Maleficent and Frozen, or how Disney redefines the True Love’s Kiss:

The time has finally come for Disney to realize that children of the 21st century will not be fooled anymore by corny love-at-the-first-sight stories. See, Disney movies have shaped the perception of love of a number of little girls and has, among other things, reinforced (if not created)  the image of the charming prince on a white horse.

When you reach your twenties, you realize that there are no prince charming, no white horse, and most importantly…  no love at the first sight. Also, you feel a little bit dumb to have ever believed that, like a Disney princess, you would meet a guy who will love you instantly (and that you will love back) and will protect you from the evils of this world and most probably wake you up with a true love’s kiss (Yes, because although you met him three minutes ago, it is indeed true love).

It might look like I am ranting…Well, I am not. I will forever ever after remain a fan of Disney movies, old and new, regardless of the unreachable ideals it presents. I can’t help it, it is stronger than me: I will always be crying when Prince Philip kisses Aurora, when Snow White wakes up or when Mufaza dies. However, although I love the classics, I am particularly delighted by the fresh wind blowing on the newest Disney movies.

Besides the fact that it is of exceptional quality ( narrative, colors, designs, songs…), Maleficent and Frozen hold one fundamental element not to be missed: the traditional true love’s kiss (between the princess and the guy she met three minutes ago)  is turned upside down.

I remember the first time I watched Frozen, my first reaction when Anna wants to get married to Prince Hans of the Southern Isles was  “Wait, they just met! Disney is doing it again”. But they didn’t. Anna realizes that she cannot marry a man about whom she knows nothing, just because “her heart” tells her he is the one and that it is therefore true love. Instead, she goes on a journey with Kristoff to find her sister. The true love’s kiss that is going to put an end to her curse is neither from Prince Hans nor from Kristoff, it comes from her sister, who throughout the whole movie shows how much she loves her by trying to protect her. How she does it is debatable but that is not the point. She loves her sister and the emphasis is put on this movie of love between flesh and blood.

Similarly, Maleficent is the story of a fairy who is compromised by the evil of this world. She switches to the dark side when she is disappointed by the greed of man and decides to curse the daughter of King Stephen. Throughout the years, she will get closer to Aurora to better hurt her, but she will realize how much she loves and cares for the young girl. The curse still hits the princess and she will be engaged into a deep sleep that can only be canceled by a “true love’s kiss”. Maleficent cursed her that way because she thinks “there are no such thing as true love”. Surprisingly, she will be the one to awaken the princess with a true love’s kiss. Prince Philip didn’t succeed in awakening the princess because obviously, they were not in love. Yes, both are good-looking people but that is not enough to create the love that is going to reverse the curse (at the opposite of the classic Sleeping Beauty story).

The new generation of Disney movies are far from being pessimistic about love. At the opposite, it focuses on a more realistic and attainable kind of love relationships which are based on respect, trust, affinity (unlike the previous movies where pre-requisite for love was being a pretty princess and a handsome prince). Moreover, it also puts emphasis on friendship and family love, something that was never done before. Disney therefore presents true love in different kind of relationships: between two sister, between a godmother and her goddaughter… simply because love, through all its forms, matters.

Boracay Paradise, Philippines:

There is the kind of travel that awakens your adventurous soul and that makes you strive for adrenalinous experiences, but there is also the kind of travel where you are introduced to the charming concept of  “doing nothing”. And that was exactly the holy purpose of my stay in Boracay Philippines.

In a world where fast is a religion, where schedules are a well established tradition and when one’s body and mind are exasperated by the frenzy of the modern era, “doing nothing” is a blessing, a gift of God, a priceless opportunity. And what a better place to let this concept blossom and given free reign than Boracay?

The island is located 315km South of Manila, the capital of the Philippines. It is accessible from Kalibo or from Caticlan airport which are located few miles away in other islands, as there is no airport in Boracay itself. The little piece of land is only 10.3 square km and is shaped as a dog bone, with a length of 7km and a smallest width of 1km.

Starting the 18th of April, Air Asia has launched new connection from Kuala Lumpur to Kalibo airport, which makes the trip to Boracay more accessible and less hectic, the other options being either to spend  lots of money on local flights or lots of time in countless buses. The weather is tropical, with rainy season starting in mid-June until November. The sunny season is from November up to June as the island hosts two seasons only.

Before the trip, I arranged my transfer to the island with My Boracay Guide, a tour operator that organizes activities in the island. Their logistics was perfect as they were waiting for me at the airport with a signboard and my name on it. They directed me to the bus (1h45 trip) that was to take us to the jetty, where we had to take a little boat (15min) to get to Boracay, where they would directly make the transfer to the hotel. I booked my stay at MNL Hostel, a charming little place 5min to the White Beach and 2min from Bulabog Beach.

