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The 800-Peso Dinner Date with 15 Girls
February 8, 2006
Despite a busy schedule, I go out on a date once in a while. It is one way of meeting new people and getting to know more the people that you have already met. I usually prefer a buffet dinner date so I will not have to worry about what to order a la carte. There is this restaurant along Manila Bay. At P400 per head, you can feast on crabs, squid, mussels and a lot more. Hence, the place is popularly known as seafood buffet by the bay. So, if you are going there on a date with someone, it will cost you P800 for a sumptuous dinner for two and it comes with a cold sea breeze and relaxing music. Just the other Saturday, I went to this place in Makati City and spent the same amount of P800 for a date but not just with one girl but 15 girls on that same evening. And the fee already covered a buffet dinner and all the beer that I will be able to consume that night. This is known as SPEED DATING.
Speed dating had its origins in Los Angeles. It was formulated by Rabbi Yaacov Deyo, educational director of Aish HaTorah, a Jewish resource group, in order to help Jewish singles meet and marry. Then, it expanded out of the Jewish community. In the Philippines, Six Degrees Events Management started speed dating in Manila and they have been holding this event monthly since last year.
Speed dating is a fast, fun and safe way to meet singles. You will meet a variety of people in brief conversations. The event begins with a dinner. Afterwards, you are given your name badge with a corresponding number, scorecard and pen. You will sit at the table with the same number as the one on your name badge. Then you will be given three minutes to meet the girl on each table. A bell will be rung after each three-minute period to signal the male single to move to the next table to meet the next female single. After each three-minute date, you will mark YES on the scorecard if you want to see the person again and NO if otherwise. If you marked YES on a person and that person also marked you YES, this will constitute a match and you will be given the contact details of the person. The matches will be available just a few minutes after the event while you enjoy your drinks from the bar.
Here are the commonly asked questions during the event:
1. Is this your first time?
It was the first time experience for most of the people I met there. So, most of you will have the same mixed feelings of anxiety and excitement. One guy did admit it was his second time.
2. How did you know about speed dating?
Some of the participants were just invited by their friends. A few would mention having watched the movie "The 40 Year-Old Virgin." A number have read the article on Metro Magazine, August 2005 issue, which featured one woman's confession on speed dating. Others have browsed the website www.sixdegreesevents.com which is mentioned in the articles in the magazines.
3. Where do you work? Where did you graduate? What do you do during your free time?
These are common questions to start a three-minute conversation.
Here are some excerpts from the actual conversations I had with the girls that evening. I should have brought a tape recorder. These are the only ones I can recall.
Girl#1 works for a recording company. She loves to go scuba diving, so we talked about water sports.
Girl#2 is a tax consultant. I asked her what is the hardest thing in the world to understand according to Albert Einstein. She did not know. I told her it is INCOME TAX. She was surprised.
Girl#7 immediately inquired where I work. I said I am based at the quarantine office of the airport. She asked me what she would need to do to bring her dog from Hong Kong to Manila. "Sorry," I replied, "we only deal with human quarantine. Animal quarantine is under the jurisdiction of the Department of Agriculture."
Girl#8 is a wedding planner. "I know your favorite movie, " I remarked, "it is THE WEDDING PLANNER." She laughed.
Girl#12 smiled most of the time. So I did most of the talking. But she did have the most beautiful smile in the group.
Girl#13 is the friend of Girl#12. When I moved to Girl#13, I told her, "So you are the friend of Girl#12!" "Yup," she replied, "actually, I was the one who brought her along. It is easier to invite girls than guys in this event." Girl#13 was the prettiest in the group and perhaps one of the youngest faces. She just graduated BS in Accountancy from Ateneo de Manila University and is on her first few months at work as financial analyst. I would have wanted to tell her that she was really pretty, but the three-minute time was up. Next.
Girl#15 is a writer and she admitted she was there on an assignment. She was tasked to write about speed dating for a magazine. I told her I was also writing about the same topic for a website. I would not be surprised if she would write in her article that one of guys she met worked for the quarantine and wrote for a website.
Column continues below...
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Speed dating participants chat over dinner.
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The three-minute speed dating session.
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This speed dating event reminded me of the move-system exams in Pathology in medical school. You are assigned to a station. You view the slide on the microscope and determine what tissue/organ and what disease/disorder is in question. After one minute, the bell rings, and you move to the next station. If there was a REST station in the Pathology exam, there was also one in speed dating. It was really surprising! One of the organizers served as REST. Although she was not part of the dating scene, you can chat with her. The difference between a Pathology exam and speed dating is that in the latter, you are not under pressure and should you fail (you don't find a match), you can take it again one month after and not wait for the next year or semester.
It is amazing how you can meet a variety of people at such a short time. You may not find your match on your first speed dating event, but it is a guarantee that you will meet new people. And the venue is a cozy place to relax, have some drinks and watch cable television.
Ten minutes after the event (enough time for another bottle of beer), the participants received the letters stating their match results. For me, the letter read:
Good evening Errol,
Six degrees would like to thank you for joining our speed dating event. We hope you had a good time and we look forward to seeing you in our next coming events. We will still have a lot more programs and events in store for single people who are looking for more friends and activity partners.
Now, here are the people who consider you a match:
NAME OF GIRL, CELLPHONE NUMBER, EMAIL ADDRESS
Thank you and we hope to see you again in our future events.
Making sure people find their match,
SIX DEGREES
For only P800, I was able to date 15 girls at one time and that also included a buffet dinner with free drinks. I specified YES to 3 of the 15 girls I met that evening and one of the three likewise specified YES to me. Therefore, I gained one new friend after the event. So if you are looking for a fast, fun and safe way of meeting new friends and activity partners, speed dating is for you.
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Views expressed on this column and any other by-lined articles on this site are the authors' own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the organization or its members.
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