Nowadays, traveling is an essential part of life. It is a chance to explore new places, learn more about yourself and the culture of the place you are going to and is an adventure, in itself. A chance to know that you are just one tiny being in the huge world we are moving in.

Very few people do get a chance to travel, and very few people get an opportunity to take a few years off and just discover what's out there. In this book, Trent Newcomer decides to leave his corporate job and the safety of his routine life back at home and just backpack to different countries. He traveled for over a year and a half, and this book is his memoir, so to speak, of those travels: the places he visited, and the people he met along the way. With every new place, he did not have a set itinerary, only a goal: to continuously strive to expand the  boundaries of his comfort zone.

This book is biographical so I cannot comment much on characters, settings, and the like, so this review is also non-traditional in a sense. I admire Trent for having the guts to do this. I know it isn't easy to leave the comfort of your life back home, with a steady-paying job, your friends, and just go off on your own over yonder. I admire him for not having a steady itinerary and not jumping in to some of the tourist traps that the countries he had went to offered. As you read through the book, you'll have a feeling of wanting to go to the places he went as well. He described his adventures so vividly and provided information on the places he stayed in and areas that few travelers would ever think of going, which are hidden gems of the area, so to speak.  His feelings are clear in the book: there are no holds barred, like his fears of entering a mountain bike race when he is physically unprepared, and how customs officials may single you out for not exactly having the best appearance whilst on the border.

The book is an enjoyable read, it is informative for future travelers like me who intend to follow in the example that Trent has led. He and so many others have proven to the world, that yes, it can be done, and you just need to take the first step to reach the goals that you want. And well, yes, lots of planning beforehand [the places, how much it would cost, and maybe contact long-lost friends along the way]. However, I feel as if the chapters and the narratives on the countries he visited were a bit too short. I feel it left me hanging and gives me the thought "that's it??" Perhaps Trent should have presented the book by continent, to provide more information on what he did in a particular country, but that's just me. I know it must have been hard for him to trim down his memoirs from his 4000++ page journal into the 300+ page book that he has presented now. Fellow readers, please also keep an open mind as you read the book. Not all the situations Trent has found himself on his travels may happen to you, after all, it has been 15 years since he has embarked on this trip and things may have changed since then. And within those 15 years, we have been blessed with budget airlines, fast trains, mobile internet, GPS-enabled phones, so we have it easier right now compared to what he has encountered before.

This book is a light read, and will definitely inspire you to see more of the world and just step out of your comfort zone, however hard it may prove to be. All you need is to take that first step and you are on your way!

And so, on to the rating & information:
Published: 2009
Publisher:  iUniverse
Available from: Barnes & Noble and the iUniverse bookstore.
Final Rating:  4/5 [I liked it, it is very inspiring, as I have said again and again in my post above]
Read it if: You want to discover new places to go to and want to be inspired in people's travel stories.

**Many, many thanks to Trent Newcomer for sending this book over. **

I'm LOVING this book. Seriously. It opened my eyes up to the world of Ancient Egypt like it never had.
Granted, I'd always been biased to British history and literary figures but this book has blown me away.
Though it does have it's ups and downs [more of which I'll post when I've finished reading the book, I'm about 1/3 there], I constantly have to google and research to create a visual interpretation of what Michelle Moran was saying in the book.

So, hence, for myself [and any others who might be interested in Ancient Egypt], I created a virtual tour and guide of the times as based from the book of Michelle Moran. Well, mostly I did it to avoid having to google everything again, so I'll just post everything I come up here and credit as necessary. And basically I just want the readers of my blog to appreciate the same things I did whilst I was reading the book!

No spoilers below! But if I do slip, let me know in the comments so I could update this post!

First up, who are these characters from the Hellenistic Egypt times? Well, there's Kleopatra Selene. As per the book, she is the only daughter of Marc Antony and Kleopatra VII.

