Far off in the horizon lies majestically…A moody mountain, a sight to see…A beauty it is, in days of gloom…When mist and clouds veil its glee…In days of warmth and days of sun…It’s quite unabashed with its sense of fun…Oh that I may run to it or raise my scopes…To experience this wonder, quite hard to cope…Blessed be the Shaper whose hand has wrought…Makiling that my heart has caught.

Rean here…

October is about to end and Christmas is fast approaching.  The twinkling of Parols are once again commonplace in the streets.  Artificial Christmas trees reclaim their prominence in homes and offices nationwide.   In the coming days, the hordes of shoppers will invade season bazaars and market places like Divisoria.  Urban arteries will suffer the annual congestion of conveyance.  Oh! The joys of Christmas!  It’s my hope that the focus this season will be to give to people rather than to get.

We had a reunion a few weeks ago with some friends whom we haven’t seen in a long while.  We met up in church in Sta. Rosa, had lunch at our favorite country market eating  joint  and rendezvoused in Tagaytay for coffee and fellowship. We ended up in Taal Vista Hotel’s coffee shop that afternoon. We got there before the rain started to pour. Soon after, the fog rolled in. The nice part about it was that they lit the fireplace. aaaaaah, nice and cozy…. Curious cat that I was, I wondered if they used an electric fireplace insert. So I asked the head waiter about it. He said that it wasn’t electric. Anyway, I didn’t bother much about it anymore. It was just a  great way to spend the afternoon with our friends…relaxing by the fireplace…catching up on where we left off… over a relaxing cup of tea and then some.

the view from where we sat

cafe on the ridge

hamming it up with friends

happy to be with good old friends

chillaxin’ : chika and relaxing (lol)

nope, i didn’t have that!

I had this…

there was a wedding while we were there…

sizzle… crackle…crackle

Rean here…I’ll be your blogger while Tes is working on a project.

Ambivalence has floated around me in the past few days, as I learned at least 3 families close to us are moving.  My brother-in-law and his bunch are off to Canada while our dear friend from Davao is embarking on a family exodus to Alabama.   To top it off, our neighbors are now setting their sights on California.  It’s not one of those Branson vacation packages but rather a more permanent arrangement.   While I’m glad for the improvements in these families’ lives and  wish them all the best in their new homes, the chats and visits will surely be missed. Hopefully we can visit them in the near future

Yes, m’ladies. 4 steps. I didn’t say fast. I didn’t say easy. I just mean 4 steps with lots of little sub steps in between. This is a follow-up  to my original post  How to Renew Your Passport so I guess this contains the latest information and updates. I’ve taken some pictures to give you a visual so that you know what to expect when you go to the DFA. If you  left a comment or question under the original  post that was unanswered, perhaps your queries might be answered in this latest post. I’m not a travel agent nor do I claim to be an expert in this area nor am I a DFA employee. My aim is simply to consolidate all the bits and pieces of information about renewing your passport all into one post. Hopefully, someone will find the information useful.

Here’s how our regular passports have evolved.

Above: MAROON Passport (left), GREEN Passport (right) – issue discontinued, will expire as scheduled on their original expiration dates, some countries may deny entry to holders of the green, handwritten passports;

Machine Readable Passport or MRP. (left)  (I have this one right now.) The MRP is no longer shown as an option on the sidebar of the DFA website. My guess is that they are slowly phasing it out and all renewals will be the ePass type. I intend to convert mine to an ePass even before the scheduled expiration date. Electronic Passport, Biometric or better known as  ePass. (right) This is the current type of passport being issued by the DFA right now. The little rectangle  below the word “Pasaporte” differentiates it from the MRP.

A little note about the ePass:

The ePassport takes the MRP to the next higher level and standard in travel documents:  an embedded microchip containing the following: Data essential in verifying the passport holder’s identity, including the holder’s personal data, biometrics and digital signature. This chip is interoperable, that is to say, it can be read by any standard passport machine reader in border controls worldwide.

• A complex laminate that protects the data page against tampering;
• Customized invisible images on every page; and
• A hidden and coded technology that allows the encoding of the holder’s name and passport number on the passport photo.

source: DFA – Speech of Dr. Alberto Romulo  (my note: ‘next higher level‘ sounds kinda redundant…)

Before I get into the steps to renewing your passport, check out this list:

4 Steps  you need to take BEFORE going to the DFA:

STEP 1

• SET AN APPOINTMENT. By CALLING (02)737-1000 or by APPLYING ONLINE at http://passport.com.ph. If you call, a Customer Care Officer will assist you in setting your appointment. He/She will ask you to provide your personal info and will advise you on the applicable requirements you need to bring on your scheduled appointment. If you apply online, you have two types of appointments to choose from – INDIVIDUAL or FAMILY. You need to FILL UP an online form based on the type of appointment you choose and CHOOSE an appointment DATE and TIME. Allot enough time to process your passport and the time of your travel. We set our appointment early May 2010 and we were scheduled June 30, 2010. If you are in a hurry, you might not be able to leave according to your schedule. Anyway, if you do have the time, these are how the online forms look like:

Did You Know?

