Stranded in Palawan

November 15, 2008. Tropical depression "Tonyo" was 210 km east of Puerto Princesa City as of 10 a.m., packing maximum sustained winds of 45 kph near the center according to PAGASA. We were in Puerto Princesa City and our scheduled flight back to Manila was at 5:00 p.m. that day. After our group check-in and with 45 kg of excess baggage (we paid P100 per kg of excess) because of the many pasalubong and pabili, we patiently waited for our boarding time. The turnaround plane would be delayed as announced in the departure area and then finally, at 5:20 p.m., we were told that the flight was definitely canceled. I overheard that the plane could not land due to poor visibility and returned to Manila. We collected our baggage and our group of six boarded two tricycles to bring us back to our hostel. On our way back, it was already raining with gusty winds and we requested our driver to drop us first at an ATM for the much-needed reinforcement for our prolonged stay. It was dark due to power interruption and raining much harder when we reached our place. To top it all off, the hostel was locked and the caretaker was not around! While my friends were busy doing the akyat-bahay way, I was like a wet chick in one corner because of my fever. Fortunately, they were able to open the main door lock, the power was restored, and they had to cook whatever was available for dinner. The sun was up the following day and we spent the waiting hours talking about our work, family, and personal experiences. Bonding time with each other. We checked in at past 3 p.m. with just 10 kg of excess baggage. Right! That's another good thing about being stranded. And off we flew to Manila.