Weekend Getaway: Tagaytay 2017

Marga, Dez, Kia, Kim

 It's been forever since our friend Marga went to the States and last Christmas she and her family came back here in the Philippines to visit some relatives and friends and we were lucky enough to have had some quality time together (despite our busy work schedule) since we really missed her so much! They stayed here for about three weeks and during those times we were able to see each other twice!

 

Marga went to the same University with us but during our third year her family migrated to Reno, Nevada so she wasn't able to finish her degree with us. It's been years but now we're just happy we were able to spend some time together again. 

She had to squeeze her schedule meeting everyone she wanted to see during her stay here and right before they flew back we already planned on having a weekend getaway. So there we were at Tagaytay one weekend, having fun and catching up on everything (though we regularly talk in Facebook!).

 

 We went to People's Park, Picnic Grove, Pink Sisters' Convent and had late lunch at LZM Restaurant. There were a lot of people as usual and the weather was so good we wished we could stay longer. Picnic Grove was a tiring one since we had to walk the trail but it was fun! We also planned on visiting the Korean Temple we passed by on our way to People's Park but we were short in time and we had to come back to Manila by 7pm. 

It was really a day well spent with them and how I wished time would slow down so we could spend more time together. But of course, time is a bitch. 

Now Marga and her family is back in Reno and we will surely miss her again! But she promised to visit again sooooooon. :)

Book: A Thousand Boy Kisses by Tillie Cole

★★★/★★★★★

“Live hard, love harder. Chase dreams, seek adventures … capture moments. Live beautifully.”

When I started reading this book I didn't have any idea it would be full of heartbreaking moments. The first few pages were lovely and I loved Poppy and Rune's instant and special bond. They were bestfriends since five, shared their first kiss at the age of eight and by fifteen they were inseparable. Poppy and Rune were those teenagers who fell in love instantly and promised to love each other forever. Well, that was the plan if only things were different.

Poppy Litchfield was an adventurous and free-spirited girl who loved to go to different adventures with her Mamaw. When she was five, a new family transferred to the house next to them and that was when she met Rune. Five years old Rune Kristiansen hated that his family had to move to Georgia from Norway because of his father's job. He didn't like it at first but when he met Poppy, the girl next door, he started to soften up and eventually fell for her. Years after, Poppymin (meaning My Poppy) and Viking Rune (because he kept his hair long and was from Oslo) were the best of friends and they always had to be together. When they were eight, Poppy's Mamaw (grandmother) passed away but before she said her goodbye, she gave Poppy an adventure she knew she'd love. Mamaw gave her a mason jar full of a thousand blank little pink paper hearts. She said that it was time for Poppy to have her own adventure and she wanted her to fill those blank paper hearts with her own boy-kisses. Boy kisses were the kisses given by Poppy’s grandfather to her Mamaw and it’s her Mamaw’s favorite thing.

I loved the concept of the thousand boy kisses and it was actually sweet. I already suspected that there would be a lot of kisses involved by just seeing the title and true enough with the jar and the thousand little pink paper hearts, a lot of kissing happened.

“I'll give you a Thousand kisses, Poppymin. All of them. No one will kiss you ever, but me.”

As the story went on, it became more and more poignant. Rune's family had to go back to Norway because of his father's job again and Rune hated his father because of it. They were fifteen by then and because he was young and in love and foolish, he didn't understand that his father didn't have a choice and that it was also hard for his family to move again. Now with Rune in Norway and Poppy in Georgia, they tried to keep their relationship and communication for the first few months until Poppy just suddenly stopped talking to Rune and her family moved away too. Rune tried everything to reach her through her friends and everyone else but no one seemed to know where Poppy and her family had gone too. Two years later, Poppy and her family was back in Georgia and few weeks after they moved back, Rune and his family also moved back from Norway. Poppy didn't expect to see Rune again and Rune didn't expect to still love Poppy after all those years.

Attending the same school, Rune and Poppy can't avoid but to see each other again. But this time Rune was different. He was cold, he was smoking and he didn't take pictures anymore. Before, he used to be calm and sweet and he loved photography. But two years had changed him and being away from Poppy surely ruined him. Poppy, on the other hand, was still the same. She still played cello, she was still warm and she still loved Rune. But this time, she had cancer and she only had months to live.

“Because I still loved him as much as I always had. Even if the boy I loved no longer loved me back.”