ALL passport applicants scheduled for appearance must appear physically at the DFA at the date and time of their scheduled personal appearance for data and image capturing. This applies ALL to  passport applicants, aging from 0 years old onwards. DFA is strict about the personal appearance system, absolutely no chaperone allowed for passport applicants aging 18 years old onwards.

STEP 2

• DOWNLOAD, PRINT and FILL OUT the passport application forms completely with the appointment reference numbers. WRITE DOWN the reference number given to you because it will be used to cross-check your appointment once you get to the DFA. We were not able to print out the forms because my dh’s laptop crashed. It was actually a blessing in disguise because we found out a glitch in the online appointment system. We contacted Customer Service and discovered that dh was not included in the appointment list even though he applied for himself and our two kids. The system only reflected  our kids’ appointment and his could not be found. It’s a good thing that he had a copy of the appointment reference number so they were able to trace the appointment. Thank God!

STEP 3

• ASSEMBLE all your requirements. PHOTOCOPY all necessary documents. Applicants will not be admitted at the entrance gate without valid appointment and application forms. For a detailed listing of passport renewal requirements you can check out my previous post How to Renew Your Passport or DFA.
  

STEP 4

• ARRIVE EARLY. You must be at the DFA Consular Office 30 minutes before your scheduled time. Early/Late comers will not be entertained. By experience, our June 30 schedule got bumped off because it was declared a holiday. We were given the option to choose which day and what time to go so they were a bit more lenient because of that. Otherwise, as with any other appointment, don’t arrive on time. Arrive before the time. On your appointment date, proceed to the DFA Consular Office located at ASEANA Business Park, Bradco Avenue corner Macapagal Boulevard, Paranaque City (see map below).

Location Map

Here’s a pic I took on our way to the DFA.

Did You Know?

The DFA Passport Appointment System by Internet is currently available ONLY for the DFA Passport in Manila. It is important that all the needed details (i.e. full name, date of birth, place of birth, latest passport number and date of issuance) are provided when you make the request for appointment.

So you’ve done Steps 1 through 4 and finally, you’re all set to go to the DFA. Here’s what you need to do now.

How to Renew your Passport in 4 steps (DFA Aseana)

STEP 1 – Processing

• PRESENT your printed application form and supporting documents to the Appointment Counter. You will find them immediately as you enter Gate 2 of DFA Aseana. The assigned personnel will verify your papers and your reference number. Once completed, they will direct you to GET your queue number at the Information Counter and then WAIT for your turn inside the Processing Area. Your queue number will appear on the monitor indicating what processing window you will go to.

Here’s what the Processing Area looks like. There are 23 windows (not all are open) available.

Here’s where we sat while waiting for our turn. Wish we had patio cushions but it was kinda fast so it was fine. It was a bit like playing musical chairs.

After the shortest wait in the whole process here’s what happens next. Submit all your documents to the person behind the counter for verification and inform them the type of processing you want – Regular or Rush (Expedited). They will ask you to sign some forms re receiving your canceled passport and you will be directed to the next step.

Did You Know?

Passport Fees

Regular Processing: Php 950.00 (20 working days)

Rush Processing: Php 1,200.00 (10 working days)

An additional fee of Php 200.00 will be charged for processing of Lost Passports if it is still valid.

STEP 2 – Payment

• Hooray, you survived Step 1 so now it’s on to Step 2. GO TO THE SECOND FLOOR and look for the Passport Enrollment Center. You won’t miss it. Go inside this room and PAY your passport fees at the CASHIER.  After that, go a little further into the room and GET another number and wait for it to be flashed onscreen. Once you see your number, proceed to your assigned enrollment booth.  Step 2′s a fairly easy step, depending on how long the line is. You’ll be done with this one within tolerable time.

Here are a few more pics to show you how it looks like.

The Passport Enrollment Center. Note: the spelling looks a bit weird and shows up in my spell check so I’m sticking to the old spelling.

This is how it looks like inside. You can see where the cashier windows are.

Don’t forget to get your number at Number 3 or else they won’t process your enrollment.

STEP 3 – Enrollment

• Step 3 is where it get’s a bit tricky. This is the part where they do all the biometric stuff. They encode all the data in your application form, get your thumbmarks (left and right) and they take your picture against a light blue background. No need to bring pictures that get rejected after you’ve done all the queuing and waiting. Since that’s a lot to do just for one application, how much more if you’re a family. So this is the longest part of the whole process. The number we picked was 2500 so we had to wait for a looooooong while before it became our turn.

Here are more pics to give you an idea of what it’s like.

Check out the numbers on the screen. We picked 2500 so you can imagine how looooooooooooooong we had to wait for our turn.

This is what happens when you become bored from waiting. A poor paparazzi shot of Benjie Paras (the one in stripes) who was there that day.

On the wall near the escalator…going up to the 2nd floor.

The holding area (the view from outside)… where people inside waited… and waited… and waited…

Can you tell how bored I am…

FINALLY!!! Our turn…

Data Encoding. Check. Fingerprints. Check. Signatures. Check. Snapshot. Check. Hallelujah!!! It’s almost  5 0′clock…whew! We made it!

