Second Day Here, First post ever!!!

Magundang Oomaga (spelling probably not correct)

I'm finally here! After all the fundraising, packing (most of which happened within the 9 hours before I got on the plane), and a 30 hour trip to Manila, I am finally entering my first post!! I'm not sure exactly how thorough it will be as it is already 11:30 at night and I should probably hit the hay soon. Don't worry, I don't really sleep on a stack of hay...

Daisy and I had a very long but smooth trip over here. We had a 6 hour layover in San Francisco and a 4 hour layover in Hong Kong which were both brutal but we found a few ways to pass the time. We left Colorado Springs airport at 6:45 am on Tuesday, August 28th and arrived at the condo that we are living in at 1:45 am Wednesday, August 29th (Manila time), 11:45 am Thursday, August 30th (Colorado time). After noticing a small gecko that lives under my bed, I crashed. Needless to say we slept in the next morning.

Our first full day here was awesome! Getting to see the city for the first time was such an experience. After visiting Faith Academy for lunch, we headed into the actual "downtown" area of Manila to watch a basketball game. Kirk Long (the oldest boy of the family that started the orphanage) plays for a local college in Manila and the kids from the orphanage regularly go to his games. So, Jeff Long (the dad), driving with one hand while texting with the other (occasionally pausing to shift into the next gear) maneuvered us through the CRAZY traffic to get to the train station. I was happy to see, as it flashed before my eyes, that ya'll have made my life a pretty good one!

As we got out of the car (kissing the ground and praising God) I couldn't help but notice some of the distinct sights, sounds and smells of the urban jungle I had arrived in. I was told that the strange mechanical horse whinny I heard was only coming from a nearby jeepney! The colors on these cramped modes of transportation are incredible. Decorated with any and everything from Catholic icons to Disney princesses, I have learned that one reason that they look this way is to warn all the other drivers to move out of the way as they are not prone to stopping or obeying any other road rules.

The smell of exhaust was the most overpowering in this area but it didn't seem to bother me. There were so many other things holding my attention that I barely noticed it. We boarded the train for the auditorium where the game would be held and off we went. Okay, I think that's all I can manage tonight, you'll have to tune in next time if you want to know why about 20 different people came up to congratulate Jeff today! Until next time...