Fanfiction: RPF: When Eden Met Dan: Part II: A Dream Is A Wish Your Heart Makes

Disclaimer: I do not own Precious Hearts Romances, Daniel Radcliffe or Eden's bear ears headband

 PART II: A Dream Is A Wish Your Heart Makes

Why am I in a dress?

Why am I wearing heels?

Why is my hair looking perfect?

But no, that’s not important.

What’s important is...

Why am I wearing a black one shoulder Monroe dress by Vivienne Westwood?

Why are my feet clad in these fabulous red Zodiac silk Jimmy Choo platflorms?

Why does my hair look like the divine Farrah Fawcett’s circa 1976?

Why are my nails so perfectly done? Why do I have decent make-up on?

What is going on?

Eden was thinking of a lot of things in her head. As she looked at her reflection in a glass wall of a store in New Bond Street, she could not believe her eyes. She could’ve died at her own image! She looked so perfect, like the fairy godmother has finally paid her a very overdue visit. She studied her appearance carefully, looking for even the tiniest flaw. Nada. Not even a single pimple. So, what was she doing at New Bond Street? And it was awfully quiet for a very fabulous, upmarket street. She could not even afford stepping on its ground, how much more looking at the beautiful array of display windows. Sure she is extravagant sometimes, especially during the Christmas season, but... what day was it again? She looked hurriedly for a clock but there was none.  Oh, my bag!, she thought. She forgot that there was a bag on her right shoulder. The bag was even a gorgeous rosewood red Louis Vuitton. She looked inside for her mobile and eventually found it after rummaging on the trivial contents of her bag. It says in her mobile that it was 25 past 7 and today was the seventeenth of September... 2013? What the...? She was utterly confused. 2013? Really? Was this a prank? She could not wait to get her hands on Bappy for she was a hundred percent positive that she was the head of all this operation prankster nonsense.

“Haha, Bappy, very funny! You can come out now!”,

But only a dead silence greeted her in response. She looked inside her Louis Vuitton bag for any other clues. She unzipped her once-upon-a-dream bag and started her search. She found petty things like a bottle of Clinique Happy, a pink-leather covered planner, a small kikay kit full of Lancôme make-up, a Parker pen, a pack of chewing gum and a telephone wire scrunchie. Nothing interesting, nothing that would click her interest, nothing to solve this mystery, nothing to... oh wait. She managed to withdraw a small envelope from a small compartment inside her bag. The white envelope had Eden written on its back. She opened the envelope and took out the little piece of white paper. What was written baffled her:

                                                   Meet me at Harry Winston, New Bond Street.

                                                   I will be waiting.

                                                                                                                        D.

First of all, she was in the right street and yes Harry Winston is just a few yards away from where she’s standing. Second, how did she even get here? She can’t even remember crossing Thames minutes ago. God, she’s never even been inside the Harry Winston salon before! Because she knows if she did, she would just break into tears and mourn on how little money she’s got and whine about it through the rest of her years. Poor her. Third, who the heck was D? D? D? She tried to search her mind for any significance linking to someone whose name starts with D. To no avail, she does not know anyone significant whose name starts with a D. What she knows is that this “D” wanted her to see something there in Harry Winston.

Maybe it’s for next month’s shoot.

Maybe I won something from those telephone surveys. I know they’re quite absurd but anything can happen, right? Maybe they DO give out raffle prizes.

Maybe it’s for Chemie since her birthday’s coming up. How could we even afford a Harry Winston for her? Oh I know now, this “D” chap might be Chemie’s new squeeze! If that’s that then I am definitely excited!

With that thought, Eden gave out a small giggle. She looked at herself again. Her dress, her shoes, her hair, her face and her bag just don’t make sense.

Did I steal these from the magazine’s fashion rack? I’m going to get beatings for this! They are definitely going to chuck me! I clearly could not afford this, I only make twenty five thousand a year for God’s sake!

After minutes of going over and over the last remnants of her memory before this even occurred, she decided to get this over and done with. So she moved her Jimmy Choo clad feet and headed towards the Harry Winston salon. Every step made her heart falter a bit. For some reason she’s nervous.Maybe I had a little overdose of coffee this morning, she thought.

