Singing Lessons with Jeanne Velasco-Vicars of Showstoppers

Last January, Dealspot sold vouchers for singing lessons at Showstoppers Center for Music and Arts. The lessons would be handled by Ms. Jeanne Velasco-Vicars and the technique she would be using was called vocal sound management. According to the description, vocal sound management can correct vocal faults and effect vocal adjustment in the shortest possible time. So with this technique, the student can expect to learn to sing in tune, prevent getting hoarse, increase vocal range and volume, improve enunciation, enhance vocal expression, and clean up his sound.

The teacher, Ms. Vicars, is the voice coach of several celebrities such as Katryn Bernardo, Jennelyn Mercado, Sarah Geronimo, and Isabella de Leon. The office was located in Delta in Quezon City and the rate was P750 per hour per student (regular rate), P375 through the Dealspot promo. I texted Ms. Vicars to confirm if the lessons would be one-on-one and she said yes. I bought six vouchers -- three for me, three for bf. Our first lesson was done in the Delta office, the second after they moved to Timog (in the unit where Ms. Vicars also lives) due to rising rental cost in the previous office.

Bf and I both love music but we're not the singing type. We don't even like contemporary pop and Rn'B. We don't have any ambition to sing professionally. Although they're undeniably great singers, I don't dream of singing ala Charice or Regine Velasquez (my singing idols are more like Chris Cornell and Sebastian Bach, even if they're of the wrong gender). Anyway, my goal was pretty simple: I want to sing in tune. And of course, our overall goal: to try new stuff.

So how did things go? Well, both good and bad.

Sample Affidavit: My Cleverbuy Affidavit

Click here for updates about Cleverbuy or CleverTravel.
Click here to see all posts related to Cleverbuy or CleverTravel.

Several commenters have asked about the format of an affidavit or a sample affidavit so I decided to post mine. I haven't submitted this to the NBI or even notarized. I drafted this affidavit then had it looked over by a lawyer friend.

This is just a sample. You can add more info, especially if you've attempted to contact Cleverbuy or the merchant before writing your affidavit.

Some notes:

• According to my lawyer friend, the rows should be 1.5-spaced (you know, that thing between being single-spaced and doubled-spaced). I'm not sure how strict the NBI or our local courts are about the format of the affidavit since I saw other notarized affidavits last Friday which looked simpler (no numbers, not much legalese terms, etc).
• You have to present a valid ID when having the affidavit notarized. A community tax certificate (cedula) is not enough anymore.

*****

Republic of the Philippines}  s.s

City of Manila

AFFIDAVIT

I,  (my name), Filipino citizen, of legal age, single, and a resident of (complete address), after having been duly sworn in accordance with law, hereby depose and say:

Latest Updates About Cleverbuy / CleverTravel

Just to recap the events since May:

1. J2 Discount Travel and Tours closed down. Cleverbuy said they would take care of the refunds. Some complainants were able to get post-dated checks.
2. May 29 - Cleverbuy stopped issuing post-dated checks and only issued promissory notes. A meeting with Cleverbuy was scheduled at NBI on June 1, 2012.
3. May 30 - Cleverbuy suddenly closed their office as well due to threats, verbal abuse, and a few cases of vandalism and theft received from their angry clients. The closure would be temporary according to them. Communication with them was soon cut off however (no response on their Facebook page, invalid contact numbers, etc).
4. Anonymous tips and various information from former Cleverbuy employees began surfacing.
5. June 1 - The meeting at NBI's Anti-Fraud Division was reset to June 8, 2012.
6. June 5 - The bank account used by Cleverbuy to issue their checks was closed. DTI encouraged complainants to go direct to NBI since this matter had become a criminal case.

A few days ago, I heard from an ex-Cleverbuy employee that the company's CEO Christian Bayer denied being the owner of Cleverbuy. That was certainly odd -- Cleverbuy's SEC registration could disprove his denial. Even in the official statement Cleverbuy issued last May 3, 2012, Bayer was named as the CEO. This denial sent my mind whirring and I began to consider the possibility that Cleverbuy was a scam from the beginning (unknown to their Filipino staff) and Garcia was being used as a fall guy by Bayer (just in case someone needs to go to jail to pacify the angry mob) while Bayer runs away.

