47
traveling for
business
high
flyer
INTERVIEWBYKATMATEO
Howoftendoyou travel forwork?
At least onceamonth; I’veprobably spent 20%ofmy
time so far atAirbnb inour other offices.
Preferred time forflights?
I try toarriveas earlyaspossible so I canmake the
most of theday. I like to trya local coffee shopbefore
work, have lunchwithmy colleagues, exploreat night
thenget tobed so that I still haveenough rest for the
next day.
Any ritualsonceyou’reonboard?
Start readingall thearticles I Instapaper’edbefore
boarding. See if the inflightmagazinehas something
newand interesting tooffer aboutmydestination.
Sleep!
Three itemsyoualwayshave inyourcarry-on:
MyMacbook, just in case I need towork;my iPad, for
pre-loadedentertainment; anda small bottleof SK-II
Facial TreatmentEssence, in casemy skindries out
(onceanSK-II employee, always anSK-II employee).
Taxi,Uberor rental car?
Uber—easyand reliable.
Chain,boutiqueorAirbnb?
I was abig fanofAirbnb yearsbefore I joined the
company. I’ve found itmuchmore fulfillingand
exhilarating toexplorea city froma local perspective.
Appyouuse themostwhenyou travel?
GoogleMaps!Not exciting, but definitelyamust to
get aroundeasily.
Whenandwherewasyour lastholiday?
My last real holidaywas inManila.Mywifeand I
went home for a longweekend inAugust to spend
timewithour family sincea fewbirthdays and
anniversarieswerehappeningat the same time. Itwas
a treat after spending somuch timeoutsideof the
Philippines.
Where ishome?
Whenpeopleaskmewhat changed themost after
gettingmarried, I always say that it’s howhome
becamebothaplaceandaperson. Theplace right
now is our apartment inSingapore, whichdefinitely
feels likeour own, and theperson is, of course,my
wife,Dani.Home isn’t quite the samewhenoneof us
isn’t around.Whenwe’re travelingweactually look
forward to the ideaof goingback toour own space
together.
PEPETORRES
Occupation:
REGIONALBRANDMANAGER—
ASIAPACIFICATAIRBNB
Office location:
SINGAPORE