When she reached the salon’s entrance her heart skipped a beat. Even the window display was spectacular! The jewel’s and the diamond’s reflection against the light inside the salon blinded her for a minute. This was just too much, she thought she was going to lose her breath and have a stroke right then and there. Her right hand was just inches away from the door handle when a gentleman from the inside kindly pulled the heavy door for her. After saying ‘thank you’ to the doorman, she went inside. The jewellery on display was just breathtaking. Sure she knows that diamonds are a girl’s best friend, but right now she feels diamonds are her secret lovers. She looked at the jewellery and buried herself into the imagination that she could get even a pair of simple diamond studs. Every time she sees an item that catches her interest, she can’t help but squeal on the inside. Sometimes she would involuntary say “aahhh”, “ooohhh” and even “oh my God!” praying that nobody was laughing at her ridiculous reaction. Then another man with blond hair and perfect blue eyes went to stand beside her and said,

“Madame, if you could please follow me, he’s waiting for you”

With a perplexed look in her face, she managed to ask, “Who’s waiting for me?”

The blond gentleman did not reply and instead gave her a satisfying smile. So much for being a gentleman!

She followed him towards a wooden door and when he opened it she could not believe her eyes. More and more show tables for jewellery just sparkled against her eyes. The room was heavily decorated with bouquets of soft pink roses-- her favourite. The blond gentleman exited his way out of the room without her noticing. After her admiration of everything that was overwhelming in the room, she finally noticed the man at the far end of the room with his back facing her. She may not know him but his sweet pair of cheeks situated above his pair of perfectly shaped legs looked rather familiar. She did not notice herself staring at the pair of divinely designed cheeks. When she did, she turned her head to the right out of embarrassment. Then she took three steps forward towards him and softly said, “Excuse me... uhm... as much as I love everything that I am seeing I still do not know what I am doing here.” There was no response, though, and like a nervous wreck that she was, she kept on blabbing and blabbing about total nonsense. She tried her luck again.

“Are you Chemie’s boyfriend? It seems that we have not met before, my name is E—“

Just before saying her name, the man in front of her turned and faced her.

What the--?

“Hi Idz. I know this is a strange request, you know, for you to meet me here,” he was speaking rather nervously.

What the eff! Why is Daniel Radcliffe speaking to me? And did he just call me ‘Idz’? How did he know my nickname? Does the whole world know that my nickname is 'Idz'? 

She was definitely surprised, shocked even. And it was obviously evident in her facial expression which is like a mix of eating really sour mangoes and seeing ‘2 girls and 1 cup’ for the first time.

He looked very much looked like somebody off the cover of a magazine. He looked like Daniel Radcliffe!Duh, of course. Get your head straight Idz. He wore a gorgeous Armani suit with black Prada shoes and a black tie. He was so gorgeous and she was so flabbergasted that flies could live in her gaping mouth. Yuck. His hair was equally gorgeous too.

Then Daniel Radcliffe took his steps towards her. Her heart started beating like a heart going on a cardiac arrest.

Then Daniel opened his lips and started talking, which left Eden hypnotized, “We have been together for a long time and we have been through the worse. The moment I saw you with your pink glasses and Prada boots I thought to myself, I have to have this girl no matter what. I loved you then...”

What? Daniel Radcliffe loved me? Eden was very much close to getting teary-eyed.

“... I love you more now.”

Now she was definitely teary eyed.

“So, I have a favour to ask you, is that alright?”, he asked with his equally gorgeous smiling blue eyes.

Speechless, it was even a miracle Eden was able to manage a nod. A clumsy nod.

Then suddenly he got on one knee...

Oh my goodness gracious me! Is he going to propose? Oh my God I get it! He is ‘D’!

... and retrieved a red velvet box from his pocket...

Oh my betcha by golly wow! Is that a Harry Winston ring?

... then he opened the box and lo and behold, it was a perfect cushion-cut colorless diamond center stone with pave diamonds encircling the whole ring set in platinum. It was a Harry Winston ring!

He is going to propose to me! Oh my God he’s going to propose! What am I going to do? What am I going to say?

Eden continued to fidget like a lost peacock.

Daniel smiled and popped the question at last, only it wasn’t a question.

“Wake up!” he said, although his voice turned rather feminine.

Eden was surprised as she continued to fidget. She could not believe what she heard.

“Ah-ah, excuse me?” Eden asked.

“I said Wake up!” Daniel exclaimed but weirdly still had the romantic, I-want-you-to-marry-me face.

“Huh?” Eden was completely confused. This was supposed to be a proposal!

