Resort-ing to lifestyle
Here in the Philippines, the integrated resorts have steadily developed into a lifestyle hub for the populace. If in the past, the malls would automatically be the go-to urban destination to meet, shop, dine and find entertainment, the licensed casinos that have created integrated resorts have steadily positioned themselves as a viable alternative option to said malls. Even if on a limited basis, these integrated resorts often possess the same offerings as the malls but with the added bonus of the casino and hotel(s). Plus with the extra effort placed on ambience, entertainment, and even if ironically, something for the whole family, including the kids, it’s not hard to see why these integrated resorts have become an attractive proposition even for the traditional Sunday family outing.
Think about it: City of Dreams has DreamPlay, Solaire has The Theatre and a row of high-end restaurants, Okada has its world-class fountain and Cove Club, Resorts World has its Newport Cinemas and performing arts theater — that’s just for starters. The casino licensees — whether in Manila’s Entertainment City, at the Clark Special Economic Zone, or Cebu, Rizal and Poro Point — have acknowledged that it’s not just the gaming public who they’re targeting to patronize their establishments.
That this trend will continue for now and has been such a success was evident when PAGCOR recently hosted celebratory cocktails and dinner at the Manila Hotel to recognize the contributions of its licensed casinos to the economy and to nation-building, with President Duterte himself gracing the occasion. In his speech, the President said, “I can give you the assurance that we welcome you. I thank you for the income we are earning from the gaming industry.” And he also bluntly added that while he welcomes their proliferation and expansion, they must do business peacefully, and “avoid graft and corruption whether you are the giver or the receiver.”
As PAGCOR chairwoman and CEO Andrea Domingo reported, the licensed casinos fees alone accounted for P19.27-billion income in 2017. Plus all integrated resort casino licensees are required to put up a cultural heritage foundation to fund corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs related to education, infrastructure, health facilities, environmental preservation and restoration of cultural heritage. Because of this commitment, several multi-story school buildings and computer laboratories were built in far-flung public schools; and two drug rehabilitation centers in Davao and Taguig are being constructed. Likewise, a Tacloban public hospital, and barracks for the PMA cadets were funded via PAGCOR and the CSR commitment of these licensed casinos.
PAGCOR president and COO Alfredo Cereza Lim lauded the success stories of these licensed casinos and their integrated resorts, saying, “As we ride the tide of growth and enjoy the opportunities of a larger market, let us ensure that the whole nation reaps the benefits.”
Acting, Acrimony & Antiquities
The three novels today cover a wide range of topics. Rio’s crime story has a premier arts college as its setting. Lennon gives us something creepy and sinister while Carr takes us back to 16th-century Spain.
If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio (available at Fully Booked) Think of a Juilliard or Royal Academy of the Arts, and let the seven who make up the senior drama class be your main protagonists. That’s the world Rio has conjured up for us. And if you think this is some thespian Garden of Eden, let the snake be the untimely death of the class’ brightest star, Richard, who thinks he’s entitled to be given all the male lead roles as they exclusively take on the plays of Shakespeare. It’s an environment where your best friends are also your fiercest rivals for the plum roles and being noticed by the producers of acting companies. Oliver, the “nice” guy, who has to accept the best friend and support roles are his domain, is our narrator and guide to this world of talent, competition and scholarship. A truly engrossing read.
Broken River by J. Robert Lennon (available on Amazon.
com) Lennon has a knack for taking the mundane and converting it into something fraught with danger. Here, he starts off with the grisly unsolved murder of a couple living in an upstate New York house, with the toddler daughter as the lone survivor of the carnage. More than a decade later, an artist couple move in with their young daughter. He’s a sculptor, and the wife is a writer and they’re trying to mend their marriage.
The novel basically follows how the artist couple’s daughter — who is obsessed with the crime that happened years ago — insists that a newcomer in town is the same toddler who survived the carnage, now 17 years of age.
This opens a dangerous can of worms as she’s active in an Unsolved Crimes website. Lennon even introduces a consciousness known as The Observer in making this treatment unique.
The Devils of Cardona by Matthew Carr (available at Fully Booked) It’s 1584, the height of the inquisition, and when a reviled parish priest in a Spanish mountain town near the French border is brutally murdered, judge Bernardo de Mendoza is sent to find the killer and mete out justice. A true full-blooded page turner, this novel unravels at a dizzying pace. With the true history of how Catholic Spain rid their country of the Moors and Muslims, who inhabited the Northeast regions of the peninsula as a backdrop, this is historical fiction at its best. Soon, we are reading not just about how religion and politics intertwine in the worst possible ways, but we’re also caught up in a royal conspiracy that has land, power and dominion as the prizes to be exacted, with blood and war as the price. Engrossing, entertaining and educational.