Wait.. How is March already done? I can’t believe I’m looking at my calendar today and it’s already April. It’s already well into April actually. I think that part of this fast movement of time is because I made my first trip of the year in March. As you can imagine a lot has happened this month, and most of it was good (some of it not so much).

What did I do in March 2019?

I started the month with a lot of positivity at a Jason Mraz concert. His concert is exactly what you probably imagine it to be. It’s sweet and it’s lovey-dovey. It fits perfectly with my month of movies & TV series actually, which you can read in the section a bit further down.

This positivity buzzed through my whole month actually. I was super happy to go on my first trip of the year. A trip to one of my favourite countries: India. A country I have visited two times before. Once for a short visit to Goa and once to attend my friend’s wedding. This time around I was in the country for two weeks for work. However, the weekends I had plenty of time to explore and luckily my colleagues were happy to travel around the state with me.

My base was Mysore, so I travelled to a few beautiful temples and natural areas in the area. I even managed to explore Bangalore for one day before my flight. Needless to say I can’t wait to start writing about it, but I really have to get through my content from 2018 first. So stay tuned a little while longer if you’re eager to read about India.

In an ideal world I could’ve showed you the beautiful photos and left it at that. However, the world isn’t always an ideal place. India wasn’t all fun and games for me. I got sick. Sick in a way I have never gotten sick before during my travels. I had flu symptoms for one day and a bad bad bad Delhi belly (even though I didn’t even visit Delhi!)

There’s a lesson everywhere and this time my lesson is that: 1. I’m not immune to sickness when travelling. 2. Patience is a virtue when it comes to Delhi Belly. It will not be finished within a week, but it will lessen and ultimately resolve itself.

I didn’t get to eat all the lovely dishes I wanted to eat, so rest assured India. I’ll be back! Nothing could stop me from wanting to see more of the country.

Travel Content which inspired me

The only travel related content I watched this month were Backpacking Bananas’ vlogs about the Philippines. A great reminder that I need to make my way over there one day!

What did I read?

I definitely didn’t read much this month. I brought two books with me to India, excluding the three audiobooks I also brought and I didn’t finish any. I had too much fun to read. I still read 7 books this month though, so I have no clue how I managed that. The books are sorted based on date read.

• Christina Baker Kline – Orphan Train (2013)
  • 3 out of 5 stars because I had expected so much more from this book. I generally really like historical fiction, but in this case the story really didn’t do much for me. The two tales of the main protagonists, both orphans, didn’t move me and the ending was a bit of a reach. The writing was good throughout though, so it’s not like I wasn’t compelled to keep on listening. If you like historical fiction, you might like this book. Otherwise it’s wise to stay away – it’s OK at best.
• Emily Henry – A Million Junes (2017)
  • 5 out of 5 stars because I adore Emily Henry’s writing. I love what she has done to the magical elements of this novel.This novel is about a long-lasting family feud. The O’Donnells are not to talk or be near the Angerts. If they do, bad things happen to them. Jack IV O’Donnell (aka. Junior aka June) abides by this rule until she meets Saul Angert.It’s very hard for her to stay away from him. It’s a romantic book, but it’s also about grief. It made weep and it made me want to carry on reading. I will certainly pick up more of Emily Henry’s books. Someone who can make me like a young-adult romantic magical-realistic book has skills!
• George Saunders – Lincoln in the Bardo (2017)
  • 4 out of 5 stars because I’m surprised by how much I actually enjoyed reading this book. I couldn’t believe it when I reached the 100 page mark and I still can’t believe it now that I’ve put it down. Normally, these kind of experimental books are not for me. Normally, Man Booker Prize winners are lost on me. The past three years (I’ve not read Milkman yet) I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the books though.I actually thought of never reading this one since most of the reviews were scathing. The story is about the passing of Abraham Lincoln’s son to a sort of in-between place. The ghosts lingering there are surprised to see such a young boy there, as they normally pass on immediately. We hear the ghosts stories one by one in theatre style writing. Some of their stories made me laugh aloud. This is the first time I put sticky notes in a book for ages!While we hear the stories of the ghosts we also get an understanding of the sign of the times back then. Specifically the war that’s raging and Lincoln’s role in it. My favourite parts are the ones with the ghosts though. They are hilarious! It’s hard to explain, but surely I’m not the only one who enjoyed this book?I’m curious to read last year’s winner now. I wonder is the Man Booker Prize really is becoming a book prize for me
• Stephen King – Pet Sematary (1983)
  • 2 out of 5 stars because I didn’t like the story. I haven’t heard anything about the plot prior to reading the book, but it was so obvious the whole time. Dead animals get up from the dead boo-hoo.I also didn’t like the protagonist Louis, husband and father of two children, who all move into a new home by a busy street. This is one of those slow-burning narratives by King and it’s hard to get into when you don’t like the inner monologues of the main character.Add to this the dreary narration of Michael C Hall and you have the recipe for disaster.There’s actually nothing more about the plot I can say than the fact that this family moves into the new home. Oh, they own a cat by the way. Sorry, if I spoiled the story for you.

    I’ll definitely watch the movie, but I don’t understand the hype with this book…

• Ian McEwan – My Purple Scented Novel (2016)
  • 3 out of 5 stars because this is a very short but engrossing little book.The story is about two best friends who are both writers; one more famous than the other; and it’s about a theft.
• Taylor Jenkins Reid – Evidence of the Affair (2018)
  • 4 out of 5 stars because I read this short book while sitting on a sunny terrace in India sipping a frozen coffee. Let me tell you that’s a perfect setting!Evidence of the Affair is an epistolary novella, which features letters exchanged between a man and a woman who have discovered that their spouses are having an affair together.I really enjoy Reid’s writing style so even though it’s short and not very shocking it had me hooked to find out how it would end.
• Jane Harper – Force of Nature (2018)
  • 3 out of 5 stars because I loved Harper’s first novel The Dry, and I had really high hopes for this one. The premise sounds like it’s right up my alley.Five women go into the Australian wilderness on a corporate retreat and only four come out. Aaron Falk makes his comeback in this book in a more professional way. This time around the woman that has gone missing is also the woman who was going to help him with a money related crime.The question now is: why is she missing?The story is told from the timeline of Falk & his colleague Carmen and from the start of the retreat through the eyes of the women.

    I have to say I wasn’t really enthralled by this book. The ending wasn’t very surprising to me and it fell a bit flat. That having been said Harper is a great writer and I enjoy her style. Three stars is still a good rating for a mystery/thriller.

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What did I watch?

As I said, my month of movies can be classed as a bit lovey-dovey because I watched two sarcastic, yet romantic movies. One of them is my all-time favourite (don’t judge, I’m a huge Kevin Smith fan) and the other one is a new favourite which had me rolling on the floor laughing.

Zack and Miri Make a Porno (2008)

This movie is absolutely ridiculous. I love it though. There’s something about a good Kevin Smith movie that makes me re-watch it over and over again. If you haven’t seen it yet, it’s worth checking out on Netflix.

Isn’t it Romantic? (2019)

This movie is new, and it’s incredibly funny. I really enjoyed watching it. It doesn’t take itself too seriously, but it’s not ridiculous either which is great.

What’s next for April 2019?

I’ve only just landed and I’m already looking forward to my next trip to Serbia. I’ll be visiting the country for a long weekend, which means I will only have a chance to visit two of its cities: Belgrade & Novi Sad.

It’s also my birthday month, so I quite like the month of April generally. Let’s see if it’s as good as March 🙂

Did you have a good March?