Ichigo Umehara

We feel that everything we do in business has to be done with speed and accuracy. In the year 2000, we stress just that in three key areas:

1. Sales culture in our company.

Every one of us should be a sales agent, from the top management to front and back of the house associates. We currently lack this mindset in our company and to succeed, we must all nurture and practise this idea.

I would like to set the example by going on sales calls with you to visit our customers. I ask all General Managers and Executive / Steering Committee members to do the same if you are not currently doing so. In this current environment, we need to put in additional effort to get to know our customers and build the relationships that will help us achieve both our short and long-term goals.

2. Absolute Care

We have started implementing this concept at hotels but still discover that there are many areas where we still lack a caring attitude. Out of the many complaints that we receive from our customers, over 80% of them are related to service issues.

Our management teams must constantly coach and guide our associates in this area. We have to make Absolute Care a way of our working life. We will be sending out the first batch of Absolute Care standards and checklist to all hotels by the end of August 1999. This will consist of Operations, Food & Beverage and Technical Services.

Upon receipt of these standards, I ask all General Managers and Ex-Co members to read and understand the contents and then make a plan on how to share the information with all your team members.

This Absolute Care standards guide when correctly implemented will ensure that all hotels will deliver the same core service consistently. At present, much of our service delivery is dependent on individual associate's reaction and the process is often not followed consistently. This inconsistency affects the way our customers view Pan Pacific as they experience different levels of service even within the same department in the same hotel.

3. People

Coaching is a key initiative at all our hotels, top management is expected to provide coaching and guidance to all your associates. Any programme that is to be implemented at hotel level must be accompanied by a plan on how it will be shared with all associates.

The second item is the evaluation system and career development programme. In our company, we try to ensure employment for all our associates but we expect all associates to work in a multi-functional manner. We must all be convinced of the necessity of multi-functionality and the fact that it is the best way to not only survive but succeed in the future. We must ensure that all our associates understand what it means and practise it.

Business Plan 2000 clearly shows the company direction for next year in the three areas mentioned above. What is most crucial is speed in implementation and execution of the plan and a JUST DO IT! attitude and mentality.

During the corporate business plan sessions in the last few months, we recognised the fact that in the last 2 years, due to the business crisis in Asia, we took short-term action steps in an almost panic atmosphere. It is my regret that we did not focus enough on long term issues as well. We must learn from this experience which is more obvious in the sales arena.

Some group business for example requires more than one-year lead-time for bookings to materialise. The action that we take now will only show results in the year 2001, therefore the shortfall this year in this segment was due to activities in the past 2 years.

We must balance the short and long term sales and this is clearly recognised by the marketing and sales team who will take the necessary steps to handle this. At the same time, I also hope that hotels understand the difference between marketing and sales activities.

Marketing activities serve to make a distinctive point of difference from other hotel companies. Branding is crucial part of umbrella marketing activities. Without our own identity, we cannot stand out from the rest. This should start internally where our associates should know the strengths and weaknesses of our company and what our brand is about. Externally, we use the "Shades" look in every advertising and promotional opportunity and with People Innovation, this concept is also being shared internally with our associates with the continuing emphasis on Absolute Care. Internal education is important to make a success of our branding efforts.

Sales activities on the other hand serve to fill hotel rooms. This is fundamentally a hotel responsibility. As mentioned earlier, all associates up to the General Manager should be a sales agent.

We asked a loyalty and communications company Tequila Singapore to sit with our team to review and evaluate our PCI programme. We recognise the importance of loyal customers to our hotels and would like to make clear directions for this programme. We currently have a base of members from around the world and we should take care of them. Firstly, I ask all associates in Pan Pacific to find out what Pacific Club International is and understand that the members are very important to our company.

Big hotel companies offer many types of benefits to their loyal customers, as a small company, we should offer benefits of a different nature in order to stand out. A majority of our PCI members travel on business. Like many people, they would prefer to stay at home than in a hotel, so we must offer them a home-like environment when they stay with us. We should provide every assistance to them to make their trip successful and with as little stress as possible.

I encourage everyone when they recognise a PCI member, to remember their name and address them by name, to also welcome and say goodbye to members with a friendly handshake.

We will be working on the programme benefits and once completed will share them with all of you in early 2000.

At the beginning of August, the Palau Hotel School held their graduation ceremony for all 8 students who had registered for the course 2 years ago. When this programme was launched, the President of Palau asked me how many of the 8 students would be able to graduate, I am pleased to say that all of them have succeeded and a number will continue with a Bachelor's degree in the University of Guam.

This is the first such school in Micronesia and it provided the opportunity for students who were unable to continue their education because of family financial issue to pursue a career in hospitality. This is a clear indication of hotel becoming a learning institution and inculcating a learning culture with the team. GM Billy Uemura and acting head of school Floribelle Legaspi spend great energy in capitalising on the experience gained from operating the school to improve on the hotel operations.

At the same time, we conducted the Round Table of talent for 22 associates in the Palau Pacific Resort. This was a similar format that was conducted for other hotels in Asia and North America and gave the participants an opportunity to be coaches for the Pan Pacific Way to their fellow team members.

