Victory Liner: Deluxe and Regular Aircon Bus review

I just recently got back from an overnight Baguio trip with Mama. We went last Saturday and went back the next day. I bought our tickets last Tuesday for our first class deluxe ticket going to Baguio from Pasay at 1:15am. Their twitter account is active so you could ask there for available trips, schedule, fare and others. They don't accept reservations on the phone neither on Twitter. Tickets could be only paid and claimed in the terminal where you will depart meaning you can't just buy two way ticket and meaning you have to just buy your ticket as soon as you arrive in Baguio... Tickets sell fast because there were only a few seats left when i went around 8pm last Tuesday, or maybe because the trip I booked was a weekend trip. Good thing there was still 2 adjacent seats though the sad part is it is already in the back part of the bus.

We arrived at Pasay terminal before 1:00 and 15 chance passengers were already waiting in line. We hopped on the bus and was given complimentary snacks by the stewardess,

 a small mamon, mr. chips and a bottled water. 

The bus left the terminal at 1:10 as soon as all the seats are all taken. I think none of the chance passengers were able to hop in because only two seats lefts when we entered the bus.
The bus do have 26 seats, with only 3 seats in a row except on the back part which had 4. In all fairness to Victory Liner, the bus is really spacious, enough for all the seats to be reclined without compromising the space of the person in front or behind. 

The portalet is situated in the middle section of the bus. 

  the inside :)

Lights are turned off minutes after we left the terminal to let the passengers catch some sleep. The trip was very comfortable. No foul smell lingering and the seats still look presentable so I could say that they do proper maintenance of their bus which should obviously be a protocol in all the buses in the Philippines. (*ehem* Ayala Leveriza buses, etc. *ehem*). One thing that i just noticed is there overhead compartment only have a small cramped space and the last 2 rows doesn't even have it. So if you have a bulging backpack, it can't obviously fit in the overhead. If you don't want to place your bag on the floor like me, you may just opt to place it beside your feet when you recline your chair. 

The trip was very smooth sailing. The bus was even moving slowly, around 60km/hr I think, which was perfect because I honestly, I dread going to Baguio through bus because you have to go through a lot of curvy roads which is very risky for large vehicles.

YouTube on the go! Thanks for the free wifi! :)

We arrived at 6:05 am at the Victory Liner Terminal. So that is only a total of 5 hours from Pasay to Baguio with the bus even traversing in a very safe speed. Hello Baguio! J
Overall, P750 is already a reasonable price for the comfort you gain from this 5-6 hour trip (depends on your scheduled trip). I suppose the 1:15am would be the best schedule to go up to Baguio because you could just sleep the whole trip and wake up to a new morning already in the City of Pines. Book as early as you can because seats for the first class bus sell fast because it only has limited seats. 

And also, don’t forget to buy your ticket back to Manila as you arrived in the Victory Terminal at Baguio. We are only staying overnight in Baguio and we were supposed to buy a deluxe ticket for Sunday back to Pasay, but then… it was already sold out L, in a Sunday morning in January. According to the girl in the ticket counter, all scheduled trip for Sunday is already sold out. Well ok, it was a weekend so maybe it is already given but imagine more so the availability of tickets especially for deluxe buses on the months of Feb. – May and December which are the months where tourists flock in Baguio. Again, Victory Liner doesn’t offer roundtrip tickets so you can only buy your bus ticket from the terminal where you will go on board. So lucky you if you have someone you know who lives in Baguio who can buy you a ticket in advance.

Regular Aircon Bus (Baguio – Pasay)

So we ended up in the Regular Aircon bus going back to Manila. The bus is still clean and presentable so I don’t have really anything against it, though I was just spoiled by the space and comfiness of the deluxe bus. Haha! I was worried on how we will stuff our things once we get in the bus but then I was relieved that the leg room in this bus was enough for your bags full of pasalubongs to fit, though your legs will be cramped a bit in the side. Well, this is better than having your bags in your lap the whole trip. I know there are overhead compartments and the trunk below the bus where you can put your bags, but I just don’t feel it’s safe to leave your bag where you can’t see it. Right?

The bus back to Manila went off around 1:25, which was 5 mins late because they were waiting for some chance passengers. You may want to choose the seats on the side of the driver if you don’t want to be looking on the cliffs going down from Baguio, though the sun is shining in this side.

