A day in the life of a BMW X1 owner

Striking in its Valencia Orange color, the xLine at the driveway of The Palms Country Club in Alabang.

What makes a BMW X1 owner?

According to Asian Carmakers Corp. (ACC) director Glen Dasig, “a BMW X1 owner is a dynamic, confident, stylish and successful individual who is not afraid to live a fun life to the fullest.”

For a day, the people from ACC put on their fairy godmother hats and treated a handful of media to experience for a day what it feels to be a BMW X1 person. Here is the blow-by-blow account of what happened that day.

Pre-event

On July 11, after briefings at Sentro 1771 and Cerveseria at Greenbelt, we were given brand-new test units of Blackberrys and iPhone 5s. The orientation was on how we could collect social media badges and scores leading up to event day.

Day of the event

8 A.M. We assembled in the quaint yet cult favorite Maple in San Antonio Parkade where a bevy of BMW X1s was waiting for us.  We were both glad that a valet service was provided, as I had  been driven to the event by my husband. While waiting, we were offered a choice of Maple Breakfast or Prime Rib Tapa. The generous servings were enough to feed a family of three. I opted to have the tapa which was basically a T-bone steak pretending to be third part of a tapsilog.

The author (right) with ACC president Maricar Parco

10 A.M. We drove to Manila Polo Club to experience archery, purportedly one of the preferred recreational activities of a BMW X1 owner. We were assigned a BMW xLine, one of the two showcases that offered individualization through harmoniously matched designs and equipment features in addition to the base model. Manila Polo’s archery coaching staff were on hand to teach us the basics and prevent us from playing cupid on each other. Some were natural archers (mostly the La Sallians) while others groped to discover their hidden talent.

11 A.M. We hopped onto our BMWs, this time to head south. The new X1 is equipped with the iDrive system technology enhanced by an 8.8-inch LCD screen, which is considered one of the biggest in the market today. They had preprogramed our playlist selections to make our drive to the south more enjoyable. The phone integration (a problem in older BMW cars) was done in a zip and without the need to whip up the car’s manual.

Our destination was Palms Country Club, where we sampled the offerings of one of the best Japanese restaurants in the south, Nishijin. We were treated to a special menu of steak, fish and an array of special handmade makis and fresh sashimis. Special desserts were given to badge milestone winners, so I got myself the favorite crepe samurai.

2 P.M. After the hearty lunch, we drove back to Makati City and asked to get off at Rustan’s. I was seated at the back and can attest to the comfortable seats and legroom. Although I wished it had more headroom, the BMW X1 has three full-size rear seats with a 40:20:40-split rear backrest that allows the luggage compartment to expand—which is something unique to BMW X1 compared to others in its class.

When we arrived at Rustan’s Makati, we were told to spend the afternoon shopping and to get dressed for the evening activity. Rustan’s personal shoppers assisted us with their expert styling skills. We were ushered into the VIP area and were asked to choose from the high-fashion offerings of Rustan’s 2013 season.

I opted for a Josie Natori pink cocktail dress (my first pink dress since I took over dressing decisions from my mom), which I matched with my personal nude YSL peep toe shoes. We had a hair and makeup session with Bobbi Brown cosmetics at one of my favorite salons, Teng Roma’s Emphasis, before heading to dinner.

Archery at the Manila Polo Club grounds.

6 P.M. After the shopping experience, we headed down to Salcedo Street to have our dinner at the quaint Stockton Place. There was little bit of rain, and with Makati being enveloped in darkness, we were  given a chance to try the X1’s improved illumination from xenon headlights with white LED corona rings.

Stockton Place is one of the newest “be seen in” restaurants. With its Hamptons-style interior and chic furniture, CCA-educated chef Celine delos Angeles and her menu live up to the hype and definitely merit a “will be back” rating. We had scallops with caramelized tomato tart, crispy pork belly with pommery mashed potato, and some fantastic steak and fries.

Nightcap was at Blind Pig, headlined by my favorites Johnny Walker Gold and Blue Label (bottles were given as special prizes to the people who got 150 points in the badge collections). I headed home earlier than my fellow Cinderellas because I was scheduled to fly out early the next day—or maybe I just didn’t want my colleagues to see me turn into a pumpkin at midnight.

No doubt, the message from the day’s activity got through, after all the pampering that I and my media friends enjoyed.

It’s living the life as if there’s no more tomorrow.

Watch out for my in-depth chicdriven test of the BMW X1 coming in the next few weeks. For comments and suggestions, please e-mail me at jnt@chicdriven.com; like us on Facebook/chicdriven or follow us at twitter@chicdriven. Check out our blog www.chicdriven.com/wordpress for behind the scenes of events plus other experiences.