Then Daniel continued, now in an aggressive tone but still with the I-want-to-spend-the-rest-of-my-life-with-you face, “I said wake up Eden Nyssa Cagas! Wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up!”

THUD.

“Ow!”, Eden woke up noisily with her face on her apartment floor. How she got there she had no idea. She also did not have any idea why her face felt like it was slapped a kazillion times.

“I told you to wake up! You are one tough cookie! It’s ten in the morning already!” Bappy scolded her with a Havaianas special edition flip flop on her right hand. That explained her pained face.

Oh yes, she forgot about Bappy. She was here for a sleepover after a few tequila shots last night at Soho. Seriously, she thought, they had to kill the habit of getting drunk and hitting each other with a flipflop.  Then Eden managed to sit up. “What did you do that for? Am I an effing cockroach?”

Bappy did not respond but instead stuck her tongue out. She then went to the bathroom.

Eden was annoyed. Deeply annoyed. She was that close to getting that proposal. That close! But, alas, she had to go back to her reality. She got up, collected her trampled dignity and pulled up her blinds. Her window had a view of Hammersmith which is where where she lives. As she opened her window completely the sun’s rays hit her face. Well, it’s a bloody miracle! Sunshine in London! Then she stuck her head out and breathed in... then shouted, “Good Morning London!”.

Fanfiction: RPF: When Eden Met Dan: Part I: At First Sight

When Eden Met Dan is totally fictitious but Eden's imaginings are totally factual

Disclaimer: I do not own Precious Hearts Romances, Daniel Radcliffe or Eden's bear ears headband.

PART I

As the maroon velvet curtains fell, the audience applauded. A few of them shouting “bravo” while others wore a smiling grin on their faces. Eden was personally amazed, she never thought that a play so morally repugnant could claim such high praise. She loved it and she was one of those who applauded with all sincerity. She wanted to stay longer to watch the stars as they bow but she knew she couldn’t, she had to meet up with her friends at a local pub just five blocks from the theatre. True enough, she was running a bit late. She already felt her phone vibrating for last couple of minutes and she sometimes stared at her watch with a worried look on her face. She had to go. She had to leave. A minute more here she’s going to sweat a bucket out of hastiness. Her feet were ready to move. Une, deux, trios. And she stood up at last, moved her feet and walked away down the aisle towards the exit.

He was captivated by the girl heading towards the exit. For the last hour and a half he tried his very best to catch glimpses of her through the crowd while painstakingly trying his best in not forgetting his lines. Even though she was six rows far from the stage, she stood out in her pink-framed glasses and her curious expression. Enchanting. Simply enchanting. So when he saw her walk away with the sharp “clank, clank,” sound of her black, knee-high boots echoing in the air, he hurried up with his bow while people were saying praises to him and ran from the stage to the backstage and through the back alley. He had to see her, he had to meet her, he had to say hello and ask for her name. He had to invite her for dinner at some fancy restaurant. He had to kiss her. It was a moment of kismet, a “Grazie Destino”, a “La Tua Cantante”. Whatever it was, it was driving him to pace. Adrenaline came pulsing down his veins which compelled him to run as fast as he could. When he reached the theatre’s entrance he was met by flashes of light. Flashes of cameras to be exact. And a crowd filled with a hungry press and squealing fans. Oh yes, he forgot who he was.

“His name is Daniel Radcliffe,” Eden said. She was with her girlfriends Bappy, Chemie, Vee and Nyma. They were noisily laughing together, sitting in a rather cozy corner of the Irish pub, O’Hara’s. The place was swarming with people, mostly Irish making them the most foreign-looking people around since they had a gorgeous tan reminiscent of an equally gorgeous, true Filipina. It was a Friday night and at an evening like this it always meant unlimited glasses of piña colada and a quick catch-up on their individual week. Eden was a senior editor at a teen magazine and was mostly involved with the magazine’s fashion trends. She was actually the one responsible for giving her girlfriends freebies from her job, mostly found in the pages of ‘her’ magazine and were definitely expensive. Since it was Friday, she had a license to kill... with her killer high-heeled Prada boots that she bought at the last Boxing Day. Oh yes, she remembers that speck of memory like it happened only yesterday. It was tradition for these five girls to line up as early as four in the morning and wait for the stores to open during Boxing Day. And last year they took it to whole new level by saving up two thousand pounds for this annual shopping spree. Eden is no stranger to branded leather goods but when it comes to Prada, oh her heart just melts! When she came out of that Prada store in Oxford Street she was so elated, she felt like she was in fashion heaven. After her morning at Prada was over, they headed to TopShop to continue their fashion excursion. So anyways, her thoughts went back to where their conversation was last at.

