made me give up really. 

I mean, don’t get me wrong, I did give it a go. But, let’s just say, when you can’t even stand up on normal ground, with the blades on, how are you expected to stand up on Ice! I’ve worn rollerblades before, which, weren’t great either, but, at least you can stand up on the darn things. It took, less than, maybe not even, a minute, to realise, this was not for me. As predicted, it was s**t.

So, the day, instead, consisted of Hannah and Chona Ice Skating. All, whilst, I was sat doing bugger all, really. (woo…)

Hannah’s make up for it …attempt

Normally when having a rubbish day with anyone, with Hannah, I tend to hide it to prevent any awkward energy, then mention it later on. But, this time, I just did. Made it very clear to both of them, really, on the way out of SM, that I wasn’t happy how the day had gone. I don’t know which was more annoying, really; the fact she, somehow, hadn’t noticed, or, that, she was shocked when I said “I might as well not have been here”, despite that being completely true. Soooooo annoying, too, as I was really looking forward to a fun day with Chona, but, in the end, it was just, bad. 

🎤

In an attempt to make up for it, Hannah decided to go to a Karaoke booth, even though I still had no voice. Though, with how the day had gone, I’ll take any attempt to improve it. To be fair, it kind of did. By this point, we had also been joined by 2 other women, notedly Chona’s girlfriend, and her friend, plus, a baby. It’s fair to say, me feeling left out at Ice Skating, certainly ended up, flailing, by comparison, to how those two were, especially, in the end. 

Regardless, we got in to a Booth, got some Drinks (…eventually), and, for the time time all day, had, at least, a glimpse, of what a good time with them was, with some good ol’ sing-song. Or, perhaps, a humm-song, in my case. I did, eventually, decide to put a mic to my lips, attempting to do something. But, you know your voice is f***ed, when you’re struggling to reach all the notes of a Rap song. But, at least had a laugh, which was certainly the main thing, in the end. 

Hopefully, next time, we can be more like that, just have a bit of fun together, rather than some pointless unwanted venture. Simplicity, that’s what I like. Ohh, and, English please? 

Day ended swiftly by… “drama”, to some Food before leaving

Once we’d finished in the Karaoke booth, after, finally some great laughs, with Chona, it was clear that not all was well, with Chona, and her joined company. Cutting a long story short, before we knew it, me and Hannah were, all of a sudden, on the street… alone. 

As it was, already, dark, at this point, we headed back in to the same Mall, we’d just left and got ourselves some Food, to end the day. I, waited on a Jollibee, whilst, Hannah, waited on a ChowKing, then, it was time to go. Although, on the way out, we actually decided to, instead, just eat the Food there, instead. Thought it was just, much better, to do it, out and about. Plus, any excuse to stare at Hannah. Then, we headed back.

Not the most idilic Final days, but, hey

Blink of an eye, all of a sudden, there it was, the Saturday before, the Sunday, I left. I don’t think, either of us, could quite believe, just how fast, time had gone. Whilst we had, obviously, done so much together… at the same time it still felt like, yesterday, when I’d just landed, in the Philippines. Time sure flies, and, it was sadly approaching when I’d be flying too.

Whilst, it would have been lovely to spend our last full day together, just the two of us, instead, however, had a mandatory family meeting. I’m, unsure if I mentioned before, but, in Hannah’s family is a Sister (by Religious, not genetic, definition) of a Catholic Church and, well, let’s just say, as soon as everyone heard we were getting engaged, the interest was certainly peaked!

The journey there

Whilst, it would have been nice to have taken a Car to … Carcar, bad joke, but, I feel, needed to be done. Instead, our transportation would come down to a Bus, I know, two days in a row! That wasn’t until we took a rather short Taxi drive, from Hannah’s home, to the Bus depot. Then, after we specifically chose a Bus “with Air-con”, something which would be obvious why, going back, we were ready to go.

