...and he's off to the Philippines

My dad's on a big adventure. Retired and on his own, he's off to the Philippines to visit an old family friend. Dad has never been to the Philippines before; his friend lives on Bohol Island. What this means for Dad, a former airline employee who's paying all of $50 to get to Manila (the hidden cost? he's flying standby), is that he'll have to take a local flight from Manila to Cebu, then take a fast ferry called a SuperCat from Cebu's Pier 4 to Tagbilaran Port on Bohol. That's where Dad's friend will meet up with him.

Getting to Cebu shouldn't be a problem, but my main worry has been getting Dad from Mactan-Cebu International Airport to the SuperCat terminal. It's going to require either a shuttle bus ride or a taxi ride; here's hoping Dad has the street smarts to make the seven miles to Pier 4 without being ripped off. Dad's a relentlessly trusting soul, which can work to his disadvantage in some situations. But according to my buddy Tom, who visits the Philippines regularly, there shouldn't be a problem: Dad merely has to ask a clerk at the airport information desk what to do. Once Dad's on the SuperCat, the only other worry is the weather: it's monsoon season right now, and according to Weather.com, it's going to be stormy the entire time that Dad'll be there. Why he picked this time of year to hit the islands, I'll never know. Oy gevalt.

On his way back from the Philippines, Dad will be stopping over in Hawaii, where there's no monsoon to speak of. He'll be spending perhaps two weeks there before heading home. But Dad doesn't intend to stay home: a day or two after his return to Virginia, he'll be off again, this time by car, to drive around the mainland US and visit more friends. All of this, including the flights, is open-ended; Dad doesn't know exactly when he'll be done traveling, but suspects he'll be finished by the first week of August. He's been wanting to thank a long list of people personally for all the help and support they gave our family during Mom's illness; this is, I think, his way of staying connected to Mom's large circle of friends and acquaintances.

Safe travels, Dad.


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