I also visited Mauna Lani and met with members from their RTT session. I am pleased to see that they have created three groups: Community Care, Absolute Care for guests and Associate Care.

In the last two months, the care teams have initiated many activities including beach cleaning and providing assistance to school kids before the new school term by the Community Care team; the Absolute Care card for all associates and also each team was asked to clarify their perceptions of what Absolute Care meant. There has also been an increase in the number of participants to the general associate meeting indicating that there is more involvement and interest. I am very glad to see the hotel taking positive steps to implement the contents of the RTT session to involve the whole hotel team.

We would like to say Thank You to Andrew McBurnie, General Manager of The Pan Pacific Manila who will leave our company on August 26^th to pursue new opportunities. In the interim period before a new General Manager is appointed, ST Foo, Corporate Director of Technical Services will provide the daily leadership and guidance to the team.

We would also like to welcome HansWinsnes who joins us on August 26^th as General Manager of The Pan Pacific Sonargaon Dhaka replacing EJ McEwan. Hans will be joined by his wife Margaretha and their three children Louise, Frederik and Annika. EJ McEwan's new appointment will be announced in the near future.

Thank you.

(by Craig Harada)

In visiting some of our properties, I noticed that the Y2K Contingency Plan, which was submitted by the corporate office, has not been distributed to all Department Heads. Please take note that this plan was devised to assist your team in developing your property’s Y2K Contingency Plan.

Y2K is not only for the MIS Manager and/or Chief Engineer. It can affect our guests and therefore should concern every Associate in our properties!

If the hotel does not have power or telecommunications, it will result in guest inconvenience or worse, a safety issue for our Guest and Associates. All properties must plan accordingly and be prepared for the worse case scenario.

Please take note of the following Y2K Action dates and ensure that your hotel is on target to meet all of them:

1. Contingency Plan due in the corporate office latest September 20^{th 1999} Singapore time. Please email this to Steven Hicks and Craig Harada.
2. Your Y2K Committee should be meeting on a monthly basis and as we get closer to December, meeting more regularly to ensure that the Contingency Plan is in place and every Associate knows his/her responsibilities.
3. Y2K Review: This review process will cover most properties during the month of September. Each property will be notified accordingly.

Don’t underestimate Y2K! It’s not only a MIS issue, it a hotel issue. External factors can and will affect your property. Let’s check and double check these external factors and have your Contingency Plan on hand and up to date to ensure our Associate and Guests comfort and safety.

By Ally Sze

The central reservations office--the way to be the best among the all

Since September 1998, we have been using our new central reservations system " FIDELIO " a two way interface reservation system that is an important tool for both hotels and Central Reservations Office.

Under the wing of "FIDELIO", we have seen a major increase in revenue in the last 11 months, especially for our hotel in KLIA as we form the KLIA hotel's reservations team. We have been able to increase the room revenue every month and maintain an average rate that is above RM200.

In last "In Touch" we've shown very positive results and for the month of July, we are seeing another consecutive increase in revenue compared with the previous month for the following hotels:

Hotel USD

The Pan Pacific Sonargaon $35

The Pan Pacific Glenmarie $1,779

The Pan Pacific Resort Pangkor Island $1,718

The Puteri Pan Pacific Hotel JB $1,839

Hotel Sari Pan Pacific Jakarta $3,625

The Pan Pacific Hotel Kuala Lumpur $676

The Pan Pacific Hotel KLIA $11,363

The Pan Pacific Manila $14,558

The Pan Pacific Singapore $6,133

The Pan Pacific Hotel Vancouver $874

The Royal Garden Hotel Hong Kong $1,381

The Pan Pacific Lodge Whistler $254

Palau Pacific Resort $7,607

San Francisco -- The Reception Desk has instituted cross-training programs with each of the operations departments. "Chef of the Day", where an associate spends time behind the line in the kitchen doing prep work, has been very popular. The Concierge Desk is another area where practical experience is gained. These programs not only make the associates feel a part of the hotel as a whole, but also give them an appreciation of the responsibilities and challenges faced in other areas.

Bangkok -- 48 associates attended a team building session to stimulate team spirit. This was conducted out of the hotel. . . 7 supervisors from various departments attended a 3-day classroom session on Train The Trainer. . .The 5-day orientation programme was held for newly hired associates. . . 103 associates attended work etiquette training.

KLIA -- The management team of KLIA and Glenmarie had a friendly football match. The Glenmarie team won with a score of 3-0. . . The Sports Club organized a camping and jungle trek outing for members to Sungei Tekala in Semenyih. . . 22 associates from various departments were selected to undergo a 5-day intensive fire fighting training by the Fire Department. Upon completion, they will form the hotel’s "Fire Squad". On the 5^th July, 1999, the committee launched its "Fire and Safety Awareness Day" which marked the graduation of the Fire Squad. . .The Associate Care Committee, Guest Care Committee and Community Care Committee have combined and now call themselves "One Care Committee". This committee will meet once a week with "Advisor", "grandpa" Lloyd Daser. . . People Innovation conducted an assessment workshop called "Towards the Mission" which was attended by all Managers. This workshop was geared towards helping managers evaluate their team on competencies as well as confirmation. . . T.C. Koe and his finance team took some time off for a bowling match. The team went to Nilai Springs Golf and Country Club for the game. Complimentary vouchers, compliments from the Club were given out for the top three winners, Mukhtar (F & B Analyst), Khalid (‘Supermarket’) and Teo (Accounts Payable). After the games, they proceeded to Tom Yam Sri Timur for their ‘Victory Dinner". T.C. took the opportunity to brief the team on the happenings in the hotel and thanked them for their continuous hard work and support.

