Angeles City News

December 2007

The holidays are upon us and the town is full. If you are planning on visiting Angeles in the coming weeks and you don't have reservations, the pickings are slim. Almost every hotel room is fully booked through mid-January.

Margarita Station will be closed from 8am until 5 pm on the 17th for our employees Christmas Party.
This is an abbreviated newsletter for several reasons. First there is some information that I need to get out. And second, because the last newsletter contained almost 200 new photos and it received almost no response.  Not sure our readers want lengthy newsletters any more.

WHAT'S  HOT  IN  THE  CLUBS:

STARGATE

 The clubs are full for the holidays.  If you like the big clubs, be sure to check out Blue Nile, Nero's, and Camelot.  My favorite smaller clubs on Fields Avenue are La Bamba, Typhoon, Bedrock and Insomnia.  And lots of great clubs on Perimeter Road to include Fire & Ice, Stargate, Honey Ko's, and Lost In Asia.
new clubs:   As usual for this time of year, a number of new clubs have recently opened:  BODY SHOP, ERUPTIONS, TARTZ, STARGATE, & THE CRAZY HORSE SALOON.

BAR RAIDS:  November brought a few more raids on the bars of Balibago.  The most serious was in the Alaska Club.

ALASKA:  The Alaska Club was raided during a semi-private party.  As a result of the raid the bar was closed for about 1 month.  It was allowed to reopen with the same name after the owner paid some semi-significant fines for several violations.
ANGELS & EMOTIONS: Were both reported to have been raided/"inspected", but by the next day both were operating normally. 

Around the Town

MARK SMITH: We were all quite shocked in early December when we received word that Mark had suffered a "massive heart attack."  Rumors were flying for almost a day and then I head through Chris at C'Italian that he was fighting with his nurses because he wanted a cigarette.  At that point I realized he wasn't going to give up easily. Fortunately the doctors in the Philippine Heart Center in Manila performed a successful angioplasty and he was back in Angeles in just three days.   He did miss the Roadhouse's 14th anniversary party, but Kim and Jung stepped in and supervised the event.  Some day he will tell us what was worse, the bar bill from Kim & Jung's "on-the-house" or the shave the nurses gave him in the heart center.

SERVICED HOUSE FOR RENT:  Here is something that hasn't been tried before.  We have a fully furnished house that is for rent on a weekly basis (or longer).  We just listed it a few days ago and already have several bookings so it may catch on.  There is only one house, so it's strictly first come basis.   click here

ABC HOTEL:  Angeles isn't a Cheap Charlie town any more!  A few years ago the Orchid Inn set a new standard in hotel rooms and they were immediately fully booked.  They expanded and then other hotels aimed at the upscale market, most notable was the Wild Orchid.  But, when the ABC opened many people said it just wouldn't work.  For the last several months the hotel has been fully booked every weekend and often runs 90 to 95% booked during the week.  This includes the two top suites that is only $385 per day.                     http://www.margarita-station.com/hotels/abc.html

 

ONLY IN THE PI: This story was kind of buried in the last newsletter, but worth of bring to the front page.  A few months back a 4 to 5 star hotel named Hotel Stotsenberg opened on Clark.  This hotel is named after the original US Army post that preceded Clark Field. The Army post was named after a WWI US Calvary officer.  When I saw the spelling of the hotel I was pretty sure they had spelled the name wrong!   I contacted the ultimate authority on Clark history, Tom Utts.  I asked him about the correct spelling and he replied "According to Col. C.R. Andergee, who did the Ash Warrior  book for the USAF History office it is: Stotsenburg."  So, only in the PI would someone invest over US one million dollars and then spell the name of the hotel wrong!!
 
RIP  We seem to go through bad cycles from time to time and the last few months haven't been very good to the EXPAT community
Dan Stevens, a regular Margarita Station customer, had a growth on his neck. He had it removed here and after the biopsy he went to Hawaii.  Sadly, he died within two weeks.  He is survived by his wife and two daughters.
James "Charlie" Long, a 43 year old American was living at Villa Modesto when he went into a coma and died from cirrhosis of the liver.
Digger, a 70 year old retired Las Vegas dealer was found dead in the American Hotel from an apparent heart attack.

Ron Smith, a long term EXPAT died on October 31st.   Ron was well known for cashing peoples checks and lending money for homes and cars.  He always had a smile on his face when he was seen around the bars on Perimeter Road.

Dave White had been in Angeles city for many years.  He was formerly of the HANGOUT, which he sold early in 2007. He was in Subic for a while, but I believe he was back in New Zealand when he passed away on Oct 30th.
Clay from Dollhouse died in a hospital in Hawaii where he was being treated for heart disease.
Wilma Meyers, the co-owner of Mango's in Subic died of a heart attack at the age of 42.  She is survived by her husband Tom and two daughters.

This one is older, but I never had a confirmation on his death until now.  Richard "Doc" Connelly was a frequent Margarita Station customer when he was in Angeles.  He passed away after a long and brave struggle with Kidney Disease.  He is survived by his wife Grace and her son, Richard's son, 1 daughter and 8 grandchildren.   Richard had a long and distinguished Military career, serving in both the Korean and Vietnam Wars.  He was the recipient of the Bronze Star, Silver Star and a Purple Heart for brave and distinguished service.   Richard was interred at Arlington Cemetery in Arlington Virginia in a private family service. He will be missed by many friends and colleagues around the world.