It has been eight years
since Cebu Pacific Air introduced “Juan For Fun”—a backpacker challenge participated
by university students. Since then, Juan for Fun has evolved from an Amazing Race-like challenge, to a
platform where one will not only discover the wonders of travel—but also use
traveling as a springboard to spread one’s advocacy, understand different
culture and broaden horizon.
The 2019 Juan For Fun aims
just that, when Cebu Pacific asked loyal passengers to nominate someone to join
this year's edition "What makes the
life story of your nominee amazing?"
Thousands heeded the call and
nominated exceptional young individuals. After going through the influx of
nominees, five young passion-driven and budding travelers stood out to lead
their respective teams.
A
Woke Generation of JuanForFun Participants
Speaking about this year’s
batch, returning Juan for Fun mentor and travel writer Jude Bacalso said "They belong to the woke generation because
at 18, one of them already founded an NGO, while the others have their own
advocacies. I was thinking about lipsticks when I was 18"
 |
| The 5 Finalists together with their travel mentors: Joyce Pring,. Kyle Jennerman, Jude Bacalso and Mikael Daez |
The five finalists whose age
ranges from 18-23 are; Bin Nur Mangangcong, a young Marawi siege survivor who
hopes to champion understanding of different Filipino cultures; Jeric
Cabanillas, an artist with the heart to educate children in Palawan; Jessica
Rench, a Cebuana who founded an NGO that reaches out to kids in Visayas; Artus
Enriquez, a bird watcher who aims to protect endemic species in the country and
Dariel Vallez, an agriculture graduate advocating agriculture to the youth.
They will be joined by two
of their friends, to form five three-member teams who will journey to various
destinations in the Philippines for 7 whole days.
Each team were assigned
specially curated travel itineraries to various Cebu Pacific destinations such
as: Siargao, Bohol, Tuguegarao, Mindoro, Puerto Princesa, Bacolod, Davao and
more—with each team expected to fly to at least three provinces.
The
Gift of Travel
During the send-off party
held at Dusit Thani Hotel in Mactan, Cebu, the Juan for Fun teams listened as
their respective travel mentors took to stage to offer some sage travel
advices.
Popular Vlogger Kyle "Kulas" Jennerman of Becoming Filipino implored the
importance of saying "NO"
to pointless use of plastics while on the road. He also explained the impact
one can have by playing a role in island conservation.
TV personality Joyce Pring
narrated how the gift of travel changed her perception of the world. "I only got my passport when I was 21.
Before that, the only place I traveled to was Manila to Baguio". She
implored the young participants to get out of their comfort zones, learn about
the great big world and gain a sense of responsibility in taking care of it.
 |
| Kyle, Joyce and Jude are all returning Juan for Fun mentors with Mikael as the new one |
Actor and vlogger Mikael
Daez egged the audience to experience two adventures in one trip by adding culinary
exploration to one’s travel goals.
Travel writer Jude Bacalso
stated the important role social media and travel writing plays in spreading
unique travel stories. She narrated how her article about Cebu's seafood scene
snowballed into a chain of events that led to the creation of Netflix: Street
Food Asia episode on Cebu.
Cebu
Pacific’s Longest Running Program for the Youth
"Juan for Fun has been the longest running program for the youth by Cebu
Pacific. This is our eighth year of enabling our next generation of travelers
to make first moments happen" said Michelle Eve De Guzman, Cebu
Pacific Director for Marketing. "Through the years it has evolved and this year we’ve taken out the
competition aspect because according to many Juan for Fun alumni, it didn't
matter who won in the end because the trip itself is priceless. So, we added
this part where we considered the participant’s advocacies and designed their itineraries
around it" De Guzman adds.
 |
| The event was also graced by Cebu's Food heroes featured in Netflix: Street Food Asia. I'm here with Mang Entoy Escabas of "Bakasi" stew fame. |
"In the past Juan for Fun, I would see how literally these kids changed a lot, when they came back from
their 7-day trip. I can see in their eyes that they really had an adventure of
a lifetime" Bacalso recalls.
After tracing the history of
Cebu Pacific’s Juan for Fun in enabling young people to discover the marvels of
traveling—to describe it as life-changing for the participants, is even an
understatement.