Bappy was in the middle of analyzing what has undergone in their conversation. Something about Harry Potter, a play and a guy’s divine arse.

“Wait, so you’re telling me this guy in this play...”

“...is Daniel Radcliffe?” Vee interrupted.

Then Eden nodded.

“Whoa!” the four of them chorused.

“I’m so sorry my mind has been going ‘blugh’ at the moment. Isn’t Equus the play where this guy was in love with a horse?”, Vee sarcastically asked with a horrid look on her face.

“Yes, Vee. And I think that story was brilliant.” Nyma exclaimed while taking a sip of her third glass of banana daiquiri. Nyma and Eden nodded at each other with a look of agreement. Then Eden suddenly retrieved a certain memory which haunted her throughout the evening. She crossed her arms on her chest and eyed Nyma with that scary stare she always had.

“Can you remind me why you weren’t there with me at the play?”

Nyma nearly choked at her daiquiri and withdrew her embarrassment. “I was busy, you know that”, Nyma said. Eden narrowed her eyes. This was no easy game indeed. Nyma eventually gave in and said, “Oh alright! I had a very long day at the office and I had to finish something! I’m sorry! Don’t you remember my boss is quiet the lunatic perfectionist?”

“But you’re the boss!,” Bappy protested.

Nyma smirked. “Exactly.”

They all rolled their eyes at her. She was plainly insufferable but admirably witty.

After swallowing a bite of strawberry, Chemie interrupted, “Uhm, bollocks, can you remind me what we were talking about?”

 Then Eden smiled, turned back to the other three and asked with slight hint of genuine confusion in her tone, “What were we talking about?”

Then the three, altogether, half-said and half-shouted, “Daniel’s bloody arse!”.

Lost in Austenland

The thing about me and Jane Austen is that we are both women in love with a different kind of fantasy. This fantasy could be real for others but inevitably still remains just a fantasy for the both of us. No I'm not going to whine all day about how lucky Elizabeth Bennet is. Instead, I am going to say something about my two favorite novels by Jane Austen, an analysis of some sort. You see, I have been forever haunted with the story of the two young heroines that dominate Pride & Prejudice and Persuasion.

I must say in all honestly, Pride & Prejudice has been a constantly copied and remade story turned into modern adaptations but the original Victorian version, the root of all, still wins my heart. I love happy endings and I want them in every story I read. In this novel, Mr. Darcy, the hero, starts off really bad and in the middle it gets worse. But the real question is, how did it end? Hah! I got you there didn't I? It's remarkable how Jane Austen saw the future of women. In her time, women writing novels were considered preposterous just like how Ann Radcliffe conceived her Gothic novels. But Jane saw that there is equality between the two genders, that women were capable of anything. Mr. Darcy, I think, always thought of every woman as Caroline Bingley-- attention-starved and pathetic. But the moment he laid eyes on free-spirited and independent Elizabeth Bennet, his generalization of his opposite sex became something of a milder sense. That's why Elizabeth will always be an icon of women. Who would've thought at that time that women had a choice, that the consequences laid before them and decided by society was unfair? It's amazing how I realize these things just by reading Jane Austen beyond the pretense of her being a romantic novelist. She was a realist. Although her novels speak of love, the conflict speaks of how unruly the society was at her time. Nowadays, it is ridiculous for a woman to be uneducated. Oh how the times have changed.

Moving to a different Austen novel: Persuasion. Anne Elliot basically had a lack of conviction which characteristically differs from that of Elizabeth Bennet. Ann is easily persuaded by her godmother, her father and her sisters that she forgets what she really wants. And who is the poor soul that gets all the beatings? Poor Mr. Frederick Wentworth who loved her all his life. But Ann should not be the one to blame, in fact the society is always the one to blame. Society dictates her to take a man of a higher rank since she's of noble blood. Noble blood? What does that mean these days? I definitely oppose to that idea that marriage is all about security. How could you promise to be with a man all your life when that marriage is clouded with false civility and constant indifference? Marriage should have stronger foundations-- love, trust, respect. I guess Ann just wasn't that confident to take the leap and elope with Wentworth.

