Since the official notice that we will be discharged the next day was super late, I couldn’t book any of my mom’s drivers to fetch us. My siblings have work.

I decided to book a hotel next to Ayala Center to spend another night so my older sister can pick us up today. I wanted to celebrate and have a comfortable sleep after camping in our hospital room’s bench for several nights.

The four-day long weekend has flushed out humanity from Metro Manila and now I get to enjoy the city without the clogged streets. It took us only about 30 mins from PGH to Ayala Center, which could have taken an hour or so on a normal day.

I plopped on the bed and slept for an hour and a half to make up for the lack of sleep the past few nights. My head was already pounding before it touched the pillow. After convincing my daughter we need to get out and walk, we hopped to Ayala Center and treat ourselves.

We checked out OneAyala, the former Intercontinental Hotel, which Ayala Land converted into a mixed use development. It directly connects to MRT, has four floors of shopping and dining areas, offices and Seda Hotel on the top floors, with the ground floor serving as a transport hub. I was surprised that OneAyala was huge, remembering how narrow the function rooms in Intercontinental were. Then I remembered there was a road at the back of the hotel and a parking area. Ayala Land claimed those and made one huge building with the ground level opening up to EDSA.

In the activity center, there was a Thayers event that I joined just for the heck of it. I mean, I already have a lot of toners back home (currently using Shiseido) but it doesn’t hurt to get a free bottle and a discount card for purchases at Watsons.

And every trip to the hospital gives Twin A a reward of Japanese food.

I knew people are out of the city when I saw restaurants only half-filled on a Friday night. Even the malls are not brimming with people. Usually the bridgeway connecting Greenbelt and Glorietta is teeming with humanity. Not this time.

After a long walk back to the hotel, I booked a two-hour Zennya massage. How I missed Zennya!