As of late . . .

My friend Kevin's instagram of us at Veniero's Pastry Shop (rainbow cookies, chocolate mousse, and 2 cappuccinos)

On an entirely different note, I've also been inspired by Kevin's motivation to complete Insanity, and have taken the plunge and ordered it myself. From kickboxing to bikram yoga, rock climbing to hip hop dancing, boot camp classes to ballet, I have done a lot of different forms of exercise and dance. I really wanted to hit a new plateau and continue on with my active lifestyle well into the summer, so I decided to just go ahead and take the Insanity challenge. I know it'll be intense (the people who have done it are probably laughing at the fact that I have NO idea how intense it really is), but I decided this is the year I'm going to challenge myself and just do it already.

Wish me luck lovely people! Oh, and updates of when I start the program and how I'm doing will SURELY come. Ta-ta!


(P.S. If you're wondering whether the Eurotrip photo porn will keep coming, it will most definitely keep coming)

The Ideal Parisian Diet

Oh yes, welcome to my tummy little Parisian pastry.

Italia!

Hello from Milano! I arrived safely a day ago and already I'm in a daze. The air is so different here and the people are so laid back! And I have never been in a place crawling with so many straight men (art high school, fashion college, you get the gist).

The trip getting to JFK was the worst part of the whole thing. The subway just would not move, and I thought I was going to miss my flight! It was only when I actually arrived in Germany that I calmed down a great deal and started to enjoy myself.

I had a 9 hour layover in Dusseldorf, Germany. That being said, I did not end up going to some of the major places I was planning to go to (I was kind of scared I would have another almost-miss-my-flight episode), so I just stuck to the central part of Dusseldorf.








It was Sunday and everything was closed, but I still enjoyed walking around (and eating brat). The people there are so nice! I had people help me with directions, buying train tickets for me (no English option on the machines I'm afraid), and one man by the name of Oliver literally went out of his way to make sure I got to the right airport (as in, took me there with his train card and made sure I got there safely). I regret not getting a contact but I am eternally grateful Oliver!

I arrived in Milan a few hours later, at night. My friend Isadora picked me up at Centrale Station, where we hugged and celebrated the fact that I did not get lost and end up in the middle of nowhere. She took me to her apartment and introduced me to her roommate/friend Jacki (she is super cool!) After a very late dinner, we hit the hay.

That leads me to today . . . Duomo.





(Duomo and me!)

Everything is BEAUTIFUL. I could never see something like this in NY . . . it would be ruined by skyscrapers and construction sites in the background. This is definitely something you guys have to get on a plane and see (and I urge you to do so).

We also had some AMAZING gelato. The name of the place escapes me but they basically drizzle chocolate from a chocolate fountain into your cone, load up two flavors of gelato (your choice) on top, and finally, they stick a wafer cookie in it. It was TO DIE FOR. The place was crowded and we did end up waiting for a while, but it was worth it. If you ever find this place (I'll try to get the name), get the flavor called Caprese. Tastes like a rainbow cookie (SO GOOD)!

Anyway, I gotta sleep soon (it's close to 1 am over here!) But look forward to more pictures soon~ Ciao lovelies, from Isadora and I!

My 5k and Recent Buy

Hey guys! It's another bright day in NY. The weather earlier this week was wet and dreary, but summer decided to show it's face yet again.

I recently hung out with my friend Melissa.

Cardigan- Sexy Dynamite London, Tank- F21, Shorts- thrift, Leggings- H&M, Boots- Ebay, Glasses- Peach Frog, Bag- Friend's gift, Headphones- Sony

Shoe shot!

After lolly gagging in Bryant Park, we headed to Lily O' Brien's and got hot drinks!

My salted Lily! It was a good pick me up. Pretty sweet, so I would just go with a small. I love the combination of chocolate and salt.

Then on Sunday (Labor Day Weekend!) my friend Kievan and I went to Governor's Island for the Run to Remember (9/11) 5k race!

Waiting in line (another shoe shot).

Waiting in line and camphoring. Fun-zo!

I had a lot of fun. I did the same race last year and though I went over my time from last year, it didn't matter because I still had a blast running. I also mildly got obsessed with coconut water after that and I've been drinking one everyday since!

Finally, I snagged this cute cardigan at Forever 21. I'm not the biggest Forever 21 fan because their quality is so-so, but they have cute things from time to time that I just can't stop myself from buying. This cardigan is a good example.

Anyway, I'm off to sleep a bit more, drink kombucha, and eat lunch (maybe not in that order). Tata and see you guys soon!

Recently decided to try this new thing called updating.

