The Beanster Blog

16-Sep-09 Was fortunate enough to get invited to the Samsung Omnia II & Omnia Pro B7320 Preview at Hanjin Center @ Fort Bonifacio in Taguig City. It was good to see folks from http://pinoywindowsmobile.net and meet em in person. Was seated beside XB and his wife. A couple of things… the preview was held at a training room at Samsung’s offices. The event started late and there was no WiFi available. The nice lady from Samsung was apologetic about the WiFi (something about security). They also didn’t have SIM cards so we had to slap in our own and use our own dime to get tweets, pics or youtube vids out on the interwebs… The devices we got were not fully charged but they lasted well past the duration of the presentation (note: most of them we put on flight mode since we didn’t have a lot of SIM cards) They served food & drink (no alcohol, which I don’t mind cause I don’t drink hehe). Would’ve been nice to have a smoking area but discrimination against smokers has been v...

[Amazing Joker Costume] Last Saturday me and some friends went to SM MEGAMALL to take a look at the 2009 ToyCon. Lot’s of toys and lot’s of folks in costume! :D Posted some pics on flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/bnycastro/tags/toycon0609/ I got myself some LEGO magnets and a concept Fett by Ralph McQuarrie [it was his 80th birthday on June 13]. [Happy Birthday Ralph. Thank you for your vision…] I was thinking of conscripting to the Philippine Outpost but I don’t have a costume yet. I had thought they would help you make one but it looks like you need a costume before joining. [501st troopers from the Philippine Outpost] Had a lot of fun for my 1st toy convention. Will definitely be back next year.

[Such a handsome couple] Boracay Island, Malay, Aklan, Philippines. By far one of the best weddings I’ve had the pleasure of attending. It was a destination wedding so it meant that people who were there really wanted to be there. So each event starting from the despedida de soltera, to the ceremony, reception and after party was truly composed of people close to the couple. I think this coupled by the beauty of the venue really put this wedding over the top! [Sunset in Boracay: Mesmerizing] The ceremony was held at Holy Rosary Parish and reception was at Discovery Shores. 1/24/09 which was also GK’s 30th birthday, more reasons to celebrate :D [Kaw Family: Greggy is the CUTEST] I really enjoyed Gervin’s surprise song for Bel and of course uncle Greg’s rendition of 月亮代表我的心 (yue liang tai piau wo te sin) [The Moon Represents My Heart], never knew father and son were crooners! The reception was hosted by our friend Kenneth Yap II [more commonly known as Per and more ...

Went to NBC Tent last Friday October 31st for Russell Peters & Jo Koy show. RP went on 1st and I was doubled over laughing. He is one really talented comic. Was glad to see some new material not on youtube or his 'Outsourced' DVD. JK went next and all I knew about him was that he's Fil-Am. He had good energy and Pinoy oriented jokes. As he was doing his thing but some asshole was distracting him (and the audience) by shouting un-intelligible crap. Suffice to say I think it changed his rhythm and he switched to more mature jokes. He was still funny and had good energy but I think a good comic should be able to power thru hecklers. For the last bit of his act JK asked for volunteers for a 'talent show' so I went up on stage and sang a few lines from 'My Way' I got a DVD and shirt for my troubles. Haven't had the chance to check out the DVD yet. Thanks to my bro's GF Aileen for scoring us tickets and thanks to Aileen's dad fo claiming my prize. ...

19-Apr-08: Round 2 of Tiësto in Manila! -- Venue/Parking: World Trade Center, by far one of the better venues we have here in Manila. We got there early and were able to park at the gated, guarded and lit parking lot for PhP 30.00 not bad at all! The decor was a bit sparse but the lights and monitors were abundant. Awesome effects, during the intro though I felt the sound system was not up to par but as the night progressed it sounded better. It became really hot I think it's because of the lights though... -- Ticket Price/Entrance Procedure: General Admission P1,300.00 [P1,200.00 pre-selling] VIP Tables [includes 2 bottles] we got the 30,000.00 for 10 pax. Not cheap but we got a table and seats. Besides it's Tiësto! We went in at around 12:30 to my surprise there wasn't a long line, flashed my VIP bracelet and we were led to our area. -- Music/DJ: At around 1:30AM Tiësto was introduced via a voice recording which was a welcome change from lame ass barking that usually acco...

