I.juander

This is the first time I've had the opportunity of dining in one of the expensive albeit luxurious buffet in Town - Sofitel Spiral. Being one of the five star hotels in manila, they truly deserve to be the at the top of all buffets around the metro. Spirals is not cheap. Being priced at P3,300++ tax inclusive with service charge per pax. They go up to P4,000 ++ during Sundays to include the cheese and wine feast. The price tag is commensurate to the selection available, more than enough that your eyes can feast upon. I was quite surprised that given the price tag, the place gets crowded which means that there are a lot who can afford such a hefty price tag. Good thing my brother has one of those membership cards that allowed him to avail of thee 50% discount per head, which mathematically means the price is at P1,700++ per head which is still quite pricey. But what the heck, this is not weekly activity and will just be once during special ocassions. Prior to going to the buffet

...and the winner is... Grab a Taxi. I am not really much of a taxi-person. But when circumstances arise that I need to hail one, I prefer to use the free apps from my phone: Grab a Taxi and Easy Taxi. To be fair, I have used Grab a taxi much more than Easy taxi. Have used grab a taxi in Kuala Lumpur and it also has its peak periods where getting a taxi really takes time. Maybe it was the location of pick-up that makes it harder there. But here in Manila, I have no problems using the Grab a Taxi taxi app. Well, there are glitches during peak hours but nevertheless, you are assured that you will get one. But again, it's in your luck if you get one quickly. And what's important is that you can give a feedback if ever you got a cabbie that irked you (example: confirmed to pick you up but never arrived). I prefer to use these apps because I feel much safer to use them than hailing one that passes-by the streets. There are lots of modus operandis that pry on anyone but thet pr

This is the modern day makro except that it has more PX / imported goods, and besides, Makro has already gone it's heyday. What I like about S&R is that there are imported brands that are not really present in the common groceries and supermarkets. As what a relative said, "para ka na ding nasa US". It's set-up is more of a warehouse club type and comparatively Bigger. That said, price wise, I really don't think it's cheap there. But when they go on Sale, that's when prices go low and buy-one, free one starts. Another thing that really is good in S&R is the Food and Beverages section. The pizza is really that worth to queue for, as well as the burgers and calzones. But during weekends, it tends to have a long queue around 30 minutes or more in order for the food to be served. S & R is really not pang-masa. But I think right now they are open for everyone regardless of the social statii, as long as they pay the Gold membership card.

Everytime we go out for trips, we make it a point to visit ikea if ever it is present in that town or country we are heading to. The first time I visited Ikea was due to my numerous trips to Singapore in 2013. And I have to thank a colleague for introducing me to the branch in Tampines. I absolutely loved Ikea because there are so many stuff you can find for home: furnitures, fixtures, accessories, utensils, etc. And what makes it unique is that the designs are simple yet modern, and definitely patented as coming from Ikea. I brought some kiddie stuff for my kid here in ikea. From party plates, cups, bowl, fleece blankets, bed sheets, etc. If I have the luxury to buy big ang bulky stuff to ship back home, I would defintitely have done that, especially the furnitures. What I loved about ikea is that it's huge. It has two-levels of warehouse-type shop, and that the items are arranged per type. First area is the modular display of how they design small-sized spaces (condominiums)

I must admit that I am (secretly) an avid fan of wristwatches. I always make it a point to visit amazon for some online purchases every time a relative of mine coming in from the US of A for a vacation here in the Philippines.  Two years ago, I made an online purchase for an Ice watch. The year before that was an ipod nano watch. This time, I specifically had  my sights set on a smart watch, and this being Pebbles smart watch. Black pebbles smart watch (black model) What initially caught my attention is the ability of the watch to receive SMS from a Smartphone (in my case, it's an iPhone 4), and also to pick-up calls also from a smartphone. The smartwatch is paired with the iPhone via bluetooth and is controlled by the pebble app. The app is downloadable from itunes, as well as for android from google play. What I did like about this smartwatch is the abundance of watch faces that can be downloaded for free from the pebble app. However, there are some apps available also

This is the second time that I ate at Vikings and sadly, I did not really enjoy the experience. The first time was the best since I had no expectations whatsoever with this resto. To me, P1,000++ is already way too much to spend on single dining. Call me frugal but I just feel like it's way too much. Vikings in MOA by the bay Anyway, the first time I entered the resto in By the Bay (MOA), I had to admit, I was excited back then. This was during the delayed our celebration of my dad's birthday (because during that time, I was jet-setting) - pardon the social climber peg-ging. :) The first impression upon entry was the ambiance. It was clean, the lighting sets the mood for dinner, the backdrop by the window is Manila Bay which sets-up an exciting, albeit romantic view of the Manila Bay sunset. And sits perfectly as the backdrop for an eat-all-you-can set-up. Going back, there's a huge selection of foods that line up the buffet selection within the area. Name your pick

The first time I saw this mall was during our visit to the hardware gurus in Gilmore QC to repair our desktop CPU and this laptop, since it was just one street away from Gilmore. At night-time this mall reminds me of somewhat like a mini BGC from the outside, but from the inside, it's mostly high-end shops with the exception of Robinson's department store and Toys R US, bench and penshoppe. I considered Sprinfield and Aeropostale as somewhat mid-pricey for my taste. I instantly loved this mall because there are tons to do inside and outside. Inside there are shops and restos that range from mid-high-end to not-so-highend. In fact right now, there are some shops that are on sale. I happen to have bagged some sale items from springfield and bench. What's good about this mall is that it is not really crowded, and from what I can see, only the residents nearby frequent the restos. I would suggest eating out at the basement restos for much more budget-friendly selections.