Ruby Loves Adventure

Book#6 for the year is "Beware, Princess Elizabeth" by Carolyn Meyer. It is a historical fiction novel aimed for young adults that chronicles the life of Elizabeth Tudor from her father's death to her eventual crowning as Queen.

It was the 16th century, England, and surrounded by controversy and much religious inquisitions & beheadings, Elizabeth found herself in the midst of controversy ever since her father, Henry VIII's death. Her brother, Edward, was being run by his uncle, and only beckons to see her during Yuletide, her half-sister Mary, does not speak to her, and Elizabeth believes that Mary hates her. Her childhood friend, Robin Dudley, suddenly gets bethrothed to Amy, as a political and monetary move by both families.

Her only companion was Kat Ashley, her governess, and together, they weave through controversies, imprisonment, fearing for her death, whilst playing a very political game as she waits for her eventual turn to be the Queen of England.

Very interesting novel for me. I have always been intrigued by historical fiction, and totally adore the Kings and Queens and deep history of England. I have never been quite so entertained.
The novel was told in the first person point of view, which makes you believe that you are in the 16th century, imagining that you are one of the people in the court and what it must have looked like and felt like, living in that day & age.

I personally have been to some of the sites that were noted in the book -- The Tower of London & Westminster Abbey, and the size of those buildings are absolutely amazing. Besides, I got to see Elizabeth I and Mary's tomb in Westminster Abbey. Such a shame I only got to research more about these incredible people after I've been to their tombs, I appreciated them after I've seen them. Oh well.

Great book for those who love everything about England and historical fiction. Definitely a must-read.

Bought this copy from booksale for P70. Money well spent :)

Personal updates:

Currently reading:
For One More Day by Mitch Albom [page 33]
My Take - Gary Barlow [page 2]
The Cat in The Hat - Dr Seuss

Currently watching:
True blood season 2
The Tudors season 3
Dawson's Creek season 1

Book # 5 for the year is "The Alchemist" by Paulo Coelho. It's only around 180 pages long, which is a very light read if ever you're a voracious and fast reader [which is not like me]

It's a story about a boy named Santiago, a Spaniard who tends sheep for a living. He knew he wanted to see the world, and he chose to become a shepherd because he has the freedom to go wherever he wanted to go to whilst he was tending his sheep and selling the wool to other cities.

One day, he dreamt that he had to go over to the Pyramids in Egypt, and there, he will find his treasure. Puzzled, he came across an old man, who turned out to be a king, who helped to guide him in trying to realize his personal legend.

What follows was an adventure to the deserts of Africa, self-discovery, and understanding the language and soul of the world.

It is quite an inspirational tale with many quotable quotes.
"Making a decision is only the beginning of things. When you make a decision, it carries you to places you never dreamed of when you first made the decision"

"It's the possibility of making a dream come true that makes life interesting"

My favourite was "When you want something, all the universe conspires to help you get it"

It is a very good book, albeit short, but it definitely opened my eyes to something -- that we are here to enjoy our lives, try to live out our own personal legends, and well, live & appreciate other creatures: big or small, living or animate.

I am overwhelmed at the number of things I could do in this place! It's less than 2 wks before I leave MNL for a relaxing [but quite an expensive] experience with my mum! I am trying to plan our itinerary [we're doing a DIY trip] and hopefully we'll get to go to all the places we want plus some shopping along the way, after all, we are going there during the sale season!

I'm gonna be broke but happy!

I'll try to post photos and my final itinerary during or after my trip :)

So far, here's our proposed itinerary, we'll be staying 6d 5n in HK! :D Trip next year would also cover HK but more on Macau & Shenzen. This is it! I will be a jetsetter! :D

July 8th
-- arrive at 11am in HKIA via Cebu Pacific [booked via their sale last May :) ]
-- grab bags & head on to shuttle service of hotel [will be staying at Evergreen Hotel in Jordan] OR go around the terminal for a while & grab some lunch.
-- Check-in at hotel
-- After check-in, go to Sha Tin District: 10,000 buddhas, Snoopy's World, New Town Plaza & other areas of interest in Sha Tin
-- Evening: TST/Mong Kok/Avenue of the Stars/Symphony of Lights [subject to the time we arrive back]/Jordan Night Market

July 9th:
Hong Kong Disneyland [10am-8pm]
9pm onwards -- more shopping. Where exactly is subjectie.

July 10th:
Ocean Park
TST/Avenue of the Stars [subjective

July 11th:
Noah's Ark, Park Island. [10am onwards]. Nan Lian Gardens.

