count your blessings

For the first time in my 26 years of existence, I welcomed the New Year’s Eve alone.  I thought I would be lonely but I was not…

My place is quite a mess due to the excessively long hours spent at work. I thought I may be able to clean it up a bit. Well, I did but I never got to finish it.

Last 23 December, I submitted my resignation letter. It was such a great risk because I do not have a new job yet and I am going to enroll again in graduate school this year.  To make things worse, my job does not pay me well so I do not have enough savings.  In effect, I had to budget my salary and holiday bonus really well. It does worry me but not much to make me anxious.

Blessing #1 A lot of people greeted me and graciously invited me to spend the New Year with them. I had to politely turn them down because I felt like there is a reason why I had to celebrate it physically alone.

Blessing # 2: As I was rummaging through my stuff as I was preparing for church (New Year’s Eve worship service), I saw an envelope with money worth my 2-week salary. I was so surprised because I have not been including it on my budget. I have forgotten that I set aside some money for my tuition.

Blessing # 3:  When I got out of the building as I head to church, I realized it was drizzling. Most of the time, I really am oblivious of the weather. Since my unit is at the 12th floor, I will be late for the worship service at the church I attend to if I still come back for my umbrella. I just whispered a quick prayer it would not rain real hard. It did not!

Blessing # 4: During the congregational prayer at church, I prayed that I will be led to His plans for me. I believe that He spoke to me through the people at church. I have already responded to His call. But, I am not revealing anything yet because I still needed to be sure if I understood Him right.

Blessing # 5: At the bus stop, there was a lot of people waiting but it seemed that there are few buses on the road today. After a few minutes, I was able to get on a bus. I even got  a seat.

Blessing # 6: I was able to start responding to what seems to be my calling. There are a lot of information available over the internet and it made me very hopeful.

Blessing # 7: I am still alive! I can still be a blessing to others…

reflection for new year

The recent turn of events in my life have led me to ponder and reflect about what would make me “really” happy about a job. No matter how much I wanted to deny it, I have come to the conclusion that teaching does run through my bloodstream.

I am actually from a family of teachers. Both my parents taught in high school level a few years after they have graduated in college. A couple of aunts and a number of cousins are also in the education industry. Moreover, I am confident to say that I am good with children and I do enjoy being with them as much as they enjoy being around me.

I know it would be almost a 360-degree turn in my career life. But, I believe that if I follow what my heart and soul is telling me to do, then everything will work out just fine. I hope…

Twilight quadrilogy…

As an avid book reader, I really do not understand why the Twilight series became such a big hit. It was such an easy read that I was able to finish each book in one sitting.

Around July 2008, my bedside book was Witch of Portabello by my favorite author – Paulo Coelho. I have not been reading for quite some time then that I was able to read only one chapter every night. There was so much information in it that I find it difficult to take them all in.

Then, my sister came home with three hardbound books. She told me that people are saying that it was going to be the next Harry Potter. Out of curiosity, I tried reading the first book – Twilight. I read New Moon and Eclipse the following nights.

I personally did not find anything special about the story except that it is entertaining. I apologize to all the Stepanie Meyer fans reading this but her writing skills is not that impressive. The plot has a lot of twists and turns but predictable nonetheless. Every detail is a give-away, leaving no space for the reader’s imagination to wander about even just for a while. Also, instead of building up the personalities of the characters, they are described up front. Some of the dialogues are intriguing, but not meaningful enough to be quoted.

Then came the movie, everybody was excited about it. As expected, it was a shortened version of the book. Though some parts were omitted, it was OK. I did not miss them much. Either the screenwriter and/or director did a very good job taking out the parts. Or, these parts are not significant to the wholeness of the story in the first place.

I have read Breaking Dawn as well. I confess that I skipped some parts because it was too dragging.

Having read all four, I realized that the books can not be independent from each other. It is highly recommended that people read the four books in chronological order. If you read the latter books before the first ones, then you would get lost on the characters.

