COLDPLAY in Tokyo 2017

Sharing with you guys my Coldplay experience in Tokyo, Japan last April 19.

I'm fond of watching concerts, but I'm not the type who would really spend for it. I am used to getting free tickets during concerts but there's only one concert I promised to spend on, and that's a Coldplay concert.

A few years back, I planned about going to the Fuji Rock Music Festival in Japan 'cause they're headliner that time was Coldplay. Unfortunately, my visa expired so I had to go back to the Philippines even before the music festival.

So when I heard about Coldplay's announcement of their concert in the Philippines, I promised myself that I would go no matter how much it would cost me. Then came the day of ticket release. I kind of hesitated because I thought the tickets were overpriced so I didn't purchase anymore, but I prayed to get either free tickets or at least, cheaper tickets. But I found out about the ticket prices in their concerts in other Asian countries. I got really enticed by the prices in Singapore, Seoul, and Tokyo. Unfortunately, it was so hard to secure tickets for the Singapore leg; then flight tickets to Seoul (even on budget airlines) were really high. I was planning to watch the Japan leg but decided to skip the Coldplay concert for my Eurotrip on the same month.

It must be a sign that my Schengen visa processing got really delayed at the Greek Embassy, and my aunt offered to pay my airfare so I could visit her in Japan. So there, I booked a ticket to Japan, still without plans of watching Coldplay. I have a friends who recently moved to Japan and she's interested of watching the concert so she convinced me to go. I posted a Facebook status looking for tickets and I got a lot of replies. We were supposed to get S-Reserve tickets but a better offer came in. A Japan-based lady sold us 2 S-Reserve tickets which were priced 21,000 yen from 18,000 yen. It's more expensive but I understood why she put a markup on that. She was so nice so we got convinced to buy the tickets. We met up in Tokyo a week before the concert and my friend and I were so thankful that we found her!

A day before the concert, I had to travel to Yokohama from Nagano so I could stay at my friend's place. The next day, I travelled for 45mins from Yokohama to Tokyo Dome City to catch Coldplay's concert. Since my friend was coming from work, I spent time waiting for her with my other friends who were also there to watch the concert, but they got VIP tickets. 

The concert started on time and it was the best concert I've ever experienced! Plus I was happy that I watched it in Japan because the Japanese were very particular in the quality of sound and lighting so I was sure that technical problems would be very minimal or would not even happen. And they were very organized! Even after the concert, the exit of the audience were done by row.

Anyway, my friend and I really enjoyed the concert. We were very thankful that we pushed for it. It was super worth it!

Macklemore and Ryan Lewis in Manila 2016

Got a last minute invite to watch Macklemore and Ryan Lewis at the Palace Pool Club and of course, I didn't say no. I wasn't able to watch them on their first time in Manila in 2014 because I was supposed to watch them in Kuala Lumpur during the 3rd day of the Future Music Festival Asia (FMFA), which got cancelled. Then their performance in Manila was on the following day but we were still in KL.

Anyway, thanks to Solar Entertainment for the invite. It was a short yet fun concert. The best part was when they jumped into the pool beside us right after their performance. How cool was that? I had a perfect view to tape them. Watch this video to see.

PS. Ryan Lewis is a hottie!

SWV and TLC in Manila 2016

Super late post but I just had to share this amazing concert of SWV and TLC in Manila.

Those of my age who don't know them must be living under a rock! This concert got all the 90s vibes back! Thanks to Vans PH for our tickets. We really had fun! :)

The Chainsmokers Live in Manila

I was close to missing this concert because I had to wait for the free tickets. I was in a wedding in Cavite when I foud out that finally, our friend got us free passes to the concert from Globe. Thanks so much, Mr. Ernest Cu for giving us access to the Globe Premiere Suite! :)

the awesome pair

While some of our friends were partying near the stage, Lady and I were actually having fun at the suite because it's so comfy out there. We got some drinks and some seats when we get tired of dancing. I didn't need to get too close to the stage to get good photos because my camera's 24x zoom never fails to give me quality photos in every event.

concert buddies

The last time Chainsmokers was here was when they're only familiar single was the "Selfie Song". We made it to their concert at Republiq (Resorts World Manila) back then through the guest list. But now, they've become really famous and their songs topped the charts.

A good friend, a talented actor and model, Phytos Ramirez

I super love them! See my own version of a post-concert video below.

Looking forward to more awesome hits ahead! :)

Drink Up 2014, OneVibePH, The Chainsmokers in Manila

May 24 - Drink Up 2014 (Manila) at The Forum grounds

I didn't really know about this. On the day of the event I woke up to a message from a friend giving me free passes. Of course, I went with him to check it out. So there's a concert happening. It was Urbandub and other local bands on the earlier part of the night, then some DJs started playing EDM late at night. I've tried a lot of beer flavors and of course, my favorite stop would be my friend's own, Brotzeit. Our RFID bands were loaded with tokens worth Php 1500 I guess, and that's what we used to buy food and drinks within the event grounds. I was able to appreciate the event 'cause I got familiarized with different brands and types of liquor, particularly beer. I'm not actually a beer drinker 'cause I don't like its taste, but I liked the flavored beers that I've tried such as the strawberry beer of Xavierbeer from Baguio, and of course, my all-time favorite, Affensaft (mango-flavored) from Brotzeit.

strawberry beer!

the trial set

my Liquor 101 professor :))