Once we got on the Bus, it became, after not that long, increasingly obvious, this was going to be, quite the long journey. Transport is never fun, at the best of time, so we, essentially, just hugged, and, cuddled, the majority the way there, until we finally reached a stopping point. 

Then, it was time for the final bit of the journey. This would be taken on, essentially, a GoKart, like, Taxi??? Then, 2+hours later, we’d arrived.

Some arrival Ice Cream, to, Wedding Discussion

Unlike the last time I went there, which, was actually, last March, this time, was a bit, less welcoming. Not in a negative bad way, more in a, that, no one was waiting for us. So, we went in the Shop there, got some Ice Cream, as it was boiling (this is the Philippines), and a cold drink.

Once we had some Ice Cream, keeping Hannah close, we walked over to, what was a collection of small Wooden, almost hutches. Waiting there, was Hannah’s Aunt, sat waiting. Unlike, the last times I’d seen her, there were certainly, quite a lot, more, things to start a conversation with, now. She started by talking about my Hotel woes, by recommending me two different Hotels that were basically twice the price of the one I was in. I mean, I appreciated the consideration, but, obviously practically neither would have been a solution.

Then, of course, came the discussion of me and Hannah, being engaged. Such a huge thing, naturally, invites, quite a lot of conversations. But, surprise surprise, up pops the big W, Wedding. One thing that was made clear, during the conversation, other than, what I’d, already, mentioned earlier, was, really, clarifying, just how many, loose ends would need clarifying, before we could make any set date or plans, like that. That was true, actually for both, here in the UK, and, there in the Philippines. I think she was hoping for some date, and, booking, perhaps. But, one thing I can say, with upmost certainty, a Wedding, will be happening, between, me and Hannah. 

When we do get Married, it is looking, though, most likely it will be in the Philippines. Once such Marriage takes place, the plan, would be, to, following it, head back to the UK, where we will have a big UK celebration too, with Philippine touches. I’d be hopeful that my Family and Friends could all be there for that. Full plans and logistics, of course, are pretty, far away, just yet, of course, but ideas are circling. Plus, whilst, this is a personal blog, for something like this, I, obviously, don’t want to give too much away. 

Goodbye, and the journey home… I thought

After what turned out to be, a much, longer stay, than we were planning, we were finally ready for off. The day being extra long, was certainly not ideal, on, what was, our last full day, but sometimes, things can’t be helped. I was, however, personally, under the, what I thought was a pretty solid, impression, we were heading back to, or, at least, close to, home. But, instead, for some reason, we ended up in a pretty rubbish location, filled with dodgy Malls, and, not a very impressive Food area. I’m not saying it was a rough area, but you know when the Family go, cover your belongings, even our Rings on your Fingers, in case someone sees it to steal…. yeah, not a sign you’re in a good place.

So, understandably, I was wanting to get back, fairly immediately. So, once we finished our Food, and, once we were finally back to it being just the two of us, that was the first thing to do, leave this place. I was already, not too happy, that on the way back, the bus had no Air-Con. It did, however, have a weird movie showing, which was, terrible, but, I did end up watching it.

Ending on an argument, misunderstanding, and, just tiredness

It saddens me to say, but, it’s no lie or exaggeration that, for me, the last days in the Philippines were, easily, some of the worst I’ve spent, not only there, but, with Hannah in general. I found myself getting, increasingly, frustrated, when we have such a short amount of time together, forgetting, of course, that we’d soon be back to such a longer period apart. So, when we just simply had wasted days, or times on days that were just bad, completely, preventively, I get, understandably sad and frustrated.

I just find myself, thinking of that moment when we have to say goodbye, which was coming soon, the thoughts just take me there. You just look back and think, wow, what a waste. In the second week, one place we did visit, which I haven’t mentioned, for, obvious reasons, was Touist Temple. For some reason, we weren’t allowed in, maybe as the Chinese influence clearly makes it some communist area, requesting stupid Masks, really???? We still doing that, in 2023, look at the evidence, stop following the propaganda!!! But, aside from that, it was, also, really rubbish. But, it created another example, of just being frustrating at, such a waste of time, we’d had.

