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Visit to Philippines, June 2018

Merle left on June 2 (so you can check with her for details), but I left to join her on June 14.  Time on the plane was a mere 19 hrs.
My flight had a delay because one passenger brought on a pit bull as an "emotional support animal."  
Fortunately, the metamorphosis occurred before take off, but the dog transformed abruptly from support animal to terrorist, attacking a passenger and biting a flight attendant.
(Flight was delayed for removal of passenger, dog, and their luggage, and to get new flight attendant, and to allow for adjacent passengers to change their underwear....)
Left Atlanta 6/14 at 1150am, arrived in Manila 6/15 at 830pm.  Here are my greeters: Merle, her sister Michelle, and daughter Andi.
Next am (6/16):  Breakfast on the terrace at Michelle's with Joelle (Michelle's other daughter), her friend MJ, and their housekeeper Lin.  Joseph, the daddy, is a ship captain and away at sea.  :*(
Dogs still kept in cages there.
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ed. opinion:      :(
After visiting for a while, we were off to Tagaytay for a lunch with the group.  We went to a restaurant named Josephine's which has a beautiful view of the lake.
From the observation deck.
...btw, this is what JM looked like last time I saw him (2010).
Our next stop was SkyRanch, an amusement park, where first we rode the rollercoaster...presumably to help with our digestion.
We did bumper boats.
The battle for supremacy rages!
Joelle shows her winning style.
How do I get out of this thing???
They even had zip lining which Joelle and I did.  It was quite windy up on the tower, and somehow my attachment to the zip line had me flying through the air backwards. 
My path took me close to a tree which almost knocked off my shoe.  Yet, despite the odds, I made it. 
Yay!
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Cross that one off the list.
Started the next day (6/17) with a hearty breakfast, here with Merle's Auntie Violy (purple shirt) and her father in the background.
First stop was to visit the cemetery to clean the headstones (shrine) for Merle's grandparents.
Merle's mother (Nanay) explains the family relationships and some history
Cemetery guard dogs.
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Nothing gets by them.
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:)
We were then off to see Intramuros and Fort Santiago in Manila, here with Uncle Willie and Auntie Annie
We saw the cell where national hero Jose Rizal, known for his struggle against the Spaniards, was imprisoned before his execution.
Next stop was the Manila Hotel, a fancy and historic building with beautiful architecture, and a lot of security (men with guns) outside.
Behaving...
...natives getting restless waiting for their snacks!!
In the lobby, they had a sextet playing movie showtunes.
Links to Philippine trip pics:     Part II     Part III     Part IV
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