Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Coron Trip: Day 1 - Hover and Above


“This is your captain speaking. We are now approaching Busuanga Airport. Currently there are thunderstorms and therefore the runway is not visible. We will be on a holding pattern for about 15 minutes to wait for the weather to ease up. Thank you for your patience.”

My wife, Cynthia, and I looked at each other with eyebrows raised. Outside our window we could see clear blue skies adorned here and there with fluffy white clouds. Down below we could see the sparkling sea and beautiful little islands covered in lush greenery. As we hovered above the island of Busuanga, we were thinking: What in the world is the pilot talking about?

Fifteen minutes later.

“This is your captain speaking. The thunderstorm over the airport hasn’t stopped. We will now return to Manila. We apologize for this but the safety of our passengers is our foremost concern. Thank you.”

There was a collective groan from the 80 or so passengers aboard.

Thus began our planned birding trip to Coron, Palawan. It definitely did not portend well of our birding trip to that wonderful place. Back at NAIA 3 we were booked for an early flight the following morning and our return flight was rescheduled for Saturday instead of our intended Friday departure. 

We plopped into our bed that night wondering what will happen tomorrow.

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