♥

This Chinese New Year has been a rather quiet one for everyone in my family.
We didn’t do any visiting this year because of Grandma’s recent demise,
but we still had fun at our family chalet! :)
I visited A’s place though, and it was a lot of fun meeting her family.
I hope A had fun at my family chalet and family dinner too. Heh!

I also received some pretty clothes to wear for the new year!
Special thanks to SugarThreads for the super adorable striped dress and
LustMonday for the comfy and stylish looking chiffon shirt dress!
Many many love!

I shall continue with my travel to Chiang Mai!
This is probably my favourite part of the entire Chiang Mai trip – visiting the Karen Tribe in Mae Hong Son and Elephant rides.
But before I start on those, I MUST share this amazing place in Chiang Mai that A and I chanced upon
while we were researching about Chiang Mai couple weeks ago.

Nimmanhaemin Road is supposedly the hippest and most artsy place in Chiang Mai.
Littered with lots of cute cafes and chillout places, this is the perfect place to escape to
if one wants to escape from the typical “Chiang Mai sights”!

If you google or youtube the place, you can actually see a lot more pictures of the streets.
There are about 19 or more little streets branching off the main Nimmanhaemin Road, almost all are awesome!
Lots and lots of hidden treasures!

We saw this pretty little shop and we were blown away!
A lot of the things in there were made from recycled materials and they are all super cute!
It’s at Nimmanhaemin Soi 19, for those who are interested.
There is a shop, a cafe and a Ukulele shop in one!

There is this funky statue there. Look closely and you’ll see that it’s actually decorated with coins!
Creative!

Here are some of the things they sell in there.
A bought that blue/green document bag you see in the collage.
When we first saw it, we were guessing the material it’s made with.
After checking with the store assistant, we were pleasantly surprised that it was actually made from an old fridge door!
The sides of the bag has the rubber tubings from the old fridge too. Mad special!
It’s not cheap, about S$200, but definitely worth the price!

Our main aim at Nimmanhaemin Road was initially to find this shop we saw in one of the Youtube clips.
After asking around and some googling at the WIFI cafes there, we finally found it!
It’s called iBerry at Nimmanhaemin Soi 19. Super cute!
I wish there is such a place in Singapore too!

SUPER BIG STATUE!
Look at the size of the chairs and tables next to the statue.
We were super tired from all the walking but thrilled when we finally found the cafe!

Trying to look like that little thing on the table. Hahahaha!

Then we found this thing where you can stick your head in and take photos!

We had this super yummy thick toast thing there.
IT WAS FUCKING GOOD!
The bread is toasted and cut into little cuboids.
Honey is drizzled on the bread and it tasted heavenly with ice cream.
I’m drooling now already. Bring me back there!!

The next day, we visited one of the prettiest temple I have ever seen.
The White Temple.
It’s unlike most conventional temples because it looks very modern and is entirely white!

This place is almost like an art exhibition.
Check out these photos and you’ll understand why I said that.

The artist’s depiction of hell.

Something quite funny. You can actually see the artist’s standee all over the temple.
Apparently, he is tired of taking pictures with the tourists so he planted a lot of standees. Hahaha!

Inside the main temple hall, photography is prohibited.
But I managed to sneak a few photos. Hehehe!
Look at this! In which temple can you see such funky wall paintings?!
These are the things that we mortals are all caught up with, that we forget the true meaning of living.
I see Milla Jovovich in Resident Evil, Kungfu Panda and Transformers! Can you? :p

More pictures around the temple as we leave.
I LOVE this skull thing. Almost like McQueen!

For those who have watched this really good Japanese movie called Departures before,
you’d know what a stone letter is.
Here is a stone letter A and I exchanged in the temple.

After the temple, we ventured out to look at the infamous Golden Triangle.
I never exactly knew what the Golden Triangle is before I got there.
It’s actually a little triangle formed by borders of Myanmar, Laos and Thailand,
and it was one of the most illicit opium-producing areas a few decades ago.
I wonder if there are still such businesses going on in there now.

Allow me to introduce our funny tour guide.
Her name is Thip and she got the funkiest accent ever.
She pronounces January as “Jan-jer-ree”, Belongings as “Bee-long-jings” and Louis Vuitton as “Loo-wee-tong”.
Hahahaha. But she is still totally amazing.
A says she will make an awesome sales person. :p

After a short 10 mins boat ride, we crossed the river and ended up in Laos!

You can buy postcards here and mail them to your friends.
They will receive them 2 months later. Haha.

We also saw the funkiest baby “basket”!
And of course, adorable children. :)

Saw neatly arranged rocks. I think these must be some children’s toys.

Then we went back to Thailand (sounded so far haha) and checked out the actual Golden Triangle itself.
Okay lor, it was just a piece of triangular-shaped land.

After a short bus ride, we reached the northern most end of Thailand, just a bridge away from Myanmar.

*My eyes are getting a bit dizzy from all the uploading of photos and typing*

We later went to visit the Karen Tribe at Mae Hong Son.
This is one of my favourite parts of the entire trip.
I have heard so much about these long-neck people and I’m honoured to have the chance to meet them.
They live in the same village as another tribe where the women would enlarge their ear piercings.
It’s fascinating!