[Armin van Buuren - ASOT 2007 @ Manila] -- October 5, 2007 One of Trance's Shinning Stars visits Manila. ARMIN VAN BUUREN rocks A VENUE! -- Venue/Parking: A Venue, half finished and definitely rushed. It had a few parking slots there but Makati Ave. is really traffic on weekends and rain and a big event and you've got problems. Fortunately we rode with a friend who has a driver. The venue was a bit small and very hot! The A/C was sorely lacking... The lights, video walls, and fireworks were very very very cool though! Top marks on those departments. -- Ticket Price/Entrance Procedure: General Admission P1,200.00 before 12MN P1,500.00 after VIP Premium Table P25,000.00 for 10 pax with 1 bottle of liquor and a few beers VIP Table level 2 P 20,000 for 10 pax with 1 bottle of liquor and a few beers VIP Table level 3 P 15,000 for 10 pax with 1 bottle of liquor and a few beers -- CAN I JUST SAY THE TICKET PRICES AND VIP TABLE PRICES WERE HORRENDOUS!!! GOOD THING MY GOOD FRIEND GOT US...

Dinner at Chrissy's then drinks at Alchemy. Thanks Chrissy for hosting a great supper [and happy bday again] I liked the ribs and fresh pineapple. On to Alchemy: The placed was packed, again! I guess because it's new and there aren't many similar establishments in the area. Stayed on the 2F [House/Dance Music Floor] cause I don't like hiphop [3F] and if you think the 2F is packed try getting up to the 3F did that last Saturday and I couldn't take it. Was able to catch Marie Garcia's set, it was ok and I appreciated those oldies being thrown in suddenly. Great set DJ Marie. We've been there for 2 straight Saturdays I'm not saying I'm tired of the place YET but I don't want to get tired of it too soon, so hopefully we'll be somewhere else next week. -- some snaps on multiply

Happy Father's Day to all the dad's. I'd like to add a special thank you to my dad for flaking us off during our supposed family lunch which my Guama [Grand mother on Mother's side] slaved over the whole morning. And then inviting us for dinner at the last moment when I already had plans. Good on yah dad!

Our good friend Elars mandated a special 'acopol' [a couple of beers] at Jack's Loft last night. The big announcement: he proposed to Ice. The 2 Doctors will get hitched next year.

Was at the FORT area again last night. This time we went to Serendra for the CRUMPLER LAUNCH PARTY. Live percussion band, fire twirling dancers, Juju plus lot's of food & booze, some wacky games and a boat load of prizes were given away. All in all, I think that the event was a success. Nice one Charlie :-)

Free booze and snacks plus games and prizes were abound and I had a lot of fun and took home some loot at the Treo 750 launch which was held last night at Embassy Superclub. Also had the opportunity and honor of meeting Carlo and some other Win Mob enthusiasts. Pics after the break.

-- Christmas Day, Manila. Ferry Corsten rocked the socks of everybody at the WTC! -- Venue/Parking: World Trade Center in Pasay. By far my fave venue in Manila. Again we came early around 11pm and the parking wasn't full yet still 30PhP... It seemed to me and my friend Tiu that this was a mistake and that we would be bored shitless for a whole night... thankfully we were wrong! -- Ticket Price/Entrance Procedure: General Admission P1,000.00 with one free drink VIP Premium Table P20,000.00 for 10 pax with 2 bottles of liquor VIP Table P15,000 for 10 pax with 1 bottle of liquor -- Not too many people were in line so we weren't hassled that much, besides we got comp VIP tickets hehehe. Come to think of it there weren't too many people at the whole event at all... BIG MISTAKE FOOLS!!!! FERRY DISHED OUT AN AWESOME SET!!! Not that the venue was empty or anything like that but it wasn't as packed as other events I've been too. Still this has it's upsides like not being...