[Photo on the left from http://www.bible-history.com/] The book is told from her point of view [hence the title "Cleopatra's Daughter". No, it's not about the famous Cleopatra VII talking about her daughter] She was only 11 when her mother and father committed suicide when their empire was falling against Octavian's forces. [Previous sentence is not a spoiler because everyone pretty much knows that they killed themselves -- its part of Ancient History!]

She has a twin brother, Alexander Helios, whom I can't find a decent portraiture on the internet right now, who is more level-headed and is an excellent horseman like his father.

She also has a younger brother, Ptolemy Philadelphius, described to look a lot like Marc Antony [now, I really have to look for photos of Marc Antony!!! Is he that much of a looker? Really?? I couldn't imagine although the bust pieces of him from the museums kinda look interesting -- he's got wavy [or curly] blonde hair, doesn't he?]

Anyways, the book was initially set in Alexandria, where Selene was recounting how lovely the place was. One of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World was located there: The Lighthouse of Alexandria, to which Selene has drawn many wonderful views of the city [painting by Salvador Dali on right].

 Alexandria is on the top of Egypt, it is also known for their sea ports and was the capital of Egypt. Alexander the Great had founded this city when he conquered Egypt!

This city is also known for the Library of Alexandria, it was also stated in the book that it's filled with thousands of scrolls and Selene and Alexander loved to read through them. The book also describes the mausoleum of Antony and Kleopatra, and I would've loved to see the mausoleum as well as the Library of Alexandria and the Lighthouse, but unfortunately, they're all destroyed now :( Well, who would've thought it would survive after 2000 years [except for the pyramids of course]

My, my, who would've ever thought that people in those days would ever think that their works and legacy would still live 2000 or more years on?? Hopefully I would love to make at least a tiny bit of impact to the world as much as they did.

I left out my notes at home so I'll create a virtual tour part II when I come up with more interesting bits and bobs. I'm at the part where Kleopatra and Alexander are already seeing the sights and structures of Rome, so the next part would probably be longer than this!

Hope you enjoyed :) I'd already included Alexandria as one of my places to visit in my goal to see the world!

Since I don't have any bookish related things to share, and since a friend of mine wanted me to blog about some of my travels, I might as well start off with a long overdue post from a trip to the UK last June-July 2008.

After a long plane ride from Manila to Dubai and finally to London, I landed on June 1st, Saturday, around 8AM.
[More info in another blog post]

After resting in my apartment in Smithfield, unpacking and cooking my lunch, it was time to go sightseeing with my friends!

First up was North Greenwich.

** Map of the different areas in Central London's East Side. Taken near St. Paul's Cathedral by myself **

From Farringdon station, I bought myself an Oyster Card [tip: buy an Oyster card! It is accepted in the bus and the Underground and you'll get fares that are so much cheaper than the typical single fare rate]. I honestly have no idea which station or line of train we rode in and where we stopped! I was at a daze! I think we went down the Circle/Metropolitan line [again, I don't remember] in Westminster [or was it London Bridge?] but when we headed for the Jubilee line, we found out it was closed! Good thing there were free bus services that were shuttling us around the areas where the Jubilee line was supposed to service.

Note: If travelling in London, most underground lines or stations could be closed during weekends because they're under maintenance service. Before you enter the train station, always read the advisories first to make alternate routes. The underground station is quite confusing to understand at first, but every station has free maps in it, and most station has an interchange or another station within walking distance so you could easily find your way around it, easypeasy! :) Also take note that some stations or train lines close earlier than the others so do make your research and you'll be fine :)

We went down the O2 Arena.

Map of London's underground. Confusing? Not really. The different colours represent the different train lines and the circles are station names.

The O2 Arena is a large multimedia arena that used to be called the Millennium Dome. It is the venue for some of the concerts hosted in London. At the time I was there, The Osmonds were playing, and two days before were Boyzone [more about Boyzone later]. It was such a huge venue, it houses a cinema [called the Vue], an exhibition hall [called the O2 Bubble -- King Tut was exhibited at the time, it was actually their first exhibition in this venue, and again, this will be elaborated on another post], various restaurants and bars [Entertainment Avenue], and some other stores. Plus, the dome itself is very distinctive -- you could easily see it from aerial shots of London. *sigh*

There is no entrance fee to go around the O2 grounds, but separate entrance fees if you're going to watch a concert or go see an exhibition in the hall. If you're going to convert from peso to pounds, be sure not to be shocked at the prices cos some of them are absolutely outrageous! At the time, the pound-peso exchange rate was nearly P90 so do the math :P

** me at the O2 Arena **

After the O2, we also went around the North Greenwich area, which will be covered in another post!

