Archive for October, 2008

The witches are back


2008
10.31

That was last year’s Halloween theme at Chessington World of Adventures and surprisingly, this year’s also. Hmm. Have they been recycling witches?

Last year, my nieces and I were at their theme park branch in Surrey a week before Halloween. It was a nice treat from cousin and her husband. We were up earlier than usual, drove to the place not exceeding the 30 mile blinking speed meter and got off the car to embrace the cold wind of autumn. I thought my ears would explode.

I was asked to write down a spell and threw it in the "boiling" pot.

I was asked to write down a spell the Charmed way and threw it into the "boiling pot".

Our tickets had been paid for online at roughly 20GBP per head. There was a lane for those who printed their confirmed passes from the website. Inside, we took turns in touring the girls around and passed by those trees where “witches” pitched their tents and posed for photographs in their spooky wardrobe on top of white long-sleeved shirts with silk ties. I envied those talents wearing mascots. It was warm inside.

Posing with the bat in shades

Posing with the bat in shades

Chessington World of Adventures is a spacious theme park, probably double the size of the local Enchanted Kingdom. There were all sorts of rides, a zoo, theatres, game centers and fast food outlets visitors could choose from. My fear of heights was challenged when we took the Dragon Falls at the Mystic East that sent me screaming during the deep plunge while my niece simply looked cool. Other death-defying rides, like the Rameses Revenge, could probably send me early to the grave. I’m happy and content in those carousel rides.

Rameses Revenge and the waterspouts

Rameses Revenge and the waterspouts

KFC and Pizza Hut swarmed with people during lunch time. No one dared to eat out in the cold unless left with no choice but have a picnic on those cold benches. Inside those heated restos were people sharing seats and floor spaces, too.

Lunch at KFC and Pizza Hut

Lunch at KFC and Pizza Hut

Probably it was my lack of sense of adventure that made theme parks land at the bottom of my must-see list. It’s nice to go to these places from time to time but I would rather embark on a trip where I would learn something really interesting other than send my vision on a swirl.

Cebu accessorized


2008
10.28
Shiny, shimmering, splendid

Shiny, shimmery, splendid

Cebu has changed so much over the years that it is no longer the butt of those old school Magellan-Lapu-Lapu-kusinero jokes that circulated during the Yoyoy Villame era. The Visayan capital has followed the footsteps of Manila in so many ways that differences are now hard to tell. Supermalls define the city’s landscape and dictate lifestyle patterns. Five-star hotels house casinos and restaurants offering variety of flavors. Business processing offices opening in the area have rendered this old Spanish settlement absolutely sleepless and probably restless hundreds of years after.

Manang Linda shows us the painful details of the craft

Manang Linda shows us the painful details of the craft

While the IT and retail industries flourish, Cebu has also made a mark in the fashion scene. Local fashion accessories industry starts to bloom and exports have been aggressive so far. Bijoux Cebu was the ultimate proof that they too have stepped into the challenge of becoming world-class.

During the exhibit, we’ve met Manang Linda who graciously demonstrated to us how those accessories you see today were processed from scratch. In fact, every design component has its own humble story to tell from just being a piece of an abandoned shell to something that accents beauty. Every piece was painstakingly made by people who devoted their resources, time, passion and strength. So remember those things next time you purchase one.

It is a thriving million dollar industry that generates more jobs, opens up small business opportunities and inspires creativity not only among women but even men who have an eye for design and symmetry.

Lessons from the Potter


2008
10.27

Last book of HP series being sold at Dubai Airport

I have just finished watching Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix in HBO. It wasn’t really the story that kept me glued to the TV set for more than two hours. A lot of those locations in the movie reminded me so much of last year’s trip to England.

There are probably a hundred different things about the place I missed so much. The erratic weather, yellow and brown hues of autumn, colorful blooms in summer, age-old castles and buildings, the deafening silence of the suburbs and the consistently cold climate. Waking up at four in the morning to find a 7am sun already up in the horizon was another mind-blowing experience I had during summer.

Life there was as easy as getting auto insurance quotes, buying an Oyster card or getting kids their trust funds. It was the kind of life I dreamed for myself before. So I set out to taste the English life, find Nottinghill, Hogwarts and Pivet Drive and go home with an autograph from Radcliffe, if not the Queen. However, it turned out that the life of an outsider was not actually easy. Plans were always bound to change like those keys I left stuck at the door and required changing the entire complicated unit. I found myself poring over every thick literature I could find in the house, boarding the train from Chessington South instead from Platform 9 3/4, clipping want ads, planning trips that never materialized, attempting to run away and constantly shutting those voices that always called me home.

In those seemingly frustrating moments, I found grace and discovered what it is exactly about life that I really wanted. It was freedom and nothing else.

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