2015 Review: Xcel Driving School

Recently finished 18 hours worth of lessons with Xcel Driving School this 2015, so here’s a review!

The Location ★★★★★
I enrolled in their Fairview-Meadows branch (cause there’s another one at FCM), conveniently located between resto Hoy Panga!, and suprise surprise: Il Padrino coffee shop.

I attended their 4-hour lecture (with snacks and water) in their Fairview-FCM branch where we took a 60-item exam. Their exam was pretty legit, and could be used as a reviewer for when you’re applying for a license. A lot of the questions from that did come up when I took the actual exam from LTO.

The Receptionist ★★★★☆
First thing you’ll get asked by the receptionist is if you have previous driving experience. I had none, so her next spiel was to offer me to enroll in a Manual course, even though my aim was to learn via a Matic auto.

Scheduling was a nightmare. Once you pay in full, they’re basically just gonna schedule you wherever they could fit you regardless of the availability you previously mentioned during enrollment! She of course asks you first by texting you before finalizing, but there was this one time where I said to have the rest of my Matic lessons at a certain time. And I distinctly remember her writing it down in her notebook where she keeps all the students’ schedule while I typed in down on my calendar. The day before my lesson, she texted me a different schedule from what we talked about before. We eventually worked it out, but– just beware.

The Instructors ★★★★★
I’m not sure if I could just easily give out Excel’s instructors’ names, so I’ll just use their initials.

Took my 2 hours of Manual with Sir Z, and my 3 hours with Sir R.

Took most of my Matic lessons with a different Sir R, until I scheduled for a night driving lesson, for which I got Sir W for that. Nope, none of them were perverts, and nope, Xcel has no lady instructors.

They have this Evaluation Form that also functions as their lesson plan, and grading sheet. They’ll mark you in specific areas with either Excellent (should’ve been Xcellent *ehem*), Good, or More Practice.

 

 

The instructors were pretty fair. If you started a bit late because they were, you’d still get the full duration of your lesson. If you’re scheduled for 3 hours, you’ll get 3 hours.

Number 7 sounds pretty sexist to me

The Baby-Sitting (LTO License Acquisition) ★★★★☆
I was told to get my license via Xcel San Juan branch. I was told to be there by 7:30. Due to bad directions, and fucked up Google Maps, we got there at 7:40, by that time, the office was still closed, but to our comfort, one of the receptionists was already there.

Google Maps shows the road you’ll take should be just straight from Robinsons Galleria, but this is a LIE!!! Don’t get nervous if your jeepney/bus traverses a winding road.

You see, I was told by the receptionist to take the jeepney to Puregold Agora but from experience, I advise you all to take the bus instead of the jeepney, since the jeep stops around 10 minutes from the actual Puregold Agora.

When we finally got in their San Juan branch, we were told that there was no affirmation that we wouldn’t take the actual driving exam. When he said that, I thought to myself, “Then WTF-ing am I paying you 1.6k???”

We started at 8:00, and this is what we actually went through:
“Medical”. This consisted of the staff writing down the information from our Student’s Permit to a piece of paper.

Photosig. We were finished with this by 8:30. Just be wary of the staff calling out your name for the next step, they make use of a pretty bad audio system where everything they say comes out muffled.

Written Exam. I was called to take the exam at 11:50. A 3-hour difference! Mind you, we didn’t immediately take the exam the moment we were called. Apparently I was called before, but didn’t go to the Lecture Room when I was called. Remember: keep an open ear when you hear someone speaking via sucky mic. I was done with the exam by 12:50, we ate for about an hour, went back to LTO where I was greeted by the Xcel receptionist.

The Xcel branch I enrolled in got my license the next day, tho I was told that I was lucky since some of their students who applied on Thursday (I applied on Tuesday) just got a temporary one… good things happen to good people, I guess?

The Price ★★★★★
As you know, there’s a plethora of driving schools in the Philippines, and we chose to stick with Xcel because from our research, they had the cheapest package. From the other driving schools online, we saw that Matic courses cost for PhP1,000 per hour!

Here’re the rates I got when I enrolled in Xcel:
PhP2,400 for 5 hours Manual (PhP480 per hour)
PhP5,600 for 7 hours + 1 hour Matic (PhP700 per hour)
I then enrolled 5 hour Rush Course. This could’ve just been PhP3,000 (PhP600 per hour) but I chose a specific instructor so instead, it cost me PhP3,500 (PhP700 per hour).

The Verdict ★★★★.6
Definitely a driving school that I once again would enroll in if ever I would want to go somewhere but my mum won’t let me drive to it.

Just be wary of scheduling with their receptionists.

2015 Review: Rilassante Spa

We saw this deal off of metrodeal: 75-min. Full Body Swedish-Shiatsu Massage with Therapeutic Hot Stone Session sold by Rilassante Spa. We were wary of taking it since it had so-so reviews online, but we couldn’t just let such a good deal with such a low price pass!

I’ll be putting in stars to spare you all, since there’re not a lot of pictures in this entry.

The Ambiance ★★★★☆
At Rilassante Spa, the whole area where they conduct the massage had no lights on, which helps get you into relaxation mode. They even play MIDI versions of your favorite songs (or not, depending on your taste). I recall Beauty and the Beast being played there. I just found it a bit problematic when staff were talking to each other, or when the masseuse was mingling with the customer. It was just a bit loud at times, considering the place itself was pretty quiet.