What happened during the NBI meeting on June 8, 2012...

If You Still Have an Unclaimed Cleverbuy Voucher, Read This!

This post's contents and comments have become so long and hard to read. I'm closing off comments for this post. You can find the newer updates about Cleverbuy (esp about the NBI meeting last June 8) here:

Latest Updates About Cleverbuy / CleverTravel

*****

I am pissed off right now. If you have an unclaimed voucher from Cleverbuy or CleverTravel, then you should be too. Why?

Cleverbuy is now closed!

I received a comment at my previous Cleverbuy post last May 18, detailing the company's very poor customer service. I got worried because I also have an unclaimed travel voucher that I bought from Cleverbuy, but I didn't panic since I had encountered problems with vouchers bought from other sites before (so I was sort of a veteran) and I was planning to use my voucher at the latter half of this year (I thought the problem would go away once the busy summer season ended).

A few days afterwards, I got links from Promoblogger and Everything in Budget and learned that after lying to several customers about booking their flights and accommodations, J2 Discount Travel and Tours had shut down and that Cleverbuy would be handling the refunds for the botched travel deals. J2 Travel and Cleverbuy occupied the same building and many people believed that they were sister companies.

• Cleverbuy's office: Unit B 4F Marvin Plaza Bldg. 2153 Don Chino Roces Ave., Brgy. Pio Del Pilar, Makati City 1230

• J2 Travel's office: 7F Marvin Plaza Bldg. 2153 Chino Roces Avenue, Brgy. Pio Del Pilar, Makati City

Cleverbuy apparently issued an official statement and denied any ties with J2, but that link (as well as the whole Cleverbuy blogspot blog) has been deleted. I hope someone was able to screen capture that statement. It might prove valuable in court.

Gold's Gym Waltermart North EDSA

To shed a few pounds, I thought of going to the gym. I was not looking for a long-term commitment to a gym though, so when Gold's Gym had a promo through Metrodeal, I thought, Perfect! Just what I was looking for.

Their trial membership included 10 visits, consumable within two months, and access to all their facilities and classes.

We chose their Waltermart North EDSA branch since that was the most convenient for us. On our first day, we were briefed by a personable young man named Orly Natividad. Before we began exercising, he asked us if he could discuss membership first. We got a bit worried that it would lead to us being pressured to become members. To prevent that, I took the initiative and told him "Okay, as long as you won't pressure us into signing up." He didn't. He just explained the different annual rates for their branch.

Digital Perm at Fredy Salon in Timog

I had always had straight hair - naturally stick-straight when I was a kid, straight but slightly puffy as an adult - and for the past few years I had wondered what I would look like with curls. I never got around to getting a perm though, until now.

I bought a digital perm voucher at Fredy Salon from Cleverbuy.

In case you're unfamiliar with the term, digital perming (aka digiperm or hot perming) is a hair curling technique from Japan. It involves the use of hot rods connected to a machine that regulates the temperature. Digi perm uses heat and a solution different from the one used in traditional perm (aka cold perming). Because the rollers are hot and can't therefore be placed too close to the scalp, only the lower part of the hair is permed. Digiperm can be used to achieve big curls and beach waves.

Fredy Salon's Timog branch is located near GMA 7 (and Adonis, hehe).

I went on a Tuesday afternoon (or as The Big Bang Theory's Sheldon Cooper would say: prevening). I was the only customer during my visit so there was no waiting. Thank goodness! The whole procedure took about four hours. I arrived at a little past 5pm and left at around 9:30pm.

My hair was first shampooed. A cream was then applied and my hair was washed again. Small sections of my  hair were then rolled onto ceramic curlers. Those curlers were a lot heavier than I thought. Those rods were then attached to the (alien-looking) digiperm machine and heated for around an hour.

My Second Ensogo Refund Took Only Eight Days. Yes!

When I had a problem with my Mongkok voucher, Ensogo's refund took a mind-boggling 3-1/2 months, 6 email followups, and 4 or 5 posts on their Facebook page. So when Gandiva informed me that I had a problem with the voucher I bought from Ensogo, I thought ugh!

