I woke up early the next morning. I was still depressed but looking forward to getting back home to be with my family and friends. My flight to Butuan was ten o’clock in the morning but I woke up at six. At around eight o ‘clock I saw my taxi driver already waiting for me. I did not know how long he had been waiting for me outside the hotel but as soon as I saw him I decided to check out and go to the airport. I thought that I could get my mind off my husband for a while if I went to a busy place with a lot of people around.

Going to the airport was a good choice to pass the time while waiting for my flight back home. Though my flight back to Mindanao was quite uneventful, my new hubby’s back to the US was anything but. He had made it back to San Francisco US by the time I had gotten back to Butuan but his journey was anything but uneventful and far from over.

I don’t like saying goodbyes. Seeing my hubby walking toward the airport was very hard on me. I couldn’t hold back my tears anymore. The taxi driver noticed me sobbing and tried to start a conversation. He was trying to cheer me up while we drove back to the hotel. It helped a little bit but I knew I would soon be alone again back in the hotel.

When I got back to my room I looked for the t-shirt that my hubby had worn before he left. I was having a hard time sleeping so I cradled his t-shirt and imagine he was still with me. I got a little bit of sleep but not much. This was to be the first night of a long lonely and frustrating process of trying to get my visa approved to join him there in the US. It took much longer than we were anticipating and turned out to be a much more difficult and expensive process than either one of us had realized. It would be more than eleven months before I could hold him in my arms again.

The last night was a really sad and sleepless one for me. It was really difficult knowing that it would be many months before my visa would be approved and I could come here to the US. My hubby did not get the sleep he needed before the long flight because of me. He was trying to console me and cheer me up for most of the night. It helped for just a short period of time and then it would come back. Every moment was precious and, to my great dismay, the visa would take even longer than we were anticipating. It would be nearly ten and a half months before I would see my new husband face to face again.
The following morning, my hubby and I woke up early. We ate our breakfast at a fancy restaurant in the hotel. After that we went back to our room and started packing my hubby’s stuff because later that evening he would be leaving. I did not want to wait until the eleventh hour.

After finishing the packing we took a walk around the hotel and then decided to hail a taxi and take a trip to downtown Manila and spend some time there. We went to my favorite chicken restaurant and had our lunch there. My hubby liked it more than all the fancy and expensive places that we had eaten at before. Later in the afternoon, we came back and had our dinner at the hotel buffet. There were many tasty goodies to choose from. My hubby’s favorite was the prime rib and I liked the shrimp. For dessert they had a flowing chocolate fountain that we used to dip fresh pieces of fruit.
We left the hotel at about seven o’clock in the evening to make sure we had plenty of time to get to the airport.  My hubby had not flown in quite a while and forgot about the increased security that would no longer allow friends and relatives inside the airports to see the travelers off. He had been thinking that I could come in and we would be spending a few more hours together but when he arrived he realized that was not going to be possible.   Neither one of us was prepared for the quick goodbye as he decided that the best thing would be to send me back in the cab that brought us to the airport.   Maybe that was a good thing. He quickly ordered the same taxi driver to take me back to the hotel.  I broke down in tears and sobbed all the way back to the hotel.

Time flies so fast, especially if you are having fun. The three weeks that we had together seemed to fly by like it was just a few days. By the time we were getting ready to fly back to Manila I was already feeling a sadness come over me. I knew that we had only one day left together before he left and it would be a long time before I would see him again. I had a really hard time controlling my emotions knowing that he would soon be flying back to the US without me.

The flight to Manila was less than two hours. We arrived in the afternoon and checked into one of the five star hotels by the ocean. He was trying to get my mind off his leaving so he suggested we take a walk and go sightseeing around the area. We toured the entire hotel including the outdoor pool area and all of the indoor and outdoor restaurants. I had never experienced such luxury and beauty in my surroundings. It all seemed like a dream.

Later that evening, we took a walk down by the waterfront. We came across a film production of one of the Philippines favorite TV shows. We watched for a while and then decided to have dinner at a seafood restaurant we found at a point jutting out into Manila Bay. The food was great but I couldn’t taste it . My mind was still thinking about his flight the next day. We arrived back at our hotel room after dark and by then I could no longer hold back the tears. He tried to console me and cheer me up but I couldn’t hold back what I was feeling inside.

The next day after the pool and dinner get together with friends and siblings, my new hubby and I went to my home village. It was his first visit to the place where I grew up. He was surprised when all of the neighbors and their children came to meet him. He said that he felt like he was being treated like a rock star, especially from the kids. I told him that kind of treatment was normal there in my village, especially if you were a foreigner.

We spent the day there in the village eating my favorite dishes and chit-chatting with friends and relatives. Even though the village is only forty miles from the city, I had not spent much time there recently because I had so many things to do in the city preparing for the wedding. It was a great day to relax and for my hubby to spend time getting to know my family.

At that time my family still did not have running water in the house (that has just been recently installed). Since there were no nearby appropriate accommodations (shower and indoor plumbing) we needed to return to the city that evening. Since you can only rent a car with a driver there, we would have had to put him up overnight as well. That made it very inconvenient to spend much time in the village. We were limited to one day excursions back and forth from the city. Fortunately, they opened a nice new resort on the lake a couple of years ago only a few miles from my home. We stayed there two years ago when my sister got married.

We spent most of the remaining time my hubby had there at the resort in the city. He could only afford to spend three weeks away from his business and the time was going by way too fast.

It was around 12 noon when we finally got checked into our bungalow. I was really tired and desperately needing a nap because in the evening we had invited my siblings and close friends for a swimming pool get together and dinner. Even though the bed was nice and the room was quite and cozy I was still having a hard time getting sleep because of the shipwreck incident. It kept flashing back in my mind and even now I still get scared when I think about it.

Despite my nerves I was able to fall asleep and when I woke up later in the afternoon I felt fresh and well rested. Then, just about dark, the group began to arrive. The first thing on the agenda was our swimming party. The pool was a beautiful lagoon style with built in water fall. The girls especially, had a great time splashing and swimming. After a good deal of time in the water it was time to come out, dry off and get dressed for the dinner.

The open air pavilion near the pool hosted the large buffet dinner that seemed fit for a king. It was a great time for friends, family and fellowship and we all had a good time stuffing ourselves to the max.

It was a big relief when we finally got back on dry land. I was thankful that we were still alive and the near miss that we had experienced was behind us with no serious consequence. Since we were late getting into the port, our driver had to wait several extra hours before we were finally able to get off the ferry. Fortunately he was patient and still in a good mood. Apparently he had nothing better to do. For his patience and good attitude my hubby gave him a nice tip.

About an hour later we arrived at my aunt’s home in Butuan but unfortunately we were still unable to check in to our room at the resort because it was still too early. It was a long and tiring day for me and I was really looking forward to the queen size bed in our pretty little resort bungalow.