shopping finds: esprit watch + ck eyewear

It's Friday the 13th but "the day of bad luck" didn't stop me to shop! As mentioned in my earlier post, I’ve been looking forward to the Privado sale in One Esplanade since I needed to buy a watch. Good thing my officemate dropped by our area and I learned that he was also headed to MOA that night, so I went with him riding a cab. 

When I arrived at the venue, I was surprised that it was a glitzy event. I was expecting that since it was a sale event, it would be similar to the set-up in an ABCI sale or a bazaar at the World Trade Center. Apparently, the program lineup included a fashion show and a charity auction. There were gorgeous models (Brazilian, I assume), businessmen, diplomats, and socialites who graced the venue. I was quite relieved that I somehow dressed up so I won’t look like I didn’t have the capacity to pay for the items I’ll get. [Back in college, I already had a bad experience in Landmark where the saleslady implied such when I asked her about the price of an ODM watch.] 

Before I entered the dim room with flashy colorful lights and smoke effects, I was asked to fill out their online registration form so I could have the chance to win a watch or a leather card holder. As soon as I stepped inside, I immediately looked for the location of the watches on sale. I roamed around the venue and it seemed that the items were mostly eyewear. Unfortunately, there were only two booths for the watches so I had very limited choices. Most of the watches were for guys and watches for ladies only occupied a single display panel. Not wanting to leave the place empty-handed, I looked intently at the ladies watches on display to find the one that would suit me. At last, after trying on a couple of watches, I fell for the Esprit watch with black faux leather strap and round face surrounded by Swarovski crystals. I told the SA that I’d already get the watch and would go back to pay for it after checking out other items. Since my gym bag has been quite a hassle to bring around, I sneakily left it under the display panel where I got the Esprit watch since there was no baggage counter.

I roamed around to see if I could buy an eyewear since I just realized the importance of wearing shades after talking to my friend who now has an eye problem. The first stall I stopped by sold Gucci shades which had lovely designs that fit the frame of my face but also had a steep price of an average of P12,000++. I also checked the eyewear from Elle, Prada, Ray ban, and Burberry, but they were either too expensive for my budget or don’t look appropriate for me. Finally, I chanced upon Calvin Klein sunglasses and found my match in sort of Jackie O shades with Swarovski crystals on the side. I have to admit, I am really a sucker for anything that glitters. Diamonds (or in this case, crystals) are indeed a girl’s best friend. Despite the impractical price (P8,490 original price with 20% discount so I only paid P6,792), I still bought it thinking that since I’ve been working for more than 2 years now, I should already possess at least one luxury item and this sunglasses fits the bill. Besides, single purchases beyond P5,000 can be paid in 6 months installment so I was not very worried.

After completing my laundry list, I went back to the Esprit counter and got the receipt for my watch. I checked the bag I left on the floor and was relieved that it was still laying there peacefully. I then proceeded to the cashier where installments were accepted and I was told that I couldn’t be accommodated that time since there were still a couple of customers before me and they were having problems with their POS which needed to be handled manually that time. To avoid wasting time, I went to other cashiers who processed straight payments so I could pay first for the watch which cost P2,632 (from original price of P3,290). After paying for the watch, I went back to the only terminal where deferred payments are processed, alas, the technical glitch was not yet resolved so I really had no choice but wait for my turn. Good thing I saw a chair on the side and pulled it near the cashier so I could sit while waiting. Other customers came pouring in and stood next to me. After a couple of minutes, the sales assistant standing in the area finally realized that they needed to offer chairs to those who are waiting in line. While waiting for my turn, I sent a text message to my dad asking if he could drop by top pick me up since there were no public transpo available in the area. I also called him but he didn’t answer my calls. Disappointed, I decided to call one of the trusted taxi companies given by my officemate. I was taken aback by how the person on the other line answered the phone. He sounded grumpy even if I asked him in a pleasant voice. Ugh.

While thinking of possible ways to go home, I went back to my seat and continued to wait. Suddenly, an announcement was made about a bag left unattended. The description: grayish blue bag with flower design. Yay, it was my gym bag! I immediately excused myself and went to the area near the entrance where the bag was placed. After seeing my bag lying on the floor beside the fire extinguisher, I told the guard that I was the owner of the bag announced earlier. To check the authenticity of my claim, the guard asked me about the contents of the bag and I told him that there were black Nike shoes, gym clothes and a charger at the front pocket. Convinced, he was already about to give me the bag but he had to seek clearance first from the old woman who didn’t seem to mind me. Thinking of the hassle and shame while carrying the bag, I asked the guard if I could leave the bag with him while I paid for the items I bought. He said it was not allowed so I really had no choice but to take in all the embarrassment of bringing it with me.

A few more minutes of waiting and at last, it was already my turn to pay. While standing near the counter, the straps of the slingback shoes that I bought on sale 2 days ago kept on falling so I had to fix them every now and then. After doing so, I realized that I’ve been doing something really stupid. It finally occurred to me that I wasn’t able to take off the price tag of the shoes I was wearing! What’s worse, the print of the price tag was HUGE – bold and red. Yuck! Realizing that, I immediately looked at the people around me to see if anyone was looking at my direction and probably noticed my stupidity. At that time, no one was looking at me but this didn’t give me any relief since I was sure that there were people who have noticed since I’ve been fixing the straps frequently while roaming around earlier.

As soon as I finished paying for the sunglasses, I went outside the room to call my dad again. Alas, he ignored my calls again. Irate, I called the 3 other taxi companies in my phonebook and unfortunately, I was not successful in contacting any of them. Since it was almost 10pm, walking towards MOA was not an option anymore, besides, I was also wearing high heels and got some valuable items with me. Hence, I sought the help of the guard to get a cab for me. The cab he got refused to drive all the way to Paranaque so I told him that I can settle for Ayala instead. It was quite a long travel since the cab driver chose to traverse inner roads because he was worrying about the traffic along the main roads. Bad decision.

I arrived at Ayala terminal a little past 10:30pm. I was so hungry since the last meal I’ve eaten was during lunch. Thank goodness there was still a shuttle available so the way to Bicutan was a little bit more convenient compared to taking a bus. Afterwards, I took the jeep and while inside, I was keeping a close eye on the valuable items with me. Thank God nothing bad happened and I was able to get home safely. I got irate when I saw that the car and the other vehicle were just inside the garage, meaning, my dad was just inside the house. I really felt bad that my dad just ignored my calls and allowed me to commute late at night. Tsk tsk. Good thing I’m Ms Independent.