July 12th:
Ngong Ping 360, Lantau Island, Giant Buddha, Tsing Yi Bridge, Citygate Outlet Shops, The Peak

July 13th:
More shopping/TST/HK Science Museum [subjective]
- 6pm - leave hotel for airport
- 9pm - leave HK for MNL


Happy Happy! :) Can't wait for more adventures!

Narrowing down my favourite book of all time is extremely difficult. I may not have been the most well-read person around but I have read quite a number of books on my free or idle time. As part of the Bloggers Book Club Contest, my choice for my favourite book [this may eventually change over time] is "Angela's Ashes" by Frank McCourt.


It's his autobiography, and chronicles most of his early childhood -- from his slum days in Limerick, Ireland, to his family's eventual move for a better life to New York City, USA.

I first read this way back in 2001 and I keep reading and reading it again.

Why do I love it so much? It's written in such a way that would move you. He writes in such a way that would make you laugh out loud at some of his memoirs, which could be pretty embarassing specially if you're reading the book at a public place. It also has the capacity to move you to tears, and there are quite a lot of them in the book.

Overall, this is a good start if you plan to read an autobiography. Frank McCourt may not be a well-known celebrity but his life is definitely interesting and well worth the read.


Additional info -- this book was actually adapted into a movie! I was searching the internet and it also popped out in IMDB. Awesome. I'll try to watch the movie and see if it does any justice to the book.

I'm playing The Moffatts songs over and over again in my iPod.

Why can't it not be the '90s anymore? Back when boy bands are in, telly shows were still dubbed in English, and everything seems to be so much simpler?

The good old days.

I'm typing this on behalf of a rainy Wednesday afternoon, as I sit here in front of my computer, trying to look all busy. I have a mountain of work but my mind keeps wandering away.

I want to go to the bookstore. I want to pick up a book that I don't need just for the saking of getting it. I want to go to the shoe store. I want to pick up a new pair of shoes to uplift my spirits.
I NEED to get a USB LAN for my laptop as well.

3 weeks till my trip abroad. Woohoo. I can't wait.

Nearly 4 hours to go before I get a chance to listen to a chapter in an audio book I'm "reading" again. Or better yet, I could start listening again now. Multitasking has always been a god-send.

For me, it'll be the following:

• Travelling to another foreign place, be it locally or internationally.
• Finishing a new book
• The prospect of starting a new book and eventually getting to finish it within a few weeks/months
• Finishing a computer game
• Watching a concert.
• Watching a new episode of a telly show I got really hooked and/or addicted to
• Watching a movie I've anticipated
• Shopping for shoes, clothes, books, or any other item under the sun.

I'll be blogging in a few days with regards to my favourite books. This is a tough call for me to do. I don't have a specific favourite book!

Woohoo. Book # 4 for 2009! :)



It is a set of 12 stories by Arthur Conan Doyle which are all mysteries that were solved [or were looked into] by Sherlock Holmes.

Some of the tales have the same central theme [ie money-matters] whilst others are just plain predictable.

3/5 stars. I've read better books :) Can't wait for the movie though!

So, it was supposed to be just a telly series that would alternate between Bones & Pushing Daisies. A little chick-type telly series which makes you feel all warm & fuzzy on some of their bonding sessions and jealous at the girls success in their careers, their indispensable incomes & having incredibly fabulous lifestyles & outfits to match!

This telly series was based on a book by Candace Bushnell [Think Sex & The City] and the story revolves around three central characters: Wendy Healy [not sure about the spelling of her surname], a successful movie executive at Parador Pictures, Victory Ford, a fashion designer struggling because of reviews for her past two collections & Nico Reilly, editor-in-chief of a successful magazine.

I was sooo hooked especially Joe/Victory's on again-off again relationship.
Such a shame the series was cancelled. Would've been nice to continue this.
Now off to watch some other new telly program to get hooked on! :)

Telly list.
Currently downloading: The Tudors Season 3 episodes 2-3. [episodes4-8 are queued]
Currently watching: Bones season 3.

Davao 2009!

Two weekends ago, I had a chance to go over to Davao. It was a 3day-3night trip. Our itinerary are as follows:

May 22 09:
- 7pm -- depart Manila for Davao via CebuPac
- 9pm -- arrive in Davao.

