From Budapest to Istanbul to Manila

October 6, 2022

After a heavy breakfast, I went to the foreign currency exchange but they told me to go to the post office to exchange the old Forint bills to new ones. The post office is near the cathedral and it’s going to be a far walk. I went to the bank near Zara Home and Massimo Dutti instead. They do exchange old Hungarian currency but they will only credit the equivalent to my bank account. They will not hand me over the cash. But I don’t have a bank account in Hungary so it’s a no.

According to the bank, there is no deadline to exchange old Forints. That’s good to know but I am not sure if I will have another chance to visit Hungary.  Maybe I will, but there’s no telling when.  Baka matagal pa.

I hurriedly walked back to Hotel Intercontinental. I arranged for a hotel car to bring us to the airport.
Bye for now River Danube.

I simply love this view of the River Danube and Buddah Castle. See you again someday.

The airport is only 30 minutes away from the hotel.

Too many passengers.

While waiting to board, several announcements were made that the departure would be delayed. After almost an hour of delay, they announced that the flight was canceled.
No reason was given, and no instructions as to how we would reach Istanbul. No capable personnel to guide us in sight and on-site.  No help period.

We exited the immigration section and went to retrieve our luggage while feeling lost and confused. No visible Turkish Airlines ground crew to give us assurance that we would be able to get into the next flight.

We walked back to the departure area, dragging our bags. The line was very long and wasn’t moving at all.  Hours of waiting for something uncertain. The passengers all were looking dazed and helpless but I must say they were very patient.

Turkish Airlines sent a bigger plane to accommodate the stranded passengers.

Edmund tried hard to get in line so we could be booked on the next flight.   Naku;itsn na sa kanya yung mga ground crew so they let him go to the ticket counter.  After an hour,  he was able to get us two seats. Trends Travel Mart’s employee in Manila also helped us with the booking.

With his persistence, and with the help of the Manila booking agent, we were given seats to Manila via Istanbul.

Finally, after hours of chaos, there’s peace. Mukha na talaga kaming pagod at antok.

Fresh orange juice for Mr. Yee, lemonade with mint for me.

Landed safely in Istanbul

We have three hours to gallivant here at the newest and grandest airport ever.

Edmund went to Boss.

I spent 40 minutes in the home goods section.  They have a good merchandise selection pero ang hirap lang mag-uwi.  Bulky and heavy.

Fancy gold-plated beverage glasses

I dream of Genie

There were ceramic plates pero mahirap mag-uwi, mabigat and I was only sharing a carry-on luggage with Edmund.

It’s covered.

The LV store at the Istanbul International Airport is big. They have a white blouse which I liked very much but I didn’t want to try it on.
Baka malibang ako eh maiwan ako ng eroplano.

Louis Vuitton bag tags

LV baseball cap

All the stores are open twenty-four hours including the Hermes boutique.  The sales staff told me to come back in the morning because they sell bags during the day. Why not sell this one now?  He said it’s only for display.  Come tomorrow, he said.

I mentioned to Edmund that I saw a nice white cotton blouse at the LV store.

E—– “Bakit hindi mo isinukat?  Sana binili mo na.”

A—-” Ayoko,  baka ma-late na tayo.”

E—–“Ang aga pa, isang oras pa.  Gusto mo samahan kita?  Isukat mo.”

A—–” Ang layo na natin. Baka maiwan tayo ng plane.”

E—– “Hindeee, ang aga pa.”

We passed by Starbucks which just closed a minute ago.  We convinced the lady to sell us coffee and juice and she agreed.
Bagal namin maglakad.

E—– “Ang aga pa natin.  Hindi pa boarding.  Wala pang tao.”

Kaya pala walang tao eh kasi lahat nasa loob na ng eroplano.  Kami na lang dalawa ang hinahanap.    Can you imagine kung naiwan kami ng plane?  We worked so hard to get seats on this flight tapos maiwan kami.

Chef on board taking our food orders.

I couldn’t sleep,  so I tried to watch some movies.

I watched the 2022 movie As They Made us starring Diana Agron, Simon Helberg, Dustin Huffman, and Candice Bergen.  It’s about a divorced mother of two struggling to balance her life and her dysfunctional family.  Her dad, Dustin Hoffman is suffering from dementia.
Landed safely in Manila.