joanna in the philippines

Hello to all! Well, I am finally here in Aritao, the place where my sister Sarah and her family are. I endured the 19 hour flight quite well! It was Joanna with a bunch of Asians, but it really wasnt too bad at all. I would've watched all the movies, but unfortunately for me, the tallest Asian on the plane sat in front of me, so her head was in the way. :) I had a quick plane change in Nagoya, Japan, and then on to Manila. It was funny. The flight got in 45 minutes early, and I gathered my things and went through immigrations and customs with no problem, so I was out front in the passenger waiting area by about 10:40. Well, I looked for Markus and Donovan, but didn't see them. Well, that was alright, I knew I was a little early, so I waited. And waited. An hour and a half passed by, and I started to get concerned. Ha, it was crowded, and smelly, and hot and oh so humid, and I didn't have any alternative way to get to a place that I didn't even know where it was! So, I figured out how to buy a calling card and called Sarah, and then Markus. Turned out they were in real bad traffic and they were running a lot later than they expected! They were there 15 minutes later! And it was all good, I was just thankful they hadn't gotten in an accident or anything. But yeah, I'll say my first experience in Manila was quite an adventure... standing with 2 huge bags searching for Markus... I did get quite a lot of looks, being that there aren't a whole lot of Americans there... but they picked me up and we made our way to NTM's guesthouse, where I met Char and got in a room. I fell asleep with no problem, even though it was morning for me in the states, and woke up to little Thea outside my door saying "Auntie Joanna, auntie Joanna..." I met her and Koi, and they are absolutely adorable! I love them already and just KNOW we will all have a blast together! We loaded up the truck Markus came to get us in, and began the 6 hour trip to Aritao. It went well, it poured rain when we got to the mountains, and I began feeling car sick near the end, but we got here safe, Praise the Lord! :) The driving over here is insane... seriously, kinda thrilling and fun, but crazy nonetheless! But my bro-in-law Markus is a very good driver, and he fits in well with all the other crazy filipino drivers! ha! Seeing Sarah and Levi and Emma were definitely the highlight of my evening! I've had a blast in the past couple hours, and already know this time will fly by, but be very special! Alright, I am going to go now, but thanks everyone for PRAYING... don't stop... I need every one! Im already having stomach aches, so I just pray that I won't get sick a lot... Okay, good night all! <><