Metrodeal Purchases

http://www.metrodeal.com/main.php?dealId=MTQ3Mg==

I usually buy items from ebay or sulit.com.ph, but it was only last year that I signed up with group buying sites like metrodeal, groupon, ensogo or cashcashpinoy.
Being a shoe lover, my first purchase from metrodeal was, unsurprisingly, a shoerack.
At 71% off, as the deal stated, instead of PhP 1500, one had to buy it for only PhP438, shipping was free.
The ad also indicated that it was easy to assemble, had ten tiers and can store up to 30 pairs of shoes.
The merchant was Tantrics, whose company address is in Kapitolyo, Pasig.
I received the item a few a days after the stated start date, which was fine, but had I seen the actual item, I would not have purchased it, even at this price.
When I received the box through a courier, I was surprised to see how compact the box was.
My nephew had a difficult time assembling the parts.
The tubes are really light weight, and the joints kept on shaking as one added pair after pair of shoes.
Since I'm fond of chunky-heeled sandals,I made sure they occupied the bottom tiers and reserved the upper tiers for my flip-flops so the rack won't topple.
I had to make sure that it was in a corner, a part of the room that people won't nudge and make it fall.
I had to use electrical and packing tape to keep the parts from falling apart.
My suggestion, do not buy anything online unless you have seen the actual item some place.
For this deal, you get what you pay for.Cheap=poor quality.
Metrodeal has poor after-sales customer service so Buyer Beware!Even after receiving complaints against a merchant they still continue to offer deals from merchants who have poor-quality items or service.

Another bad deal I got from metrodeal is this:
http://www.metrodeal.com/deals/Metro_Manila/Sweet-Kiss/900097808
I bought a voucher for Php250 for an eight hundred peso worth of eight-inch diameter "red velvet chocolate" cake. The ad stated it was at 69% off.
Intending to give the cake as a Christmas gift, I purchased it on December 14, 2012.
But I decided to postpone getting the cake because I didn't want to be stuck in the traffic jams common during the holiday season.
They had blocked dates, December 24-26, December 29 to January 2nd.
When I was searching for reviews of SweetKiss, I realized I just made a mistake in purchasing the cake voucher.
On a foodie blog, the author ordered a dozen cupcakes which all tasted like margarine. The cupcakes were supposed to be of different flavors but they all tasted the same but were only decorated differently.
It was a good thing that I didn't give it as a gift after all, the lady I was supposed to give it to, was a good cook and a gourmand, I would have been really embarassed for giving her such a poorly made, poorly tasting cake.
As opposed to the photo on the ad, the actual cake was pomelo pink in color, and one cannot taste the rich, moist, chocolate flavor one expects from a real red velvet cake.
It tasted of margarine.
The cream frosting had crushed walnuts like in the ad, but the similarity stopped there.
My boyfriend who drove to the address stated on the ad, said instead of getting the item from a bakeshop, he said the house in Roces Avenue looked dilapidated, one would wonder how the cake was prepared.
I sent a letter of complaint to metrodeal and also showed the blog with the bad review to the merchant but the seller brushed it aside with a comment," taste is subjective."
I would never ever buy anything from Michelle's SweetKiss again.
And I'll spread the word against this poser of a pastry chef.
(Do not mistake it for UP's Chocolate Kiss.)

Punta Riviera Beach Resort, Bolinao, Pangasinan

What's better than spending a weekend at the beach?
Why, spending it with your loved ones, of course!
One long-weekend in August, 2011, my siblings, cousins and I decided to have a road trip to Manaoag, Pangasinan to give thanks for a prayer answered, (my cousin survived a near fatal case of dengue) and to have a new car blessed.

Heavily Embroidered Cloth for the Lady of Manaoag

Lavender Garments and Gold-plated Circlet for Our Lady of Manaoag

A Collection of Chalices

Aside from hearing mass and lighting candles, we also visited the Manaoag Museum, where a display of church vestments, images, and pieces of art were being shown.
We also spent time buying local delicacies from the food stalls lining the main road leading to the churchyard.
After Manaoag, we had a circuitous trip to Bolinao, Pangasinan.
We stayed at Punta Riviera Beach Resort, a well-maintained family resort in Barangay Malino.
The gardens were well tended, the rooms clean and there were different activities one can engage in aside from gazing at the waters of the China Sea.

My Breakfast

My Cousins & Siblings

Malino River where one can use kayaks on.

Fruits in Season

Where the Infinity Pool is.

Planking on the Sand

The sand was  fine and cream-colored. Though the water was a bit murky because it just rained, but on a sunny day, we were told that one can see marine life form in the clear waters.
The resort has a spa, an al fresco restaurant & bar, billiard tables, an infinity pool and a pool with waterfalls and manicured gardens with statuaries.
After we checked out of the resort, we drove up to a nearby hill, where a lighthouse that guides ships on Cape Bolinao was situated.The look-out point afforded visitors a breath-taking view of the shoreline below.

There were natural caves where one can go to but sadly, we didn't have enough time to go there, maybe next time, on another long weekend when our schedules are free...

By the Lighthouse.

Go ahead and JUMP!!!

Kayaking on the River