This, was true, again, here. In the Mall, which, I think I’ve made, perfectly clear, why you’d want to leave; was the setting for Hannah to just, really annoying me. For some reason, she was more keen on sticking around a disgusting robber-filled, if her family were to be believed, area, rather than simply heading back somewhere more familiar where we could enjoy the last, barely, over, 1 hour, left.

I never understood how Hannah, misunderstood this. When we did finally get back to the Hotel; whilst, I still wanted to spend the last hour, or so, doing something there together, especially, now we were back somewhere nice; Hannah, on the other hand, thinking I was done with time with her, mooded herself in the Hotel Room. So, for hours, before Hannah decided to stop being stupid, we were not talking. And, for what? No idea. In the midst of all this, I was, just, frustrated, really. So, as I’d done once before, in a similar time, I just went out on my own. At least, then, I was doing something with my last hours in the Philippines. 

If I was going out, I thought, might as well make it productive. So, I was actually looking for a Philippines Flag, and maybe, perhaps, a Battery bank for Hannah’s phone. This was something I’d spoken about before, as a way for her iPhone to avoid her house’s dodgy electrics. Incredibly, though, I found nowhere that sold Philippine Flags, which, was really weird considering the places I looked, included Souvenir Shops. Their was a collection of Battery banks, however, but, they all sucked. They still used the disgusting, ancient from the past, micro-USB, ughhh shivers. So, not quite a productive outing, but, better than, sat around, doing nothing.

When I finally came back to the Hotel, I was, hoping, Hannah would have, calmed down, we could share the rest of the night, get over ourselves, and, be OK. But, instead, I came back to find the Hotel empty. I’d no idea where she was, but she wasn’t in the room. So, sadly, used this time, as good as any, to begin the large bulk of packing, or what I could do, before the last day, was amongst us.

I found, after, that, Hannah was, instead watching some function going on at reception. After, even more wasted time, she eventually did, stop being so stubborn, to her own fruition, and, went back to the Room, but, just, to sleep. 

Thankfully, we did, eventually (but waaaaay too late), manage to recover from this mad moment, and, spent a good amount of time together that night. Whilst, we could of watched a movie, we could of done anything, really, what we did, was what we, certainly, wouldn’t, be able to do, that time, the day after; just holding each other, embracing each other, all night. For, what was, truly, and, sadly, the last night together.

The last day

I always dread this moment, but it was here. That same moment, any of sad parts of this trip, brought in my mind, the goodbye. As much as I, don’t, and I mean, don’t, miss the Philippines … AT ALL. I completely miss Hannah, from the very split-second, we were not together. And it’s that, right there, why it hurts, so, so much, when we waste a day, as we had done, way too many times. This is such a small amount of time we get together, and, especially, compared to when we’re apart. Whilst, yes, the latter, will certainly, not be true, forever, but, it is, still, for now! 

As we did discuss, quite heavily, in another part of our conversations kept to ourselves for now, this won’t be forever. We’ve already begun progressing with pretty huge plans to make these moments a thing of the past. But, before we get there, it’s still going to be like this. But, soon.

All packed up, final trip out before checking out

One good thing about flight back, with Emirates, was that it a lot later, when compared to the flight with Qatar. So much so, it actually gave us, about, two extra hours, together for the last day. Now, sure, that’s not much, but, it’s sure enough to fit some things in. Feels so short to say two hours, but I’d trade a whole lifetime, for two extra hours with Hannah, right now. 