Her teeth is like that because of all the betel nuts chewing.

And this lady is one of the singles in this village, supposedly one of the prettier ones there.
Their skin is so fair and nice!
Put her in a singlet and jeans and she can pass off as one of our cousins lor!

And the long-neck tribe, also known as Karen Tribe.
They originate from Burma, present day Myanmar.

Looking at these women saddens me a bit actually.
The tour guide told us that these women need to put the rings into their necks by
slipping brass rings in molten state through their heads and let them harden at their necks.
So they will have a lot of burn marks under the rings.
THAT’S SO CRUEL AND SCARY!

But after doing some research when I got back, I realized that that wasn’t the case.
Tour guide kayu.
Here is a Youtube clip that shows you how the rings are put on and removed.
And yes, it is also a myth that these ladies will die and their necks will break the moment the rings are removed.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BL8ARB5FmsA]

But in some articles, I read about how the muscles in the neck will weaken after prolonged wearing of the brass rings.
And that after they remove the rings, the woman must lie in bed for the rest of their lives.
It was said to be one of the punishments for adultery.

Here is an article explaining why the Karen women wear the brass rings around their necks.
“There are many different accounts of why the Padaung practice this bizzare custom.
Their own mythology explains that it is done to prevent tigers from biting them!
Others have reported that it is done to make the women unattractive so they are less likely to be captured by slave traders.
The most common explanation, though, is the opposite of this -
that an extra-long neck is considered a sign of great beauty and wealth and that it will attract a better husband.”

Anyways, it was the Thai Childrens Day that day so A and I decided to buy some candies and chocolates for the kids.
Some of them never eat chocolates before eh. :(
And they are so not in touch with society that they don’t even know it’s Childrens Day.

This lady has the most number of rings in the village.
Her picture is on the Wiki page about their tribe too eh!

She has like 26 or 28 rings around her neck!
A and I tried on the rings (there is only 17 rings here) and we are so glad we were not born into this tribe.
We would be considered freaking ugly if we were. Haha.

And one final photo with their pretty headgear before we leave the village.
I bought that yellow necklace I’m wearing in this picture too! Pretty? :D

Think I’m going to pass out if I continue blogging!
Have been at it for the last 4 hours. OMG!
I’ll be back with more pictures from Chiang Mai.
And till then, hope you all have a wonderful day ahead.
Cheers!

My mother has always been an inspiration to me since young.
She always struck me as a free-spirited, optimistic and daredevil woman.
Although she is my mother, she has always been more of a friend instead.
We could talk about almost anything and we are comfortable to show our innermost feelings before each other.
Well, to me at least.

Mommy was a really adventurous girl.
She used to tell me how she just picked up her luggage and went off to Japan to live and
work for half a year when she was about 21 or 22.
And when she was in her late twenties, she did it again, that time to London.

In many ways, she has taught me how to be daring enough to go after what you want and follow your heart.
I see a lot of myself in her.

Mommy is my best friend and the one person I will never ever forsake.
With this entry for Dove chocolates, I’d like to dedicate this post for the woman I love the most.

Thanks for bringing me into this beautiful world and teaching me all the right things in life.

♥

I’m feeling all fluffy and warm inside now. Heh!
And of course, just in case you’ve missed all the wonderful silky smooth
Dove chocolates I’ve introduced on my blog earlier,
here is one reminder for you to try out the smooth chocolates from Dove.
Melt the silky smooth chocolate in your mouth for that warm, fluffy feeling of love too. :)

That aside, I just came back from my 5-days Chiang Mai trip too!
I was there with A and her colleagues, and I really enjoyed the company and Chiang Mai a lot.
It was rather chilly over there now but it can still be rather warm in the afternoon.
I wish Singapore had that kind of climate too!

We stayed at Royal Princess Hotel, which was right smack in the middle of the main Night Bazaar area.
Lots of food, shopping and massage places all around so it was fabulous.
The hotel itself was pretty alright too. :)

Okay, to be honest, the writings on the wall freaked the scaredy-cat me slightly when I first entered the room.
But after I surveyed the other rooms and realised it was just a design, I heaved a sigh of relief.
You can’t be too sure, when it comes to hotel rooms. Hahaha.

It was already rather late when we we done with the hotel and all,
so we decided to just head for dinner and then start cruising around the nearby night market.
The night bazaar start at around 5pm daily and the stalls will start closing at around 10 or 11pm.
The stalls here are almost the same as those found in Bangkok actually.
But shopping around here is so much more pleasant because of the fine weather.
It was be quite cold at night, so even if it’s quite crowded, it never gets hot and stuffy. :)

I love the work by this artist!
He paints with a brush and uses powdered lead.
Super awesome right!
Look at all the details on the face and all!

We stopped for occasional drinks too and we found some exotic juices!!!

Painapple and Mongo juice. Never drink before right!
Hahahaha.

I also found a new love, banana crepes.
I always say dirty looking things tastes the best. Hahaha! Kidding.
But these banana pancakes sold at those roadside stalls are to-die-for!
The chocolate, the hot pancake, the banana and the cornflakes! YUMMY!

