Karambola - Tuesday July 01, 2008
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Am I glad none of my friends told me to eat at Pepper Lunch in Singapore. I’ve really had enough of Pepper talk awready. I honestly think the blog is more entertaining than the food 
We got to eat at No Signboard Seafood resto instead. It was good that their branch in the Esplanade Mall was just a short walk from my hotel. Every implanted Pinoy in Singapore recommends tasting their crabs which is heavenly. We ordered the one in chili sauce which didn’t taste so spicy but looked like it had been mixed to perfection with some egg sauce or such. No Signboard is so called because it started as an obscure hawker stall.
No, we didn’t eat rice with the crabs. The house recommends pairing with the divine steamed buns which you can dip in the sauce, if you hate the idea of licking your fingers. Hah. The texture of this bread is just amazing. They remind me actually of similar buns in Filipino Chinese restaurants like My Home Deli or Wah Yuen. Next time you’re at a Chinese resto, order the fried buns, with condensed milk to go. Bread and condensed milk is actually a fave childhood memory for some of us 
My cheapest thrill while in Singapore was eating ice cream from the ambulant vendors. See? The sign says “Magnolia,” but we don’t seem to have durian-flavored ice cream blocks in our shores. If New York had their $1 hotdogs, Singapore has their S$1 ice cream, which you can eat on a piece of biscuit, or a slice of multi-colored bread.
Trying out the hookien mee at Thye Vong in Wisma Atria’s Food Republic was one of the ‘touristy’ things I did, following a guidebook. The fried noodles are still traditionally placed in some sort of palm leaf called opeh leaf. One also gets to see the cook make the noodles from scratch in a giant wok, adding one ingredient after another.
Buffet at MELT World Cafe, Mandarin Oriental. Because I just find their food exquisite, and this was one place where the nosh didn’t taste like bland hotel food. Even the room service didn’t disappoint.
Cookie creations at The Cookie Museum. Passing by this place which was decked in full Venetian splendor, I couldn’t help but make a turn-around. A bit on the pricey side with cookie tins starting at S$35. But it wouldn’t really hurt spending a lazy sunny afternoon with platter of exquisite cookies and a cup of English tea for a taste of the good life. Their papaya cookies are highly-recommended.
As in previous trips, I had a list of things to see and places to eat in on my maiden visit to Singapore, but wasn’t even able to accomplish half. I blame this on my hectic schedule, and the fact that I preferred shopping to eating. One can only do so much at any given time, right? I did miss out on a lot and it just makes me dream of visiting again soon.
Message of Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV as he marks his first year as senator:
“Inside a jail, you are not witness to the state of the country with your own eyes: the rising cost of living in unequal proportion with a failing economic order. You are unable to hear the sentiments of our people first hand: pervasive cries for justice and accountability against perpetrators of political violence and corruption. You appear insulated from what others endure outside these walls: the disillusionment of a people in the Administration that blatantly betrays its own obligation to serve them.
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Fearless quote from an acquaintance who is now based in Singapore: ” Manila is just for visiting my folks, Singapore is my home now. ”
Knowing the sheer number of Filipino workers in this island-state, many people can probably relate. My first impressions: it’s almost a perfect place, one where you can feel very safe in, but somewhat lacking in character. I know this is an an unfair assessment given the fact that I wasn’t even able to go to Sentosa or the Night Safari.
Was it just me missing Manila’s chaos and maddening frenzy? The busy tourist in me could never tell. In Singapore, there was no such thing as ‘organized chaos’ even. Everything just seemed to be in its proper place. Here are bits and pieces from the short trip:
Staying at the Mandarin Oriental Singapore was fab. Unlike the Mandarin Oriental in Makati which is small, the two Mandarins in Singapore are much bigger. The hotel we stayed in connected to a mall (the Marina Square) and was just a short walk to tourist landmarks like the Esplanade and the Merlion Park
Flying via SQ, and trying out the Singapore Sling. Thanks to a sponsor, this budget traveller flew via SQ 
So what they say about the food being good is true. But I also had a kick trying out the Singapore Sling, since I wasn’t able to go to the Raffles Hotel Long Bar anyway.
The Singapore Flyer experience. Standing at 165 m from the ground, the Singapore Flyer is the world’s biggest observation wheel and is one of the Lion City’s newest landmarks.Even though I was scared of heights, I was glad to learn this one didn’t daunt me as it moved at very slow speed. The Flyer offers one a great vista of Singapore’s skyline and the waterfront, as well as the outline of neighboring countries like Malaysia. Cocktails are served onboard and after getting down the Flyer, one can enjoy the array of shops and restaurants in the retail terminal.
Great Singapore Sale? Except for the picture above which was at Benetton, the independent retail shops didn’t seem to put up a lot of the big Sale signs, at least not where I looked in Gap, Mango, Zara or some of the other stores. It’s better to look at the big department stores though because that seemed to be where the big discounts were.
Outlet shopping was better! On my last night, my buddy James brought me to the Anchorpoint Mall on Alexandra Road where the outlet shops of Giordano et al. were. I literally went crazy and closed Charles & Keith for the night Who needs the Great Singapore Sale when there are the outlets with their drop-dead prices too? That’s just the bargain-hunter in me speaking.
