My last morning in Manila did not go exactly as I had planned. Rick and I left the hotel about 4 hours before our flight to avoid the line. This is my usually strategy: I check in early, wait in the World Club lounge and avoid the lines. About the longest line I usually encounter is two or three people hitting the snack bar at the World Club at the same time. Read more »

Rick and I decided to play some tennis today at the hotel. We checked at the fitness center to make sure they had tennis racquets available for use. They assured us they had everything we needed and that there was no charge for borrowing equipment.

At the mention of charges, we asked them how much the court fee was. The lady said it was "300 plus." We did the math and determined that was a pretty good price (about $7.50 US) but we were curious to know what the extra "plus" would be.

"Plus what?" we asked.

"Plus...net..." the lady was reaching for a calculator as she spoke. Read more »

It was a long trip, but I finally arrived. It is good to be back in Manila. I'm staying at a different hotel this trip. I miss the Discovery Suites, but from here I can walk to the office.

I really enjoy walking the streets and seeing all of the people. The faces all seem to tell different stories. Some faces seem to hide stories more than they tell them, though. I have noticed sadness hidden behind smiles more in this visit than I have in the past. Read more »

Today has been a busy day. I almost missed my connection in Detroit. (I was the last person allowed to board.) Fortunately I made it and I am now sitting in Japan watching the sun set.

All around me travelers are checking email, chatting with companions or staring off into space. It's just after 2 am back home and I miss my family already.

Katie the Princess
Written by Katie Allen

Katie the Princeses was a good little girl. Katie has blue Eyes. She has a lot of toys. And she likes to wear lipgloss. She loves her family. Her Best friend is Emilie at school.

She love's her Bear. And she loves All her stuffed animals. Butt Bear Bear is her favorite.

(This story was typed just as it was written by Katie. All spelling, capitalization and punctuation have been retained. A scanned copy of the original, hand-written version can be found here: Katie Story - Katie the Princess.pdf