PLEASE .. TURKEY NEEDS HELP AND I APPEAL TO EVERYONE

The situation in Turkey is looking grim since the earthquakes hit 10 densely populated cities in the lovely south/southeast 2 days ago. It is the middle of winter, people are cold, just in great need of everything.

For those who want to donate, Turkey Earthquake Relief Fund has VENMO and PAYPAL options, as well as credit card. Chobani's founder Hamdi Ulukaya is matching donations up to $1M.

The donations are to be shared between trusted nonprofits such as AKUT, Ahbap, Ihtiyac Haritasi etc. Donating is a delicate issue in Turkey and the abovementioned have done concrete work in the past.

Here is the link if you wish to donate:

https://www.tpfund.org/2023/02/06/turkiye-earthquake-relief-fund/

Joebert Opulencia, Chairman

NY PATA



EXPO TURISMO INTERNACIONAL is the annual meeting point between promoters of tourist services and buyers from more than 30 countries, who will attend this event in search of new destinations, offers of products and services.

 For this XII version, we are focused on attracting and welcoming international buyers specialized on “MICE” (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions / Events) and on tourism experiences (adventures, health, shopping, among others), where they can establish important contacts and identify business opportunities.

 Knowing the importance of this event for our country and the region, we are pleased to invite you to participate in this version with the following benefits:

• 4 hotel nights (from March 27th to 31st), selected by the organizing committee
• Breakfast included
• Transfer: Hotel – Convention Center – Hotel and to the different activities (not from and to the airport).
• Access to the VIP Lounge
• Welcome Cocktail Party
• 1 Post Tour (March 30)
• Free access to our parallel exhibitions and events: EXPO TURISMO, EXPOCOMER and EXPO LOGISTICA PANAMA.

In addition, we have a 10% discount code with Copa Airlines: B9094

To register as an international buyer, please complete the form by entering HERE

Vice-Chair, Catherine Heald hosted a NY PATA cocktail party to celebrate the Year of the Rabbit, promote NY PATA membership to invited guests; airlines, hoteliers, and NTOs, and showcase our collective strength that makes us better together.

Guests included Emirates, Korean Airlines, China Air Lines, ITA Airlines, Aman, Como, Peninsula Hotels, Taj Hotels, Hilton, Japan National Tourism Organization, Korea Tourism Organization, Nepal Consul General NY, Croatia Tourist Board, and Singapore Tourist Board. It was a powerhouse event, and we are excited to welcome all the new members.

Beipanjiang Bridge aka Duge Bridge, China

The bridge links the borders of Guizhou and Yunnan provinces and shortens the journey between the two places from about four hours' drive to about an hour, an incredible feat of modern engineering.

The Beipanjiang River valley is a remote and mountainous region with poor road connectivity. Between Guizhou and Yunnan, two of the poorest and most rural provinces in China, there was a gap that needed to be bridged in order to build a more effective transportation route. This project was planned to bridge that gap and construct that route. The bridge intends to stimulate economic growth, enhance living conditions, and connect remote areas to the rest of the country by providing a dependable transit link over the river.

The drop between the flowing river and the world's highest bridge is 565.4 meters or 1,836.8 feet which is equivalent to the height of a 200-story building. The Burj Khalifa has 163 floors, Shanghai Tower has 128 floors, One World Trade Center has 104 floors, etc. The bridge spans 1,340 m (4,400 ft) between Xuanwei city, Yunnan and Shuicheng County, Guizhou.

Construction of the Beipanjiang Bridge has revolutionized bridge-building around the world. Since its opening in late 2016, the bridge has received awards nationwide and worldwide, including the Award of Special Merit of the International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC), considered the Nobel Prize in the international bridge industry.

Guizhou is mountainous and the only Chinese province with no plain. Nowadays, Guizhou is home to 50 out of the 100 highest bridges in the world, and many of the bridges were completed in the last decade; the golden decade because of the unprecedented scale of infrastructure projects. Guizhou used to be the home of the largest impoverished population in China a decade ago. In 2020, all 9.23 million impoverished people have been lifted out of poverty. A sound infrastructure played a crucial role in boosting economic growth and improving people's living standards, for it allowed the locals better access to social welfare and external markets.

On the domestic front, Guizhou is home to one of China’s most valuable companies, the Moutai Group (Moutai liquor). It is also home to data centers for tech giants such as Apple, Huawei, and Tencent. Accordingly, this poor province has created for itself a significant role in China’s rapidly growing digital economy. The province is now home to 23 key data centers that are either in operation or under construction, housing an estimated total of four million servers. This is the reason why Guizhou is called China’s Big Data Valley.

