Ruby Loves Adventure

Philippa Gregory presents the first of a new series set amid the deadly feuds of England known as the Wars of the Roses.


Known as the queen of historical fiction, Philippa Gregory is well known for her TUdor novels, one has even been made into a movie (The Other Boleyn Girl, anyone?). The White Queen is the first novel I've read from her and I can say it was a bit disappointing.

I expected detail, but I didn't expect detail to the point that parts of the novel is redundant - another character already said one thing, only to be repeated a few paragraphs later by another, and that goes on again and again. I also don't like the magic factor. Mixing magic with historical fiction don't really go well with each other, but who knows? Maybe in the old times, they really do believe in curses, magic, and whatnot. Not that it is true!

I originally liked the first part of the novel, but got bored when King Edward died and the story was all about Elizabeth. For some reason, her character became bland, desperate and annoying. When King Edward was still around, there were tales of wars and of love (of course, their love story was part of it).

I forgot to say that this book was the first of a trilogy which focuses on the three strong women within the House of Lancaster: first book is about Elizabeth Woodville (who married Edward, who became king), the second is about Elizabeth's daughter, aptly named Elizabeth as well (and makes things hellishly confusing as in the old times, your child's names are normally named after the parents or aunts or uncles or grandparents!), and the third is based on Jacquetta (Elizabeth Woodville's mother). Now, would I say that I'll buy the second and third part? Hmm maybe if they were on sale (like for $2 or less. I definitely won't buy it full price).

What else can I say about this book? It could be better - I think that it was rushed at some parts, and more detail could have been given about the places and more background on the characters could have been explained (then again Philippa Gregory has this tendency of releasing a few books per year so she could just be writing without considering any of these factors, but that's just me).

I'll read The Other Boleyn Girl some time and hopefully that book would be to my expectations!

Summary from Goodreads:
Jason has a problem. 
He doesn't remember anything before waking up on a school bus holding hands with a girl. Apparently he has a girlfriend named Piper. His best friend is a kid named Leo, and they're all students in the Wilderness School, a boarding school for "bad kids", as Leo puts it. What he did to end up here, Jason has no idea—except that everything seems very wrong.

Piper has a secret. 
Her father, a famous actor, has been missing for three days, and her vivid nightmares reveal that he's in terrible danger. Now her boyfriend doesn't recognize her, and when a freak storm and strange creatures attack during a school field trip, she, Jason, and Leo are whisked away to someplace called Camp Half-Blood. What is going on? 

Leo has a way with tools. 
His new cabin at Camp Half-Blood is filled with them. Seriously, the place beats Wilderness School hands down, with its weapons training, monsters, and fine-looking girls. What's troubling is the curse everyone keeps talking about, and that a camper's gone missing. Weirdest of all, his bunkmates insist they are all—including Leo—related to a god.

The spinoff of the Percy Jackson series! In this series, there are three new demigods serving as the main characters: Jason, son of Zeus; Piper, daughter of Aphrodite; and Leo, son of Hephaestus. Add the complexity of the Roman gods (well, they're the Greek gods too, only with different names and a harsher alter-ego), and we've got the makings of a good tale.

There was a lot of twists and turns that have been integrated with the older characters, and some new information to learn: the alter egos of the Greek gods that we were so familiar about, new gods, and new supernatural creatures like the storm gods, the giants, and ogres alike.

This book is also one of the longest I've ever read: 500+ pages. Albeit the font size and the spacing were quite big, it was still a challenge for me! Told in the perspectives of the three main characters, who alternate every two chapters, Rick Riordan nicely patched up the story so no one reading the book gets lost at what's happening within the other characters.

I do like how the characters do grow in the end though, although one annoying factor for me would be the so called love story between Piper and Jason. Ugh, mushy much? I also like Tempest and Festus - they were minor characters but they tugged at my heart! haha. I had always loved animal characters, don't get me wrong!

