It’s been a while since I had occasion to use the word, but it is a perfect description for the weekend of July 16-17. Fantabulous-fantastic, fabulous, awesome, amazing. We arrived in Manila early Sat morning, very much excited at the prospect of the weekend ahead. Boc kept looking out the Exit door at NAIA 3 for the blue Vios driven by Lucy. She was going to pick us up and we would proceed to the hotel. This Corolla Altis was sitting right in front of the exit, the surprise new car revealed on the spot.Nice start!
Despite my request for early check-in, our rooms at the Marriott Manila where we planned to stay overnight were not ready that early. So we had the much-anticipated breakfast at the Pancake House within the Resorts World complex. Boc finally got her favorite golden brown waffles in addition to a dish of beef tapa. The feasting starts!
Finally it was time to check in at the Marriott. I decided on this overnight stay to maximize our short visit. Driving back and forth in Saturday traffic would have taken up too much time, and probably make other activities impossible. The hotel’s proximity to the airport, and our plan to see the concert on premises made it the logical choice.
A funny thing happened on the way to our rooms. As I stood at the front desk waiting for check-in to finish, a big guy suddenly put his arms around my shoulders and announced I’m his new wife! I played along and posed for this memorable photo:
Needless to say, the Marriott more than met my expectations in terms of comfort, service, amenities, and that special sense that you are in the right place. When we turned on the 42-in. flat tv a welcome greeting was on the screen. The special feather pillows I requested were on hand. The glass wall between the bath and the beds was reminiscent of Orlando Bloom and Miranda Kerr’s pad in Manhattan. We didn’t discover the electrified drape till later that night. Our room overlooked the Villamor Golf Club and had a nice view of the Makati skyscrapers.
The Aborted Marriott Buffet Lunch
Then it was time for lunch. I had asked about the hotel’s provisions and was told they had a buffet lunch for “one fifty pax”. I write this exactly the way I heard it. I took it to mean P150 per person. So we proceeded to the ground floor restaurant. After looking over the tables of mouth-watering food we said okay, we’re in. Boc managed to take a photo of her favorites, a huge spread of desserts. We sat at a table, and just as the waitress handed us the menus I asked again how much they charge/person. When she said P1500 we all went into shock.We hightailed it out of there after a souvenir photo:
I think I may have to do this blog in two or three parts. So this will be the end of Part I. Stay tuned for the next episode. I promise, no more faux pas.
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