My Filipino friend had no idea where it was at first. When I mentioned the location in Pampanga, he was relieved that it was only about two hours' driving from his house.
When I walked out from the arrival hall, Alex was already there. Nothing emotional. I just smilingly said hi to him. He still looked as shy as when I had met him five months earlier. He had come with his neighbour Charles, his nephew Jason and a driver to fetch me.
I remembered when I told my Malaysian friends about this trip, some of them were worried about my safety. If they knew that I was in a van with four guys, three out of whom were totally strangers to me, they would definitely assume that I was being kidnapped!
Everybody was quiet in the vehicle. I was no doubt the most talkative one who asked questions on their country that I was exploring. Besides Alex, Charles was also quite well versed in English. But sometimes I had difficulty in understanding his accent.
We stopped for lunch at an eaterie.
There I had my first Filipino meal. Same dishes were served in different small plates to be shared by we four. If I did not look at my companions' exotic faces, I would almost think that I was eating somewhere in East Malaysia.
Anyway, the Malays and Filipinos came from the same ancestors. So I was representing my country to visit some extended cousins in fact.
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