Blessing in disguise

The most difficult situation I have encountered lately is being assigned to handle two branches at the same time for more than a month. Though I have handled the two branches individually in the past, I have not handled two branches at one time before. More than the distance between the two branches, what is really difficult for me is the fact that the operations (including organizational structure) of both branches is extremely opposite.
I had a moment of panic during the first few days. But I knew I had to get my acts together for the benefit of both branches. I coordinated with the Human Resource department so there would not be any problems in the submission of HR forms. I also assigned my unofficial officers-in-charge for both branches. Most importantly, I talked to the personnel of both branches to let them be aware of the situation and asked for everybody’s cooperation.
Currently, I am handling another branch. After just a few days of being assigned there, my office assistant/therapist secretary had to leave (without proper turn over nor endorsement) because of personal reasons. So, I am left to do her supposed job as well. So now, I am always in close coordination not just with the HR department but the Purchasing/Inventory department as well.
Some may view my situation as unfortunate but I see it as an opportunity for learning. Not only that I was forced to realize the extent of my capabilities, I also learned how to humble myself and ask for help.

Reflections

After three consecutive years of spending the New Year’s eve in a hotel in Makati, my family welcomed this year in my hometown and missed to watch the fireworks display through the hotel room window.

A one-night hotel stay will not fit in my budget anymore. Since I continued on with my masteral studies despite being unemployed for seven months, I now only have PhP2000 left from my savings. To make matters worse, my family is facing a financial crisis as well because of the peso-dollar exchange rate. (My father is an OFW.) But as much as I want to feel sad about my penniless situation, I can’t afford to do so. In fact, I have never felt so blessed! Indeed, sometimes, we have to be emptied for us to realize and appreciate what we have.

First and foremost, my ’situation’ brought me closer to God. I am most eager to go to church every Sunday knowing that it would be a ‘date’ with Him. Whenever I hear mass, my mind does not wander off to places anymore. Though I did not have income to get tithes from anymore, I still heartily gave my offerings. I pray to Him more often and always turn to His Word when making decisions. Also, I was able to put an end to my ’social drinking’. Kudos to me!

Why am I so happy about all these? Though my parents became Christians when I was still a child and I was a Sunday school kid myself, I did go astray for a while before I realized that I am heading the wrong path and slowly found my way back to God. During my teens, going to church became just a routine and a venue for hanging-out with friends. I got even more discouraged when a group of church members went against the pastor. This happened just before I went to college where I transformed from being a naive provincial girl into a raging city girl – partying and drinking until the break of dawn, hanging out in billiard halls even on school nights, cutting classes to go to the malls or the cinemas. But, I managed to still appear ‘perfect’ when I am home. Looking back, the best advice I ever got then came from my mother. She told me, “Do not get yourself into something you can not get yourself out.”

Like almost everyone I know, I also did have ‘issues’ with my parents. As a child, I was raised and groomed to be an academic achiever. And following the natural order of the universe, I had always wanted to go against it. In highschool, I busied myself with extracurriculars so I can have a ‘valid’ excuse for barely making it to the top ten of my graduating class. In college, I failed a couple of subjects so my parents would allow me to shift from engineering to tourism. Whenever things don’t go my way, I always blamed it on them. But behind this head-strong pain-in-the-@#$% tigress is a scared and insecure kitten. I realized that I was doing all these because I wanted them to lower their expectations on me. I was afraid that if for some reason I hit my head and become stupid, they would not love me as much.

But I know better now. At an age when I am supposed to be financially dependable, I am an unemployed masteral student who does not even have a clue on what she ought to do with her life. If my fears were correct, my parents should be nagging me now on how useless I am. But I was wrong… Even when I feel like a loser myself already, they are still very proud of who I am and what I have become. Instead of pressuring me to look for a job, my father (whom I always argue with) even proposed to support me financially so I can just focus on finishing my studies. I am not quite sure if it is some reverse psychology tactic he put on me. But as much as the gesture moved me, I can not accept his offer. My sister is still in college and she needs it more than I do. As I have mentioned earlier, my family is having financial problems though we try not to make it get the best of us. Nevertheless, it made me realize that their love for me is exceptionally unconditional.