Tah for now!

The mosque during my trip last month. Good times.

Figured I'd take a break from publishing a backlog of book reviews & travel updates to come up with a little meme!

**some of my makeup stash**

First off, I love, love, love, love to travel. Yes, I love to travel even more than I love books! My dream destinations are the UK [again] and Italy. One of my dreams is to go on a Eurotrip for at least 2 months, trying to explore every city I go along =) That will make me so happy! I LOVE Europe!

Another love -- stuffed animals and makeup. They make me so happy!

I also love concerts, music, theatre & events. Nothing like being invited in an event. Text or ring me up a day or two before an event and I'd definitely confirm!

**red panda from Ocean Park, Hong Kong**

Next. I love tv shows & movies. Equally as much as I love books! My favourites at the moment are True Blood, The Vampire Diaries and the Tudors. Maybe a bit of Gossip Girl as well.

And finally, books! My preferences are:

1. Books set in England, most specially in London!! There's nothing like imagining what's happening in the book & mixing it up with my own memories.
2.Historical fiction about royalty - Kings, queens, prince and princesses. oh my! The scandal and society!
3. Other historical fiction - what's it like living back then? But I mostly prefer European historical fiction [again, the bias for European stuff]
4. Paranormal - vampires, werewolves, shapeshifters. :D Immortals intrigue me.
5. Fantasy - a whole new world, anyone?
6. Autobiography/biographies - partial to british royalty, personalities, singers & artists. Mostly of the European kind too [except for Nick Carter]
7. Mystery - who killed whom? what's the backstory? I loved Nancy Drew when I was a kid and it passed on until now!

This is a photoblog of our fifth day in Hong Kong, one of our itineraries included going over to Sha Tin, in New Town Plaza mall to visit Snoopy's World.

A brief background: it is actually the first outdoor Peanuts playground in Asia.
To go there, ride the MTR and go down in Sha Tin Station. Then a short 5 minute walk through a mall & follow the directions to Snoopy's World.


**entrance to Snoopy's World**


**Snoopy & friends camping out**


**a more close-up view of the camping**








**Snoopy and Charlie Brown boating**


**Joe Cool**




**Shroeder**


**Snoopy playing the guitar**


**Snoopy & Woodstock**


**Sally Brown**


**Psychiatric help? Ask Lucy!**

Originally uploaded by rubybabydoll

This is the train going to HK Disneyland from Sunny Bay.
Look at the detail of the windows -- they're mickey ears! Now, can you find the hidden mickeys? :)

More photos to come from my HK 2009 trip!

Only had two hours of sleep this day since I had to wake up at 4AM to get to the airport before 6AM [ugh. traffic issues in Southern Metro Manila -- all this construction work in the so-called highways is enough to drive a person crazy in traffic, good thing for books and their handy-dandiness].

Arrived at the airport around 515AM [yes, that early] -- went to the Cebu Pacific check-in counter, then paid the P1620 travel tax, got my boarding pass & paid another P750 in airport taxes. So much taxes here in the PH! The taxes almost amount to the plane ticket I paid, which I booked during the Cebu Pacific promo.

Surprisingly, the 8AM flight from Manila to HK took off earlier than expected. We arrived in HKIA at 9:35AM. Lucky lucky =) We then hurried off to the bus that would take us to the Evergreen hotel.


*Central area. Shot from the TST Waterfront*

Arrived at the hotel around 11:30, but since check-in time is 2:00pm, we walked around the area to familiarize ourselves: we looked for the MTR and looked for a place to eat. We ended up at McDonalds. We were not in the mood to actually look for a Chinese food stall so we settled for one we know and are familiar with.