But you know what I love about Austen? It is that her novels are completely opposite to her real life. Here, in her little fantasy world in paper, her heroes and heroines get the jackpot. I love happy endings. Elizabeth Bennet gets to be married to Mr. Darcy and gets the estate. Ann Elliot marries Wentworth and also gets the estate. I guess in Austen's world property, a house and financial stability still matters. But love, yes it's still the root of all. She is, I'm afraid, my only escape from the harsh winds of reality and lovelessness. This is the reason why I will always love Jane Austen and her stories-- entertaining and heartwarming.

si j'taime. 

au revoir.

Nyma

Jet Set, GO!

OVERTURE

The skyline was purely majestic, it was incomparable to anything I have seen. in my entire life, I have never appreciated glowing lights over the dark sky this much. the view was a treasure, something that I would keep for the rest of my being. This is my travel blog, what I have seen, tasted and experienced in Hong Kong for four days.

This vacation was monumental for me since there were a lot of ‘firsts’ on my list—my first plane ride, my first overseas travel, my first major travel with friends and also my first navigation of a city with only a map in hand. When we arrived at the Hong Kong international airport at around 1:30 in the morning, my head felt a little buzzy especially when we were checked in the immigrations and customs. When I saw the whole array of what the airport has to offer me, I admit I was quite astounded—never have I imagined in my entire life that an edifice so big and white could be an airport. You see, I did enjoy the airport, it seemed like a place where different nationalities meet. The people come from different places and their destinations different also, but one thing’s common and it is that we are heading somewhere. For us three, we were heading to Kowloon.

Ladies' Market, January 2011

Shopping

Hong Kong is a buzzing metropolis. Everywhere there is activity. Everywhere there is life. It was my first time seeing double deckers in person and I think it is the closest I could get in feeling that I was in London. Walking in its streets made me feel like a true cosmopolitan, one with the busy world. For a small city girl like me, this is entertainment enough. Nathan Road was, I think, Hong Kong’s most exciting street with its endless shops of varying natures, it sure is one hell of a tourist spot. Kowloon is pretty famous for its street markets like the Ladies market and the night market in Temple street. Here in these streets you will find things ranging from fashion finds to the unexpected taboos like dildos and anal beads. There is also a street fully dedicated to only things jade—it is a staple in Chinese tradition and my mother loves this gem. Someone once told me back in the Philippines that the lighter the shade of green the jade has, the more expensive it is. True enough, I found that the greener ones could go for as low as HKD40 per bangle or per bracelet. The Ladies’ market is definitely a shopper’s paradise. You can do tawad for as low as half of the original price given for the article without feeling guilty about it. Oh, those sneaky Chinese merchants are really good! Anyways, when I went there they were having this huge end-of-season sale and Chinese new year sale on every mall that I have passed by. I hear their sales are really crazy that it actually competes with the US’s infamous black friday where people line up in the entrances of malls and department stores as early as four in the morning or UK’s boxing day where people go gaga and lala over cheap, cheap sales. Oh, what a dreamland! This is one of those moments where I really wish I had heaps and buckets and truckloads of money. If you are, on the other hand, far from being a cheapstead like me, then you might as well go to Tsim Sha Tsui or Times Square at Causeway Bay and do a little shopping for jewelries at Cartier or Swarovski; clothes at Dolce & Gabbana or Dior; perfumes and scented spirits at Chanel; watches at Omega and Piaget; bags at Hermes or Louis Vuitton… well it’s your money, so you choose.

eat, eat, eat!

Gastronomic Adventure
FOOD. CANTONESE FOOD. Let me tell you something that our tour guide told us, it is that Cantonese food is healthy. People, as in the locals, the real HongKongers are healthy eaters. Unlike me and the rest or the majority of the Filipino people who love anything stir-fried and flavorful. The local food here in Hong Kong is rather different from what I am used to. I actually tried eating at a local KFC and there’s really this difference with their taste. Their chicken lacked flavor, specifically it lacked salt. They also don’t serve gravy with chicken. Same with other fast food chains in the rest of the islands. There is also no option of going large for drinks. How tricky is that, huh?! So, the solution to that problem is to go with the flow. As what the cliché always say… ‘when you’re in Rome, do as the Romans do’. Well, in my case, I had to go a little bit Cantonese. Every supper here in Hong Kong was a gastronomic adventure for me, a new twist to my boring, old Probleme de Gastronomique as I would say… in French that is. RESOUDRE! I loved eating out and staying up late eating steamed vegetables and delicious and positively bland noodles with chopsticks. I bought two 750ml bottles of water at a local 7Eleven at ten dollars. I love noodles. I love them. Cooked. Instant. Fried. Whatever. You name it, I’ll eat it. As long as it’s noodles. There’s nothing more than a high carbohydrate content meal can do to me than temporary happiness. Those fried noodles with mushrooms on them were the best I ever had. Sure they left me constipated but the flavor that brought tiny embers of happiness in my palate left me coming back to the restaurant for more. The restaurant, which name I choose not to remember because it was a little complicated, was like a hole-in-the wall type with seats both on the inside and on the outside extending towards the night market at Temple street. I knew at first glance that they were serving the safest and the best food in the area because the place was swarming with foreigners. I knew I had to try their food. After struggling on speaking ‘Cantonese’ english and practicing our basic human sign language, we had finally set our orders and went on to feast on something delicious. It was local and flavorful and I loved it. Very, very much.

