Diary Entry #1: Leaving Day
date. September 18-19, 2023
city. Manila >> Jakarta>> Bandung
entry title: Goodbye Philippines, Hello Indonesia!
Dear Diary,
I have always dreamed of going out of the country and exploring a different land. I have always been so curious about other languages and cultures -- that people are different around the world and that these differences could teach me something new as someone who always has the need to learn, unlearn, and relearn. I have always daydreamed about how it would be like to go to the airport, witnessing different people with different destinations, and wondering where their flight would take them in life. I have always wondered how it would feel to fly through the clouds.
This is the day it's happening as I say "Goodbye Philippines, Hello Indonesia!" Come with me to a visual journey of our leaving day.
All my bags are packed, I'm ready to go!
This is my last photo outside our home before going to the bus station to ride the bus bound to Manila.
📍Ninoy Aquino International Airport
Getting off from a 9-hour bus ride and a 3-hour sleep, NAIA, here we go!
This is me, with my co SEA Teacher, Shiermae before heading to the passenger entrance of the airport, both excited yet anxious for this is our first international flight. But as my dad always says, as long as you communicate with other people, you are not going to get lost.
Passports out!
It's 3 am and we are off to the bagdrop. After saying our goodbyes to our teacher, Ma'am Tin and to Ms. Shiermae's sister, we are on our own, navigating through the airport which is a new and unfamiliar space for the both of us. Not sure where to go, we asked some staff who were kind enough to lead us to the bagdrop section. Thank you, Kuya!
Boarded!
This is it!
After about 5 hours of waiting time, we finally boarded our first ever international flight! This is such a magical moment filled with anticipation of what awaits us in Indonesia.
What are the people like? Who would be the new characters in our story? What lessons would we learn from them? How does Indonesian food tastes like? All these thoughts and a lot more squirming through my mind, not letting me have a peaceful sleep.
5-6 hours more... I can't wait to see you, Indonesia.
TOUCHDOWN INDONESIA!
At about 2 PM JKT, we safely landed at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, Terminal 3. Before going out of the plane, we took a photo to commemorate arriving in Indonesia. I remember staring in awe at the welcome marker of the airport due to the art and design of plants and flowers. While walking to carousel number 3 to claim our baggage, we observed that the bathrooms in the airport have prayer rooms which is interesting because we do not have that in the Philippines.
With our money changed from Philippine Peso to Rupiah and having bought our sim card already, we went to meet our fellow SEA Teachers from Baguio City and Manila, as well as our Indonesian buddies or Sahabat, Kinan and Mentari.
Power through, weary travelers!
From hours of flight, we all rode the UPI shuttle to travel once more for the next 4-5 hours. Bandung, here we come!
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First group picture with Adi, Hannah, and Jezy from FEU Roosevelt, Fox and Faith from SLU Baguio, and our sahabat, Mentari at Bandung.
