The Life of Sophia Ysabel

Previously on the last blog... Singing the last line, concluding the song, everyone gives applause for their admirable talent. I do so too. It was nice for once to be part of the audience instead of being the one singing of stage. Presumably, the host walks up to the stage, mike in hand, with a huge welcoming grin on his face. It reminds me of those TV game shows where the host walks up to the area and says all their repeated lines. But this time, instead of watching it on TV, I'm watching it in real life. And it's beginning right now. "Welcome to the Queenstown Christmas Show 2025!!" The crowd's deafening cheers and bellows erupt the whole room in an instant. "I'm Eric, and I'll be your host for today's Christmas Show. But before we begin, let me run some safety protocols to keep us safe." He drones on about nearby exits, what to do when there's an earthquake, locations of toilets, etc. After finishing with the safety procedures and warm...

  A brief explanation of what the "Christmas Show" is... The Christmas Show is a play that has a storyline of Olaf, a young boy whose flight to Iceland to celebrate Christmas is cancelled. He stumbles upon a kiwi who's quite experienced in having Kiwi Christmases, Aroha, and she takes Olaf on a journey of how kiwis truly spend their Christmas time. Between different scenes of the play, there are performers that take on the stage such as aerialists dangling from quite literally the ceiling, gymnasts, ballet dancers from young women to men, heck, even a children's choir! This is the 2025 Queenstown Christmas Show, and my perspective of how it went. Enjoy <3 Present day... With my ironed brand-new white blouse with a layer of a cream coloured jumper over it, I leisurely stroll to the venue and going inside, spotting a queue on the way with the size of possibly half of my entire primary school queueing to get their ice cream cones. I guess that makes sense, since it...

Previously on "𝕸𝖞 𝖊𝖝𝖕𝖊𝖗𝖎𝖊𝖓𝖈𝖊 𝖌𝖔𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝖙𝖔 𝖆 𝖘𝖈𝖍𝖔𝖔𝖑 𝖋𝖎𝖊𝖑𝖉 𝖙𝖗𝖎𝖕: 𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝕸𝖚𝖑𝖊 (𝖕𝖆𝖗𝖙 2)"... "Now, I want you to get into your teams and in your team, form a straight line." The adult who's in charge of our team, Lisa, ushers us all together as Team 3, and we do exactly so, form a straight line and are now facing the wall. One teammate by one, we all swing over the wall, our muscle memory building up. Originally, when I first looked at this obstacle, I was half-expecting that I would find it easy and at the same time, half-expecting it to be a bit difficult at first. Turns out both of my thoughts were right. I knew that by practice, I would find it easier because of my muscle memory. So all it took for me and my teammates was a few more practices with swinging over the walls.  "Your first part of the training is now complete. Your next training will now be in "The River"." Dugald states. Okay... ... WAIT WHAT...

My experience going to a school field trip: The Mule {ft. the laments of a mud-covered primary schooler} {true story, but people are replaced with different names for privacy and safety reasons} I have moved to a new primary school in Queenstown. And there was two more weeks till the school term of the year had concluded. That means Christmas, and the mark of a new year awaiting me. And honestly, I was pumped that I finally had an opportunity to take a break and rest up before going back to school and listening to the teachers again.  But that meant I had one more end-of-year event left to face. The teachers had anticipated this event supposedly a while ago, mainly because this particular event was planned out months before, so they had to overcome the stresses and worries of sorting and considering the groups for those not going, those who have last-minute changes, etc.  Mentally prepared for the fact that I will be cover in all sort of substances you'd find in nature, I anxi...

First food: Ramen with a spicy prawn base, and tokyo broth  ⚲ Tanoshi Five Mile   Currently, my family and I are on a hunt to find the best restaurant that has superb food in Queenstown. We stumbled upon this place, with a cozy dimly lit atmosphere and a bar. Our food was served not just piping hot, but straight up burning. In the frigid, bone chilling Five Mile Shopping Centre air, steam was practically steaming out of the bowl. It was most likely one of the most hottest meal ever served to me, other than straight up hot water. When I think about this meal, it always practically makes my mouth water. The tokyo broth along with the spicy prawn base was super delicious together. It's almost like the two components were made for each other. The two crispy prawns paired with it tasted super duper yummy. So, despite my spice tolerance being incredibly low, I actually enjoyed it. It's an ideal meal for someone who has a weak spice tolerance. Overall rating:   ✩✩ ✩ ✩ ✩ / ✩✩✩✩✩ ...