• Click here to read the background story for the refund and my review of Gandiva Archery Range.
• Click here to read my review of Gandiva Cafe's food.

I emailed Ensogo on March 19 to request for a refund and an explanation as to what happened. My email was civil but a bit stern. The voucher in question was worth P300 but since we did not have the option of backing out of paying the regular price (P600) at Gandiva, I thought it would be fair to at least try asking Ensogo to refund me the regular price. Honestly, I was expecting them to just refund me P300.

After two days, I got a reply from Ensogo, saying that they had documented my concern and would be addressing it with the merchant.

March 27 around 3pm, I had not received any more info so I emailed again, asking for an update. The following day, Ensogo replied that my refund request had been approved and that I would receive my credits within two days.

I did not think about it until the end of the month. When April started, I remembered about it and when I checked my Ensogo account, I got P600 credits!

I got no explanation on how our voucher got mistakenly marked as Used, oh well, but at least I quickly got a full refund.

Shooting Arrows at Gandiva Cafe and Archery Range and the Problem with our Ensogo Voucher

I bought two Gandiva vouchers through Ensogo. Unfortunately, we were late for our appointment. At first, the Gandiva personnel refused to accommodate us, saying that our appointment had become invalid since we were more than 15 minutes late. We were at fault, no argument about that, but we were still hoping that we would be accommodated since all the other voucher merchants had accommodated us even if we were late. I got a little annoyed when the Gandiva guy stated that the 15-minute limitation was printed on the voucher when it was not. Anyway, after a few minutes, he said that he would ask his boss. The voucher cost P300 each. Bf and I did not want to kiss our P600 goodbye so we crossed our fingers. When the Gandiva personnel returned, he said they would accommodate us. Whew! and Yipee!

Even though we were off in a not-too-smooth a start, that Gandiva guy assisted us well during our stay. He was the one who briefed us newbies on how to use the equipment and how things were done in the archery area.

First, he taught us how to attach the bracer (arm guard that protected the inside of the arm holding the bow from being hit by the bow string and that prevented clothes from catching the string) and finger tab (for the fingers of the other hand). He attached our paper targets on the boards and brought us our bows and metal arrows contained in quivers. Bf's quiver was a belt-type one while mine had a hook for attaching to a belt hoop. He then told us how to position ourselves and how to draw and fire an arrow.

bows

Zark's Burgers @ Taft Avenue, Manila

I was randomly surfing the net when I encountered this picture:

Tombstone, photo taken from Zark's FB page

my exact reaction

Needless to say, I had to eat at Zark's!

Zark's is located right across De La Salle University. Too bad it was not around back when I was still a student there. My then-active metabolism would have enabled me to pig out everyday while maintaining my skinny frame.

This review is for our two visits to Zark's. Sorry for the pale, oversaturated pictures. Those ones were taken using my old cellphone.

Taste

This is not a place for vegans and other health/figure-conscious folks. Zark's Burgers serves greasy slabs of meat and is not apologetic about it. This is the place to go to when you want to escape your calorie-counting friends who only eat the "right" kind of fats.

The burgers are big and there are tons of choices available (29 kinds of burger last time I checked). I couldn't even graduate to the "Major League" burgers because even the "Minor League" burgers are big and filling. Yes they are greasy, but not the gross kind of greasy. The fries are thick, with the skin on - exactly how I wanted my fries. The veggies are fresh and crisp. The nachos have generous cheese sauce and bacon bits and the salsa is good.

American All-Star: classic American cheeseburger

Home Service Full Body Massage from Excellent Massage & Mobile Spa

I had never been much into professional massages. I felt that having a massage would be an exercise in futility since I would lose whatever relaxation I would feel with all the traffic, heat, pollution, and congestion when going home from the spa. So although there were tons of promos on massages, I never availed one.

Until I saw Excellent Massage and Mobile Spa's promo in CashCashPinoy. Theirs was a home service massage, longer than most massage offers I had seen (you could choose either 90mins or 120mins) yet very affordable (P190 instead of P375 for the 90min massage and P250 instead of P500 for the 120min massage). Scheduling was flexible, since they operated 24/7 and the offer was valid anywhere in Metro Manila. I bought four vouchers - one for me, three for an elderly relative who had been complaining of muscle and joint aches.

