EDSA Traffic

I was about to go SM North EDSA to pick up my netbook. When I called Villman, they advised me thattheny were open untill 11pm.

Coming from Caloocan City, it should only take about 15 minutes tops to get to North EDSA via cab. I left my house at 10:15, giving me enough time to grab a Starbucks.

It came to my surprise that there were a pile of buses in the main road while I was hailing a cab. There was something going on.

In the cab, I was just playing with my Android and kept looking on the familiar streets. We were moving really slow. the cab meter was though, was not at all slow.

I came to find that the cause of the terrible traffic was from the Balintawak Market. They placed a rope along the highway that gave only two lanes for the vehicles to pass by. They were accommodating the trucks and vehicles that supply the market with goods. I just can't understand the logic behind it all.

It took an hour before I got to SM North. Then, to add insult to injury, Villman is already closed.

MMDA, please, fix this.

An Amazing Wensha Spa Experience

If you're suddenly out of things to do or had a night out and wanted to feel rested and relaxed, you may want to check out the well-known Wensha Spa. It is  a 24-hour spa salon that has the best deals so far. For 780.00php, you would be able to use the jacuzzi for an unlimited amount of time; the wet and dry sauna, a 1 hour incredibly awesome massage and of course, their famous eat-all-you-can buffet and shabu-shabu. The package will also let you stay inside the facility for 7 hours. There will be an extra 100php charge for every exceeding hour. A 300php charge if you don't finish the food you got from the buffet and a70php charge for the drinks you don't consume.

I went there at around midninght (after I binged on my frappe from Starbucks just next to it). To my surprise, there was a pack of people crowding the reception area. So I waited for them to finish their transcation by sitting in one of the comfortable sofas in the lobby. When it was my turn, the receptionist advised me that there will be a 30 minute to an hour wait for the massage service, I okayed it and gave me my magnetic key card. I was wondering how that works so I was really trying to get to the locker rooms right away, but one of the staff interrupted my curiosity and asked me to wear slippers. I was like I'm wearing slippers kuya. He informed me that I have to wear one of the slippers that they provide. And so, I removed mine and wore what he gave me. He took my personal slippers and asked me for my locker number (they identify the goers by the locker numbers by the way, which in some way very smart and more accurate).

When everything was settled with the slippers, I went up to the second floor where the buffet was. People are in robes (blue for men and maroon for women). I was not too hungry at the time so I opted for the reception area between two set of doors. One of the staff gave me the direction toward the women's locker room. From the door on the left side of the reception area,  there were two rooms in the narrow hallway, the massage rooms. There were sofas outside it, and people were sitting, waiting, some asleep. At the end of the hallway was the locker room. Another staff handed me a set of robes and a towel before I dived into the most exciting part, the locker.

I was amazed. You just have to press the magnetic against the other magnet on the locker and voila, you're good to go. Since Wensha Spa don't allow any clothing in the jacuzzi, I had to remove all my clothes and keep it in the locker. I didn't wear the robes just yet because I wanted to take a shower first.

The facility is not as fancy, though endless signs saying observe silence made it wonderful. The shower rooms were just across the jacuzzi and it was divided into two: the smaller one had cold water in it, and the bigger one, had warm water. I chose the warm jacuzzi and dipped myself for about 15 minutes. It was easy to pass the time because there's a flat screen with cable.

After the jacuzzi, I found my way to the wet sauna. One of the small things that they need to improve though, is maintenance. I was wondering why there was no one in there and I realized that the door won't close (even if there was a sign saying keep this door closed at all times). Since I'm a cowboy, I sat next to the door and held it. The steam then started to cloud the room. I stayed there for about 10 minutes then got out because I was too tired to hold the door.

I took a quick trip to the ladies' room and hit the dry sauna. It was as amazing as the wet one. But then I was      irritated by a group of women chatting on top of their lungs. I was about to step out as to not ruin my relaxing experience but they stood up and went to the jacuzzi. After about another 10 minutes, I stepped out as well and asked of the staff if a massuese is already available. She asked me to go inside one of the massage rooms and said that she will call a massuese for me. I waited for about 3 minutes tops and the woman arrived with towels in her hands.

She laid down one of the towels, and asked me to lay face down. By the way, they require all clothes to be removed during the massage session as well. She then asked me if I want a hard massage, I asked her for a sample and it nearly took my body apart. She was laughing her heart out when I told her to just give a moderate massage instead. 

The massage made sleep like a baby. It was not until she asked me if it's alright that we do stretching that made me wake up. After the amazing session, she asked me to sign a piece of paper: indicating her name, my locker number, and the amount of tip that I would give her.

Then that's when I hit the buffet. The shabu-shabu was to die for. That was around 2:30 in the morning but people were still arriving as I ate.

I was thinking of what my next activity will be since my checkout is not until 7:30am. So I checked out the additional services offered. There was another room accross the buffet dedicated for foot massage, foot spa, pedicure, and the like. So I asked the receptionist to add foot spa and pedicure in my tab.

The room was dark. I was surprised on how it was constructed. Recliners were full of sleeping and snoring people. The manicurists were at the end of the recliners, each of them had a lampshade for a better view. There was another flat screen in the middle. As the foot spa started, I also started to doze off. My everything was just ready to rest. I woke up abruptly to the ingrown the manicurist was removing. All in all, it was great.

Just like the massuese, she asked to sign a receipt for the tip. I continued to sleep in the recliner and got up at around 5:30am. I went back to the locker room to test the amazing key card again. I took another shower, and finally, put all my clothes back on. I blow dried my hair and passed through the massage rooms and buffet again.

I checked out at 6am, the receptionist in the ground floor lobby gave me the receipt as to how much the additional services were. I was surprised at how pricy the foot spa and pedicure was though. 680php for the foot spa and 180php for the pedicure, plus the tips.

It was a truly amazing experience. Given that they're open 24 hours is very convenient. You should try it. ENJOY!

Justine, the blogger

Justine
\j(u)-sti-ne, jus-tine\
pronounced juss-TEEN.

It is of Latin origin, and its meaning is "fair, upright". Feminine form of Justin. Justina was the original form. According to legend, Saint Justina (fourth century) was a Christian maiden who converted Cyprian, a powerful sorcerer.