Post by fots2 on Apr 12, 2014 15:57:04 GMT 8
Earlier this week I took my family on a little vacation. The Philippine Airlines’ April 2014 in-flight magazine had an article about Corregidor Island. Reading it seemed like a good way to pass the time. It was entitled “More than a history lesson”.
I always learn new things about the island but this one was a bit of a surprise considering all the information available these days. Apparently in-depth research is not a requirement for their authors and neither is accuracy. Here is a sample of what I “learned”.
(1) The Bottomside statue of General MacArthur is “where General MacArthur set foot after his Australian assignment in which he publically disapproved of because he preferred to stay in the Philippines”.
(2) Corregidor’s cliffs “were where Japanese pilots crashed their planes in a heroic act of patriotism”.
(3) “The 10 or 14 feet guns were designed for naval warfare which meant the guns’ sloth-like speed when locking in on targets was no match for the Japanese fighter planes”.
(4) A photo of part of the Mile Long Barracks is labeled as the Cine.
(5) The Topside Post Hospital is called the 1000 man hospital.
(6) “enjoy the pristine beaches”
(7) There is high praise for the Corregidor Inn’s restaurant. OK, this one is subjective but that is a rarely heard comment.
(8) “the zip line and the ATVs concluded the two day historical adventure”
If I told you the text on this photo you probably wouldn’t believe me. Taken with my cellphone, here is a look at Battery Hearn.
I wonder how many thousands of bored passengers will read this article and assume what they just read was correct. It doesn’t really matter I guess, 95% of visitors to Corregidor want a nice boat ride, take photos of big guns, a buffet lunch and a gift shop or two. Anyone really interested in the island comes to corregidor.org
I always learn new things about the island but this one was a bit of a surprise considering all the information available these days. Apparently in-depth research is not a requirement for their authors and neither is accuracy. Here is a sample of what I “learned”.
(1) The Bottomside statue of General MacArthur is “where General MacArthur set foot after his Australian assignment in which he publically disapproved of because he preferred to stay in the Philippines”.
(2) Corregidor’s cliffs “were where Japanese pilots crashed their planes in a heroic act of patriotism”.
(3) “The 10 or 14 feet guns were designed for naval warfare which meant the guns’ sloth-like speed when locking in on targets was no match for the Japanese fighter planes”.
(4) A photo of part of the Mile Long Barracks is labeled as the Cine.
(5) The Topside Post Hospital is called the 1000 man hospital.
(6) “enjoy the pristine beaches”
(7) There is high praise for the Corregidor Inn’s restaurant. OK, this one is subjective but that is a rarely heard comment.
(8) “the zip line and the ATVs concluded the two day historical adventure”
If I told you the text on this photo you probably wouldn’t believe me. Taken with my cellphone, here is a look at Battery Hearn.
I wonder how many thousands of bored passengers will read this article and assume what they just read was correct. It doesn’t really matter I guess, 95% of visitors to Corregidor want a nice boat ride, take photos of big guns, a buffet lunch and a gift shop or two. Anyone really interested in the island comes to corregidor.org