Calvin's Hub

Staycationing at Maxims Hotel Resorts World

Calvin — Wed, 16 May 2012 14:19:02 +0000

A couple of weeks ago, we were fortunate enough to get a free overnight stay over at Maxim’s Hotel in Resorts World to review Samsung’s latest voice and motion control Smart TV. At first I thought it was the Marriott, didn’t know there was another hotel in the vicinity.

Maxims Hotel is an all-suite luxury hotel which has a casino, a few restaurants, some high-end boutique shops and is annexed to Newport Mall if you want to catch a movie, go to a club, shop, or dine in various restaurants.

Being an all-suite luxury hotel, the most basic room is well… a deluxe suite (P15,800 per night published rate). That’s where we stayed. We were surprised how large our room… err suite was.

We had two full-sized beds (slightly smaller than queen) although we slept on one. Had a sofa with a small dining table and a work desk.

Check out this super-cool touch-screen speakerphone and butler system. Never got to learn how to properly use it. I just used the regular phone to call the operator. Hehehe.

I don’t think this new 55-inch LED TV comes with the room, it’s a special arrangement with Samsung for us. Below that is a mini-fridge and the safe.

The bathroom was fully loaded. It has a His & Hers sink, bathtub, a shower area and a toilet that comes with a bidet. I dig the trashcans inside the bathroom. It will open automatically when it senses your hand. Really neat.

Lastly there’s always a dedicated butler for each room on standby. Don’t really know if he’s the one who’s always just outside our door every time we go out.

There are also a number of restaurants directly available to hotel guests. Quite pricey but delicious. We ate at this Japanese resto called Ginzadon and spent almost P2000 on sashimi, tempura and yakitori, then ice cream for dessert. If you want to save on food, better head to the mall through the casino for more affordable food options.

Breakfast buffet was so-so. Never much of a breakfast guy but you’ll get the usual fares found in high-priced hotels.

The glass-walled pool and the cabanas look nice and relaxing.

So there’s that. Basically, the highlight of our stay was the time we spent on our suite. Hehehe. If you have relatives or friends from abroad looking for a classy hotel to stay into, Maxims Resorts World surely won’t disappoint.

Thanks Samsung!

Jeepney fare back to Php8.00 starting today, May 15!

Calvin — Mon, 14 May 2012 16:39:58 +0000

And just like that, jeepney fare is now back to Php8.00 from Php8.50. Commuters take note!

The 50-cent increase was just implemented last March but after a big-time rollback of diesel, the fare’s back at Php8.00. It couldn’t have come at a better time since jeepney transport groups already petitioned a Php2.00 price hike bringing the base fare up to Php10.00. With the price drop on fuel, the LTFRB scrapped the P2-increase in fare.

Diesel fuel dropped below Php45 per liter and is likely to continue in the weeks to come according to the LTFRB. Fare might go back to Php8.50 when diesel price goes over Php48.

Somehow I feel sorry for the jeepney drivers with this one. It’s easy for oil companies to decrease and increase their fuel prices but it’s difficult for jeepney groups to get approval for fare increase, but it’s easy for fare rollback to be approved.

Oh well, time to get rid of those 25-cents again.

[Inquirer]

Join Leave a Legacy contest and win P50k in adidas apparel

Calvin — Mon, 14 May 2012 07:15:21 +0000

That’s right. P50,000 worth of adidas apparel will be given away to the 10 winners of the adidas Originals Leave a Legacy Facebook photo contest.

All you need to do is upload a photo of yourself in your most original adidas street ensemble into the adidas Leave a Legacy Facebook app then have friends vote for it. The top 10 photos with the most votes will each win P50,000 worth of adidas products. That’s like 9 pairs of shoes at least!

Is your adidas Originals wardrobe bare? You can also head to select adidas stores (check the list of stores on the Facebook app) to try different outfits and have your photo taken on the in-store photo stage.

I’m going to vote for you if you’d wear this Gorilla shoe from the Jeremy Scott line. Hahaha. Or any shoe from his line for that matter.

Contest ends on June 10, 2012 so you barely have a month to get those votes in. Better act fast.

adidas launched the “Leave a Legacy” campaign with the introduction of DJ Neil Armstrong, not the astronaut. He’s a Filipino who grew up in New York and became Jay-Z’s tour DJ, sharing stage with the likes of Rihanna, Beyonce, Kanye West, P. Diddy, and Linkin Park.

Was able to meet this cool and very down-to-earth guy during the launch of the campaign last week. He’s that silent guy type, letting his music and mixtapes speak for him.

His name is not really Neil Armstrong (Neil something else). That’s just what his friends called him among other names. He said it was either that or Neil Diamond. Hehehe.

Last Saturday was the adidas Originals Sunset BBQ party at the Skye Lounge (roofdeck) in BHS. Place was packed with celebrities and DJ Neil Armstrong provided the beats along with Miss Badkiss and DJ Nix Dam P. Forgot to bring my DSLR here so no photos. Hit the adidas Philippines Facebook page for photos from the photobooth though.