The hostel offers countless opportunities for solo travelers to make new friends from all around the world, and frequently organizes events for people to get together. Although I made some really nice friends, my main goal was more to relax, meditate and “listen to my bones” as we say in Arabic.  While walking on the beach, you are approached by a number of locals proposing a number of activities: beach sports (jet ski, diving, para sailing…), expeditions to other islands, horse riding… You are also going to be approached by ladies proposing massage, braiding, tattoos… I got my hair braided, which I thought was really cool and really appropriate as a beach look.

The White Beach offers some really splendid sunsets. Especially when it is not too cloudy or rainy, the sky offers some picturesque landscapes that one can spend a lifetime ( or a little less) contemplating.

 My review of Boracay wouldn’t be complete without mentioning how Filipinos are incredibly friendly, helpful and outgoing people. Some of my thoughts also go to the environment. I believe that with the development of massive tourism into the island, the fauna and flora in Boracay is at a critical turning point, and lots of efforts have to be deployed to preserve the beauty of the island.

Here are my favorites from Boracay, which I think was a destination of taste. It might not be the best island in the world as it was claimed by Travel and Leisure Magazine, but it is for sure an outstanding island.

– Epic Boracay: a trendy restaurant located on the white beach, offering what they call “beach cuisine”, basically big fat burgers and barbecues, but presented in a classy and refined way

–D’Mall: Okay, everyone was complaining about naming this place “a mall” because it is not in  a big closed structure and because there are no famous brands. But hey, haven’t you heard of the concept of open malls? Plus, when you come to an island, shopping (for franchises I mean) is the last thing you think about. I thought D’Mall was a lovely place, offering lots of little shops selling local artifacts and souvenirs (T-shirts, magnets, shells…). You can find plenty of home interior items to give your own place a little taste of Boracay Island.

– Puka Beach (Shell Beach): this beach is far less frequented than the White Beach area, and gives you the wonderful and intoxicating feeling of being alone in the island.

– Kasbah: a restaurant located on white beach side on Station 1 offering North African and Middle Easter cuisine (Yes, I enjoy traveling but I am also homesick :D)

– Maymay braiding: one of my favorite Filippino, she did my hair, along with her friend Nene. She is friendly, funny, and talented. She learnt all her braiding skills from YouTube, which I think is remarkable. I believe braiding is a must while on Boracay, especially when you have non-compliant and un-cooperative hair.

I am Malala by Christina Lamb and Malala Yousoufzai:

A hero: a character who, in the face of danger and adversity or from a position of weakness, displays courage and self sacrifice for the greater good of humanity. All lyricism aside, Malala is indeed, a true hero. Her story has nothing to envy to the greatest heroic trajectories of Mandela, Parks or Ghandi. More than that, she is well set on track to become a symbol, an icon, a model for a whole generation.

The book that she has co-written with Christina Lamb traces back the story of her activism in favor of girls education in Pakistan before she was shot by the Taliban. The writing is very smooth and simple, and the story is simply exciting. A girl, born in a modest family of Swat, Pakistan, gets transmitted the love of education by her dearest father, a fervent defendant of education himself.

The story also includes, obviously, some accounts of late Pakistan’s history, some features of Pakistani culture, traditions and people. In order to tell her story, she describes the political situation of Pakistan before the Taliban took power and the political tension in her valley and the threats she and her father had to face.

The highlight of her story is of course the moment she is shot by a Taliban while she was on a school bus. This event has dramatically increased her notoriety in the national level, and also in the international level. Heads of state, politicians and celebrities became concerned by her situation and she received support from all around the world.

It is very heart-warming to see how human beings get together in support of a noble cause and show a weakened person love, compassion and encouragement. Malala still continues her campaign for education and she received a number of awards; she was also nominated for the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize, making her the youngest ever to be nominated.

The young lady is a model in every kind of way for all girls her age, because while most teenage girls are busy discussing their boyfriend and make up stories, Malala is fighting for the greater good and she is contributing to make the world a better place to live. She is building her personality and developing her skills. I was thrilled to hear her speak at the United Nations, in front of a very wide audience  including the General Secretary of  the United Nations, politicians and people from all horizons. She had the grace and the charisma of a peron who is going to become someone. And you’d better remember her name because in few years, she’ll probably become the second female prime minister of Pakistan.