Quite a good read too, the ending would leave you hanging for more (specially as I'm expecting Percy and Annabeth to have bigger roles in the second book) - I sometimes hate reading book series, it would "force" you to buy the whole set just to complete the story! But well worth it though!

Summary from Goodreads:
Since childhood, Rosie and Alex have stuck by each other through thick and thin. But they're suddenly separated when Alexx and his family move from Dublin to America.

Their magical connection remains but can their friendship survive the years and miles?

Misunderstandings, circumstances and sheer bad luck have kept them apart – until now. But will they gamble everything – including their friendship – on true love? And what twists and surprises does fate have in store for them this time ... 

This is the second Cecelia Ahern book that I've read, and well, this does not disappoint. Written in a series of letters, emails, text messages, and chat messages, it chronicles the story of Rosie from when she was six years old until she was fifty. It seems she has everything going for her during her first few years in life: she has her best friend Alex, was about to embark on a university degree in Hospitality/Hotel Management, until fate suddenly interferes with all her plans, leaving her in Ireland while Alex was in America, when his dad got a job.

It was quite a cute story, of course, some elements are a bit easy to guess. In some parts, her story was absolutely heart tugging, in some, you just can't help but want to scream to Rosie because she lacked the drive and ambition and just let fate ground her in what she currently has instead of seeking out the bigger and better things she feels she deserves. But oh well, every character for themselves, right? I can't like everything about a novel :p

The chemistry in the characters were so cute, it made me want to cry. However, how can anyone be so stupid at times? How can that character not ask the right questions at the right times? *sigh*

Quite a unique book, and definitely one that I would remember. Just goes to show that when life give you lemons, you make lemonade. And when you fall down, you always have to remember to pick yourself up and just continue living!

Let me just say that Pudong is so much like Hong Kong Island- it is full of skyscrapers! Loads of tourists milling about too.

As you step out of the Metro stop, an overpass will greet you. It's for pedestrians only and you need to pass through it if you want To go to the Pearl Tv Tower or the Super Brand Mall.

The first stop on our iti was the Pearl Tv Tower. The entrance fee to go in is fairly steep: the higher up you go, the more expensive you pay. It's basically measured in the height of the three pink ball type things. The first level will set you back 130, second is 150 and the highest is 180. You could also opt to take a cruise for 100. Bought the tickets for the second level and up we went!

The selling point of the tv tower was the view of Shanghai from the second ball, plus the observation deck has see through panes that you'll walk on. They aren't that clear (it's full of scratches) so it didn't really give me the feeling that i'm about to fall to my death.

Summary from Goodreads:
Who would have guessed that four minutes could change everything?

Today should be one of the worst days of seventeen-year-old Hadley Sullivan's life. She's stuck at JFK, late to her father's second wedding, which is taking place in London and involves a soon to be step-mother that Hadley's never even met. Then she meets the perfect boy in the airport's cramped waiting area. His name is Oliver, he's British, and he's in seat 18C. Hadley's in 18A. 

Twists of fate and quirks of timing play out in this thoughtful novel about family connections, second chances and first loves. Set over a 24-hour-period, Hadley and Oliver's story will make you believe that true love finds you when you're least expecting it

I've never been one to buy books full price, but just imagine my surprise when I saw this book available at a local bookstore. It is quite expensive, given that the copy is a hard cover, and it took me several minutes in trying to decide if I should get it or not, but I finally did in the end.

I really wanted this book for like, forever, after the reviews that I've read on the internet, and also the premise of the book struck me. The story revolves around Hadley and Oliver, who both met at the airport and after a series of events, had them both in the same row on the same plane bound for London. Oh, and did I mention that Oliver is British? Just the mere fact hooked me on the book ;)

It reminded me of the feeling I had when I was reading Anna & the French Kiss: the unmistakeable tingly feeling you get in the pit of your stomach as you are reading the events that are unfolding between the two characters, and you feel the way they are feeling too. It's also very believable given that the dialogue is so real and true to what these Brit guys normally say!

