Passport Certification at the DFA

(Note: the following details are valid as of August 16, 2013, the time of this writing.)

If you have applied for a passport on or before 2009, you would probably remember going to the old Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Main Office along Roxas Boulevard near the Asian Institute of Maritime Studies. But now, they have a new office near the S & R Building a few blocks from the SM Mall of Asia. (Refer to the image below).

Image from Google Maps

To get to the new DFA office, you can take a bus going to Baclaran and tell the driver to drop you off the new DFA office near the S & R building. The S & R building will be very visible along Roxas Boulevard due to its huge logo. From Roxas Boulevard, you would have to walk for several minutes until you get to the S & R  building and just behind that is the DFA's new office.

Another way of getting to the new DFA office is to go down the Taft MRT station and ask for directions where to ride small vans modified to resemble Philippine Jeepneys. Their logo will state "DFA Bago". Fare is about 10 pesos. This is the same convenient method of getting back to the MRT station from the DFA since these mini vans pass directly in front of the DFA building. Be careful not to ride Philippine Jeepneys that say DFA in their logo since these will take you to the old / original DFA building.

Once at the DFA office, tell the guards that you are applying for Passport Certification or Certified True Copy (CTC) of your passport. You should already have a photocopy of your passport's front page (the one with your picture) and back page (the one with your signature), and a photocopy of a valid I.D. These requirements are stated on the application form you will fill out during the interview process. Proceed to Door number 5 and again, state that you are applying for Passport Certification or Certified True Copy (CTC) of your passport.

At the Interview Area, make sure you inform the guards of your application so that they can provide you with a queue slip, which you will fill out with your name, and the reason you are there. You might have to wait for about an hour depending on the number of people ahead of you. During the interview, you will be asked why you are applying for Passport Certification of CTC, and how many copies you will need. Once approved, you will have to pay 100 pesos per copy. You will be given a receipt which you will have to pay at the cashier's office, at the 2nd Floor.

Once you've paid, return the duplicate copy to your interviewer and ask for the date you can claim the Passport Certification. It will usually take 5 business days.

I tried applying for Passport Certification from DFA Mega Mall, but they said they no longer entertain these requests since their turn around time for one was 15 business days. They now encourage applicants to proceed directly to the new DFA office.

I hope you find this information helpful. And as for the DFA, I hope you can improve your queuing systems similar to that of Quezon City Hall where you are given a number and a screen will denote your position in the queue. This suggestion will hopefully result in a faster and orderly queue. 

John Mayer's In Your Atmosphere Guitar Chords

Here's my attempt at guitar chords for John Mayer's In Your Atmosphere.

Intro

E - Asus2 (repeat) (Adding a B between the two chords in this pattern is optional)

Stanza Pattern

E                                Asus2                         E - Asus2

I don't think I'm gonna go to LA anymore

E                                Asus2                         E - Asus2
I don't think I'm gonna go to LA anymore

E                                Asus2                         C#m7 - B - F#
I don't know what it's like to land and not race to your door

Asus2                                B                         E (repeat Intro)

So I don't think I'm gonna go to LA anymore

Use Stanza Pattern
I don't think I'm gonna go to LA anymore

I don't think I'm gonna go to LA anymore
I'm not sure that I really ever could
Hold on to your hotel key in your bedroom neighborhood
Me sleep-walking in Hollywood

Chorus Pattern

F#m        C#m7 - B   

I'm gonna steer clear

F#m        C#m7 - B
I'd burn up in your atmosphere

F#m        C#m7 - B
I'm gonna steer clear

G#m    
Cause I'd die if I saw you

C#m7 - B - F# - F#
I'd die if I didn't see you there

Asus2                                B                         E (repeat Intro)
So I don't think I'm gonna go to LA anymore

Instrumental
E - Asus2 (repeat)
E - D - A - Am (repeat)
Asus2 - B - E

Use Stanza Pattern

I dont think I'm gonna go to LA anymore
I get lost on the boulevard at night
Without your voice to tell me I love you, take a right
The ten and the two is the loneliest sight

Use Chorus Pattern

F#m        C#m7 - B
I'm gonna steer clear
F#m        C#m7 - B
Id burn up in your atmosphere
F#m        C#m7 - B
I'm gonna steer clear
G#m
Cause I'd die if I saw you
C#m7 - B - F# - F#
I'd die if I didn't see you