The Chinese have constructed several bridges in this breathtaking but treacherous region in order to facilitate travel. The highest point on any bridge in China is located on the Beipanjiang Bridge, one of many beautiful bridges around the world. It became the first cable-stayed bridge to ever claim the title of The World's Highest Bridge. It serves as not only a transportation infrastructure but also a tourist attraction due to its grandeur and height, and it is a hotspot for bridge aficionados. Guizhou is famous for its marvelous landscapes, unsophisticated ethnic customs, cultural and historical relics, and pleasant climate. The life-changing effects for the communities in the Yunnan-Guizhou mountainous areas are remarkable.

"A Change of Air", showcasing endless skies and greenery, was to flip the negative connotation around the pandemic-infected ‘Air’ and foreground the fresh air that abounds in Kerala’s greenery and open spaces as the healthiest way to beat the lockdown blues. The campaign resulted in 7,537,617 arrivals in 2021 as compared to 4,988,972 in 2020, marking a positive 51.09% growth. "Breathe" in some "Keralan Air"

Kerala was selected as one of the 52 places to visit in 2023 by the New York Times, and has been listed at the 13th spot in the newspaper's annual list of places to visit. Kerala is known for its beaches, backwater lagoons, cuisine, and rich cultural traditions, and it is the only tourist destination listed from India. The list has been prepared keeping four major questions in mind – Why we travel, highlighting food, culture, adventure, and natural beauty.

Kerala’s perspective on Responsible and Sustainable Tourism is that the state should offer a novel and refreshing experience to visitors, and it should also bring benefits to the local communities without upsetting their day-to-day life.

As part of their international marketing strategy, Kerala Tourism organized B2B meetings with tour operators and travel advisors in NYC at the Millennium Downtown on February 7, 2023. Director of India Tourism NY, Senthur Kumaran; Consul General, Randhir Jaiswal; and Kerala Tourism Director delivered informative speeches and showed videos of the beautiful destination. The Kerala Roadshow was well-attended.

According to Ayurveda, every human being is a unique combination of the five elements – Earth, Water, Fire, Ether, and Space. There are three vital forces of life named: “Vata” meaning ether & air, “Pita” meaning fire and “Kapha” meaning water & earth. A perfect balance in these vital forces of life results in the healthy state of human body which constitutes mind, body, and soul. Ayurvedic therapies are determined as per the individual’s body constitution.

Ayurveda has two-way healing aspects i.e. Preventing and Curative. It starts with Prevention. Ayurveda first prevents ailment by improving immunity. The rejuvenation programs fall into this category. They help in the general well-being and strengthening the immune system. Panchakarma is one of the key therapies for overall fitness. It tunes the organs, body, mind, system, and nerves, and also purifies the blood.

The curative aspect of Ayurveda works towards total eradication of ailment. Ayurveda has effective treatment to diseases like paralysis, spondylitis, arthritis, rheumatism, bone & joint disorder, slip disk, nervous disorder and their related problems, diabetes, hypertension & cardiac-related disorders, sinusitis, migraine and many more. We have seen incredible success rate with these ailments. Ayurveda is also very effective for diet and exercises free weight reduction programs.

 Kairali-The Ayurvedic Healing Village in Palakkad, Kerala is one-of-its-kind of a holistic space, which heals you internally and externally with traditional and authentic Ayurvedic therapies, treatments and medications along with Yoga and Meditation.

Please note; the generous grace period extended during the travel recovery has expired on February 3, 2023. NY PATA benefits and newsletters will no longer be available to extreme lapsed members that have not paid dues since 2019.

If there are questions, please contact us at: newyorkpata@gmail.com

If you have not renewed yet for the year 2023, please do so now.

Corporate/Organizations $250

Travel Advisors (copy of IATA/CLIA is required) $75

All Other Categories $100

Credit card transaction fee add 4%

Easy 2-steps to renew your NY PATA membership.

1.On your invoice, click "View invoice online"

2.Then, please enter your credit card payment. Thank you.

A payment receipt, and certification of 2023 renewal will be emailed to you.

Thank you so much for your membership renewal.

Elizabeth Chin

Executive Director

PATA New York Chapter

Email: newyorkpata@gmail.com

https://newyorkpata.org