Obviously, we couldn’t really go anywhere, and, quite frankly, I didn’t want to. I thought it would be nice for us, just to have, one final walk, around the Mall, together, and, one final meal, together, which we shared together. Until, obviously, that time did arrive, when we had to think of heading back, for the last time, to the Hotel. It was there, at that moment, when I saw one of the most adorable, yet, saddest things I ever see in my entire life, that look in Hannah’s eyes, where you could see, she was feeling it too. We both did, and, I’d say, did successfully, do our best to hide our sadness, the best we could, obviously. I certainly didn’t want a repeat of, when she left the UK, in November, we literally both cried then, and, me, in ways I’ve never experienced before in my life. Anyway, we finished our meal, headed back to the Hotel, did one final collection of moments of madness, on TikTok, took some photos together, we were both wearing our white BEHANN t-shirts. Then, … of course, it was time to think of going.

But, not until, Hannah went around the entire Hotel room, stealing, pretty much, anything she could. She’d already made a stack of the free Water bottles and Coffee, so, was only right to finish the collection haha. So bad, but, I hear most do it, anyway. She even, managed, to collect a Towel at the end of it all.

One thing of note that Hannah did, near the end, was decide to give me a collection of Tissues. These were out of a pack I’d bought, whilst there, as my nose was annoying, but, couldn’t I couldn’t fit them in any of my bags. Although, it turned out to be a very good thing, that she did, for reasons, we’ll get to soon.

Checked out, back to Hannah’s house … by Taxi, for some really dumb reason

Outside of a Room bug, that meant we couldn’t, for some reason, get back in the Hotel room, after our meal out, a Cleaner did let us in, and then, it was time to check out. Whilst 2 members of Hannah’s family came around, I’m sure, to help bring things back home, what, I certainly wasn’t expecting, was them to be silly enough to get a Taxi. They literally live, minutes walk away. Regardless, we were back at Hannah’s house in, unsurprisingly, record time.

Whilst at Hannah’s house, for, the final time, a lot of the stay there was, of course, simply me, and Hannah, spending every last moment of time we could together, in her room. Just reminiscing, wanting time itself to just freeze, whilst we lovingly held each other close. 

You know, during this blog, I’ve been looking through all the many Photos we took, yes cause I love seeing us together, but, they also were a great guide, sending me through the days we’d past through. Even right now, writing this, when I look at any of those Photos, close my eyes, I’m right back there, with her. It just fills me with, so much, sadness, that we’re not together, right now. But, also, it certainly works as a powerful level of determination, to make sure we make those plans we have, turn in to actions, as soon as possibly can! 

Gifts; from Hannah (and them) to me

I’ve told Hannah, every single time, that if there’s one thing I certainly do not want, as far as gifts are concerned, it is any of those Titays biscuits. Seriously, they are truly disgusting. They taste like plastic. They’re so bland, please, tell your family, Hannah, NO! … Guess what they bought, yet again! Clearly, she never told them, so, I had to. I had to say, so, thankfully, by doing that, they didn’t come home with me. However, what did come home with me, were some Gifts…

☕️ It’s a Mugs game

Knowing that she, herself, shouldn’t get me any Titays, Hannah moved on to other things, and, she certainly went, all the way, with Mugs. Yep, the gift of the month, this time, something even her family contributed to, was, indeed, Mugs. I, literally, ended up going home with five Mugs, yes, five. Three from Hannah, then two, we’ll talk about, in just a moment. 

For me, Hannah, got me a Silver named mug. But, it wasn’t just me, she also got my Mum and Dad, also, their own named Mugs. All of these came with a heater, but, as we can’t use US plug sockets here, that ended up being, a bit of a waste, so were left behind. Whilst, I, personally, don’t normally use Mugs, I’ll certainly, do what I can, to try and change that. They’re currently in their own special place in the Kitchen, here.

A mug, with a difference X2

The couple of Arnel and Reve, played a big part in this trip, and, I do thank them both for that. Not only in orchestrating the engagement with Hannah, getting everything ready, just everything. And, I truly appreciated what they did. I ended up getting them all a big Pizza. Hannah never knew this, obviously because, at the time, she, wasn’t to know about the engagement, but, I did. 