F#m        C#m7 - B
I'm gonna steer clear, oh yeah
F#m        C#m7 - B
Id burn up in your atmosphere
F#m        C#m7 - B
I'm gonna steer clear
G#m
Cause I'd die if I saw you
C#m7 - B - Asus2 - A
I'd die if I didn't see you there
Asus2 - A (repeat)
See you there
Asus2 - A (repeat)

I think I'm gonna stay, gonna stay in the gray
Asus2 - A (repeat)
I think I'm gonna stay, gonna stay, gonna stay
Asus2 - A (repeat)
And all the streetlights say nevermind, nevermind
Asus2 - A (repeat)
And the canyon lines say nevermind
Asus2 - A (repeat)
And sunset says we see this all the time, nevermind, never you mind

Outro Pattern

B                      G#m

Wherever I go, whatever I do

Ebm7                                                           E
I wonder where I am in my relationship to you

B                      G#m
Wherever you go, wherever you are

Ebm7                                                           E
I watch your life play out in pictures from afar

B                      G#m

Wherever I go, whatever I do

Ebm7                                                           E
I wonder where I am in my relationship to you
B                      G#m

Wherever you go, wherever you are

Ebm7                                                           E
I watch that pretty life play out in pictures from afar

Repeat Outro Pattern to fade

First Time in SM Mall of Asia Arena

Since the Philippines is host to the FIBA (Federation International Basketball Association) Championship this year, I was invited to watch the quarterly finals round at the SM Mall of Asia Arena. There were two sessions, morning and afternoon, each involving 3 games between various Asian countries. We got there at around 1:30 p.m. and were easily able to purchase a ticket for the morning session. We were able to watch the game between Iran and Jordan where Iran won by roughly 40 points.

But after that game, we had to purchase another ticket for the afternoon session, something I consider inefficient, but from a manager's perspective, this is very shrewd. Management's excuse, almost all of the tickets for the afternoon session have been sold. So what people will actually be lining up for are the tickets that were not yet sold, mostly the expensive ones.

We waited in line for almost four hours only to find out that there were no longer any tickets available. Scalpers would come and go trying to offer those in line tickets almost double their purchase price despite their being a rule that they might face a penalty of 5,000 pesos and imprisonment for repeated offenses. But these scalpers didn't seem to mind. They would prey on foreigners mostly, those who had money to burn. And despite security personnel being present, none of these scalpers seem to get caught. Are they in cahoots?

At the end of the four hour wait, the tickets left unsold were more than ten times what we could afford.

We were forced to watch the Philippines versus Kazakhstan in a nearby restaurant. What was surprising was that when we were watching the game, there were still some seats in the Mall of Asia Arena that were vacant. Management could easily reason out that these were seats purchased / reserved in advance but customers simply did not come to avail of.

But what I would like SM's leaders to improve is their queuing management especially for one-time big events such as these. I would suspect that managing the Finals game would even be a greater task. But people shouldn't be wasting time. Sure, having long lines is a form of publicity - but it also showcases inefficiency. There could easily be a monitor, posted along the queuing hallways, showing how many seats are taken, and how much space is available, and how much ticket prices cost, so that unsuspecting customers are not duped and the practice of scalping could be lessened, if not eliminated.

The only consolation for the people in queue was being able to see stars like Vic Sotto & Pauline Luna, Tito Sotto, Anjo Yllana, Bayani, Ogie Alcasid, and Olsen Racela enjoy their comfortable VIP rooms with glass walls, their beer and delicious food, as they watched the game in giant TV screens, sitting in comfortable chairs. I once thought that the queue was one of the things in life, such as sickness or death, which does not discriminate. But yesterday's experience reminded me and perhaps many other Filipinos of the great divide between the rich and the poor in our country, and that queuing is an act not just of the poor and underprivileged, but even of the middle class.

So for those having trouble getting tickets reserved for the game, you are better off staying at home and watching the FIBA Finals game comfortably from your local channel. You too, could sit lazily at home, drinking and eating, while enjoying the Finals game with the company of your friends and loved ones.