Yokohama -- A written survey of associates was held for ideas on how to improve upon the in-house "Smile" newsletter in the year 2000. Some suggestions include, reduce the amount of paper, put more colorful photos etc. . . A 3 months training will be conducted on the new grooming standard for all operational associates. . . Sumitomo Corporation, one of our owner companies held a 1-day experience program at the hotel. Four of Sumitomo Corporation's staff spent a day at the premises to experience what the hotel business is like.

Pangkor -- Judy Yeoh (Education Manager) attended the "Trainers meet trainers" workshop in KL. . . A competency-profiling workshop was held with guest speaker Mr. Atique Rahman (Director of Operations, Dhaka). . . The fire training squad paid a visit to the Pangkor Fire & Rescue services for a familiarization visit. . . The daily Baywatch associates newsletter prepared by the People Innovation team has received positive feedback from associates. . . Asai and Vincent attended the Ecolab hygiene training held in KL.

Dhaka -- Training sessions included Fire Fighting and Safety Procedures for housekeeping associates, Medicare for F&B, English language classes by the Career Development Institute (CDI) Internal School, the Second Semester of CDI Internal School - housekeeping module, Re-orientation – Agenda 2000, English classes for adopted children, Industrial Attachment and In-house computer session. . . Mr. Tetsuya Sonobe, Senior Vice President of PPHR visited the hotel. A team get together was arranged at the Grand Ballroom in honor of his visit. A number of 350 associates were present on the occasion. On this occasion Mr. Sonobe gave a speech and distributed certificates among the selected associates.

Mauna Lani -- As part of the commitment to associates, a series of drug awareness education classes were held.

Glenmarie -- All associates completed the Grow your future form. A total of 114 associates who identified Conversational English as a desired skill, are now attending classes in the Career Development Institute room (CDI). . .Informal Ombudsman sessions are currently on-going with the view to improve associate interaction and to emphasise the Absolute Care Values. . . Associates from various department formed a special group to take care of all associates of the resort such as organise activities, handle grievances, assist outlets during peak hours, assist associates should there be any major events in the resort, organise by other department. . . The Planning Committee, Department Heads, Managers and Assistant Managers took time off to show their appreciation to the associates by building up stalls at the resort's cafeteria - Cinimarie. A birthday celebration for associates who celebrated birthdays between the month of January to July. . . Hygiene Training was presented by Mr Billy Yee from Ecolab Sdn Bhd. Attendees included Stewards and Cooks. The session focused on Chemical application & scientific cleaning procedure; breakage program & Anti Breakage program

Palau -- 21 fortunate Associates participated in the recent Round Table of Talent (RTT). The 3 fun nights and 2 intensive days featured discussions on "Absolute Care", facilitated by Lyndall De Marco and Mr. Umehara. The RTT generated a lot of excitement amongst the Associates and opened their eyes to more ways to improve our services in order to achieve "Absolute Care". Special thanks to GM, Mr. Uemura for his support of the RTT, and the continued encouragement to the groups to continue to meet and discuss on implementation of appropriate programs and ways to achieve "Absolute Care". Congratulations to the participants who were: Lynn, Edwin A, Godwin, Grace S, Fulvia, Marleen, Simon, Grace N, Lovelyn, Rose, Floribel, Ador, Aaron, Neal, Reinenda, Kathrine M, Temmy, Grayton, Ferena, Sarah, and Twilla. . . Special Congratulations to William, our Recreation Attendant who was selected as July 1999 Associate of the Month.

KL -- Associates and Managers attended the Diploma in Hotel Management - Housekeeping Operations and Accounting sessions. . . New Associates attended Orientation - Day 1 & 2 (Malaysia Host) to welcome them and familiarise them with our facilities, services and knowledge in the hospitality industry. . . Team Leader in Action 2 sessions were held.

Singapore -- With the results of the Associates’ Survey Feedback, a task force was assembled to discuss ways and methods to raise the level of happiness in the working environment for 1999 and to achieve an associate satisfaction of 85% for the Year 2000. A document is been drawn up for implementation by next month.

Johor Bahru -- Five associates attended the Save Safe Certification Course at Glenmarie organized by Ecolab. The participants were Hanafi Yaacob (Operations Manager - Kitchen); Azamuddin Ahmad (Sous Chef - The Newsroom Café); Razali Ahmad (Sous Chef - Banquet); Rostam Abd. Karim (Junior Chef -Butchery); and Kenedi Nyaloh (Operations Manager - Bar and Stewarding). . . Operations Manager - People Innovations, Wahidah Ismail, and Operations Manager - Training, Monica Fernandez, attended a one-day seminar on sexual harassment organized by the Ministry Of Human Resources. The seminar was held to generate awareness amongst Human Resources professionals on the newly launched Code of Practice on the Prevention and Eradication of Sexual Harassment in the Workplace. The seminar was conducted by three highly respected professionals in their field, the Director General of Industrial Relations, Director General of Labor and the Head of the Sexual Assault Division of the Bukit Aman Police Headquarters. The seminar was officiated by the Deputy Minister of Human Resources, Y.B. Dato' Dr. Affifudin Hj Omar.

