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| Artist Perspective of SM Calamba |
SM is set to open 3 new malls this year. After opening SM City Tarlac early this year, SM Prime will soon open the doors of SM City San Pablo, SM City Calamba, and SM City Novaliches to avid shoppers.
SM City Calamba and SM City San Pablo will bring the SM experience closer to the local inhabitants of Laguna.
More malls are expected to be completed and opened in 2011. The plan of SM is to open 5 malls every year in fast urbanizing regions of the Philippines. I have compiled a list of SM supermalls and their projected opening dates.
SM City San Pablo - Sept. 2010
SM City Calamba - Oct. 2010
SM City Novaliches - Oct. 2010
SM City Antipolo - 2011
SM Supercenter Commonwealth - 2011
SM City Taguig - 2011
SM Supercenter Apalit - 2011
SM City North Davao - 2011
SM City Gen. Santos - 2011
SM City Tagaytay - 2012
On the drawing boards are malls in Laoag, Zamboanga, Santiago, Candelaria, Cabanatuan, and another mall in South Cebu.
Mang Inasal is one of the fastest growing fastfood chains in the country. In just under 8 years, it has grown to over 200 outlets nationwide. They are targeting 500 stores by 2012.
Mang Inasal offers Pinoy-style chicken barbecue. Originally from Iloilo, it has branched out to several key cities in the country including Metro Manila.
It doesn't offer the original Inasal style barbecue of Bacolod. Instead they offer their own concoction of special marinade, barbecued Filipino-style.
On this I must say, it is delicious. And only at P95.00 for its Paborito meals with one whole leg and thigh plus unlimited rice, it's definitely worth the bang for your buck.
The concept of unlimited rice is their winning formula. Filipinos just love to have their dishes with rice. And nothing beats unlimited servings of rice. You will definitely be full in no time.
They are very aggressive in their advertising campaigns with their huge billboards and active TVC featuring Mark Bautista. Mang Inasal is definitely here to stay.
A sample of a Mang Inasal TVC:
Photo credit to Raycoy Doop
The Comelec has proclaimed the 3 remaining senators to round up its magic 12. The last 3 senators proclaimed were Serge Osmena III, Manuel (Lito) Lapid, and Teofisto Guingona III.
They join the 9 winners in the election namely:
1) Bong Revilla
2) Jinggoy Estrada
3) Miriam Defensor-Santiago
4) Franklin Drilon
5) Juan Ponce Enrile
6) Pia Cayetano
7) Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos
8) Ralph Recto
9) Vicente Sotto III
They will join the current 12 senators:
1) Edgardo Angara
2) Benigno Simeon Aquino III (who will be vacating his post to serve the presidency)
3) Joker Arroyo
4) Allan Peter Cayetano
5) Francis "Chiz" Escudero
6) Gregorio "Gringo" Honasan
7) Panfilo Lacson
8) Loren Legarda
9) Francis Pangilinan
10) Antonio Trillanes IV
11) Manuel Villar, Jr.
12) Juan Miguel Zubiri
Ayala Land now has high-end luxury resorts under its portfolio. With the recent acquisition of a 60% stake in Ten Knots Development Corp., Ayala becomes the majority of the popular El Nido Resorts Miniloc Island and El Nido Resorts Lagen Island. This acquisition will definitely boost Ayala's tourism related businesses.
Ayala Land is one of the country's most respected real estate developers. It owns popular shopping malls like Glorietta, Greenbelt, and Trinoma. Its high end residential projects include Serendra, One Roxas Triangle, Greenbelt Residences. It is also into urban development with Bonifacio Global City and Nuvali.
Ten Knots Development Corporation was a former subsidiary of Anscor (A. Soriano Corp.) which is majority controlled by Andres Soriano III. He was the former chairman of San Miguel Corporation. It was later bought by the former Energy Secretary, Vicente Perez.
With the acquisition, we can expect the continued growth and maintenance of the resorts and nearby surroundings. This will also pave the way for more green developments for Ayala Land. Plans are already under way to open another resort in a nearby island.
Photo Credits to Eric.
With more and more movies being produced in 3D like Avatar, Up, and Iron Man 2 and more and more cinemas offering these 3D experiences, the home entertainment scene won't be left behind with electronics companies scrambling to bring the 3D experience to the living room as well.