They, too, also, ended up getting me two Mugs of their own, but, with a twist, and, quite a sweet one, really. They got me two Photo Mugs. So, if you put any hot liquid inside, whilst they are, visibly, black Mugs, with a hot liquid they, instead, reveal Photos of me and Hannah. I really did, truly think it was really really sweet present, and, I really appreciate those. 

My gifts for Hannah

Before I had even set off to the Philippines, came the idea of doing a Diamond Painting of both me, and Hannah, which was something my Mum said, she was, more than happy to do. Outside, of an amusing moment, where, Hannah was going to pay her, for the favour, it was something she was happy to do, and, of course, for nothing. It did take her, a good, month, to get it done, but, I will say, once it was done, it was pretty awesome. 

Of course, transporting a 50×60 photo, within its own glass frame, certainly wasn’t the best thing, when traveling over 8,000 miles in a Plane, so, it was, purposely, packed within a Towel, just in case rough ‘ens at the Airport could of potentially caused any issue. Thankfully, it arrived perfectly fine. On this last day, the Diamond Painting was delivered to Hannah’s home. I’ve no idea where she’s going to put it, like, probably, will remain stuck in the corner for eternity, but, it’s the thought that counts, I guess.

Joke t-shirt with Hannah’s phrase

Last time me and Hannah were in the Philippines, we designed a couples t-shirt, which, was also, the birth of the BEHANN name. This time, however, no such couple t-shirt was made, if Hannah wants another, let’s be honest, it’s her turn to do one, now 😅

This time, I created a t-shirt, over a phrase which Hannah says, A LOT. In conversation, instead of saying, I don’t care, or, is that it, Hannah will go “…and then?”. It’s the most Hannah thing ever, so, I got her, her own t-shirt to relish in her weird phrase. I will say one thing, I’m not sure if it’s the darker colour, or it’s design, but Hannah looked amazing in that shirt.

MacBook Air 

What became a, combo, anniversary, come, engagement, gift, from me to Hannah, was a MacBook Air. I knew she’d been wanting a Laptop, for quite some time, really, and, there’s honestly no better than Apple Silicon, when it comes to portable Laptops, so, she’s now a happy owner of a MacBook Air. It was set it up for her in the Hotel, linked it with her Apple ID, from her phone, and, now, she’s all set. Before going to the Philippines, I ended up getting an end for the AC Adapter, so, she can use the adapter that came with it, natively, in the Plugs there, which is, obviously, much better. Then, of course, when she comes here, she can use the original UK end.

Since I’ve come back, it’s been, so much, better, for Calling, when we both do it through Laptops. It fills us both Widescreen, plus, it’s also been a lot fun teaching her how to use macOS, honestly, any excuse to spend time with Hannah. She did ask for a few Games, but, never ended up playing them, in the end.

Journey to the Airport, then … bye, for now

Isn’t it funny how, sometimes, time can feel so slow, yet, be gone so fast. Before we knew it, it was that time. The time when we needed to get going. Got my Luggage bags, then, headed out. Said goodbye to everyone left in the home, and, then, we soon got in to a Taxi, for the final journey shared together, to Mactan Airport. 

Strangely, enough, it seemed to be the quickest journey there ever. I really didn’t want to part from Hannah, not one bit. I decided, this time, to really stretch my time. So, I was only going to go inside, when I, really needed to. This meant, we really did have, as much time as possible together. 

We took some final photos together, final hugs and cuddles, shared a long soft kiss, then after one final hug, unfortunately, it was time to go. Time to head in the Airport and say bye… for now. 

The quietest Airport in the World, then, lift off

I thought it was just going to be quiet when I arrived, but, seriously, Mactan was dead inside going back, too. When I did go inside the Airport, it was minutes from last call for check-in, so, the Desks had zero queues, straight in, Passport checked, done. Did one final wave to Hannah outside looking through the window, then, went to Baggage check, where, it was also, a ghost town. Then, we were there. 