Long live IKEA! Since I am in a ‘home furnishing’ mode, I was pretty excited over my first IKEA stateside visit. IKEA fans would be glad to know there are two big IKEA stores in Singapore. I raved over their contemporary designs and how cheap the prices were. I mourned over the fact that I couldn’t possibly bring home the bookshelves or even the canvas frame on my modest economy class baggage allowance.
Kinokuniya Bookstore Singapore. One word: big! But our local Fully-Booked would give them a run for their money in terms of size too.
Royce Chocolates. Can be found at the Suntec City Mall (opposite Carrefour) and the basement food hall of Takashimaya Department Store. Grab some if you don’t know yet the heavenly Nama chocs are not yet in Manila, or want better selections
A first look at the Nokia E71. Lusting over this phone, which is set to come out this July. Presently has the smallest QWERTY keyboard but also has desirable features like easily switched work/personal modes, one-touch keys, 3.2 megapixel cam and most of all, Wi-Fi.
When I was refused to board the plane last Saturday bound for Tacloban, the next thing that came into my mind is to buy a new plane ticket and refund the void ticket which I bought from a travel agency.
So Saturday late afternoon, I went to the Philippine’s largest shopping mall, Mall of Asia and headed directly to TicketNPost travel agency. TicketNPost is located at the south wing of MOA, just beside the SMX Convention Center. That’s where I bought my Manila –Tacloban, Tacloban Manila plane tickets last May 1, 2008 at 6:30PM The date and time of transaction is clearly printed on the Official Receipt.
The staff do not know what to do or handle my issue. I told her I need a refund because I was refused by the carrier to board the plane. I then told her that according to the airline’s system, my plane ticket was marked as CANCELLED. But who cancelled my booking? In the first place, it was already paid. And I do not have any plan of cancelling it.
The staff then repeatedly tried to check my plane ticket but she herself cannot find my booking on the airline’s system. I then pressured her to call her boss and inform her that I need a full airline ticket refund right at that moment.
The manager relayed the message that refund can only be settled Monday (that was yesterday), because they really can’t refund the money that Saturday afternoon.
So after an hour of pressuring them with seemingly futile results, I agreed to their condition to receive the refund Monday via bank deposit. I gave my bank details to the staff. Additionally, I also gave her my mobile number so that she would contact me once the deposit has been made.
I trusted their promise. But I warned them that I will report this matter to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) if they failed to pay me.
Monday June 30, 2008 came and no deposit has been made.
So I have decided to go back to the TicketNPonst travel agency in Mall of Asia today. But just before I head straight to their office and berate their staff, I checked my bank account again and see if deposit has been made. Zero, none, zilch. My ATM available balance is only fifty pesos.
I then head to their office thinking that this time, I should now be getting a full refund of my plane ticket. But I was disappointed one again. A sign on their door reads “OFFLINE, we will be back in a few minutes.” The door’s locked. To pass time, I went to an internet café and checked my mailbox for an hour. An hour later I went back the story’s still the same. No staff available. Locked doors and the hand-written sign taped on the glass door.
It is quite obvious now that TicketNPost is not willing to give back my hard-earned money. Their manager was not even willing to talk to me when I ask their staff that I wanted to talk to their boss. All they do is just do business and not care about the concerns of their customers.
They cannot even keep up with their promise to pay me via bank deposit. God, it’s only one thousand nine hundred plus pesos. But as a consumer, I have to make sure that I am getting my money’s worth.. After all I have the right to complain as part of the RA 7394 or the Consumer Welfare Act.
ARTICLE 52. Unfair or Unconscionable Sales Act or Practice - An unfair or unconscionable sales act or practice by a seller or supplier in connection with a consumer transaction violates this Chapter whether it occurs before, during or after the consumer transaction. An act or practice shall be deemed unfair or uncionscionable wh enever the producer, manufacturer, distributor, supplier or seller, by taking advantage of the consumer’s physical or mental infirmity, ignorance, illiteracy, lack of time or the general conditions of the environment or surroundings, induces the consumer to enter into a sales or lease transaction Grossly inimical to the interests of the consumer or gross one-sided in favor of the producer, manufacturer, distributor, supplier or seller. In determining whether an act or practice is unfair and unconscionable, the following circumstances shall
be considered:
c) that when the consumer transaction was entered into, the consumer was unable to receive a
substantial benefit from the subject of the transaction;
Now, I will be forwarding this post to the DTI to formally register my complain regarding this TicketNPost Travel Agency who looks like do not have any intentions of giving my money back.
So if you, your family, or your friend will be travelling, better inform them not to book tours or get their cheap airline tickets at TicketNPost or you might end up having the same situation like me.
This is the second part of a two-part story. Part of the story can be found here
Please forward this email to your friends, and family. Also I would greatly appreciate it if you can post this in online forums and blogs so that more people will be aware of what TicketNPost is doing.
Beware when buying airline tickets via travel agencies: The TicketNPost Horror story
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