Remember in my last post I was wearing some new shoes?

These are my new shoes. Oxfords, to be exact. I adore them.

Mango, on sale, for $58!

And then I decided one pair wasn't enough so in the next 3 weeks or so, I managed to snag a new pair of sandals. I seem to like tan.

Aldo, on sale, for $57!

I like shoes.

But I can't say no to food either! Sorry wallet.

I went to Alice's Tea Cup Chapter II with a family friend from Japan. I've gone many times before but I can't seem to resist their pumpkin scones every time I go. I highly recommend getting those if you decide to visit!

The family friend also went to Prince Edward Island in Canada before she came and got us these chocolates. I love Anne of Green Gables (I own the box set and vhs tapes!)

My favorite eating out experience as of late was when my friend Kievan and I were wandering around South Street Seaport, and discovered a place called Made Fresh Daily!

Seriously adorable, casual, and slightly Amish, this place has good food for good prices. They seem to change the menu daily because what we ordered (above) doesn't seem to be on the menu page. Regardless, we're planning to go back again (Kievan will be very upset though if no tuna melt is around).

The sky the day we went to South St.

I seem to eat out a lot with Kievan (and it's great because apart from olives and probably garbage, we pretty much eat anything) so we also recently went to a restaurant called Spice.

The place is actually a chain and has many locations. I went to one in Chelsea. It was nice and casual as well. I had green curry for the first time. It was sweet and hot and after the first few bites, I got really into it. I had a lot left over for my lunch break later that day too (dinner break rather).

Finally, while I'm on the topic of recent happenings, I also cut and colored my hair!

Less volume, darker color. My roots were growing back so I thought might as well go dark brown. The cut is very flattering. I just can't wait till Fall, when I don't have to worry about the heat messing with my hair so much!

That's it for now. See you all in a bit. Toodles noodles!

As of late.

Hey y'all, how is everyone?

I've been pretty jolly (as jolly as you can get in 20 degree weather and no gloves). I've just been doing the usual--going to work, staying up til 3 in the morning, getting hyped on caffeine, and sleeping on trains (wow, I'm a college student now momma!)

Speaking of sleeping on trains, I AM that annoying girl that sleeps on people's shoulders. I need to fix that ASAP.

So recently (2 weeks ago?) I went to Dallas BBQ with some friends.

I AM that girl that ordered hot tea and a veggie burger. At Dallas BBQ. And actually, the veggie burger was quite tasty.

Then I bought some chocolate and dried apricots and combined them together.

I AM that girl that is addicted to salt. A pretzel with no salt is like a Taylor Lautner with a shirt on. In other words, SO VERY WRONG (however, I'm not a fan so actually, I don't mind him clothed. I just like cultural references) But salt and chocolate is a winner always and forever !

Then I had an impromptu photo shoot with my friend Jenna. It turned out like this:

I AM that girl that has run out of witty things to say. As you can tell, nothing really cohesive here, but it was still a lot of fun. Perhaps next time it will be more "official." The run down: striped shirt from Zara, faux fur hat from Gap, thrifted coat, jeans from Zara, socks from H&M, and boots from ebay.

That's all for now folks! Happy Friday!

Food is good.

Good morning everyone! Last night I had a good ole fashion sleepover at my friend's house. We feel asleep to the Star Trek movie which is pretty much the best way to fall asleep. I think y'all know by now I'm a nerdy little boy on the inside. ;D


Anyway, thought I'd review a few food places today. I've been getting a lot of comments lately about how my food posts make everyone hungry. Think about how I feel! I have to re-live the moment the food party happened in my mouth!







I recently went to a veggie place called Curly's Lunch. I knew about this place for a while and was dying to go, so I finally did when I was with a few of my friends.
The place is pretty small but cozy. They have drawings on the walls and also some crayons on the tables to provide you with some entertainment while you wait for food. I went here on a really hot day which was not the best since the place is just kind open in the front and has no A.C. But they do have a fan overhead.
The food, portion wise, is HUGE. I think you get your moneys worth. However, the food itself is not the best. I'm still the biggest fan of Vegan Loving Hut when it comes to fresh veggie food. This food, although good, was just a little . . . off. I had the Portobello Burger, and I feel the burger was a bit blackened (apart from it being made of black beans) and it just didn't feel good in my tummy towards the end. The curly fries are great though.
My friend also had the Open Faced Turkey Sandwich, and besides it being sloppily put on the plate, the turkey was way over salted. The stuffing though was tasty. I think I want to come back and maybe try something else, and maybe not get an entree next time since they're so big.
The service is average. It was Independence day so I understand why the waitress and the waiters' friends/mom came in. They did keep chatting with them, but it was done in a non-obnoxious way and they still did their job in between.
Overall, just an average place, but I will visit again.




