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Review : Vampire Academy Series by Richelle Mead

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Mon, 26 Aug 2013 03:26:00 +0000

Title : Vampire Academy (Vampire Academy #1)
Author : Richelle Mead
Published : August 16th 2007 by Razorbill

St. Vladimir’s Academy isn’t just any boarding school—it’s a hidden place where vampires are educated in the ways of magic and half-human teens train to protect them. Rose Hathaway is a Dhampir, a bodyguard for her best friend Lissa, a Moroi Vampire Princess. They’ve been on the run, but now they’re being dragged back to St. Vladimir’s—the very place where they’re most in danger...

Rose and Lissa become enmeshed in forbidden romance, the Academy’s ruthless social scene, and unspeakable nighttime rituals. But they must be careful lest the Strigoi—the world’s fiercest and most dangerous vampires—make Lissa one of them forever -goodreads

Title : Frostbite (Vampire Academy #2)

Author : Richelle Mead

Published : April 10th 2008 by Razorbill

Rose loves Dimitri, Dimitri might love Tasha, and Mason would die to be with Rose... It’s winter break at St. Vladimir’s, but Rose is feeling anything but festive. A massive Strigoi attack has put the school on high alert, and now the Academy’s crawling with Guardians—including Rose’s hard-hitting mother, Janine Hathaway. And if hand-to-hand combat with her mom wasn’t bad enough, Rose’s tutor Dimitri has his eye on someone else, her friend Mason’s got a huge crush on her, and Rose keeps getting stuck in Lissa’s head while she’s making out with her boyfriend, Christian! The Strigoi are closing in, and the Academy’s not taking any risks... This year, St. Vlad’s annual holiday ski trip is mandatory.

But the glittering winter landscape and the posh Idaho resort only create the illusion of safety. When three friends run away in an offensive move against the deadly Strigoi, Rose must join forces with Christian to rescue them. But heroism rarely comes without a price... -goodreads

Title : Shadow Kiss (Vampire Academy #3)
Author : Richelle Mead
Published : November 13th 2008 by Razorbill

It's springtime at St. Vladimir's Academy, and Rose Hathaway is this close to graduation. Since making her first Strigoi kills, Rose hasn't been feeling quite right. She's having dark thoughts, behaving erratically, and worst of all... might be seeing ghosts.

As Rose questions her sanity, new complications arise. Lissa has begun experimenting with her magic once more, their enemy Victor Dashkov might be set free, and Rose's forbidden relationship with Dimitri is starting to heat up again. But when a deadly threat no one saw coming changes their entire world, Rose must put her own life on the line - and choose between the two people she loves most -goodreads

Title : Blood Promise (Vampire Academy #4)

Author : Richelle Mead

Published : August 25th 2009 by Razorbill

Rose Hathaway's life will never be the same.

The recent attack on St. Vladimir's Academy devastated the entire Moroi world. Many are dead. And, for the few victims carried off by Strigoi, their fates are even worse. A rare tattoo now adorns Rose's neck, a mark that says she's killed far too many Strigoi to count. But only one victim matters . . . Dimitri Belikov. Rose must now choose one of two very different paths: honoring her life's vow to protect Lissa—her best friend and the last surviving Dragomir princess—or, dropping out of the Academy to strike out on her own and hunt down the man she loves. She'll have to go to the ends of the earth to find Dimitri and keep the promise he begged her to make. But the question is, when the time comes, will he want to be saved?

Now, with everything at stake—and worlds away from St. Vladimir's and her unguarded, vulnerable, and newly rebellious best friend—can Rose find the strength to destroy Dimitri? Or, will she sacrifice herself for a chance at eternal love? -goodreads

Title : Shadow Kiss (Vampire Academy #5)

Author : Richelle Mead

Published : May 18th 2010 by Razorbill

Dimitri gave Rose the ultimate choice. But she chose wrong...

After a long and heartbreaking journey to Dimitri's birthplace in Siberia, Rose Hathaway has finally returned to St. Vladimir's-and to her best friend, Lissa. It is nearly graduation, and the girls can't wait for their real lives beyond the Academy's iron gates to begin. But Rose's heart still aches for Dimitri, and she knows he's out there, somewhere.

She failed to kill him when she had the chance. And now her worst fears are about to come true. Dimitri has tasted her blood, and now he is hunting her. And this time he won't rest until Rose joins him... forever -goodreads

Title : Shadow Kiss (Vampire Academy #6)

Author : Richelle Mead

Published : December 7th 2010 by Razorbill

Rose Hathaway has always played by her own rules. She broke the law when she ran away from St. Vladimir's Academy with her best friend and last surviving Dragomir princess, Lissa. She broke the law when she fell in love with her gorgeous, off-limits instructor, Dimitri. And she dared to defy Queen Tatiana, leader of the Moroi world, risking her life and reputation to protect generations of dhampir guardians to come.

Now the law has finally caught up with Rose - for a crime she didn't even commit. She's in prison for the highest offense imaginable: the assassination of a monarch. She'll need help from both Dimitri and Adrian to find the one living person who can stall her execution and force the Moroi elite to acknowledge a shocking new candidate for the royal throne: Vasilisa Dragomir.

But the clock on Rose's life is running out. Rose knows in her heart the world of the dead wants her back...and this time she is truly out of second chances. The big question is, when your whole life is about saving others, who will save you? -goodreads

AH-MA-ZING!!!

Bye Twilight Saga. THIS is my kind of vampire story :D

This series is incredibly amazing. Seriously, I read all 6 books in a row. I just couldn't help it. [this review may contain spoiler]

Rosa Hathaway was like a dhampir heroin who could do everything, well.. except magic because that was Moroi's thing. She had a best friend, a royal Moroi best friend, Vasilissa Dragomir. Dhampir's job was to protect Moroi against Strigoi. Both Rose and Lissa took their education in St. Valdimir's, a vampire academy. As the time goes, Rose found herself fall in love with Dimitri Belikov, her dhampir teacher and Dimitri loved her back. Once they just started their romance life, a tragedy occured and compelled Rose to dropped out school to hunted Dimitri down.

On her journey, she learned that Dimitri was actually could be saved. To save him, she has to broke to prison and freed a Moroi criminal, Victor Dashkov, who endangered Lissa's life in the past. Victor was the only one who had the information that could help her saved Dimitri. With a long hassle and help from Lissa, Dimitri was finally back to his normal self but at that time Rose had fell to Adrian. Rose torn between Adrian and Dimitri. She had to chose to be with Adrian or Dimitri. While her love life was still at stake, Rose got another problem. She was accused kill the Moroi queen. Once again Rose had to runaway while Lissa tried to clear her name. With the queen's death, Lissa herself caught in the middle of Moroi politics. In her escapee, Rose also helped Lissa with the politics situation.

I liked Rose character. She was strong, fierce but still has her womanly side. She was also loyal to Lissa and I can say to Dimitri too. I know.. she fell for Adrian once but she never given up on Dimitri, right? (Sorry to all Adrian fans). Lissa's character development was also good. From a weak Moroi, she became stronger in each happenings.

Dimitri oh Dimitri.. he melted my heart. Such a gentleman *still melting*. Not only Rose who torn between Dimitri and Adrian, I did too XD At first I heart Dimitri, but when Dimitri was away, I heart Adrian. Then Dimitri was back again and I was back to Dimitri as well :p Well, at last Dimitri was the winner :D

The story from book 1 to 6 was so intense. There were more action then romance which I really like. Richelle Mead is really good in playing readers' emotion. There were lots of story twist and turns. I experienced roller coaster emotions way too many times. Actually I was glad I read the ebook, I'm afraid I would squeeze the book when I got frustrated. I finally could breathe in the last 2 chapter of Last Sacrifice.

The Vampire Academy has 2 novella : The Meeting and The Homecoming. The Meeting told about Dimitri's first meeting with Rose from Dimitri's point of view. The Homecoming plotted after Last Sacrifice. It was about Rose and Dimitri went back to visit Dimitri's family in Siberia.

I've watch the movie trailer and I have to say that I was a little disappointed because there were more romance scenes then the action ones. Judging from the novel, I have a high expectation in this vampire movie. I hope the movie will not emphasize on the romance. Well, let's see when it comes to cinema on 2014.

My rating : 5/5

TV Series : Chicago Fire

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Wed, 10 Jul 2013 03:57:00 +0000

Official Website

THE MAIN CAST

Jesse Spencer - Matthew Casey
Taylor Kinney - Kelly Severide
Charlie Barnett - Peter Mills
Monica Raymund - Gabriela Dawson
Lauren German - Leslie Shay
Eamonn Walker - Chief Wallace Boden

THE STORY

From renowned, Emmy Award-winning executive producer Dick Wolf ("Law & Order" brand) and creators Derek Haas and Michael Brandt, the writing team behind "3:10 to Yuma," comes the high-octane drama "Chicago Fire," - an edge-of-your-seat view into the lives of everyday heroes committed to one of America's noblest professions. For the firefighters, rescue squad and paramedics of Chicago Firehouse 51, no occupation is more stressful or dangerous, yet so rewarding and exhilarating. These courageous men and women are among the elite who forge headfirst into danger when everyone else is running the other way and whose actions make the difference between life and death. The pressure to perform on such a high level has a way of taking a personal toll, sometimes putting team members from the Truck and the specially trained Rescue Squad at odds with each other. Despite any differences, this is an extended family, and when it's "go time", everyone inside Firehouse 51 knows no other way than to lay it all on the line for each other -NBC

MY REVIEW

I love love love love this show. Its been a while since I enjoy watching TV series in marathon. After struggling with some other new series which mostly bored me, finally I found a good one! I watched season 1 marathon and reeeeaally enjoyed it. I couldn't stop watching one episode after another.