The bus had 2 stopovers every 2 hrs, one in Sison, Pangasinan and one in Tarlac. Stopovers are enough for you to take a pee or buy some snack, which would be 20 mins at most. Prices of the food are reasonable. The comfort room in Sison bus stop was clean but no flush that time. We bought pancit with puto combo for P35 in Sison bus stop which was really sulit. Mama went down on the next bus stop in Tarlac and went back with a “cheeseburger” and buko shake. Mama said that the burger was a buy 1 take 1 for only 60php that’s why she bought it. Uhh, I think that was a rip off. It was just a small patty in a regular bun like those in local burger stands which would have only cost 35php. So beware of that buy 1 take 1 burger in Tarlac bus stop. It wasn’t even good, plain burger with a small slice of cheese. Mas masarap pa Angel’s burger e! Haha!

We arrived at Pasay terminal around 8pm already. That is almost 7 hrs on the road! Anyway, as long as we head back home safe, all is well. Traffic at night, most especially in Manila, is inevitable so you really have to expect to have a longer trip if you are scheduled beyond 12pm. 

Deluxe Bus

Pros:

SPACE

La-Z-Boy type of seat

approx. 5hr trip

with portalet

Complimentary snack

No stopover

with single seats
Adjustable aircon

WiFi

Cons:

No overhead compartment for the last 2 rows at the back

More expensive compared to regular aircon

Sells out fast

Limited trips in a day

Book in advance

Regular Aircon Bus

Pros: 

Cheaper (445php)

You can buy snacks during stopovers

Hourly trips

With bigger leg room compared to normal city buses

You can buy tickets on the spot

WiFi

Cons: 

Approx. 6-7hr trip.

No portalet inside

Less space compared to Deluxe Bus

The choice depends on your preference.
If you want a very comfy and fast trip and you don’t mind the limited number of scheduled trips available. Take the Deluxe bus! If you just want to go to Baguio and on a budget or time restricted, you may opt to choose Regular Aircon.

 

Have a safe trip!

PS. To Victory Liner, please have an online booking for roundtrip tickets. It is 2014, people! Ok? Thanks in advance! :)

Disclaimer: I’m in no terms related to /or sponsored by Victory Liner. So everything stated here is unbiased and based solely on what I experienced and may differ from others due to varying circumstances.

Cinemalaya 9: backtracks

Hey! It’s time to resurrect my blog back into life again. Haha! I’m the worst in being consistent with this. My life’s been a bit ugh and hopefully I get back as soon as possible. Anywaaaaaaaaaaaaay, back to business.

It’s the last week of July and every film enthusiast knows what it means! Cinemalaya time! Oh yea!

I have been exposed to the wonderful world of Cinemalaya back in second year college, through my friend who invited me to watch. I don't remember what we watched back then but right then and there my life changed. chos!  Hihi! Being me, I’m easily interested with anything new and intriguing plus the fact that it’s so affordable (it was still 50php for students years back) .

So I’ve scanned through my scrapbook and saw this. It says it’s my 1^st Cinemalaya ticket. haha! I guess me and my friend wasn’t able to watch back in 2008 or maybe I just lost the ticket. idk.

 Since then I always see to it that I take part in this wonderful festival every year even just a film or two to see. Cinemalaya is such a breath of fresh air from all those cliché-filled films in the market (even if they say countless of times that their storyline is new, uh, not really). The films showcased in this festival bring us to a world where you would see more into life through the character’s eyes. It  tackles a wide variety of issues from gender, OFWs, miners, organ donors, criminals, sex workers to more other stories of people that might haven’t even crossed your mind from the very start. The range is endless that no wonder each year more and more patrons flock in to see what’s new.

Last Friday, July 26, 9th Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival and Competition with a theme of "Cinesthesia: Synergy of the Senses".  This year 5 films (Amor y Muerte, Ekstra, Porno, Sana Dati and Liars) in Directors Showcase; 10 films (Babagwa, David F, Debosyon, Instant Mommy, Nuwebe, Purok 7, Quick Change, Rekorder, The Diplomat Hotel and Transit); and as 2 sets of Short features with 5 in each. The festival opened with a film entitled “Jazz in Love”, a documentary film by Babyruth Villarama-Guttierez which is free for all to see.

Last Saturday I went with my friend and as expected a lot of films are already sold out. Ekstra and Diplomat Hotel were already sold out even days before the opening. We arrived before 12:30pm and we’re left with no choice for the 12:45, 3:30 and 6:10 slot. We still pushed thru with those 3 films and just decided to pass on the 9 pm slot which still have 2 films available (Porno and Quick Change). And that’s what you get when you come after noon with no pre bought tickets in a weekend. sad.

