Tintin and the City

So, I haven't traveled in winter two years in a row and I miss it so much. I know it's not ideal for me as I am not very good with the cold weather, but there's something about seeing a different city in winter time. Perhaps, it's the snow.  Of all my winter travels, Krakow is one of my favourites.    The Wawel Castle St. Mary's Basilica (Kościół Mariacki) The Old Town square at night If there's one thing that I really enjoyed in Krakow, it was our visit to the Jewish Ghetto: To get to the Ghetto from the centre of town, you need to get Tram 13 or 7 I actually only watched Schindler's List two days before we left for Poland. I didn't realize that I would actually one day visit this place. Inside the museum is also a letter written by Roman Polanski (movie director) when he was 8. If we came here in 2006, then we would have seen the original gate. This is a must- see in Krakow. You should not leave Krakow without visitin

So rainy days are here again. For me, rainy days are not all about wearing boots or wellies. Sometimes I also want to wear ballerinas or any sort of flat shoes. But I remember last year when I had my Tory Burch Eddie flats. I used it once on a European trip and oh boy, did it rain hard. First of all, I knew that it might rain, but I also wanted to be a bit fashionable. Basically the clothes I chose to wear really wouldn't go with boots, so I didn't have a choice but to wear my flats. And the end result? Murder. I since have thrown the flats away because I could no longer use it.  So, this year I promised myself to find a nice pair of flats that is not leather so I can just wear it in the rain without having to worry about it being destroyed. And yes, I found one: This pair of Vivienne Westwood + Melissa jelly flats are so perfect for my rainy days. Not only that they are comfortable, I don't have to worry if they get wet. Available at: AUTHOR Shoes 7

I don't know why I have never heard of UNIQLO heattech before. I know there is a store called UNIQLO, but believe me, I have never ever gone inside the store even just for curiosity's sake. But thanks to my friend Leng  for introducing me to it. Now I can guarantee that my winter days are going to be warmer and this is all down to a cheap, but fashionable thermal clothing.  For the longest time, I have been layering up at least four clothings to keep myself warm in the winter.  I have been buying warmers that really didn't keep me warm (yes, it's true). Until of course I heard about this heattech thing. So about three weeks ago was my first ever visit to a UNIQLO store and I chose the one in Oxford street, just because it is quieter over there and honestly, that's the only Uniqlo store I know. As soon as I got in, I blamed myself for not even giving the store a chance. How could I possibly have missed all those beautiful clothings? I fell in love with the store

It looks like I have finally taken running seriously, because after my Br istol 10k run , I decided to go an extra mile and joined the 16k race from Paris to Versailles in September. But honestly, I won't be probably doing this crazy thing if not for my son who never fails to inspire me. I am doing all this because I want him to be proud of me even if he now lives in heaven. I know he's up there watching over me. It also just happened that a baby named Jacob from our town is in dire need of help. So I took this opportunity to raise funds for Jacob. We managed to raise 100 pounds for him. So, on the day of the run we had to get up early to make it to the assembly area which was just at the foot of the Eiffel tower. But since we didn't have our bib yet, we had to go and get them first before we could do anything else. I was so nervous because we were meant to pick up those bibs the day before and I was not sure if we were able to collect them on the same day. I had

Two weekends ago was my first time to travel from London to Paris by bus. It has always been an option, but for some reason we just didn't see the reason why we should travel that long when we can be in Paris in less than two hours via Easyjet. But because we were working on that Friday, we won't have much time to prepare and then travel to Heathrow airport for another hour or so. And so we decided to take the bus from Victoria Coach Station at 2130. The bus is bigger than the usual coach that I take whenever I go to Bristol or anywhere in England. It is a double decker bus, but all passengers stay on the upper deck. I actually didn't realize that until I asked Don, and he told me that the lower deck was all for the luggage and the toilet. The space between the seats are a bit wider than the normal, but not that much. We were lucky to get the front seat as it is the most spacious of all. And that also meant that I was able to put my feet up. This is what Don and I always

My trip to New York last month was my fourth, but it was only then I realized that I can and will live in the City That Never Sleeps. This is probably because this time, I allowed myself to experience New York in a different perspective. For once, I wasn't just a tourist. And this is the reason why I now love New York. Yes, it only took me four trips to realize that. And here's what I did in the city: Morning runs and then meeting Jeff, the guy who gave me a free bottled water because we didn't have a change. Hanging out in the West Village Gaining a new friend, then getting drunk in the middle of the day. Tortilla Flats 767 Washington Street New York, New York 10014 Spending more time with old friends: With one of my high school bestfriends , Alena. Jollibee 62-29 Roosevelt Avenue Queens, New York 11377 Our friend from California (Rose Ann) also joined us for lunch at Maharlika NYC. I finally had my favourite sizzling

I am so touched by the thoughtfulness of my friends from all over the world, who joined me and our family in celebrating our beloved Keith's first angel birthday. Their act of kindness and their warm messages left me lost for words. I really do appreciate what they have done for our angel. I will forever be grateful. For Keith Ashley "happy bday in heaven"... Give him eternal rest, Oh Lord, and may your light shine upon him forever.   - from my friend Marilou in Arizona A blue candle that will burn all day, wearing a blue top, the effort not to cuss (even mentally!) and the thought of not giving up on a day when things weren't really being fantastic...the last two were the hardest, but because of a friend and her lovely boy who is in a better place than we are, I'd say just the mere thought of remembering not to cuss wiped the frown away.   -  from my friend Gemma in London Prayers and lighted candle for keith's 1st angel birthday:)