Update #4 February 20th: All is well

The Philippines now feels like home and I have fully adjusted to life as an expat. Surprisingly, it was a lot quicker than both Dave and I expected. Both of us feel that the Philippines will be good for Little Grape and teach him some valuable life lessons. He will learn the value and importance of hard work, recognize that not 'everyone' has the latest fad or toy, appreciate all that he does have, and the importance of manners.

I've even felt comfortable enough to get my haircut. For those of you who know me well, you know that this is a major test. My first haircut in Cambridge was devastating and resulted in me crying in the chair and refusing to leave until she removed what I considered to be a huge, glaring, mullet. By comparison, my first haircut in the Philippines was wonderful and I actually left feeling happy with my new look.

It might be because I went to the fancy mall (Greenbelt 3) to get it done and saw a poster advertising the new Creative Consultant from San Fransisco who has done celebrity hair was at the FX Salon. I, of course, got excited at the thought of getting my hair cut by someone who has seen curly hair before - it seems everyone in the Philippines has dead straight hair - and I admit the celebrity part was definitely intriguing. Anyways, I went to the salon thinking the cost would be outrageous. After all, in Toronto and Cambridge I would pay about $50 for a good haircut and that was just with a stylist - not the creative consultant and celebrity stylist. I was quite surprised to find that the price was only 1200 pesos, or about $24. The price was definitely worth it! i was even adventurous enough to get a layered chin length bob. Now, my hair curls nicely and is very, very easy to style. I will definitely go back - especially since I can also brag that I got my hair done by the guy who used to do Melanie Griffiths, Meg Ryan and Mandy Moore's hair.

I also got to meet my Ob/Gyn. Laine was nice enough to offer that I could go with her to her prenatal appointment so I could get to know the doctor and see what she was like before deciding to go with her. She seems very nice and knowledgeable and I booked my prenatal appointment for this coming Thursday. One thing that is nice is that in the Philippines, since we are getting private healthcare, you get a ton more ultrasounds and there is no waiting list to see a specialist. The cost, per visit, to see the Ob/Gyn is 500 pesos, or $10.00. The doctor wants to do her own Ultrasound so she can see exactly how Little Grape is doing for herself and when I'm about 30 weeks, she will do a 4D ultrasound where you can actually see the baby's face.

Dave and I spent the weekend together again (I love our weekends!). My weekend started Saturday morning with Dave coming home bringing my typical morning breakfast: bacon, egg whites, and croissants from Deli France. After breakfast I went to the mall to get my hair done while Dave napped and played his game. We decided that the weekend nights will be our special nights out for dinner seeing as I cook almost every other night during the week.

Saturday night we went to Queens restaurant (an Asian/India restuarant) located in what is commonly called Restaurant Row, AKA Jupiter street. The food was very good and tasted like the good Indian we used to get in Toronto and at the Tandori Corner in Cambridge. The price was cheaper than what you would pay in Canada, I think it worked out to about $7 for each meat item. Dave ordered Lamb Rogan Josh and I had the Chicken Tikka. We shared rice, naan and the peas and cheese. The peas and cheese dish was by far, the best with freshly made cheese.

Sunday we slept in till about 1:00 and then I did the Starbucks run while Dave stayed bed. Sadly, Deli France isn't open on Sundays so we make do with banana bread and lattes from Starbucks.

Sunday night (the equivalent of Saturday night in Canada) was our date night. We went to Tony Romas (in Greenbelt 2) for ribs and then to see a movie. The meal at Tony Romas probably cost about the same as it would in Canada but I think that's because the ribs were imported from North America. Either way, the ribs were very meaty and yummy and the meal tasted just like home.

Going to the movies in the Philippines sure kicks going to the movies in Canada. To start with, the theatres are the same big, multiplex things with familiar brands for treats and the movies seem to be pretty much the same movies that were being released in Canada. We went to see Firewall with Harrison Ford. The price is so cheap that we're definitely going to be seeing a ton of movies. It was 120 pesos per person, or $2.40. For the two of us it was less than $5.00. Then, we got into the theatre at about 10:25 for the movie that was slated to start at 10:30. We anticipated having to watch a ton of trailers and ads, but nope! There was maybe two trailers and then the movie started promptly at 10:30. Pretty good, eh?

Monday morning we slept in again and I went to Deli France to pick up our breakfasts. I arrived just in time to get the breakfast tray as they were setting up for lunch. Then Dave and I just relaxed for the rest of the morning as we knew that Dave had to go down for his nap shortly after noon. Dave is now napping as I'm updating the blog, checking email and then I'll head for a swim. After my swim, I'll do the dishes and prepare lunch.

Also on the weekend Dave surprised me with some magazines. Of course, the Philippines version of the 'latest' magazines is Fall 2005, but still they were magazines I've never read. I got a copy of the Philippines OK!, Good Housekeeping (Philippines version) and Parenting. What I find interesting in the Philippines versions is that they will interject bits of Tagalog in the middle of the sentence so a couple of times you have no idea what the whole sentence was about. Another thing that is different is the advertising. Apparently there are no rules for advertising here for medical claims. If any of you want a proven way to remove hair permanently, lose weight, or anything else, well the Philippines has the solution for you!

One product that is really big here is whitening cream. Not teeth whitening, skin whitening. Even Ponds, Dove and other big names have come out with their own whitening creams, soaps and deodorents. I find it so interesting that in North America the fad is to have tanned skin, but in the Philippines where they have tanned skin, they want whiter skin. I guess it is true that everyone wants what they can't have.

Asia has been making the news lately for not very good reasons. First there was the crushing deaths of people trying to win big money in a Philippines game show, then the landside in Leyte. The images are horrifying and I feel so badly for the families and friends of the people who perished. Then there was the Disneyland scandal in Hong Kong with visuals of children and parents climbing over fences with sharp poles only to have Disneyland staff shove them over the fence again. All because they underestimated the size of the crowds that would come for the weekend. Then just today there were reports that a bomb was found on the path the President would have taken to go to a ball. There clearly seems to be assasination plots and I would hate to see how it turns out. But through it all, Dave, Pheobe, Little Grape and I are safe and sound and doing well.

Love to all.