Davao de Oro benefits Confucius institute program and the first LGU beneficiary in the Philippines

Davao de Oro---
Finally, Confucius Institute has been successfully inaugurated at the Ateneo de Davao University (ADDU) in partnership with Huaqiao University on December 19, 2019 at the ADDU, Davao City.

Attending the inauguration were the Vice President (VP) of Huaqiao University- Mr. Zeng Lu, Mr. Zhang Xincheng, Director of International Exchange and Cooperation, Mr. Hu Peian, Director of Chinese Language and Culture Education and Mr. Xiang Shimin, Director of the Office of the Board of Trustees, Ms. Sholai Lim and the Davao de Oro officials and employees.

Davao de Oro as the beneficiary of four (4) programs under this institute and the first LGU beneficiary in the country represented by the 1st Lady of the Davao de Oro Province Ma’am Sholai Lim in behalf of Governor Jayvee Tyron L. Uy.

Confucius Institute  is a public educational organization under the Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China, whose stated aim is to promote Chinese language and culture, support local Chinese teaching internationally, and facilitate cultural exchanges.

Christine Torino Dompor- Provincial Tourism Officer warmly welcomed the visit of Huaqiao University executives to Davao de Oro headed by its university VP Mr. Zeng Lu joined by his director of international cooperation and exchange, director for language and culture and director for the board of trustees along with the members of Huaqiao Alumni Association who are based in the Philippines.

Huaqiao University is a national university and was founded in 1960 for students of overseas Chinese backgrounds (Hong Kong, Taiwan, Macau, Singapore and the Phils.) to pursue tertiary education in their ancestral homelands. The university has two campuses in the cities of Xiamen and Quanzhou, known for their large numbers of overseas Chinese who have roots in these cities.

According to Dompor that Huaqiao University officially opened its doors to the province early this year. Under the ‘Belt and Road’ initiative of China which the Philippines is part of, “we were given the opportunity to avail of the learning programmes and sent five students during the summer camp immersion last June 2019 for 7 days and five senior high school students last September 2019 for a 4- year intensive Mandarin Language course.

Dompor added that there are 25 government officials and employees of the province studying Chinese language and culture for six months that will be completed by May or June 2020, the first LGU in the country and the pioneering class of the newly inaugurated Confucius Institute of the Ateneo de Davao University.

“International cooperation, partnership and mutual understanding with international communities such as China will surely create more and more golden opportunities for Davao de Oro,” Dompor added.

On the other hand, Sholai Lim expressed her gratitude as she personally witnessed the inauguration of the Confucius Institute in Ateneo de Davao University, the first and only in the islands of Visayas and Mindanao, and probably the last to be installed in the Philippines.

Lim added “the opening of the Confucius Institute is a big step forward for us to learn new language, to understand deeper the Chinese culture and facilitate future exchanges between our people to foster international cooperation as we dream for a more cohesive and peaceful society.

Lim also congratulate the visionary University President of Ateneo de Davao Rev. Fr. Joel Tabora, SJ, Consul General Li Lin together with Asst. Consul Tung, and to the hardworking professors of AdDU Jenner Chan, Dr. Ging Panda and Prof. Hadji Balajadia to the faculty, administrators and officials of Huaqiao University, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio and Vice Mayor Sebastian Duterte.

( Rey Antibo, ID Davao de Oro)

Confucius Institute has been successfully inaugurated at the Ateneo de Davao University (AdDU) in partnership with Huaqiao University on December 19, 2019 at the AdDU, Davao City with the Davao De Oro officials and employees as the first LGU in the Country as beneficiary of the four (4) programs of the institute in learning the basic Chinese language and their culture.  (C. Dompor FB Post)

Optimism and golden bounties for Dabawenyos

Davao De Oro Province--- Davao De Oro provincial government celebrated the first Convocation for the year 2020 at the Provincial Capitol of Cabidianan, Nabunturan. It is a time for optimism and excitement. Year 2020 serves as a gate for all employees to stay focused and maintain the positive vibe at work, making 2020 the best entry year for Davao De Oro, a province of Golden Opportunities.

A Holy Mass was also celebrated as part of the activity, highlighted from the homily is to focus on finding one's own light that would definitely lead us to a better relationship with the almighty, thus becoming good employees for a better province.