It was easy reading for me at first, but then there were some parts that disappointed me (mainly parts that revolved around Hadley and there was no sight or mention of Oliver at all!) and of course, I was also at a point in my life where I didn't really like to read anything mushy so I had to put down the book and stare at it, not wanting to know what would happen to Hadley and Oliver as I was feeling a bit depressed.

I finally finished, and the ending was everything that I was expecting. The book is a bit short, to be honest. I'm not sure I feel so happy about it given the price I paid for this book. However, it is a feel good and uplifting tale that makes you wonder: "What if?" and would make you believe in things like fate, srendipity and other whatnot. Of course, in reality, each and everyone of us would be connected at one point in time given these random occurences and meetings in life, anywhere in the world.

As one friend of mine said, the people you meet are given a purpose for you. You just have to figure out what that particular purpose is to your life. I totally agree with that line. I have met a few people in my life who have inspired me to take a leap, travel, and just enjoy whatever life has to give to me and I am forever grateful for the opportunity to getting to know these people.

So, would I recommend this book? Definitely - but do not pay full price for it much like I did! LOL. I do hope that there would be another installment to Hadley & Oliver's tale (like, what happens after) but that's only wishful thinking!

Overall - 4/5

London 2012 is officially under way (did you get to watch it? I did!) and since not everyone can go there at the moment, I thought I could take you on a little tour what to see! This city has over 2,000 years of history, and is a cultural melting pot. It is a city where the old meets new, where high rise modern buildings can be seen within a few minutes walk from a castle!

First off, let's tour some Olympic venues within the London.

The Olympic Stadium, within the Olympic Village in Stratford, hosted the Opening Ceremonies last Friday. It would also host the Athletics & Closing Ceremony, definitely something to look out for. Have you seen the fireworks over this stadium during the Opening Ceremony?


Wimbledon is widely known for its yearly Tennis tournament, and this time, the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club will also be the venue for the Tennis Olympic Event.



The Wembley Stadium, distinguishable from miles around London because of the large arch in front, will host the football (soccer to Americans) final. Other football matches are scattered throughout England, but this is the closest to London so far.



And on to some iconic views - if you've seen the Olympic Opening Ceremonies, David Beckham went through this steering a speedboat (of course there's fireworks as he went through too)- this is Tower Bridge. It currently has the Olympic rings at the top for the Olympics :)

Early this January, there was a Piso fare from low cost carrier, Cebu Pacific, and since I couldn't resist the chance to grab a sale, I booked a ticket to a random destination, which was for Shanghai.

I had no clue what to expect from Shanghai, other than it used to be a colony of my beloved England, and that I watched a show on the travel channel about it. I just know that I need to have a visa to get in the country (ahh yes another obstacle I had to get through).

The flight arrives at 12mn in Shanghai and to save on costs for the hostel and the taxi from the airport, we decided to find a quiet place to stay and sleep.

I did not get enough sleep on the plane ride to Shanghai so when I found my spot to sleep on, I just put on my eye patch, my socks, and the sarong and Zzzzzzzed.

I woke up at around 5am (slept around 130/2) because the sound of the hoover cleaning the floor was quite annoying. It was also surprising for me that their sunrise is very early! Sleeping in the airport could be a good experience too, something I would definitely do again.

After changing our money (bloody hell, you have to pay a 50rmb service charge for any foreign exchange transactions done in the airport) - such a shame too as my ATM is not being recognized by any foreign bank at the ATM! Gaaah!

Got a Shanghai Metro card, then boarded a metro line 2 to East Nanjing Road. It's quite overwhelming as there are obviously a lot of people in China! The metro also takes forever to get from the airport to the city center with an interhange somewhere so watch out for that and allot ample time to get to/from the airport.

After finding the hostel of my friend - Blue Mountain Bund Youth Hostel at South Shanxi Road (near Exit One of the East Nanjing Road Stn), dropping off our bags and off we went to explore the city.

