The start of my Asia adventure began with Macau. You may ask why Macau? Or even where is Macau? Well, Macau is a small island off Hong Kong and it is the Las Vegas of Asia. I never imagined visiting Macau, and it really had no significance to me until it became the 2014 Flight Centre Global Ball destination. After that, every single day for a year I dreamed of Macau, all my hard work was for one thing- MACAU. Before I get into the trip I have to brag a little bit about my awesome company and what our Global Ball really is. Every year Flight Centre spends over 12 million dollars on our Global gathering which is basically a weekend long party to celebrate those who are at the very top of our company. I didn't just get chosen to go to Macau, it was a years worth of work that took me there. I had one full year to reach a certain number in sales to get to go to our Global Ball and the numbers are extremely high. Very few people get to experience Global Ball, and I am so unbelievably thankful that I had this opportunity. However, it did not come easy, I worked hard for this. My last month to make number one was September 2013. It was my first month as a manager and I worked harder than I ever have in my life....but guess what? I did it! I was number one in Liberty Travel and I was officially going to Global Ball. I was on top of the world, and began planning my Asia adventure. Nine months later I was landing in Macau.
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| Venetian in Macau |
We arrived in Macau after a 16 hour flight to Taipei, followed by a 4 hour layover at 5am in the Taipei airport. Needless to say I was exhausted, but the excitement of finally being at Global completely overtook any desire to take a nap. From the minute we arrived, The Sheraton Macau was completely decked out for Flight Centre (we call ourselves flighty’s). I checked in and headed right to the pool for the Tiki pool party reserved just for Flightys. What an incredible start to Global, a day pool party complete with a DJ and drinks just for us! For our evening party we had been given Monster onesies to wear (the theme being Monster Macau). The minute we stepped out of the room there were monsters throughout the Venetian, leading into the colosseum. When we arrived we met up with our amazing area leader and fellow NYC team and enjoyed the party. Highlights- meeting our CEO (Skroo Turner) and dancing in onesies to the headlining act- Will.I.Am.
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| View from my room |
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| Walking into the Monster onesie party! |
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| NYC team in our onesies |
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| Josh and I with the Flight Centers CEO, Skroo! |
Day two began bright and early for an inspiring day of conferencing. All nations decked themselves out in their countrys’ apparel. We marched with American flags chanting USA, proud as can be. The entire day was full of motivational speakers and defining moments. The energy in the room was electrifying and in that conference I realized that I was apart of something so much bigger than myself, or my store, or my area. I am work for a company that is a worldwide sensation, and I am so proud to be apart of the top 10% percent.
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| The most inspiring conference |
That evening was the awards gala, the formal main event of the trip. Everyone dressed to the nines, girls in ball gowns and the men in tuxes. We had a sit down dinner while the awards were given out and then it was onto the party! We ran straight to the front of the stage eager to hear who the surprise performer would be…guess who? Jessie Jay and Havana Brown! We danced the night away and it was probably one of the best parties of my life.
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| All dressed up for the awards gala |
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| Front row for the Jessie Jay performance |
The morning after we had a “recovery pool party brunch” sponsored by P&O. It was a great morning and I surely did not want to get out the pool and make the journey to the airport, but as 3pm neared I knew it was time to say my goodbyes. After a shuttle bus to a ferry to a taxi, we finally arrived at the Hong Kong airport for our evening flight to Bangkok. This was probably the most exhausting travel day of my life, and being on a boat for an hour did not help my seasickness. I was very thankful I had gotten us a room at the 5 star Banyan Tree in Bangkok-perks of being a travel agent. The hotel was unbelievable, I highly recommend staying here if you are ever in Bangkok. The staff was beyond helpful and friendly, the rooms were modern and spacious, and lets just say I could have slept in that bed forever. The next morning we spent the day at the Banyan Trees rooftop pool. It was great to just relax for the day, the tranquility of the Banyan Tree was just what I needed after the crazy weekend at Global. For lunch we had traditional Thai food and mango smoothies at a local recommended restaurant. It was a delicious meal, but I have to say, beware if you are ever in Thailand….the food is extremely spicy! As the afternoon neared, I knew it was time to check out of the luxurious five star hotel and make the way to the YOLO style Bangkok Centre Hotel to meet our group for the tour. We arrived at the Bangkok Centre Hotel and immediately noticed several other young travelers who were all about to embark on the journey of a lifetime. Anxious and excited we waited to meet our CEO and the group of strangers who would soon become family.
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| Recovery pool party brunch |
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| Amazing pool at the Banyan Tree Bangkok |