When I watch the pilot episode, it didn't catch me rightaway but I found it interesting enough so I continued to watch. Now I'm so glad that I did because I'm totally hooked! I never watched series about firefighters before and Chicago Fire gave me a fresh story. It has the romance, the adrenalin, the friendship and the funny sides that blend very nicely in the story.

My favourite character is Leslie Shay and Kelly Severide. Funny Shay and easy going Severide, they are just perfect. I like how their friendship grow. How they trust, willing to cover and be there for each other. They have up and down moments like when Severide was thinking to move to Madrid or Shay was about to move out and live with her girlfriend, I was just so happy that they didn't really apart. Sometimes I wished Shay was straight so she and Severide could be a couple but nah... I have to be honest though, the season finale last scene did break my heart. Poor poor Shay :(

In the casts interview, they said that the events were taken from the true story happened in Chicago. I don't care if it's not 100% realistic. This is the work of fiction not documentary. I must confess that I'm totally addicted to Chicago Fire. If you have not watch this series, give it a try. It grows better each episode. The second season will premiere on September 24 so you still have time to catch up with the first season. Hope you like it too :)

Review : Touch of Frost by Jennifer Estep

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Wed, 22 May 2013 02:30:00 +0000

Title : Touch of Frost (Mythos Academy #1)
Author : Jennifer Estep
Published : August 1st 2011 by K-Teen

My name is Gwen Frost, and I go to Mythos Academy; a school of myths, magic and warrior whiz kids, where even the lowliest geek knows how to chop off somebody's head with a sword and Logan Quinn, the hottest Spartan guy in school, also happens to be the deadliest. But lately, things have been weird, even for Mythos. First, mean girl Jasmine Ashton was murdered in the Library of Antiquities. Then, someone stole the Bowl of Tears, a magical artifact that can be used to bring about the second Chaos War. You know, death, destruction and lots of other bad, bad things. Freaky stuff like this goes on all the time at Mythos, but I'm determined to find out who killed Jasmine and why; especially since I should have been the one who died... -goodreads

Mythology book. My first one.

I read this book without read the summary. From the "Academy" title, I expected it to be like Vampire Academy, which I really like. Apparently, this is a book about gods, goddesses and warriors.

Mythos Academy is a school for descendent of old time warriors : Spartans, Valkyries, Amazons, etc. Each of them has their own strength and magic. Gwen Frost is the only Gypsy. She knows other people's feeling and history by touching them or their things. Gwen feels her presence in Mythos Academy is a mistake. She doesn't believe anything about myth. One day she finds one of the Valkyrie murdered in the Library of Antiquities and someone stole Bowl of Tears, one of the 13th artifacts that a god named Loki used to bring the second Chaos War. Even when death is common in Mythos Academy, Gwen determines to find the murderer and the reason Jasmine was killed.

This book is a very easy reading. I found it more suitable for children around age 11-13. Even from the writing, I felt that this book is really for those age. Mythos Academy reminded me of Xena, The Warrior Princess, which I adored when I was about 10 years old. Maybe it was ruining the feeling, but Running Man "War of The Gods" and "Superpower" episodes also appeared in my mind which made me a little too LOL (sorry).

When I found out that this book was about myth, I expected more war and action scenes but I didn't get them. Well, maybe because it is the first book and the actual war between warriors will occur in the next books (hopefully). For the main character, Gwen, nothing is impress me of her so far. Honestly, I almost had no feeling when I read this book. No adrenalin, no curiosity, but it wasn't boring. If it was a boring one, I wouldn't finished it, but I did finish it. So I don't know... the story was okay but very lack of emotion. I call it a zombie-book. Just flat.

My ratings : 2.5/5

Review : Deadly Cool by Gemma Halliday

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Sun, 05 May 2013 12:10:00 +0000

Title : Deadly Cool (Deadly Cool #1)
Author : Gemma Halliday
Published : October 11th 2011 by HarperTeen

Hartley Grace Featherstone is having a very bad day. First she finds out that her boyfriend is cheating on her with the president of the Herbert Hoover High School Chastity Club. Then he’s pegged as the #1 suspect in a murder. And if that weren’t enough, now he’s depending on Hartley to clear his name.

But as much as Hartley wouldn’t mind seeing him squirm, she knows he’s innocent, and she’s the only one who can help him. Along with her best friend, Sam, and the school’s resident Bad Boy, Chase, Hartley starts investigating on her own. But as the dead bodies begin to pile up, the mystery deepens, the suspects multiply, and Hartley begins to fear that she may be the killer’s next victim -goodreads

The funniest serial killer story I had ever read!

It wasn’t what I expected at all. The cover says nothing about this book being funny.

Hartley found out that his boyfriend was cheating on her and she dumped him. Until one day, a dead girl was found in his ex boyfriend’s closet and he became a suspect #1. Hartley agreed to clear his name but not to be back with him. She investigated this case with a help of his best friend and her ex’s neighbor boy.

This novel has it all. As a crime novel, it has its’ own scary scenes that made me goosebump. In the other hand, the main character has sarcasm that made this book had a humor side. I like Hartley’s character. She was smart, loyal, funny and sarcastic.

I literally laughing and goosebump-ing from the start till the end. At one page there was an intense and creepy scene, but then my laugh broke at the next page. I remembered I brought it to office and read it when I was waiting for data to work on. I hardly held back my laughs and often disguised them as coughs when I cracked up.

“And the lump at my temple where Caitlyn had hit me was a lovely shade of baby poop brown now”

“Me and mom stuck in a car together for hours on end? About as fun as shoving daggers into my eyes”

Deadly Cool is none like other novels I have ever read. Gemma had made a brilliant book. The characters, sarcasm, scary and funny parts are all in balance. The other plus point was the killer wasn’t easy to guess, even I kept guessing until near the end. If you are looking for an entertaining light reading, this book is a perfect choice. You won’t get bored of it.

My rating : 4/5

Review : Ashes and Ice by Rochelle Maya Callen

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Fri, 03 May 2013 03:29:00 +0000

Title : Ashes and Ice (Ashes and Ice #1)
Author : Rochelle Maya Callen
Published : February 4th 2013 by C&C Legacy Publishing

She is desperate to remember.
He is aching to forget.
Together, they are not broken.
But together, one may not survive.

Jade wakes up with no memory of her past and blood on her hands.

Plagued by wicked thoughts, she searches for answers. Instead, she finds a boy who doesn't offer her answers, but hope. But sometimes, when nightmares turn into reality and death follows you everywhere, hope is not enough.

LUST. LOVE. LOSS. Sometimes, all that is left are Ashes and Ice. -goodreads

Boy meets girl.

Boy falls hard for girl.

Girl turns out to be possessed homicidal freak.

The story has 2 main characters’ point of view, Jade and Connor. Jade, a girl who tried to remember her past. Connor, a boy who tried to forget. Jade knew there is something wrong with her. She has no heartbeat. She lost consciousness from time to time. When she woke up, there was always news about a girl got killed. Connor is an unpopular boy in his school. Strangely, Jade chose to be his friend and he found himself falling for Jade. Connor was Jade’s only hope to help her overcome the darkness and coldness inside her before they taken a grip on her.

This book is kind of hard to review. The first chapters were confusing me. There was no story connection between those chapters. Out of my confusion, this book was like had a magnet that attracted me to keep reading. After some chapters, finally everything made sense. I started to understand the story and became more and more attracted to it.

What I really like about this book is the emotion. It really passed to the readers through different characters. I could really feel Jade’s anxiety, phobia, her thirst of blood and sucked in her killer mode. In the other hand, I could feel Connor’s and Nanan’s love for her, Connor’s mother hollowness, longing for her husband. The emotion was just great.

This is a perfect dark paranormal book for me. So many creepy and evil scenes. There was always darkness in each chapter and that made me keep turning the page. There was a development of Jade and Connor’s relationship which took an important role near the end of the story. I must say the ending was so unexpected and hanging. I can’t wait to read the second book.

My rating : 4.5/5

Review : Lies Beneath by Anne Greenwood Brown

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 18:23:00 +0000

Title : Lies Beneath (Lies Beneath #1)
Author : Anne Greenwood Brown
Published : June 12th 2012 by Delacorte Books for Young Readers

Calder White lives in the cold, clear waters of Lake Superior, the only brother in a family of murderous mermaids. To survive, Calder and his sisters prey on humans and absorb their positive energy. Usually, they select their victims at random, but this time around, the underwater clan chooses its target for a reason: revenge. They want to kill Jason Hancock, the man they blame for their mother's death.

It's going to take a concerted effort to lure the aquaphobic Hancock onto the water. Calder's job is to gain Hancock's trust by getting close to his family. Relying on his irresistible good looks and charm, Calder sets out to seduce Hancock's daughter Lily. Easy enough, but Calder screws everything up by falling in love--just as Lily starts to suspect there's more to the monster-in-the-lake legends than she ever imagined, and just as the mermaids threaten to take matters into their own hands, forcing Calder to choose between them and the girl he loves.

One thing's for sure: whatever Calder decides, the outcome won't be pretty -goodreads

My first mermaid novel.
Forget about Ariel. Here comes killer mermaids and merman :D

Calder White and his sisters, Maris, Pavati and Tallulah, live from human's positive energy. It is their nature to kill human so they can live. One day, their long gone human enemy, Jason Hancock, has back to the lake area where they live. It was time for them to make a revenge of their mother's death. The plan was easy, Calder sent by his sisters to seduce Lily, Hancock's daughter and gain Hancock's trust then lure him to the water to kill him. Calder began to falling for Lily and screwed up all the plan. He had to choose between his love to Lily and avenge for his mother.

