The DJ who's not a DeeJay

I miss the old format of Smile Magazine, the inflight magazine of Cebu Pacific. In their November 2016 issue, they featured Alex Caeg, Telecoms executive for PLDT.  I found the questions he answered interesting and as a frequent traveller myself, I figured it would be nice to answer the same questions here in my blog.  So here it is.

Sometimes travelling light is not an option.

How often do you travel for work?
In my previous work as Social Media Specialist, I only travel when I'm personally needed to manage an event or serve as a resource speaker/trainer.  Otherwise, I can do my work in front of the computer at the office. Since I handle social media, my travelling is done more online than offline.  I would say I travel more for leisure than for work.

What do you do on your trips?
If it's for business, it's more of setting up for an event, networking with bloggers, or serving as a resource speaker or trainer.  I would rather stay at the hotel after business is done, that is after having a good meal sampling the city's delicacies and food favorites.

What is your preferred time for flying and why?
Oddly, I am comfortable taking red eye flights.  I used to take the last flight out on a Friday night to take advantage of the weekend to visit family.  I would also take the earliest flight back on a Monday morning, arrive around 5am, go home to leave bags, freshen up and be at the office by 7:30am.  I've graduated from that scenario since then, so I'm ok with any travel time now.

What's the first thing you do when you board the plane?
I unpack everything I want handy during the flight and place it on the item holder in front of the seat.  It's basically my passport, a pen, a powerbank to charge my phone, a book and a bottle of water.  Sometimes I buy a sandwich at the airport and bring that with me to snack during the flight.

My favorite rows: 6, 7 or 8.

I don't mind having lots of legroom which is why I prefer to place my bag underneath the seat, only if it fits.

Window or aisle?
Always aisle.  Aside from it being convenient when you need to go to the bathroom mid flight, it also causes less dizziness if the plane is experiencing turbulence.  I dread the emergency rows though and will not oblige if asked to move there.

Preferred accommodation - chain hotel, boutique or Airbnb?
I prefer a hotel where everything's pretty much standard.  No surprises.  Since the popularity of Airbnb exploded though, I haven't had the chance to try it out.  May be willing to try it out depending on location.

Favorite mode of transportation when overseas - taxi, Uber or rental car?
Taxi only if it's inaccessible by other means.  Otherwise, I'm fine taking the MRT and bus as long as it's easy to understand where to get on and off.  I've tried Uber before in Sydney and was surprised to have a luxury car fetch me. As much as it was nice to brag about it, I felt unfit for such luxury. I just need to get from point A to point B.

When and where was your last holiday?
A few months ago, my family and I visited Batam Island in Indonesia.  The atmosphere was very laid back and was the perfect way to take a break from the busy metropolis.  It was also a break from being connected online as WiFi and 3G signals were sporadic.  A cottage at Turi Beach allowed us to enjoy nature up close and personal.

Essentials. Jay's must-haves:

• Digicam, especially if it's a new place I'm heading to.  I could take hundreds of photos a day so I'll also need to make sure that my memory card can handle the bulk.
• Powerbanks. I bring at least 4 every trip, 2 small and portable powerbanks for quick charges and 2 heavy duty bulky ones for providing my gadgets with a full charge. 
• Notebook and pen.  If all fails, I have the basics to jot down notes for a blog post, newly acquired tips for good food, names of places and contact details.
• Handkerchief/napkin/towel.  Anything to wipe off perspiration cause I easily sweat.
• Bonamine.  I can get dizzy from a taxi ride if a driver is foot-crazy on breaks and a lane switcher. So I may pop a chewable tablet to prevent a swirling universe.
• Extra shirt.  It's easy to roll one up and very convenient especially if you just came from a long flight.  Sometimes, I even change shirts before boarding cause a couple of hours may have elapsed since arriving at the airport till boarding.

Final words:
Always prepare before travelling.  Not just bags, but also researching on itinerary and keep contact details handy on paper.  You'll never know when your phone may just conk out.  Happy travels!

Want a healthy alternative to dessert? Want to create a dessert in 30 seconds?  Try this out.

What you'll need:

1. Apple
2. Bar of Chocolate
3. Apple Hole Puncher

Here's what to do:
Step 1: Create a hole in the apple
Step 2: Insert chocolate in hole

That's it!
INSTANT CHOCOLATE APPLE!

I've been an avid reader of newspapers.  I admit I don't read the entire paper from beginning to end but I do scan all pages including ads.  I guess growing up in a household which had the morning newspaper readily available almost everyday influenced me to appreciate newspapers.  So you can understand my joy previously working under Public Affairs when we had all the major dailies available at our dispense.  Even if my job required monitoring news online and via social media, I'd always try to take a glimpse of the current newspaper from time to time.

