LUXOMME

Our first stop of the day was at St. Chapelle, we purchased the Paris Museum Pass so we were able to skip most lines (such a lifesaver) and avoid the crowds.







These pictures don't even begin to capture the sheer magnificence of this Chapel. The stained glass windows shine like little gems and just standing there makes you wonder what it would be like to actually worship in there, or how a choir could fill up the room and make it burst alive. 

And can you believe that it's almost 1000 years old?!

The crowds started to fill in after awhile so we decided to move on to our next stop; La Conciergerie.




One thing about Europe that makes up for the scorching Summer heat, is the sheer amount of history it contains. La Conciergerie was a former royal palace and prison where Marie Antoinette was held before her execution, and walking in the same halls makes you wonder who walked on those steps before you.





According to the video shown in one of the rooms, half the prisoners taken here were executed, which is madness; especially since most of them didn't do anything necessarily wrong and were only standing up for what they believed in.

 They showed us different rooms where the prisoners were held, and another that was used for physically preparing the guilty for execution. I can't even imagine what that would have been like for the prisoners in those rooms. Knowing what your fate was but having absolutely no means of escaping. 



 After hours of walking in and out of rooms we finally reached the one we came for. Marie Antoinette's reconstructed cell.






The mannequin models definitely made the room more realistic, but also a little uneasy.

  
The walking and the heat made us absolutely famished so we decided to go grab food!



I scoured hundreds of blogs in preparation for this trip and there appeared to be a consensus between most of them that the ice cream at Berthilion and falafels at L'As du Falafel were not to be missed.




The Falafel was good, but I haven't eaten enough falafels in my life to make any sort of conclusions. I would definitely go back again but there were loads of other stores selling the exact same thing, so I wonder what those ones are like.












I've realized that when we go on family vacations, we spend amount 10% of the time doing something productive, and the other 90% taking breaks. Mostly consisting of food. 

We stopped by Angelina's in the Richlieu Wing for some much anticipated Mont Blancs and Hot Chocolate; two things on the menu that they are known for. Apparently, Coco Chanel used to frequent this restaurant and was known to be a regular there.




My original plan was to come later in the day and sit on their open balcony overlooking the glass pyramid at the Louvre, but by the time we got there they had sold out of most items and the balcony was already closed..

We did manage to grab a Chocolat L'Africain and some macarons. No Mont Blanc though...



Comes with little servings of fresh whip cream and a huge jug of decadent hot chocolate enough for three people. 




Would I get this again? Absolutely. But I find La Maison du Chocolat's hot chocolate equally decadent.
















We ended our long day by sitting around the fountains outside the pyramid. Watching the sunset with this view. #amazing.

naomi

Hello from Paris!

I was hesitant when my Europe was picked for our Summer trip because I had been set on going back to Hong Kong, but as Summer passed, and because my cousins decided to join us on the trip, the excitement slowly ramped up. 

We spent many weekends this Summer on Skype calls, compiling what would eventually be our trip itinerary on GoogleDocs (best invention ever). It's almost surreal to think that we are finally here, after months of planning.

The weather here is absolutely amazing right now. I feel like Paris is a different city entirely because it's much cooler than the last time I came, which wasn't that enjoyable. Instead of feeling tired all the time due to the heat, I actually have the energy to enjoy the city; which has been absolutely wonderful. In retrospect, I am so glad we ended up here instead of Hong Kong.



 The plane ride was pretty rough though, no lie. We had a later flight which helped us adjust to jetlag more efficiently, but because the lights kept turning on and off, it was difficult to get some quality sleep time in. My cousins and I eventually gave up and ended up playing games or reading books for most of the trip.

We were exhausted by the time we got into CDG, and even more so by the time we reached our hotel. We were told that our rooms were not yet ready so we headed over to a nearby restaurant because most of us were exhausted, famished and extremely irritable.








 My cousin Chloe and I are sharing a room so we quickly unpacked, slapped masks on and went to bed for the next few hours; just to catch up on some lost sleep. She was so exhausted that the moment she was underneath the covers it was shut eye.








 And tomorrow will be a brand new day.

Everything always breaks when I need it.

I headed downtown last Saturday to meet Nissen at College so I could check out his new apartment since he JUST moved in a few days ago. I usually take the Subway downtown, but half of the main line I use was closed for maintenance. I literally had a mini panic attack since they said we had to take the bus for the rest of the way. 

I'm not good with buses. It confuses me in a million different ways, but it ended up okay, despite me missing my stop...

Angie came over to Eatons to meet up with Nissen and I after lunch, and Crystal and Rachel came to join us later because the girls and I had wanted to get haircuts. I usually go to Goa in Koreatown, but I thought I'd try something new so we headed over to Maya a few blocks down.

I'm pretty sure we were in Maya for more than two hours because by the time we re-emerged from the salon the sun had already started to set. We walked over to Guu Sakabar for some Japanese tapas spontaneously because it was just two blocks down  and the four of us were absolutely starving.





Loudest restaurant ever.

Those of you in Toronto will definitely know about Guu. It's massively popular and there's always a crowd in front waiting for a spot. They serve a variety of small dishes usually made for sharing between two or more people, just so you can try a bit of everything.





We only ordered five different dishes since none of us were really that hungry. This was the first time I went to the Guu Sakabar since I usually go to the Guu Izakaya or their other restaurant Kinton Ramen, which I never leave satisfied, but I keep on going back like it's an addiction.









We debated about ordering more dishes but decided that the enticement of dessert was much more exciting. After a nice ride on the Subway and some direction mishaps, we made our way to Moroco Chocolate in Yorkville.



The four of us split a chocolate fondue which was more than enough. If Guu didn't fill us up, the dessert definitely did the trick.


The fresh marshmallows were the best. 








It's not often I get to see these girls, so I am thankful for any time I get to spend with them. Sharing, laughing, eating. It has been such a privilege for me to get to know these sisters during the past few years and they are all such a blessing to me. 

So many things to be thankful for! 

I will try to update more constantly now that I have a steady internet connection. It gets pretty laggy during the night though so we'll see what happens, but if any of you are in Toronto and haven't checked out Guu or Moroco Chocolate, I would definitely recommend it. 

To get to Guu Saka Bar using the TTC Metro, get off Bathurst Station; and for Moroco Chocolate, exit at Bay Station. These should be the closest ones.

naomi

But on a completely unrelated note, I finally got my camera! I'm still holding onto this hope that I will get the old one fixed, but I'm super excited about this one whoo. More shameless selfies. 




naomi

If you haven't already noticed, I tend to use multiples of the same product. For instance, I have three different types of foundation here, and that's what I love about make-up. It's all so versatile. I like to use the Missha BB cream as a base and the other two darker colors for contouring and bronzing.



I highly recommend the Rocket Mascara if you can get your hands on one. I am addicted to drugstore and Clinique mascaras. These are the ones that work best for me.



I used to bring a whole train case with me when I went on holidays, but then I realized that not only was this not practical, it was also unnecessary. I've since whittled my must-haves down to these 18 products. I like going on ebay sometimes to buy samples of my must-haves so that they are more travel friendly. It definitely beats lugging around a whole bottle of toner.

I've found American and Korean sellers to be fairly reliable. Sephora also gives out random sample bags, but if you can't find a sample online and it's part of your must-have staples, it's always worth a shot at the store to see if they have any. I've found SA's to be very generous with samples if you ask nicely.