It’s very easy to make me happy. :p

Day 2 was the first full day we had in Chiang Mai.
We started it with a visit to the famous Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep.
According to the tour guide, if you didn’t visited this temple during your Chiang Mai trips,
it’s as if you’ve never been to Chiang Mai.
SO! Here we are at the beautiful Doi Suthep Temple!

We bought candles, joss sticks and lotus flowers.
We were supposed to walk 3 rounds around the main pagoda and your wishes will come true!
Of course, I took the chance to make a wish too. :p
Something random, the lotus flower is really pretty.

A says we were supposed to ring the bells to “announce our presence” (or something like that).

After the short stay at the temple, we took one of the mini buses up the hills to visit on of the tribes living in Chiang Mai.
The roads were really narrow and I really had to give it up to the bus drivers!
Our regular tour buses were too big and these are the “buses” we took.

The weather was great and we were lucky to catch quite a few cherry blossom trees on our way up too!
If I’m not wrong, the tribe is called Miao Tribe or something.
I’m never good with names.
They made a lot of handmade stuff for sale and seem to have green fingers because all the flowers up there were gorgeous!
Pretty simple and happy looking people if you ask me. :)

Spot the cherry blossom! Almost felt like Japan kay! Hahaha.

The girlfriend looks quite hot even when she’s shooting hanging papayas. :p

And pretty flowers that were littered all over the mountains!

And do you recognise this particular flower?

If you guessed Poppy, then you’re right!
I have seen the poppy plant when it’s all colourful and pretty but I never knew after all the petals fall off,
the core of the flower is actually where the opium came from.

The tour guide also showed us how they get what they want from the plant to make opium and heroine.
Apparently, you need to score the surface with a needle or something and collect the sap from the bud (or something).

I rubbed some of the sap on my fingers and took a whiff.
Smells really funky. It was not pleasant but not exactly awful as well.
Just erm.. smells like plants lor. But the smell kinda grows on you and become less unpleasant after a few more whiffs.
Interesting.

And the marijuana plant.
This is the one that gives you your weed, your magic mushroom or whatever crazy hallucinating brownies.
Hahahaha.
These plants ah… tsk tsk tsk.

We toured around the village a little more and met some of the people living there.
No matter where you go, the kids are always so cute.

I shall end today’s post with this pretty cherry blossom tree we spotted there!
I miss my blog so much after 5 days of being internet-less!
Will be back with more pictures and updates.
I love and hate my wanderlust!

It was our last two days in Rome.
We received a call from my Mom that morning and was told that Grandma had passed away,
and we spent the entire morning trying to get a flight back and
to settle some of the accommodation and flights which were already paid for.
A also tried to see if the travel insurance we bought could help.
It was such a hectic morning.

And before I start, here is a cute leatherette black top I received from Bare Minimal.
It’s comfortable and so easy to match and accessorize. I love it!

I frigging love my pageboy hat too! :p

Ok back to our Rome trip, we decided to make it our last day in Rome worthwhile and tried to run some last minute errands.
As usual, we’ll start with our Looks of the Day! :)

It was a very chilly morning in Rome that day.
Even if we were sitting in the sun, it was still quite cold!
I never loved the sun so much! It feels really good on the skin. :)

Brunch was an overdose of tomato – tomato-based pasta and tomato soup.
We didn’t realised that we ordered so much tomato stuff until the food was served.
It made me laugh at ourselves a bit. Hahaha.

As we started the day rather late, we had to cut our Vatican City tour much shorter.
We decided to just check out the exterior and head on to get our meals and shopping done.
And I think we both had that “last minute” mentality, so we had short spurts of trigger-happy moments every now and then. Heh!

Because of the next 7 days of our trip being cancelled, we were each left with quite a bit of euros.
So we decided to just go and buy some serious brands. :p
We initially kept Zara for our Barcelona trip because it is afterall a Spanish brand,
but because we’ll be skipping Barcelona, we went to check out the Zara in Rome too.
We bought two purses and I bought a bag. :)

As I have previously mentioned, the apartment we were staying at in Rome belongs to A’s friend.
Jacelyn is a talented songwriter and vocalist who is working in Rome now.
Her boyfriend, Alessandro and her were really sweet and nice to us for that 3 days we were there!
Jacelyn sings really well and write her own music too!
If you’re interested, you can check her out here. She’s really pretty too. :)

Ale made us really good truffles pasta that evening!
There were also other really good starters, but I was too shy to keep taking pictures of the food. Heh.

The next day was a very short one.
We went out a nice breakfast and then proceeded to do some more last minute shopping and do some tax refund stuff.

We met Alessandro for a good morning coffee.
Our apartment was just 2-minutes walk away from the best coffee place in Rome.
I never knew that Romans like to just stand around and have a quick coffee. What a cute culture! :p
I heard the coffee beans here are all roasted there and coffee are all freshly brewed.
Being a non-coffee drinker, I really enjoyed my Caffe Latte that morning. :)
Really good!

And more pictures about town before we leave Rome.

I was really impressed by how we managed to squeeze all our belongings back into the rucksacks!
And the best thing to wear for a flight – LOOSE CLOTHES! :)

It’s a fresh day at Rome and we got up early to set off to the Colosseo and Roma Forum.
It was hard getting out of bed in this cosy apartment because I’m totally in love with the huge bouncy bed!
We only have 3 full days in Rome and time is tight.

