Looking through the window, as the plane neared my destination, on May 4th, 2014, at about 9:30 a.m., a flashback of childhood memories swept over me. In less than 10 minutes, the plane would be on the ground. I was anticipating a whiff of pungent odour as the door would open and all the cabin air would mix with the outside breeze. My thoughts filled with pleasant recollection of the last time I was in my home country: 2004. It has been over 10 years since I last saw this country.
I got excited… excited to taste all of the delicious food, native cakes and fresh seafood the islands have to offer, to drink coconut water from freshly picked coconuts and taste sweet, ripe mangoes that are currently in season, and to be living and experiencing working in Manila for three weeks. 
The Philippines is an archipelago consisting of 7, 107 islands, which are divided into 3 main islands: Luzon (in the north), Visayas (in the middle) and Mindanao (in the south). Metropolitan Manila, where the economic and political heart of the Philippines, Manila, lies, has close to 12 million people. With a land area of only about 620 square kilometers, that means a population density of about 19,000 persons per square kilometer. That’s a LOT of people in a very small space!!! In Toronto, the land area is about 5,906 square kilometres with a population density of about 946 persons per square kilometre. Imagine that!
About 230 kilometers north of Manila, my hometown lies–Dagupan City. The last time I was there, I was a somewhat-life-experienced-23-year-old female with a very different world view than the one writing this blog today. Lots of things have happened in my life since then. I worked full-time for four years. I became a lawyer. I got myself a legal career at The Co-operators. I got married. Now, I’m about to embark on this journey of working with an organization to share my knowledge in risk identification, management and mitigation… all of these with the support of my employer, The Co-operators, and the co-host organization, the Canadian Co-operative Association (CCA).
♪, ♫ “I’m so excited… and I just can’t hide it…” ♪, ♫
Finally, as I could no longer contain my excitement and anticipation, the plane touched down at 9:39 a.m. and the door flung open. I have arrived.
Gadhi Cruz 
Glad to know that you’ve landed safely, found a local Duty Free, and loved your first day at RIMANSI. I also laughed at your reference to cake (your love of cake has no international boundaries…) especially because we had cake at the office yesterday and it wasn’t the same without you!! Can’t wait to hear about the rest of your adventure! Keep us posted. ; )
Happy to hear that you arrived safe and sound!
How exciting! Stay away from the humidity … just stick inside air conditioned buildings for now … shopping malls and hotels :). It is “summer” in the Philippines, and May is one of the hottest months. If you need to cool down, visit my condo in Graceland, in the hillsides of Tayabas. I can arrange for someone to pick you up in Manila, drive you back, and drive you around. Keith’s cousins are on stand-by to meet you. Ingatz lang, ha?
The Philippines is now part of the emerging markets in Asia-Pacific. It feels good to know that our company, the Co-operators, is sending one of our experts to “help and learn” even though we don’t do business there. That’s the cooperative spirit. Mabuhay!