The second place I visisted recently is Sugar Sweet Sunshine Bakery. Now doesn't the name just rot your teeth? ;)
This was my second visit, and also my second pudding. I've only ever had their puddings because well, I'm a pudding girl and they charge pretty well for theirs.
The above picture is the chocolate chip cookie butterscotch pudding. Now, 12 oz. (the smalle size: $4) is a lot of pudding for one sitting, so I suggest splitting with a friend or just saving some for later. Before this one I've had the banana one. They're both sweet but delicious, and it's a good indulgence if you're sick of cakes and cupcakes.
The place also has a bunch of seats/love seats so it's a cozy place to sit and chat. However, there's no AC so I might suggest getting an iced drink to down the sweets. The people working here are also pretty sweet nice people so I plan to keep coming back when I'm in the mood for a little indulgence.

Rice to Riches is pretty popular. I mean, like get on Food Network's "Best Things I Ever Ate" popular. Although, granted, most NYers seemed to know about the place way before that.
I actually remember coming here maybe 2 or 3 years ago with my friend Zoe. That was the first time. And the second time? Just yesterday, with the same friend Zoe. :)
The place is pretty popping, with the funniest phrases that encourage rice pudding lovin' all across the walls.
I had a Tiramisu flavor with Cloud 9 (whipped cream). Okay, so I can't justify spending almost $10 on a dessert all the time, but it's okay once in a while. And despite knowing that I can get some good rice pudding in other places, there really is something special about being able to choose from maybe 20 flavors and special toppings. Not to mention you get to keep the cute plastic pudding bowl and spoon too, so souvenir much? Also, if you don't have a big appetite and just want a good portion, maybe split the solo size (I was stuffed after eating mine). It's really worth it.

So that's about it for my food reviews. But of course, I never seem to stop at just that, so here's some more food in general.

What I had when I went karaoke-ing on Monday: Spicy tuna, avocado salad, and mushroom soup.

My friend Lesley made me vegan chocolate walnut brownies! They are AWESOME. I am slowly eating it at home. I think I shall have to take some to work tomorrow.

Recent lunch brought to work: celery sticks and a asian mushroom medley under that plus a slice of raw cheesecake. The cake was a success! I shall post pictures and the process in the next post!

Have a lovely day everyone!

This Summer is the Summer it all changes . . .

Hello everybody! I just thought I'd make a quickie post today, and save my concert pictures for the next one, since writing up a thoughtful report will take longer than the time I have now.

So I decided this summer is going to be my summer for reform. Let me explain.


I really want to put my health first this summer and change a lot of things around so its better for me. I'm starting by trying to fix my insomnia. Now, I know I'm not a doctor so I can't diagnose myself, but judging from my symptoms and how long I've had them, I'd say this pretty much sums it. I wake up periodically, I can't fall asleep right away, I only sleep a few hours, and I feel groggy and terrible in the morning (also my back feels sore). I'm trying to fix all that I can on my own before talking to the doctor, so I'm doing a bed reform.

I've also purchased a month long rock climbing voucher off of Living Social! Yes for rock climbing and yoga! I convinced one of my friends to buy one too so I have a belay partner! I'm super excited!!


Now, on to random pictures of late:


My first pineapple Chobani. It's SO GOOD. I just ate it walking the streets. I love greek yogurt so of course, no surprise that I'd like this. I highly recommend it!


Vegan chocolate chip cookies my friend Lesley made! They were AMAZING. She baked them for the concert, so I should've saved this picture, but just look at it's delicious baked goodiness!


I got this tea when I was on my lunch break. I would've ordered food except I had some already, so I just got some jasmine tea. I forget how good jasmine tea is . . .


Sorry this picture doesn't look so appetizing since I bit into it, but a chicken pesto panini from a random deli on 23rd. I don't know if I've really had a panini before this one, but they're really filling.


I purchased this recently at the Anna Sui store! All the Look from London tights/socks in the back were half off, so I had to get these. I mean, yellow and polka dots? Très bon!


Finally, I went to the "Biggest Ever Sale" at Urban Outfitters yesterday. They actually do have a bunch of things on sale that were great. I mean, brand new ten-hole Dr. Marten boots for $40 is a pretty good deal. But I got myself a pair of pants since, well, I apparently have way too much funky clothing for work and I'm in need of pants. Cool wash, right? It was on sale for $10~


Now, I gotta get off if I want to go to school before work (ugh, paperwork). I'll see you all later!