By 5 p.m. today, I expect to be on a plane half full of media people and the other half full of travel industry executives all participating in the inaugural direct non-stop flight of Philippine Airlines to Toronto, Canada. From my experience all this came together in a period of three weeks, which goes to show how efficient PAL’s communications and events group can be. It also shows how fast the folks at the Canadian embassy are when it comes to processing visa applications in bulk.
This would be the first time that I’ve ever been invited to join such a trip by any airline, and the fact that Philippine Airlines has invited several senior columnists and a plane load of media people, send a clear message that they are aggressively promoting their routes as well as enhancing their relationships with the media and the travel agents. The decision to mount such a major “excursion” signals a new way and a big way of doing things. In fact when I discovered just how many industry members were invited, I immediately remembered an article about how Steve Jobs and Apple would always turn an announcement or product launch into a major event.
Yes, there is a sizeable expense attached to the media excursion, but what better way is there to tell the experience and advantage of taking the non-stop flight than by giving the experience to the media and the travel agents! Once you’ve done that, you’re almost guaranteed that you will have as many stories as you have invited guests on the inaugural flight. This is very much how car manufacturers promote their products, not by talking about them but by lending them to motoring journalists. The beauty about it all is that if you were to attach an advertising value to every seat and passenger on the inaugural flight, PAL will probably come out ahead because each testimony or article comes with the endorsement of the writers or travel executives.
I have to confess that I was iffy about the trip from the very start because Canada is not a familiar destination and rarely comes into my radar of general knowledge. It also did not help that almost everyone who heard about the trip immediately warned me to get as much warm clothes as I can because Toronto has been in sub-zero weather. I don’t know what it is about us humans, but for some reason we naturally come out with the dire warnings before we even talk about the many reasons for traveling somewhere.
Needless to say, all the dire warning about the weather made me have second thoughts, since I am at the moment not fully recovered from a failed attack of the flu, not to mention a string of back to back need to do things. I don’t know if I’m unique or strange in this matter, but time and again I always seem to suffer from pre-departure anxiety. Yes, I like to travel and I do enjoy myself on such trips. But for some strange reason, every time I’m about to take a trip, I begin to worry about unfinished assignments or stuff that suddenly seem to pop up out of nowhere! In this particular instance I have an old car in transit between Bacolod and Manila and needless to say, the thought of things going wrong almost wants to make me bail out. Whatever happened to my childlike excitement every time we were about to go on a trip? Is this what happens when people get older?
I have to confess that I am also capable of morbid humor, and on this occasion I quipped that if God forbid the plane crashed, P-Noy would automatically be rid of at least a quarter or half of his critics in media. On the other hand it would also mean that the President would lose some fair or favorable columnists. I can almost imagine someone saying, “Win some, Lose some.”
By God’s grace I was able to step on the brakes on my pre-departure anxieties and place everything in perspective. To begin with, this unexpected trip is most certainly an unexpected blessing from God, considering I get to see a country I’ve never been to, courtesy of Philippine Airlines. Yes I’m still a bit under the weather, but if anything can help, it would be a 15- or is it 16-hour flight where I can watch movies, listen to preaching podcasts, read a couple of books from Kindle or get as much sleep as I can! For several days, I will get to have time to re-energize and soak in a new experience that will certainly add to my stock knowledge and perspective. If all goes well, I might even receive fresh directions or revelation from God about the future. And as for all the stuff that might get left hanging, I simply reminded myself of what Governor Jun Dy once told me:
“All the unfinished work that you leave on your table at 5 p.m., Friday, will still be there at 8 a.m. on Monday of the following week still waiting for you.”
It didn’t take long for me to shake the pre-departure anxieties and soon I was off to MOA (Mall of Asia), where friends had tipped me off that “Uniqlo,” the Japanese fashion wear outlet carried a large array of thermal underwear. Yes they do and they have quite a selection. The only downside to my visit at the store is discovering that the store like many clothes retailers in major malls limit their sizes to 32 or under. I have always complained that stores automatically discriminate against older people who have bigger waistlines but have deeper pockets. When are these buyers and store chain owners going to realize that we the parents who are size 38 and up are the ones who have the jobs, make the money and has the disposable income? Fortunately there are more sensible retailers such as Marks & Spencer as well as SM who carry “big” sizes.
I guess you win some and you lose some. Your prayers would be much appreciated for the trip and for my family. God bless!