Went to CREAM Halloween Ball 2006 and it was pretty fun! NOTE: This was Domini Primero's last event for BIGFISH the whole event was peppered with the BIGFISH team and the crowd showing appreciation for what he has contributed to the dance music scene in the past 7 years with BIGFISH. I'm sure he will succeed in his next ad/ventures... The Force Will Be With You Always... :o) Thanks for bringing in world class DJ's to Manila. -- Venue/Parking: World Trade Center in Pasay. Big and AC'ed [and the AC didn't give out this time thank God]. Nice design overall, not very halloweenish except for the glass encased 'zombies' and 'ghouls' near the entrance. I did see a lot of Cream logos and banners, the visuals were ok, I'm sure the sponsors are happy. Parking at WTC is always the best cause if you come early like we did you don't have to walk too far and it's cheap too PhP 30.00. Ticket Price/Entrance Procedure: Php800 + 1 Free Drink, Php700 + 1 F...

Last April 12, 2006 Party Boys and Girls trooped on over to the Coconut Palace to witness Kaskade Live in Manila :) -- Venue/Parking: The Coconut Palace was big and spacious, however there was no AC [good thing there was a slight breeze] anyway it was still too hot IMO [and we were in the VIP not the main dance floor]. The venue was setup pretty well, however I did notice that the main dance floor was just covered with plastic or something not hardwood or concrete, I wonder how dancing on soil felt? Parking was a bit far as the Coco Palace had a sort of walkway into the garden. Ticket Price/Entrance Procedure: We went and bought VIP tickets for PhP 1,200 per person at 10 persons per table [PhP 12,000] it included a bottle of Vodka and some Sprite. Dunhill was a major sponsor and they were giving away packs of cigarettes at the entrance they also had some promo girls going around in the VIP sections giving away cigarettes, ayos! The entrance procedure was a bit sloppy they lacked high v...

Last night [Friday 3/31/06] Tiësto rocked the roof off the PICC Forum! -- Venue/Parking: The PICC Forum was big a spacious, the setup was really nice Tiësto's booth was awesome much better than other DJ's I've seen. Parking was not as well lit as you'd like, actually it was really dark... was cheap though PhP30 for the 1st 3 hrs and 10 per succeeding. Ticket Price/Entrance Procedure: PhP 900.00 for pre-solds PhP 1000 for regular tickets. VIP is at PhP 15,000. We got pre-solds 3 weeks ago... hey it's Tiësto! The entrance procedure was pretty decent when we got there [11pm] they even had metal detectors and an xray machine. Now that's secure Music/DJ: When we got there DJ Marie Garcia was finishing her set [sayang... :(] Manolet Dario went on deck next and he spinned til around 1am. Now Tiësto is a 3x World Number 1 DJ [he was awarded this 3 years in a row], and he didn't dissapoint I like his song selection and the way he mixes and delivers his songs. Of cour...

Venue/Parking: Araneta Colliseum, this place is kinda small but where else can you put WWE? We don't have any nice arenas or colliseums for huge events. Ticket Price: Definitely overpriced. PhP 10,000++ for ringside, we got the PhP 3,500 which I felt were really great seats. Security: Security was everywhere. So we know that not all the cops were in EDSA or Makati. Very organized entry and exit nice on organizers... Event Proper/Matches: Since the arena was small we did not have a Titantron, the look of the ring was a bit old skool as the barricades were steel instead of the more common cushioned ones you see on TV. A few fireworks were setup which were really nice but again the venue cramped their style. There was no broadcast table [no JERRY 'THE KING' LAWLER!!!], no Spanish Announcer's table [booooo!]. After the in ring fireworks... the show starts with Maria pepping up the crowd [she's hot] there was a short promo for Ms. Philipppines which would be held so...

