Just a quick update on the typhoon.

Like many of you, I waited with bated breath for the onslaught of typhoon “Tisoy” last Tuesday. Initially, the typhoon seemed to be headed directly for Balesin, with its 185 kph winds. When it did make landfall, it was in Gubat, Sorsogon, a few hundred kilometers south of Balesin. But we still felt the intensity of 140 kph winds and heavy rainfall. This was the strongest typhoon ever to be felt at Balesin during the last nine years that we have been operating the island.

But as a true testament to our building standards, not a single building had any structural damage. Of course, we lost the usual cogon roofs and plexiglass deck roofing, a lot of banana trees, and many branches of trees in the forest. Our aquaculture project was unaffected, and so were our Aviary and Guinea Fowl farms.

On the positive side, we were able to collect a lot of rainwater so that our storage ponds are now full, which means that we have enough water for one year without a single drop of rain.

Despite the typhoon, we completed the Apsaras Chinese Village on schedule. It is a truly magnificent structure, again thanks to the designing genius of Rico Sison. I am pleased to send you herewith photographs to prove this. All we are waiting for now are a final few decorative items from China and the Chinese chef and hopefully, before the holidays, you can enjoy real Cantonese food in Balesin.