NOT SHY OF A SPARK

My family went to the beach last weekend. The weird thing about this trip was that we left at midday, hence the gloomy view of the sea. We arrived at sundown and the tides were very aggressive. The sun was nowhere to be found and it felt like a storm was coming. The view was perfect. So I made a mix! Youtube search them or listen to them on Spotify (Thank God for spotify) or whichever way you prefer. 8tracks was being a little prick, I'm sorry. These songs kept playing on my head while I was ~looking over the ocean~

These photos were only taken using my iPhone, hence the grainy look. But I like them a lot hehe. 

We left the place the next day. I really miss Pico de Loro. :-( 

"Complex Caper"

According to a New York Times writer, The Grand Budapest Hotel is a "complex caper"--an escapade with nothing short of great cinematography and a diverse scheme of colors (one of my favorite things about this movie). This movie ignited a new level of respect for Wes Anderson and his ingenuity in patching up a masterpiece of noir-esque (minus the cynicism) and powerful plot. The execution done by the actors deserves nothing but adulation and several Oscars. I loved how the 20th century European era was portrayed in this movie. 

Adrien Brody did a fantastic job portraying a vengeful European noble, Dmitri Desgoffe und Taxis (plus the evocative mustache gave him the face of an idiosyncratic man--which, I might add, suits his face). By his side is the not-talking-but-very-dangerous-man, Jopling, who is homicidal in so many levels. They make a great tandem. 

I still don't get the Mexico-shaped birthmark on her cheek but let's not talk about it. I loved her character so much. She was a breath of light in the movie, giving the audience an idea that a helpless girl like her who works in a bakery can be a strong factor in giving the main character a sigh of hope. If you've seen the movie, you'll think "She is the hotel". 

This part where the inmates were escaping was one of the most interesting parts of the movie because it screams "NOIR!!!". I loved how they worked with the silhouettes and the very honest desire of escaping. 

This movie was a very big break from all these poorly-written fictions that have been swarming the theaters. Wes Anderson is a diamond in the rough--a genius with nothing but a long list of how to articulate something beautiful into a two-hour feature. 

This has been said by so many people already but, I WANT WES ANDERSON TO WRITE MY WHOLE LIFE STORY AND TURN IT INTO A BEAUTIFUL, SIGH-OF-MELODIES MOVIE. 

SINGAPORE: FINALE

We went to Universal Studios! I AM SO HAPPY. Not going to write a lot about this day because words cannot express how happy and fulfilled I felt. (Or maybe because I'm too lazy to write what I'm trying to convey). 

ALL THOSE OSCARS AND LEO STILL AIN'T GOT ONE I AM DISAPPOINTED, AMERICA. 

The New York Library! As we got closer to this building it dawned on me that it was just a façade. I was really expecting for it to be a real building. Disappointing. But hey, look! Sesame Street truck! 

We tried the Transformers ride first and the whole time I thought we were on queue for a roller coaster ride. I was wrong. Apparently we were in this ~training~ center to get us ready for the ~mission~ to save our planet HEH. 

IT WAS SUCH AN AWESOME RIDE! It's my favorite. It was in 3D so everything in front of me seemed so real and it actually felt like I was kicking some ass. And oh God, the part where our cabin "falls" from the building was the bomb because we were so INFINITE and everything behind us started exploding. My cousins and I were planning to go back for this ride for the second time but we didn't make it. Kinda sad because I REALLY LOVED THAT RIDE GODDAMMIT. 

I refused to believe the fact that the Battlestar Galactica ride was closed for the day. I was looking forward to getting myself dizzy and puking my lungs out as I get out of this ride. THE ODDS WERE NOT IN MY FAVOR. 

This was the biggest statue I've ever seen in my whole entire existence. By biggest I meant, gigantic. Call me innocent for exaggerating but I was in awe OMFG. I don't even know how they brought that up. This was also one of my favorites! The roller coaster ride was fun, that 45-minute wait was all worth it. Also because the guy behind us was quite attractive HEH BLESS ME I AM A GIRL. And I accidentally touched an Indian woman's left boob, and she didn't notice, I'M SO SORRY WOMAN :( (It's because I was laughing so hard and so and so, the incident happened, I'M SO SORRY). 

This looks like the little dinosaur I saw on Vine that looked so real. When I first saw it I thought it was real, jesus christ.

We made it to Far Far Away! It had such a lovely entrance, you'd feel so dreamy hihi. 

I think this sign from the Fairy Godmother's potions are for us ladies who are jilted and are planning something better than revenge. Joke. 

The view in real life is lovelier than this picture. IT WAS SO BEAUTIFUL. And yes, it's not just a façade, this time you can enter for the 4D movie feature! Not really exciting because the rest of the castle isn't "explorable" except of course for the 4D theater. But it was still lovely because the movie was very good and I had a mini heart attack during one of those scenes where there were spiders, AND YOU CAN ACTUALLY FEEL THEM ON YOUR FEET HOLY JESUS. I screamed. 

This ride was boring, considering the fact that we were in line for like, 40 minutes. The only thing exciting about this was waiting for the foosa to appear, lol. 

This was the last photo I took before my camera died. I was so very mad at myself for forgetting the battery charger at home. It was very disappointing because I DIDN'T GET THE CHANCE TO TAKE A PICTURE OF THE SPAGHETTI SPACE CHASE RIDE. It was my dad and I's favorite ride because it was very cute. 