Samsung Philippines recently launched its own 3D version to its LED TV series. The Samsung 3D TV is available in 40". It can convert traditional 2D to 3D with its HyperReal chipset technology. You would need to use its 3D active glasses in order to experience 3D.
The promise of more content being produced in 3D makes watching TV more exciting than ever before. It comes at a high price though. The Samsung 3D LED TV 40" retails at P169,900.00 and will soon be available at Avant, the lifestyle store of Abenson.
Nissan Motors Philippines recently launched the Nissan Sentra 200 at the NBC Tent in Fort Bonifacio. It is positioned as a top class sedan with a 2.0 liter engine displacement. Price starts at P1,050,000.00
The Sentra 200 is equipped with Xtronic CVT technology which allows for smoother acceleration and delivers continuous engine power. It features a 60/40 split double folding rear seats which allow you to carry large luggage. Its promotion says that it can even fit a mountain bike.
Nissan has long been a number 4 in the Philippine car market. It has lost ground especially in the passenger car market. It has failed to launch new models for the Sentra line fast enough to catch up with its competitors. The Sentra has never been known for its stylishness. This latest model in my opinion lacks the curve and sleekness of the Altis and the good looks of the Civic. This model looks more like the Suzuki Swift from the front end and the Chevrolet Optra from the rear end.
It also doesn't come in 1.6 or 1.8 liter model which is a disadvantage compared to the Altis or Civic. The price could have been much lower if they offered lower variants. I think the Sentra 200 will be another tough sell.
You can view a picture gallery of the Nissan Sentra 200 here.
I've been frequenting a yogurt place called Red Mango in SM Mall of Asia. This branch of Red Mango has recently opened its doors to its numerous loyal patrons. It can be found at the 2nd Level across the Imax theater exit, almost facing the bay.
The interiors of the place is nice. Spacious and cozy and the airconditioning is at full blast. Perfect for a hot summer day. I think this is one of their biggest edge against their next door rival, the White Hat.
I like my yogurt plain. There isn't that much selection of toppings anyway. There are more choices at White Hat. I like the taste of their yogurt, more on the sweet side. They also have a green tea flavored yogurt. Next time I go there, I should really try one of these.
The prices for the yogurt are Small (P80) Medium (P115) Large (P150). For toppings, add P20 for the small size. They also serve waffles. For a list of their menu go here.
Other branches can be found within Metro Manila. The original is in Trinoma Mall. There are also branches in Greenbelt 3 (Cinema Level), SM Megamall, and Eastwood Mall.
For more information, you can visit their website.
SM Prime Holdings will bring Al Gore to Manila for a leadership conference. He will give a lecture on environmental issues and concerns. Dubbed as the Asian version of the "An Inconvenient Truth", his popular environmental documentary film.
Al Gore is a popular statesman. He is a former Vice-President of the United States under Bill Clinton. He is a staunch environmentalist. He has won an Academy Award for his film, "An Inconvenient Truth" which is a documentary that tackles about the environment. You can read more about Al Gore here.
The leadership conference will held at SMX Convention Center, across SM Mall of Asia on June 8, 2010 at 4pm. Ticket prices range from P1,000.00 to P15,000.00. Tickets are available at all Ticketnet outlets.
The SM Green Bag that you see being advertised on newspapers and can be found at SM supermarkets and hypermarkets is a green initiative by the SM Group of Companies. It aims to reduce the use of plastic bags in its supermarkets.
The idea is to bring these reusable green bags everytime you shop at SM Supermarket and Hypermarket. The bag costs P35.00 each. There are four designs to choose from.
I hope more of these supermarkets and department stores would follow and also launch their own reusable bags to help reduce the use of plastic bags and thus help protect our environment in the long run.
With the rising price of electricity, Meralco has provided some tips that will help you save in your electricity consumption:
- Do not iron your clothes one piece at a time. Collect all your clothes in one week and iron all your clothes at the same time.
- Use fabric softener or conditioner to help in faster ironing.
- If not necessary, do not iron your maong pants..
- It is ideal to iron early in the morning when the temperature is still cool.
- Turn off your iron when almost done. The remaining heat of the iron is sufficient to iron the remaining clothes.
Hope this helps in reducing your electricity bill.
Leading American rock band Dashboard Confessional will have its Southeast Asian tour this end of May. They will first be heading to Manila on May 27 then Jakarta on May 29. They will be performing live at the Trinoma Mall in Quezon City on May 27 at 8pm. Concert will be hed at the Mindanao open parking.