When my family and I moved to Singapore, I was delighted to find out that some newspapers were distributed at convenient commuting locations for FREE!  So part of my daily habit was to pass by the nearest MRT station to get the current newspaper.   Here was where I was introduced to My Paper. It wasn't that thick and there was a section in Chinese so as much as I enjoyed reading it, I felt it lacked my morning literature.

Articles were relatively short but informative, which is good cause it goes direct to the point. Even if I don't read Chinese, I'd scan the Chinese section and if I found an interesting photo, I'd search for it on the mypaper.sg website and do a Google translate.  That's where I found out about this:

Transformers exhibit in Hong Kong

Now, I just found out that The Paper's last publication is today, November 30 2016.  But before I could sadly react, I immediately discovered that My Paper will merge with The New Paper (TNP). And The New Paper will be available for FREE starting December 1, 2016 at MRT stations, selected malls and other locations such as cafes, medical centers, country clubs, car service centers, premium buses, airline lounges and serviced apartments.

The new publication will be purely in English catering to professionals, managers, executives and businessmen.  The thicker form will also offer daily themes like food, fashion, health and movie features.

I wasn't here to witness My Paper's early beginnings over a decade ago, and I'm not familiar with TNP even if it started publications way back in 1988, but I'm excited to see this history in the making and ready to pick up the very first edition of the new TNP tomorrow.  Congratulations to The New Paper!

Further Reading:

• THE NEW PAPER'S NEW PHASE http://www.tnp.sg/news/singapore-news/new-papers-new-phase
• My Paper on Faecbook - https://www.facebook.com/MyPaperSG/

I'm currently traveling around Australia and Sydney is our first stop.  Will be compiling photos and stories for sharing soon.

In the meantime, here's some lovely views from Sydney. Hello from down under!

If you've been to SM Mall of Asia, chances are you'll be welcomed by a huge globe. Right at the center of the rotunda is the SM Mall of Asia Globe. I read that this landmark symbolizes the size and advancement Mall of Asia represents. Also starting late afternoon till evening, this globe transforms into a 360 degrees Electronic Billboard.

If you've been around Mall of Asia, one thing is for certain, it's always expanding in all directions. There's business centers, hotels, an arena, a convention center, a church, an amusement park, an esplanade, a science center and a huge parking lot that doubles as concert grounds.

Lately there's been a new addition to that lineup. If you've been to the North Wing of the SM Mall of Asia, you may have noticed a huge dome-like structure being built just beside the IMax theater. The upper half looks like a perfect dome and at night you can see sparks running down from welding construction in progress.

If the SM Mall of Asia Globe represents the Earth, fireworks represent the stars in the galaxy and the entire Mall of Asia were the solar system, then could this be the moon?  Perhaps the Science Center could explain this new SM celestial phenomenon.

Well apparently, I learned that this dome will soon be the home of a ship! Not a spaceship, but a galleon; the one popularized by the Acapulco Manila Galleon Trade.  To be known as the Acapulco Manila Galleon Trade Museum, it plans to showcase 450 years of trading history between the Philippines and Mexico.  I have no idea how a huge galleon ship will fit inside, so this alone would be interesting to see when it opens.

Wasn't able to catch the partial solar eclipse the other week but did get to see a sun covered by gloomy clouds surrounding Marina Bay Sands.   Here's a quick timelapse and a photo of the majestic structure.

Feel free to scroll down (or click here) if you want to go straight to the guide. Otherwise, here's how I got into a traffic violation.

It was a Thursday morning which my car falls under the number coding scheme, meaning vehicles with plate numbers ending in 7 or 8 are prohibited from the roads starting 7:00am.  I left at 6:15am hoping to be parked at my destination before 7:00am.  By a stroke of unluck, I encountered some buses that took 2 lanes, a couple of stalled vehicles, and undecided cars that changed lanes every 5 seconds

I was 10 minutes away from my destination when the stoplight at the Quirino-Taft intersection in Manila turned red.  While stopped, I looked at my watch and saw the time was 7:05am.   Glancing from my watch back to the road, I saw a female MMDA traffic officer walking towards my car.  I was hoping she was just going to cross the road.  She did cross one lane, then stopped right in front of my car and made a hand gesture to her wrist.  I knew immediately what she meant.

I politely said good morning and immediately in defense, said that I left early but traffic delayed my trip.  She told me it's 7:05am and coding scheme has started.  I said I'm aware but asked for some leeway due to the unavoidable circumstances.  In addition, I told her my destination is near and hoping she won't need to issue me a violation.   She hurried me to surrender my driver's license.  I said, I'll pull the car over to the side first to avoid causing traffic.  I guess enforcers get that often and get duped when drivers drive on and never look back.  So I gave my driver's license and then parked at the curb across the intersection and waited for her to approach me.