You know, it’s funny, I never remember, during flying with Qatar, ever seeing Shops inside the Airport, but, there was this time. Got myself something to Drink, spent my last ₱ purchase, before leaving, saw another Souvenir shop, but obviously with no Flags … Then, it was time to board. 

Before, I began making the Walk to the queue, I sent Hannah just a final message before I would be offline for 20+ hours. What did I say, well, I said a lot, really, but the gist of it was…just saying, thank you. Just saying, thank you for being part of my life, being my fiancée, and, sticking with me. The future, may not be here, yet, but, it’s coming, and, I can’t wait!

The Flight back was, to begin with, very annoying, as we flew for about 1 hour to Clark, near Manila, waited about, another hour, doing nothing, then, took off again, for another 9+ hours, to Dubai. So, as you can imagine, I basically had no functional circulation, once I finally did land in Dubai. Thankfully, I had extra legroom seat on the final flight, though.

Flight home… next to a Criminal 

As expected, when I did land in Dubai, transiting between, I was just numb. The excitement of how different it was, the excitement of looking for the Cebu gate, which ironically, and, almost, evilly, was the first thing I saw when I got out, all that was just gone, because, this was going home now. 

Got some, not as good, McDonalds, once I found it, then, boarded the Flight. I was very appreciative of the legroom, then, we were off. The guy next to me seemed like a bit of a d**k, but, you get that, sometimes, on Flights. 

It’s weird, you know, because, normally when you’re going Home, the journey back is so much quicker, as, you’ve no excitement. Going back, you’re not really wanting to reach your destination. But, this, was easily (for some reason), the longest feeling Flight I’ve been on. Until, of course, we did finally arrive in Manchester Airport. 

Unexpected landing and, actually, fast Airport run

Once we finally did land, everyone, as always, doesn’t listen to the Pilot, and gets their bags the second the plane is on the ground. Granted, something I did, too. Although, mine wasn’t quite as simple, as my Bag was put in a further back Tray, so, took a bit longer. So, by the time I was finally dragging it out, the door was already opening. 

One thing I, certainly, didn’t expect to see, once the doors has opened, were four Police Officers. What a nice first view of Manchester out of the Plane doors. They, then, alarmingly, said We’re looking for 42B … I paused, for what felt like 15 minutes thinking, wait 42, that’s me???? The F**K??? Until, finally realising, catching my breath, I was 42A. Yep, that d**k that was sat next to me, was a criminal, and, was arrested before everyones eyes. What a welcome back, eh. This is also further proof, of my, still, never failing, first impressions, being, so true of people.

I, unintentionally, allowed some random Survey woman to ask me tons of unimportant questions about the Airline, when I was trying to get to Baggage Collection, but I wasn’t awake to do my usual, face of disgust, which, normally, says the no for me. But, once that was done, it was time to collect my Bags…ohh, there it is. Then, finding the Train station. 

A smooth Journey back … if it wasn’t for me 🩸🤧

As much as landing in Terminal 1 was annoying, as, everything, including the Train Station, is linked to Terminal 2, I, honestly, can’t really complain when I landed. Everything went very smoothly. Hilariously, though, there still isn’t a functioning Train at Manchester Airport, so, once again, it was a Bus, but, I don’t mind. This time, thankfully, it was an even more useful bus; traveling from Manchester Airport to Huddersfield. That meant, I could get a very quick Train to Bradford, or, if, I didn’t mind waiting a little longer, for extra convenience, just get a Bus to my hometown. 

A 3 Hour Nose Bleed, ruins it all

Whilst in the Philippines, I’d actually had a few nosebleeds. But, this just took the cake. Whilst on the bus back, I felt it, it was coming, s**t what am I going to do, then. it hit me. But, wait, Hannah’s tissues! Those, last minute, donated tissues, were the initial saviour, for sure. 

