Making Boracay Two Hours Further Away

The wonderful thing about Caticlan Airport is that it's THAT close to Boracay. Flying in just before touchdown on the airstrip, and as long as you are on the correct side of the airplane, you can catch a bird's eye view of Bora's beautiful white sands. With a thud you come down, and after a few minutes collecting your bags, you take a 5 minute tricycle ride to the pier, take a 15 minute boat ride to the island, and less than three hours since you started your journey from your home in Manila, you are on the beach sipping your Mojitos.

What can ruin the vacation is not the hordes of tourists and the crowds. It's the experience after. Last week, instead of flying out of Caticlan airport, I had to take a van to Kalibo, a 90-minute journey, where I got on a PAL plane to get back to Manila. Instead of a quick flight back to the capital, my body, weakened of course by too much alcohol in too short a time, had to endure an added road-trip beating. The only explanation I got was that the winds prevented a safe takeoff, even though the PAL Express plane had managed to get in and was sitting there in the airport. (Did that mean it made an unsafe landing?)

It turns out that the diversion to Kalibo by airlines happens quite often. For consumers, beware that what you pay for -- the quickest way to get in and out of Bora -- is not necessarily what you always get.

Global Warming and Presidential Leadership

Something is definitely wrong here. Here is a leader who goes around Metro Manila with one of the largest carbon footprints around. Anyone who has been forced to wait on the road while the multi-vehicle convoy of the president wends its way through the city can't help but wonder why there has to be THAT many people to accompany her. And what does PGMA do? Give a speech urging others to cut CO2 output. We would love it if some enterprising soul could juxtapose this speech with a video of her PSG security escort.

President Arroyo Friday called on rich countries to impose drastic cuts on carbon dioxide emissions as well as extend financial aid to developing nations in combating climate change.

Addressing the International Conference on Green Industry in Asia at the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City, the President said world nations should also embrace the promotion of “green industry,” which involves sustainable economic development and clean environment.

Mrs. Arroyo made the appeal ahead of the United Nations-organized summit on climate change in Copenhagen, Denmark where countries.

“We call on all developed countries, referred as Annex 1 countries in climate change convention, to table their firm post-Kyoto greenhouse gas targets, taking into account ideals suggested by the international scientific community, and do this without conditionalities,” she said.

”We also call on them to assist developing countries to mitigate and adapt to worsening changes in climate by fulfilling their treaty obligations to provide technological and financial support, including support for green industry,'' she added.

At the upcoming climate change talks in Denmark, the Philippines is leading Southeast Asian countries to push the increased commitment of developed countries to reduction of emission of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. The country is expected to benefit from the new global deal on climate change through treaty’s adaptation fund, transfer of technology, and clean development mechanism.

In pushing for measures to fight global warming, the President said the Philippines feels the pain of natural disasters, rising seas more than most nations, although it accounts Ilocosfor a minimal percentage of the global greenhouse-gas emissions.

“Because of this we take every opportunity we can to call on countries to collectively secure a positive outcome to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change negotiations. The Philippines, as one of key negotiators in Group 77 and China in climate change talks, is focused squarely on the objective as it travels on the road to Copenhagen,” she said.

In the country, she said the government presses ahead with massive green Philippines environmental plan that is comprehensive in scope and thorough in execution. The plan includes reforestation, preservation of reefs and waterways, efforts against land and air pollution, and energy independence.

As part of the country’s concrete contribution to green industry, she said the government passed a landmark law promoting the development, use and commercialization of renewable resources. To stimulate investments in renewable energy sector, the law provides generous fiscal and non-fiscal incentives.