All in all, the day ended and I was so tired but then again I felt so fulfilled. This trip wouldn't have happened without the magical powers of dad. Thank you, father. I'm so glad you were with me the entire trip HEHEHE. I'm so looking forward to our next adventure  v(｡◕w◕｡v)

I wish I could go back to this country despite its high standards of living. When I grow up I'd go back here with my friends PEACE OUT. 

SINGAPORE: PART 3

On our third day in this lovely country pretty much consisted of a lot of walking around the city at 7 am and lounging around the Shoppes at Marina Bay. At 6 am my dad woke me up so we could go jogging around Raffles Place with his very good friend, Tito Eman, who lived there. At first I was reluctant on coming with him because I really needed some sleep but then I thought I was in Singapore, so okay. And so the long walk began. I thought the weather would be different from the Philippines' hot, dry ones but much to my dismay, it wasn't. Jesus christ, it was 7 am where is the wind...

Anyway, we walked and walked and took a lot of photos. It looked like Makati but cleaner and the air was fresher. This happened on a Sunday so there weren't many people around. 

 This is the cleanest river I saw--the fact that it was in the middle of the city made it look so refreshing and clean. There were food places just beside the bank and at first you'd think they dispose their trash in the river BUT NO. Such a clean and disciplined city. You can even see locals kayaking around!

 Walked so hardcore we reached this place, haha. I thought it wouldn't be so special to see it in person but it was great seeing the Merlion in person! It's not the Big Ben or the Eiffel Tower or the Berlin Wall but it was the Merlion and I'm very happy to check it off my bucket list of places to see. (If I have one). 

 We spent a good few minutes here and took a lot of pictures. But we were getting hungry so we walked again.We traveled from here to The Shoppes at Marina Bay so I guess you could imagine the growing hunger and exhaustion radiating through our bodies. But I guess you could say it was all worth it despite my crying and wailing legs. So we went inside the mall and the first thing I notice is this canal for the gondolas. It wasn't special, really. Plus it was expensive so nope.

 Almost every shop at this mall is of the fancy and posh sort and to be honest I felt so rich walking around, especially when I saw the Chanel store. That store describes my whole being and lifestyle......... HEH. 

AND JESUS BLESS ME I SAW THIS AT THE MALL. IT'S DANE DEHAAN GODDAMMIT I WASN'T EXPECTING IT. I basically screamed and ran inside to get a closer look at this and wow he is OUT OF THIS WORLD. I love this mall. God bless prada. 

 The most interesting part of this mall was this big bowl of Science. If you look closely, the man in the blue shirt is Tito Eman and across him is my dad, with the white shirt on. They were having a conversation that time sans the yelling of words. It was so cool because the distance between them is enormous and they should be yelling at each other, BUT THEY WEREN'T. They can hear each other very normally on both ends and WOW, SCIENCE. I remembered Sir Calpo and those lessons we had in Physics about acoustics hehe. 

After much adulation for this ~bowl~ we headed to the food court, Rasapura. The choices were very diverse: from Indian cuisine to Japanese, Chinese, Singaporean and etc..  I ate this traditional Singaporean (I'm not really sure if it was Singaporean but it was really good) noodles. We had these very good mini egg custard cakes for dessert. It was so good I wish I had 10 of them ;__; Those baby cakes were one of the most memorable things from Singapore. 

After eating, we said goodbye to Tito Eman--who, by the way, introduced me to those mini egg custard cakes and treated us to brunch! Such a great guy. 

So we went home and prepared for the remaining second half of the day. We visited The Shoppes at Marina Bay again, this time with more people. It turns out the big Science bowl can be seen inside the mall. Another plus points for this epic structure. 

 Apparently it's called the Rain Oculus and not Science bowl for a reason. It's much more cooler in person, I swear. And that big hole isn't placed on the middle for whirlpools to occur!!!  

 YES LOOK AT THAT

I LOVE SCIENCE

We went to Rasapura again to grab some food. And yes I got to eat those mini egg custard cakes. This time I had two. Rejoice to the Lord. We stayed there for a good 2 hours or so, getting some rest and checking out the shops. And so my cousins and I decided to check out the ArtScience Museum. It's this building shaped like a lotus flower. Still don't understand how is it a building, though...

The museum even looks better inside! We went first to the 4th floor of the building. There were modern art exhibits that featured eerie pieces and all. It was good but it wasn't what we were really expecting to see, heh. So we headed straight to the dinosaurs. We were supposed to go to the Annie Leibovitz photographic exhibit (WHICH HAD LEO DICAPRIO'S PORTRAIT) but we weren't given a chance to go in because our ticket only allows the dinosaur exhibit THIS IS VERY SAD. 

And so the dinosaur exhibit is it. I always thought dinosaurs aren't really interesting. It all changed when I saw their fossils and the documentaries about their life and survival. I guess I focused too much on celestial bodies and the history of our universe that I forgot dinosaurs also existed hehe. 

This is my first time to see a life-sized dinosaur fossil and I was awe-struck because...they were so big and of course I have these on the television but seeing them in real life is a different thing. I guess this is another thing I could check off my bucket list. I really love museums, sigh. 

So at the end of the exhibition we were given the chance to do artsy-farsty stuff--FOR FREE. It's like my cousins and I were kids again, LOL. 

Chill day for me, I guess?