Wednesday, April 10 th Arrived at Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila, Philippines close to Noon. We gathered at the edge of the departure walkway and stopped to pray and gives thanks to God for our safe travels and arrival. All 14 bags found quickly and passed through baggage claim, but upon reaching the customs counter to exit the airport, we were informed we each needed to complete a questionnaire called E-travel. Travelers to and from the Philippines are required to register through the E-Travel portal on the web
or using an app which mainly is a health declaration and Covid screen; the requirement was implemented in 2023. This was followed by another substantial delay at the Money Exchange office at the airport and the decision was finally made to search for an alternate place to exchange funds outside the airport terminal as Pastor Noel and his team were waiting for us outside. Pastor Noel and several of his ministry team met us and loaded our luggage (and all of us) into two vans. Everyone is full of smiles and excitement. Pastor Noel informs us they had waited for our team since 6 a.m. that morning – traveling earlier in the morning to stay ahead of heavy
Manila traffic and arrive on time to greet us. We are grateful for the A/C in the van as we have our first blast of 90 degree Philippines summer sunshine! Since we are close in traveling distance to the
SM Mall of Asia in Manila, we stop by there to exchange money. Walking through the luxurious mall in Manila has some newbies wondering if this is what PFC missions is really like?? Veterans on the team assure them that not all the scenery they will experience on the trip will be like this. The
exchange at the mall was inside a grocery store and it was another significant wait time. They did have some cute cakes for sale though!
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