Egg tarts = Heaven

Fab street food

Macau, on the other hand, had fabulous street food. I found myself lingering to the smell of something wonderful and heavenly on the foot of the Ruinas de San Paolo and I found myself standing in front of this lovely array of edible balls. STREET FOOD! Thanks you Lord! I loved their beef balls and their spicy sauce… well… all I can say is… their spicy was REALLY spicy. It nearly burned my larynx away! Their varieties-in-a-stick were pretty much convenient for me, their large servings were the just the right stuff. Their beef balls were phenomenal, it made my gastrointestinal tract really happy. Really happy indeed. Then there’s this other story, about heaven in a small pastry. Something eggy. Something wonderful. Something warm in your mouth. The Portuguese egg tarts were the primary reason why I have taken myself on a one hour nauseated journey from Hong Kong to Macau. Was it worth it? OH YES. DEFINITELY. WITHOUT A DOUBT. When I took my first bite, I had one of those Makino Tsukushi moments where I just wanted to cry out of happiness. Without undue exaggeration, this was heaven in a bite. I also bought  a box of those famous Portuguese almond cookies. I thought they were delicious. And I also loved peanuts. And they reminded me of Cebu’s masareals. Seemed rational, right? Oh never mind.

Scenic Panorama/

Panoramic Scene

Victoria harbour on a hazy day

Hong Kong is gifted with views, manmade or natural. I personally loved the view of the harbor in Tsim Sha Tsui. The skyscrapers far across the Hong Kong island looked majestic to me even with a gray sky to compliment it. When I came here, it was awfully windy and cold and for a girl born in the tropical country of the Philippines, I kept on shivering and chattering so hard. But the shivering and chattering was all worth it just to see this beautiful view of the Victoria Harbour. In the morning, the Avenue of the Stars is filled with tourists from all over the world. Somebody even came up to me and started talking to me in Cantonese which left me confused and bewildered. That was the world talking to me! So the view of the harbour is spectacular in the morning, yes, but what about in the evening where the dark sky dominates the atmosphere? Oh yes, the view is just so stupendous and breathtaking. The lights were perfect against a dark backdrop. Since I came here near the Chinese New Year (Kung Hei Fat Choi!) neon lights were a new addition to the skyscrapers in the harbour. At night this place is visited by metropolitans and cosmopolitans and inhabitants of the near hotels like people from the posh Harbour Plaza, the Intercontinental and the Hotel Nikko. There were also foreigners with their Single Lens Reflex cameras taking the best shots of the harbour sans the perfect lighting of the sunlight.

Aberdeen

Aberdeen, the fishing village, is pretty picturesque with its old fishing boats and some new yachts. Hong Kong island, especially near the Victoria mountain lies the most rich in Hong Kong. Here I caught a glimpse of sunlight and it was all bright and sunny again. A boat ride that would take you around this area would cost HKD50. Too expensive, I know, but it was definitely worth it for me since I learned a little part of the Hong Kong history through this. “Hong Kong” means ‘Fragrant Harbour’ since in the past the harbour was densely inhabited by fishermen living on boats. Families actually live in boats! So every little garbage they had went down to the sea… which reminds me of our nearby beach in Bonbon. It is not advised to swim in the sea here in Hong Kong since the water is already polluted. So the people wearing bikinis around Repulse bay are only sunbathers. Tsk Tsk indeed.