San Francisco -- The two new interns from the hotel school in Lausanne, Switzerland: Jerome Bernard and Alexandre Mathias will concentrate in the Food & Beverage areas, but will also be train in other departments.

KL -- Mohd Fauzi Mubarak received cross exposure in the Care Agent Programme.

Yokohama -- Ms. Miki Saito and Mr. Takanari Shibata will be exploring the Pan Pacific style of service in other side Asia. Miki will be spending 6 months in Manila. Mr. Shibata is eager to learn the Chinese language and culture while he is in Wuxi, China for 3 months. . . Chris Dunphy and Amber Egea, are completing their assignment in Yokohama. Chris who has spent almost a year now is confident in speaking Japanese and Amber has achieved also basic conversation, and a little written skills.

Glenmarie -- Stevie Mark moves from The Glen to Team Leader - Traveller's Palm. . . Joseph Selvam moves from Travellers Palm to Team Leader in Kites Restaurant. . . Suria Binti Hasan moves from being Team Leader in Kites to The Glen. . . Kuppu A/P Moorthy, Team Leader (Accounts - Cashiering) will undergo cross exposure training in Purchasing.

Johor Bahru -- Doris Moi, Absolute Care Manager - Rooms Division from KLIA is assisting in Front Office operations for one month.

San Francisco -- Two associates from Reception, Rod Bastero and Ray Marks, were promoted to the positions vacated when two Reception Managers left. Rod joined the hotel in 1992 as a Personal Valet. He was promoted to supervisor before moving to the East Coast, upon his return to San Francisco; he was hired at Reception. Ray has been with the hotel for nearly two years and is one of the associates most regularly cited by guests for having provided exceptional service.

KLIA -- Noor Raha binti Haji Bahari is the new Director of People Innovation. Timothy M Pothraju joins as Manager – Service, Pasta & Mee Restaurant. . . Charles Chan has been promoted from Manager, Pacific Market to Director of Restaurants; Shaheen Shah has been promoted from Manager, Banquet & Catering to Director of Conference and Event Services David Xavier has been promoted from Manager, Banquet Operations to Manager, Banquet and Catering.

Johor Bahru -- Ms Tomoko Fujii has been appointed Sales Manager - Japanese Accounts. . . Ms Noor Roselawatee Bt Yahya is the new Sales Manager based in KL- Malaysian Business Development office.

Singapore -- Assistant Director of Sales – Corporate Market, Cynthia Khoo has been promoted to Director of Convention Services. Her primary responsibilities are to maximise business opportunities and to supervise the convention and meeting services team. Cynthia will continue to report to Jim Papineau, the Director of Marketing & Business Development. . . Tuscany Ristorante’s Team Leader, Jenny Chia has been promoted to Assistant Manager. . . The new Restaurant Manager for The Third Floor dining room and Room Service is Richard Howe. Richard bring with him 8 years of restaurant management experience having worked for 4 years as a Manager for Brasserie at Marco Polo Hotel, Oaks Grill & Bar and Ristorante Bologna at Marina Mandarin.

KL -- Mohd Nazri Shawal Alludin is the new Keyaki Restaurant Manager. . . Mohd Suhaimi

Mohd Sany, the previous Selera Restaurant Manager is the new Room Service Manager. . . Milton Paul Peiris moves from being a Room Service Manager to the Selera Restaurant Manager.

Vancouver -- Linda Smith is the new Assistant Manager for Café Pacifica and Cascades Lounge. . .Paul Li, formerly Diamond Club co-ordinator is now temporarily Marketing Data Analyst.

Pangkor -- The new Recreation Manager will be Francis Xavier.

San Francisco -- July upsells totaled an amazing $19,288. Myra Howay led the team once again with 99 room-nights, which translates $4,385 directly to the bottom line! Ray Marks was second with $4,069 and Rod Bastero with $3,098.

KLIA -- The Sky Bridge Bazaar, located at the sky bridge that links the hotel and airport begins on 28^th August 1999. Operation hours are from 10:00 am till 10:00 p.m. Items sold include local handicraft, antique, pottery and other goodies. . . The 2^nd Malaysia’s Longest Golf Drive on KLIA runway was held recently. Umar Bustaman achieved the longest distance for ‘1999’, a whopping 331 metres, however it was not enough to break last year's record of 340.4 metres. Anita Abd Talib was the winner in the "Female" category whilst Edmund Au walked away with "Junior" title. . . We were privileged to accommodate the VIP’s for the "Langkawi International Dialogue": H.E. Uteem Cassam - President of Mauritius, Hazareesing Srawankumar - Minister of Mauritius, H.E. P Mosilili - Prime Minister of Lesotho, M.T. Thabane – Foreign Minister of Lesotho and Dr Katele Kalumba – Finance Minister of Zambia.