It’s the first time I saw Rome in daylight and I absolutely love it.
I love the colours of the buildings and the many huge wooden doors.
Many of the buildings on the streets are hundreds of years old and they exude an irresistible charm.
The cobble stone roads are lovely too.

The huge and tourist-packed Piazza Venezia.
It’s right at the end of Via del Corso, a huge street that cuts across Rome.

Then I think I see too much stones until I got a little bit looney.

HAHAHAHAHAHA!

The Roma Forum from afar. It’s amazing when you see this place and imagine how it was already here thousands of years ago.
The path you walk on was once walked by the most important people in Ancient Roma.

This Gladiator person made us take pictures with him and charged us 5euros. Dammit.

The walk to the Colosseo was anything but plain and boring.
Other than LOADS of tourists, the streets were littered with street performers, cute little roadside stalls and more.
It was quite a nice walk and even more enjoyable if one just take one’s own time down the street. :)

And we finally arrived at the Colosseo!
To me, this place is not as beautiful as the Eiffel Tower.
But after listening to the guide we hired,
I think this place is amazing and intriguing because of its long history and stories behind it.

Learnt a couple other new things too!
Never knew gladiators were actually people from the lower castes in the society.
And they were forced into becoming gladiators.
The Colosseo used to be covered with pretty marble slabs and pillars.
In fact, one will not be able to see any stones in the Colosseo at all in those days.
Can you just imagine how majestic and breathtaking this place used to look like?

The huge cross was erected as a memorial to all the martyrs who lost their lives here.
It used to be in the middle of the main arena, but was later shifted to the side.

Very fail jumping pictures. Ahem.

We had another guide to bring us around the Palatine Hills and Roma Forum. :)
It’s such a gorgeous place with a rich history.
There was actually still excavation works going on at the Palatine Hills area when we were there!

The next stop is the Trevi Fountain (or Fontana de Trevi. A is next to me & she wanna show off that she knows the Italian name).
A did some research and found out that (some say) the BEST ice cream in the world is near the fountain!
And so we went on a hunting trip to look for the amazing San Crispino Gelato!

The Trevi Fountain!
I threw a coin with my back facing the fountain.
I hope I’ll be going back to Rome again soon! :)

And the amazing San Crispino gelato!!!!
I think it really is the BESTEST ice cream I’ve ever had!
We bought a cup each and left the store.
After we’re done with our cups, we looked at each other and went straight back to the store to get another BIGGER cup! :p
It’s THAT GOOD! :D”
They are world renowned and these people are so particular about their gelato that they don’t serve their gelato on cones!

HAPPINESS! ♥

From the gelato shop, it’s just a 15 mins walk to the Spanish Steps.
Ok, I don’t know why the Spanish Steps is so famous actually.
It’s just a lot of stairs.
But it’s still very pretty lah. :p

There were so many tourists we don’t even wanna take a picture of the steps because there will be too many photo bombs.

Right in front of the steps is another main shopping street where you find your usual Prada, Louis Vuitton, etc.
REALLY GOT A LOT OF PEOPLE!!

Dinner was at Gusto, a nice restaurant near the Spanish Steps.
The address is Piazza Augusto Imperatore, 9 00186 Rome, for those who are keen on checking it out too. :)

SOOOO many different kinds of pasta!

We bought a bottle of water from the mart and walked back.
The Pantheon is gorgeous at night! :)

I also wanna share this super cute thumb drive and bookmarks I got from Summur!
Mom needs a thumb drive and she was thrilled when I shared it with her. :)
The bookmarks came in four different colors – pink, red, black and baby blue.
I love the leather texture of the bookmarks!

This is our last day before we leave for Rome.
How I miss Paris now already. I wish I was still there!
Before I begin, here is a pretty one-piece short jumpsuit I received from The Friday Best.
Oh my god, I love it!
It’s super comfortable and I think I’m going to head out in it tomorrow. :p
You can throw on a belt if you want, but I like it baggy like that. Looks cute! Heh.

Let me start the Europe trip with our Looks of the Day pictures!

We visited Galleries LaFayette, a big shopping area with a lot of “serious brands”.
A and I call huge labels “serious brands” because one needs to be very serious when you’re shopping from these brands.
Hahaha!
To be honest, serious brands shopping for ONE WHOLE DAY can be really tiring and boring.
But something you girls might be interested in is the LongChamp store in there.
It’s near the main entrance and there is always a loooonnnngggg line of tourists waiting to go in!
More interestingly, all the tourists are Asians.
I don’t know why we like LongChamp so much, but I think the stuff there are really much cheaper. :)

There is a huge Apple store nearby too!

I also saw these super pretty Coke metal bottles in the mall.
Pretty in pink and white!
I’m instantly swept away when I saw it!
Although it’s Diet Coke (which I dislike), I bought it anyway. :p

And yes we brought the clean bottles back!
Gave me quite a lot of problems at the customs because they keep beeping at the metal detectors. Hahaha!