Ruinas de San Paolo

So anyways, just a little side trip. We went for a daytrip to Macau on our last day. Macau was not as remarkable as Hong Kong except for the downtown area, or as locals may call it, “/Samalo/”, though I am not sure how it is surely spelled but it sounded like this. Samalo is full of beautiful buildings and the highlight was the Hotel Lisboa which was a casino shaped like a Lotus leaf. In the morning it glimmers against the rays of the sun, at night it glows with neon colored lights. Senado Square is this perfectly restored European square now filled with modern boutiques like Giordano and Bossini and fast food like McDonalds. The downtown is dominated by hotels and casinos and just a few meters away from this faux Las Vegas is the real Macau influenced by the Portuguese but with Cantonese roots. The rest of Macau, from behind the window of the tour bus, is a mix of Cantonese and Portuguese heritage which is just like the Philippines.Macau is, I think, the perfect example of “Carmina Burana”—a small place, a speck of the mainland fighting against fate and fortune, poverty and power… oh I’m turning poetic already! The Ruinas de San Paolo is the most famous infrastructure of Macau and the most iconic since it clearly signifies and materializes the Portuguese influence bestowed upon the Macanese. Now, the façade is only thing left of the once-chapel and is a thriving tourist spot. Count me in!

Senado Square

We went to a temple, the A-Ma temple which was the temple for the fishermen who once lived near here. Now, it is also a great tourist spot and the place is just swarming with people unknowingly praying to someone different from what their culture dictates. But I guess there’s no foul in such belief. I prayed to A-Ma and asked her for a 100% passing rate for Xavier University at the Nursing Licensure Examinations. And also a love life this year. Twenty years and I’m still single! Our guide told us that the way to determine if a temple is really great is that of the amount of smoke that comes out vertically from where it is situated. Meaning, a lot of incense is used, hence a lot of people are inside the temple.Light Bulb moment!

Childlike Giddiness

a wink and a thumbs up!

They glow!

Have you ever had a time travel? Have you traveled back to your youth where everything just seemed so carefree? I had a little time travel back to my childhood with two places in Hong Kong that are forever dear to my heart. Ocean Park at Aberdeen really was an adventure. My feet were terribly tired at the end of the day because we started our little adventure on the summit. From the waterfront, without a little sightseeing, we rode the cable car to the summit. the cable car ride was long and it gave me a perfect panoramic view of the whole Aberdeen area. Ocean Park was all about rides, some were pleasant but mostly scary, definitely bad for my weak heart. Their rides did look very scary as hell and as much as I want to take the challenge, my companions were unnerved with the idea of being up in the air at at fast speed. In the end we only fell in line for the Ocean Park tower which revolved in a perfect three hundred sixty degrees, rendering us breathless with the spectacular views right before us. The pacific pier was also one of the highlights of the summit since it houses the sea lions of the park. They were enormous and adorable. They were like little dolphins, playful and exciting. The ocean park theater featured an afternoon show which starred four dolphins and two sea lions. I must say, they were really impressive and they were trained very well. They jumped, leaped and tumbled over springs of shooting water. This show really made me smile. I also saw the glowing illuminated jellyfishes at Sea Jelly which reminded me of Ai Otsuka’s Kurage Nagareboshi (Jellyfish, Shooting Star). See My poetry on Kurage, Nagareboshi. They were really beautiful and I loved how they glowed red, blue, green against the dark backdrop. We then went back to the waterfront via train. This train ride was my first train ride ever in my life! Well, except when I was in Disneyland. At the waterfront, we were greeted by this large floating balloon and a few more stationary at the ground. I loved skyfair, it was as if I was really on a hot air balloon. Every afternoon, they hold a circus extravaganza and exhibition here at this area, somewhat like a closing program of some sort. We also visited two giant pandas—the first one was eating bark after bark of bamboo and the other taking a dump right in front of us. The red panda was also very cute and it looked like a stuffed animal. Then we went off to the wishing wall where I , again, wished for a love life. Then we saw goldfishes in all Chinese varieties. To tell you honestly, I think they had little cancerous tumors on their faces. Haha. Since I and my two friends were faint-hearted, we decided to hang out instead in the children’s area and rode the only ride that contented us—the pediatric Ferris wheel. So yeah, we were losers in this area, but what the heck?

I want to stay here forever!