Singapore -- The President of the Republic of Botswana, His Excellency Festus Mogae and his wife, Barbara, came on a three-day working visit to Singapore at the invitation of Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong. He was accompanied by the Minister for Commerce & Industry, the Deputy Permanent Secretary with Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Chief of Protocol and other support staff. . . The Embassy of Israel and the hotel jointly sponsored the internationally acclaimed King David String Ensemble from Jerusalem as a tribute to Singapore's 34^th National Day. Three-day performances were led by accomplished conductor and music director, Anita Kamien. The 12-member ensemble featured talented guest violinist, Emil Chudnovsky. The event was graced by H.E. Mr David Danieli, Ambassador of Israel and hotel GM Mr Steve Halliday. . . In mid-August, two culinary connoisseurs of Cantonese cuisine, Executive Chef of Hotel Lisboa and Casino in Macau, Dai Loong and our Executive Chef Chan Chen Hei collaborated to offer 10 heavenly dishes at our Hai Tien Lo Cantonese Restaurant. Chef Chen, who has been named recently "culinary guru" by Hong Kong TVB Man’s Frontier, had invited Chef Dai to join him in showcasing their skills. Since working as consultant chef and actor in the God of cookery with the famous Hong Kong actor, Stephen Chow, Chef Dai has acted in four films with the fifth scheduled for late 1999.

# # # # # # #

Glenmarie -- The PPHR Vision & Values were disseminated to almost 95% of the associate

population personally by Mustaffa Mhd Yusuff. This was done through a series of meetings and get-togethers and also through the re-orientation sessions.

KL -- The hotel embarked on its annual Blood Donation Campaign. About 50 associates participated in this joint collaboration with the Kuala Lumpur General Hospital. . . A staircase run was organised by the Sports Club. The activity was participated by 60 employees, who were categorised under Senior Men (35 years and above), Junior Men (35 years and below), Senior Women (30 years and above) and Junior Women (30 years and below). The run started from ground floor to 15th floor for the women and 30th floor for the men.

Vancouver -- Congratulations to two brides - Cherie Fatiaki (Sales) now Cherie Carpenter and Jennine Vandriesen, now Jennine Trenholme of the Administration office. . . The Executive Committee held a midnight dinner with all associates of the midnight shift to acknowledge their commitment and also celebrate safe work procedures.

Johor Bahru -- Associates from various departments had an opportunity to bring their families to visit Kuala Lumpur recently. Twenty-six participants went on a day-trip organized by the hotel's Sports & Recreation Club. The trip included a tour of the Kuala Lumpur International Airport and The Pan Pacific KLIA, and a visit to the tallest building in the world, the Petronas

Twin Towers.

KLIA -- Hotel guests will no longer have to travel all the way to the airport bus terminal to purchase their ticket. The hotel’s Business Centre has just signed an agreement with Airport Coach Sdn Bhd to sell bus tickets at the Business Centre. With 5 guests and above, arrangements can be made for the bus to pick up our guests from the hotel. What else is more important than to make our guest’s stay a more pleasant one!

Yokohama -- During summer holidays, many families check into the hotel and often are faced with long check-in queues. To relieve the stress of travel and waiting to check in, the team offers all guests hot towels and orange juice at the front lobby.

Pangkor -- A video games machine using 50 cents coins will be made available at the resort in the near future. . . Pacific Wing rooms will get new kimonos for guest use. . . The gift shop now opens at 9.00 a.m. to cater to the Star Cruise passengers who arrive early on Tuesdays.

Dhaka -- The hotel is offering free demonstrations of Carpet/Floor/Curtain Cleaning Services to the clients of Dhaka at Homes, Offices or Institutions. The mission is to exceed the expectations of the valued clients. This first of its kind service in Dhaka is getting popular day by day.

Singapore -- A Japanese Guest Service Team has been formed to attend to the needs of Japanese guests. The front desk trio comprises of Naomi Ota, Keiko Miyata and Malcolm Hew will meet, greet, welcome, assist and handle general inquiries. On the culinary aspect, Keyaki’s Executive Chef Hiroshi Ishii and his team of Japanese chefs, Restaurant Manager, Mika Hori and service agent Chow Yoke Lan will provide impeccable food and beverage service. Eiichi Ishimaru, Director of Sales for the Japanese Market is effectively bi-lingual. Japanese guests and customers will find comfort in knowing that they can communicate their every requirement easily.

Vancouver -- Michael Brough and Sean Murray from the culinary team joined F&B Director Edel Forristal at Mauna Lani Bay to assist with the "Cuisines of the Sun" culinary event.

KLIA -- "Sol Mexican Beer" will be on promotion at all outlets from the 15^th August till the 15^th September, 1999 at the special price of RM17.00 nett per bottle. . . Effective 1^st August, 1999 - Pasta & Mee Restaurant will be open 24 hours daily, serving a la carte, buffet breakfast, lunch, dinner and supper. Pacific Market is open only for dinner, closed on Sundays and Public Holidays. Traveller’s Bar & Grill’s operational hours has been changed to 5 p.m. - 2 am from Sunday – Thursday and 5 p.m. – 3 am on Fridays –Saturdays.

