His father, Maximo Lobo, had worked for a U.S. air base in the Philippines, which made the family eligibile for a visa to move to the United States.

NPR: A Family's Wait for U.S. Visas Spans Generations

That is why air strips from Cheju in Korea to Davao in the Philippines to Medan in Indonesia are busy turning themselves into international airports that can handle giants like the Boeing 747-400.

CNN: NO PLACE TO LAND

From Mexico to the Philippines, they are now trying to curb the worst of the air and water pollution that typically accompanies industrialisation.

ECONOMIST: Local difficulties

While tourism in the Philippines remains a trickle compared with Southeast Asian brethren like Thailand and Vietnam, and air links to western Mindoro are still infrequent, you should consider visiting now to experience the full effect of Apo Reef's untouched magnetism.

BBC: The undiscovered jewel of the Philippines

The western coastal road is mostly paved, and comfortable air-conditioned buses now come straight to Sablayan from Manila via car ferries that chug from the Philippines' main island, Luzon, to Abra de Ilog.

BBC: The undiscovered jewel of the Philippines