Checked in on the Island of Cebu

Hong Kong Airport.
© 2014 Andrea Rip

I checked into the Philippines on Wednesday, as scheduled. The trip was extremely smooth and I made all my connections and hotel stays - although, I had exactly enough time to grab my seat out of Hong Kong!
I was required to collect my bags in Hong Kong since my layover was more than 12 hours. However, I found a nice Cathay Pacific Agent who happily checked my bag back in before I departed to my hotel in the City. As an added bonus, while I was searching for the Cathay desk, I also found the green siren and collected my Hong Kong Starbucks mug.
The metro (MTR) system in Hong Kong is exceptionally efficient. In 24 minutes, I arrived downtown on the Airport Express. The agent thought I would be able to walk to my hotel, so I wandered around three to four kilometers to locate OVOLO 286. The walk was great after sitting on the flight for 16 hours, but my plan was to run out for a nice tasty Hong Kong dinner and I was so exhausted by the longer-than-expectd walk that I opted to stay in. The hotel was efficient with small rooms, but heaps of amenities and no extra charges - even for the mini bar!

Looking back at Hong Kong.
© 2014 Andrea Rip

I departed at 6:50am to catch the MTR back to the airport. I met a Cathay pilot at the Starbuck and followed him to the train with our coffees. He told me about Hong Kong and the abridged history of the Philippines as well.
My only disappointment in Hong Kong was that they did not stamp my passport. But, after the two hour flight, I arrived, dually stamped in the Philippines.
So far, the Filipino people are truly as friendly a my friends who have visited told me they would be!