Headed on off to Mong Kok -- where I was looking for a camera to get. I finally settled in Wing Sing, and I now have my new baby =)

We then went to Tin Hau temple after for a bit of sight-seeing and photos =)

Then back to the hotel to check-in and rest.

In the afternoon, we walked to TST [oh yes, no MTRs since we wanted to explore the place] and headed off to the HK Science Museum -- the entrance is free on Wednesdays and who wouldn't say no to freebies, right?

After that, we took a long walk down Avenue of the Stars -- most of the stars there are virtually unknown to me except for Bruce Lee & Jackie Chan.

Dinner at Food Paradise in Sogo.

Went out at 715pm at the TST Waterfront to get a good area at the second floor viewing deck for the Symphony of Lights. It was a long wait but the Symphony of Lights was very good. I was amazed at how the lights on the buildings were choreographed with the music.

Then off to Harbour City in the evening for a bit of window shopping before calling it a night.



Some tips for your trip:
- Do come at least 30 minutes before the Symphony of Lights show so you could get a good seat. When we came down at 8:15, there were a number of people crowding around the lower decks.
- Do bring bottled water along with you at all times. If possible, buy your water at Wellcome or at a grocery because prices in the vendo machines or at 7-11 are exorbitant! But if there's no Wellcome stores near your area, then 7-11 would do just fine. You need to drink & rehydrate, especially if you're travelling in the summer time.
- Bring an umbrella with you at all times -- HK weather in July is weird -- sometimes it rains, sometimes it's scorching hot!
- Do research on the specifications of the electronics first before you get anything in HK. And as per PEX, don't buy anything from the stores in Nathan Road. I myself bought my camera from a trusted electronic store in HK, Wing Sing. Make sure you get a warranty & try to haggle for freebies or a discount =)

Have fun, enjoy! If you have further questions on itinerary or what I did for this day, feel free to comment :) Will post on the rest of my other days in HK in subsequent posts.



* Book/Telly Stats *
Books read on day 1st holiday: None. Only brought one book with me in the trip, "My Take" by Gary Barlow, which I only got to read a few pages of whilst in the airport. I was pretty much asleep nearly the whole flight to HK.

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!

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!

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

One of my favourite things to do whilst on leave from work is to go out and just have adventures within Manila or outside Manila.

Last April 13th, since I was bored at home, I went to Quiapo and Divisoria with Yam, my friend.
Instead of the normal route we usually take, this time, we decided to take the ferry.
I first read about the Pasig River Ferry at a book club in Shelfari and immediately decided to try it for the sake of trying everything once :)

We met at Guadalupe, the ferry station is within 5 minutes walk from the MRT station, and it has strict times on when the ferry will arrive. We arrived at around 9:15, and the next ferry would be at 10am.

We decided to go to McDonalds first and eat breakfast then headed for the ferry after.

When we went back to the station, we paid P35 for the fare from Guadalupe to Quiapo. And who did we bump into at the station? None other than Iya Villania and Chesca Garcia -- they are doing a shoot for Us Girls Lol.

The ferry station is very clean, nothing like I first expected. Only downside? No airconditioning, so bring a fan if you need to wait for a ferry longer.



The ferry arrived at around 10:10 and I was surprised it was airconditioned! :) We passed through several churches on the banks, Malacanang Palace [we're not allowed to take photos because of security reasons. boo] and we also saw other ferries. Some of the ferry stations are nice, but when we reached the Quiapo station, I was disappointed. It was just a dingy piece of plank that was a makeshift stop! It didn't look like a ferry station after all.

Overall, I throughly enjoyed the ride! I can't wait to ride again, although a bit of a suggestion would be to renovate the Quiapo station. Seriously.

That's right. Zero fare for international/domestic flights for CebuPac.

I'm very tempted to go to Vietnam. Hmm..... Gotta check the trusty old bank account if I've got funds

Just checked, I've got none =)

But nevertheless. Will that stop me? I sure hope not!

Will post again if I've *gulp* booked a flight already!