When I first saw the cover, which is gorgeous, I thought the main character would be a mermaid instead of merman. I am more a fan of heroin than a hero, so I was a little disappointed when I found out that the main character was a male. I must say my favorite characters in this novel are Calder's sisters. Beautiful, smart and deadly mermaids. I wished they appeared more in the story. I was most enthusiastic when I read their part. I'm not a fan of Calder. There is something lack in his character. Maybe he wasn't as strong as I hope.

The story plot was easy to follow. One thing I don't like : the romance. Calder and Lily's relationship almost killed me. I yelled in my head a lot (because you know I couldn't literally yell at people around me), "GOSH Calder!! Just go with your sisters' plan. Stop that flowery thingy you have with Lily and do your revenge!" The romance parts frustrated me. If I could go inside the book, I would like to smack Calder on the head, hard enough until he says "OUCH!" to recall him of his true purpose.

Some reviews I read said that it is a dark novel. I didn't find it that dark though. Yes, it is about a killing and it has intense parts, but not that much. Crime series fans might be feel the same like me. I expected more dark sides of the story. I expected more thrilling events that can make me chill and goosebumps. I did got them from Calder's sisters but not from Calder himself.

My rating : 3.5/5

Another Weird Dream [ft. 2ne1]

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 04:44:00 +0000

Just another old weird dream I had. This one featuring 2ne1, a girlgroup singer from Korea. They are wellknown for their unique personality. You can watch their daily life in their TV shows called 2ne1 TV. There are videos with English subtitle available online.

2ne1. From left to right : Minzy, CL, Bom, Dara.

In my dream I was 2ne1's friend. I was chit chat-ing with them during their break time. We were in a room that full with their clothes, maybe that was their dressing room. They all wore casual outfit like what they wear when they are practicing.

I talked to Dara first. We went to an aisle outside their dressing room and talked there. I don't remember what we talked about before. What I remember we talked about how we celebrate birthday in Indonesia. Of course I talked to her with my broken Korean. Hehe

Dara : 인도네시아에서 생일은 어떡해요? [how is birthday in Indonesia?]

Me : 그냥 축하해서 밥을먹어 [well, we congratulate them and eat]

Dara : 니 부무님 생일인데 그것 어때요? [it is your parents' birthday, how is it?]

Me : 저는 전화해줄께 [I'll call them]

Dara : 기프트 없어요? [No gift?]

Me : 없어요. 잔화만 [No, only call them]

Dara : 이상해. 친구는 어때? [Weird. what about friend's birthday?]

Me : 음... 오늘 너의 생일, 어머 미안해, 언니의 생일 (At first I called her 너 [read as "neo", informal language means "you"] -.-") 저는 언니의 친구. 저 언니 한테 전화 해주고 생일 축하해라고 말해주고. 언니가 "오.. 고마워. 이밤 밥 먹자, 나 사줄께" 그렇게요. 언니 친구들이랑 같이 먹어요. [Hmmm... this is your birthday, oops sorry, unnie's birthday. I'm your friend. I'll call you and say "Unnie happy birthday" You answer, "oo.. thanks. Let's go eat tonight. I'll buy" It's like that. You, me and your friends eat together]

Dara : 아... 그렇구나 [oo... I see]

Finished talking, we went back to the dressing room. I saw Bom danced like crazy in the middle of the room and Dara joined her immediately. CL and Minzy sat on the floor laughing so hard watching their unnies dancing. I joined CL and Minzy watch Bom and Dara dancing.

(still laughing)

CL : 미안해.. 우리 언니들 그렇게요 [sorry, our unnies are like that]

Minzy : 원래 그렇게요 [usually like that]

CL : 4자원 (point at Dara), 8자원 (point at Bom) [4D (point to Dara), 8D (point to Bom)] (4D = 4 dimension, 8D = 8 dimension; usually reference to weird or unique personality)

Me : 난 알아. 방성에서 많이 봤어요 ㅋㅋㅋ [I know. I watched a lot on TV. Hahaha]

Suddenly Bom screamed to us

Bom : 야! 뭐야? 뭘얘기하고있어? [Hey! What? What are you guys talking about?]

CL, Minzy, Me : 아니... 없어... [No.. nothing...]

Dara : 것진말 [Lie!]

Dara and Bom started to run toward us, we run like hell out from the room. They were chasing us until they got Minzy. Bom and Dara jokingly strangled Minzy's neck on the floor. Me and CL went back to help Minzy. After a while we all went back to the dressing room and sat on the floor, tired.

Minzy (to Bom and Dara) : 언니 그렇지마요.. 제가 죽으면 어떡해요? [Unnie, don't do that to me again, what if I die?]

Bom : 안죽어 고마야.. [You won't die, kid]

Dara : 그래요.. 안죽어 [Yeah, you won't die]

(all laughing)

Me : 으.. 다들 이젠 나 집으로 가야돼 [err.. Guys, I have to go home now]

CL : aa.. ok. I'll drive.

CL and Minzy drove me home. We arrived in front of my house. I got out of the car and talked to them for a while.

Me : 오늘 고마워. 너무 신기해 [thanks for today. It was amazing]

CL : 다음에 다시 만나요 [let's meet again next time]

Minzy : 언니 다음에 만나요.꼭! [unnie, let's meet again next time. We have to!]

Me : 네 알았어. 다음에 보자. 안녕~ [ok, I know. Let's see each other again next time. Bye~]

CL, Minzy : bye2~

They drove back to their dorm.

끝 ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ [ End!]

NB : In Indonesia we do give present to our family/friends on their birthday. Not always, but we do give them. I do too sometimes.

TV Series : Game of Thrones

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 08:32:00 +0000

"Winter is coming"

Based on "A Song of Ice and Fire" novels by George R.R. Martin

Official website

Official Production Diary

Game of Thrones @ YouTube

THE CAST

Lena Headey as Cersei Lannister

Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister

Michelle Fairley as Catelyn Stark

Maisie Williams as Arya Stark

Emilia Clarke as Daenerys Targaryen

Kit Harington as Jon Snow

Sophie Turner as Sansa Stark

Jack Gleeson as Joffrey Baratheon

Alfie Allen as Theon Greyjoy

Richard Madden as Robb Stark

Isaac Hempstead Wright as Bran Stark

THE STORY

Summers span decades. Winters can last a lifetime. And the struggle for the Iron Throne has begun. It will stretch from the south, where heat breeds plots, lusts and intrigues; to the vast and savage eastern lands; all the way to the frozen north, where an 800-foot wall of ice protects the kingdom from the dark forces that lie beyond. Kings and queens, knights and renegades, liars, lords and honest men...all will play the 'Game of Thrones.'

MY REVIEW

OH . MY . GOD!
AMAZING! AMAZING! AMAZING!!
I'm totally hooked to Game of Thrones. I just knew about it not a long time ago. Seriously, where the hack was I?? About 3 weeks ago I watched the trailers on YouTube and they looked promising. Just so you know, I like medieval setting stories. I gave this series a try and I am very happy that I did. I watched season 1 marathon in one day and watched season 2 every night after work.

The story was not too intense actually, very small dose of adrenalin I can say. I don't know what, but there was something made me couldn't stop watching. Weekdays was the most painful. I watched only 2 episodes per day because I couldn't stay up too late due to early work on the next day. AARRGGHHH!! It was so frustrating!

The story was perfect and it bit me just right. The outfits, the setting even the language are beautiful. There are lots of naked and sex scenes. In Indonesia, this kind of films will be banned so thanks internet for being there for me. Hehe..

Now let's talk about the people. When I watched the first episode of season 1, honestly I was confused by so many personage introduced to the viewers. I took time for me to remember the names and their rules in the film. I was a little confuse when some names were mention because I couldn't remember which one is who and do what @.@ As the story went, I started to remember them one by one and I could follow the story easily.

My favorite is Daenerys Targaryen. She reminded me of the elf in The Lord of The Ring. I really like how her character grew. Almost from nothing to a powerful women and leader, also she has dragons. Cute little ones, but yeah, they will grow. Whatever.. the last time I watched they were still babies. I hate Joffrey Baratheon the most. GOSH! I just felt like I want to punch him or even kill him. However, his character gives more "spice" to the film and rollercoaster emotion to the viewers.

I haven't read the novels yet. There are 5 books in the series. I heard TV series will be 5 seasons in total. 1 season for 1 book. People who enjoy The Lord of The Ring kind of movie or medieval stories will like this series. After I finished season 2, I tried to watch other series that also has medieval or history setting but I found them boring. None of them as good as Game of Thrones. I'm so can't wait to watch season 3 which is still on going right now, but I won't watch it until it finished. I need to watch the whole season at once or I'll be dying of curiosity.

Another Weird Dream [ft. BEG]

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Sat, 27 Apr 2013 02:57:00 +0000

This morning on my way to work suddenly I remembered my weird dream I had almost 2 years ago. I think I had this dream when I was addicted to a Korean variety show called We Got Married where Jo Kwon of 2AM and Gain of Brown Eyed Girls (BEG) appeared as couple. I posted it in my old blog, but I want to share it again here. I'm still laughing and shaking my head thinking How could I had such a weird dream when I remember it.

For you guys who don't know who Brown Eyed Girls is, they are a female singer group from South Korea. One of the member, Gain, recently appeared in Psy's "Gentleman" music video.

