The arrivals garden can use a bit more illumination.
Though I was tired, I walked down the entire length of the South Wing arrivals area, past the lines of cars waiting outside, and proceeded to the bus stop where I boarded the bus which would bring me home (via the LRT, of course).
X. Epilogue
The original intention as to why I wanted to go to Cebu was for the sole reason of trying out the newly-fitted PAL 747s. Apparently, that as an end goal proved unachievable, and I have to concede that I will probably not be able to fly another 747 for a while. However, there is far more to a trip than the plane that you fly, and certainly Cebu, a very beautiful city, took this challenge quite well. It captures much of Manila’s spirit, though without the chaos, and seems to be saner than the dense jungle of the capital up north. However, if I ever get lost, either I rely on my map or, if my Internet connection didn’t conk out the night before, I would get a tour guide. Two people in the other forum offered me just before I was about to leave (as in the last few hours before departing), but apparently, the earthquake off Taiwan and the horrible Internet situation in Manila proved otherwise. Sorry Slerz and Jarenz, and hopefully you guys can tour me around next time! I’m glad you were able to understand my situation, and I can’t wait for someone to show me places beyond what I’ve already visited. Perhaps I’ll even stay longer.
Zest Airways is a very promising LCC: its offers of lower fares (where the price advertised is the price you pay, unlike Cebu Pacific), excellent buy-on-board offerings with unlimited water and juice, and friendly service would give tough competition to the country’s largest LCC. Though their jets are second-hand with a drab hard product, the value of the seat is rendered irrelevant when you get to fly with them, since they feel just so comfortable. As they say, there really is a new zest in the air, and that zest can be deadly if other airlines don’t shape up.
On the other hand, I can’t compare Zest to PAL. PAL in itself is much better than Zest from all measures of service, and as my favorite local airline, it does a lot of things Zest cannot. The new Recaro seats are arguably one of the most comfortable (if not the most comfortable) seats I’ve been on in all my years of travel, with very generous recline and legroom in Fiesta Class. Though the AVOD wasn’t working, hopefully I get to try it next time, although they say that the selections are anemic (8 movies), perhaps due to royalties, which PAL may not be able to afford, or copyright issues in the Philippines, where piracy is less of an exception and more of the norm. Hopefully PAL will introduce more choices not only for me, but for everyone who will get a chance to experience their refurbished seats.
Thinking of a title, I decided to merge two slogans together, and I got this: "There's Some New Zests Shining Through". The grammatical error is deliberate, to make it sound better (and so that the title can fit). Other times though I'm very grammatically correct. I hope you understand.
I hope you enjoyed this trip report (my third), and once again, thank you for reading. Do expect a trip report for my next trip: a hop through two major Philippine airports. As per custom, and once again as a brief closing, the following camera was used on this trip:
* Canon EOS 350D