Moving to Manila

Jeepney!

I have to admit my first two months here in Manila haven't quite ended up the way I expected. Don't get me wrong, I'm settled into my apartment (on the 32nd floor! I've never been so high before) with a view over the American Cemetery on one side and other high rise apartment buildings out of the other. Classes are in full swing and I like my students (even if I'm still struggling to learn names - my worst year ever in that attempt) and they work hard. Of course starting at a different school is always a bit like your first year of teaching all over again, and I've felt that even more this time around since I actually stayed in Delhi for so long (for me).

View out my window, looking at the American Cemetery

That being said, my "first" impression of Manila, or more specifically, BGC (Bonafacio Global City) where I'm living is one of development. Full of malls, high rise buildings, traffic and restaurants it is still an extremely walkable area of metro Manila. The only reason I know for sure I'm in Manila on a daily basis are the jeepneys that drive by on my walk to school. I think this may be the easiest place I've lived since I moved overseas. Of course it doesn't hurt that English is so widely spoken.

Just one interesting apartment building

So why then, the rough unexpected start? That would be because I contracted Dengue less than a month after arriving, a little over one full week into the school year. It meant I missed 6 days of classes, was struggling for energy for another two weeks in addition to that, and had my first hospital stay in the Philippines. I'm still trying to figure out how I got Dengue here in a month, when I managed to avoid it in Delhi for five years. I guess you could say I've learned at least one lesson - be religious about putting on bug spray! I finally feel like I've recovered, and so am now ready to get myself into a routine that will help me find some balance in my life. Things can only improve, right?