First stop was to just find breakfast! I was really, really hungry at the time and we ended up at KFC in East Nanjing Rd: something that's familiar to me, and was the first restaurant we saw! Got a burger of sorts plus an egg tart (for around 20RMB), and off we went to explore East Nanjing Rd.

Initially, I wanted to go and walk around the Bund area, but we ended up on the wrong direction and ended up at People's Square!

Explored the area for a little while before hopping on the Metro to Lujiazhui (Metro Line 2) to officially begin our tour!

I've always hated waiting, even if it's for a good thing. I'm always known to be a very impatient person! I think thy waiting can be a waste of time!

I'm sitting here in greenbelt now, waiting for a friend more than 3 hours late. Le sigh. I wish I stayed at home for those hours and just watched telly or caught a few hours of Zzz before going here. Might have saved a few bucks too by not eating lunch out.

On the good side: I got some nice jeans from forever 21 and a free comic book from fully booked. Still mulling over if I'm going to purchase a few books from
National bookstore or fully booked. They finally have the book "the statisical probability of love at first sight" by jennifer e smith and "never let me go" by kazuo isihiguro. Now I'm still mulling over if I would just buy those books full price or wait until they go on sale - even at 20% off.

Ugh, I'm already bored. I hate being bored!

Last year, when I got a chance to go back to England, I vowed to make the most of my time exploring the area. On one very sunny weekend, my friends and I went off to Leeds Castle.

When I first heard of the place four years ago, I thought it would be in faraway Leeds. Until my boss at the time corrected me and told me it was just located in Surrey, an hour or so away from London.

To get there, you'll need to take a train from London's Victoria Station and go down at the Bearsted stop. From Bearsted, take a bus that will take you to Leeds Castle.

The castle is known for it's fabulous and spacious gardens, and also for the maze! Lots of families also flock here during the weekend (specially if it's sunny) to eat picnics in the massive grounds.

There's loads of things to do in the area. When you get there, you could grab both a grounds and palace ticket, which will allow you access to the castle and the gardens. If you only want to go to the maze, just get the grounds ticket!

I honestly loved the gardens: there are swans all over, and water too: giving a very romantic and tranquil feel to the place. Too bad I didn't have a special someone to share it with!

The castle is also worth exploring- I always love everything thats historic, grand, and old.

You could also watch the bird show they have. They don't actually perform, but is a venue for the birds to stretch their wings a but and fly around the massive grounds. They don't bite, and always come back anyway!

So if you're looking for a nice place o go to whilst in England, do consider Leeds Castle :)

So, last June 3 was one of the best concert experiences in my life. One of my favourite boybands, BSB, has partnered up with another super boyband, NKOTB to make up NKOTBSB.

For those of you who don't know the acronyms: BSB- Backstreet Boys
NKOTB- New Kids On The Block
There. Acquainted now?

And so I got a txt and facebook message from friends while I was at Incheon International Airport in Korea and forwarded a poster to me: NKOTBSB on June 5. Oooh, count me in, I said to my friends. Only to find out the ticket prices a few weeks later and dismayed the hell out of me!

The SVIP area (first three rows) cost nearly 14000 pesos ($330+ £200+) (note: all prices are rounded up as I cannot remember the exact prices), the VIP area costs 9000 pesos ($230 £150), Lower Box around 8000 pesos ($200 £120), Upper Box at 3800 pesos ($100 £60) and General Admission at 1100 pesos ($30 £16).

It was much too expensive for my liking! And also, way off my original budget of 5000 pesos ($130 £75). My friends at the time were trying to buy VIP tickets but I politely declined, saying I will get the Upper Box as that was the closest to the stage given my very limited budget. It doesn't help that they will hold the venue at the Mall Of Asia Arena, a brand new concert venue in the metro, one we are not familiar with.

Anyways, I completely put the concert out of my mind - I don't want to regret buying the ticket (I could buy a plane ticket to Korea, Japan or any other international destination given that price) and I was also resolved in not watching anymore.