Yokohama -- The annual summer event in Yokohama for almost 45 years, the Yokohama

Fireworks Festival saw fireworks being launched from boats on Yokohama Bay area, right in front of the hotel. The guestrooms offer a spectacular view of the display. The team decided to not only focus on hotel guests but also members of the public on their way to the park. The " Tall Man", an entertainer on stilts dressed as a clown gave out 1000 heart shaped balloons- a symbol of " A Hotel with Heart" daily. Stalls were set up to sell hotel made meal boxes to carry to watch the fireworks display. . . In summer, a Chinese Afternoon Tea Menu is offered at the Turandot Chinese restaurant daily from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Light snacks such as crunchy fried spring rolls, fried rice, noodles, and siu-mai; desserts such as mango pudding, healthy sesame pudding, and the 3 tea dessert plate ( set of pudding, jelly, and ice cream made of 3 different tea leaves ) are served. In good weather, diners can sit on the balcony. . . French restaurant Queen Alice has on sale their original soft type cookie set with 3 flavors, almond, chocolate, and English tea.

Glenmarie -- A "Country & Western" Nite was organised by the resort's fun pub - Traveller's Palm on July 30. The pub's regular customers came dressed according to the theme. Activities lined up included Best Dressed Cowboys & cowgirls, Beer Competition, line dancing and pool competition.

San Francisco -- On August 2^nd, a local travel/food radio show began its weekly taping from the PACIFIC BAR. The show not only promotes the hotel and its food outlets, it also draws interest into the Bar. . . The San Francisco Examiner food critics Patricia Unterman and Bill Citara recently released their list of the 50 best restaurants in the Bay Area. PACIFIC was among those mentioned in this highly respected list.

Singapore -- Keyaki Restaurant invited chefs Masanari Oda and Satoshi Takara from Naha Tokyu Hotel, Okinawa to prepare Okinawa cuisine. To complement the Okinawan dishes, a rich aromatic rice liquor – Awamori was brought. Two accomplished ethnic entertainers were brought in by courtesy of the Okinawa Prefectural Government. The unique cuisine marries the lightly seasoned Japanese dishes with the thickly seasoned Chinese food.

KL -- The hotel hosted a wine-tasting session for members of the Chopsticks Club, open to patrons of the Keyaki Japanese Restaurant, and guests of Jardine Wines & Spirits Sdn Bhd. The event saw a gathering of 110 wine connoisseurs and gourmets sampling a total of 11 labels from Torres, Spain and Santa Digna, and Chilean vineyards. The aromatic offerings were complemented with a gastronomic treat at a dinner reception ranging from canapés to Japanese and local delicacies. Present was Jordi Vinal, area manager of Miguel Torres, S. A., from Spain who personally conducted the session. . . In view of the great response to the last food and beverage gift certificates, the team once again mailed gift certificates to 900 of its corporate clients. Each recipient gets four sets of certificates, comprising of a Weekend Dinner Buffet at Selera worth RM49, Weekend Set Dinner at Hai Tien Lo worth RM60 and Japanese Saturday High Tea at Keyaki worth RM39, applicable when one other accompanying person pays a full price for the same meal. The certificates are valid on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, from August 1 to October 31, 1999.

Pangkor -- The 2nd Pangkor region GMs meeting was held at the Telok Dalam Resort with Datin Hajjah Mazidah Zakaria (Perak Culture, Tourism, Woman affairs and Human development chairman) as guest. Many key issues were discussed including plans to lift the Pangkor region image internationally. . . GM Bill McNamara's visit to Australia with Tourism Malaysia and some new packages were launched : 6 night/7 days package with MAS Golden Holidays based on deluxe garden wing room with breakfast, roundtrip transfers from KL/KLIA by road or air. A 4 nights / 5 days package for travel agents discover Malaysia educational programme was also offered from August to November. . . Paul Er and Teekay conducted a sales trip to Penang. . . A bulk sale of 5,000 room nights to DeSinyo has been confirmed.

Yokohama -- To celebrate the 2nd Anniversary, the "Two in One" package offers the 45,000 JPY Executive Twin Room at the rate of 22,222 JPY (tax, service charge excluded). The name refers to 2^nd anniversary and also the mixture of two different cultures in one hotel. The traditional Japanese culture and the international culture as being a part of the worldwide hotel chain. . . On Aug 6, all associates gathered at the Queens Grand Ballroom to celebrate the hotel's acceptance by The Leading Hotels of the World. Mr. T. Sueyoshi Director of Marketing of the hotel and Mr. Hiroshi Okazaki, Regional Manager of LHW Japan presided over the event.

Mauna Lani -- The 10^th anniversary of the "Cuisines of the Sun" was sold out. The VIPs invited were very impressed and much media attention was generated. The next event is set for 22-26 July 2000.

KL -- The hotel team hosted lunch and site inspection for the following: PC (M) Bhd, Mr Y Arora of HIS Tour Bangkok, PATA CEO and Northwest Cargo, Japan. . . Mathew R. and Ananth Ganesh conducted sales calls in Penang and Kedah. . . Yati Tahir and Dee Pok were in Sabah and Sarawak for sales calls.

