Fancy a flight to space – it’s going for US$100,000 a pop
It seems rather fitting that John Mims, who as a young boy was fascinated by the space race and remembers watching it endlessly on television, now finds himself selling commercial space flights.“I have always thought that to be in apace would be the ultimate adventure. Until now I had only hoped [...]
Yo! Travelstart offers location-based deals on demand
The South African-based Travelstart has launched a service for location-based special deals on demand on the social app platform Yo, making it the first OTA to allow users to book directly within the Yo app.Launched in 2014, Yo, the social app for iOS, Android and Windows phones, hit one million dow [...]
Letter from Auckland: Looking good, old gal, and the future’s looking good too
Compared with Singapore, which turns 50 this year, Auckland’s an old gal at 175 but she sure looks good.Perhaps I saw her in the best light. It was a perfect summer’s weekend for Auckland’s 175th anniversary celebrations (Jan 23-25) – cloudless blue sky meets shimmering blue sea – and the [...]
Leaving home, but never really leaving it: The invisible web
It’s amazing how much has changed in the last five years and perhaps it’s because we live it everyday that we don’t notice how it’s crept up on us, so as to be almost a part of us.I am talking about technology, especially that part that moves with us, and why I believe (no brainer, really) t [...]
ADD be gone, write great letters and welcome back, long-form
Dear FriendsHappy new year. I know. I am late. But it took me a while to get my brain back into gear after I put it to sleep over the holidays.It wasn’t actually sleeping really, just wandered off. But now that it’s back in working order, I find myself thinking about attention span, letter writi [...]
He got out of poverty, now he wants Local Alike to champion community tourism
Growing up in the Isan village of Roiet, Thai entrepreneur Somsak Boonkam (Pai) knew he had to pursue education to escape poverty. At age 8, his parents managed to gather enough money to send him to Chantaburi High School. From there, he studied his way to university at Nakhom Pathom.“That changed [...]
Doing hotels differently, the Taipei Inn way
Like Warren Buffet, Taiwanese investor Jimmy Dai believed that if everyone was going one way, he would go the other. And so 10 years ago, when he thought of building a hotel in Taipei, he went against the trend and built the city’s first design boutique hotel.“At that time, the hotel industry in [...]
Together, we helped build a dormitory in Laos, thank you
If you were to ask me what I remember most about 2014, it’s the smile on Marie Cammal’s face when we told her about the amount we had raised at our WIT Charity Auction and how 70% of it would go towards her efforts to build the dormitory for young girls on the Thai-Lao border. (The rest goes t [...]
If you want to be Guardians of the Start-Up Galaxy, here’s what you should heed
There is a scene in the opening sequence of the movie “Guardians of the Galaxy” that sticks with me. Our hero, Peter Quill, is walking into a cave. He’s wearing pretty fancy futuristic gear, having flown in his super duper futuristic craft. You are at the edge of your seat wondering what’s l [...]
The year in review: From desert to bay, the fun’s just beginning
When we started 2014, it was with the intention to run 10 events to celebrate our “Little Big 10” anniversary. As the year unfolded, I lost count – what is it they say about life being a journey and not a destination.Well, now that we’ve nearly reached the destination – year end 2014 – I [...]
