Sunset at Seven

I'm wondering why the sun sets at 7pm. Have we crossed over into some other world where the the flushing toilet water swirls counter to that in New York? The sun set at about 9pm there.
Maybe it is winter here. That would explain the muggy heat and typhoons.
Speaking of typhoons, "Frank" just passed through. we did not see much of it. Our plane landed just before it hit the Manila area. The next day we did get to see trees bending and rain coming down in sheets as the wind howled through the streets outside the Dusit Thani Hotel.
For those of you just joining us, Julia Cook and Jefferson Slinkard have now been three days in the belly of the beast that is Manila, Philippines. We are hear to rehearse and open a new version of Rodger's and Hammerstein's "Cinderella" starring Lea Salonga. Julia plays the cruel Stepmother and Jefferson plays the kind but frugal King; soon to be father-in-law of Cinderella.
We left NYC on June 20 and arrived in Manila on June 21. We are twelve hours ahead of EST.
(That might explain the whole sunset /toilet flush thing.) We rehearse for six weeks and then perform in the "house that Imelda built" until the end of August and then we are on to China, Thailand, Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, and other countries TBD.
A few highlights for me so far:
-Landing in Hong Kong at night and seeing a building on fire on a mountainside. It was strangely beautiful and lonely.
-Walking around the neighborhood at 6AM (remind me to tell you about jet lag!)
-Eating the eyeball of a grilled Tilapia ("it tastes like chicken!")
-The fantastic breakfast buffet at the hotel
-The bus ride to the rehearsal hall. I can't wait to get out and see the city not through a window.
- Lea's Mother's bread pudding!!!!
-A really talented and wonderful group of people to work with.
-Excedrin PM and 10 hours of sleep.
Did I mention Jet Lag? Long days of rehearsal (they're making me dance!) and very little sleep don't mix well. And that means that as I write this at 8PM, I am starting to fade. Julia is already zonked out on the bed and we haven't had dinner yet, so goodnight for now. There will be more tomorrow.
Ciao,
Jefferson