It was four o'clock in the morning when I arrived at Ninoy Aquino International Airport to wait for my flight from Manila back to my hometown after a week-long lecture. Because of some scheduling issues, my plane had to be the one that left at four in the afternoon and so I had no other choice but to spend the entire day at the airport.
I couldn't go out even if I wanted to, first of all, because of all my luggage. Secondly, I knew nobody in Manila and I didn't want to get lost in such a big city just when I was about to go home. And last - this is the most important - I had not much money left.
Well, one word that describes NAIA when we venture into their souvenir shops, fashion stores, clothes and apparel, food stations, and all the other glistening luxuries you would want to get your hands on: Crazy. I mean expensive crazy. Take this for example.. even a local food chain, that's got all its food and prices in an exclusive, confined standard all over the country, nearly doubles its prices here. Well you would understand why such an increase in cost without an increase in value would only be reasonable in such a place as an airport - to keep the dollars coming - but to the local Filipino, it's not such a friendly notion.
Don't get me wrong, the services are good. The floors are mirror-shined, the elevators good enough to be bedrooms if you put in the right furniture, and the ventilation cold enough to cause hypothermia if you don't have the right amount of fat for insulation. All in all it was a grand place to be. The government did a real good job in maintaining it. But whether I was able to maximize my stay or enjoy my 12 hours at NAIA, I still cannot figure out.
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