It was hard not to feel sad for Poppy and Rune because their love for each other was pure and undying. And though they were still young, they believed that there wouldn't be anyone else for either of them because their feelings were strong and cancer can't stop them for having the best love of their lives. Poppy lived her remaining days with Rune and Rune stayed by Poppy's sides, giving her the best things in life. They also had the support of their family and friends.

The reason why I'm giving this book a 3-star is because while I loved the thousand boy kisses, there were times when I found myself waiting for it to just end. I mean, I knew what would eventually happen and things were just dragging on. The twist came early in the book and when I realized what would happen next, I think that was when I started to disconnect myself. Aside from few scenes that were able to tug at my emotions, I felt emotionally detached most of the times. Don't get me wrong, it was sweet and beautiful and full of emotions but I think it was too cheesy and too cliché for me.

A lot of people loved this book and I'm happy for them. I liked it and it was a lovely book and I hope the next person who would read it would like it too.

“The one-thousandth kiss... with my Poppy. When she returned home... my heart completely burst.”

Happy Chinese New Year! :)

2016 Is a Fire Monkey Year 

 In Chinese astrology, each year is associated with a Chinese zodiac animal sign and one the Five Elements: Gold (Metal), Water, Wood, Fire, or Earth. Both the sign and element of your birth year are said to affect your personality and destiny. Element-sign combinations recur every 60 years. 

Fire Monkey (...2016, 1956,...) 

- Ambitious and adventurous, but irritable

Wood Monkey (... 2004, 1944...)

- Always ready to help others; compassionate, with strong  self-esteem, but stubborn

Water Monkey (...1992, 1932...)

-  Smart, quick-witted, fond of being in the limelight, but haugthy

Gold Monkey (...1980, 1920...)

- Smart, quick-witter, and confident, but also irritable and stubborn

Earth Monkey (...1968, 1908...)

Frank, optimistic, and fearless 

  ---

Lucky numbers: 4 and 9

Lucky days: the 14th and 28th of the Chinese lunar calendar month

Lucky colors: white, blue, gold

Lucky flowers: chrysanthemum, crape-myrtle

Lucky directions: north, northwest, west

Lucky months: Chinese lunar months 8 and 12 

---

Unlucky numbers: 2 and 7

 Unlucky colors: red, pink

 Unlucky directions: south, southeast

Unlucky months: Chinese lunar months 7 and 11 

To read more visit China Highlights.

Some People You Meet In Your Life

1. The Eternal Family. Your loving parents, your beautiful sisters, your handsome brothers and all your other relatives. They are the people who were there from the start and are always beside you all the time. They've watched you grow up and they know every little thing about you from your favorite food to your greatest dream. You spend most of your time with them, sharing your experiences and telling them all the good and bad things in your life. They are the people who will never ever leave you. They are the people who care and love you so much.

2. The Bestfriends. The people who are crazy enough to be your friends. They treat you like a sister/brother or sometimes like a maid. You can laugh with them, cry with them, and just do anything with them even if it's going to McDonald's at 3 in the morning. They are the people who know your secrets and will use them against you just for fun. The people you share everything with; food, stories, clothes and all the good and bad stuff in your life. They love you just the way you are even if you're crazy and loud and a one big pain in the head. You share your adventures with them and together you plan to travel the world one day.

3. The Good Friends. People you often see but are always there when you need a friend. The ones you go out with only once a month but feel like you still know them your whole life. The people you can always count on because they know that they can count on you too. The Hey-I-Miss-You-Let's-Have-Ice-Cream friends you can always have a good laugh with.

4. The Just-Passing-By Guys. Those guys you meet in your life that at one point will make you think and believe they're the one. Those guys who will make you feel special for a while but then after some time will leave you in a blink of an eye. Those guys you thought you could have a future with. Those guys.

5. The One That Got Away. That one person who will always have a piece of your heart. That someone you've tried forgetting years after years but until now you still can't. That someone who once made you feel like you were the most special girl/guy in the world and who gave you everything. That person you wished you didn't take for granted. That person you shared so much with that everything reminds you of him/her. That one special person who can always, always, make you feel like a fool for losing him/her. The one who will forever have a place in your heart.

6. The Bitches. Do I need to say more? They are the liars, the backstabbers and the unhappy people who are always jealous and who always want to drag you down. Period.

7. The Long Distance Friends. Your friends who are far from you or live in other countries and the people you meet and talk with online.They are the ones you talk with in your social media accounts and other websites. You become friends with them because you like the same shows or games or artist. You can relate with each other especially when talking about something you both love. They can be anyone and you don't care just as long as you respect each other.

