Review of Forest Cove Beach House

We went here last February 2017. We were a family of 12 with 2 kids and 2 toddlers.

Summary:
Overall, our experience was pleasant and we look forward to return again. The house was nice and the beach was great.

Pros:
Large house clean and functional
Generous ammenities kitchen, ref, tissue, soap
Common areas to bond like dining area and balcony
Helpful and prompt staff
Great beach ideal for small children; clean calm and shallow waters with fine sand and many small fishes

Cons:
Access to room in 2nd floor (not recommended for disabled and senior citizen)
Low water pressure in shower
Lacks privacy in windows (staff work outside the house)
Insect bites for sensitive skin

The place is accessible via private subdivision road of terezzas de punta fuego. The beach is actually shared/common for terezzas and 4 resorts? (forest cove, costa de oro, nicole, and munting buhangin). I think each has separate way of entry and terezzas being the best and most expensive?

HOUSE:  4 stars

The place was actually as good as the pictures in their advertisement. It was clean and spacious. The maximum guests of 16 adults could still be comfortably accomodated. I just posted below the link of the pictures in their FB page since I forgot to take the pictures of the unused rooms. Anyway the pictures are as good in reality. The ammenities were complete. The towels were clean and smelled like Downy.  There was also a generous supply of tissue and handsoap. The kitchen utensils were complete. The refrigerator was very BIG. They even had an oven so we were able to bake roasted baby back ribs for our lunch.
https://www.facebook.com/forestcovebeachhouse/

The cons was just the access towards the room at the second floor. The slope of the stairs was too steep and there was a beam which I bumped my head thrice while going up. This was the largest room among the three (the one with two beds) which I do not recommend for senior citizens or pwds.

Also its quite an inconvenience taking a shower when the water pressure is very low. It consumes more time rinsing off even if you want to be fast so that others can use the shower.

For those with sensitive/allergy prone skin there were insects which actually bit me and my kid. I dont know if it was in the beach or house. It caused me to have several red spots which took days to heal the itchiness and redness. However, our other relatives were itch free so I guess the insects just like me and my kid!

STAFF/MANAGEMENT: 3.5 stars

The staff were helpful. They help you carry your bags from or to the car. There was a buzzer inside the house in case you needed assistance and they come promptly.

I just have two wishlists for the management and staff. First, if they could remind their guests of the 5k incidental deposit fee before going to the place. In our case, we actually forgot about it. Luckily we had extra cash on hand but this could be a big hassle in other cases. Secondly, I wish the staff could be more hospitable by introducing themselves upon guests arrival and giving a quick tour around the house.

(Insert photo beach)

BEACH: 4.5 stars

What can I say about the beach? It's perfect for small kids such as our toddlers! Its quite safe and enjoyable for them since there were no large waves and the water level does not get deep immediately near the shoreline. However, since there were no big waves, it was obviously not recommended for surfers. The sand was fine and loght brown in color. There were many fishes so you can actually do fish feeding near the shore. Just dont forget to bring home the plastic wrappers to keep the place tidy! To get the clear picture it's like a large salty swimming pool with fishes in it. With regards to cleanliness, there were occassional garbage but still tolerable. I even picked up and disposed the garbage away from the beach to keep the view pleasant. The garbage such as beer bottles and plastic stuff are such a spoiler to this beautiful place!

Daily Gospel Reflections Oct 22, 2016

In trying to be fair and avoid being
judgemental to other people, I developed this thinking that everyone is undergoing his/her own set of trials. One problem might be easy for me but harder to the other person. But come a different problem, and our situations might completely be reversed. Why? Because we are created uniquely by God. This is the amazing thing about His creation.

The important thing is that we always try our best in bringing out the best in ourselves and in other people. Moreover, we must realize that our talents and blessings have expiry dates. Hence, we must cultivate it before its too late.