They have brought us such hits as "Stolen", "Vindicated", "Don't Wait", "Hands Down", "Screaming Infidelities".
Don't miss this one day event. Tickets are available at TicketWorld and prices range from P725.00 (standing) to P4,000.00 (VIP).
Update: There will be a Fan Meet Session on May 26 at Glorietta Activity Center 5pm.
Web hosting these days are dirt cheap, you can buy hosting plans ranging from $1 to $5. Some of the web hosts even offer unlimited domain hosting for very minimal fee.
But should you choose free hosting? For those who are on a tight budget or those who are still new and experimenting what works on their website then free hosting is a very good option.
Why choose free hosting over free websites services? You have more control as you own your own domain name. Most of these free hosting companies offer ads free hosting. So what's the catch you might ask?
Most of these companies offer almost the same features as standard hosting like php and mysql, cpanel, fantastico, email, etc.
But some features might be restricted or not offered in full. Limited bandwidth and disk space, no backups, limited support or no uptime guarantee. So you should check and compare first which which free hosting company offer the best plan that best suit your needs.
In the end, all these companies would want you to switch to their premium hosting plans. Once you are already comfortable and satisfied with their service, chances are you would buy their paid service once the need arises.
My take on this is if you have a hobby or personal website that is just starting and not yet generating any revenue then it's OK to use free hosting. But if your business or website is already earning a substantial income then it is high time you go for paid hosting.
Below is a list of free hosting companies:
000webhost - Free hosting with 99% uptime guarantee, features PHP and MySQL, FTP, etc. Offers ads free hosting. A very popular free hosting provider.
110MB Hosting - Another popular free hosting provider. No ads on your website. PHP, SSI, Shockwave and Flash, etc.
x10 Hosting - Offers ads free hosting with daily backup.
FreeHostia - Large disk space and monthly bandwidth. No ads hosting.
DirectNic - One of the larger domain registration companies. Offers free hosting but supported by ads.
If you are a beginner then creating a website using free hosting is the best way to go. Cost is literally zero or very minimal. Most of these free websites are supported by placing ads on your web pages. You can have fun creating websites for your kids, personal or family use, business, groups, and communities. For business websites, it is highly recommended to have your own domain name.
There are two ways to go about it. The first is to sign-up with companies that offer your own free website under their domain. Ex. www.freehosting.com/yourname These are basically sub-domains, you don't own your domain name.
Here is a list of companies that offer free hosting under their domain name:
Webs - Lots of themes to choose from. Ideal for personal use.
Yola - Ideal for small businesses.
Google Sites - From the largest internet search company comes another great product to help you create your own website.
WetPaint - Great for fan sites.
Wix - Free Website with free Flash Website Builder.
MoonFruit - Fast and clean interface, create beautiful websites in a few clicks.
All of these sites allow you to create your own website fast with easy drop-down, point and click interface. Just type in the text, upload your pictures and voila you have your own website.
The second way to go about it is buying your own domain name and then have your website hosting for free. DirectNic offers this type of service but you would need to buy the domain from them. Your website hosting is free but the catch is you must allow them to host ads on your website.
You can also try 000webhost, they literally offer free hosting with your own domain without placing any ads on your website.
For the second step, you must have some background about HTML.
Creating a website can be simpler than you think. All you need is to learn some basic HTML. A good book that you can read is HTML, XHTML, CSS, Sixth Edition by Elizabeth Castro. You can purchase this at Amazon.
Once you are acquainted on how HTML works, you will need to create your first page or web page. This is the most important as this is the main page that everyone will see to access your site. A text editor is needed to write your HTML codes. Notepad will do but a more powerful editor that is free to download is the Coffee Cup Editor.
The file name for the main page of your website must be named and saved as index.html in order for the server to locate it. I'm assuming that you already know how to write those HTML codes. After which you must find a web hosting company to host your website.
If you are going to use free hosting then there is no need for a domain name. But if you want to have your own virtual real estate then you will need to buy a domain name. You will also need a web hosting company to host your website.
You can buy your domains at DirectNic or GoDaddy. Cheap and reliable web hosting can be found at HostGator.
Next, you will need an FTP program to upload your web pages to the server. You can download the free FTP program called FileZilla.
Once you have uploaded your files to your web host, you will need to point the name server of your domain to the one provided by your web hosting company.
One great thing about having your own website is that you can also make money from it. More of it later.
Hope this post helps you in creating your first website.