Happy Mother’s Day Mom!!

Calvin — Sun, 13 May 2012 00:29:00 +0000

I would like to dedicate this post to greet my mom a Happy Mother’s Day. A few weeks ago I posted about this Nido Fortified Facebook App where you can greet your mom via a digital billboard along EDSA. Well here it is:

Too bad she wasn’t able to see it as she has to fly back to the US two days ago. Still, I want to thank my mom for everything she’s done for me. I just love my mom.

Happy Mother’s Day to all moms out there as well! Including my mother-in-law, my sister who recently became a mother, and my other relatives, friends, and readers who are mothers!

Be good to your mom even for today. Treat her somewhere special okay?

Don’t forget your mom on Mother’s Day

Calvin — Fri, 11 May 2012 16:27:06 +0000

Mother’s Day is this Sunday. Time to reflect hard on what mom has done for you and appreciate her no matter what on that special day.

In line with Mother’s Day, here’s a funny video I came across with starring Philippine Volcanoes’ Eric Tai (and Tia’s ex-gym buddy) who reminds me of Johnny Bravo in this ad for Kit Kat.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCM6ahRCldk

Hahaha. Do something special for your mom on Mother’s Day will ya!

Happy Mother’s Day

My very first chopper ride, it was a blast!

Calvin — Fri, 11 May 2012 02:21:11 +0000

If you’re to choose an activity that you want to do for a few hours on a single day, what will it be? Here are the choices – cooking lesson with a local celebrity chef, be an aquanaut in an oceanarium, or experience riding a helicopter for a few minutes? Go.

Hands down, no questions asked, it’s gotta be the chopper ride! Nokia treated bloggers and members of a media on a choose your own amazing adventure to celebrate the Nokia Lumia 610 Windows Phone and I chose what’s gotta be a once-in-a-lifetime experience for me, riding a helicopter.

The deal is, we’re to ride on this 4-seater light helicopter (Robinson R44) , cruise along Manila Bay, and head towards Makati Central Business District before going back to the hangar located at the Airport Road. Ride took about 15-minutes which is fine by me.

I’m not afraid of heights so I’m just here for the experience and take a few aerial shots of the city, and to blog about how I rode a freaking chopper! One that looks like an RC toy from afar. Sorry Nokia Lumia 610, no matter how affordable you are for a fine smartphone (P10,999), riding a chopper is far more interesting to me. =P

So off we went (I was with Jam and Manila Bulletin’s Art Samaniego’s son) to our light helicopter which according to Wikipedia only has 89 fatal accidents reported in a span of 17 years. Groovy. The only briefing we got was not to approach the chopper from the rear. Hahaha. I was surprised how comfy it was inside and the air-conditioning was pretty good (couldn’t say the same for the van that we rode to the hangar). We fastened our seatbelts and wore our headsets before taking off.

So how was the ride? Hmm, just like riding a floating car. It’s actually smooth and I was surprised to see SM Mall of Asia and my workplace in less than a minute from Airport Road. The almost full-windowed shell of the helicopter allowed us to get a good view outside.

Can you figure the places in these photos?

We saw some interesting sights from the top. The well-organized Heroes Cemetery (Libingan ng mga Bayani) at McKinley, Fort compared to the crowded and unsorted Makati Cemetery. The Makati Skyline. The fine-looking houses in Taguig with their pools compared to the collection of shanties in Kalayaan Ave. It was also the first time I saw the passenger ferry that is docked near SM Annex.

As we turned to head back, the ride made me queasy. Like how you feel after playing FPS games like CounterStrike for the first time. I don’t really get airsick so it must be the combination of the sun, the air-conditioned cabin, and the tight headset that made me feel almost dizzy as we headed back. Good thing it’s just a short ride.

Overall, it was still an amazing experience, one of the highlights of my year. =D Thank you Nokia Philippines! Oh here’s a not-so defining shot of the Nokia Lumia 610. Hehehe.

If you’re wondering about the cost of the ride, I was told that the light chopper rental is Php35,000 for an hour. Then there are the fees every time it lands (P3,500, but depends on location), takes off (P2,000?), and the pilot’s fee. Hehehe so basically, it’s not something I would bother knowing. But if you’re interested you can check out the operator we got which was Aero-tour.

Get the Pitch Black Marshall Headphones at 15% off

Calvin — Thu, 10 May 2012 16:01:00 +0000

I reviewed the Marshall Major and Marshall Minor headphones before here, they are nice-looking and decent-sounding headphones but a bit pricey. Now there’s a Pitch Black version (completely black) and as a promo, you can get it at 15% off when you buy it while wearing a black shirt.

Marhsall Major – ~~P4,650~~ P3,952.50
Marshall Minor – ~~P2,950~~ P2,507.50

Promo runs from May 14 to 16 only and you can get these at a discount from select Digital Hub, Digital Walker, Beyond the Box, and Buzz stores. For inquiries, you can post comments on https://www.facebook.com/digitstrading.