8. The Stars/Idols. The people you admire and wish to be friends with someday. Those artists or idols or groups or bands you really love who inspire you and give you something to be crazy about.

9. The One Who Inspires You. At some point you have that someone who greatly influences your life. Someone who makes you see things differently and changes your view in life. A person who helps you become better, stronger and more positive in life. He/She supports and encourages you to do the things you love and will always tell you to follow your dreams.

10. The One Guy You Will Spend The Rest of Your Life With. The one who will make you the happiest person in the world. Your true love, your forever, your one and only. He/She will make you feel all the kinds of love in the world and will never ever leave you. Someone you can trust, someone you can tell all your secrets to and someone who accepts all of you. The person you can call at 2 in the morning just because you can't sleep, the person you can go with to your favorite band's concert, the person who knows all your imperfections but still love you and the person who will do everything just to keep you by his/her side. That one special guy.

Essay: Who are my friends?

This is an essay for my sister's English class.

Title: Who are your friends?

“A friend is someone who knows all about you and still loves you.” 

― Elbert Hubbard

           Friends. They are the people you share everything with. Your stories, your problems, your food, you even share the dislike you feel towards other people. You treat them nicely but sometimes you tease them too. Friends are the people you feel comfortable with because they know everything about you. 

            Who are my friends? My friends are the people I eat with during lunch. My friends are the people I chat with during class. My friends are these crazy people who are listening to me now (If they are even listening). My friends are the reason I am enjoying high school now. Why? Because they make everyday easier by just being by my side. That’s what friends do, right? They make everything easier. They make you laugh with their dumb jokes. They make you giggle with their silly expressions. They push you towards your crush but instead of getting mad, you thank them anyway. Because that’s just what friends do. 

           But friends don’t only stay during the good times. They also share your sadness, pain and the BV (bad vibes). They are beside you when you feel down, lost or even when you’re just not in the mood. Or when you’re in your red days. They ask why your face is crumpled when you’re upset about something. They lend you a hand whenever you need one. They give you hope when everything else feels wrong. Friends are what keep you going when you feel like stopping. Friends are what motivate you when everything else sucks and most importantly, they don’t let you do crazy things… alone.

            So who are your friends? Are they the one sitting beside you? Because if they are, then you’re probably denying it now for how crazy they must be. But crazy or not, you still love them anyway.

Anime: Akatsuki no Yona 2014

This anime reminded me so much of Fushigi Yuugi with Yona being the princess and all the dragons and the guys around her. And Su-won actually looked like Hotohori and Hak reminded me of Tamahome. Anyway, I loved it! It made me cry, laugh, fall in love and cry even more. I don't know if I'm just too emotional or this anime was just really good that you will feel every emotion inside of you while watching it!

The story is about Yona, the sole princess of the kingdom of Kouka and her journey on finding the legendary four dragons that once unified her kingdom under the rule of Hiryuu, the first king. It all starts on the night of Yona's sixteenth birthday when she witnesses the murder of her father, King Il, by the hands of Su-won, her childhood friend and who was once the most important person to her because he's so nice and gentle to her. Everything turns upside down when Yona realizes what Su-won really wants, the kingdom. Su-won is also ready to kill Yona if only Hak, her other childhood friend and bodyguard, hasn't saved her. Then both Yona and Hak escape from the kingdom to the Wind Tribe, Hak's home.

It's a really good story with strong, funny and heartfelt scenes. I love how Yona started as a weak and carefree girl who just stayed inside her palace but later on became a strong and brave princess after knowing and witnessing herself what was really happening outside the palace. Seeing it opened her eyes to so many things, thus promising to be strong so she can protect her friends and fight the bad guys too. The story gets better when she starts looking for the dragons.

Meet the gang.

Ki-ja, Jaeha, Hak, Yona, Su-won,Yun, Jeno, Sinha

Princess Yona

Son Hak 

Su-won

Yun

Ki-ja "The White Dragon"

Sinha "The Blue Dragon"  

 

 

 Jaeha "The Green Dragon"

Zeno "The Yellow Dragon"

 

 

 *Cheers

 

There were 24 episodes and each episode really made me laugh and cry and fall in love. Each episode told different stories and the one that made me cry my heart out was the part where Yun needed to say goodbye to Ik-su because Ik-su wanted him to go along with Yona and Hak. Their story was so heartbreaking and I loved the kind of friendship they had. 

 

I hope you enjoy this anime as much as I did! :)

 

Yona and Hak :") 

This one is from the OVA :)

I also decided to read the manga because I just can't get enough of them! :)