After a formal welcome ceremony at the grounds outside Malacañang’s Kalayaan Hall, Mrs. Arroyo, Bush and First Lady Laura Bush greeted a crowd of well-wishers that included Filipino and American schoolchildren, most of them waving small Philippine and US flags.
But what caught Bush’s attention was a toddler in the arms of her nanny, waving in their direction. It was Mikaela, who apparently recognized Lola.
Mrs. Arroyo told her distinguished guest that the child was her beloved apo, after which Bush tenderly took Mika, gave her a kiss and gamely posed for the horde of press, Malacañang and White House photographers.
Mika, dressed in a baby-pink outfit with spaghetti straps, did not protest at being carried by a total stranger. Bush was amused by Mika’s smiles to him and the cameras.
Mrs. Bush signed autographs with the schoolchildren, while her husband posed with Mika for photographers.
Mika’s parents, Pampanga Vice Gov. Juan Miguel Arroyo and Angela did not attend the welcome reception. Mika is their firstborn and Mrs. Arroyo’s first grandchild.
A well-behaved Mika, accompanied by Lolo, First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo, later joined 350 schoolchildren for a storytelling by Mrs. Bush, a former schoolteacher herself, at Kalayaan Hall.