We took in the island views and watched the gentle movement of the waves, appreciating the effortless splendor the world offers.' The Philippines is home to 7,641 islands, most of which are still unexplored, untouched, yet so unbelievably breathtaking. Globally, our country is recognized to have some of the most beautiful seascapes in the world. The white sands, clear waters, and thriving tropical landscapes are all elements of the picture-perfect scenery the Philippines is known to possess. A lot of us, however, often get caught up in the fast-paced movement of life in the city, magnetized to the hustle and bustle, failing to recognize the magnificence of the natural world around us. This taxing belief of having to always be on the go is what Europa Yachts, the country's sole dealer of the finest selection of European yachts, aims to break. On a tropical November evening as the moonlight softly glistened against the waters surrounding the El Rio Y Mar resort in Coron, I was able to sit down with the Europa Yacht's core team. Celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, the company held the third edition of the most anticipated Lagoon Escapade. The occasion, which was held in arguably the most beautiful coastal province of the Philippines, was a time when Lagoon catamarans from all over the country gathered together for a getaway filled with sun, laughter, food, and music. "The main purpose of the Lagoon Escapade is really, well number one, to really celebrate the fun and enjoyment of sailing with a fleet, with a community," explains chief marketing officer Richard Sarinas. "Because for some people, it might be daunting. It's intimidating, it's a huge change to your lifestyle once you own a boat. But I mean, I think that one of the best ways to get people into the lifestyle is to make them experience [it]." It is without a doubt that boating is often associated with wealth and luxury, and many people might feel averted to it. This stereotype is something that Europa Yachts wants to shatter as well, especially when there are so many islands in our country yet to explore. "We're trying to break this idea that it's extremely expensive. It will never be for everyone, but we can make it a lot more affordable," says the company's managing director Thomas Cachera. "The diversity we can offer is rentals, we put [up] a sailing school -- we can learn sailing without buying a boat. We are trying as much as we can to make it affordable, and as many Filipinos as possible can experience boating." Europa Yachts offers boats from five different brands namely, Aquila, Axopar, Azimut, Beneteau, and Lagoon. "Each brand covers a specific segment. The same way with cars, we have sports cars, SUVs," says Thomas. "What we have today in the lagoon is called catamarans." But what's so special with these catamarans anyway? Why is there an annual worldwide event centered around this boat model? I asked the team to break it down for me. "They [catamarans] don't need big engines. Smaller engines mean less fuel. Because the engine is small, it is easier to maintain as well, so less costly," responds Thomas. He further emphasizes the structural benefits of the catamaran. "It's a lot less intimidating for someone who's not familiar with boats. The reason is, that the boat stays flat. The watercraft's double hull build. It gives you a feel of security basically, you will barely notice you are on a boat." Rich chimes in, "Just to break it down, for regular people like us -- that space gives you a lot of potential activities," highlighting the feature that probably attracts the "regular" person the most to this kind of sailboat. "Apart from making it a liveaboard, you can entertain your friends, you can stay for the night or even an entire week. You can entertain colleagues, business partners. It's limitless." I was lucky enough to be able to experience this myself as we cruised around the next afternoon, timed impeccably just before sunset. The weather cooperated perfectly, the right mix of sun and wind hitting our skin as we enjoyed drinks and good conversation. We took in the island views and watched the gentle movement of the waves, appreciating the effortless splendor the world offers and remembering the importance of taking a step back now and then. And what better way to do so than in a luxury catamaran? True enough, the boat ride was pretty calm and relaxing, and the space was substantial for day-to-day comfort. The French-designed Lagoon catamaran is said to be the preferred boat model here in the Philippines. And from that moment, I began to understand why. It makes sense that over Europa Yachts' decade-long journey so far, the Lagoon Escapade community only continues to grow and the event only continues to get bigger every time. Touching on this 10-year legacy, I wanted to get a better idea of how Europa Yachts has evolved through the years. Rich replied to this, saying, "I think what differs between now and before is that before, we were just into selling and marketing yachts. I think now, more than ever, what we'd like to do here in the Philippines is really to offer an end-to-end service." "Of course [a yacht] is a multi-million asset. So we are here, basically, to help the clients maintain this luxury item. We are here to help them ensure that the boats are well-conditioned for them to have a nice trip somewhere in our beautiful islands," continues head of operations Kael Solano, in explaining the company's after-sales services. "So that's what we do, we provide them services as basic as a change-oil up to giving them recommendations -- suggestions -- on how to improve their boats. You always have to improve or upgrade on something." Certainly, the luxury boat dealer only wants to keep growing and expanding their services. Being the only one of its kind in the country, the responsibility to ensure superior quality and utmost comfort to its clients is on them. As product demand grows, so does the demand for proper maintenance. And on top of proper maintenance, comes the need for optimal customer experience. "We provide also -- and it's kind of new -- we have a new customer experience manager. So his job is to, basically, make your life easy as a boat owner," says Thomas. "Giving you an experience ready to, for example, go for an adventure in Palawan in a remote area. It might not be very straightforward to do it by yourself, so we'll package it, do an itinerary, explain to you where to go, where to stay overnight, where to refuel, and you know, all the logistics. Nobody else is doing it, so we kind of give the service to the client." All in all, the ultimate goal of Europa Yachts is to provide customers with a seamless experience, right from purchasing a boat all the way down to retiring it. All the in-betweens, like the aforementioned after-sales and customer experience services, are covered as well. The company prides itself on luxury, comfort, and class, all of which are reflections of the European watercraft brands they offer. Most importantly, however, the team prioritizes simply enjoying and having fun, and this is very evident in the way they interact with their clients and each other. Events like the Lagoon Escapade remind us that it's important to allow ourselves to live a little, at least every once in a while. Gathering everyone for a three-day vacation lets the community form bonds and create shared moments together, making it a time of the year they always look forward to. That's the core purpose of why they do what they do, really, to give people experiences they will treasure forever.