the honeymoon is officially over

We just might have took a vacation back to the states too early in our overseas tour. Spending the week in Hawaii has made it very hard to get comfortable being back in the Philippines. We were warned over and over that there will be a period in our tour that is considered the honeymoon phase when everything is new and exciting and you want to explore you're new home. The little annoyances of a foreign third world country won't really get to you and everything is hunky-dory. Well the bad news is that after the honeymoon phase is over you sink into a low point of your tour. Our honeymoon phase is officially over starting a week or so ago. The annoyances are maddening now, the whole city stinks like diesel, fried Filipino food, and dog poop. We can't go anywhere without being pointed at, talked to, or bothered for money. Traffic is so terrible on days it takes 30 minutes to get to the next neighborhood for a play date. Justin and I officially knew that the honeymoon was over when our plane landed in Manila from Guam. The pilot turned the fasten seat belt sign off, the passengers all stood up and readied themselves to get off the plane. The pilot then got back on the intercom to announce that the ground crew had directed them incorrectly to the gate and that we needed to return to our seats to reposition the plane for off loading! Only in the Philippines. When we finally got off the plane, we waited for our stroller beside locals who wouldn't leave Addie alone. "Hi baby!" they exclaimed as they grabbed her hands and feet. Then they gave us what used to be our stroller which was mangled and broken. If we weren't sure that the honeymoon was over then, the walk out into the hot, humid, polluted, Manila night did it for us.

Justin and I always say it's a good thing we are each other's best friends. Having each other and our beautiful daughter makes this adventure manageable. The only thing that has been saving us lately is that the rainy season tends to blow a lot of smog out of the air. The last few days have been sunny with blue skies and a breeze. My family and that little bit of relief has helped me keep my sanity.

The good news is that it's normal to have strong negative feelings about our post for awhile and over time we'll bounce out of it and find a good happy medium in our new home. We won't ever look at Manila with honeymooners eyes again but we'll find our place here, that much I'm sure about.