Dhaka -- Foreign Minister of Union of Myanmar Mr. Win Aung was on a 3-day official goodwill visit. Mr. Aung attended a formal meeting of Bangladesh Myanmar Business Promotion Council (BMBPC) at the hotel. . . A Cocktail Reception was held to celebrate the Belgium national day at the Grand Ballroom. 150 local and foreign dignitaries including Ministers, Diplomats, Business Executives and Officials from different organisations. . . attended this A dinner hosted by Emirates in honour of the Chairman of the Emirates Group and Deputy Minister for Civil Aviation in U.A.E, was held at the Grand Ballroom. . . An internal program of British American Tobacco "Communication Day" was observed at the Grand Ballroom. . . Inauguration of BEXIM Bank was held at the Grand Ballroom attended by 1000 guests, which was followed by a grand dinner for 1500. . . A Farewell Reception by H.E. Y. Kaneko, Ambassador of Japan in Bangladesh was attended 400 guests, including Ministers, Diplomats and other dignitaries.

Johor Bahru -- The second leg of the PPHR Fun Trail Grand Slam was flagged off from Glenmarie and headed south to The Puteri Pan Pacific Johor Bahru. This is the first time that three Pan Pacific hotels - Glenmarie, JB and Pangkor are jointly organizing a motor treasure hunt. The first leg was held in the Klang Valley in July, the Johor Bahru leg was held in August and the third leg (Grand Finals) will be held from Glenmarie to Pangkor in October. The Grand Slam Finals offer a cash prize of RM20,000. . . The Sunset Cocktail for long term guests was held by the pool. On hand to welcome the guests were General Manager, Lyndall De Marco; the

hotel's Executive Committee members, department heads and sales managers. . . The hotel hosted a meeting between MATTA (Malaysian Association of Travel and Tour Agents) and NATAS (National Association of Travel Agents, Singapore) who were discussing greater cooperation between the two countries. The meeting was followed by a hosted cocktail for all attendees. Guests of honor were Y.M. Tunku Iskandar Tunku Abdullah, President of MATTA, and Y.B. Dato' Jimmy Low Boon Hong, Chairman of the Johor State Tourism Committee. Other guests included the presidents of the regional chapters of MATTA.

Vancouver -- The hotel hosted its 7^th annual golf tournament for the 100 top corporate clients at the University Golf Club. The event raised over $2000 for a local charity organization.

Palau -- Palau Pacific Resort (PPR), University of Guam (UOG) and Palau Community College (PCC) join forces to prepare students for Tourism Industry. On August 3, 1999, it was publicly announced that the three entities are working on an agreement to take effect this Fall which will benefit future Palau Pacific Hotel School students in the following ways:

1. During their two years at the hotel school, PPR students will take up to 39 credits of

academic courses from PCC. These credits will enable them to complete four-year

degrees at UOG in approximately two years.

2. PCC will assume responsibility for general education of the PPR students relieving

some of the teaching load from PPR Managers/Instructors.

3. The hotel school will be open to PPR associates who wish to upgrade their skills

and earn PCC credits.

Thailand -- H.M. The Queen's Birthday celebrations was held nationwide where buildings and trees were decorated with colored lights. . . The Bangkok premier of World-class Festival of Dance & Music was held at the Thai Cultural Centre. This is part of the celebrations to commemorate H.M. The King's 6^th cycle.

Malaysia -- The Selangor State Government has announce the Year 2000 as "Visit Selangor Year" and urged the hotels and Travel Agents in Selangor State to support all tourism programs organized by the State Government.

The Malaysian Association of Hotel (MAH) plans to become a regulatory body for the hospitality industry. They hope to play a greater role in the rating of hotels to ensure quality service and make it mandatory for all hotels to become MAH members. They are currently working closely with the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Tourism. Their immediate focus will be given to membership development, enhancing training and educational programmes.

(The Sun - August 2, 1999)

The local media has been asked not to give prominence to negative news concerning tourism in the country. Culture, Arts and Tourism Minister Datuk Abdul Kadir Sheikh Fadzir mentioned that media were indirectly seen as advertisements in attracting local and foreign tourism. He also mentioned that negative news played by the media would affect the country's image apart from causing concern to tourists.

(Business times - August 2, 1999)

KL -- A Merdeka Special priced at RM168 nett based on single or twin sharing in a deluxe room. Up to 2 children under 12 years old sharing parents" room stay free. Guests who book this package will be given the national flag. Valid from 1-31 August.

Singapore -- To celebrate the launch of the Pacific Ballroom, which will re-open on 10 September 1999, an "early bird" booking incentive is being offered. For meetings held between 10 September and 31 March 2000, with a minimum of 50 guestrooms on peak night per event, a food and beverage credit valued at 10% of the total guestrooms cost will be given. This credit is applied towards payment of any event incurred during the banquet function or for any future banquet before 30 November 2000. It cannot be used to offset alcohol consumption. This incentive is subject to availability of guest and function rooms and is not valid between 30 December 1999 and 1 January 2000.

Pangkor -- A RM99 RIB rate is available to Singapore registered travel agents and tour operators until the end of August.

San Francisco -- Tony Zelidon , from Guest Room Services, raised funds for the campaign against AIDS by participating in the annual San Francisco AIDS Walk.

