Eyeing for another mobile phone...

Photo Credit

It was only about more than two years ago when I blogged about my plan to buy a new mobile phone.  And now, I'm planning again. :(

Don't get me wrong.  My smartphone is still in excellent condition.  It is just that, the phone I was using while I was in HongKong (especially!) and is using still is about to bid adieu.  And I'm having a separation anxiety already, for sentimental reasons.. :(

Nevertheless, I would want my next mobile phone to have a digital tv feature (fyi, it's more than a year since I've been TV-less).  And because I'm almost always mobile, I would want the inexpensive type, probably P5,000 or less.  But P10,000?  Hmm, I'm thinking..  Is it practical?  I'm not even sure if I'm going to maximize my use of the phone (fyi again, I have been using my old phone mainly as my alarm clock).  And I'm not also sure if TV signal would still be good when I'm at my condo unit, which is about several floors up from the ground.

Please help me decide... :(

Never Again!

Today is the last day of voters' registration, unless COMELEC would decide to extend the deadline for a few more days.  That is, if they would consider the recent influx of prospective voters at the registration centers such as what I saw in SM MOA yesterday.

I almost got myself unregistered because of that.  If not for the declaration of half day work yesterday, my chances of going to SM MOA for that purpose would have been nil.  And mind you, I felt like a ping-pong ball being tossed by the guards when I asked for directions to the satellite registration center.  I was already worried then as it was almost 5pm and I knew the registration center would be open only up to 6pm that day.  Alas, when I found the place, the door was already closed as they only accommodated a maximum number of 800 registrants.  I was advised to come back early the following day.  I asked how early, and the lady guard answered that there was already a queue as early as 4am.  What?!  And to make matters worse, the giving out of priority numbers starts at 830am, while the processing commences at 9am. Que horror!

No, I'm not going to make a sacrifice just like that.  Never again!  I would have registered long time ago and not waited for a few days before the deadline, if not for the hectic schedule.  I didn't had the chance to register when a registration activity was scheduled right within the convenience of our condominium as I was just leaving for Rome then.  Nor was the time when the same was also previously scheduled in SM MOA.  Blame it to my confusion with the date.  And when I learned from the local COMELEC office that  they will have another schedule in SM MOA on the last week of October, I just waited for that.  And the half day work yesterday would have been the perfect time for me..

While I was staring at the signages, a man approached me and asked if I would want to register.  When I said yes, he then gave me a piece of paper, which says "357".  I realized it was a priority number!  He then advised me to immediately go inside the center and do my thing.  So, I flashed the paper at the guard and he then let me in.  Inside, the line was looooong!  I wanted to back out as I remember the traumatic experience I went through when I registered in Taguig six (6) years ago.  I just held on knowing that this would be my only chance..

VICTORIA COURT #VPARTYSERIES MIDNIGHT MYSTERIES: CAN YOU SURVIVE?

Manila, October 29, 2015— Mark your calendars for November 7, 2015 and get ready for the ultimate Halloween event of the year! FOX International Channels and Victoria Court are partnering up with Breakout Philippines, the country’s premiere escape room game, to bring you an immersive horror experience like no other!

Ever since 2014, Breakout has been providing a unique experience to thousands of players by trapping them in different themed rooms for 45 minutes. They are given an interactive game where players have to team up to find clues and solve logic puzzles based on various storylines. Participants are encouraged to PLAN as a team, SOLVE puzzles collaboratively in order to ESCAPE before time expires.

This Halloween season, the game is about to change as it is no longer enough to BREAKOUT… you must now also SURVIVE! You and your friends will be trapped in a room and will have 45 minutes to try and survive the horror set before you.

There will be scare actors that will enter and exit the room as they please. Some will be nice and try to help you by giving you clues, while some… are not. Be prepared as they invade your personal space, tell you bone chilling stories, separate you from your friends and sometimes, even leave you alone in the dark. Be ready to be pushed out of your comfort zone.

This is still a BREAKOUT event so there is still puzzle solving involved. You will still choose among the 5 Super-thematic Rooms of Victoria Court Malate, which will determine the style of the overall puzzle you will have to solve:

1.    The Asgard Room

2.    The Casino Royale Room

3.    The Bat Cave Room

4.    The Candy Land Room

5.    The Marakkesh (Sex in the City) Room

If the scares get too extreme for you, there is a safe word… screaming “I want my mommy” will signal our actors to back off and bring you back to your friends. Though be warned, doing so will forfeit the clue you may receive by surviving the scare. Missing out on 1 clue won’t make it impossible to solve the puzzle, but it will make it very difficult. So wear your brown pants and as much as you can, brave up!

To add up to the scare, there will be a free fear flicks marathon happening at the Victoria Court grounds from 6PM until 12PM.

The breakout rooms have limited slots, so be sure to register now through www.breakout.com.ph.

You can also visit Victoria Court’s facebook page (facebook.com/VictoriaCourtPH) or  follow their Twitter & Instagram (@victoriacourtVC)) for more updates about this event.

Prepare yourselves for a scare that you won’t forget. See you there!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas!