Brown Eyed Girls. From left to right : Gain, Narsha, Miryo, JeA

So here it goes..

I attended a K-Pop concert with a friend, which i forget who. The amazing thing was I sat on the stage side right behind BEG. Gain, Miryo, Narsha, JeA were all there.

Gain was going to perform a musical, when it was her time to perform, the microphone didn't work (she was still on her sit and going to stand up). And of course as a good person ( :p ) I warned her.

Me : 언니 마이크.. 소리 안나와 (I wonder why did I call her 언니 [read as unnie, means : older sister], she is actually younger than me) [unnie, the microphone.. your voice doesn't come out]
Gain : 진짜? [really?]

Narsha : 노래 해봐 [try to sing]

Gain sings : There can be miracles~
Me : ok ok (thumbs up)

The mic has worked, then she performed. I don't remember about the performance, then skip to when Jo Kwon appeared. As always he performed his kkapness. Before he performed, he stood next to me waiting for his turn. I looked at him, he saw me and showed me his arm muscle (he's wearing sleeveles T) then he walked to the stage with "chic" walk he showed in Strong Heart ep 3. His performance was similar to the one in Family Outing 2 ep 5. LOL!!

Then skip to when I walked around the waiting room (yes, I was able to access the backstage). Note : it's not a dressing room, only a waiting room. The waiting room in my dream took place at my current office -.-" All the room have big glasses so I can see through. Many artists attended to the concert : BEG, 2AM, Super Junior, CSJH, Lee hyo Ri, etc. I walked straight to BEG's waiting room. JeA recognized me.

JeA : You are the one who warned Gain about the microphone (fluent English)
Me : Ohh, hi.. (smiling)

BEG members allowed me to took a picture together with them.

Then skip again, I was outside make a phone call to a person, which I forget who. That person was a man, then he gave the phone to Gain.
Me : 안녕하세요 [hello]
Gain : 안녕하세요 [hello]

Me : 저 알아요? [do u know me?]
The man said to me : in English, in English
Me : ohh... ok
I talked to Gain in English, but I forget the conversation and she talked with broken English. So funny!

Skip to the next day, I walked around with a couple of my friends and Narsha and Gain too. We walked in a huge garden and was going to buy some drinks. Me and my friends went to a store, while Narsha and Gain were waiting for us not far from the store. Narsha wanted to buy 5 bottles of "Teh Botol" LOL!!! (Teh Botol is a brand of tea in Indonesia). When we reached the store, we were shocked! It was JeA who owned the store O.O I wanted to buy juice. I asked her what kind of juice she has. She said the best juice is melon mix with SPIDER!!! D: After a long debate with her, I bought melon juice but didn't mix it with spider.

That was how my dream ended.

Review : Shades of Earth by Beth Ravis

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 04:08:00 +0000

Title : Shades of Earth (Across The Universe #3)
Author : Beth Ravis
Published : January 15th, 2013 by Razorbill

Amy and Elder have finally left the oppressive walls of the spaceship Godspeed behind. They're ready to start life afresh--to build a home--on Centauri-Earth, the planet that Amy has traveled 25 trillion miles across the universe to experience.

But this new Earth isn't the paradise Amy had been hoping for. There are giant pterodactyl-like birds, purple flowers with mind-numbing toxins, and mysterious, unexplained ruins that hold more secrets than their stone walls first let on. The biggest secret of all? Godspeed's former passengers aren't alone on this planet. And if they're going to stay, they'll have to fight.

Amy and Elder must race to discover who--or what--else is out there if they are to have any hope of saving their struggling colony and building a future together. They will have to look inward to the very core of what makes them human on this, their most harrowing journey yet. Because if the colony collapses? Then everything they have sacrificed--friends, family, life on Earth--will have been for nothing -goodreads

Finally the last book of Across The Universe series! YAY! I must say I felt disappointed the cover was changed. I prefer the 1st and 2nd book covers, but it's not that bad anyway so it's still OK for me.

Amy and Elder left Godspeed and landed in Centauri-Earth. Amy re-animated the frozens and reunited with her parents. Amy is happy, but in the other hand, Elder is scared of the Earth-borns because of what Orion warned him before, soldier or slave. The Centauri-Earth was nothing like they expected. The "monsters" are real. One by one, people are killed by the enemy. Earth-borns and ship-borns have to work together and fight for their lives and it requires sacrifices.. What they don't expect was the true purpose behind their mission. It isn't like what they told it was.

This last book is less thrilling than the 2 books before. It was still a page-turning kind of book but not the hard-to-put-it down one. Some scenes were still breathtaking though. Thanks Ravis for that. The development of Amy and Elder's relationship was good. Little touch of romance here and there but not too much and it didn't ruined the story. The character of new characters are strong and satisfying.

What I like in this book is the scientific touch. The gen modification chemicals, mutations, clones are fascinating. What I don't like was it was easy to guess the villain. I did suspect the person in the first chapters. It was too obvious. The end of the story was beyond my expected but it was a really good one.

Overall Ravis did a really good job for Across The Universe series. The development of the story is really good. Not too fast nor too slow, it was just perfect. The characters are great. Many breathtaking scenes and sometimes thrilling, just enough to pump my adrenalin. It wasn't hard to picture all the scenes in the book and that even made it more interesting. The writing is easy to understand even for a non English native speaker like me. I recommend this series for YA sci-fi and distopian lover.

My rating : 5/5

In My Mailbox #9

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 03:58:00 +0000

What I got this week :

With All My Soul - Rachel Vincent

The Selection - Kiera Cass

Social Suicide - Gemma Halliday

Well, that's all for me.

What's in yours?

Review : Dead Beautiful by Yvonne Woone

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 02:05:00 +0000

Title : Dead Beautiful (Dead Beautiful #1)
Author : Yvonne Woone
Published : September 21st 2010 by Disney-Hyperion

On the morning of her sixteenth birthday, Renée Winters was still an ordinary girl. She spent her summers at the beach, had the perfect best friend, and had just started dating the cutest guy at school. No one she'd ever known had died. But all that changes when she finds her parents dead in the Redwood Forest, in what appears to be a strange double murder.

After the funeral Renée’s wealthy grandfather sends her to Gottfried Academy, a remote and mysterious boarding school in Maine, where she finds herself studying subjects like Philosophy, Latin, and the “Crude Sciences.”

It’s there that she meets Dante Berlin, a handsome and elusive boy to whom she feels inexplicably drawn. As they grow closer, unexplainable things begin to happen, but Renée can’t stop herself from falling in love. It’s only when she discovers a dark tragedy in Gottfried’s past that she begins to wonder if the Academy is everything it seems.

Little does she know, Dante is the one hiding a dangerous secret, one that has him fearing for her life.

Dead Beautiful is both a compelling romance and thought-provoking read, bringing shocking new meaning to life, death, love, and the nature of the soul - goodreads

Everything dies. Sometimes too soon.

Renee, once a normal 16 years old girl. She went to normal school, make friends and fell in love with a boy. One day she found her parents were dead in the forest. Her grandfather became her assigned guardian. He made her left her hometown, her old school and friends and went to Gottfried Academy. She tried to adapt her new school, as time goes by she found that she actually liked it and felt that she actually belonged there. Renee fell for Dante, a mysterious beautiful dreamy boy. Dante practically almost did not talk to other students at Gottfried Academy until Renee. What she didn't expected was The Gottfried, her grandfather, her dead parents and even Dante, they had their own big secrets and those secrets somehow effected Renee's life.... and after life.

I was a little bit skeptical when I read this book's reviews. I tried to read it anyway and now I'm glad I did because I loved it! I like the story setting, which takes place in a boarding school and it's not a normal one. The story idea is interesting. I had watch some movies about the undead but never read a book about it before. Movies almost always describe the undead as a frightening creatures but Woone make them beautiful. A little romance involved but it wasn't too cheesy, so I could still accept it. The plot wasn't too rush and not easy to predict. The mysteries were revealed little by little each chapter which made me eager to know where this story was going.

I like Renee's character. She isn't perfect. She had her broke down moment when her parents died. On the other hand, she had bravery in her and she's loyal. As for Dante, I felt his character is too perfect. There is no flaw described at all. I just hope Woone make him more real because there's no such thing as a perfect human or undead being.

The cover is just so-so. A girl wears a black dress and coat standing alone in the middle of forest, she pierces back as if someone is trailing after her. It gives a little bit of mystical feeling but that's all. Nothing is too impressive.

Overall this book is interesting. The story is easy to digest. It was a page-turning for me. For whoever likes unnormal academy or boarding school setting story with mysteries involved might like this book.

My rating : 5/5

In My Mailbox #8

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 06:07:00 +0000

Its been a long time since I participated in this meme. I don't remember perfectly when I bought what, so these are some books I got for about the last 6 months.

English version :
Deadly Cool - Gemma halliday
Under The Never Sky & Through The Ever Night - Veronica Rossi
Anna Dressed in Blood - Kendare Blake
The Alchemist - Michael Scott (I had the paperback version but I sold it n bought the HC)
Across The Universe Series - Beth Ravis
Spell Bound - Rachel Hawkins
River of Time series - Lisa T. Bergren
The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer - Michelle Hodkin
Soul Screamers vol 1 & 2 - Rachel VIncent
Grave Mercy - Robin LaFevers

Indonesian version :
The Ring of Solomon - Jonathan Stroud
The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien
Inheritance - Christopher Paolini
Inkspell & Inkdeath - Cornelia Funke

Those books will be my last purchase for Indonesian novels. It feels weird now to read Indonesian since I got used to read the English ones.

