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Bees, boats and a volcano

By Susan Claire Agbayani

WHEN Metro Manila’s denizens want to escape the big city, one of the first destinations they think of are the beaches of Batangas, but they rarely think of areas in the province that are more inland. Yet from a homebase in the center of the province, one has access to historical, religious, and natural attractions.

Lipa_Cathedral

Not too far from the metropolis is the Lima Park Hotel, located, surprisingly, inside an industrial park, the Lima Technology Center, from which one can visit religious sites in Lipa and the volcano in Taal.

Lima Park Hotel

“Lima” is a combination of the names of the two Batangas towns — “Lipa” and “Malvar” — where the huge center is located. Originally owned by Japanese company Marubeni Corp. and initially intended for Japanese expats in the industrial zone, the hotel was well built using Japanese technology, said the hotel’s Resident Manager Bong Evangelista, Jr., over lunch at the hotel’s restaurant Asian Flavours.

“The hotel combines the functionality of a business hotel with the amenities, comfort and luxury of a five-star exclusive club,” said Mr. Evangelista. And because of its unique location within an industrial park, security is of utmost importance.

The hotel was eventually bought by businessman Saturnino G. Belen, whose other business include publishing (the Bato Balani and Salaguinto Science classroom magazines, among others.), semicon manufacturing, logistics, aviation, property management and land development, and education.

From its original 60 rooms, the hotel has expanded to 136, with prices ranging from P5,200 (Superior) to P12,500 (Executive Suite), with its Governor’s Suite priced at P25,000 a day. The hotel has some rooms tailored for PWDs, and it gives hefty discounts to long-staying guests.

MarianOrchard,Baletejf0166_43

Bikes, boats and APEC

One of the special attractions of Lima Park Hotel is that many of its packages include day trips to interesting areas in its vicinity.

Interested in a bit of history mixed with religion? There is the Bisita Batangas Weekend Special Plus (a De Luxe Room for P4,999), which includes a tour to Lipa’s Casa Segunda, a bahay na bato named after Segunda Solis Katigbak, whom history buffs know was first love of Dr. Jose Rizal, and Balete town’s Marian Orchard, a park which features statue of the apostles, Stations of the Cross, and the Sacred Heart Tower which has a view of Taal Volcano from the top. Or one can opt to visit the Marian Orchard and Golden Clover Bee Farm. For the more religious, there are also tours to the Shrine of Padre Pio in Sto. Tomas town, or a tour to San Sebastian Church and Mt. Carmel Church in Lipa.

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Check-in is required either on Saturdays or Sundays for both the Bisita Batangas Weekend Special Plus and the Bisita Batangas Weekend Special (Superior Room for four adults at P3,999 with breakfasts, and lunch or dinner, access to Wi-Fi, swimming pool, fitness center, and 30 minutes use of a bike)

The hotel is offering an APEC Holiday Weekend Getaway package from Nov. 18 to 22 for P3,999, which includes everything in the package for the Bisita Batangas Weekend Special Plus. Check in between Nov. 18 to 22.

The hotel also offers a tour around Taal Lake on its own boat, the Lady of the Lake, from which guests get a view of the different towns of Batangas and Cavite (including the Tagaytay Ridge) which surround the famed volcano lake. For an additional fee, a group can also trek to the crater of Taal Volcano on foot or on horseback.

There are other nearby places to visit like Nayomi Sanctuary Resort at the beach of Balete, Batangas where actors John Prats and Isabel Oli were wed; and the Batangas Dairy and Multipurpose Cooperative where guests can see how cows are milked, bottle feed young cows, and purchase dairy products such as fresh cow’s milk, chocolate milk, yogurt and cheeses.