We also had a nice lunch at a coffee place nearby.
I really love the food there! ♥
I’m not a huge coffee drinker, but I think through this Europe trip,
I’ve learnt how to enjoy coffee more than before.

We also went back to the Eiffel Tower to get on the river cruise and saw the Eiffel Tower lighting up!
The light-up is at 6pm, for those who are going there soon.
It’s totally gorgeous so you guys have to check it out too if you’re heading over to Paris. ♥

Eating by the Eiffel Tower in Champ de Mars while waiting for the tower to dazzle at night!

The tower is gorgeous at nightfall!
I’m in love.

It sparkles too! This picture does it no justice at all.
I think it sparkles every hour for a couple minutes.
We were in that area for around 3 area and saw it sparkles thrice! :p

River cruise!
We decided to get on the upper deck to have a better view from the cruise.
But it was SO GODDAMN COLD!
The wind and all made us shiver and grab on to our scarfs tight as we sat there in awe of the gorgeous Paris skyline.

And of course, the heat packs are our best friend in chilly nights like this one.

We had a flight to Rome to catch the next day so we decided to end the night early.
On our way back, we decided to take some pictures at a photo booth as a way to say Goodbye (for now) to Paris!

I noticed a few comments on the previous posts asking about the apartment I stayed at.
I actually found this awesome room at Roomorama and I have no regrets!
The room is at 90 euros a night and I think we got a pretty good deal for a great location like this one.
We had a kitchenette in the room (all built inside a cupboard), toilets with nice heaters and shower,
and I like how everything looks very simple but yet they have everything we need in there. :)

You guys can check out some of the pictures of the apartment in the link above.

When we got to Rome, we got to A’s friend’s apartment at Piazza Santa Chiara.
The location is totally awesome – for the 4 days in Rome, we didn’t have to take any public transport at all.
We could walk to almost everywhere from our apartment.
Here are some pictures of the apartment before we messed it up. :p

Pretty aye? :)
Even the lift in that building is super fun. Heh!

It was already pretty late by the time we arrived at the apartment.
So after settling down, we decided to just walk over to the nearby Piazza Navona (2 mins walk away) for dinner.

I’m dying to have the Vongole Pasta again now. *drools*

Before I go, here are some pretty nail polishes I received from Nail Splash in my mailbox yesterday!
I love these China Glaze and Essie polishes I have, the colours are unique and there were so many to choose from.
Oh and Orly too!
They also have other brands like Deborah Lippman and Butter London,
I heard these are pretty exclusive and hard to find in Singapore.
Nail Splash is the first to bring them in!
If you wanna try these brands, which are favourites of many Hollywood stars, do check them out.
As for glitter lovers, do check out the TiNS range available there too.

I shall continue with my entries about the recent Europe trip.

There is more than just the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre in Paris.
A and I visited the beautiful Notre Dame Cathedral & Pantheon too.
Before we begin, I shall share our Looks of the Day!

A is looking really cute with the bowler’s hat and all suited up on black and white.
I think I have never seen A with a bad hair day before.

As for me, I’m all blue.
I’m stacked with blue apparels from head to toe.
I love this blue snood on me. :)

The Notre Dame Cathedral and gorgeous and huge!
We started firing away in front of the cathedral.

Hunchback of the Notre Dame. Hahaha.

Unfortunately, visitors are only allowed into a small portion of the cathedral.
But still, I’m blown away by the gorgeous architecture of this place and the photos turned out really good too.

I lit a candle before Saint Mother Teresa for Grandma too.
I wished for Grandma to be well again.

From the cathedral, we walked by a nice little marketplace.
Fresh fruits, accessories, fresh meat and many other stuff are all readily available here.

I also bought a pageboy hat to add on to my outfit that day.

And of course, some coffee by the roadside. I love this.

The Pantheon is not too far away from the Notre Dame Cathedral. Probably about 15-20 mins away?
We also saw many cute coffee shops, cute alleys and colorful colored doors along the way.

The Pantheon.

The kind of expression you’ll get if you ask A to pose for a picture for you:

Not sure if you remember who Zoolander is? The one who build the Institute for Children who can’t read good? :p
I LOVE Ben Stiller in that movie!
A and I did a little Bluesteel and Magnum right outside the Pantheon.
(How embarrassing.)

I very much enjoyed the Pantheon more than the Notre Dame Cathedral actually.
I love the atmosphere in this place – quieter, less crowded and there is a good balance between creepy and peaceful.

It’s “good creepy”, if you know what I’m talking about. I like good creepy.

The stories of the martyrs and other famous people were depicted by the wall paintings.
The Pantheon was also the final resting place of many great people like Victor Hugo, Marie Curie, Louis Braille, etc.

A’s not-so-good Chinese.

Remember The Little Prince?

The underground crypt in the Pantheon was somewhat creepy in my opinion.
Actually, I cannot decide whether it feels peaceful or creepy in there.
But what’s for sure is, it is an absolutely beautiful place and I love the curves on on the pillars and ceilings.

And the picture that has been replicated 2 million times.
As inspired by the master of BW Photography, Henri Cartier-Bresson.

We also walked to Jardin du Luxembourg for a nice walk in the park.
I love the bald trees and occasional yellow autumn leaves.

