Paris
Published on 5 January 2011
Today is officially the last day of Christmas (12 days of Christmas remember?)
so i thought i should blog bout Christmas Eve before i never do it!
We spent it at Clem’s cousin’s massive farmhouse,
located about an hour from the city of Paris.
The drive to the farmhouse was slightly disconcerting cos:
1. it was snowing heavily
2. there was only Clem, Flore and i in the car and we got very complicated directions to arrive there
3. there was nothing but dark fields all around us. So imagine if the car broke down or something, we’d be lost AND freezing!
But luckily none of that happened 
Just like in storybooks,
there was a HUGE Christmas tree
in a HUGE living room
with HUGE presents under it.
I don’t think i could have reached the mid-height of the tree with my fingertips if i wanted to 0_o
Impressively long dining table set up for 20 adults and a dozen children.
Taking turns to prep food in the kitchen
French man in apron… MmmMmmmm
The men shucking oysters. Very manly.
Belon oysters GALORE
Prepping the fromage.
As if i didn’t have enough cheese during our trip in France,
i bought myself some super slimy smellie brie in the supermarket yesterday, to Clem’s distress.
The women doing nothing while the men work in the kitchen.
I could live with this…
It seems customary to open all our presents BEFORE dinner in France,
just like we did at dinner the night before.
It was complete mayhem.
All the adults were on a champagne high;
and all the children were screaming, running around and tearing open presents.
Serge + Flore
Flore, Romain, Chloe
The children were figuring out and playing with their presents all over the house for the rest of the night,
and i’m pretty sure some of them broken the same night too 
I knew there would be lots of little girls there,
so i brought a bunch of fairy necklaces i bought in Jakarta years ago (and never bothered selling) to give away.
Soon, there were about 6 little girls running around wearing fairy necklaces.
8 if you include Flore and i 
“This is my dream come true…” i told Clem, “Seeing all these girls wearing fairy necklaces 
”
Clem: 
I learnt how to say ‘sourire’ whenever i took a picture of the small kids,
it means smile in French!
Dinner time!
We pulled Christmas crackers,
wore our paper hats,
and wondered over the tiny toys
We got matching hats!
I’m wearing a sheer black top with gold embellished collar from Gallo by Thian
After dinner i taught them how to play a drinking game…
one which i’m sure most of you reading this know about.
Another little girl was wearing socks with gold polka dots like me!
Flore called us sock sistas.
All the pictures i have after dinner are blurry and drunk.
So i’m just posting one!
We danced and danced till one by one, people started passing out.
At one point i was lying underneath the giant Christmas tree thinking, “So prettyyyy”
(champagne talking)
And weirdly enough… i couldn’t drink anymore.
I just. Couldn’t. Drink. Anymore.
Physically.
I couldn’t swallow anymore champagne or wine without feeling like i was going to throw up.
So i took it as a sign for myself to retire to bed!
Lots of people stayed over in the farmhouse that night,
Clem and i got a makeshift bed on the landing on the first floor
which is usually the childrens’ study room or something.
In my tired and tipsy state, i found 5 colour pencils poking at me underneath the covers and thought, “Darn kids!”
Found out the next morning it was placed there by Clem’s 40-year-old cousin to bug us
Published on 26 December 2010
SO MUCH to tell about Christmas with a gazillion pictures so i have to go through them slowly later!
These are some i edited last week but didn’t have time to post cos we moved from Bordeaux to Le Mee for 2 nights,
then to a farmhouse in Mont (just outside Paris) for Christmas eve.
I’ve drunk more alchohol than water for the past few days,
and don’t think i can look at another oyster or piece of foie gras without cringing as i gave in to greed and overdid it at every meal.
Here are some pix taken in Le Marais, a trendy gay-friendly area in Paris with lots of interesting shops and art galleries.
Even as a lover of all fatty food,
the bone marrow i gleefully ordered as my entree was a bit too much for me to take after emptying 2 and a half bones…
Guerande salt to be eaten with the marrow.
Had a steak but it couldn’t compare to the luscious homemade ones i had for Christmas later on!
Les Marronniers
18 rue des Archives
75004 Paris
Tel: 01 40 27 87 72
The vintage items here are pretty expensive, with a pair of sunnies going at 75 euros.
Ouch… think i’d get a bigger shopping orgasm from finding an authentic but cheap pair in a flea market somewhere!
Puffer fish scho kiut!
I can imagine that my future house will be filled with all these crazy paraphernalia.
This doggie made me think of Steph and Aps.
Cos Steph likes making animals, and Aps likes cross-stitching.
Was trying to take a sneaky shot of this man above who looked like a quirky character but he just WOULDN’T TURN AROUND.
Too bad.
Annick Goutal perfume.
Clem played with the dropper while the lady wasn’t looking and spilled some.
-_-
Such a child.
Flowers in plastic bags pretending to be vases.
A light constructed of bells!
I would like these whacky chairs please.
Okay gotta go watch some French DVD with Clem and Flore.
I must admit i’m relieved Christmas is over and i’m not expected to stuff my body anymore!