“Lima Park Hotel is starting a cooperation with hotel, resort, and restaurant owners/operators under the Bisita Batangas campaign. The objective is to organize and professionalize the local hospitality industry and promote tourism in the province,” said Rosalind Landicho, the hotel’s Director for Marketing and Corporate Communications. “We’re starting with Sto. Tomas, Tanauan, Malvar, Balete, and Lipa. It’s a work in process, and we’re receiving positive feedback from a good number of potential co-operators,”

Those who want an out-of-town tour but wish to go home on the same day can avail of the One Day Getaway at the hotel for P600 per person which includes unlimited use of the pool and P500 consumable on food and beverages.

Apart from its rooms — which have breathtaking views of Mts. Makiling and Malarayat — the hotel has Asian and Italian restaurants, and offers complete banquet packages for corporate and social events.

Lima Park Hotel is located at the Lima Technology Center, Malvar, Batangas. For inquiries, call 043-981-1555 or 0917-504-2385, e-mail marketing@ limaparkhotel.com or reservations@limaparkhotel.com or visit wwwlimaparkhotel.com.

Johnnie Walker launches campaign for joy

SCOTCH whisky brand Johnnie Walker recently launched its happiness-centered “The Way I Walk” campaign as well as the campaign’s faces, a press release from its parent firm announced this week.

“Mountaineer Romi Garduce and musician, actress, and blogger Saab Magalona are among a growing number of people who epitomize a way of thinking that challenges the conventional wisdom that success leads to happiness,” the statement read.

“Instead, these remarkable personalities celebrate the fact that happiness actually helps people achieve more.”

The new global campaign declares joy “the key to meaningful progress” and highlights people “who credit the power of joy with taking them further. Its global endorsers include Formula One world champion and McLaren Honda driver Jenson Button, actor Jude Law, American alternative rock band OK Go, and Mr. Garduce — the Philippines’ first “global ambassador” for the whisky brand, according to the statement.

Mr. Garduce is the first and so far only Filipino to have climbed the Seven Summits, the highest mountains of each of the seven continents.

Dr. Matt Killingsworth, a US-based psychologist who studies human happiness, was a consultant for the campaign. “People sometimes think of happiness as a far-off, distant prize only to be won by their years of hard work or when they achieve conventional markers of success, like a higher income or a bigger house. But there is a growing body of evidence that enjoying happiness along the way makes success more likely,” he was quoted saying.

For his part, Jon Good, general manager of Johnnie Walker parent Diageo Philippines, Inc., said: “Evidence is confirming a conviction that sits at the heart of our brand: ‘Joy will take you further.’

IVF comes to Mindanao

By Maya M. Padillo

DAVAO CITY — A group of female doctors specializing in fertility know that fatalism, or the Filipino bahala na attitude, is prevalent among many couples when it comes to child-bearing.

Turkish firm fined over commercial ‘insulting’ national yoghurt drink

TURKEY’S state-owned tea production company has been fined by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan over a TV commercial deemed insulting to ayran, the country’s yoghurt-based “national drink.”

In the commercial for “Didi,” a popular iced tea product made by state-owned Caykur, Turkish rap star Ceza sings: “I’ve tried ayran; it makes me sleepy.”

Turkey’s trade ministry ordered Caykur to pay 220,000 Turkish liras ($75,000) for “insulting ayran without a reason and giving consumers a wrong message aimed at decreasing the consumption of ayran.”

The company was also ordered to stop airing the ad, which the ministry said constituted “unfair competition against companies that sell ayran,” Hurriyet newspaper reported on Sunday.

Mr. Erdogan, a devout Muslim who does not smoke or drink, has urged people to imbibe  the frothy, salted beverage and declared it in 2013 the “national drink” of Turkey rather than raki, a strong aniseed-flavored liquor.

The authorities are accused of setting up a cult of personality around Mr. Erdogan, who became president last year after over a decade as prime minister.

The number of prosecutions for “insulting” the head of state have risen since he became the president. Artists, journalists, and schoolchildren have all been targeted. — AFP

Cookin’ it up with the Koreans

By Cecille Santillan-Visto

Theater Review
Cookin’ Nanta
The Theater
Solaire Resort and Casino
Until Nov. 15, 8 p.m.