What's yours?

It's Ravenswood, Baby!

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 03:41:00 +0000

Big Pretty Little Liars series fans just got a HUGE exciting news today. If you read this post, you might be one of them and you already knew. Yes, it's Ravenswood, Pretty Little Liars spin-off.

Check out the short creepy trailer below

cre : VHDM9 @ YT

I. Marlene King will direct this series as well. She tweeted we can't know who will be in the series yet. I'm hoping the main casts are female, not male. Please.... *crossing fingers and toes*

So far Marlene King had succeeded in twisting my emotion in Pretty Little Liars. I have a big expectation and anticipation for another breathtaking series. Ravenswood will premier on October 2013 in ABC Family along with Pretty Little Liars Halloween special episode. Don't forget to mark your calendar guys, you don't want to miss it.

Beware bitches, terror is coming to Ravenswood - (still?) A

Review : Cross My Heart by Sasha Gould

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 03:05:00 +0000

Title : Cross My Heart (Cross My Heart #1)
Author : Sasha Gould
Published : March 13th 2012 by Delacorte Books for Young Readers

Venice, 1585.
When 16-year-old Laura della Scala learns that her older sister, Beatrice, has drowned, she is given no time to grieve. Instead, Laura's father removes her from the convent where he forcibly sent her years earlier and orders her to marry Beatrice's fiancé, a repulsive old merchant named Vincenzo. Panicked, Laura betrays a powerful man to earn her way into the Segreta, a shadowy society of women who deal in only one currency—secrets. The Segreta seems like the answer to Laura's prayers. The day after she joins their ranks, Vincenzo is publicly humiliated and conveniently exiled. Soon, however, Laura begins to suspect that her sister's death was not a tragic accident but a cold-blooded murder—one that might involve the Segreta and the women she has come to trust - goodreads

In Venice, a secret is deadlier than a knife.

The story takes setting in Venice at year 1585. The first chapter of this book reminds me of Grave Mercy by R.L.LaFevers. Laura is a nun who live in a convent. One day The Abbes tells her to go home, that's when she finds out that her older sister Beatrice is dead from drowning. Her father is only concern for his political status and orders Laura to marry Beatrice's former fiance, Vincenzo. Laura is trying to escape her arrange married and a member of Segreta, a Women Secret Society in Venice, offer their help.

Laura becomes a member of Segreta by paying the only price they accept, a secret. The Segreta gets rid of Vincenzo and succeed in baffling the wedding. Laura met a painter named Giacomo and she falls in love with him. She never suspects that her lover who she trusts carries a big secret himself. As the time goes, Laura learns that Beatrice's dead was unnatural. She tries to find her sister's murderer. She suspects it had anything to do with The Segreta because the last time who saw Beatrice alive was those women.

Another historical novel. YAY!! First, for the cover, it's gorgeous. It is so Venice. A woman wearing a mask, reminds me of Venice dance festival I watched in some movies and it also tells that this woman carries a secret. It gives a mysterious impression. Then the setting, it's in Venice, baby! I always want to visit Venice with all the gondolas and the water way. A beautiful story setting.

I like how the story grows from one chapter to another. It's not too intense but not too slow either. Not too much adrenalin but enough to build my curiosity to keep reading the book to the end. The plot is not easy to guessed which I really really like. I always hate a story that easy to predict and Cross My Heart is 180 degrees opposite. The villain is very unpredictable. I didn't suspect that person at all. Only about 3-4 chapters near the end I had a suspect of the person. The love story is there but not too much either and that a plus one point for me.

For the character, I like Laura's character. Her character begins with a mild mannered. As the story goes she becomes stronger and stronger. She tries to deal with the happenings by herself, another girl power in the story. Giacomo's character is not stick out yet. I hope it will develop in the second book. The mysterious Segreta is a win. A women secret society who knows a lot about Venice's secrets has meetings in various secret places in the middle of the night. How cool is that really? :D

Overall this is a good historical book. An easy read and the book is thin, only 200+ pages. I enjoyed my read but not in the can-not-put-this-book-until-I-finish way. However, I'm anticipating the second book as much. Can't wait for another Venice's secrets and conflicts.

My rating : 4/5

Review : Juliet Immortal by Stacey Jay

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 07:57:00 +0000

Title : Juliet Immortal
Author : Stacey Jay
Published : August 9th 2011 by Delacorte Books for Young Readers

The most tragic love story in history . . .

Juliet Capulet didn't take her own life. She was murdered by the person she trusted most, her new husband, Romeo Montague, a sacrifice made to ensure his own immortality. But what Romeo didn't anticipate was that Juliet would be granted eternity, as well, and would become an agent for the Ambassadors of Light. For 700 years, she's fought Romeo for the souls of true lovers, struggling to preserve romantic love and the lives of the innocent. Until the day she meets someone she's forbidden to love, and Romeo, oh Romeo, will do everything in his power to destroy that love - goodreads

A twisted tale never fail to grab my attention and this one is about the famous Romeo and Juliet by Shakespeare. The cover is beautiful, the summary is interesting so of course I had to read it.

A love and hate story about Romeo and Juliet. Romeo killed Juliet at 1304. Both of them never truly died. Their souls keep entering human's body (for Juliet) and a corp (for Romeo) from time to time. Their duty were always the same. Juliet who work for the Ambassador of Light had to help a true soul mate to be together, while Romeo who work for the Mercenaries of Dark tried to turn Juliet to his side. The story begin when they are in 21th century. Juliet finally find her true love named Ben, but she knows that they will never be together. In the other side Romeo, who is still in love with Juliet, found out that the spell could be break but Juliet must love him back, which Juliet will never able to do.

The beginning of the story was good. Juliet who is settled inside Ariel's body once again meet Romeo who is in Dylan's body. Romeo tried to kill her then she ran off and met Ben. I like the Ariel and Dylan's scene in this part. It succeed to pump my adrenaline. My interest decreased a little bit when Juliet realize that she loves Ben, only some sentences after. Yeah, I know this is about a love-hate story but still, I expected more hate than love.

There were some scenes that actually could pump my adrenaline but I don't know why, I was just so relax when I read them. The more I turned the pages the less interest I felt. There were so many "What", "Why" and "Huh" popped up in my mind. Usually I gave up immediately, but I kept reading because I was still want to know how this story grow. I was curious about the end.

I rated it 4 in the first pages but unfortunately, it became only 2 by the end of the book. Near the end of the book, Juliet finds out that Romeo didn't kill her. She killed herself just like what Shakespeare tells the world. Whaaatt??? Hellooo!! So what was the meaning of a twisted tale when at the end it revealed that it wasn't twist. I just wished the story stick to Romeo really did kill Juliet. I felt like I was being played.

My rating : 2/5

Singaporean Elderly, The Unknown Heroes

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 03:08:00 +0000

Have you ever thought what will you be or you do when you are in your 60s, 70s or maybe 80s? You have worked hard on your young age with a goal to enjoy what you have in your old days. Maybe you picture yourself enjoying your retired days, traveling the world, sit on a beach bent somewhere far away from your home country enjoy the sunset or a simple one, you just relaxing at your house reading your favorite books and watching your grandchildren play around happily. I do have those pictures in my head.

A couple days ago, I just went back from my short vacation to Singapore. When I was there, the thing that quite gave me a shock was the Singaporean elderly who are still working in their 60s to 80s. They are cleaning tables and dustbins, sweeping and mobbing the floor, collecting rubbish, even cleaning the toilets. I know that there is a regulation in Singapore that said those kind of jobs are only for the elderly, but isn't break your heart when you see these pictures?

I took the picture at 10.00 pm at Kopitiam Lavender MRT station. I remembered my late grandfather usually slept at 8.00 pm but yet the Singaporean elderly are still working late at night. I know it is a life demand that make them still working in their age. Maybe they feel happy to be able to work because that means they're still useful even though they are not in productive age anymore, but still I feel really sorry for them.

The grandfather in the picture was the one who cleaned my table. I swear I just said a simple "thank you" to him when he almost finished clean my table. He looked at me for a couple seconds, startled, then he nod and gave me a slight smile then left. Seriously, do people never say thank you to him? To the elderly who are not in their best physical condition to work but they do not complain to do the dirty jobs literally?

For Singaporeans who read this, I know it's your daily life to see them working like that since you were born, but do appreciate them. Don't you feel a little bit happiness in your heart when someone say thank you for your hard work especially when most people don't "see" you? Do you realize they might be you in your old days? So for all of you, try to appreciate them by saying the 2 magic words. If you had, keep it up. If you haven't, start now. Without them, there will be no clean Singapore.

Review : Waterfall by Lisa Tawn Bergren

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 09:00:00 +0000

Title : Waterfall (River of Time #1)
Author : Lisa Tawn Bergren
Published : February 2011 by David C. Cook

What do you do when your knight in shining armor lives, literally, in a different world?

Most American teenagers want a vacation in Italy, but the Betarrini sisters have spent every summer of their lives among the romantic hills with their archaelogist parents. Stuck among the rubble of the medieval castles in rural Tuscany, on yet another hot, dusty archaeological site, Gabi and Lia are bored out of their minds...until Gabi places her hand atop a handprint in an ancient tomb and finds herself in fourteenth-century Italy. And worse yet, in the middle of a fierce battle between knights of two opposing forces.

Suddenly Gabi's summer in Italy is much, much more interesting. - goodreads

I LOOOOOVVEEEE THIS BOOK. Period.