Lunch was at MacDonalds with an eclair to finish.
No curry sauce, no garlic chilli sauce. SADNESS.

It was so cold that day!

The final stop that day was at Musee d’Orsay.
This museum is just 5 mins walk from our apartment so it’s the perfect last sight to see of that day.
Plus, it was a Thursday and the museum closes late every Thursday. :)

The queue was long and we hate it!

We later found out that the museum used to be a train station, that explains the presence of the big clocks in there.
Unfortunately, photography is strictly prohibited in the museum.
Here are a few pictures A snapped before getting warned by the museum staff. Ooops.

Before I buzz off, just wanna share this pretty mustard-colored dress I received from Chandelle House.
I love the quality of the dress and the belt that comes with it!
I realized that it looked great with the horsie-print chiffon shirt I have too. Cute? :)

Please pardon my massive tired face.
I haven’t had the chance to have a single night of good sleep for the last week
since the long flights back and straight to Grandma’s wake.

Chandelle House is also having a big Facebook Giveaway!
in at least one of the photos in the Collection 37 Preview Album to stand a chance!

Be one of three lucky winners to walk away with a S$10 Chandelle House Voucher.
Comment “I ♥ this!!” in at least one of the photos in the Collection 37 Preview Album to stand a chance!

Till next time!

The Paris experience never ends.

The Louvre was spectacular, and it’s such a great honour to be able to be there.
Of course, nothing compares to the wonderful Eiffel Tower in my heart. Heh.
I’m feeling a little emotional tonight.
I don’t know if it’s the beautiful night, the chilly winds, or the songs I’ve been listening on repeat.
I’ve been listening to the Il Postino soundtrack played on a bandoneon on repeat.
It’s a movie I’ve been wanting to watch and if the song can make my heart ache so much,
I’m sure the movie is going to be heartbreaking.
I’m going to take things slow tonight.

Alrights! I shall start off this entry with A and my pictures!
We came here with limited clothings, but the good thing is, we can share clothes!
That really help maximise our wardrobes. :)

The Louvre is just a 10 minutes walk away from our apartment in Paris.
Morning walks in Paris is always enchanting and I didn’t find myself complaining at all despite having to walk all day there.
I love to see the people just sitting by the road at cafes just watching the day go by,
or people standing by the bridge sketching away, feeling inspired.
They somehow made me feel a little ashamed of living my life in such a hurry, often neglecting the beautiful things around me.
On the whole, I love how they are just “living in their own world”. To me, at least.

We bought the Paris Pass for 2 days and that allowed us to gain access
to most of the major museums around Paris without much queueing.
I think we only queued for 2 mins for the Louvre. Good that we were there early too.
I still think the Louvre is more beautiful at night.

I’m not very big on art, to be honest.
Not the kind who knows how to differentiate between an Impressionist or Realism or Cubism kind of person at least.
A, on the other hand, knows quite a fair bit about such stuff and it’s almost like having a tour guide when we’re in the Louvre.
*smiles*
She has always been interested in Greek mythology as well, so she was able to tell me stories to some of the statues we see.
Lucky for me, if not, the statues would have all looked more or less the same.
Let’s have a little virtual tour around the Louvre for you now.

We stopped for a coffee break and the Angelina cafe in the Louvre was a perfect place.
The view was breathtaking and the eclairs were to-die-for!
The hot chocolate, despite being their signature item on the menu, was a little too rich after a few sips.
On the whole, it was still absolutely fabulous!

And more walking around the museum.
I never knew the Greek mythology was this interesting.
Hercules, Venus, Neptune, Narcissus, Bacchus, Aphrodite and more, they all just used to be familiar sounding names,
but I can now put a story to every statue I see and I can now even recognize them when I see them!
All thanks to my wonderful tour guide and story teller. :p

This is Cupid and Aphrodite.

Ok, time for some stories. Hahaha.
The Cupid we all know is actually Aphrodite’s son.
Cupid’s actual Greek name is Eros, and that’s where the word “erotic” came from.
Aphrodite, often portrayed standing on a shell, is a renowned beauty and considerably the most beautiful Greek goddess.
She is also known as Venus.
As you can now guess, that is also where the word “aphrodisiac” came from.
Psyche, is a mortal girl who is so beautiful that even the gods have heard of it.
Aphrodite being jealous and challenged, sent Cupid to kill her.
But when Cupid saw Psyche, he fell in love with her instead.
This is often portrayed in statues and paintings with Cupid and Psyche always together,
you can sometimes still see a dagger or something nearby while they are lying in bed.
Another version is that he got scratched by his own arrow when she startled him as he was trying to kill her,
thus falling in love with her.

This is Cupid and Psyche.

Bacchus.

The word “Baccanalia” came from this god.
The definition of this word, as found online is “a riotous, boisterous, or drunken festivity; a revel”.
Bacchus is the god of wine, orgies and parties, and his most distinctive features are the grapes in his hair signifying wine.
He is usually a young naked boy instead of an older man because of the Greek’s fascination for young boys.
It can get quite warped because according to what A told me, the Greek men loved young boys, in a sexual way.
Eeeww.

Oh! Bacchus is A’s cat’s name too. Hahaha.

