culture

Have a limited time to bought souvenirs from Philippines and I really want to have a refrigerator magnet from Philippines. So decided to do some google research and found out that Kultura is one of the place that people goes to when they want souvenirs from Philippines. Decided to give them a visit and glad that I do. Gonna rate them 4 out of 5.

Here's our experience with this shop. We are a group of Americans. I live in BGC, the others are visiting me from the USA. Today was their last day here. I am married into a USA Filipino family. The extended family numbers about 320 Filipinos in California. Since their family was shopping in SM Aura today, they wanted us to go to this shop and get a bunch of Christmas decorations for them, being items they couldn't get in the USA. We were happy to do this. We went to this shop and we set up a Zoom call with about a dozen Filipinos on the grid, in the USA. Our plan was to livestream around in the store, and show that to all those waiting on Zoom. Each person would then tell us to buy this item or that item, or three of this or one of that, depending on what the rest of the family wanted. At a minimum we would have spent a few hundred USD there, and at a maximum, perhaps as much as $1500-$2000USD. We were excited to do this. I started by going to two staff, a male and female, and showing them my cell phone, and, just as a formality, I asked them if it was ok to film as we shopped. I never dreamed they would be anything but happy to help us spend our money in their store. But they said NO! NO FILMING IN OUR STORE! YOU CANNOT! We were stunned. Completely stunned. One person bought a few trinkets, maybe $30, but once we told the others what happened, no one else would shop there. I don't know what it is with Filipinos and this BREATHLESS TERROR they have of people taking pictures. It is quite insane. We all suggest that Filipinos get out and move around the world a little so they understand that pictures are not from the Devil, or whatever crazy thing it is they think. Our taxi ride to this mall and to this store was wasted. Our time was wasted. Our patience with Filipino businesses in BGC was wasted. This store didn't get our money. And that is ridiculous. Filipinos, get a grip on this insane phobia you have about photos. You make fools of yourselves, you hurt your businesses, and you make people from around the world wonder if they even want to bother coming here. They wonder what other crazy things you might do. I have traveled completely around the world 2.5 times. I have never seen this insane attitude about pictures that I see in the Philippines, but most especially in BGC. If I were the owner of that store, I'd fire these two and hire people who were ASSETS to the shop, instead of people who drive customers away.