From where I'm standing right now, I could see the cars plying along Elliptical Road, Quezon City.  And I'm no longer surprised to find out that, for a few minutes, they were not moving at all. Right now, they have been moving at a baby snail's pace. ;)

And my officemates, who went downstairs, informed me that they just saw several people were already hiking. Probably they were stranded?

Indeed, christmas is in the air! :)

OMG! I'm in!

I just found out that my application to attend the #Blogapalooza 2015 has been approved! I could not contain my happiness at this moment as I thought it was too late for me to be in as I applied just this afternoon (Saturday) and well, the event is hours away from now!

After sending my application, I was checking on the blogapalooza website almost every hour in the midst of working on my office report. You could just imagine the agony I went through while waiting!  My worry then was that, although they announced that October 24, 2015 was the last day of accepting applications, they might just decide to disapprove mine for reasons such as, the number of attendees they have already is enough, etc..  I'm so lucky!

This will be my second time to attend the said event. The first was in 2013 and it was held in SM Aura then. This time it will be in One Esplanade, which, fortunately is just about 10 minutes away from where I live.

Mesmerizing is what I describe my experience was when I attended the event for the first time. They say #Blogapalooza2015 is bigger and better. I am certain of that knowing that it has been two years since that impressive event.

I guess I really have to prepare for my great expectations later. First thing would have to be getting a good night's sleep.

Zzzz!  Sleep tight! :)

My Love for Travelling.. and the blunders of it..

Somewhere in Switzerland..

So much to do right now.. Sad to say, I'm in no mood.. :(

I need to unleash something within me that I've been pondering on since this morning.  That is, my mind is now nagged with the thought of my love for travel.. and well, the spontaneity and adventures that comes with it.  Even just quick hopping from one place to another, just enjoying the view, the sceneries, and the serenity, I would be happy and be contented with that.  Even if I'm alone..

Avenue of the Stars, Kowloon, Hong Kong

Yes, travelling alone is better than being with someone whom you do not share passion for mobility with while expecting and accepting that bloopers might be bumped somewhere along the road.  Things might not turn out the way we expected it to be but it should not have hindered us from savoring every moment of the journey, no matter how perfectly imperfect it may be..

Notre Dame Cathedral, Saigon, Vietnam

That's why I just love to travel alone.  If anything goes wrong, I have no one to blame but myself.  And because I so love myself, I don't physically and mentally torture myself, make a big deal out of petty issues concerning it, waste time fussing about it, and eventually ruin everything just because I made a mistake.  Instead, I just laugh it off and continue making sweet memories out of it.

Piazza San Marco, Venice, Italy

Just sayin'.. :(

P.S.  To set things straight, the person I was with during my trips abroad, such as that in the photographs above, is a great travel buddy.  I am looking forward to our next travel together sometime soon! ;)

I Kept the Change - My First GrabTaxi Experience

No, it's not a typographical error.  It is indeed I, not the driver, who kept the change.  But before you let your creative mind do its job, let me explain first.  You see, I had been longing to go to Noel Bazaar located at the World Trade Center, which is just a few kilometers away from where I live.  I already knew that today is the last day of the event and if I miss this chance, I will have to wait for another year.  Hence, I googled and checked its FB page, and voila!  This ad caught my attention:

Photo Credit

I have never used the GrabTaxi before although I had the app downloaded to my phone about a year ago when I joined the 2013 Blogapalooza last year.  So, as a first time user, I dialed their customer service contact no. at 845-0943 and inquired on how to avail of the promo.  I was instructed that, upon arrival at the venue, the driver should drop me off in front of the GrabTaxi booth.  Accordingly, the GrabTaxi in-charge will be the one who will facilitate with the payment and I could just walk away without paying anything since my estimated taxi fare would be less than the P100 refund.

Hence, when we arrived, we immediately looked for the booth, which were nowhere to be found.  We were already about 15 meters passed the entrance door when we chanced upon the security guard who told us that the booth is, unfortunately, inside the building.  I had no choice but to walk back to the entrance door while the poor driver was being hushed to park at the far end of the area.  When I approached the booth, the in-charge then requested me to show her the online booking.  I was a bit impatient at first as I was concerned of the running taxi meter but I immediately relaxed when I realized that my taxi fare is just a few pesos more than half of the P100 refund.  To my surprise, the in-charge handed me the P100 bill without even asking how much my taxi fare was!  I was so happy that I did not bother "dancing" my way back to the taxi for another 15 meters, gave the driver the exact amount of fare PLUS a tip, and of course, I kept my change. :)

What more, I got a free GrabTaxi t-shirt for downloading the app:

front print

And did I not mention that I availed of the free entrance to the Bazaar because of GrabTaxi?

And as if that was not enough, I was not charged of the P70 booking fee.  I was just instructed to type the word, "hohoho" in the promo code space of the app and got a confirmation of the zero booking fee.

back print

Also, true to the front text print of the Grab Taxi t-shirt, I should say that the taxi was fast enough that it was already parked beside the gate when I hurriedly went out of the building.  I was wrong when I thought that getting a taxi through a taxi app would take much time, which was the reason why I was not able to avail of GrabTaxi last year.

I missed that chanced.  Nonetheless, I am just one happy GrabTaxi rider, for now.