Narcissus.

This is where the word “narcissistic” came from.
This god fell in love with himself and when he saw his own reflection in the river,
he was so in love with himself that he couldn’t bear to leave and died by the river (probably from hunger). :p
He was brought to the river by Nemesis, but that’s a whole new story.
Do check it out online if you’re interested.

Ok, end of stories.

That’s Cupid and Aphrodite again!

We fed the pigeons outside of the Louvre too. :)

The Arc de Carousel (I hope I got the name right) is just a stone throw away from the Louvre.
We continued with more trigger happy action there. :)

A is in a mess because of her snood flying all over the place. :p

Wrote my name with my body too!
Bimbotic enough, I got the G in the wrong direction.
And A didn’t even notice. :p

The bird standing on top of this statue gave it a whole new meaning.

The adorable A.

A treats the used heat packs with a lot of love.
She always treat everything with a lot of love. :)

Update
We are cutting the Europe trip short.
Received a call from Singapore and my Mom told me Grandma has passed away.
Those were such painful words to have coming from the other end of the line.
We’ll be flying back in a few hours’ time and I hope my family will be strong.
Grandma is now with Grandpa, in a better place.
There will be one more star in the sky tonight, shining down upon us brightly.
Thank you Sindy for doing the many calls to help have our flights changed.
And A, I promise we’ll go to Barcelona and many other places again in future.
Thanks for always being so supportive.

Can’t wait to be home.

This is my first time in Paris, and I’m utterly thrilled!
They call Paris the City of Love and Lights.
It may sound really cliche, but to me, I can really feel the love in here.

Our Europe trip will start from Paris, then to Rome, Barcelona and back to Paris for another 2 days before we head home.
Today is already the 5th day that I’m in Paris and I’m feeling sad about leaving here for Rome.
I’m missing the sparkly Eiffel Tower already.

The journey here was quite torturous. I hate long flights!
In a way, the stopover at Dubai (we flew Emirates) was somewhat comforting because I got to stretch my legs a little.
Speaking of flying Emirates, I’m proud to say that the total expenses for our
long flights + domestic flights + accommodation went up to only about $2.2k per person!
*proud*

Oh! It’s my first time lugging such a BIG backpack too. Heh!

Our apartment is at Rue de Verneuil, it’s just a stone throw away from Musee d’Orsay, one of the main attractions in Paris.
It’s a lovely neighbourhood and we can find almost anything we need in here.
It’s fabulous to have such a pretty looking museum as our neighbour too!
After the flight and a ride on the underground trains,
we were blown away when we stepped out of the underground walkway and saw this!

We quickly settled down and scrambled out to check out the area!

Dinner was at this Cafe du Metro place. Food was expensive. And the servings were MASSIVE!

We reached here pretty late so we decided to just do some groceries shopping and rest early for the day.
The next day, we set off to the beautiful Eiffel Tower and Arc de Triomphe!
A few pictures just outside our apartment and near Musee d’Orsay first. :p

I’m really happy with the location of the apartment because it’s near an RER station,
right next to River Seine and it’s absolutely gorgeous! :)
The Eiffel Tower and Champ de Mars is just 3 stops away.

I was SO excited when I first set eyes on the tower!
I’ve been waiting so long to see it and here I am, right in front of it!
It’s majestic and breathtaking!

She told me she would bring me to Europe and we are here at last. :)

We were there pretty early and the queue to go up the tower wasn’t too long yet.
Thank goodness! :)

Gift shops selling lots of Eiffel Tower related knick knacks. :)
*weak spot*

YAY! We are finally at the highest level in the Eiffel Tower! It’s not as mad windy or cold as I’ve expected.
The view is really nice and it’s really cool to be able to check out the city at such great heights!

A crazy queue was spotted as we were making our way down.
LUCKILY we were there early!
If you’re going to visit the Eiffel Tower anytime soon, remember to be there early too!

The walk from Eiffel Tower to Arc de Triomphe is about 25mins away.
And that’s inclusive of getting lost, stopping for pictures and sightseeing.
Not too bad if you ask me. It’s always more enjoyable getting around the city on foot than by metro.
We stopped for a cheesy toast and cup of hot chocolate before we set off to Arc de Triomphe.
Food is expensive, I repeat, food is expensive.

I shared my bread with the pigeons! They all looked fluffed up and comfortable. :p

It’s always nice to be able to look over your shoulder and see Eiffel Tower right behind. :)

FINALLY! Arc de Triomphe HELLO HELLO!

Right in front of the Arc is Champs Elysee, a long shopping street with lots of shops and cafes.
We spent the rest of our afternoon and evening here. :)
My favourite past time is to find a cafe and do nothing other than drinking coffee, watching A and seeing time fly by.

We got smarter. We shared our food this time round.
The portion is JUST NICE! :)
I’m appalled by how much those tiny looking white French girls can eat!
*respect*

We are glad to have our trusty heat packs too!
It’s A’s brilliant idea to get them and they have been our best friend for this couple days.
Here is A documenting the dates these heat packs were used. :p
(My thumb is more bendy than hers!)