Here's a picture I took when we were in the massage area

The Service ★★★★★
TL;DR: I think my masseuse Pearl deserves a raise. She asks if the pressure she applies is enough, she didn’t skip any body parts– Overall, I just didn’t feel cheated, I didn’t feel like she half-assed any part of my massage. So when you do visit, ask for Pearl!

It’s also important to note that the 75-min. massage was 75 minutes long, with understandable breaks in between.

Our appointment was scheduled at 15:00, and we arrived exactly at that time. But they still told us to hang around in their waiting room. At about 15:10, they called us to the actual massage room. I was told to hang my stuff by the locker. Beside said locker, they also have three hooks for your hanging pleasure. I was then told to remove my watch, and to leave just my “underwear”. So I thought bra, and panty. Apparently underwear = just panties, noob mistake.

As my masseuse started with the massage, she asked if I was okay with a “Hard” massage, which I agreed to. I remember when she was massaging my left leg, she asked me, “Too hard?” I was trying so hard to hide my anguish because the left side of my body is weaker than my right (I’m right-handed), but she still must have felt my desire to kick her.

After Round One of the Swedish-Shiatsu Massage, was the Therapeutic Hot Stone Session. There were six (6) hot stones, and she left them on my back for a few minutes. The stones were actually placed between towels, not like in the ad where the stones were placed directly on the lady’s skin.

Not like this!

Afterwards, she removed the hot stones, at this point, I felt a bit cold, what with the sudden change of temperature.

She then used the six hot stones for the massage. What she did was, she’d touch the said stones to give her hands warmth then give your torso a quick massage. She must have done this to give me time to adjust for the next part of the massage: the hot stones directly touching my skin! She does it very quickly so I didn’t feel the heat that much, it was just surprising.

For Round Two of the Swedish-Shiatsu Massage, she asked me to turn around. As I was awkwardly turning around while trying to cover what I could, I saw that she was already holding the sheet that would cover my whole body, and that she was intentionally looking somewhere else.

She finished at around 16:30. I was told to relax, so  did. She said something about hot tea, and right beside me, I saw that there was a mini table that had hot tea, a cute mini hot towel, and a purse with her name on for placing in your tip.

The Location ★★★★☆
Rilassante Spa’s Location as per their metrodeal entry: 281 Banawe Corner Tirad Pass Brgy. Santo Domingo Quezon City (near Orthopedic Hospital in front of McDonald’s).

Rilassante Spa location as per Google Maps

From Quezon Ave MRT Station, just take a jeep/van going to Welcome Rotonda/Quiapo/Buendia, get off at Banawe. Enter the street to the right, then you’ll be greeted by a jeepney waiting to get filled with passengers. Sit near the driver, and ask him to drop you off at Ortho/Orthopedic. Go to the right side of the street, then turn right once again when you see McDo right across (do not cross the street to McDo!).

You'd see this by now

Getting there was pretty easy, getting out of there was another story. At about 16:40, we had a hard time getting a jeepney! The one jeep we saw while we were about to cross was already full. So we succumbed to taking the tricycle. We told him we were going to Fairview, so he passed through Biak na Bato, and dropped us off the other side. We spent PhP30.

The Price ★★★★★
Bought Rilassante Spa’s deal off of Metrodeal at PhP149ea. They also offer it at PhP299 for two people, but if you’re coming with a friend, I suggest you do a little Math before you choose that one over the former.

Do remember to prepare money for tipping, they’ll present a pouch with their name on it after your massage. They deserve it.

Almost Rilassante, almost

The Verdict ★★★★.5
Rilassante Spa scores a total of 4.5 stars out of 5. Overall a great first experience of massage in an actual spa, I definitely recommend getting one in Rilassante Spa!

Review: iMee Creamy Tom Yum Shrimp Flavor Instant Noodles

I initially bought iMee Creamy Tom Yum Instant Noodles off of 7eleven since I needed some sort of plastic cup for another one of my hair coloring adventures.

The Packaging
Pretty pleased with the plastic cup they used, pretty sturdy, pretty Class A.

Quality packaging by iMee

iMee Creamy Tom Yum Shrimp Flavor Ingredients

Sweet seal

"I am from the future"

Oh snap!

A very economical packet

The Preparation

Serving Directions as per iMee

The Taste

See how mild the soup looks. At this stage, it tasted pretty meh; just like any other cup noodle, so I was dissappointed. The noodles weren’t really something special either.

50% of the spice

At this point I added 50% of the spice. I instantly started to get a very pleasant ginger-y smell. Amazing how such a small packet could change the overall taste! The taste just started to turn up! At first I taste ginger-y sour, and then a bit spicy. It’s a taste that’s pretty different from what a Filipino would be used to.

Spice in action

Now we're talking

See the difference?

It tastes the same compared to 50% spice, but the full potential of this cup noodle has just been unlocked.

I recommend putting the spice all in!

The carrots were still unpleasantly crunchy at this point. Given that I already took a lot of time trying to get shots of this after the 4 minute mark.

The Price
I got iMee Creamy Tom Yum Shrimp Flavor Instant Noodles at PhP45. Now that’s value for your money!

The Verdict
The packaging was pretty awesome, with the quality cup, and innovative fork. The taste also brought me back to my first taste of Thailand cuisine in Tuk-Tuk. It’s just that some Filipinos might find it a bit awkward their first try. I would love to try out iMee Creamy Tom Yum Shrimp Flavor Instant Noodles again! I do hope iMee’s other flavors would be imported here as well.