The Monk who Sold his Ferrari by Robin Sharma:

This title sounds so enigmatic, improbable and mysterious that this curious oxymoron drags you to buy the book and urges you to know what it is about. Well, this novel by Robin Sharma sounds to me like deja-vu and his style seems largely borrowed from Paolo Coehlo’s. However, one should give Ceasar what is Ceasar’s, it has some pretty deep life lessons to teach (or at least to remind).

The novel revolves around Jonathan, a successful and busy engineer, unbalanced and unhappy. His marriage is a disaster, his son needs him more than ever but the only thing he can think of is work, because he feels he “needs” to build a financially secure future for him and his family. One day, he will be contacted by his uncle, a former successful businessman (or whatever he was), converted into an extensive traveler. He is going to ask Jonathan to take a journey around the world to retrieve some talismans of his. I don’t know by what miracle he is going to end up convincing him to leave his work and bring him his talismans. Anyways so his journey is going to take him all around the world from Paris to Tokyo, from Mexico to Australia etc… Everywhere he goes, he is going to meet friends of his uncle who are going to hand him the talismans. And each of them is going to share his story with him.

Here. A simple trivial story becomes a best seller… and I am just so really jealous because anyone could have thought of it. Actually, this book has confirmed to me that anyone (literally anyone) can become a writer.

Ok, I’m not going to be a hater. This book holds a nice reminder of some life lessons we all know but we often forget like finding out who we truly love and give them the necessary care and attention, make a living out of our passions and also the virtue of simplicity despite opulence. So yes, overall it is pretty well thought.

Some inspiring quotes from The Monk who Sold His Ferrari:

“Everything is created twice, first in the mind and then in reality.” 

“Never overlook the power of simplicity” 

“the purpose of life is the life of purpose” 

“I once read that people who study others are wise but those who study themselves are enlightened”.”

“It is only when you have mastered the art of loving yourself that you can truly love others. it’s only when you have opened your own heart that you can touch the hearts of others. when you feel centered and alive, you are in much better position to be a better person.” 

“Never regret your past. Rather, embrace it as the teacher that it is.” 

“The moment I stopped spending so much time chasing the big pleasure of life. I began to enjoy the little ones, like watching the stars dancing in moonlit sky or soaking in the sunbeams of a glorious summer morning.” 

Burmese Days by George Orwell:

It is little to say that George Orwell was a true visionary. Not only was  he lucid enough to preach against the dangers to totalitarianism in his famous novel “1984”, but he also eloquently spoke against colonialism during his stay in British Burma, at a time where it was totally trivial to believe in Western superiority and the supremacy of the white “race”.

Burmese days is a masterpiece account of Orwell’s time in Burma as an Officer of the Indian Imperial Police. With his lucid and elegant prose, Orwell describes the life of his peers in the sweaty and heated lands of Burma. He tells with a great sarcasm of the attitude of the British  towards the local, as well as the attitude of the locals towards the British who, by dint of hearing that they were inferior and non-civilized, ended up believing that they were indeed inferior and non-civilized.

Burmese Days is also a tragic love story. Flory, a British officer stationed for almost a decade in Burma lives a life of debauchery, filled up with alcohol in early mornings, Burmese prostitutes and eternal boredom. His whole life perspective changes with the coming of Elizabeth, the niece of a British fellow. He falls in love with her, not because she is the one or because it is destiny, but because she is the only decent women in miles around. Elizabeth is not particularly beautiful, or particularly smart. On the other hand, she is highly untolerant of locals, Indians, Chinese, and anything that is not white and British. She had the most despicable attitude towards local customs and she despises anyone who attempts to put white and non-white on the same level. Flory is among these very few British with an admiration for the local  and who emphasizes difference rather than superiority.

The novel is both entertaining and thought provoking because it sets one back to the not so old times of colonialism and “civilizing missions” philosophy, and gives you an insight on the cohabitation of locals and British in a remote area of Burma. It describes the persisting (but not so obvious) dynamics of civilized-noncivilized, superior-inferior, white-nonwhite.

George Orwell is a true genius and his prose is so much pleasure to read, here are some of the gems collected from one of his most under-rated novels, Burmese Days:

“It is devilish to suffer from a pain that is all but nameless. Blessed are they who are stricken only with classifiable diseases! Blessed are the poor, the sick, the crossed in love, for at least other people know what is the matter with them and will listen to their belly-achings with sympathy. But who that has not suffered it understands the pains of exile?” 

“There is nothing like an earthquake for drawing people together. One more tremor, or perhaps two, and they would have asked the butler to sit down at table with them.” 

“Beauty is meaningless until it is shared.” 

“A dull, decent people, cherishing and fortifying their dullness behind a quarter of a million bayonets.” 

“. . . it is a corrupting thing to live one’s real life in secret. One should live with the stream of life, not against it.”