Maria Went to Town: La Belle Aurore bookshop

Are you the type of bookworm who firmly believes in the saying "Do not judge a book by its cover"? Are you the type who gets excited when finding a good loot amongst an array of old books? Well, La Belle Aurore is your place.

I've always dreamed of going into an antique bookshop and find an old but very interesting book to read. I've seen those kinds of shops in the movie Inkheart and I've wondered if there's one that exists in the Philippines and most of all, in Cebu.

I heard about La Belle Aurore and then got excited to go there. It is located in Hernan Cortes St., Mandaue City. They recently opened a new brance in Junquera Extension, Cebu City but I haven't got the chance to visit there. I heard they host poetry readings there, which is something I would like to experience even for just once.

Anyway, one Saturday afternoon, I invited my friends to come with me to the branch in Mandaue and see for ourselves how it really looks like. From Hi-way Mandaue, we rode a jeep going to Country Mall. We stopped near Matias and walked the rest of the way towards the bookshop. You can actually ride a tricycle going there, but since we figured out it was quite near, we just decided to enjoy walk.

We then finally saw the sign at the right side of the road and entered the bookshop.

My friend, Shine, at the entrance

As we entered, I can't help but be amazed at seeing a lot of shelves filled with books! The place feels so warm and cozy. It is really ideal for someone who wants to spend time reading books. They also have seats in corners where you can read the books that you like. Since most of the books are pre-loved, prices range from Php30-200. They also have new books which they sell at the original price.

Eager to see all the books, we then scanned the shelves and saw that they cover almost all genres and types of reading material. They have novels, inspirational books, cookbooks, mangas, kids books, etc.

The place is also filled with interesting decorations such as newpaper clippings, pictures in the walls, quotes, and letters, which I thought was pretty neat. It just adds to the wonderful ambiance of the place.