Adventure Minus the Gas.

Of all the publisher's notes i have written, i assumed this one would be easiest to dash off. With adventure for a topic, it just seemed it would be a cakewalk. Well, I was ever wrong. You again in transit in New York.. i was suffering from the recurrences of writer's block and struggling through the suddenly elusive topic. I was hoping to be able to write about a great gripping, absorbing adventure vacation. Unfortunately . My hectic schedule got in the way.

Instead I have some misadventure to tell. Of several of my top managers leaving for for foreign job assignments and my being forced to cover for them with my remaining staff. Of being one of the trustees of my son's school presently engaged in one of the most publicized legal battles ever. Of being on a long trip alone with my bad back acting up on me.

I am in the moment of staying at the Howard Johnson in Greenwich Connecticut and it is now for in the morning. I just finished my shower after the dinner of Campbell's Chunky Soup, Turkey Pepperoni, and Diet Sprite. All the restaurants were closed, so I had to pick up grub from a gas station convenience store. I arrived at around midnight at JFK airport, after two hours delay. I had to go through the longest immigration line I have experienced in New York. Usually two other flights would arrive later than mine but because of the delay they got in before me.

I then headed to a new Sky Train at the airport and took that to the Hertz car rental lot. I had reserved for an economy car, knowing I'd be driving 220 miles to Boston at $3.50 a gallon of gas. But since I am a frequent renter and also an officer of the Philippine Hertz licensee, the car was upgraded to a Ford Explorer. I asked for a car I wanted but they said they were out of smaller cars. I guess people are becoming conscious about gas prices nowadays. So I accepted my upgrade and resigned myself to a dubious adventure of filling up with gas along the drive north. How many miles to the gallon as SUV again?

I got into the hotel two hours past midnight. The night manager checked me in and I was anticipating a decent meal after a long trip. The i noticed my room number – 331. I had requested for a ground floor unit but groaned when the only room available was on the third floor. I contemplated leaving my bags i n the car, but the thought of sleeping in a dirty clothes and having to go back to the car to change in the morning gave me a will to bear with the back spasms and the walk up the third floor saddled with my legs.

I do look forward to later, when I drive up to Boston. It has been over two years since I last visited Boston. I will be there to attend the seventy anniversary of the Sloan Fellow Program at MIT of which I am a graduate. The event will be one great adventure in networking and intellectual enhancement, as almost 1,000 alumni, business leaders, and faculty convene to discuss the latest global issues. Present will be the fellow alumni like Koffi Annan and Carly Fiorina among others.

But the adventure I am really keen about is the one i head to after I returned to Manila next week. A trip to Macau with my wife. We have never been there together and I am sure that discovering all that the new Macau has to offer like the brand new Fisherman's Wharf, the renovated churches, the new hotels, and the various restaurants offering different food of Portuguese heritage will be the one great adventure to remember.

So as I progress meantime to the academic sabbatical, I invite you to enjoy the many different adventures we have inside this issue. From the awe-inspiring underwater photography of Gusty Tuason in Anilao, to the dream destination of the Galapagos, to the excitement of tiger cubs and Volvo SUVs. We also have the point of view of the ladies of the First Philippine Everest Expedition Team as well as the sense of how Lakshmi Mittal became the third richest man in the world. This Stopover edition guarantees you adventure, minus gas.

Enjoy!

James Puyat Concepcion
Publisher