However, at the back of my mind, I was hoping for cheaper tickets and lo and behold, Groupon sold an offer to the ticket three days before the concert (on May 31st) at 50% off the original price. Perhaps because the original price of the tickets are so steep there's few people who bought them, and hence the offer. I immediately snapped a VIP seat at half off even though I have no idea where I was going to be seated.

On June 1st, I was lucky enough to get half day off from work and headed off to the Groupon office to claim my ticket. Knowing that there were hundreds who already bought the deal, I knew I was in for a chaotic afternoon and I was definitely not disappointed. The office was a bit hard to find- only directions I could give is that it's in Chino Roces Ave, and is near the Magallanes MRT station, walking distance!

When I arrived, the tickets weren't there yet! Apparently, they were still in transit (although I had a feeling thy were still being printed) and we had an option to wait for it or just have it shipped to our home addresses by the next day.

Since I was a paranoid android, I decided to wait. I didn't have anything else planned for the evening anyway. I'm all fairness and respect to the Groupon staff, they did everything that they can to keep us comfortable during the wait: offering us snacks, drinks, and chairs. They also offered updates now and again. Who could say no to that?

I finally got my tickets at around 7pm and woohoo!! I'll see NKOTBSB! It's finally real!

Watch out for part two of my post-
It will cover what happened at the concert itself :)

With my trip to Shanghai, China in June, I had to apply for a Chinese visa at least a few weeks Abefore the trip, otherwise I would never be allowed entry to their country. First off, to get a Chinese visa, they require the following:

1. Filled out form wih a passport photo (white background)
2. Photocopy of your passport's information page (the one with your photo on it, etc)
3. Photocopy of the back part of your passport: the emergency contact page must also be filled out.
4. Original bank certificate with receipt issued within the month you are applying the visa for. I think you'll need at least P50,000 in the account, but if it's more then it's better
5. NBI Clearance valid for travel abroad (for first time applicants only)
6. Photocopy of your SSS ID and your contributions (you can get your contributions from the sss website, the Chinese embassy accepts that. Saves you a lot of time in queueing up at the SSS office nearest you just for a printout).
7. TIN ID & latest 2316 form if you're employed or self-employed
8. Roundtrip plane ticket & hostel/hotel/guest house booking.

So, first things first, where is the Chinese Embassy?

Well, it could be found in Buendia. From Edsa, go down at Buendia MRT then ride the jeepney going to RCBC and go down at the World Centre building. Just follow the signs to the Chinese Embassy. No need to take the elevator as the stairs going to the second floor is enough to bring you to the Embassy.

Full address:

The Embassy of the People's Republic of China
Second & Third Floor
The World Center
330 Sen Gil Puyat Avenue
Makati City, Philippines

Before I go on with my experience with getting the visa, let me provide a brief background of myself: I am 20-something, employed in a multinational company for 5 years, and have been working for more than 6 years now. I have enough cash in my bank account, and also have travelled to several countries (Hong Kong, Macau, UK, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, among others).

So, my day began quite early, I arrived around 830AM at the embassy (45 minutes later than what I was hoping) so there was a small queue of people outside the embassy door, waiting to go in. Just tell the guard that you are going to apply for a Chinese visa. There is a metal detector going in, and tell the receptionist you're applying for a visa and she will give you a number.

Wait for your number to be called (it took ages for my number to be called) and once you are at the counter, just present your documents to the consul and he/she will review if your documents are complete and will ask some questions relating to your trip.

I was only asked two questions: What are you going to do in China & how long will you stay? To which I answered: "I'm going there to sightsee and I'm only staying for four days."

The consul double checked my documents again, then gave me a pink slip telling me to come back on a certain day. In my case, I applied on June 22, and he asked me to come back on June 25. Fast eh?

Since I was not free on June 25th (releasing times for the Chinese Visa is from 9-11AM), I asked if it was okay to get my passport on another date. He said that I could get a representative to get my passport on my behalf, as long as they are holding the pink paper. Sweet! Note that you do not have to pay for the visa when you submit your documents. You'll only pay for the visa when you claim your passport.