Chicken Wings All You Can @ Buffalo Wild Wings

We went to Buffalo Wild Wings twice this week for some chicken goodness. They were having a chicken-wings-all-you-can promo through CashCashPinoy (P199 instead of P625).

view from across the street

Taste

Unlike Wingman, which offered around a dozen flavors, Buffalo Wild Wings had only one flavor for their wings. The wings had four levels of spiciness: Piccolo, 5-star, Super Lolo, and Goodbye Philippines. We tried Piccolo and found that hot enough for us, so that was the spiciness level we always ordered. Aside from the wings, we also ordered fish fillet with potato wedges. The fish fillet was served with fries though, not potato wedges.

I tended to be more partial towards non-saucy wings but I liked BWW's version. They were crispy and juicy even though they were covered in sauce. The Piccolo level was just right - hot enough but not too hot so as to obscure the taste of the chicken. I liked the fish fillet as well. It was not greasy and tasted more like meat than fish.

Teeth Cleaning with Fluoride Treatment and Dental Exam at Chic Smile Dental Clinic

I learned about Chic Smile Dental Clinic through their Twangoo promo.

entrance

Booking was a breeze. They were considerate when I had to rebook at the last minute because I had allergies on the day of my visit.

The deal included professional teeth cleaning (also called oral prophylaxis), fluoride treatment, and dental examination. Oral prophylaxis involves cleaning and polishing the teeth to remove plaque and tartar, prevent tooth decay, and visibly reduce stains.

I communicated with Chic Smile via text messages. They replied promptly and were always polite and professional. I appreciated that, because I had encountered several merchants who put landline and cellphone numbers on the deal's terms yet when I texted them, they never replied.

The clinic was not that big, but it was clean and cosy, with a simple yet modern design. The treatment room was spacious, well-lit, and also modern-looking. The dental equipment looked up-to-date.

reception area

Manila Bay Cruise by Sun Cruises Inc.

Pakyaw held a widely-popular promo for Sun Cruises' Manila Bay Cruise (Regular price: P550, discounted price: P188). It was for a 1 hour and 15mins cruise of the Manila Bay waters, with live music and a set dinner included.

A lot of people availed the promo (13805 vouchers were sold) but there were three sailing schedules everyday from Sept 23, 2011-Jan 31, 2012 (excluding holidays) so everyone could be accommodated. A month after purchase, Pakyaw sent emails to the voucher holders, informing us that for safety and legal reasons, pregnant women on their 4th month and up would not be allowed to take the trip unless they had a medical certificate and were willing to sign a waiver. It would have been better if that info was posted in the deal's terms so that such pregnant women would have known that limitation before they bought vouchers, but it was good that Pakyaw took the time to email that update to the buyers.

Voucher holders were asked to call for reservations at least 3 days in advance (6 numbers were given - 5 landline numbers and 1 cellphone number) but the reservation was not without hassle. I texted the cellphone number and got no reply. I called around 4:30pm to confirm if my text reservation was scheduled but the person who answered the phone told me that reservations were handled by another department and were only entertained before 4pm. I called again the next day to reserve two slots, but the reservations agent gave me their email address and asked me to email our voucher numbers, order number, and our names, ages, and nationalities. Then why did they bother to post a lot of numbers in the deal's terms? They should have spared the buyers as well as their staff the hassle and just posted that buyers should email them the needed info to book for reservations. I also wondered why they asked for our nationalities, but bf said that it could be for statistics or marketing purposes. Fine!

Sailing schedule was as follows: 1st sailing 4:30pm-5:45pm, 2nd sailing 6:15pm-7:30pm, and 3rd sailing 8:00pm-9:15pm. Buyers should be at the docking area behind Folk Arts Theater at least 30 minutes before sailing time. We arrived around 4:30 and since it was such a beautiful day, we used the extra time to walk around the area - stalking cats, eating barbecue, and taking pictures of plants and the surroundings.

Ensogo's Refund Process Sucks Donkey Balls! (unlike CashCashPinoy and DealGrocer)

After my disappointment with the Mongkok voucher I bought from Ensogo, I emailed Ensogo to request for a refund.

