Huling uwi ko sa Pilipinas eh noong August 2012 pa, kaya i checked sa internet kung papaano ang bagong pagkuha ng "Balik Manggagawa or OEC", Nakita ko naman kaagad at napakadali at bukod don eh murang mura. Kung dati rati eh mahigit 100AED, eh nitong umuwi ako sa Pilipinas nitong January 2015 eh 100PHP lang.
4.Click set an appointment - You can select the timing and location of the office where you want to take the Balik Manggagawa.
5.Print your Balik Manggagawa appointment.
So nong umuwi ako sa Pilipinas pumunta ako sa POEA Ortigas Center dahil yon nga ang appointment na pinili ko, pero nakalimutan ko ipa print yong appointment ko.
Mabuti na lang na doon pala sa POEA e pwede kang doon mismo mag register dahil may computer na nakalaan doon. Pero dahil naka register na ako eh nag login na lang ako at nag print na lang ako ng appointment slip ko.
6.Then pumunta ako sa Teller- kinabitan ng number yong appointment ko at pina diritso ako sa express counter ng "Balik Manggagawa.
7.Binigay ko yong appointment ko, my passport and a passport photo copy and my UAE Emirates ID. then ini update nya yong details ng info ko sa POEA.
8.Binigyan nya ako ng payment slip na 100PHP para magbayad sa cashier
9.Then ipinaliwanag nya sa akin na next time na kukuha ako ng "balik mangagawa or OEC" eh hindi ko na kailangan pumunta sa opisina at ang pagbabayad ay pwede na ring bayaran online or wester union.
9.Dumiritso ako sa cashier at nagbayad ng 100PHP.
Nakakatuwa dahil napaka bilis at maayos ang proseso. Pero yong mga tao na doon mismo sa POEA nagreregister eh subrang haba ng pila. Yong 15 minutes ko sa POEA eh katumbas ng seguro mga 5 hours nila don sa pila.
So nong pabalik na ako sa Dubai, Dahil nag online checked-in na ako 24 hours pa lang bago yong flight ko eh Passport at "Balik Manggagawa or OEC" na lang ang pinakita ko sa Check in counter, then to the OFW counter, then to the immigration officer up to the departure...Oh Kim Chiu and Paulo Avelino are in the same flight with me.
Well Done Philippine Government Service. Thank you.
There are so many online shop here in Dubai, Most of them are actually based or at least have an office here in the UAE. Most of these online shop have a contact infos that you'll found below their website.
Things I Bought from Dubai Online Shop.
Stuff from the online shop are cheaper, that is one of the reason why I buy things online, Second is the availability, some of the stuff that I bought online are not available in the mall, or i didn't see them in the shops.
SJ4000 Action/Sports Camera.
SJ4000 is the best cheap alternative to GoPro Hero, I bought 1 brand new from Souq.Com for only 400 AED. Remember that GoPro is more or less 1500 AED in the Dubai / UAE. SJ4000 has a LCD the same like the GoPro Hero 4 Silver. The battery life continues recording last for at least one and half hour with a 32GB microSD. Video Quality is good.
Power Bank
The one that I bought online has no brand for sure is made in China. It's 20,000 mAh for only 45 Dirhams, remember that most of the power bank in the mall shops are ranging from 80 AED and up depending on the capacity and brand. The good thing is I can charges my camera and iPhone with this power bank several times when I am outdoor shooting a video. But this power bank can be fully charged in two days.
Toshiba FlashAir
Toshiba Flashair is a SD Card with WiFi, I bought 1 brand new online for only 99 AED. This is very useful for both indoor and outdoor photography. What it does is The picture or the video that you just take with your DSLR or Digital Camera will automatically transfer to your connected device, it maybe your iPad,Tablet,Android phone,iPhone or your computer. I am using this Toshiba FlashAir with my Canon EOS 600D. It also work on most DSLR and Digicam with SD Card slot.
Canon DSLR Camera Remote Control
I bought this remote control because it's cheap online for only 23 Dirhams while its around 80 Dirhams from the mall shops. This remote control is good if you are doing self photography or video vlogging.
Things to consider before buying online.
I saw some stuff at Amazon.com that are really cheap, Amazon has a very good reputation when it comes to online shopping. But of course Amazon is more of US/Europe online shopping, Yes they do deliver in Dubai but for sure it will take time, aside from that you will also need carry the charges from the courier etc.
Aside from the location of the online shop, reputation of the seller, the length of time of delivery, the courier, give time also to read every details and information, terms and conditions etc of the things that you are going to buy.
Complain
One of the good thing in Dubai is the Government Service, they have a Consumer Protection Program that helps both the consumer and the seller.
I bought before a Nokia C7 at Sharaf DG, then it stop working on the 11th month, then i bring it back to Sharaf DG. They take it to fix because it's still covered of the 1 year warranty. They told me to come back after few days...i came back and its not ready, I came back several time until it became almost two months. I write a complain to Sharaf DG, I write a complain to the Mall Admin and finally I call Dubai Consumer Protection. They gave me my phone after few days. And then Sharaf DG called asking me to cancel my complaints from Dubai Consumer Protection.