Normally, you would think 8 tissues, would be plenty for a nosebleed, and, that would be enough for, any, normal nosebleed I’ve had, in my entire life, too. But, not this one. It never stopped. By the time I was in Huddersfield, I’d, already, used every tissue, and, was now blocking my nose with them, as, I’d no other option. I was in no state to get a Train, or Bus. My face was covered in blood, tissues in my hands also with blood … was a good thing I was in Huddersfield, really, I fitted right in. Seriously, everyone that saw me, never batted an eye-lid, just normal to them. Such a classy Town. 

I rung my family, who, thankfully, eventually, picked me up. My sister assessed me, once it was possible to, then confirmation at the end of the day that I’d burst a blood vessel, but, dannggg, did I lose a lot of blood! It, literally, started around 8AM, and, it wasn’t until about 11, nearly 12, at home, that I wasn’t pumping. And, of course, it was still doing the odd drip, after that. But, then I was home, relax, phew…

And, we’re back

So, on a journey which had all the ingredients to be perfectly smooth, my body said no. So, certainly, not, the smoothest of arrivals home. In fact, it’s back to the chaos really, but, it wouldn’t be me, without that added sense of unnecessary drama. But, arrived home, family congratulated me about the engagement, as, others have since, had some Toast, and, basically didn’t unpack, as it was kind of more important to just, collapse. 

But, not before handing out the Mugs to my parents, I’d also brought some Cookies, which, are actually nice (not Titays), that I bought from the Philippines, though, admittedly I ate 95% of them. Eat some delicious Frosties in the UK, with British Milk, aaaahhhhh missed so much. 

Then, Messaged Hannah to let her know I was back home, and safe, then, headed for a nap. I had Messaged her earlier, before I got on the Bus, but, when my nosebleed, earlier, started, it was impossible to look down on my phone, too.

Then, that was it. That was the end of the trip to the Philippines. A trip where I finally declared my love for Hannah, in an even more, official way, by asking her to be with my future wife. More, pinch yourself, moments, indeed. I can’t wait to be back in her arms again, real soon, but, until then, it’s, unfortunately, back to that time apart. LDR, gosh I hate it. But, as I said earlier, this is, most certainly, not, forever. Plans are beginning to form. Soon…

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Since I’ve been back + updates

Other than that absolutely giant important trip to the Philippines, the year, of course, has had other things going on, for sure. It was nice that, when I did, have to go back to work, literally the day after, I was able to work from home, all throughout, the week. Granted, I did ask in the very early 6AMs to my Manager on the Tuesday after. I was not ready. This, certainly did allow some, very needed, assistance in my, getting used to, the UK clock again. 

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Speaking of which, it was rather ironic that the very night I was flying in to the UK, to its own Timezone, was the same night that the clocks changed. So, I actually never, really, noticed the clocks change in the UK, for the very first time in my entire life. 

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One, pretty big, thing, is I’ve actually got rid of my 5K iMac. The more I thought about it, the more, it was just becoming, embarrassing. An M1 Laptop was outperforming my Core i9 iMac. I just thought, you know what, let’s just move to Apple Silicon. But, I did need a replacement, so right now, we’ve a very powerful M2 Max MacBook Pro, paired with an M8 Smart Monitor, and, Speakers. Working very well, for now, just need a Keyboard and Mouse, but, no rush, for now. 

This Monitor is also very useful when I work from home, as, I can actually use the huge 32 inch Screen for that, too, rather than being restricted to the Laptop, I have, for work.

One thing that did happen, bit of a failed moment, really. In my, continuing, attempts, to get a Philippines Flag, I ended up paying, not a lot really, for a Flag of the Philippines to find that it is… HUGE. No, really, It fills the entire living room floor, so, that didn’t really work out 🇵🇭

Other than that, it’s really just been, back to the norm of home life, really. Work is keeping itself, nice and annoying, and life, otherwise, as always. 

Plus, me and Hannah, are back to having a laugh on Calls, messaging, missing her so much, and, it’s been a lot of fun pumping out ideas for the Wedding to come.

For now, though, that’s about all I have until next time. Believe it, or not, I wanted this to be a compact blog… that went well, didn’t it 😁