KLIA -- The hotel will be donating RM5,168.00 towards the "Kosovo Fund". This amount was collected from two events: "Malaysia’s Longest Cake" and "Malaysia’s Longest Golf Drive on KLIA runway".

Dhaka -- A donation program organized by the hotel was held recently. The ceremony was attended by 42 children from six different institutions in Dhaka who received Care Packages of linen, crockery and uniforms. Mr. Tetsuya Sonobe, Senior Vice President of Pan Pacific Hotels and Resorts was the Chief Guest at this ceremony while Mr. Adiluzzaman, Managing Director of Hotels International Limited and Mr. Eldridge J. Mac Ewan lll, General Manager of PPSH were the Special Guests on this occasion.

Vancouver -- The hotel is designated hospitality sponsor for the B.C. Women's Hospital. The first fundraising event was a VIP catered reception for 200 people at the Vancouver museum, which showcased several Princess Diana's gowns.

Johor Bahru -- The hotel's associates once again showed their generosity when approached by

the Malaysian Medical Relief Society (Mercy) for donations of personal hygiene items for refugees in Kosovo. Associates pooled their resources together to buy items such as soap, toothbrushes, toothpaste, shampoo and towels for the refugees.

Palau -- The Palau Pacific Hotel School (PPHS) celebrated the graduation of its Class '99 on August 3, 1999. This was the first batch of students to graduate from the school since its opening in 1997. Producing the first batch is a milestone and a historical event for the Palau's education sector as this is the first hotel school on Palau and the entire Micronesia. The school offers a two-year diploma in Hotel Operations, a joint program of the University of Guam (UOG) and the Pan Pacific Hotels and Resorts. After the two-year Hotel Operations courses at PPR, students are accepted at the University of Guam as junior students taking Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, majoring in Tourism. Six out of the eight graduates flew to Manila on August 7 to 14, 1999 to attend cross exposure training program at our hotel there.

Palau -- On August 15, the clam planting program was relaunched, coordinated by the Recreation Team. About 20 5 year old baby giant clams (size: 15 - 20 cm) were planted by hotel guests from Japan, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. A toast using ice-tea was held after the clam planting, and guests who participated were excited and hope to return to the resort to visit their baby clams. The purpose of this program is to teach people about the marine life preservation, especially clams.

Mauna Lani -- The 10^th Annual Turtle Independence Day festivities took place recently. About 140 participants made up of associates, guests and members of the local community took part in the fun run and walk followed by turtle related activities including a release of 10 green sea turtles. Sharing in the occasion was US Senator Daniel Akaka Sr. who congratulated the hotel on its efforts in preserving the environment. . . The "Back to School Fundraiser" saw associates donating school supplies for less fortunate families. 500 pounds of new school supplied were delivered to the Salvation Army for distribution. Thank you to Sheri DeCosta who spearheaded this event with the assistance of the Community-Absolute Care team.

On July 19, 1999 Western Australia State Government, Tokyu Corporation and Yanchep Sun City Pty. Ltd. (subsidiary of Tokyu Corporation), signed a strategic co-operation agreement for a $12billion development which will be one of the biggest residential project in Australia. Yanchep is located 50km north of Perth along the coastal line. This project will take place in stages over 30-year to build a satellite township containing 55,000 homes for about 150,000 people. These people will make their homes in the urban villages and rural communities expected to spring up around the existing townships of Two Rocks, Yanchep and St. Andrews. Also this development is expected to create 50,000 jobs in the area.

The first activity is expected to be a facelift for the Two Rocks town centre and marina within the next three years. The first 1000-home urban village is planned to be under way during the same period and the first 1000 jobs are expected to be in place by 2004.

A hospital and university are expected to be under way by 2012, along with a second marina to cope with increasing demand from new residents. And by then new homes are expected to be going up at a rate of 2,000 a year, and 10,000 jobs. The city centre, designed to be a focus for but not dominate the surrounding region will start to take shape.

The city is expected to be finished by 2030. By then, if the present concepts prevail, there will be 10 urban villages including Yanchep, Two Rocks and St Andrews in place, 5 rural communities, and three marinas along the coast. The urban village and rural community concepts are ideals identified by both the Government and Tokyu in a bid to create more live-able communities.

The project is notable for combining job creation with housing development. The idea is to attract industries – such as telecommunications, information technology and science and research – develop the area. If this is achieved it will allow people to live near their work places. This will also have benefits for the people concerned about the environment because it will reduce travel.

Shinobu Shimizu, president of Tokyu Corporation after signing the agreement spoke glowingly of Tokyu’s relationship with the Sir Charles, the State Government and its hopes for Yanchep.

" It is my hope that the Western Australian Government and Tokyu Corporation can work together to promote even closer relations based upon the agreement signed here today, thereby contributing to the future prosperity of the local community and the State as a whole in the 21^st century."

We have just finished translating the PPHR Home Page into Japanese, which is now online for everybody. There is a link from the English version (www.panpac.com). Just click on the Japanese flag and you will be able to see the content in Japanese. Please inform your Japanese customers and if you get feed back from them please let me know.

If you would like to know anything about Tokyu Corporation please e-mail me at:

kazuyoshi.shimojima@tkk.tokyu.co.jp