Hong Kong layover

I've landed safely in Hong Kong. 13 hours of flying, 17 hours total airport/plane time. I now acknowledge there is no wisdom in packing when underslept and fresh off the throes of the high-fashion pride parade. I was misleading in my last post. I actually did not realize my mistake when it came to the scuba mask, fins, etc, until after I had closed everything up and shortly before the shuttle was to arrive. I now consider that a major mistake. I know I'll be able to borrow/rent in Davao, but I do so love my mask. Saw some great discovery programs on the plane about sharks and am now itching to get to a shark dive. I don't know of any on Mindanao, so it might have to wait for the next trip.

Overall doing ok. Didn't sleep much on the plane, had slept 1/2 hour the night before boarding, 5 hours the night before that, 4 hours the night before that, 6 hours on Friday night. Seems fitting to read "Sleep Demons: An Insomniac's Memoir" at this point. It's quite wonderful and may give all you normal sleepers a peek into a world a little more like mine. Melatonin & wine didn't work on this flight. I slept a bit, but mostly read and watched a movie, then got all worked up about the sharks. I definitely did not know enough about Oceanic White Tips. Can anyone point me to info about them and Pilot Whales? Or just the Pilot Whales?

The HK airport is lovely, with huge windows overlooking the mountains. I had a dollar translation scare when checking in. I was told that I had to pay $140 in insurance to Philippine Airlines, which seemed outrageous. Actually, this sum was later corrected to $40, meaning $40 in Hong Kong dollars, $5 US. That kind of surcharge I'm prepared for. Odd to deal with the same word for different currencies. Especially since the Brits use the Pound. Anyone know how HK started using the dollar? At least the PAL agent had glitter fingernails, a kero-keroppi pen, and photo stickers all over her stapler. Made the whole transaction far more fun. Here (and in Japan) my penchance for decorating everyday objects seems pretty tame.

Happily able to correct my minidisk supply shortage -- nice electronics store here. Had to keep my hands off extra cameras.

religion of coincidences, meditation #3
1) This morning at SFO, my friend Alfredo just happened to be taking a flight to Mexico with basically the same departure time as my flight, so we hung out. 2) One woman in supershuttle with me was taking the same flight to Hong Kong as I was, and was continuing on to the Philippines. She called me an angel sent to help her since there were no porters to wrangle with her large balikbayan box & I ended up loading her cart for her. 3) Mariko, a swing dancer from Tokyo who I met this weekend, strolled by as I was checking in -- on her way to check in for a flight back home. That's 3 in no time at all. What a way to leave SF.

Now off for some food. I'll be in Manila in 5 or so hours, but won't (probably) check in again until tomorrow sometime in Davao.