We finally did it-- a mini-reunion in this hemisphere!
Last May 25 - 28, John, Meann, and Cathy and I visited with Suzanne and Nenen in Houston. We are all friends from work in Manila and had since moved companies, locations, etc. With Meann in the US for meetings, it was hard to resist the four-day holiday's (Memorial Day) promise of a fun-filled weekend of (mis)adventures, bingeing and a whole lot of ribbing.
Some highlights:
May 25 - Intimate with the airport.
Cathy and I, John, and Meann flew in on separate flights. We tried to synchronize our flights but having used miles (except for Meann), we have limited flexibility. Anyway, Meann was the last to arrive at 10pm and we had our bit of fun with her (e.g. she probably could have changed her flight but didnt, and she had checked in a bag, counter to instructions not to). Meann could have worn a dunce's hat for all we cared-- she would be the butt of our jokes for the next few days, much to Suzanne's relief.
May 26 - Wet and Wild at Kennedy Space Center
No, they havent installed a new ride. As fate would have it, that we were in the trolleys when rain started pouring. We were soaked right down to our 'unmentionables'. We hied off to the souvenir shop and bought KSC shirts. We must have looked like overeager tourists (I would have frowned on me) but appearances were lost on us. We did the rounds of KSC's cool exhibits (i.e. touched a moon rock, toured the actual command center, saw an actual rocket). Suzanne deserves credit for making a command decision to skip the last ride else we would have gotten soaked again in another surprise downpour. - We ended the day by walking on the beach of Galveston and sampling the seafood fare at Gaido's. We got back early and ended the day by playing board games where the "competitive" team-- Ian, Suzanne, and John Q-- lorded it over the "uninvolved" Nenen, Meann, and Cathy in a game of Family Feud and Scene It.
May 27 - Pirated
Bingeing (A dimsum feast-- courtesy of Nenen and Suzanne) and Mass (I am not Catholic but didnt mind going in the spirit of ecumenical exploration), set the stage for Sunday.
Last May 25 - 28, John, Meann, and Cathy and I visited with Suzanne and Nenen in Houston. We are all friends from work in Manila and had since moved companies, locations, etc. With Meann in the US for meetings, it was hard to resist the four-day holiday's (Memorial Day) promise of a fun-filled weekend of (mis)adventures, bingeing and a whole lot of ribbing.
Some highlights:
May 25 - Intimate with the airport.
Cathy and I, John, and Meann flew in on separate flights. We tried to synchronize our flights but having used miles (except for Meann), we have limited flexibility. Anyway, Meann was the last to arrive at 10pm and we had our bit of fun with her (e.g. she probably could have changed her flight but didnt, and she had checked in a bag, counter to instructions not to). Meann could have worn a dunce's hat for all we cared-- she would be the butt of our jokes for the next few days, much to Suzanne's relief.
May 26 - Wet and Wild at Kennedy Space Center
No, they havent installed a new ride. As fate would have it, that we were in the trolleys when rain started pouring. We were soaked right down to our 'unmentionables'. We hied off to the souvenir shop and bought KSC shirts. We must have looked like overeager tourists (I would have frowned on me) but appearances were lost on us. We did the rounds of KSC's cool exhibits (i.e. touched a moon rock, toured the actual command center, saw an actual rocket). Suzanne deserves credit for making a command decision to skip the last ride else we would have gotten soaked again in another surprise downpour. - We ended the day by walking on the beach of Galveston and sampling the seafood fare at Gaido's. We got back early and ended the day by playing board games where the "competitive" team-- Ian, Suzanne, and John Q-- lorded it over the "uninvolved" Nenen, Meann, and Cathy in a game of Family Feud and Scene It.
May 27 - Pirated
Bingeing (A dimsum feast-- courtesy of Nenen and Suzanne) and Mass (I am not Catholic but didnt mind going in the spirit of ecumenical exploration), set the stage for Sunday.
Afterwards, we wrestled with two options: shopping or battleship tour. The group was split in the middle with John and I opting for the tour, vs Meann/Cathy pushing for shopping. The weather tipped the balance when it started falling again. John and I finally relented, not knowing whether the battleship was indoors. I refused to budge on driving three hours to the outlet mall three hours away (supposedly voted the 'third best shopping' IN THE WORLD; as you can imagine, it called out to Cathy and Meann like the mothership to ET). Indoor mall it was. Everyone else spent most of the afternoon shopping while I got some shut-eye in one the soft seats in the atrium.
We toasted on a successful reunion at Perry's with a bottle of red wine, which went well with the top-notch food. (great steak, escargot, and dessert). - We hied it out of there in time to catch Pirates of the Caribbean, which was fun overall but left us all tired from tying all the stories together. I was the first to hit the sack that night, while everyone else tied up their loose ends (e.g. trying to change Meann's flight, consolidating pictures, copying music, etc).
May 28 - Milestones / Departures
Meann had to leave first (surprise!) . [To her credit (peace!), she was being charged a few thousand dollars to change her itinerary.] Nenen took Meann to see the site of the house she and Suzanne are buying before heading off to the airport. The rest of us were escorted by Suzanne to view the site and the model, before we met up with Nenen just before a leisurely Texmex lunch at Pappasitos (not before we got rained on again).
John, Cathy, and I (and Meann's luggage-- don't ask) were on the same flight. The rains caused our flight to be delayed so we lounged around the Houston airport. It gave me time to wonder at how much change we (and our group) were going through -- Pau/Gi having their first baby with Raffa/Joh's on the way, Suzanne/Nenen/Meann/Pia buying houses, *people* relocating, etc). This being a time of milestones, it was hard not to feel suddenly old.
On the other hand, we all didnt seem to have changed much - still laughing at the same sophomoric (yes Suzanne, that is not a made-up word: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/sophomoric) jokes, babaw as ever, and occasionally mali-mali (ok who's got good translations for these?).
Fun, after all, IS universal, no matter which hemisphere you're in.
PS Thanks to Nenen and Suzanne for being such gracious hosts!
PPS Next trip - hopefully San Fo in November-- John Q, up to you to make this reality
PSS Suzanne's fave anecdote from the trip:
Chef: Are you enjoying your food?
All: Yes, very much, thanks.
Chef: Good (starts to walk away)
Suzanne (trying to be cute): Are you the chef?
Chef: Very good, thank you.
Ouch, talk about being shut down! (ok, he probably just heard wrong).
3 comments:
Hey! Wow, looks like you guys had A LOT of fun. I just talked to Meann yesterday and got our amazon packages (thanks again!) and sabi niya nga the pictures need the proper "deployment" before sharing fully. At least this gives me a sneak peak. Hehe, you have a picture of Suzy's chef? Post it! :)
Sounds like you had lots of fun. Inggit ako!
now if only we also had a European chapter, then maybe I could have people visit me here! oks lang, i'll be going home soon so that should be fun.
looks like you had a great time in houston! although i have to say, whoever cut john q's hair needs to go back to hairdresser school hehe don't tell him I said that! :)
Post a Comment