She had her huge ticket violation booklet with her.  At this point, there was no point in reasoning, so I just said sorry.  Being my first time to be pulled over for a traffic violation in Manila, I immediately asked the officer how soon I could get my license back.  She said to claim it at Manila City Hall within 5 days and said Monday is the latest.  Her explanation didn't sum up since 5 days equated to Tuesday plus I asked if weekends are counted.  She just stuck with her original answer and decided not to argue over specifics.  I did say that I want to get my license back as soon as possible and said I'll go to City Hall in the afternoon.  She said it won't be available then cause she'll be going back to City Hall around 2pm and will just start to encode all the traffic violations made for that morning.

After issuing me a ticket, she said I don't need to rush anymore since I was already caught.  If that was supposed to make me feel any better, it didn't.  Her last piece of advice was to be careful not to make any other traffic violations outside Manila cause the ticket she gave me served as a temporary license only for Manila.  So if I get caught in Makati, I'll be issued another ticket but with a heavier penalty for driving without a license.

I said thank you to the officer and half-heartedly greeted "have a nice day," cause I already knew that wouldn't apply to my morning.  I didn't want this to dampen my whole day so I decided not to think about it and just get it the next day.

The next day, I went early to Manila City Hall (and turned right at the street before the one I got caught so I wouldn't have to see her face again).  I know where City Hall is but never had any business there so I didn't know where to park.  Thanks to Waze, you could select "Manila City Hall parking lot" and it will lead you to the parking lot near YMCA and near SM City Manila (along Antonio Villegas St.)

Cross the street and walk to the right.  Take the nearest entrance to City Hall and walk straight till you reach the Manila Traffic and Parking Bureau "Ordinance Violation Receipt" Redemption Center.  You'll notice that nobody wants to be here so don't expect any happy faces or smiles.

Step 2: Pay fine to cashier.

Claiming your driver's license is a 3-step process.  First step is to go to the Statement of Account windows (to the right) to submit your traffic violation ticket.  You'll be issued a number which you'll be called.  They open at 8am but issue numbers before they open.  I was 10th in line so it didn't take long.

Step 1: Statement of Account

They'll call your number and give you a printout with your violation details and conveniently lists your name as "Violator"  The fine for violating vehicular reduction scheme (their term for coding) is P500.  They'll issue you a receipt after payment.

The last step is to proceed to Room 353 (Releasing of License) on the 3rd floor.
Give your Statement of Account printout (from Step 1) and wait for your number to be called.  This was the longest waiting time of the 3 steps, which took around 20 minutes.   It's hot at the 3rd floor so bring a fan.  While waiting, be sure to go to the nearest window and take time to admire the Manila City Hall clock tower.  You can also compare notes with other "violators" (like new prisonmates asking what you're in for).

Step 3: Releasing of License

When called, you'll be shown your driver's license.  As soon as you see your name and face, give them a thumbs up or nod (cause there's thick glass separating you from them).  You'll be asked to sign the Statement of Account, which they'll retain and that's it!  You can start smiling while taking the stairs 3 floors down.

The whole process for me took only 30 minutes.  For reference, there were 10 "violators" ahead of me during the entire process.  I suggest to be there before 8:00am.

Despite the quick turnaround processing, it's still a hassle to get your license confiscated and go to City Hall to claim it.  So be safe and avoid violating traffic rules as much as possible.

I never thought that I would see
A tweet longer than 140.
RT then send a DM to me,
So you can say more in intimacy.

What am I talking about?  This.
Removing the 140-character limit from Direct Messages

Rowdy he is, Piper he be
He's the wrestler everyone wants to see
Checkered kilt he dress
Hot Rod's always ready to mess
Thank you for all the years of being your best.

- Tribute to WWE's Hall of Famer Roddy Piper. 
Rest in Peace.

• Christmas Sale
• Easter Sale
• New Year Sale
• Chinese New Year Sale
• Anniversary Sale

U.S. President Barack Obama finally gets his own Twitter account, and that's @POTUS.  What does that stand for?  President Of The United States!

President Obama. In the Oval Office. Tweeting. #WelcomeToTwitter, @POTUS! http://t.co/SzWXltjNK0 pic.twitter.com/ce4DurwYXj

— The White House (@WhiteHouse) May 18, 2015

The account though is not new as the handle Twitter handle @POTUS was created in June 2013, almost 2 years before it ever got used.
  @POTUS replies and tries to be witty too asking if anyone is interested in the @FLOTUS account which stands for First Lady of the United States.

• Whitehouse.gov - Introducing @POTUS: President Obama's Twitter Account
• cnet.com - @POTUS: President Obama gets exclusive Twitter account
• thenextweb.com - President Obama joins Twitter for real