Jessica Sanchez slays “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going”

Calvin — Thu, 10 May 2012 09:58:05 +0000

Wow! Just wow! The best back-to-back songs on American Idol is probably here and I’m glad Jessica Sanchez gets to close it this time. Theme for the top 4 is songs sung by a Californian artist and “Songs I Wish I Wrote”.

Let’s get the first song by Jessica out of the way. She sang “Steal Away” by Etta James.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cjw57lx5bJw

First of all the performance was really good, for a 16-years old. Unfortunately for me, it doesn’t fit her persona at all. It’s a song for adults (about having an affair with a married man) but good thing she has a mature voice and the experience to sing it really well.

Jennifer loved the growl, asked Jessica how long she’s been doing it. J-Lo said that among her contemporaries, she’s one of the best. Randy was amazed with her vocals, told her she could sing a phone book which I agree given a song that’s really out of her comfort zone.

Before we go to Jessica’s second song, I would like to point out how phenomenal Joshua Ledet was with his choice which earned her a standing “O” from the judges. Check out his performance of “It’s a Man’s Man’s Man’s World” by James Brown.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j4babjH3QF8

Absolutely amazing!! This song showed everything he can do with his voice. I love every minute of it and when he did that I was afraid that Jessica couldn’t top it to close out the show. It’s really a hard act to follow.

However, Jessica did it. She pulled out her ace. She sang Jennifer Holliday’s “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going” which is a really, really big song. And it’s been done by a number of Idols already. Fortunately, she’s been singing it since she was 7 so that’s a sigh of relief for her fans. Check it out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8xrlOUvyEI

For me it didn’t really top Joshua’s performance but it was equally amazing. Her control of her voice, the range, the lows and highs, everything was done flawlessly. I couldn’t see how she can sing it any better. She was really, really good with it. All praises from the judges who also gave her a standing ovation.

Download – (Right-click Save link as…)
Jessica Sanchez – Steal Away (Studio Version).mp3
Jessica Sanchez – And I Am Telling You Im Not Going (Studio Version).mp3

On a side note, I also dig Philip’s second song, “Volcano” by Damien Rice. Haven’t heard the song before but I heard a different Philip on this performance. Check it out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YP-IcCiCEI

As for Hollie, I think she flopped on both accounts giving fans of the show an easier time deciding on who not to vote for. She kinda ruined Journey’s Faithfully for me. And she lacked the emotions to pull of Bonnie Raitt’s “I Can’t Make You Love Me”. I wouldn’t mind for her to make an exit tomorrow but everything’s already up in the air at this point.

Whatcha think?

To view all the performances including the duets, you may want to check out American Idol on YouTube.

Domestic plane tickets to include terminal fee starting Aug 1

Calvin — Wed, 09 May 2012 07:30:16 +0000

For the travelers out there who frequently go around the country, be informed that starting August 1 of this year, you should expect the terminal fee for all domestic flights will already be included in your plane ticket. One less line to worry about when arriving at the airport.

Department of Transportation and Communication Secretary Mar Roxas made this announcement on a press briefing yesterday. Roxas explained that only in our country do airlines refuse to incorporate terminal fees and travel taxes due to the many exemptions such as the OFW and senior citizen privileges, enjoyed by a number of passengers.

This system was already announced last February whereby all passengers, whether senior citizens or OFWs, are required to pay all fees upon purchase of a plane ticket. The DOTC said a refund receipt will be issued to passengers who are exempted from payment. Hmm, I wonder how our OFWs and senior citizen will feel about that.

Terminal fees vary across airport but it’s Php200 for NAIA terminals. The fee is used to finance maintenance, expansion, and purchase of equipment on an airport. But I guess it’s not enough to pay for working CCTVs inside a terminal.

SwipeSelection makes editing text on the iPad infinitely better

Calvin — Tue, 08 May 2012 09:46:50 +0000

Not really a fan of composing long text such as e-mails on the iPad but this app called SwipeSelection changed that. SwipeSelection is a keyboard add-on app that allows you to do precise cursor movement within your text for easy insertion, deletion, and selection.

Developed by Kyle Howells, this app is only available to jailbroken devices (iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch) for free! Launch Cydia and search for “SwipeSelection” to get it. What it does is give you additional swipe controls on the virtual keyboard to control the cursor. Check out the video below for a better understanding.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6h2yrBK7MAY

Much better right? Because pinpointing on a specific area with your stubby finger and waiting for the magnifying glass to appear is just too slow and inaccurate. Now you can get to precise locations to insert or delete text, and better yet perform selection for copy-pasting. It will only work on the virtual keyboard so you can’t use it on apps that don’t use it, say a piece of text in Safari that you want to select.

I tried it out and I think this app though really helpful, still has room for improvements. It would be nice if it can also detect vertical gestures to move up or down a line. Of course you can just tap on the screen but it will feel natural if everything’s done on the keyboard area. What’s also neat is if it can select a word, or a body of text simply by double-tapping the Shift key, just like in Windows.

Finally, I hope Apple would implement this neat feature on their built-in keyboard because it just makes things easier to use the keyboard.

Thanks Liane for the heads up!