Updates from the congressional office were given by the 1st and the 2nd District Representatives respectively Hon. Manuel "Waykurat" E. Zamora and Hon. Ruwel Peter Gonzaga. More or less P4 Billion pesos will be allotted for both Districts I and II of Davao De Oro according to Congressman Manuel E. Zamora from the National Budget for the year 2020, and will soon be signed by President Rodrigo Roa Duterte. The National Housing Authority (NHA) also gave the province an amount worth more or less 60 Million Pesos allotted for 100 housing units to three different municipalities of the province. All housing unis for the said project will be given to our Indigenous (IP) brothers and sisters within the province. Target for the next upcoming budget will be giving 100 housing units to all municipalities of Davao De Oro.

The UNCHR (United Nation High Commissioner for Refugees) complimented the Province for the "Pabahay Project" which gave its constituents not only a house to live in, but also accompanied with enough space for planting crops and domesticating animals as a source of income.

"Finally, for the last 3 years together with all the officials, our province was officially renamed last December 2019 to Davao De Oro. I've heard a lot of positive comments and feedback about it.This year, we made sure that our daily rate for our job orders will fall with the requirements of DOLE and this is a big rate compared to the past years and we will also reward our employees who stayed and remain with us up until now." said Governor Jayvee Tyron L. Uy. The Provincial Government of  Davao De Oro will be able to hire skilled workers and ensure a good paying rate that will be able to compete high-paying private companies. (Jasteen P. Abella, ID DAVAO DE ORO)

Photocaptions Davao De Oro 2020-  Davao De Oro Province celebrated the first Convocation for the year 2020 at the Provincial Capitol of Cabidianan, Nabunturan, Davao De Oro. It is a time for optimism and excitement. Year 2020 serves as a gate for all employees to stay focused and maintain the positive vibe at work, making 2020 the best entry year for Davao De Oro, a province of Golden Opportunities.(Photo by Jonie Cadiz)

Flight times getting longer?

My column in Mindanao Daily, BusinessWeek Mindanao and Cagayan de Oro Times

EVER wondered why flight times seem to be getting longer? Yes, I do. Checking my last ticket Davao-Manila-Davao and remembering some  real flight times from the past, I wonder why.  I learned from BBC-author Kathryn B. Creedy, that it’s called "padding", a phenomenon that helps airlines arrive on time – but at a cost.

My previous flight back to Davao from Manila one hour twenty minutes. My ticket showed a "flight-time" of exactly 2 hours. I guess, it’s a secret the airlines don’t want you to know about, especially given the spillover effects for the environment.

Padding is the extra time airlines allow themselves to fly from A to B. Because these flights were consistently late, airlines have now baked delays experienced for decades into their schedules instead of improving operations. It might seem innocuous enough to the passenger – after all, what it can mean is that even though you take off late, you’re pleasantly surprised to arrive on time at your destination. Remember the final arrival announcement by the smiling stewardess last time?

Kathryn Creedy is right in saying that however, this global trend poses multiple problems: not only does your journey take longer but creating the illusion of punctuality means there’s no pressure on airlines to become more efficient, meaning congestion and carbon emissions will keep rising.

“On average, over 30% of all flights arrive more than 15 minutes late every day despite padding,” says Captain Michael Baiada, president of aviation consultancy ATH Group citing the US Department of Transportation’s Air Travel Consumer Report. The figure used to be 40% but padding – not operational improvements – boosted on-time arrival rates. “By padding, airlines are gaming the system to fool you.”

So, how late is late? The ultimate goal is ‘A0’, or arrival at the gate exactly on time. If a flight is early or late, it can disrupt several other things – like gate availability and airport capacity.

To be fair, global airlines have invested billions of dollars in technologies to enable more efficient flight paths, according to industry body Airlines for America. But this has not moved the needle on delays, which are stubbornly stuck at 30%.

A lot of different things can cause a delay but Baiada believes 80% of the factors involved – like schedule, airport arrival flow queueing, aircraft availability, gate availability, maintenance and crew legality – are within the airlines’ control. But to date they have left it to air traffic control to remedy once planes are in the air.

Another option could be to reduce the number of flights – but airline flight schedules are designed to meet buyer demand. So, if there were fewer flights, fares would increase.

Well, should we give up and telling ourselves: better late than never? So what does all this mean for passengers? With airlines gaming the system, as it stands, flight times will likely increase as more and more planes take to the skies.

Fact is also that many airlines will try to make it tricky for passengers to get an eligible claim accepted. The tactic of extending flight times is yet another way to decrease a passenger’s chance of filing a claim and getting financially compensated for the hassle they have gone through.

Better late then never? I guess so.

Happy New Year 2020/Frohes Neues Jahr 2020

Before we end 2019, let me say this:

For the friendship

For the care

For the laughter

For the bond

For the jokes

For the text messages

For the smiles

For everything YOU have shared

THANK YOU…

peace in your heart,

health in your body,

wealth in your life,

joy in your home,

may you always be blessed with this priceless treasures.