Brotzeit's customers

me, Mags, and Edward, the man behind Brotzeit

June 11 - One Vibe PH at SM MOA Concert Grounds

It's the celebration of Philippine Independence as the clock struck 12. Bottles of beer were sold for only Php 1 and there were a lot of freebies from different booths of brands who supported the event. Besides having Apl.De.Ap, the event became bigger because of Laidback Luke. Got VIP access from Viber and extra free passes from Vans. It was fun because I got to see a lot of friends, and our "barkada" was almost complete that night. But since we're already feeling the signs of ageing, we left at 2am and had early breakfast at Rufo's Famous Tapa in Blue Wave, Macapagal. Of course, we all ordered tapa.:))

what's wrong in this picture? LOL!

food trip

June 13 - The Chainsmokers Selfie Tour in Republiq Club, Manila

Again, I didn't know about this. I got dragged by my friends who told me they already got me listed and there's no more backing out. And I was like, "Who are The Chainsmokers?" Then they showed me the music video of the "Selfie" song. HAHA! Anyway, they produced good music; and the concert was generally fun. However, there were some parts that I got a bit bored. Well, it's probably because I was too sleepy and not really prepared to party that night, most especially because I stayed up late the previous night as well. Anyway, after their set was a birthday celebration for DJ Ace Ramos. After the candle blowing, we left the event 'cause we were really sleepy.

please excuse the quality 'cause I failed to bring my camera

with my friends: Aris from Bacolod and Keigh from Iloilo

my guy friends: Dinand, Puch, Joshua

"but first, let me take a selfie"

done!

I sometimes feel too old for these parties and I can feel my body giving up as well. Now I really appreciate staying home and getting a lot of sleep. Haha.


xoxo,

city girl

Wanderland 2014

Last year's Wanderland was so much fun. I could still remember how Neon Trees and Temper Traps nailed it, and I also enjoyed the other bands such as Tulle on Tulle and Avalanche City even if I wasn't much familiar of them. There weren't much attractions back then, but the experience was indeed great!

This year, the event grounds had a lot of interactive booths and attractions. However, there weren't much people, and the lineup wasn't as good as last year's. But since I got free tickets, I went there with my friends (a lot less friends than last year's). I was there basically for The Royal Concept and I was glad they didn't disappoint me. I enjoyed watching them perform live more than The Drums.

with my friend, Paulo

with Olive and Angelia

Just before The Drums, finished their set, we decided to leave the event grounds. We actually enjoyed the freebies more than the concert itself. So we got a couple of items and drinks from Globe, then photos and cute tattoos from River Island, and free Cornetto ice cream and Oishi snacks.

carousel ride with Mark and Angelia

Augmented Reality booth by Globe (we got free CDs of our music video after)

fake tats :))

'coz three is already a crowd haha

xoxo,

city girl

CloseUp Forever Summer: Alesso in Manila

I've been so busy that I'm posting this entry really late. I just wanna share our Alesso experience at the CloseUp Forever Summer held in Globe Circuit City last April 5.

I got a free ticket from one of my bestfriends who got it from Unilever. I went there with my friends who love to party. Some of them even flew in from Bacolod and Iloilo just to party as Alesso spins live.

Had lo load up with a medium-sized bottle of Bushmills Irish whisky prior the show as the drinks in the venue would be very expensive and a lot in demand. So we got in during the set of DJ Ace Ramos, one of the country's sought after DJs, and also a friend of ours. Next who played was Helena, but I wasn't really familiar about her so I didn't really pay much attention during her set. I spent that time mingling with my friends instead.

my boy buds: Dennis & Arvin

Bushmills

at first I thought I was drinking alcohol, but it was purely juice LOL!

it was my friend Ecel's birthday

Then it was Alesso's set. The crowd went crazy, most especially the kids. Well by kids I meant, the high school and college students who were all dressed up like "close to naked"  (for girls) and like "macho without the muscles" (boys) LOL. I wonder why these kids are in a rush growing up. But I'm glad that even if I am 10 or more years older than them, they still look older than me. HAHA! Well that's probably because I wasn't in a rush when I was their age. Anyway, Alesso was good and popular but quite overrated. I think he's a hype these days 'cause of his music that has gone mainstream and is being continuously patronized by the youth. He produces EDM (electronic dance music), which I can say is actually today's music. To my ears it sounds like an electronic pop, pop house, progressive house pop, techno pop or something like pop + (insert another genre here). EDM is one of the genres I listen to a lot, and that's probably why I came out to attend this event.

fireworks :)

Alesso

top from H&M, shoes from Vans

party peeps!

my bodyguards: Puch & Elmer (LOL)

My driver and PA: Arvin & Dennis (LOL)

 But I must admit, I felt ecstatic as Alesso played "City of Dreams" and "If I Lose Myself", my top two faves. Of course, there's "Years", "Calling", and his collaboration with Calvin Harris, "Under Control". He also introduced his latest mix, "Sweet Escape".

Manila-Bacolod-Iloilo friends

Alesso's set took more than an hour. He was then followed by Deniz Koyu, the last DJ to perform that night. I wasn't really much familiar of him before, but I was surprised how good he was when he played there. Since a lot were not familiar of him, 20-30% of the crowd has already disappeared before he even started his set. But I was glad my friends and I stayed 'cause we enjoyed dancing to his music. With 30mins left on his set, my friends and I already left to avoid traffic. We also headed to Rufo's Famous Tapa at Makati Avenue for some quick early breakfast.

Now officially ticking Alesso off my must-see DJs list. Must now continue my quest for Hardwell. :)