Dare to live the life you’ve always wanted.
~ Anonymous.
I’ve recently visited Hong Kong, and it always feels like the first time. I’m always amazed at how fast things change and by the unfamiliar places I’ve never been to. Every visit shows me a city that has already moved on, and this time the trip had an extra layer: it was my girlfriend’s first flight ever.
Me and my girlfriend planned this trip for almost 2 months, and this is her first air flight. Every detail was discussed, re-discussed, and checked one more time, the way you do when one of you has never been on a plane.
🚕 The 4AM Dash
On the 4th of December, we booked a Grab car around 4AM straight to Manila International Airport. As we got off at the departure bay, we saw a long-queued line going into the airport terminal entrance. Hahaha, always Manila… facepalm. An hour and a half passed before we got through the security checkpoint to the check-in lounge, and then another queue line just to get our boarding pass. This is not a rant but rather a straight face story telling: Philippine airports in December are a test of patience, and everyone who has lived it knows exactly what I mean.
Even though after that long tiresome waiting, we didn’t let that event affect our mood and excitement flying to Hong Kong. We got our boarding pass wew, and set off to the immigration counters.
🛂 The Immigration Anxiety
I was worried at that time if my girlfriend would pass the immigration counter. As here in the Philippines, it’s like a “you’re not allowed to leave the country” type of scenario. I know that they’re doing it to stop some of our countrymen from immigrating illegally to another country, but the process is stressful anyway when you have no idea what questions will come and whether your documents will be enough.
I went first to the immigration counter showing my renewed passport, followed by my girlfriend, who only showed her company ID. And then off we go to the boarding gates and onto the airplane. I have never seen the look on my girlfriend’s face before, like it’s her first birthday all over again. Glad she was happy that day; that smile made the whole morning queue worth it.
✈️ Takeoff and Touchdown
After 2 hours, we finally landed in Hong Kong. So happy 😀
The first time you step off a plane into a new country with someone who has never experienced it, everything feels twice as bright. The lights, the signs in a language you half know, the cool air of the arrival hall, it all lands differently when you are seeing it through someone else’s first time.
🧠 Final Thoughts
Travel is funny that way: you think you are taking someone somewhere, and it turns out they give you the trip. The queues, the immigration nerves, the 4AM wake up, all of it became part of the story the moment we landed, and the story is just getting started.
To be continued…