Happy New Year 2020!
Ein Frohes und Gesegnetes Neues Jahr 2020!

17 TIPS FOR VISITING THE PHILIPPINES

 

Hello! My name is Nicole Sunderland and I am full-time travel writer and social media influencer from Washington, D.C.

You can expect to find hotel reviews, tips and tricks, itineraries, cruise information, foodie guides, and travel inspiration here on my website.

Thanks for stopping by.

XO - Nicki

Samal Island

Visiting the Philippines is a place I highly recommend. After spending nearly 4 weeks island hopping and getting to know the country, I learned a thing or two that I wish I had known. The Philippines is made up of over 7,000+ islands for you to explore and I barely touched the surface on this journey.

While I was visiting the Philippines, I went to Manila, Bohol, El Nido, Samal, and Davao. Each island was so different and something amazing to offer its visitors. The one thing that remained consistent was the incredible hospitality and the food. You are going to be treated like family and fed well. I hope these tips help you in your plans for visiting the Philippines and if you have any questions, leave a comment.

VISITING THE PHILIPPINES: 17 TIPS:

1. Don’t leave the airport without the local currency, Pesos – I cannot stress how important this is. It took me 6 days to find an ATM that was international and would take my debit card. Normally I would get the local currency at my airport but they did not carry it. If you are heading to more remote islands, I would highly suggest to make this a top priority. It is very rare to find places that take credit card. Everyone wants cash.
   1. Tip: Some of the airports charge a fee of 100-200 pesos just to wait in the terminal for your flight. This is done by cash only.
   2. Tip 2: Make sure to set your debit card on a travel alert so you are not denied cash when you need it.
   3. Tip 3: You can check with your hotel before arrival and see if they have an international ATM, as some of them do. However, if you are taking a taxi from the airport, you will need local currency.  
      
2. Traffic can be overwhelming – this is not the same as Columbus, Ohio traffic jam in the afternoon leaving work. I’m saying it can take you 1 and a half hours to go 3 kilometers in traffic during their rush hours because a lot of people live here. It will literally be stop and go traffic for the duration of the trip, so prepare yourself for this while visiting the Philippines.
   1. Tip: Plan ahead if you need to get somewhere that is time sensitive, especially the airport.
   2. Bonus: Use Uber to get around. With their fixed rates you never have to guess what your fare will be. I paid about 200 pesos to take the hour and a half drive. To break that down, the exchange rate with U.S. dollars is 45 pesos to 1 USD. Not even $5 dollars for an Uber.
3. Try everything that is UBE – UBE is a purple yam and the Filipino culture loves it. They have created all kinds of amazing foods from it and it can be addicting! From gelato to jams, cakes to pastries – don’t miss this unique food.
   

   UBE jam is my favorite – hands down
4. Get a portable wifi hotspot – most lodging has wifi in the big cities and it works great. When you are roaming the cities it is nice to stay connected and not have to pay a fortune in international cell service. I use Skyroam when I travel and it’s as low as $8 dollars a day for a 24 hour connection.
   1. Bonus: Skyroam allows you to add up to 5 devices – this means you can run it on your phone and computer or even it share it with your travel companions.
   2. Double Bonus: Skyroam is very lightweight and can fit in your pocket or easily into your bag.
   3. Side note: Skyroam does not work in every country. Skyroam does work in over 100 countries but it is still adding new countries. Check before you purchase one to make sure it covers the areas you are going to.
5. Don’t drink the water – some people will tell you not to others will tell you it is ok. If it is from a faucet, I would suggest no. Stock up on water, even to brush your teeth. All the hotels I stayed in over my visit actually provided 2+ bottles per day as part of the room.
   1. Tip: there were a few times I was massively dehydrated and asked my hotels for more water and they provided it. Don’t be afraid to ask. Otherwise, you can purchase some and its very cheap.
6. Take in a sunset – No matter which island you find yourself on while visiting the Philippines, they are equally as magical! I was fortunate enough to see many sunsets during my trip and its very easy to fall in love.
   1. Tip: The sunsets were different around the islands from oranges to purples – but all just as lovely!
      

      Sunset in Manila
      

      Sunset in Bohol
7. It is hot in the Philippines – Located in Southeast Asia, the Philippines keep a warm wet climate year round. There is a lot of breeze to go around though – as it glides through the 7,000+ islands.
   

