So this is it! I’m officially starting a blog about my travel experiences. To be honest, I should have started this a year ago but I always got distracted by other things when I’m about to start creating a site. So I ended up parking the idea aside hoping to get it done one day. And lo and behold, the day has finally arrived. 
I would like my first trip outside the Philippines as my first blog post. After all, that trip made all my other trips possible. This was way back in 2007 when I left the country to work in Gibraltar.
Manila to Hong Kong
Even up to this day, when I recall that moment, I can still feel the happiness and excitement I felt when I boarded that plane in NAIA on the way to Hong Kong. That was my first time to get away from the country. I felt like all those unpaid overtime (and sometimes overnight) at my former work had finally paid off. I felt like that moment was the reward for sustaining (and managing to stay alive) all those busy seasons. It was like graduating from the best training school in the country with the plane’s boarding pass as my diploma.
inside the Cathay Pacific plane
It was already midnight when the plane landed in Hong Kong. But I wouldn’t have noticed it if not for those few people sleeping on the benches (some on the floor) because, again, there were just so much going on inside my head. I had 2 hours waiting time before my flight to London Heathrow so I decided to spend most of it walking around. NAIA would look like a ghetto when compared to Hong Kong airport, was all I had to say.
Hong Kong to London Heathrow
When the plane landed in Heathrow, I was so excited to get out of the terminal building and finally touch and feel the snow falling from the sky. The immigration officer must have seen the excitement in my eyes that he didn’t ask me tons of questions even if I didn’t have a UK transit visa with me (I’ve heard stories of other Pinoys who got into trouble for not having one!). As soon as I got my passport back, I scrammed out of the terminal building.
And there, right outside the terminal building was one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen in my whole life – snowflakes falling gently from the sky. The snowflakes looked so pure and pristine, like tiny white fluffy feathers. They looked more beautiful and spectacular than they appeared in my imaginations. For a moment, it felt like I was dreaming and that anytime Santa Claus would appear on his sleigh.
Notwithstanding the bitterly cold weather, I stood outside the terminal building for a bit longer. I wanted to feel the snowflakes on my skin, touch them, breath them and be one with them. It felt so amazing when they landed on my hands and then melted promptly in a blink of an eye. I felt like I was part of something magical.
If my hands weren’t starting to numb and if I didn’t start to feel like I was gonna freeze to death, I wouldn’t have retreated back to the terminal building. I went back inside and bought a bus ticket to London Gatwick, that’s where all the planes to Gibraltar leave. Depending on traffic, I’ve been advised that the bus trip would just take around an hour.
London Heathrow to London Gatwick
I took the window seat on the bus so I could enjoy the view on the way to Gatwick. The moment the bus left Heathrow airport was the moment I started saying wow over and over again (not loudly though!). A wonderful panorama of London’s countryside unravelled before my very eyes – herds of sheep roaming freely, trees swaying on an early winter breeze, creeks and lakes starting to freeze, farm houses with those chimneys that I’ve only seen in movies, and on top of those, the snowflakes were continuously falling from the sky. It was a sight to behold. Truly spectacular!
The bus didn’t get to Gatwick on time due to heavy traffic which was a real bummer. By the time I arrived at the check-in counter, my plane was almost about to leave and they could no longer allow me to get in. I had to buy another ticket for the next flight which was twice as much as the price I paid for my original flight. I learned two lessons when traveling that day – be on time and always have a travel insurance with you!
London Gatwick to Gibraltar
By the time I boarded the plane to Gibraltar, things were finally started to sink in. There I was, hundred miles away from home, hardly has any money left after I paid for another plane ticket and where I was going, I didn’t even know anyone personally. My mind was full of all sorts of bad things that could possibly happen to me. I was, for the first time, afraid. I was afraid that I might not able to pull the whole thing through.
After 27 hours of traveling and crossing several time zones, I finally arrived in Gibraltar. I could hear the flight attendant saying WELCOME TO GIBRALTAR!
My mind, however, was saying HELLO WORLD!