STEP 4 – Delivery

• Finally, the long wait is over and you’ve done Steps 1 through 3. You now have the option of claiming your passport personally or have it delivered to your doorstep via courier. We opted for the latter since we didn’t want to go back to the DFA.
  

After 2 weeks… and a day earlier… TADA!

Mabuhay ang Pilipinas! Ü lol

RENEWING YOUR PASSPORT IN DFA REGIONAL CONSULAR OFFICES

Did You Know?

ePassport is now available in 19 RCOs Nationwide.

As of June 18, 2010, the Department of Foreign Affairs-Office of Consular Affairs encourages the public to avail of the passport processing and/or renewal in any of the 19 Regional Consular Offices (RCOs) located nationwide.

The RCOs are located in:

Bumped off! I just learned today that we can’t renew our passports on June 30, it being declared a holiday. Ugh! DH got an email today from the DFA saying that our scheduled appointment will not push through. They did give us alternative schedules, though. I haven’t really set my mind on traveling because of the oh so many things I have to fit in my day. I’m not in “travel mode” yet so I haven’t really had time to check out good deals on Branson tickets, in case we do want to go to Missouri (Missou-ruh?). I was looking forward to learning how the E-passport renewal system works for myself so that I could give specific answers to those questions  people ask me about renewing passports (in another post). Anyway, we still have to renew regardless of what appointment schedule we get so I will post the outcome here on my blog. So hang in there, mga kababayan who have passport woes. I’ll keep you posted on the latest passport procedures as soon as we have ours.

Later, folks!

We took a little out of town trip yesterday with our kids for their annual homeschool achievement test. Our kids together with their friends took the Metropolitan Achievement Test at Westfields International School and thankfully they all passed! woot woot! It was approximately a two-hour drive to Angeles, Pampanga. A bit stressful because I volunteered directions to get to NLEX. Hah! I’m not a driver but I’ve had lots of practice being a backseat navigator (yup, loooooong drives across the Arizona desert with a rest area map in my hand hahahaha). Now, I’m not much for road signs but I have a hidden compass somewhere in my brain that tells me, YOU”RE LOST!!!!  EPIC STRESS! Oh well, I think stress is one of the best fat burners around or maybe not? We did get there in the nick of time and we had lots of yummy cupcakes (thank you, Chots!) to comfort our rattled nerves.

Bottomline, the kids passed! After that, we hied off to Clark to do a little Duty-Free shopping therapy. I was still a kid when I went to Clark and all I remember was a huge toll-booth looking gate with lots of US soldiers checking if you had a gate pass before allowing you in. What was unforgettable to me was the Commissary with lots and lots of imported goodies (well, I had my eyes on the candies). I still remember the Pop Rocks I got back then. I was amazed how those little rocks popped and fizzed in my mouth! Ahhhh, the simple joys of childhood…

Clark has changed quite a lot since then. Gone is the big gate. So are the American soldiers. No more Commissary. Lots of Duty-Free shops though. What I found so cool was those digital timers attached to stoplights that countdown the seconds till the signals change color. I wish we had those in Manila. There were also certain parts of the landscape that reminded me of California. Well almost. The intense tropical heat kept reminding me I was still in the Philippines.

Overall, it was a lovely day spent with the children and with friends. A bit tiring but I know  that when I will look back to this day, I will probably forget all the stress and just recall the time spent with my kids and my heart friends.

A few pics from our trip:

Its summer in the Philippines and people are travelling left and right to take advantage of their children’s school break. Some take long drives to Northern Luzon to get some nice weather (get your life insurance quotes handy!). Others fly to the beaches in the Visayas or take adventures in Mindanao. Still others go out of the country to see some sights. Wherever you go, the important thing is to have the family together. Everyone must have a bit of fun. It must be a time of making memories together. In the end, its not the souvenirs you buy that make your vacation special but the sheer delight of remembering your love ones in those special places 10, 20, 30 years from now. Quite priceless!

With the death of our friends’ mom, we have been traveling back and forth to the Sta. Mesa, Manila area.  As it is our tradition in the Philippines, we stayed up late during this wake to support our friends.  We would then travel home to Sta. Rosa, Laguna past midnight. It was quite stressful for my wife because of all the trucks that were traveling during this time of night  They were practically kings of the road. This makes you want to get additional low cost car insurance plans because of the risk you are taking as you travel with these monsters.  Anyway, we got the Jesus insurance plan which is more than enough to get us home safely.

Here are some tips for those travelling past midnight along the Southern Luzon Expressway (SLEX)

• 1. Don’t go beyond 80 km/h.  This is especially true southbound before Alabang.  The construction of the Skyway extension has some lanes closed between Alabang and Sucat.
• 2. Don’t take the service road.  Trucks usually take this route. With elections coming, last minute road work is going on.  Half the road is closed between Bicutan and Sucat.
• 3. Frequently look far ahead.  With lanes closed, you’ll have to watch for arrows indicating lane merges.  You’ll see this near Carmona.
• 4. Don’t challenge trucks and buses.  They are just too big and can hurt you seriously.

Hope this helps. Have a safe trip