But there is one lesson I think God is trying to teach me yet and I think it is about my fear of being lonely at the top. I do not want to be uber successful but have no friends to celebrate it with. But then again, most of my closest friends have already left the country. And half of those who are still here plan to go abroad as well.

Going back to how I spent the New Year… The people at my church decided to visit each other’s houses. It was a lot of fun. The smile in everybody’s hearts sparkled through their eyes – better than any fireworks display I’ve ever seen. It did feel like God’s family.

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Mémoires d’un Voyage

Start off with a couple of your good stories to lighten things up. It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it – because personality always wins the day! ( Arthur Miller, Death of a Salesman)

Thursday, 01 November 2007

I visited the cemetery today. As I looked back on the lives of my departed loved ones and how they lived it, I realized that it has been a while since I last enjoyed my own life… and being alive.

When I got home, I went online and booked myself a room and a roundtrip flight to Thailand. I am going to Koh Lanta tomorrow!

Friday, 02 November 2007

I spent nearly half of the day traveling. From Bangkok, I still had to take a flight to Krabi and 2 ferry rides more before I arrived (after three long hours) at Koh Lanta Yai.

Nevertheless, it’s all worth it. This island paradise located in the Andaman Sea of southern Thailand is not only beautiful; there are also a lot of activities to enjoy here.

How I wish I could stay here forever…

Saturday, 03 November 2007

As I was leisurely walking along the beach, I met a French couple who were touring around Southeast Asia. They are big fanatics of Koh Lanta (the French franchise of the popular reality American TV show “Survivor”), thus they were visiting the island from which the show got its name.

I learned from them (to my surprise!) that the most successful of the series was the seventh season which was shot entirely in El Nido, Palawan. They confessed that the French people have fallen head over heels in love with the pristine beauty of Palawan’s landscape. They also revealed that they are saving the best for last on their vacation… They are going to Palawan for the finale!

Since they will be staying in the Philippines for a couple of weeks, they want to explore not just Palawan but other places as well. So, they asked me for some tips or suggestions on where-to-go and what-to-do in the Philippines.

As I am feeling extra proud to be a Filipino today, not only did I recommend an itinerary, I even taught them a few Filipino phrases.

Sunday, 04 November 2007

My three-day two-night vacation has come to its end!

I knew I wished to never leave Koh Lanta anymore… But today, I have never been more excited to go back home! As soon as I got home, I researched online about Koh Lanta – Palawan. No wonder those guys are crazy about Palawan! Even the host Denis Brogniart and the producer Thierry Graff have told pleasant stories about the beauty of Palawan, the hospitality of the Filipinos and how safe the Philippines is as a destination.  Merci beaucoup, mes amis… Au revoir…  

Online References :http://inquirerbloggers.net/talesofthenomad/2007/10/15/palawan-takes-french-tv-audiences-breath-away/ 

http://www.ehotelbooking.com/kohlanta/index.html

http://www.goodnewspilipinas.com/docs/art_and_culture/current/koh_lantah.html 

http://www.lantathailand.com/history.html

 

Crowne Plaza Galleria

A Case Study on  Keeping Customers

InterContinental Hotels Group is the largest hotel company by number of rooms and manages the world’s largest loyalty program (Priority Club Rewards) with 26 million members to date. IHG’s expansion is committed to sustained growth in the future, thus, IHG’s core strategy concentrates on the growth of its managed and franchised operations.

Around the globe, IHG has more than 3,800 owned, leased, managed and franchised hotels across over 100 countries and territories flying the Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza Hotels and Resorts, Holiday Inn Express, Staybridge Suites, Hotel Indigo, Candlewood Suites and Intercontinental Hotels and Resorts flags offering a variety of services, amenities and lodging experiences catering to virtually every travel occasion and guest need.

In the Philippines, IHG has four hotels under its wings which consist of InterContinental Hotel Manila, Holiday Inn Resort – Pampanga, Holiday Inn Galleria, and the recently built Crowne Plaza Galleria Manila.  Each of these hotels caters to different market segments.