Anyway, on June 25th, I asked my mum to get my passport. She arrived at around 930-10AM at the embassy and got a number for the passport claiming.

Once her number was called, she went to Window 7 to pay P1400 (I applied for a single entry visa, valid for 3 months with a maximum stay in China for 14 days). If you're applying for a multiple entry visa then the charges are higher (I think around P2500, if I'm not mistaken).

Once you have paid the visa fee, you'll be issued a receipt and you have to fall in line in Window 6 according to the receipt number. So do remember who was in front of you at the line! In Window 6, you'll have to show the receipt and they will give your passport back!

Hurrah! That's it! Getting a Chinese visa is quite easy although the pain points are getting all the requirements ready (all the IDs and of course, the NBI Clearance) and queueing to pass your requirements (then again, it's the same as South Korea, you have to queue!)

Ahh the pains of travelling abroad when you have a Philippine Passport. Lots of time, money, effort & energy spent in securing all the needed documents and sleepless nights wondering if you're gonna be approved or denied.

Next stop for a visa-required country for me would probably be Japan! Fingers crossed! :)

If you're a frequent reader of this blog, you'll know that most of the entries here are composed because of boredom - the constant feeling of being stuck and not knowing what to do because I feel I've done everything that Manila has to offer.

Then an opportunity arose a week ago (it's May 12th as I type this), where I could enroll in Korean lessons for only P800 (roughly around $20), within a walking distance from where I work, and the end of which is a diagnostic exam where if I pass, I could move on to Level Two.

The idea was first sprung to me by my colleague (Hullo Ash), who was addicted to Korean Television Shows. She wanted to learn Korean as a way to understand what the actors are saying without reading the subtitles. Me? Why do I want to learn Korean? Hmmm.. let me count the ways.

1. A chance to learn something new.
On my travels, I realized that the world is so big, full of different cultures, speaking a ton of different languages. Of course, since my time on earth is limited, I want to soak up whatever the world has, and hence, learning new languages is part of my goal.
Ultimately, I would have preferred to have learned something more useful, like Mandarin Chinese, Spanish, or French, but I wouldn't complain :) At least I'm learning a new language that I can use when I do go back to Korea.

2. The beauty of being able to communicate abroad

Sure I could only use Korean whenever I travel to Korea, but on my February 2012 trip there, I have learned to appreciate the place. This country will always be memorable to me as it where I got my first taste of solo international backpacking was like, and was also the first place where I had encountered winter. I live in a tropical country with only two seasons!

When I was trudging along Korea the first time around, I found that knowing how to say Hello and Thank You in Korean really did go a long way. Now, learning more basic terms, I'm ready to go back and converse more with the locals.

3. The ability to read something completely out of the ordinary. 

The Korean language, much like Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, among others uses a completely different writing system. While it may look like a bunch of circles and straight lines to foreigners, I am more than excited to learn how to read them! I've studied Japanese before for two years in high school, and a term in Uni and there's nothing like trying to memorize all those symbols, which would in effect, make up words, and sentences. It's amazing.

And so, since the excitement and anticipation begins. My classes start on May 28th, from 9:30-11:30AM. (Good thing work has allowed me to change my schedule so I could work and study at the same time) Unfortunately, given that the online enrollment was a bit of a nightmare (it was next to impossible to get slots, but luckily I managed to get one), I was not in the same class as Ash (she is taking the 6:00-8:00pm class, along with a few others in a different team in the office) but maybe it's a blessing in disguise as we can concentrate more on the classes, and I can get to meet more people.

I'll be pulling in later work hours for three days a week for two months but it's well worth it :) I hope I get to pass the exams!

Hmmm... I do have to take two days off from class as I already have booked trips out of town while the courses are being held. But no matter, hopefully it won't conflict with any exam dates - if that is the case, I could probably request for another exam date then~