Aboard MV Logos Hope

I love books. I love the sea. I love meeting new people. I love having fun. I love exploring something new and exciting. What better way to mix all these things than to go aboard the MV Logos Hope.

MV Logos Hope is basically a ship which sells books. Its crew is made up of volunteers from all over the world. MV Logos Hope now replaces the MV Doulos which has visited the Philippines many years back. I haven't tried going inside the MV Doulos that's why the bookworm in me is twitching to go and check the MV Logos Hope.

The ship was docked at Pier 1. For my first visit, I went there with my friends. We joined the queue of people waiting to buy their tickets and go inside the ship. It was kinda hot since we went there in the afternoon and the queue was quite long.

At last, when we reached the ticket booth, we were greeted by a cheerful smile from one of their crew members. 

As we went inside, we were first ushered to a row of seats with a screen at the front. One of the crew was making a presentation about the MV Logos Hope, how the books are priced, location of the exit, and other fun stuff that we can do inside the ship.

When the presentation was finished, we then hurried to the shelves of different books. They have a quite a range of books like kids books, novels, cookbooks, Bible, and so many others. They sell supplies too like notepads, notebooks, and pens. Of course, it's hard to leave the MV Logos Hope without a souvenir, so they sell those kinds of things too.

      

As you get past the array of books, you will then enter a hallway with pictures along the wall. As you continue walking, you will realize that the pictures portray a modern version of a famous story - The Prodigal Son. It was really interesting to look at, and a good place to have your pictures taken too.

 

Aside from all those things, they have an area where you can place post-its on the wall for your messages about MV Logos Hope, an area where kids can be entertained, an area where you can listen to their band while munching on some snacks, and if you want an educational tour about HIV, they have that too.

                                                    

 

As we were going out, the crew gave us some booklets and free books! I really enjoyed my experience there that I had to go back with my mother and sister. Here's a pic of some of the books I bought, as well as the booklets given to us.

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.

  

I really fell in love with the place and I'd definitely want to come back again and again there. It's the perfect place for a bookworm like me.

Facebook page: La Belle Aurore Bookshop