Last Friday [January 27, 2006] BIGFISH flew in the World's Number 1 DJ and my personal fave Mr. Paul van Dyk [PvD] it was a mind blowing event and the German trancer proved to Trance loving Pinoys that he deserves to be on top. I was able to bring my camera but I had a lot of trouble getting nice pics [I wasn't sure which settings to use was also able to get some vids but the sound is really bad] I'm posting them anyway. -- Venue/Parking: World Trade Center Metro Manila in Pasay. IMO one of the better venues available it definitely beats Phil Trade. First it is bigger. Much better maintaned also it's well lighted has a big parking lot with security guards too. Good job BIGFISH on getting a bigger and better venue. PvD deserves no less. Hehehe Ticket Price/Entrance Procedure: PhP 800.00 for regular tickets. VIP is at PhP 12,000. We got regular tickets cause we couldn't find six more people... Anyway 800 seems a fair price and I'm sure it also inadvertently fil...

-- Click Image for Online Album [700 images] [Images from Bny's and Camille's camera, Moj's images will be added later] -- ACP La Union Trip [aka Bel's Beach Bash] November 25 - 28, 2005 'Villa Surla', Bauang La Union,Philippines Day 1: November 25, Friday Left the office early on Friday [the 25th] and went to Bel's house to meet up with the others for our ACP La Union trip. We had a lite dinner. Then were on our way to LU... Car 1 [callsign: ALPHA]: Moj/Bel, Tiu/Cams, Kaye, Me, and 'Brownie' [the driver] we met up with Car 2 [callsign: OMEGA] Yap/Kim and By/Lea in a Petron Gas Station along NLEX [North Luzon Expressway],we had some coffee, a few cigs and were on our way. We departed from Metro Manila at around 9pm and arrived at Bel's Beach Crib at around 1am. Day 2: November 26, Saturday 2am: We relaxed for a bit took some photos, checked out our room assignments. Saw something cool! Check it!: So there was a Salagubang on the ground since I l...

Attended the Canton Business Matching Seminar [sponsored by the FCCI the Canton Provincial Gov't and many more business associations] -- Venue: Manila Hotel, Manila [old old old chandelier] [very nice chair with an engraving of MANILA HOTEL 1912: sat on this while having a cigarette] -- Old, Nostlagic but not so well maintained. The Matching was set at the 'Fiesta Ballroom' which was big but filled anyway. Manila Hotel isn't a connected hotel [no WiFi and no Internet in the rooms: I asked the Concierge]. They do have a business center which I was not able to check out. -- Security: Lot's of SWAT and PNP officers there were of course government officials from Canton, China and the Sec. Neri of the DTI [I think] Oh yeah and Manila Hotel has newly installed X-ray Machines [similar to the ones at airports] I talked to the doorman while having a smoke and expressed gratitude for the extra peace of mind that this provided. -- Registration: Was really a mess. It could'...

[ Hed Kandi Disco Heaven '05 ] As you know was at BIGFISH's Hed Kandi Disco Heaven last night. Had alot of fun and as expected there was a lot of people present for the event. -- Venue/Parking: Again the venue was at PTTC [Philippine Trade Training Center]. I wonder why BIGFISH has had it's last few events here [pricing maybe or scheduling]? Really there are better venues [the TENT at FORT or LE PAVILLION in PASAY or WORLD TRADE in ROXAS]. We came early [around midnight] there was already a build up of cars and traffic we had to park at PIER ONE a short stroll from the venue, lot's of street kids selling flowers and asking for alms. It's good to note that during the event periodic announcements [using the big screen] were shown/flashed of cars that were going to be towed [bad vibes!]. -- Ticket Price/Entrance Procedure: PhP 600.00 not bad. Also if you got an AMP [Addict Mobile Prepaid PhP 450.00] you got free entrance. If you are an existing Addict Mobile subscrib...