Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/501315
Events 26 maltatoday, Sunday, 26 april 2015 Emirates increases capacity on its twice daily Seychelles service Emirates, a global connector of people and places, is set to increase its capacity to the popular Indian Ocean Island of Seychelles, when it switches from the current Airbus 330-200 used on one of the two dai- ly services to a larger Boeing 777- 300ER from 1 June 2015. The introduction of the Emirates Boeing 777-300ER, which operates as flight EK 705 from Dubai and as EK 706 on the return flight, will in- crease overall capacity on the route by 1,722 seats per week and will make the route an all-Boeing 777 operation. "The Seychelles is a very popular leisure destination, and we have ex- perienced consistent growth on the route since we started operations to the island on 1 January 2005, with three weekly flights using an Air- bus A330-200. Since then we have had to gradually increase our fre- quencies and deploy larger aircraft to meet growing demand, and now 10 years later, starting from 1 June we will have two Boeing 777s on the route," said Orhan Abbas, Emirates Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations, Latin America, Central and Southern Africa. "The island draws a lot of leisure travellers from across our network, with many coming from the Middle East, Europe and Russia. In 2014, Emirates carried well in excess of 200,000 customers to and from the Seychelles," he added. "The announcement by Emirates that they will be introducing a sec- ond Boeing 777 on the Seychelles route is indeed good news for the tourism industry of our islands. This announcement also guar- antees our visitors that they can now enjoy the Dubai – Seychelles service with three classes on both Emirates flights every day. We take this opportunity to thank Emirates for their continued support and for believing in the tourism industry of Seychelles," said Alain St. Ange, Minister of Tourism and Culture of the Seychelles. The Boeing 777-300ER will have a three class configuration, with eight First Class Private Suites, 42 lie flat seats in Business Class and 310 spacious seats in Economy Class. Customers on Emirates flights enjoy the famed hospitality of its multi-national cabin crew, in- cluding nationals of the Seychelles, and gourmet cuisine. All three cab- ins are equipped with Emirates' award-winning ice entertainment system, which has more than 2,000 channels of on-demand entertain- ment, from movies, television pro- grammes, games, audio books, and music from across the world. As with all Emirates flights customers also enjoy generous baggage allow- ances, with 30 kg in Economy Class, 40 kg in Business Class and 50 kg in First Class. The larger aircraft also opens up additional cargo capacity of over 80 tonnes per week on the route, facili- tating further trade opportunities between Seychelles and Emirates global network of more than 140 destinations. Seychelles exports fresh and frozen seafood, fruits and vegetables and ornamental fish, while imports also include fresh and frozen fruits, vegetables and meat, automotive spare parts, dry foodstuffs and beverages, personal effects and construction equip- ment. Emirates flight EK 705 departs Dubai at 0205hrs and arrives in the Seychelles at 0645hrs. The return flight EK 706 departs at 0815hrs and arrives back in Dubai at 1245hrs. The second daily flight, EK 707, leaves Dubai at 0840hrs and arrives in the Seychelles at 1320hrs. The return flight EK 708 departs 2355hrs and arrives in Dubai the next morning at 0425hrs. Emirates currently operates daily scheduled flights between Malta and Dubai via Larnaka, Cyprus. Chivas Regal, the world's first luxury whisky, introduces Chivas Regal Extra — its first new global expression since 2007. Comple- menting its collection of premium blended Scotch whiskies, Chivas Regal Extra is one of the richest, most generous tasting blends with- in this category, crafted for those who look for more. Taking Chivas Regal's famous, award-winning house style to a new taste experience, Chivas Re- gal Extra continues the legacy of founding brothers James and John Chivas, who pioneered the art of blending whiskies in the 19th Cen- tury. Blending whisky for 25 years, Colin Scott, Chivas Regal Master Blender has created a unique and outstanding blended Scotch using some of the rarest malt whiskies from the Chivas inventory. Chivas Regal Extra is a special selection of whis- kies matured in Oloroso sherry casks together with the rarest and finest Chivas malts, creating a rich and generous Chivas blend, for those who look for more. The result is an incredibly rich and discerning inter- pretation of the Chivas sig- nature style, Chivas Regal Extra has a fruity, sweet nose with notes of ripe pears, creamy toffee and a hint of ginger. The ripe pears continue on the pal- ate, with sweet tropical f lavours of melons and soft notes of vanilla and caramel, blending with spicy notes of cinnamon and hints of al- monds, leading to a long and ful- filling finish. "This is our first new global ex- pression since 2007," explains Co- lin Scott, Master Blender at Chi- vas Regal. "The mark of its quality lies in its rich and generous taste which we've created by using some of our rarest whiskies built on a