   Pearl Farm Beach Resort
   1. Tip: Even if the sky is dark grey during the day, wear sunscreen. That dark sky still has a sun and it is going to burn your skin if you don’t take precautions. I made the big mistake of not using sunscreen because it looked stormy – and then I spent the next four days in bed burnt to a crisp. Don’t let something you can prevent ruin your trip.
   2. Tip 2: If you are burnt, stay inside. The sun and heat will make it worse than it is. I left my hotel for supplies the day after I got sunburn and it felt like my skin was melting. Cool showers, aloe and sleeping in a cool bed with little to no clothing so it doesn’t irritate your skin – this will do wonders.
   3. Bonus: there are places you can get an aloe massage for your burn and it’s not very expensive. I would highly recommend this.
8. If you plan to visit more than one island, try to pack everything into a carry-on – there are many local air carriers that allow you a carry-on up to a certain weight free of charge. They charge for extra weight and for checked luggage. Keeping a carry-on allows you to move through the airports quickly and not to over pack. As an added bonus, you save money by not having to check your luggage .
   1. Tip: The weather is pretty warm so you won’t need winter gear to visit. Think light clothes, bathing suit and 2 pairs of shoes: 1 flip flop and 1 tennis shoe or dress shoe, depending on your plans.
   2. Bonus: laundry is unbelievably cheap to do. Maybe $2-3 USD for a good amount.
9. Pack flip flops, they are essential – it does rain and the streets hold the water for a little while – having flip flops you can wash off helps in not ruining your shoes. I would suggest rubber flip flops since leather ones will get wet and then stink. I was caught in the rain several times and I am so glad I had shoes that could withstand the flooded streets and not fall on my face. You’ll be glad you packed these.
   1. Tip: if you forget to pack them, no worries. Everywhere sells them. You’ll be able to secure a pair in no time.
10. The Philippines is more than just beaches – the beaches are beautiful and offer different color sands, but there is also jungles and mountains. Get out there and explore! You won’t regret taking in more of the countries beauty.
11. The Philippines can be done on a backpacker budget or a luxury budget: Southeast Asia is reputable for being a backpacker and budget travel area. However, after staying in luxury properties for most of my trip, I can assure you there is plenty of luxury to go around. The islands offer something for everyone: you can go as cheap as $10 a night in some hostels to $1000+ a night in villas over the water. It’s all about how you want to tailor your trip.
    1. Bonus: no matter what your travel style, the Filipino culture is extremely hospitable and offers top notch service.
12. Bring common medications with you: I did get sick a few times and I needed Imodium, was severely dehydrated and had a cold. You know what medications work best for you – pack some back-ups just in case you find yourself sick. Sometimes it can be hard to find things you know and are used to using in foreign countries. It never hurts to be prepared when visiting the Philippines.
    1. Tip: It wouldn’t hurt to bring a mini first aid kit. I needed band-aids a few times from cutting my foot on some coral..and guess who didn’t have anything? Yep-me.
13. Everyone I met spoke perfect English and it is wildly popular throughout the country – this was a huge bonus for me. Being able to communicate in full sentences really helps the transition. This isn’t a make or break deal for travel for me nor should it be for anyone else, but it is comforting knowing you will be able to talk to people and get where you are going or whatever you need. The culture loves tourists and they will engage you and get to know you.
    1. Bonus: Don’t be surprised when you have a flood of new friends – the culture is very friendly!
14. Definitely visit more than one of the islands – since the Philippines are made up of over 7,000+ islands .. you might as well visit more than one. Deciding on which island to visit is going to depend on what your interests are. If you want to swim with whale sharks (seasonal) then you will want to go to Cebu. If you want to island hop and see the most famous islands and lagoons, then El Nido will be your destination.
    1. Tip: getting between the islands is not very expensive. Book in advance and save a little money on your tickets and/or ferry or bus fares.
       

       Island hopping in El Nido
       

       River cruise in Bohol
15. Pack bug spray and use it – if you are visiting the Philippines, bring bug spray! Zika has sort of died out, so that isn’t such a big worry, but there are still bugs. It may be easier to just take the precaution. There are a lot of mosquito’s, so even if they aren’t carrying Zika, they are still going to bug you.
16. Eat your food Kamayan – which means with your hands. It’s traditional to eat food without utensils and to bond with others in the Filipino culture. I was able to do this once on my trip and it really brought the table together – versus everyone being on their cell phones. This was a great cultural experience I had while visiting the Philippines. 
    
17. Get a window seat on the plane – You don’t want to miss being able to see the beautiful water and the islands coming to, moving among or leaving when visiting the Philippines. Even when it is gloomy out you can see the magical colors of the water around the islands.
    

    Views leaving Bohol, Philippines
    
    
    
    
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