What else should I say? Amazing, incredible, etc etc.. Anything good is in this book. At first I didn't interest in this book at all. A friend suggested it to me and I kinda ignored it. She kept telling me that this series is really good and will match my taste. So after couple months I decided to read it and I really thank my friend for that. Once I started to read, I hardly put it down. I really really really love it.

Two teenage American girls, Gabi and Lia, join their mother who is an archaeologist to spend their summer holiday in Italy. Separated from their mother, they explore the archaeological site themselves and find Etruscans tombs. They find a couple of handprints on the wall inside the tomb and strangely they are warm. Both of them put each of their hands on the prints and suddenly they find themselves in fourteenth-century Italy. Gabi is rescued by the Forellis but she can't find her sister, Lia. Her journey begin with the Forellis and try to find Lia and a way home, at first. But she finds herself falling for one of the Forelli's lord which changes everything.

The concept of this book is a time machine, which I like, especially when the setting is in 14th century. I always love to read books or watch movies with historic settings. All the castles, the clothes, the fights and wars are so fascinating.

I like both sisters characters. They are strong, brave smart girls and no matter what, I always have a heart for girl powers. As the story goes, we introduced to Marcello Forelli, a lord of Forelli. Seriously, I melted away by his character in this book, such a gentleman. If he ever exists in this world, I bet he will melt all the girls in the world's hearts. Luca Forelli, Marcello's captain, has a funny character which give the balance in the story.

Bergren also give it a touch with Medieval language accent, which I adore so very much. It makes the books perfect. It has fierce side but also romantic side as well. Not overly romantic and definitely not cheesy. It doesn't make the story hard to understand but even make it more interesting. The story is so easy to digest, I can picture every moment, every happening in my mind so perfectly clear.

My rating : 5/5

Review : A Million Suns by Beth Ravis

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Wed, 26 Dec 2012 01:57:00 +0000

Title : A Million Suns (Across The Universe #2)
Author : Beth Ravis
Published : January 2011 by Razorbill

Godspeed was once fueled by lies. Now it is ruled by chaos.

It’s been three months since Amy was unplugged. The life she always knew is over. Everywhere she looks, she sees the walls of the spaceship Godspeed.

But there may be hope: Elder has assumed leadership of the ship. He's finally free to act on his vision—no more Phydus, no more lies.

But when Elder learns shocking news about the ship, he and Amy race to discover the truth behind life on Godspeed. They must work together to unlock a mystery that was set in motion hundreds of years earlier. Their success—or failure—will determine the fate of the 2,298 passengers aboard Godspeed. But with each step, the journey becomes more perilous, the ship more chaotic, and the love between them more impossible to fight.

Beth Revis catapulted readers into the far reaches of space with her New York Times bestselling debut, Across the Universe. In A Million Suns, Beth deepens the mystery with action, suspense, romance, and deep philosophical questions. And this time it all builds to one mind-bending conclusion: They have to get off this ship -goodreads

Another pretty cover of Across The Universe series! Once again Beth Ravis succeed in taking my breath away. This book is just that AWESOME. Just like the first book Across The Universe, the story is so intense and I found myself holding my breath quite often while reading this book.

Actually I don't know what to write in this review because the word "wonderful" has says it all. The development of the story is very good. So many unexpected happenings happen in this book. The development of the characters especially Elder is good too. Many conflicts happen during his leadership period actually make his character stronger. The love story between him and Amy exists but not too much, which I really like. The best parts are always when both of them solving the clues that leads them to the answer of Godspeed's mystery.

In this book, the "villain" is not easy to guessed. For me it's unpredictable which make it more interesting. Beth Ravis is now one of my favorite dystopian writer. I can't wait for the 3rd book on January 2013. I hope it will be as good as the 2 books before it.

My rating : 5/5

Merry Christmas

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Tue, 25 Dec 2012 05:35:00 +0000

Another lonely Christmas I have this year. Right on December 25 I have to go back to boarding house because I have to work at 26-28. Thank God I could attaended Christmas service back in my hometown on Dec 23 and was still able to gather with my family even if it was only for 2 days.

Now while I'm typing this post, I'm all alone in my room at boarding house. I plan to spend this whole day reading The Ring of Solomon by Jonathan Stroud. I know that is so not a Christmas reading but it's the only book I bring from home, so I guess better than nothing.

Just like any other holidays, no food stall open around here. So what's my Christmas feast? Uh huh, instant noodle.

Eventhough this is not a Christmas I dreamt about but still I wanna thank Jesus for all His bleasings through 2012. I'm still breathing and alive are all because of His mercy to me. In this Christmas I wanna say to all of you that in whatever condition you are right now, just give thanks to Him. He has His best work and best plan, more beautiful and beyond our thinking for us all.

So, Merry Christmas everybody. May the joy of Christmas and His blessings be with you always :)

Review : Across The Universe by Beth Ravis

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Fri, 23 Nov 2012 08:17:00 +0000

Title : Across The Universe
Author : Beth Ravis
Published : January 2011 by Razorbill

A love out of time. A spaceship built of secrets and murder.

Seventeen-year-old Amy joins her parents as frozen cargo aboard the vast spaceship Godspeed and expects to awaken on a new planet, three hundred years in the future. Never could she have known that her frozen slumber would come to an end fifty years too soon and that she would be thrust into the brave new world of a spaceship that lives by its own rules.

Amy quickly realizes that her awakening was no mere computer malfunction. Someone-one of the few thousand inhabitants of the spaceship-tried to kill her. And if Amy doesn't do something soon, her parents will be next.

Now Amy must race to unlock Godspeed's hidden secrets. But out of her list of murder suspects, there's only one who matters: Elder, the future leader of the ship and the love she could never have seen coming -goodreads

WOW! WOW! WOW! Beth Ravis, you are amazing! This is my kind of book. It is so good and I hardly put it down. I finished this book only in 1.5 days. Since English is not my first language so 1.5 days counted fast for me to finish a novel. First of all the cover is so pretty. With the siluet of a girl and a boy with universe image at the background, I knew immediately the main story is about a boy meet girl but not in regular boring way and the main setting is outside the Earth.

At first we are introduced to Amy.. She and her family are still on Earth and getting ready to be froze and board on a spaceship that will land on a new "Earth" in 3 centuries. Second chapter onwards, the setting change to the spaceship called Godspeed and there we meet Elder. A boy who is prepared to be the future leader of the ship. One day he finds a secret level in the ship and there he meets the frozen Amy among other frozen humans from Earth. Short story Amy is awake by an unknown person and that is the start of the main story. Someone tries to kill the frozen humans. Amy and Elder are trying to find who is behind the killing and they have to stop him.

I like how Beth Ravis describe all Amy's feeling during the frozen process in the first chapter. The description is so detail so that it felt like I can really feel what Amy feel. Not only that, I also can feel almost every condition in the spaceship Ravis write in the book. For example, the air in the spaceship is a re-use air that have been used for centuries. That's not exactly how Ravis describe it but from the way she write about the air, when I read that part, I could feel the centuries old air around me and I breathe to it. All my five senses were alive. Incredible! I often experienced goosebumps when I read this book. The story is so intense ever since the first chapter and the end of every chapter always makes me wondering : what's next???

The book has 2 points of view, Amy's, the lead female and Elder's, the lead male of the story. The point of view changes in every chapter, that make it more interesting and not boring. I can feel how different a male and female perspective toward the same happening. I am a fan of dystopian novel but not a big fan of sci-fi stories but Across The Universe had grab me by the heart. The other plus point is for a non English native like me, the language used in this book is quite easy to understand.

What I don't like about this book is the killer is easy to predict. I was hoping that Ravis surprises the audiences and the killer is not who I thought it would be, but it was a fail hope. The good side is eventhough I knew who might be the killer, still, I could enjoy every happening and every moment until the end. When the killer revealed, I didn't feel disappointed that much. Overall this book is brilliant and I LOVE IT!

My rating : 5/5

China Trip Day 8 and 9 : Beijing

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Fri, 05 Oct 2012 03:37:00 +0000

Itinerary day 8 : Julong – Qianmen

Itinerary day 9 (last day) : Xidan - Qianmen - Wangfujing

We flew to Beijing by Air China again at 7.00 am. At that time they didn’t serve western breakfast, so I had Chinese breakfast. I didn’t like it. It was a bland porridge with sweet dried radish, strange taste nut and salted egg for side dish. BLAH!

I had booked another night at Oriental Peace Hotel from ctrip when I was in Chengdu. I was lazy to search for another place to stay plus it was only for one night. Ctrip had a cheaper rate than book at the hotel itself. 1 night there cost me RMB 371. From Beijing Capital Airport we took airport express to Wangfujing.

How to go to Wangfujing from Beijing Capital Airport : From airport take airport express and get off at Dongzhimen station, transfer to line 2 (dark blue line) and get off at Jianguomen station, transfer to line 1 (red line) and get off at Wangfujing station

I do not recommend airport express if you have big luggage with you. The subway stations in Beijing rarely have escalator. I dragged my big luggage up and down stairs for several times and you know how people there don’t queue. It was so painful. We didn’t have any difficulty when we checked in at the hotel. They had our booking on their list.

How to go to Julong underground market : From Wangfujing station take line 1 (red line) and get off at Xidan, then transfer to line 4 (light blue line) and get off at Beijing Zoo station

I browsed for Julong a night before. Some blogs said it’s located in Xizhimen so we took off at Xizhimen Station. Apparently Julong was closer from Beijing Zoo station. It took about 500 m walk from Xizhimen. When you arrived at Beijing Zoo Station, go up to the main road and look for Mc Donald, it’s located at the corner. Just near the Mc Donald, you can find a way in to Julong underground market.

