Update: Journey & Arnel Pineda on CBS

I just got this email from Ina in response to the the video interview below.

"Funny, but do you remember Ben, the American guy we brought to Polo, the one we asked to be a human pole during our gymkhana? He was the visa officer who asked him to sing - and who wrote that article about the visa application experience!"

Let's just say this....I am SO GLAD that I did not run him over during the relay race, as I was trying to hand him sunglasses - atop a polo horse at a full gallop - while riding high on a cocktail of pain killers!!!!!

Great talent spotting, Ben!

Can Arnel sing "It's A Small World"?

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Check out Journey and Arnel Pineda's interview on the CBS Morning Show.
Arnel P. confirms he did have to sing at the visa line at the US Embassy.









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Journey: Arnel Pineda's "visa" to a new life

E-Jeep

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The City of Makati launched the E-Jeep with some fanfare today. I ran into this event as I was meeting a friend of mine early this morning and decided to stick around. The e-Jeep is now locally manufactured and is powered by a Motolite battery. It will begin plying its "Makati Loop" route through Legaspi and Salcedo Villages. The e-Jeep is being launched in partnership with Greenpeace and the Green Renewable Independent Power Producer Inc. (GRIPP). Greenpeace and GRIPP have been working on this project since four years ago, when gasoline prices hovered in the high Php20 to mid-Php30 range. Well, since then we've seen, and are seemingly seeing, a non-stop trend of rising crude oil and gasoline prices. With diesel prices in the Php50 range already, the project proponents are advocating for jeepney operators to replace their existing diesel vehicles for the e-Jeep.

On a full battery charge, the e-Jeep can make its way from Makati to Lipa, Batangas. That's a lot of mileage for trips within the city - around 10 x 3 kilometre loops. Charging the e-Jeep will take about 6 hours and cost approximately Php150-160 per charging session. Right now, the vehicle is chargeable via conventional household electrical outlets. Plans are in the works for the vehicle to be chargeable from energy generated from methane in landfills. Fares are set to be about the same as a conventional diesel jeepney. However, drivers of the e-Jeep will be able to realise three times more income generated by savings from driving the e-Jeep versus a diesel powered jeepney. Greenpeace and GRIPP, the project proponent, are looking at financing methods that could hopefully ease the switch from diesel jeepneys to the e-Jeep.

As I mentioned above, the vehicle will be plying the Makati Loop through Legaspi and Salcedo Villages. I hope that Makati's traffic planners deploy a few units to ply the length of Ayala Avenue and hence provide transportation connectivity for commuters using the MRT. The ride is quiet and smooth. It's pretty much an oversized golf cart - perfect for short trips in and around Makati.