“To all who come to this happy place; welcome. Disneyland is your land. Here age relives fond memories of the past .... and here youth may savor the challenge and promise of the future. Disneyland is dedicated to the ideals, the dreams and the hard facts that have created America ... with the hope that it will be a source of joy and inspiration to all the world.” These were the exact words that the great Walt Disney said on the opening of the first Disneyland at Anaheim, California On Sunday, July 17, 1955.

Mickey in red

Hong Kong Disneyland is the second Disneyland in Asia, next to Disneyland Tokyo which is humongous. The first step I took in this beautiful estate, I thought to myself, “This is it. This is really it. This is my childhood. Years and years of watching Disney classics and now it is all coming to life.” I never thought coming to Disneyland was this overwhelming that I cried at the entrance. I did not care about the people watching me at all. It was really time travel and it was…

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious

Sleeping Beauty castle

It was like a momentary bout of ‘Ode to Joy’ ringing in my ears. A playground, to be exact. A fantasy, materialized. I may be twenty years young but when I came here I found myself all giddy even from just a sight of Mickey Mouse walking around in the park. Words cannot briefly express how I felt, there’s a certain warmth that is just instantly felt right on the moment where you’re holding your ticket and realizing you are revisiting an important part of your life—your childhood. As I am writing about this, I cannot help but get all teary-eyed. It seems that when it comes to my childhood, I can’t help but be emotional about it, the origins and roots unexplainable. When I saw the expanse of the park through the main street train, I couldn’t help but feel overjoyed by seeing Adventureland, Fantasyland and Tomorrowland materialize right before my eyes. Kids of all ages, even the adults must have felt the same thing—an unexplainable sort of happiness. At main street, my eyes were full or rather ‘busog’ with the numerous shops around filled with memorabilia and accessories that I could not afford. Main street generally reminded me of old America, western to be exact. Tomorrowland reminded me of Buzz Lightyear. Fantasyland reminded me of the Disney princesses and Adventureland reminded me of Tarzan. There was the best of every Disney fantasy and there was a lot to take in. Thank God I did not fidget even one bit. At Fantasyland, we attended the 4D magic, that is the Philharmagic. I was, again, overwhelmed and then I cried. My heart leaped and my mind sang along with the Disney characters in full three dimensional state. During the afternoon parade, I saw every Disney character imaginable, but what I really loved was the swan float which had the Disney princesses on it—Cinderella, Belle, Aurora; the Lilo & Stitch float reminded me of Hawaii; then there’s the Mickey Mouse float. I loved the parade, I loved how it made me smile so much my cheeks would have already burst out of exertion. The adventureland took us into the jungles of the south Americas. There we saw animated Hippos, Elephants and even animals that should’ve belonged to the savanna and not the jungle. Oh well, this is Disneyland after all. Walking along the park was adventure enough. I never wanted to go back to reality again. Ever.

Then eight o’ clock came.

Tinker Bell castle

At first the Sleeping Beauty castle turns into the special fifth anniversary Tinker Bell castle which lights up through lights conducted like an orchestra. Beams encircled the castle and somewhat electronic sequins made the castle glitter like pixie dust.

Then came the most awaited moment… the fireworks.

At first you’ll hear children’s voices singing… “I can show you the world…” and it quickly shifts into the original “Tale as old as time…”

fireworks!!

The fireworks was just too emotional for me. While I was taking some pictures, I was crying like a baby. The fireworks was the perfect ending to a very beautiful day.

Friendship Reminded

United Colors

Me, Chic and Dianne planned this trip since the September of 2010. I never thought I would be allowed to go overseas, surprisingly my mother allowed me to. Thanks to her, I have experienced something so wonderful. This trip is primarily dedicated to my mother. But the real purpose of this trip is to connect the bond that was slightly severed by our rigorous review and our complicated lives back in the city of Golden Friendship. I am thankful that I went on this trip not alone. Having my two other friends made me realize that I am truly living, that I am experiencing something that other people do not. This trip made me realize how much I love these two girls that have been a very big part of my life. Hong Kong was more than an adventure, it was a rekindling trip, a trip that the three of us will always and always remember not because we saw Mickey Mouse or that we shopped till we drop at the street markets, but because this trip made us smile a genuine smile, something that we have not experienced in a while. This trip made us laugh like we were kids again. This trip made us see how much we have fun together even at the most unfortunate and tiresome circumstances. Nothing has changed, after all. We still do, like before, love each other this much.

Until then, when we meet again years from now, when we will travel again…
and I hope to see you, Reader, in one of our travels.


Ciao, Bella.
Nyma