First stop: Nuwebe

So basically it’s about a Filipina who got pregnant at the tender age of 9, thus the title, and how she and her family dealed with it. The film followed the story of Krista, the 9 yr old girl, as she narrates her experience. It's based on a true to life story of incest, an issue that's not different nowadays. 

Honestly, I wasn't too charmed by how the story went. Nevertheless, it received a generous amount of applause in the end. I just felt like the story went too slow and quite dragging, you know those times where you can go pee because you won't miss something big if you go. I'm also quite confused with some of the lines Krista had, there are times that it doesn't feel like it fits the character. Idk, but I felt she overdid it at some point. But anyway, in terms of the story, it was good. They injected some factors that made the film interesting.

Purok 7

This is another film in the New Breed Full-length category by Carlo Obispo. It follows the story of Doray and his brother as they live their lives on their own waiting for the time their family becomes complete again. 

This film is heartwarming by its own. It made me laugh, cry and giddy as the story progress. Hands down also to the 2 main leads ( Krystle Valentino & Miggs Cuaderno) who acted so naturally that it felt so real making you feel that genuine longingness for their family. 

It also injected some kilig factor, the puppy love for young ones, that balanced the feels. We saw it during the gala night so the director and some of the cast and crew were there. I believe they succeeded on their goal because everyone in the main theater that day saw and heard how the audience reacted and connected with the film. 

It was simple yet full of emotion you'll bring the character's feels as you go out the venue. It was no extraordinaire that will make you "woah" but it was something plain and simple, told in the eyes of the siblings that made the film genuinely good, and awesome.

PS. I think my love for dancers/bboys came back after seeing this. hihi.

Quick Change

I just saw this yesterday with my hs friend. Stories like this are the reason I kept coming back every year. It's about issues not too talked about or quite new, for my case, that you get too much information afterwards, but it's all good. haha. 

The story revolved around Tita Dorina, a transexual who makes a living through her underground operation. She "helps" her fellow bekis and others in achieving their pegs in life through injecting "collagen". This was new to me that's why I'm so hooked on how the story progressed. I never knew that this things happen. I mean I know nose lift and stuff is done in private clinics but I never knew that some do this underground, it's just too risky. scary.

 Anyway before I get completely sidetracked, the story was nicely plotted. They tackled the life of transexuals, the usual love and acceptance and mainly the risk and outcome of such "work". It also has the comedic side which everyone liked. I'm uncertain with the last part because it felt like they ran out of time that they pushed the story to end the climax. I don't know, it was just.. yea, expected but hasty(?). Anyway, I still loved the film because it tackled a lot of things that I'm not too aware of so it was a nice experience and also entertaining, nonetheless.

To get things straight, I'm no movie critic though, I'm just a film enthusiast and an avid fan of such films so please bear with how this is so MABABAW. hehe. I just like to share how I felt while I saw these films. I hope I could see all other films especially those in the New Breed categories because it's there I see mostly the gems in this festival. 

The Mexi Combi parked upp the CCP ramp which gained a lot of curios stares. Their pork soft tacos were superb!

One more new things this year is they let some food establishments make some makeshift stalls in the balcony side of CCP. That was a very smart and useful move indeed. July to August is a rainy season so it's really not practical to go down and snack out every break while waiting for the next film. So thank you so much for that Cinemalaya organizers! Maybe next time you could also make some vacant space/room/hall as a waiting area especially for those going alone. hihi. Just a suggestion. =]

"DON'T go beyond this point"... what sign? ... uhmm..

I believe Cinemalaya 9 was very successful this year, judging by the ticket sales and the films and the directors that were given a chance to showcase their talents, yet again. Never disappointing. Props to Filipino film makers, more and more each year are enchanted by your work of art. Thanks for sharing your talents with your fellow Filipinos!

PS. I feel like a whiner now. haha! But I really think that Cinemalaya organizers should consider stretching the festival for at least two weeks, maybe. I mean the following is significantly large right now unlike in the past years. Even tickets for weekday sched are selling like pancakes too (the case in CCP) so I hope they stretch the schedule next year so other could still have the chance to see other films they like. More days, all happier. right? C'mon, O hope somebody suggests this to them.

Schedule:

www.cinemalaya.org