Crowne Plaza hotels are marketed as “The Place to Meet”, premium accommodations designed for the discerning business and leisure traveler who appreciates simplified elegance. Crowne Plaza Galleria Manila (CP Manila), like other Crowne Plaza properties, offers personalized service and one point of contact for hassle-free meeting. In addition to the brand’s Sleep Advantage program including a sleep kit (complete with ear plugs and eye mask), quiet zones, guaranteed wake-up calls and new bedding, CP Manila boasts of spacious rooms and room amenities/facilities designed to fit the needs of a business traveler that are superior relative to other (business) hotels in the area. Moreover, CP Manila has duvet covers on every bed and a separate shower and bathtub in every bathroom.

CP Manila, the newest hotel in the Metropolitan Manila, is almost always fully booked. CP Manila shares the business facilities as well as the pool area and fitness facilities with a co-IHG brand that is renowned in the US as a budget hotel, Holiday Inn Galleria (HI Galleria). Both hotels are accessible through Robinson’s Galleria Mall and through each other. CP Manila’s standard room rate is USD145– USD155 while HI Galleria’s standard room rate is USD100 – USD120.

CP Manila has become the venue of some much talked-about celebrity gatherings or events. The list includes the extravagant birthday party of Ruffa Gutierrez’ daughter, accommodation of Manny Pacquiao before his much-sensationalized boxing match against Eric Morales, and the most recent, accommodation for Pinoy Big Brother Season 2 housemates the night before they were accommodated in Kuya’s house.

Given these information, can CP Manila’s success be attributed to the fact that it is new? Is it being positioned the way it should be? How can CP Manila sustain its customer base without eating up that of Holiday Inn?

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Dok, Dok… I am Sick!

(Medical Tourism in the Philippines) 

Economy. Tourism. It can be observed all over the world that countries with good economies experience lively tourism industries. Perhaps, it is active tourism in a country that creates progress in the economy. Whatever the case, it is inevitable to have a good economy and a good tourism industry at the same time.  

Being a third world country, the Philippine government has been using the tourism industry to help boost its economy. Our government is making the most of what the country has and can offer, that is, natural assets and rich culture. 

While WOW Philippines has been promoting our country’s natural environment as destinations, the More Than The Usual campaign presented the Philippines as an experience.  But then again, other Asian countries like Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and even Vietnam are also doing the same thing. And sadly, their promotional aggressiveness is paying off at the expense of the Philippines. 

Business or pleasure? In general, tourists can be classified into two; those traveling for a purpose and those traveling for the fun of it. So while other Asian countries focus on leisure travelers, the Philippines targets tourists who travel for a purpose. 

Our country has been doing sports tourism for a few years now. We have been a venue for competitions like the SEA Games, Paralympics, Pyrolympics, boxing and pool matches as well as the Miss Earth beauty pageant. And the airline and hotel industry can attest that it is quite successful in bringing in tourists in the Philippines. 

Our country’s newest tourism direction is towards medical tourism. We now have hospitals with hotel-like accommodations or resort-like setup.

Also, some medical procedures are cheaper if done in the Philippines. For example, it is more expensive for a US-based patient to avail of LASIK treatment in his host country than in the Philippines (including airfare, accommodations and the procedure itself). 

Our government is also planning to build retirement communities which are targeted to foreign retirees to give jobs to Filipino nurses and caregivers.  What is more… “Hilot” is being promoted as the Philippines’ signature massage therapy and “albularyo” healing is being considered as an alternative medical treatment in line with acupuncture and herbal medication. 

If you are the Secretary of the Department of Tourism, what would be your strategy/investment decision? In which market would you compete, business or leisure? Can the Philippines handle medical tourism?

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All my bags are packed, I am ready to go…

To all my readers….

Good day! 

At first, I did not like the concept of blogging. The thought of other people reading through my journal entries just made me uncomfortable. But here I am, surrendering to the call for sharing a part of myself to you.

I would like to invite you to join me as I try to listen to the song of my soul, and follow where it will lead me.

Thanks, 

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