Officially open na po ang Jollibee Dubai Mall, Dubai Mall opens at 10AM and I am surprised to see that there are already long queue of people starting in the counter of Jollibee. Please watch my video vlog.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oa-homFHsQo
No chance for me to try Jollibee this time because I am expecting this queue to last until tonight. I lol come back maybe tomorrow.
Wow, This coming March or April 2015 Jollibee is soon to open in Dubai Mall. It's a good news for Filipinos in Dubai who loves Jollibee.
I am hoping they have the same taste, the same menu, the same service like they do in the Philippines.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XefWGotLqME
Chowking is everywhere in the UAE particularly in Dubai and now his brother Jollibee is coming soon.
Remember that there was a Jollibee before between Karama and BurDubai area, the one that is in front of Spinneys. I tried that and it was not the real Filipino Jollibee.
Without a plan, without hotel booking or any form of itinerary I decided to go to Baguio City. I never been to any part of the Philippines except Quezon Province and Metro manila.
Baggage
With just 1 Backpack with extra pants, t shirts and underwear, tooth brust, toot paste, deodorant and bath soap and I go to Victory Liner Station in Cubao, Quezon City. I of course have my ATM Card and some cash.
Which Bus
I choose Victory Liner because they are popular and they are organise. You can buy a ticket in advance or on time, you can choose your seat too.
One way ticket going to Baguio is P445.oo
During the Trip
Comportable magbiyahe sa Victory Liner, they have TV on board pero during our trip eh music lang buong beyahe na para sa akin eh okay kase yong mga pina patugtog nila eh yong mga paborito kong classic na english song na hindi na luluma katulad ng mga Michael learns to rock song ha ha ha ha..
May nakasulat na Free WiFi pero hindi ako maka connect. Then may two stopover sa 6 to 8 hours na biyahe at ang kagandahan don eh ina announce nong driver " stopover po tayo dito ng 15 minutes" and on time talaga.
Like the other bus may mga ilan ding mga naglalako ng pagkain sa bus. Minsan natatakot ako sa mga ito kase minsan scam.
Habang nagbibiyahe nakakatuwang malaman na maraming SM Shopping Mall along the way, ganon din ang mga fastfood na Jollibee at McDonald, pati na rin Starbucks.
Passengers
Okay naman ang mga pasahero, behave naman sila at hindi katulad ng iba na walang paki alam sa kapwa pasahero. Hindi naman nila masyadong binibend yong upuan nila, hindi rin tinataas ang mabahong paa, pero yong bata sa likod ko eh madaldal at kanta ng kanta nakakatuwa, and then maya maya eh iyak ng iyak na.
Baguio City
Sa mismong Victory Liner Bus Station ako bumaba, walking distance lang ito sa SM City Baguio na nasa itaas ng bundok sa Session Road. Paakyat mula sa Victory Liner Bus Station eh may Microtel by wyndham, katulad ito ng hotel na nasa likod ng Mall of Asia Arena. Aside from that eh may mga guest houses at transient din na malapit doon.
Hotel or Guest House
Mga 11 oclock na ako dumating sa Baguio, syempre una kong hinanap eh matutuluyan dahil subrang lamig pala talaga doon. Syempre mahal pag mga hotel room, yong napagtanungan ko eh P2800.oo per night at wala na silang bakanting kwarto. Buti mabait yong gwardya ni refer nya ako, lakad lang daw ng kunti eh may roong guest house na malapit at P350.oo nga daw per night. At nakita ko nga itong "Upstair Bed and Bath" So umakyat ako at nandon yong security reception na mabait ang tuno ng boses. Nagbayad ako ng P350.oo and then ini charges ko telepono ko, powerbank at camera ko. Mga ala una na din ako nakatulog kase kumain muna ako sa Jollibee na malapit lang naman.
Upstair Bed & Bath
Upstair bed and bath is a big room with more than 10 double decker bed, it's clean. They have a lot of shower and toilet. Once you checked in they will show you your bed and they will give you a Towel. I didn't see any locker during my stay. The place is located in the middle of the hill. It's like this "Street then take a staircase going up to bed and bath and then take staircase going to Barrio Fiesta Restaurant and then Street and if you look up you will see another street.
Things to do in Baguio.
I like Baguio because of it's weather and scenery. They have a lot of parks, green, mountains with houses looks very good. There's a lot of people. I went to Burnham Park, The Mansion, Mines View Park and Camp John Hay
Everything is amazing, I feel like I needed to take picture of every angle of this green clean city.
Going Back to Manila or Next Destination.
Going back to Manila or to your next destination with Victory Liner, it is better to buy a ticket in advance to avoid any inconvenience. Most of the time Victory Liner is busy and those with scheduled ticket are the priority. You can be a chance passenger but there's a lot of people are in the line.
As for me I went to the station at 4 o clock and when I buy the ticket the next available trip is already at 22:00 oclock. I have six hour before my trip so I decided to go to Spa and in there I had a Sauna, Body scrab, massage and foot spa for only P1700.oo. It was very relaxing, like i didn't enjoy because i fall asleep. Then in thirty minutes I go straight to the Station and I had a safe journey.
