Having visited Subic Bay last March 13, MS SuperStar Gemini is the second cruise ship to do so this year. Built in 1992 in St. Nazaire, France, SuperStar Gemini is currently owned and operated by Star Cruises.

With its top of the line equipment and luxurious facilities, Gemini offers a versatile cruise schedule. The onboard selection of recreation and dining options make the ship an ideal alternative to a more frenetic land holidays.

Ship Facts Gross Tonnage: 50,764grt

Length: 230m/754.59ft

Width: 29m/95.14ft

Average Cruising Speed (knots): 18kn

Maximum Cruising Speed (knots): 20kn

Number of Stabilizers: 2

Bow & Stern Thrusters: 2

Full Satellite Navigation System: 2

Number of Cabins: 765

Passenger Capacity (based on lower berths): 1,526

SuperStar Gemini is scheduled to return to the Freeport on March 21, 2018.

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SUBIC BAY FREEPORT – The Subic Bay Freeport will receive at least 20 cruise ship visits this year to cement its claim as the new cruise-ship playground in Asia.

According to Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman and Administrator Wilma Eisma, five different cruise ships have so far scheduled a total of 19 visits to Subic from March to October this year.
More cruise ship arrivals by the yearend are being coordinated with shipping agencies that handle ship itineraries, she added.

Costa Atlantica’s second visit
Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority Chairman and Administrator Wilma Eisma and students from Olongapo City welcome passengers of the cruise ship MV Costa Atlantica (top photo) on March 6
“Clearly, Subic is marking a new milestone in terms of cruise ship arrival. This is not your usual once-in-a-blue-moon accidental port call; this is a surge— and a very welcome surge for the Freeport at that,” Eisma said, as SBMA officials and employees awaited the arrival of the Italian-flagged cruise ship Costa Atlantica on Tuesday for its second voyage here.

The 85,619-ton Costa Atlantica, which has a capacity of 2,114 passengers on top of its 897 crew, first arrived here on February 10 and returned barely a month later on March 6.

Eisma said its first visit became a litmus test for Subic, which is raring to redefine itself as a cruise ship destination after serving for decades as a port of call for US Navy warships and cargo vessels later on.

“Now, Subic is ready to offer the best tourism facilities and services for cruise ship passengers, and we are betting that our visitors would find their experiences here — as well as in the neighboring areas of Zambales and Bataan — most memorable,” she added.

A list of scheduled cruise ship visits to Subic from the SBMA Tourism Department indicated the arrival of six cruise ships this month. These are MV Costa Atlantica, which will dock on March 6 and 20; MV Glory Sea, which will arrive on March 31; and MV Superstar Gemini, on March 13 and 21.

MV Glory Sea, which is operated by Star Cruises/Genting of Hong Kong, has a passenger capacity of 838 on top of its 230 crew, while MV Superstar Gemini, also operated by Star Cruises/Genting, carries 1,750 passengers, aside from its crew of 700.

The SBMA schedule also showed that MV Costa Atlantica will return to Subic on April 3 and 17, May 1 and 22, June 5 and 19, July 3, 17 and 31, and August 14 and 28 for a total of 13 trips to Subic starting the month of March.

Two of the biggest cruise ships operated by the Royal Caribbean Cruise Line (RCCL) will be in Subic this year: MS Ovation of the Seas on June 9, and MS Voyager of the Seas on August 26.

Ovation of the Seas has a capacity of 4,905 passengers and 1,500 crew, while Voyager of the Seas has a capacity of 3,138 passengers and 1,181 crew.

Eisma earlier accompanied cruise ship officials in assessing tourism attractions and activities that would be included in the Subic itinerary for cruise ship passengers.

The approved activities include visits to major theme parks in the Subic Bay Freeport, mango-fruit picking at a farm in San Narciso, Zambales, and a tour of the famous heritage houses at Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar in Bagac, Bataan.

Source: Manila Times

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Olongapo City students perform a dance number to welcome MV Costa Atlantica, an Italian-flagged cruise ship that docked in Subic Bay on March 6, 2018. Photo courtesy of SBMA

Stakeholders at the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) are seeing a very vibrant future in terms of tourism growth with the regular arrival of international cruise ships scheduled at the freeport until the end of the year.

This after the Italian-flagged cruise ship MV Costa Atlantica returned to the Port of Subic on March 6, marking its second in a series of 13 trips in Subic that were scheduled until August this year.

Just a month ago, MV Costa Atlantica successfully had its maiden port call in Subic bringing 2,000 foreign tourists. In its latest visit, the cruise ship brought 2,500 tourists who patronized local products, mostly souvenirs.

The 85,619-ton, 292.56-meter cruise ship docked at Subic’s Alava Pier, treating passengers and crews for a one-day tour of the Freeport and Subic’s neighboring communities.

SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma, who led employees and residents in welcoming the tourists, said the return of Costa Atlantica only manifests the capability of the SBMA to handle cruise ships and the vibrancy of local tourism.

“We have been dreaming of becoming the next cruise ship playground in Asia, and we can see that the dream is being realized right now,” Eisma said.

“We are hoping that this initiative by the SBMA to attract cruise ships would further boost the development of the Subic Freeport and the communities around it,” she added.

Most of the cruise ship passengers were taken by buses to various tourist destinations in the Freeport, including the Aeta indigenous park in Pamulaklakin, Ocean Adventure and Zoobic Safari.

