The Consul General of the People’s Republic of China Shi Yong hosted a formal reception on the occasion of the Chinese New Year at the grand ballroom of the Marco Polo Plaza Cebu.
It was attended by a cross section of Cebu’s business community: among them, former Philippine Ambassador to China Francisco Benedicto, his brother Enrique Benedicto (who is Honorary Consul of Belgium); Joseph Gaisano; and Augusto Go, president of the University of Cebu.
In his speech, Consul General Shi Yong spoke about the ever increasing number of tourists coming from China to the Philippines, most especially to Cebu. The figure is expected to go even higher this year, with the addition of more flights from China to Cebu.
Most attentive to this were the Cebu hoteliers present like Marco Polo Plaza Cebu general manager Julie Najar, Shangri-La Mactan general manager Rene Egle with his pretty Chinese wife Nelly, and Waterfront Cebu City general manager Anders Hallden with staff members Patty Hou and Gayle Moro.
The Marco Polo itself had a grand celebration of the Chinese New Year on the evening of Jan. 27. There were dragon and lion dances all over the lobby, plus the catching of a giant crab after 35 exciting minutes.
The crab’s claws were tied securely before it was handed over to GM Julie to cradle. “That means she accepts the challenges of the Year of the Rooster,” explained director for sales and marketing Lara Scarrow, as communications manager Manna Alcaraz, and revenue manager Jude Pangan looked on.
Ms. Najar and Consul General Shi Yong then led the tossing of the yee sang salad, along with Wilson and Melanie Ng, Dr. Vivina Yrastorza, Consul Sammy Chionson, Joy Santillan, Mayan Tan, Cathay Pacific’s Connie Cimafranca and Janice Nabua, and Dickson and Angie Lim.