May 23 09:
- 7am -- very early call to Crocodile Park for our Wild Water Rafting Adventure.
- 5pm -- arrived back to the city;
- 7pm -- dinner at the bbq place beside Croc Park
- 8pm -- Jack's Ridge

May 24 09:
- 8am -- off to Malagos Bird Park
- Philippine Eagle Sanctuary
- Eden Nature Park
- mass at Assumption Church
- shopping for souvenirs -- pomelos & durian candy

May 25 09:
- Paradise Beach Resort, Samal Island
- Aldevinco Shopping Center [shopping for souvenirs]
- Outland Adventure Zipline [longest zipline in Davao]
- SM Davao for merienda/early dinner
- Davao International Airport. 730pm departure via CebuPac

I'm currently posting photos via multiply now. Will upload more details in a separate post once done! :)

**I know I'm currently behind on my book blog but bear with me, I haven't been reading that much though I'm desperately trying to catch up!

In excitement of the "Angels & Demons" movie & in anticipation of his latest novel, "The Lost Symbol" [out September 2009], I decided to post a blog relating to this. I'm very obsessive-compulsive at times. Once I read a book by a particular author, I tend to read all of the author's works [that is, if I see cheap copies on a second-hand bookstore or if I can mooch it locally].

Having read all four of his books: "Digital Fortress", "Deception Point", "The Da Vinci Code" & "Angels & Demons", I noticed a pattern in all of his novels, which I expect to see in "The Lost Symbol". But do correct me if I'm wrong. I have yet to read his 5th book [the 3rd in the Robert Langdon series].

***** Please note that there might be SPOILERS below, so if you have not read a particular book yet and don't want to be spoiled, please go to another section of this blog *****

1. The first chapter always tells of someone dying, which serves as a "trigger" point for the story and is a character that made a discovery or is hiding a big secret [Ensei Tankado for Digital Fortress, Jacques Sauniere for Da Vinci Code, the Canadian explorer for Deception Point [I can't remember his name], and Leonardo Vetra for Angels & Demons]

2. The protagonist is always a guy & girl pair [Susan & David for Digital Fortress, Rachel & Mike for Deception Point, Robert & Sophie for Da Vinci Code and Robert & Vittoria for Angels and Demons. Noticed something about Robert Landon's character, though. He never settles down with his partner]

3. There's always hired assassins who are very showy in their killings [ie public killings, new weapons technology, etc. Case and point the Hassassin for Angels & Demons, and the albino for Da Vinci Code].

4. The antagonist is always the one you'll least expect but maintains a very visible part in the story. He [I say "he" because all four novels have four male antagonists] is normally a character that has a commanding power over his peers, and is usually a leader. [Case and point: Carlo Ventresca - Angels & Demons, Susan Fletcher's boss for Digital Fortress, Teabing - Da Vinci Code & Rachel Sexton's boss in Deception Point].

5. The story is normally divided in a lot of short chapters that may explain how the story is unfolding in a different point of view. This may be a bore sometimes especially if the story is just "repeated" through the eyes of another character.

6. This is my favourite part: there's always references to historical works of art, buildings, tourist attractions and/or new technology. Which is very informative and fun. It makes me want to research on stuff. This proves that the book is indeed very well-researched by Brown. Although I have to believe that Brown may be a bit of a conspiracy theorist -- with regards to the secret societies that he hints at his books [Illuminati, for example].

7. All the protagonists are well-educated, and are very brilliant people. They can retain information that was just stated by another character, and they're always attractive characters.

8. There's always a happy ending at the end.


If indeed the above is what is in "The Lost Symbol" then I'd say that Brown indeed follows a pattern. I just hope that he "breaks" a bit of it. If he continued and more people noticed the similarities, then the thriller wouldn't be a thriller anymore. It'll be easier to guess who the antagonist is.

But then again, that's just my opinion.

Till the movie & book comparison of Angels & Demons [when I get to watch the movie].

My Lakbayan grade is D!

How much of the Philippines have you visited? Find out at Lakbayan!

Created by Eugene Villar.

And this is just for the Philippines. What about the world??

Adventure/Travel list:

2009:

• Pasig City River Ferry
• Davao 2009 [itinerary only]
• Hong Kong 2009 [initial itinerary]

Hong Kong 2009:

• Hong Kong Day 1 - July 8, 2009
• Snoopy's World, Sha Tin, Hong Kong - a photojournal.
• Hong Kong -- The Posts

Malaysia 2009:

• Malaysia -- The posts

England 2008:

• London - North Greenwich: O2 Arena
• London-Related Posts