Wow. Our first trip to the Philippines has been great so far! Things started off on the right foot before we even left the airport in San Francisco. We discovered that we had a $100 credit with the airline issued exactly one year ago, which means it was expiring the day we were set to take off. The fact that we were able to use the unexpected discount has set the tone thus far.

Our flights were long, but uneventful. (That’s a good thing.) When we arrived in Manila we were surprised to be greeted by Sandy’s parents who whisked us through immigration and customs and into two waiting limos. Sandy’s parents are both wonderfully kind and seem determined to make sure that we have an awesome time in their country. Their drivers took us directly to our room at the Discovery Suites in Tagaytay.

Our room is large and lovely. We are perched on the rim of a volcano. The staff describes this location as perhaps the only spot in the world with a lake inside of a volcano inside of a lake inside a volcano. More on this when I get some photos of the gorgeous views.

The hotel is a former residence and still feels very much like a home, with its fireplace and parge plasma TV in the common area downstairs. The super-polite staff attend to everything. There is a complimentary cheese and wine tasting at 5:30 and a six course meal on the veranda tonight… they even have free wi-fi.

Like I said, this is working out just fine!