When buying online, I always use either G-Cash, Paypal or BPI mobile banking to pay. These three payment modes give me a stress-free experience because I don't have to worry about banking hours or even leaving the house. When it comes to group-buying sites, using Paypal and Gcash also ensures that my payment gets verified instantly and I get my vouchers within a minute.

On a side note: I see a lot of other voucher buyers who pay over-the-counter getting stressed with the late arrival of their vouchers, so if you love deal sites as much as I do, I suggest you get a Paypal or G-Cash account.

Anyway, since I bought my Mongkok voucher using Paypal, the refund process should be really quick, right? Ensogo just needed to login to their Paypal account and click "Refund". Even if they were busy and had to talk with Mongkok management before giving me my refund, that shouldn't take more than a week. Guess what? My freakin' refund took almost four months! I didn't expect my refund experience would be that bad because

• The voucher was only worth P300
• I had bought several vouchers from them before and had no problems getting or claiming my vouchers
• I always paid instantly, so transactions were automated and I didn't add to their workload
• When I requested a refund, I included a detailed account of what happened
• I did not pester and annoy them everyday (on hindsight, maybe I should have pestered them everyday).
• I was under the delusion that they valued loyal customers 

Robert Kiyosaki's Cashflow 101 Financial Management Workshop

One of the topics that interest me is personal finance and I consider Robert Kiyosaki's Rich Dad, Poor Dad to be a book that's great both for shifting your paradigm regarding money as well as for keeping you motivated as you strive for financial freedom. I had heard about the Cashflow 101 board game but I did not really pay much attention because the board game was very expensive (Kiyosaki is selling Cashflow 101 for $195). There was a local group that regularly met to play the game but even that was expensive (more than P1000 per game). So when Metrodeal featured Cashflow, I quickly bought two vouchers.

picture from Metrodeal

We met with the other folks at Spicy Fingers in Greenbelt 2. In our table, there were 2 facilitators and 5 of us newbie players. The game's mechanics was explained and we were each given two sheets of paper -- Income Statement/Balance Sheet and Small Deals Buying Sheet. Financial independence is about getting out of the rat race so each player was represented by a tiny plastic rat.

6' Christmas Tree I Bought from Metrodeal (JT Photoworld)

I wasn't planning on buying a Christmas tree this year. Our family wasn't really into them and I could only remember one Christmas when we had a tree - that one was a real tree that was probably transported all the way from Quezon when I was still a kid.

But when I saw Metrodeal's Christmas tree promo, I got excited and thought that perhaps it was a sign that the adult me should start having a Christmas tree again.

The price was tempting (P999 instead of P3000) and the tree in the picture looked great so the deal was certainly very tempting. However, since Metrodeal and other similar sites had a habit of using stock photos (and the merchants of inflating the original prices), I was a bit worried that I would get one of those cheap, very plastic-looking, sparse trees that were being sold at low-end malls for P700-P1000.

The merchant for the tree was JT Photoworld, a camera shop in Manila. After calling them to set a schedule for pick-up, bf and I headed to their Paco office. It was around closing time when we arrived so we did not get the warmest of welcome, but we got our tree and they helped us tie the box with straw rope upon learning that we would be commuting.

The box was worn and dusty but the tree was in good shape, lush, with a dark green color. Setting it up was a bit tricky though, since the base of the tree's spine didn't fit the hole of the tree stand. Thank goodness bf was around since I didn't have enough strength to fix them. Using pliers, bf loosened up the stand's hole a little and crimped the tree's base to restore its cylindrical shape.

JT Photoworld
1434 Gen Luna St.
corner Apacible St.
Paco, Manila

Serious Security Flaw at Cleverbuy

I logged in to Cleverbuy to review the terms of some vouchers I bought. I clicked My Account and got the following screens:

The thing is, I am not Anthea Gabriel. I don't know who she is nor was I trying to hack her account. But there I was, looking at her full name, order list, address, email, and phone number. I could use her info for mischief. I could also change her address and password if I wanted to. Hello identity theft!

I quickly reported the bug to Cleverbuy's Facebook page. In fairness to Cleverbuy, they promptly replied and promised to fix the error.

