Gloria Jean's Glorietta 3: A Haven for Insomniacs Part 1

Whenever the exams season comes to town for us trimestral law students, we always find ourselves burning the midnight oil in group study sessions. Through the conversational exchange of the topics and principles of law, we find that we attain better mental retention of the essentials in preparation for our exams.

Considering that convenience and time are of the essence, an ideal location is found in Gloria Jean's Coffees Glorietta 3 branch. We have been here so many times over the past two years that we humorously consider ourselves as "stockholders". The fact that it's a 24-hour coffee shop is obviously a major consideration for us who are here to burn the midnight oil.

Over the past two weeks I have found myself here three times, and I'll discuss each separately.

Day 1: Studying for Law on Sales Exam

While the rest of the people our age are in clubs, bars and concerts, myself, Allan, Dandee, Jojo and Cleo find ourselves here, dissecting the books and cases preparing for an upcoming exam. We always enjoy staying here for our group study sessions. We feel comfortable here, in the soft couches. The seats are softer than those in other coffee shops, at least to my mind. I also enjoy the artistic renditions of their products on the walls. The overall atmosphere is reminiscent of a classic, quaint coffee shop like those you see in movies and TV in New York.

The staff are friendly and very accommodating, even when we need a perk up of caffeine at 2:30 in the morning.

After a long day that is far from over, I find that a nice large cafe latte just hits the spot. Dandee had a similar notion, and ordered a cappuccino. I mean, isn't that just a lovely sight... A latte and a cappuccino, milky and frothy, invitingly and teasingly delicious. And in the backdrop, you see the stress and strain embodied in highlighters and bookmarks. hehe
The presentation of the coffee adds that extra bit that makes the experience even more enjoyable, as seen on my latte on the left.

This particular shot I just had to take. It symbolizes how in the study of law, we humble students do need all the help we can get. And even with the constant hit of caffeine, it just isn't easy. I mean, just look at my poor latte, caught between the proverbial rock and a hard place.

Being a Friday night, this place is quite packed with people readying for a night of partying or just relaxing after a long week and looking forward to the days of rest ahead. Noise level is quite high, with the combination of chatter and the loud music mixing together to be a slight nuisance to the ears, but very bearable. To date, the worst time I had trying to study was in a mall when a mall tour of celebs was also scheduled, and amidst the dancing and singing, the screaming crowds of fans really made it impossible to hear oneself think, let alone concentrate of studies.