This morning I pre-ordered a taxi to take me to the airport. According to the AirAsia website, I should arrive at the airport 4 hours before departure. Google Maps said I would need about an hour and a half from the hotel to the airport by taxi. My flight was scheduled for 12:40 PM, so I ordered the taxi for 7:45 AM. Of course, it arrived a few minutes late as usual, but that's due to the heavy traffic here. Since I could track the vehicle's location through the app, it wasn't too bad.

After about half an hour of driving, we were already at the airport. Here at the domestic airport, the procedures are a bit different - you first have to go through security with your luggage, and only then can you check in. Of course, these were almost empty. So it only took 5 minutes for my luggage to be checked in and to get my ticket. I then asked at the next security checkpoint how long it would take to get to the gate. The lady looked at me somewhat astonished and said 1 minute. I just thought, oh dear, it's only 8:30 AM and I don't have to be at the gate until 12:00 PM. So much for needing 4 hours to get through all security checks and be on the plane in good time. Well, nothing to be done. I just sat down on the next available chair, unpacked my laptop, and worked on this website.

The flight later was very relaxed. We even flew past the Mayon volcano, which started spewing lava a little over a month ago. However, there was no smoke or any sign of an eruption to be seen. During the flight, I was served traditional Filipino food for the first time. It was Chicken Adobo - shredded chicken breast, fried with spices and served on a bed of rice. When I received the food, I thought "Oh dear, there's a lot of garlic in this." After I finished the meal, which was very tasty by the way, I felt like I urgently needed a toothbrush and mouthwash. When I got off the plane, I already had the feeling "Damn, you reek of garlic. Poor taxi driver."

Everything worked out perfectly with the accommodation. I have a small but nice apartment on the 19th floor of a high-rise building all to myself. The view is good, and on the 17th floor, there's a pool with a great view of the city. I used it in the evening. Despite it being constantly warm here, the pool was quite refreshing. In the evening, I also checked out a coworking office. This is essentially an office where you can rent a desk on a daily basis. The A Space Cebu is very nice and practical, and the WiFi speed is good. Should be sufficient for the meetings on Wednesday.

Tomorrow I have completely free again. I'll browse around here a bit and look at the surroundings.