Our itinerary for the last 2 days in Beijing was for shopping. We went to Julong, an underground wholesale market place where you can buy clothes, shoes, bags, accessories in low prices. Eventhough it’s a wholesale market, you don’t have to buy many. It’s allowed to only buy one item. You have to bargain very low in here. Bring your own plastic bag, they don’t provide any. Soon our 2 big bags were full with things. We left Julong at 4.30 pm and went back to the hotel.

After resting for a while we went to Qianmen again to buy some souvenirs for family and friends. We had Peking Duck for dinner at Qianmen. It was good. We have some Peking Duck restaurants here in Indonesia. The taste was almost the same, but the one in Beijing is more delicious.

Entrance gate to Qianmen

The next day we checked out early and entrust our baggage in the hotel. It was our last day in China. We went to Xidan to do some more shopping. You have to bargain hard too in Xidan. For a belt, the seller gave me RMB 35 and after bargain I got it only for RMB 10. We had lunch at a Taiwan cuisine food stall in the mall. I had pork stewed rice for RMB 16. Finally something I can eat and it tasted sweet just like pork stewed I know. From Xidan we went back to Qianmen to picked up a thing I ordered last night then went back to Wangfujing pedestrian street.

We went back to our hotel at around 6 pm to take our luggage. We went to the airport by taxi. A taxi driver offered RMB 150 to go to airport. I told him I will go for RMB 100 or use meter, but he refused. He said at rush hour RMB 100 is not enough and insisted RMB 150. I tried to catch another taxi when he finally agreed for RMB 100 with some nagging. He said he have to take another passenger on the way to airport because RMB 100 is not enough. A girl got on the taxi and the taxi driver drove her first then drove us to the airport. We didn’t mind because we still have enough time and we got to sightseeing Beijing at night for free.

My experienced in China was “incredible”. It was none like other trips I ever had before. Will I go back there? I’m still thinking about it. There are many beautiful places in China and suitable for shopping because the prices are very very cheap, but the people, the foods and the language barrier are too frustrating. I want to go back to The Great Wall though, so maybe one day laaaaaaatttteerrrr I’ll go back to China but even if I don’t, it is okay for me. There are many other countries I haven’t visited yet and Korea is still waiting for me to come back.

China Trip Day 6 : Huanglong, Day 7 : Chengdu

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Mon, 01 Oct 2012 07:28:00 +0000

It was raining very hard in the morning. We had traditional Chinese breakfast, same as yesterday and headed to Hunglong. Before went to Huanglong we stopped by at another Tibetan house. At first I didn’t know what it was for. We all gathered in their so called livingroom. One Tibetan young girl told us about Tibetan culture which of course I only understood a little. The more I heard her story, I finally understood that it was another tourist trap. She introduced us to some kind of Tibetan belt made of metal and she said even the doctor in Beijing said it’s good for back. She told more story about more Tibetan accessories related to health and as I guessed, she sold those accessories. Most of the people were so attracted but me, my mom and some others went outside back to the bus.

It was already almost mid day when we left that place and we went to a restaurant to have lunch. We were still queueing the toilet when we heard the bus honk for so many times. I didn’t care. I need to use the toilet. I didn’t want to get any renal failure or renal stone. When we went back to the bus, the tour guide mad at us and said we were late from our schedule. I didn’t respond to him, not even looked at him. I just kept walking to our sit like nothing wrong. It is nothing wrong to do number 1, right?

After lunch we stopped over a jerked meat shop. The people shopped there like crazy. I went inside for about 2 seconds then went back outside. The smell inside made me nausea. There are many food stalls at the courtyard. I wanted to buy BBQ meat but my sore throat wasn’t fully healed yet so I bought a yoghurt instead.

After spent about 30 minutes in that shop, we headed to Huanglong. Huanglong is located about 3000 m above sea level. We stopped at another place and a woman board on our bus sold Chinese medicine. I had read in some blogs before I went to China that we might need a medicine to dealing with altitude. There’s Chinese medicine called “Hong Jing Tian”. I read in a blog, that medicine took 2 days to work. I bought it in Beijing for RMB 65/box and drank it 2 bottles in the morning and 2 bottles at night for 2 days in a row. That woman near Huanglong sold Hong Jing Tian for RMB 150/box. Robbery!! All of our tour members bought that medicine. That woman told them to drink 3 bottles at that moment before went to Huanglong. I don’t know how my body reacts to altitude normally but I was okay. I didn’t feel any dizziness, nausea or anything. Maybe the medicine worked, maybe my body could deal with altitude well, I don’t know.

The road to Huanglong is very twist and turns. The tour guide told us not to sleep during the trip to Huanglong. He said if we sleep, we could ended up very tired when we reach Huanglong and probably had to rest on the bus and can not enter Huanglong. We reached Huanglong at about 1.30 pm. It was drizzling all day when we were there. Remember to wear a jacket because it was cold eventhough it was summer. It was 17 Celsius degrees but since Huanglong located so high above sea level and it was raining, it felt like less than 15 degrees. I wore shorts but I noticed I was the only one, the rest wear trousers and everytime they saw me they looked amazed. It was okay for me to wear shorts, it wasn’t that cold. In fact my body can deal with cold weather well, so it really depends on how your body dealing with cold.

We took cable car to go up the mountain. I suggest to take one way cable car and then walk on your way down. The scenery on the way down is way more beautiful than the way up. Just like the day before in Jiuzhaigou, Huanglong was packed with many group tours too. We queue for about 1 hour before finally reach cable car station.

Huanglong is famous for its’ multicolor water ponds. On the way up there was nothing much of the scenery. It was only forest along the way. After walked for about 1.5 hours, finally we reached multicolor ponds. Too bad it was cloudy and I didn’t bring DSLR camera. I couldn’t take clear pictures of it.

Like what I mentioned before, the scenery on the way down was more beautiful. You can found small streams, waterfall, another clear blue and green water ponds, mountains and a temple.

It took about 1.5 hours more to go down to the parking lot, so the entire hiking time was 3 hours. Don’t forget to bring water with you and wear a very comfortable waking shoes. It was more tiring than Jiuzhaigou but the air is fresher and the scenery is very nice too. We bought some kind of Chinese flat bread from a lady near the bus. We left Huanglong at 6 pm.

On the way back to our hotel the tour guide informed us that we couldn’t stay at the booked hotel due to the landslides. The way to the hotel was closed. O….kay…. He said all hotels in Jiuzhaigou were also full booked so we couldn’t go back to Jiuzhaigou. He told us something again which I didn’t understand and the people in the bus were getting furious. After negotiating with the tour members (I guess) with some yelling they all agreed to find another hotel on the way down to a county (I forget the name). The way down to the county was so scary. It was a total dark, no lamps at the road side. The road was typical mountain roads with so many sharp twist and turns. We had no dinner. The tour guide only bought us 2 pieces of small bread each. At about 10 pm we trapped again in another traffic jam due to the landslides. Perfect!! We stopped at some hotels but they were all occupied. Finally at 3 am we got a hotel. We had to paid for RMB 60/ person. I was a really long and tiring trip.

We continued our journey back to Chengdu at 11 am. The local Chinese tour members got refund RMB 100/person due to last night condition. We didn’t get any because we are not local. Yeah.. fine.. whatever. I was lazy to argue or anything. All I wanted was go back to our hotel in Chengdu ASAP. We reached Chengdu at about 4 pm. We were dropped at a road side. Someone should pick us up and drove us to our hotel, but they couldn’t make it. The tour guide gave us money and told us to take a taxi. Geez!! Thank God it was the end of our join-a-China-local-tour disaster. I was so sick of it. Whether you understand and can speak Chinese fluently or not, if you are not a Chinese local people, DO NOT join any China local group tour. AWEFUL!! We were only resting at our hotel for the rest of that day. I just couldn’t wait to fly back to Beijing the next day.

Huanglong one way cable car- RMB 80

China Trip Day 5 : Jiuzhaigou

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Fri, 28 Sep 2012 02:49:00 +0000

I woke up with sore throat that day. I didn't know that the tap water there contains of high concentration of Chlorine. I pour some water into a clear glass that morning and the water color was almost white with chlorine particles flowing. Don't ever drink tap water in Jiuzhaigou! We had breakfast at 7.00 am. The breakfast was traditional Chinese breakfast. Mantau (plain bun) with some vegetables. They also served yellow color hot soup with only rice as its’ ingredients and it was bland. So just imagine you put some rice into a bowl of hot water and drink/eat it. That’s what it tasted like.

We headed to Jiuzhaigou National Park at 8.00 am. It took about 30 mins from our hotel to reach the place. There were so many China group tours there. I didn’t see any foreigner at all at that day. If you have plan to visit China, avoid China holidays. China itself has a very large number of local tourists.

On the way from parking lot to the entrance, I found something really unique and fascinating. I saw the drainage at the road side and it had 2 water colors, blue and brown. The blue one is the water from inside Jiuzhaigou national park and the brown one is just regular drainage water. Pretty cool isn't it?

Jiuzhaigou is famous for its’ beautiful scenery. The best time to visit Jiuzhaigou is on autumn where the leaves are in different colors. It’s located in high land and it is cool on summer. The main attraction in Jiuzhaigou is the crystal clear blue water. Unlike other water in the world, which is blue due to the color of the sky, in Jiuzhaigou National Park the water itself is blue. It was a cloudy day when I was there. The sky was in total white, but yet the water is still perfectly blue. Very beautiful! There are 9 scenic view points in Jiuzhaigou. The park is really huge. In order to go from 1 place to another we had to ride the park buses inside. There is a resting inside the park where you can have lunch. They sell various kind of Chinese foods. I must say the public toilets here is more acceptable than the ones we found the day before, but yet still smell and dirty. Just like my experience when I rode subway, there was no different with the bus line here. It was raining in the afternoon and the pushing got reaaalllyyyy worse. The worst of all time.

