It's Monday again! And back with bad flu and dizzy head T___T
Anyway, we had a long weekend last week and before the holiday arrived I decided to satisfy my curiosity to visit the 'it' Mall at BSD (AEON, what else? LOL) and the biggest Book Fair I have ever attended - the Big Bad Wolf, not far from the Mall. After a lot of consideration, whom else can I ask to go but my other 'bookworm' buddy - Ira :) We both agreed that night time might be ideal, since the next day was a holiday, probably most people are traveling with their family and so on... we heard and saw FB posts already of how long the queue was at noon. But apparently we were completely wrong.
So on Thursday, May 5, we left my house around 6-30pm and headed to AEON Mall. We got there as scheduled, around 8pm after a long traffic jam just about 2km away, then another 15 mins looking for a parking lot. But still good... We got it and headed to the basement. We were surprised to see the crowd but we couldn't resist to NOT purchase anything from the bakery!! Everything looked yummy but we settled on walnut chocolate breads, chocolate muffins and green tea muffins. We looked around, spent some times at Daiso, coffee... then we decided to leave just when the mall was about to close down at 10pm. What do you know, we had to spend another 45 mins just to get out of the Mall!! From the parking lot at the roof to the main road!!
Oh, and my impression of the Mall? Other than the many Japanese restaurants inside the mall I didn't think it was so special. But I'd love to return to try out some restaurants! Maybe next time on another holiday if I'm in the mood hahaha or better, if someone else drives! :p Really, google maps says it's almost 30km away from home and it took me almost 1.5 hours already on a holiday night! I can't imagine on a normal weekend just how bad the traffic will be.
Move on... So when we finally reached ICE where the BBW was held, again we had to spend some time looking for a parking space. I tried to be patient and drove super slowly, following people who's about to get out of the hall... and lucky! We got a space not too far from the entrance. We were excited and a bit overwhelmed at the crowd though it's already 11.30pm. And once we got in... I got dizzy! Hahaha
First, it was crowded.
Second, it was messy. There was a sign clearly said to put the books back where it belong but noooooo people just put it anywhere they liked it!
Third, it was crowded and messy but still so many strollers with sleeping babies and children inside and in between rows, making it hard for people to get through :(
I almost went out again if not because it was such a pain to get there, then shouldn't I at least get a book or two? So Ira and I went separate ways... I browsed quickly and found about 2 or 3 books I was interested in. Actually more, but I had no more space to keep them unless I get rid what I had currently at home LOL
The OCPD in me was so bothered by the mess that everytime I stopped to look at a book, I also spent time to stack everything back according the titles hahaha I knew that I looked like a weirdo and some people just watched me like I was nuts. But hey, I would go nuts if I saw the mess and didn't do anything about it! >_< There was also a sign that said not to open the books' wrap and boxes (for some educational hard covers) but nooooooo this man in front of me just took one box, ripped it open, took out the book, ripped open the plastic wrap, opened the book and threw it back to the pile, right in front of me!!! I tried to hold it in and didn't say anything... I was furious and if not because I was getting really tired and the crowd I might've chased after him and gave him some words!
Then I thought let's pay and end it. That's when I realized that the people right next to me was actually queuing for the cashiers. I looked around and saw super long lines at every rows... I moved to check how many cashiers were available. There were 30 and actually people could stand in line for 1 hour just to pay! I wasn't surprised when I saw just how many books each people were buying. Almost everyone bought like a trolley, that's when I decided to throw the white towel. No way I'd queue for an hour for 3 books. Ira and I agreed to call it a day and headed out.
We saw a lady with like a few trolleys of purchase waiting for her car... Surprisingly, we still saw a lot of people who just arrived and again, with strollers -- sleeping babies and all. I wasn't against taking your children with you if you don't have nannies or helpers at home, but maybe you should take turns with your partners to look out for them OUTSIDE the hall instead. There were empty crates on the sides inside the hall, clearly they were filled with books and I could feel the dust in the air. My allergy was even starting to come out, one of the reasons I got out quickly. Really bad for babies to be inside :(
It was already 1AM by the time we got out of the hall. We regretted for not buying anything, but at least we knew what to do the next time BBW (hopefully) returns. Get rid of the old books first to save some space and come with more people so even if we have to queue, we queue for lots of books instead of 3 ROFL
Oh well... it was a nice little adventure and I won't mind to do it again :D But first, I better finish reading those books still in their wraps sitting nicely in my shelf. Yikes!
