BLOGGED PHILIPPINES

Maybe it's the pressure from the social media, which was amplified even more when the mainstream media began picking up the story of the outcry from affected people. Whatever the root cause is, you can go ahead now and set an appointment online in select DFA offices in the country. And when I mean now, I mean RIGHT NOW! I just checked the DFA appointment system and there are slots for April 2018 in select DFA Offices in Metro Manila. And here's a thing that's even more interesting, Tacloban DFA has an opening this month January 2018! Wow...whether you care about the alleged corruption inside the DFA or not, you can set it aside and set an appointment now, I mean NOW ! Fully Booked Since mid-December 2017 The DFA Passport appointment system is fully booked until March 2018. It opened up the slots early December last year but just after a week or two, all 27 offices has become fully booked. This sparked outrage among citizens. Reports have emerged that while th

Thank you very much Cebu Pacific! At last, my most awaited feature in Cebu Pacific Air app has finally arrived: the Guest List . You see, I book flights for a lot of people and through the years, I have accumulated a guest list of over 50 people and 30 of them were repeaters. So the Guest List feature is really handy! A Brief History About five or so years ago, Cebu Pacific introduced the Guest List feature in their website which allows logged-in users to save the details of people they booked in the past. You can also manually enter details. And that feature is awesome as it saved a lot of time. You don't need to input the Name and Birth date details over and over again. But about two years ago, when Cebu Pacific revamped its website (which is good overall), that feature was put into a limbo. You can still access the guest list in the Manage booking section of the website but it cannot be accessed directly during booking. And there came the official Cebu Pacific Air ap

It's a brand new year for everyone, including local scammers. And despite all the efforts by PLDT and Globe Telecom to curb text message scammers, from time to time, they still creep out and show up in our inboxes. And as hard to believe as the messages of winning some great amounts of money is the fact that there are still people who believe them. I personally know someone and that scam text message triggered events that turn her life upside down. So my point is, we still need to be careful regarding these scam messages. The danger is real! So without further ado, here's the scam message I received a few days ago. On Sunday, January 7, 2018 at exactly 3:33PM (PH time), I received this message from a certain Atty. Jhon Acosta with phone number 09552962911 Congratulations! Ursim# Hadwon PHP850,000 From(GMA KAPUSO FOUNDATION) To Claim Send Ur (NAME/ADD/AGE) &Call Me Now Im Atty;JHON ACOSTA DTI#0391s2018 Thankyou,  Do Not Ever Reply Obviously, this is a

Angkas is now back in the streets after the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) banned their operation late last year. Now they're back but not as a human transport service but as a parcel delivery service. So, let's all welcome Angkas Padala ! Their mobile app was also updated to match the new service offering. Just go to the your App Store and Google Play to update. How Much Does it Cost to Deliver? For Manila , the base price is 50 Pesos for the first two kilometers, and 10 Pesos per succeeding kilometer . Pricing may vary based on demand.  For Cebu , the flag down price is 20 Pesos and 15 Pesos  per kilometer for the first 8 kilometer, and 20 pesos per kilometer beyond that .  Weight and size should not exceed 10 kilograms and 43cm x 38cm x 24cm dimensions respectively. All items must be unsealed and inspected by the biker before delivery. Prohibited items includes cash, precious stones, jewelry, banderols/tax stick

All the passport appointment slots on all 27 branches of DFA is already filled up (or blocked?). Yes, you can check it out at  https://www.passport.gov.ph/appointment/individual/site . The only time I saw it opened up was the first week of December 2017. Then after a few weeks, all slots were already taken. So earlier this month, I had a chance to visit Cebu DFA and I asked if there's a way to get my passport processed even though the slots were already taken. Like, walk-in in the afternoon after all the passport appointments have already been accommodated. After all, DFA Sec. Alan Peter Cayetano mentioned that there's about 40% no-show on the appointments , so I was thinking that there must be some extra time the DFA can accommodate walk-ins. Turns out.. no...you really need an appointment . But wait, here's something you would like to know. So, when I arrived at Cebu DFA, I asked the guard. What I discovered made me feel confused (and suspicious). Here's wha

The OAG, an air travel intelligence company based in United Kingdom, in its annual report listed Cebu Pacific and AirAsia Philippines as some of the world's least punctual airline. Garnering only 57.6% and 58% OTP respectively, the two airlines based here in the Philippines was among the worst in the world. OTP (on time performance) refers to flights that arrive within 15 minutes of their scheduled time. Image by  Jyi1693 at en.wikipedia [ CC BY-SA 3.0 ], via Wikimedia Commons Punctuality Culture On the other hand, some of the world's most punctual airlines are in Japan, with Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways taking the top two spots with 85.27 amd 83.81% OTP. This result may not be surprising when you consider their culture. Japan is well known for being a process oriented and strict in punctuality country. For instance, late last year, Japan’s Tsukuba Express, a train that connects Tokyo and Tsukuba issued an apology for a train that departed the station 20 secon

Bad news for those who needs to have a passport or have their passport renewed. All branches of Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), yes all 27, have already filled up all the slots in their appointment system until the end of March. If for some reason you were not able to set an appointment last month December, you will need to wait until April to be able to process a passport. The Problem with the Current Appointment System The online appointment system implemented by Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) is surely a big help in convenience. Prior to this, passport applicants line up in DFA offices as early as in the wee hours of 12 midnight. By six in the morning, a DFA personnel, usually a security guard, will distribute priority numbers. The process will go smoothly from then on. Once you started the first step and as long as you have all the requirements complete, you'll finish in about 15 minutes. A few weeks later, you'll have your passport. The same is true

I literally saved about 50% of my original fare in UBER by doing this simple trick. And maybe, most of the time you can do this. The trick is simply to SCHEDULE your trip. Here's a photo demonstrating what I mean. In the left photo, I scheduled a trip from the airport and as you can see, because of the demand, my fare ended up at 539 Pesos. Now, when I postpone my trip just about 30 mins or even less than that, I was able to bring down the fares to 276 Pesos. That's a pretty significant amount, isn't it? I don't know if it works on all locations but as for me, booking here in Cebu City, I can really see this significant drop. But I don't see any reason why this wouldn't be so in other cities. One may say though that the photo above shows that there's a surge in the left photo and none in the right. Yes that's true but even if there's no surge, the difference is pretty significant as well. Why not try and see it for yourself? Ride Sharing

Starting 2018, December 8 will be a special non-working holiday in the Philippines after President Rodrigo Duterte signed the law entitled: An Act Declaring December 8 of Every Year A Special Nonworking Holiday in the Entire Country to Commemorate the Feast of the Immaculate Conception of Mary, the Principal Patroness of the Philippines. By  Bartolomé Esteban Murillo  -  [1] , Public Domain,  Link The Philippines, a predominantly catholic country has been celebrating major religious festivities such as Christmas and the Lenten season. But it also pays attention to other major religious sector of the Filipino section such as the Muslims and the Chinese. For Muslims, the country celebrates two Islamic festivals: the Eid'l Fitr and the Eid'l Adha. For the Chinese, the country celebrates the Chinese New Year. This new holiday comes amidst recent disagreements between the government and the Catholic religion over governmental policies. Additional Holiday in 2018 This new Im