If you have plan to visit Jiuzhaigou on summer, you better prepare sunblock, sunglasses, cap/hat and umbrella. Summer is monsoon season in China, but yet the sun is still shinning. You can have a bright sunlight in the morning but then raining so hard in the afternoon.

Shuzheng waterfall

Sleeping dragon lake

Rainy afternoon

Swan Lake

Five flower lake

Grass lake

Crystal clear blue water

Arrow Bamboo Lake

Five color pond

Primeval forest

Nuorilang waterfall

We were told that we had to go back to our bus in the parking lot at 5.30 pm. When we reached the parking lot, we couldn’t find the bus. We called the tour guide and he said the bus had moved because there was no vacant place there. He said with our back facing the parking lot, we had to go to the right. We walked quite far but no sign of the bus. We went back to the parking lot and called him again. When we told him our direction. he said we walked to the wrong direction. He told us to go to the correct direction then he hung up. I was so confuse!! He said we should go right but then he said we were wrong. @_@

We spent about 30 mins wandering and it was already pass 5.30 pm. I was afraid the bus would leave without us. I was so frustrated. My mom called him again and he told us to ride a taxi to the destination then he hung up. WHATT?? Where is the destination?? And I didn’t want to take a taxi. I had paid quite expensive for the tour! I got reeeeaaalllllyyyy pissed off! At least a tour guide should waited at the exit until all tour members gathered then walked together to the bus right? But see how he treated us. GEEZ!!

I called him again and he told me to find any tour guide and gave the phone to him, he would told the tour guide the direction to the bus. After wandering again for some time, we found a female tour guide. She helped us called our tour guide and later she told us to go to Xi Lai Den Hotel about 400 meters away. The bus is in the parking lot next to it. We walked along the road tried to find the hotel. After quite far, we didn’t find any hotel with that name. I asked another tour guide we met on the road. She pointed at a billboard not so far from our place and told us, “You can see Xi Lai Den hotel from here, it’s right over there.” then she walked away -.-“ I didn’t see any Xi Lai Den Hotel billboard. We decided to walk to the direction she pointed and I found Sheraton hotel. When I looked at the billboard closely, there was “Xi Lai Den” in Chinese character written under Sheraton. YES!! Xi Lai Den is Chinese name for Sheraton. How should I know that?? When they knew that I’m a tourist, can’t they just told me to go to Sheraton instead of Xi Lai Den? OH MY!! Frustrating!!

We were there but still couldn’t find the bus. We called our tour guide once again and he told us to give the phone to any Chinese people we found on the road. After waited for about 10 mins, finally a family passed by. I asked the father’s help to call our tour guide and he gave us a direction to the bus. We walked to the direction he told us and FINALLY we found the bus! It was already 6.30 pm. I thought we were the last people who haven’t board on the bus. But no, we weren’t. There was a family who haven’t boarded. Apparently they found difficulties find the bus too. See? Even local people were having a hard time. What about us, who barely understand and speak the language?

It was the most frustrating experience I have ever had in my whole life! Remember when I said I didn’t bother to remember the travel agent name I booked the tour from at the first post? My story above is my reason why. Traveling should be relaxing right? but I filled with so much anger and frustration at that time. Due to such bad experience I had, I promised myself not to join any group tour in the future. I’d rather do a self traveling and get lost. I’ve lost my way couple times on my self traveling before and none of them made me frustrated.

From Jiuzhaigou we went Tibetan medicinal shop. A man told story about something which I didn’t bother to listen because I knew it was a tourist trap. I was right, after the story ended, the man took us to some Tibetan medicians. I refused to enter the room. Some workers forced me, I kept shaking my head and went outside rightaway. From what I heard, they will tell us that we have some illness and encourage us to buy their medicines which are very expensive. They don’t like if you don’t buy them. So I passed.

At night we went to a Tibetan dinner banquet. It took place in a Tibetan family’s house. There were singing and dancing entertained us during the dinner. I didn’t eat anything there. I had no appetite for Tibetan foods. The smell made me nausea. A Tibetan woman told us a little bit about Tibetan culture. I understood some of her stories. She said a Tibetan man can get married to many women. 7-8 wives are not many for one man. There is a different between not married and married woman clothes. Tibetan people are like to dance. Most of Tibetan girl or woman can dance. They learnt it since they were a child.

After the singing and dancing performances, the people went outside to dancing together around a bonfire. Me and my mom didn’t join them. We just stood outside the gate and watched them dance. At 9.00 pm we went back to the hotel and had our dinner. Just like other meals, our dinner was rice with some vegetables.

China Trip Day 4 : Chengdu-Jiuzhaigou

noreply@blogger.com (Christine) — Tue, 25 Sep 2012 08:29:00 +0000

Itinerary : Chengdu – Wenchuan – Maoxian – Songpan - Jiuzhaigou

Once again we packed our luggage and boarded to Jiuzhaigou by bus. A driver picked us up at hotel at 07.00 am and drove us to gathering place. The bus should come at 08.00 am but it was late. It arrived at 08.40 am. There were 37 people who joined the tour and we were the only foreigners. The tour guide speaks only Chinese and doesn’t understand English at all. Worse, he can’t read our name that is written in alphabet and he called us “You two” during the tour -.-“

Tour guide

The road to Jiuzhaigou is curvy but the road is good. Only in some spots the road are in maintenance due to the impact of Sichuan earthquake back in 2008. The traffic was already crowded when we departed. If you are planning to go to Jiuzhaigou by bus from Chengdu, it’s better to go as early as possible to avoid traffic jam. Our bus was comfortable enough and air conditioned. The scenery along the way to Jiuzhaigou is incredibly beautiful.

Maoxian

Yak ; if you want to take a picture while sit on it, you have to pay

Songpan

We passed Wenchuan that impacted by earthquake. There were still so many ruins of broken roads and buildings left in that area. I couldn’t imagine how it was when the earthquake happened. Even 4 years after, the condition is still bad. They started to rebuild the road and buildings there. What I found cool about the roads to Jiuzhaigou was some tunnels went through the mountain. They actually hollow the mountains out to make a tunnel through it. I don’t know about other countries, but I never seen one in Indonesia. One of the tunnel only allowed one car line pass through it. Each lane was given 1 hour, so we had to wait for an hour until our turn to pass.

Landslides are still common in this area, especially in rainy season. It was rainy season when I was there. I kept praying for a good weather during the road trip to Jiuzhaigou and thank God the weather was totally fine that day. The escarpment at the road side were still wrapped by wire net just in case they would slide.

We passed some counties and stopped in several places for lunch and resting. The lunch is served per table, each table consists of 10 people. The food will not be served if the people in your table have not reached 10 persons yet. The menu was mostly vegetables and a fish. I didn’t mind with it. At least the taste is better than food in Beijing.

During this road trip was when my public toilet nightmare came true. I succeeded avoid the public toilets in Beijing and Chengdu but failed at that day. The only word that I can say to describe the public toilets is DREADFUL. The stories out there about how bad China’s public toilet is, they are all true. They’re dirty and smell. Most of the doors can’t be closed and the ones can, they can’t be locked. Sometimes the flush didn’t work and no water to flush the toilet manually so there were often many “leftover” inside.

The worse one, there are toilets with no door. Only a large room divided into some small chambers. Each chamber is sealed with a waist-high wall. There is a flowing gutter under. How to use it? Simply squat on the gutters and do your thing. There’s a water tap at the far end and it will flush in certain period. If the water has not come out yet, what’s there stays there. DO NOT LOOK DOWN! Don’t ask why. I know you’re playing film or picturing things in your head right now while you read this. Whatever they are, believe me your brain is not messing up with you.

Jiuzhaigou is part of Tibetan area. The tour guide taught us some of Tibetan words. The thing is I didn’t really understand what he was saying. I guess my brain was already tired with all Chinese language thingy and started to give up. I only remember one word, “Jasitele”. That’s like “how do you do” or “ni hao” in Chinese or “annyeonghaseyo” in Korean. The reply is “Jasitele syok”. That’s all I remember.

We arrived at our hotel at around 5.30 pm. It was a 4 stars hotel. Due to the poor accommodation there, a friend told me that if you stay overnight in Jiuzhaigou, you have to stay at at least a 4 stars hotel. The hotel was so standard. Our room was a twin a room. The room was okay, the beds are as hard as in Beijing and Chengdu, the carpet is dirty. The bathroom is clean but no soap nor shampoo nor towel. We brought our own from home. The good thing is they provide hot water for 24 hour. Some of hotels in Jiuzhaigou only provide hot water in bath times (6-8 am and 7-9 pm).

View outside hotel

The hotel (I don't know the name)

At that night we watched a Tibetan song and dance show in an international hotel nearby. The ticket wasn’t included in our tour fee so we had to pay it by ourselves.

The show ended at 8.30 pm and I was wondering about the dinner. I asked the tour guide and he replied, “You two haven’t had dinner?” Apparently they already had dinner before went to the show and he didn’t notice we weren’t there. I didn’t remember he told us when the dinner was. Well, I guess I didn’t hear or didn’t listen when he talked about it. We ended up eat a cup of instant noodle that night.

Tibetan song and dance performance – RMB 180