I just hope they really do fix this security bug because it's a serious error. If a legitimate client can access another client's account without even intending to or trying, then how much easier would it be for a malicious hacker?

Update: If you got here because you're concerned about Cleverbuy being a scam, head to my more recent Cleverbuy post. That's where I post updates I get about this issue.

If You Still Have an Unclaimed Cleverbuy Voucher, Read This!

 

 

Brazil Brazil! Churrascaria at Metrowalk

I've been hearing about Brazil Brazil! for years already. I was intrigued but since their branches were out of the way for me, I never got around to trying their food. When their Churrasco feast platter was featured in Metrodeal, I considered it a sign for me to go and finally sample their food.

The Churrasco feast platter was good for two and included the following: delicate beef brisket, pork belly, hanging tender, pork shoulder, chicken thighs, heavenly frankfurter sausage, Java rice, banana (saba) and Japanese corn.

Churrasco feast platter

Taste

The meats were flavorful and juicy. They reminded me of just why I was a meatlover! I'm a picky eater and one of the things I don't eat is fat trimmings. The meats in the platter were lean and suited me quite well. Next time I have to try the buffet.

Affordability

If you're a carnivore looking to maximize your peso, go for the buffet instead of the Churrasco platter. They cost about the same but you'll get to eat a lot more meat. The buffet's price (P777) is pretty reasonable for a meat-centric foodfest especially if you happen to have a huge appetite.

A Three-Way Disappointing Service from Ensogo, Mongkok, and SM Mall of Asia

The glutton in me couldn't resist the delicious-looking dimsum at Ensogo's Mongkok deal offer so I bought a voucher.

The Mongkok promo is in 3 branches, all of which are out of the way for us, but I really wanted to try Mongkok dimsum so I planned on claiming the voucher last last weekend when we went to Ambeth Ocampo's Queridas ni Rizal lecture in Makati. Unfortunately, their Glorietta branch was already fully booked according to the girl who answered my phone call when I tried to place a reservation.

(image from Ensogo's Web site)

I didn't want to risk dining at their Robinson's Galleria branch because of a negative post I read online. In that complaint, the customer was not faultless but the staff handled the situation poorly in what appeared to be a stand-off ("patigasan") with the customer, when the staff could have easily given way and prevented all that drama.

I tried placing a reservation again last weekend, this time in their Mall of Asia (MoA) branch since I would be going to MoA to attend a book fair the following weekend. I called their MoA branch again and again to place my reservation, but noone answered the phone even during closing time. I decided to just try a walk-in during off-peak hours.

Our experience was terrible. We ended up walking all over MoA trying to find Mongkok! We thought we were just misreading the mall directory because we couldn't find the resto. After giving up on the map, we asked a mall guard. He consulted his booklet which showed a different location for Mongkok. We went there and again walked all over the area but still couldn't find Mongkok. We asked another guard who pointed towards another location. Mongkok wasn't there either. We were already going mad due to extreme exhaustion and hunger so we asked another guard. Of the three guards, he was the only one who sounded like he actually knew what he was talking about. He explained to us that Mongkok MoA was under renovation and would reopen in December. So we just wasted two hours! Such a hassle!

MoA: Really, such a big-ass mall can't even spare the time or the dime to update its mall directory and the booklets they give out to their security personnel, let alone to inform and train their security personnel regarding the location of all the establishments? What if, God forbid, a crime happens in one of the shops? The security guards would be like headless chickens running around in different directions instead of being able to respond to the crisis efficiently. Another example of SM's billions resources not being put to good use.

Mongkok and Ensogo: The deal's terms specified that the promo was in three branches then Mongkok suddenly shut down the MoA branch. They broke the agreement. Furthermore, noone informed the voucher holders even though Ensogo and/or Mongkok had our names and contact information. Mongkok's Facebook page made no mention about the MoA branch's renovation and I don't recall Ensogo issuing a similar update. 

I have lost interest in availing this deal. I'll be getting a refund. I paid via Paypal (and won't mind getting my refund as Ensogo credits) so refund should be a breeze. I'll post an update after I get my refund.

Mongkok Dimsum and Noodles

SM Mall of Asia
Pasay City, Metro Manila