Oh! And we saw this super humongous Abercrombie and Fitch store.
It looks like a palace from the outside, with “guards” all dressed in Abercrombie.
I’m blown away by how big and pretty the store is!
I would have wanted to share more pictures but the staff there are pretty anal about shoppers taking pictures. *tsk*

Greeted by a half naked guy at the main door lor!
Abercrombie is rich man. And poor guy standing in the cold. Hahahaha.

The store is fucking big! Siao one.
I think most of the people went there to see half naked people and the decor of the place.
Hahahaha!

It’s getting late and we took a Metro back home.
But as we’re not very familiar with the lines, we ended up at the wrong stop. Haha!

BUT BUT BUT! We ended up in the Lourve!
It’s a blessing in disguise indeed because we only planned to visit the Lourve in the day
and if we didn’t stumble upon Lourve that day, we would have missed all the pretty lights there at night!

From the Lourve back home, it’s just a 10 mins walk!
There are a lot of pretty things to see on our way back home too.
How I love and hate the cold nights here!

We visited the nearby groceries stall for some fresh ingredients for our breakfast the next day!
Our little apartment comes with a little kitchenette and cooking can really help save us a bit of money,
and take care of our Chinese food cravings. :p

And finally, home sweet home.
We are in love with you, Paris.

Time flies like arrow! Fruit flies like bananas!
I’ll be flying off to Europe with A TOMORROW!
We just finished packing our huge rucksacks and I’m gradually becoming excited. :p
I’ve been feeling a little under the weather these couple days,
really hope I’ll get better before I reach Europe. *PLEASE!*

This is just a quick entry to share our homemade travel journal!
There are lots of travel journals being sold in gift shops out there but nothing beats a personalized one!
A and I bought this plain notebook from MUJI and decorated it with stickers and stamps.
Isn’t it gorgeous? :D

She took a polaroid of me while I was packing and I thought it would be nice to do our first entry in our journal tonight.
So here it is! :)

Here is my rucksack!
This is officially my FIRST sack and I’m loving it.
Hate that it’s so heavy though. But I guess it totally beats pulling a luggage around the place.
Heard there are lots and lots of stairs there too so a backpack would be a better idea.

Do you like the Snuffie on it? :p

I’ll be back with more updates and share precious moments with you guys when I’m there.
Bon Voyage to A and I!
Au Revoir! Adios! Ciao! :)

But before I get started on that, here are some of the wonderful presents I received from a few really nice blogshops.
This lime green dress is from Jolieque!
The material is really good and it also has double layers of fabric so it’s not too translucent.
It’s available in various colors but I like this one the most!

And also this super cute pink polka dot bra set from BJ Lingerie.
The material is awesome as well and I had a hard time choosing something I want cos’ they are all super cute!

Ok, back to Taiwan trip! :D

Auntie Connie, Uncle Mexa and Stella brought A and I to check out the wet markets there.

Uncle Mexa also drove us to the nearby docks at 高雄 to see fishing boats that brought back fresh seafood daily.
Call me suagu but I think I’ve never seen squids SO fresh!
There are little red spots on their translucent bodies that can sort of “breathe”.
Kinda gross but totally amazing!

Compare the bodies of the squid in the picture above to the ones in the first picture of this post.
The not-so-fresh squid has more red spots on it.
According to Uncle Mexa, those “reddish” squids are still fresh though.

We then drove over to somewhere which is supposedly the northest end of Taiwan (can’t remember the name).
Had some really yummy Taiwanese food there too!

Oh! And we drove by some Taiwanese Navy Open House thing and popped in just to take a look.
It was a suuuuuuper warm day!

And the navy uniform there is hideous. :x Oops.

Then it was cycling in this tunnel which was previously some railway tunnel.
It was a good change from the entire morning of strolling around under the hot sun.
The tunnel was super cooling and it was really fun!
We bought a couple lunch boxes and drinks and brought them along,
and had lunch at the other side of the tunnel.
Never did something like that in Taiwan before. Very interesting for me. :p

It was a very long day for us, but it didn’t just end there.
Uncle Mexa drove us back to Taipei City where A finally had her cravings satisfied.
She has been wanting to get her hands on this 金峰鲁肉饭 since the start of the trip and she is thrilled when she finally got it. :p

It was SUPER YUMMY! :D

A’s best friend:

The next day, we set off early to hang around with Auntie Connie and her other friends again.
It was mostly just trotting around town and lots and lots of eating! :D”

Lunch was at 鼎泰丰.

We saw these REALLY cute Hello Kitty bakery place that sells adorable Hello Kitty cakes and pastries.
And A being really sweet, bought me a Tiramisu cake and even posed for a picture with the PINK Hello Kitty paper box.
This is a sight you can rarely see ok!
She looks damn cute lor. Hahaha! :p

And more shots taken all over the place when we were travelling.

I still have more photos from the Taiwan trip but I guess I’ll keep them for the next entry.
Before I end off this post, I wanna share with you this other really awesome wardrobe addition I received!
This cute dress is from By Champagne Life.

The packaging of the clothes are really pretty!
They have different kinds of packaging for different amounts spent.
It really made my day to receive my pretty dress in such a pretty package! :D

Will be back with more updates about Taiwan soon!
Meanwhile, take care my dear ones! :)