Daily Gospel Reflections Oct 21, 2016

Have an end goal in mind. This is one of the 7 habbits of 'highly effective people' that I am reminded by today's Gospel. Planning is a necessity that each of us should make and it should be based on the signs that God has given us. These signs can be our talents, skills, and abilities. It could even be life changing events and trials that are happening to us. The important lesson is to continue hoping in Christ's plan for us and may that plan coincide with ours.

LORD, let me plan my life from starting today to finish. May all my plans lead to your loving arms.

Daily Gospel Reflections Oct 20, 2016

Conflict. How I always try to avoid it. Upon reading today's gospel, I suddenly feel guilty because there are indeed times when conflict is necessary. Especially in matters of faith, work, and values.

Unfortunately, I have this 'make everyone feel happy' or 'please everyone' concept, which I believe is the main culprint why I have always tried to avoid conflict. I know that this kind of thinking is impossible and unproductive as well. Another reason for my conflict avoidance may also just be my lack of self-confidence in facing the situation, which may be caused by underlying fears, etc.

Anyway, Lord, beyond all these excuses, I pray that you may grant me the strength and confidence to confront the conflicts in my life. It is usually hard when the confrontations may lead to drastic, unpredictable, and dreadful consequences. However, I know that if you are on my side these worries should be put to rest. AMEN.

Daily Gospel Reflections Oct 19, 2016

In today's Gospel parable of the master and his prudent servant, I am reminded how much time I spend for the Lord. Undoubtedly, I spent much time with him through prayer during the difficult periods of my life. But during the ordinary and seemingly boring days, I figure not so much though. Hence, I am challenged to be at least consistent with my prayer and reflection time with Him. I believe those dull and boring days should be spent fortifying the foundations of my faith so when trials arise, I may react just like the prudent servant.

LORD, please grant me prudence, patience, and direction in my life. May the everyday decisions that I make slowly lead me into the path you have planned for me. Thank you and I love you!

No/negative birth certificate/record in NSO

I would like to share this unique experience of mine in obtaining a birth certicate from the National Statistics Office (NSO).

This will illustrate what happens if there is no birth record in the NSO.

We hired a household maid or yaya from the province of Masbate. We paid her transportation expenses and upon coming to Manila I immediately suspected that she looked older than the age she allegedly claimed during her application through text. According to her, she was only 50 y/o but to me she looked more like 65. Upon clarification, she admitted to be 57 y/o. I was disappointed that she had to lie to get the job but sice she was already in Manila, I convinced myself to give her a try.

I required her to get a chest xray to make sure she had no tuberculosis since she will be taking care of my child. I also wanted to enrol her to SSS so I told her to get a copy of her NSO birth certificate. Since she was old and unaware of the procedure, I asked one of our trusted helpers to escort her to the NSO office. We requested a copy of her birth certificate using the information she provided us and voila.... we obtained a NEGATIVE result, which means no such person exists! The scanned copy of the NSO search result in security paper is shown below.

I became perplexed upon learning of the result and decided to terminate her. Afterall, I was able to learn that her true age was 64 y/o through the COMELEC App. It turned out she informed us all correct details except her correct birth year.

Therefore, I learned that the NSO issues an official search result document for negative birth record in their registry, which I uploaded in this blog.

However, it became trivial to me why the NSO did not issue the closest hit to their registry since the place of birth  and the parents name were correct and the date but not the year. Hence, I concluded that the NSO birth certificate is somewhat confidential. You must enter exactly the correct details especially your birthday or else you will have a negative result. Which of course, you would not like to happen since you still have to pay the full amount regardless of the result.

How to get a Barangay Certificate of Indigency

This blog is based on my personal experience. I needed to get a barangay certificate for a relative who happens to be a person with disability (PWD).

This certificate is usually helpful for persons who need financial assistance due to emergency or long term illness cases. I outlined the procedure into 3 steps below:

1) Secure a barangay application form. Provided below is a sample snapshot.

2) Have it signed by your area coordinator.
This is for verification purposes to make sure that the applicant is qualified for the claim.

3) Submit it to the barangay clerk and wait for the processing of the document. No fee is required since this document is for the indigent. Below is the snapshot of the certificate which I obtained.