5 myths and facts about diabetes

THERE are many misconceptions regarding diabetes — a serious condition with severe effects that can last a lifetime — with some people thinking that certain foods or situations will immediately make them diabetics.

The unbearable lightness of Chinese emissions data

By David Stanway and Kathy Chen

BEIJING — To get a sense of how hard it is to measure greenhouse gas emissions in China, it pays to visit the Deqingyuan poultry farm on the outskirts of Beijing, where streams of chicken manure are piped from wooden sheds to an industrial gas digester that rises above the ground like a tethered balloon.

SeaWorld to do away with orca show after brand, attendance take hit

LOS ANGELES — US theme park SeaWorld announced Monday that it planned to phase out its signature orca show, which has come under intense criticism in recent years.

The company said the orca show at its second biggest park in San Diego would be replaced in 2017 with a new “informative” attraction in a more natural setting.

“We are not limited to any one animal, to any one show, to any one attraction,” CEO Joel Manby said in making the announcement to investors, at an event that was Webcast.

“We are listening to our guests; we’re evolving as a company; we’re always changing.”

SeaWorld suffered a backlash and saw attendance plummet at its 11 parks, particularly in California, in the wake of the critically-acclaimed 2013 documentary Blackfish, which spotlighted the impact of captivity on orcas.

It has since endeavored to reverse its misfortunes with a new marketing campaign and discount offers.

On Monday, Mr. Manby unveiled to investors a five-point plan to boost the company’s image and declining attendance, including building awareness around the brand, bringing in new talent, and launching new attractions.

“The issue is, we need to break through the noise,” said Jill Kermes, senior corporate affairs officer.

“We need to get the information flow to a net positive.”

But, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, which has long clashed with the Miami-based marine tourist attraction, said SeaWorld’s announcement on the orca show did not go far enough.

Jared Goodman, director of animal law at PETA, said while it was necessary for SeaWorld to end the “tawdry circle-style shows,” the company needed to stop keeping orcas in captivity.

“This move is like no longer whipping lions in a circus act, but keeping them locked inside cages for life; or no longer beating dogs, but never letting them out of crates,” he said.

Last week, California lawmaker Adam Schiff said he planned to introduce a new bill that would phase out the captivity of orcas and prohibit their breeding, measures that would effectively spell the end of SeaWorld’s whale shows.

“The evidence is very strong that the psychological and physical harm done to these magnificent animals far outweighs any benefits reaped from their display,” Mr. Schiff said.

“We cannot be responsible stewards of our natural environment and propagate messages about the importance of animal welfare when our behaviors do not reflect our principles.”

He said the bill — the Orca Responsibility and Care Advancement (ORCA) Act — will ensure that this will be the last generation of orcas who live in captivity.

SeaWorld responded by saying that it treated its animals with dignity and that it had not captured a whale in the wild in 35 years.

“While efforts to phase out whales in human care may strike an emotional chord, SeaWorld and other science-based organizations are part of the solution, not the problem,” it said. — AFP

The young and the reckless

THEATER
This is Our Youth
Presented by Red Turnip Theater
Ongoing until Nov. 22
A Space Gallery, 110 Legazpi Street, Makati City (across Greenbelt 5)

Horrorshow

By Noel Vera

Movie Review
Violator

‘Biosocial’ approach must go with biomedical tack to control TB

Medicine Cabinet
Reiner W. Gloor

CONTROLLING and managing the spread of tuberculosis (TB) more effectively in a country such as the Philippines may require new strategies such as a “biosocial” approach hand-in-hand with biomedical solutions.

How does climate change make people poorer?

BARCELONA — A new report from the World Bank finds that the poorest people are more exposed to climate-related shocks such as floods, droughts and heat waves than those with average incomes.