Some of the passengers, meanwhile, preferred to walk around the Freeport area, and venturing as far as the souvenir shops and public market in Olongapo City.

SBMA Cruise Ship Committee chairman Marcelino Sanqui noted that while the Subic agency merely earns a pinch compared to what it spent to ensure that cruise ship passengers would have a safe and enjoyable stay in Subic, it makes sure that the businesses inside and around Subic gain profit from the ship arrivals.

“It is not our business to make profit from what we do; our mandate is to give business to our stakeholders,” said Sanqui, citing the beneficiaries as the local restaurants, hotels, souvenir shops and even vendors and taxi drivers.

“If one cruise ship passenger would spend just US$10 while in Subic, that would mean a total income for Subic of US$25,000 or P1.25 million for just one day,” he stressed.

Sanqui added that the SBMA is “helping our stakeholders to earn, and at the same time, we promote Subic as a new major destination for international cruise ships.”

“I strongly believe that we are on the right track,” he also said.

The Costa Atlantica, which is operated by the Italian company Costa Croceire, has 11 passenger decks elegantly adorned with Italian-inspired decors of arts and furniture. Each is named after a movie made by Italian movie director named Federico Fellini.

Other cruise ship companies that had already confirmed their schedule in Subic are MV Superstar Gemini, which will arrive here on March 13 and 21, and MV Glory of the Sea, which will dock here on March 31. Both are operated by Star Cruises/Genting Hongkong.

Two mammoth cruise ships operated by Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines are also stated to arrive in Subic this year. These are the MS Ovation of the Seas, which will arrive on June 9, and MS Voyager of the Seas, which is set to arrive on August 26. /jpv

Source: Inquirer.net

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Pina-aalalahanan ng pamunuan ng Southern Police District (SPD) ang mga motorista na epektibo sa darating na March 15,2018 ipapatupad na ng Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) ang “No Contact Policy.”

Ibig sabihin wala ng traffic enforcer ang manghuhuli ng mga pasaway na driver sa kalye.

Lahat ng mga car registered vehicles na lumabag sa batas trapiko ay aabisuhan ng MMDA sa pamamagitan ng post mail at bibigyan ng limang araw para sagutin ang kanilang mga violations.

Sa pamamagitan na lamang ng CCTV camera imonitor ng MMDA ang mga paglabag.
At kapag hindi nakatanggap ang MMDA ng anumang tugon sa loob ng 10 araw, kanila na itong papatawan ng multa at makikita itro kapag mag renew ng kanilang car registration.

Sa mensahe na inilabas ni Southern Police District (SPD) Spokesperson PSupt. Jenny Tecson, pina-aalalahanan nito ang mga motorista na huwag kalimutan ang mga sumusunod:

1. Buckle up (this includes all passengers in the car – the CCTV camera is so accurate as to show if passengers are properly buckled up);
2. Maintain lanes for private vehicles (the yellow lanes will strictly be for buses and public utility vehicles) unless you are turning right;
3. Shift lanes only on broken lines (and never on solid lines, more so on double yellow lines);
4. Shift one lane at a time (shifting two lanes will be considered swerving);
5. Never be on the road on coding days (except, of course, at window times). Marikina and Taguig do not follow the coding scheme so you are free to drive around these two cities on weekdays; Makati and Las Piñas have no window times so don’t even attempt to go there on your coding day;
6. Never use the phone to call nor text while on the wheels (remember, the CCTV camera can detect this even in the dark). It is advised that you pull over if you have to text or call.

Source: Bombo Radyo Philippines

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Engr. Manzano passed the November 2017 civil engineering licensure exam on her first take.

Photo Source: gineersnow.com

Rarely do indigenous people get the chance to have formal college education. Opportunities for them to attend school are rare, and to be able to graduate is already the entire tribe’s pride.

What more if one, a woman at that, is able to pass an engineering board exam? And on her first take?

That’s what Ezel Joy Pablo Manzano had accomplished for her Aeta community. She was the reason of the recent celebration of the Amianan tribe, which was moved to the Iram settlement area near Olongapo City in the Philippines after the 1991 Mt. Pinatubo eruption.

In an interview with GMA News, she proudly introduced herself as a passer of the November 2017 civil engineering board exam. She is one of the 6,075 who made it out of the 12,447 takers.

Engr. Manzano, who finished civil engineering in Ramon Magsaysay Technology University in Iba, Zambales, revealed that at one point during her review, she burst into tears because she could no longer understand what she was studying.

She was asked about tips for future board exam takers. Ezel Joy said that they should give it their all because the chance to take board exam only comes rarely.

Her journey to being a registered civil engineer was tough. She recalled that she had to quit school for one semester due to financial reasons.

This became her motivation to pass her board exam. And she also persevered to achieve the dream of her deceased father for her.

She said, “Pangarap ‘yun ng tatay ko, kaya ‘yun po talaga ang nagpu-push sa akin na i-pursue ‘yun. [It was my father’s dream for me, so I pushed myself to pursue this field.]”

Estrelita Manzano, Ezel Joy’s mother, witnessed her daughter’s struggles. She shared that even without the presence of her father, Ezel Joy still did what she could do best in terms of her academics.

Now that she is an engineer, Ezel Joy doesn’t forget those who have helped her along the way. She plans to pursue a career that will help her tribe in any way possible.

Source: gineersnow.com

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