rich foundation of malts that have been matured in a higher proportion of sherry casks. This process delivers a profound depth of f lavour and a whisky that showcases the char- acter of this unique blend, taking it to a whole new level." Chivas Regal Extra was launched at Electro Lob- ster Project in Balluta on 26 March 2015 with great success. The evening was organised by Farsons Beverage Imports Com- pany Limited and guests included members of the trade and the Bar- tenders Guild. To mark the special occasion, Chivas cocktails were served throughout the night and included the signature 'Chivas Claw' which was created especially for the event. Food items, catered by Electro Lobster Project, were carefully selected to accompany the Chivas Regal Extra cocktails: the Chivas Claw, the Hoots Mon Spritz, the Chancellor, and the Next Level. At the end of the night guests were given goodie bags that included Chivas whisky stones, an informa- tive booklet on Chivas Regal Extra, a pocket square and coasters. Chivas Regal is imported, market- ed and distributed by Farsons Bev- erage Imports Company Limited, a member of The Farsons Group. The 2015 Coldwell Bank- er EMEA affiliate meet- ing kicked off last Mon- day 20 April in Florence, Italy. The Coldwell Banker Malta contingent was represented by Director Hermann Mallia, Busi- ness Development Man- ager Melvin Pellicano, Market Research & In- sight Executive Russell Schembri, Branch Man- ager Roger Cali, Sales Ex- ecutive Dorian Cremona and Training and Coach- ing/Franchise Develop- ment Manager Mark Ellul. The three-day intensive EMEA training sessions and discussions provided Coldwell Banker Malta's representatives with invalu- able insight on new market trends, innovative technology solutions, brand engagement and franchise sales training. Keynote speakers included Coldwell Bank- er's President and CEO, Budge Huskey, COO Michael Fisher, Vice President Global Opera- tions Peter Turtzo, Senior Vice President for Global Development Terry Cooper and Global Business Consultant Mark Friend amongst others. "This was an excellent networking event hosted by our Italian colleagues and our in- tent is to establish Malta as a strong element within the Coldwell Banker international net- work. At Coldwell Banker Malta our priority is to draw attention to our exceptional level of services. In order to achieve this we need to attract the best and brightest employees. We are committed to invest in their future as well as ours," said Mallia. Coldwell Banker is an iconic brand and fran- chisor of one of the world's largest real estate sales organisation. Each office is independ- ently owned and operated. Should you be interested in joining the Cold- well Banker Malta team kindly send us an e- mail on info@coldwellbanker.com.mt or call on +356 2339 2299. Charmaine Attard has been appointed Di- rector of Care of Hilltop Gardens Retire- ment Village – a subsidiary of AX Holdings which brings the concepts of independent living and assisted care under one roof. Attard is a nurse by profession with more than 15 years' experience under her belt. After graduating with a Degree in Nursing from the University of Malta, Attard worked as a staff nurse at St. Luke's Hospital. She went on to work as a nurse, within the private sector, for several years and in the meantime read a Master in Nursing with the University of Manchester. Having experienced being on the shop floor and garnering years of hands-on ex- perience, Attard was promoted to various managerial positions which ranged from Home Manager at Casa Arkati to Opera- tions Manager at Care Malta where, she was responsible for six facilities for the elderly. For the last six years and just before join- ing AX Holdings, Attard served as Direc- tor of Nursing and Midwifery at Mater Dei Hospital and Karen Grech Rehabilitation Hospital. During these years she had more than 2000 staff members within her remit. Attard is also an assistant lecturer within the Department of Nursing within the Fac- ulty of Health Sciences at the University of Malta where she has lectured for over ten years. Attard is currently reading an MBA at The University of Leicester but what is probably her most significant quality and, most cer- tainly what landed her the role of Director of Care with AX Holdings, is her passion for nursing and her belief that patients should always be at the centre of all decisions. Attard believes that all those in the caring profession, including doctors and nurses, have the privilege to be close to patients when they are at their most vulnerable. They therefore have a duty to treat them with re- spect, dignity and the best care possible. Having worked with AX Holdings in the past, Attard is convinced that Hilltop Gar- dens will offer the highest of standards in care and quality systems. Her aim is to cre- ate a patient-centric environment, where dedicated nurses and carers will be enabled and rewarded for their professional care. Coldwell Banker Malta representatives attend affiliate meeting in Florence New Director of Care appointed at Hilltop Gardens Retirement Village Chivas Regal launches first new blend since 2007: New Chivas Regal Extra takes luxury whisky to the next level Charmaine Attard The Malta contingent for the Coldwell Banker EMEA meeting