AMOSUP, Looking Back, Sailing Forward: Finally, a book to call my own

AMOSUP at 50 Book Cover

I came from an era raised on the printed page.  Growing up, I always looked forward to the arrival of the Britannica Book of the Year through the snail mail, researched at home using our now-vintage Encyclopaedia Britannica and saved my lunch money so I can collect pocketbooks bought from the old National Bookstore and secondhand book stalls along Avenida.

I guess it's a different story now with e-books, Kindle and iPads.  Call me old-fashioned but I still dig the convenience of requiring no batteries to read as well as the romance of lying in the middle of nowhere and taking in all the words, the scent of paper (musty for old books, ink-infused for new prints), the sound of flipping and the feel of each page.  Of course, I've always dreamed of having my own book.  Any book will do.

Book sample inside page

It took awhile but this year saw the realization of that dream.  I got an opportunity to create a book for a client.  Entitled "AMOSUP at 50, Looking Back, Sailing Forward," it marks the culmination of a year-long engagement and a lifelong dream.  I feel privileged to be part of a project that pays tribute to an institution that in turn honors the Filipino seafarer.

As with any project, this one taught me a lot of things aside from realizing that not only is the Philippines the texting capital of the world but the crewing capital as well.  For example, 75% of the Japanese maritime industry is manned by Filipino seafarers.  Imagine that.  

No project is accomplished without the help of an understanding and patient crew so I thank my art director, Reno Maniquis; project manager, Jing Punla; and my clients from AMOSUP headed by Doc. Conrado Oca and JB Oca for making this book possible.