But it was gorgeous with snow from the 23rd onwards,
fireplaces,
lots of champagne,
and Clem’s family made me feel SO welcome <3
It couldn’t have been any better.
I hope all of you had as wonderful a Christmas as well,
with lots of love and hugs and pressies that made you smile and cry.
XXX
Published on 18 December 2010
The day before we left for Bordeaux,
Clem and i took a walk through Jardin des Tuilieries -
a former royal garden that’s almost 500 years old
and open to the public since 1667.
In front of the Louvre
It’s a very large park,
and we strolled through it trying to absorb as much of the sun as possible for warmth.
It’s so cold that half the pond has frozen!
Everytime i see something sparkly i magnetize towards it.
“SPARKLY!!”
Clem says i’m like a magpie.
The Arc de Triomphe
That night we went to Bouillon Chartier
(7 rue du Faubourg Montmarte 75009)
a restaurant Flore goes to regularly for its great and affordable food.
It was packed and we had to queue for 15 minutes, which was better than an hour.
I had museau for my entree, chopped nose of some erm animal.
Tried some of Flore’s escargots which was nicer, but i couldn’t resist ordering something new and exotic.
Wanted to order boudin for my main, but they were out,
so had lamb ribs instead.
Had ile flottante for the first time, which i loved!
Flore apologizes for her schoolgirl-like outfit.
Published on 17 December 2010
Trying to be a good blogger and keep up with pictures on my trip here is taxing!
Am too tired to edit and post everything tonight so here are most of the pictures first.
Took a tiring 7-hour drive from Paris-Bordeaux
and have just had escargots + steak + mussels + wine + fromage so you can just guess how full and sleepy i am now!
Laterz
+ + + updated + + +
Went to Chloe’s apartment for coffee and brekkie one morning.
She lives in a nice area,
and we took a walk around afterward.
There’s nothing like visiting a regular food market in France!
The sight of all the fresh produce and meat made me want to cook!
Fromage!
I asked Clem, “What animal is that..?!”
“Rabbit,” he said.
“Poor Thumper!” said i
Escargots ready to take home and grill
Clem’s mum, Dom, said i had to see the Hermes store that was once a swimming pool:
It was gorgeously done indeed…
even the stair railing was engloved in customized leather.
Had mussels in garlic sauce + steak tartare for lunch
I love steak tartare! It’s raw mince meat with egg and pickles… but i adore it.
Just have to try not to think about raw cow as i munch it.
Here’s another picture of it taken with a diff art filter in an effort to make it look less gross… i hope.
Creme brulee for dessert MMM
There was a store which would stud your sneakeres or what-have-you for 50-100 euros
Sonia Rykiel store front
Weirdly enough, this is the Pierre Cardin store window.
Then we went to another Hermes store,
with REALLY ELABORATE window displays!
Lapin!
Champignon!
We also took a walk down Champs-Elysees and i popped into H&M to have a look at their Lanvin collab.
I was quite disappointed in it…
there was a blue dress i thought i’d buy, but the stitching on the sides were very crooked,
and i really didn’t think it was worth 150 euros.
Even with the Lanvin name on it.
But i did find some other things i liked!
My half-hearted self-imposed shopping ban tak jadi.
Published on 16 December 2010
Below is one of my favourite pictures i’ve snapped on this trip so far!
We were walking along the River Seine towards the area where we could take the bateaux mouche, and see the Eiffel tower up close.
Flore was so sweet to get Clem and i tix for the bateaux mouche as my introduction to Paris.
What i needn’t say but will anyway,
is how we almost lost the tickets in the apartment and hunted for them like crazy.
Finally found them in the trash -_-
The bateau mouche is a boat tourists can take along the River Seine and view most of Paris’ most outstanding landmarks – the Grand Palais, Notre Dame, various bridges, etc.
Just so happened a gaggle of school children were on the same boat with us…
Clem’s face because there’ll be so many yappity kids on the boat with us.
There were really noisy!
I had some trouble hearing the English commentation cos from quiet mices,
their chatter rose to noisy ducks.
Their only endearing moment was when a popular French song came on and they all chirped along.
The boat ride was better than i expected!
It really showed us an upfront view of some great buildings in under an hour.
My favourite piece of information from that ride’s education is how the Notre Dame’s largest bell rings in F sharp minor.
I know it’ll be an outstanding fact i’ll remember for the rest of my life.
This is due to my fantastic knack of storing facts that will, in most probability, never benefit me in my life save the pleasure in my knowing i remember it.
After the bateau-mouche ride, we walked across the road to the Eiffel tower.
I didn’t go up it though.
Clem gave me a choice,
i looked at the queue,
and said, “It’s okay. I love myself too much to line up in the cold for an hour.”
Or very possibly more* than an hour.
We left the area and took the Metro to Saint-Germain-des-Prés,
a really nice district with shops and cafes where i got fed.
I cannot function without food.
Clem knows that very well.
If i don’t talk, or it’s early in the morning,
first thing to do is FEED JOYCE.
I had ravioli ricotta + basilica
I’m wearing the denim shirt and jacket i had on for the Uniqlo launch.
That night we had an intimate dinner with just Clem’s direct family + a cousin.
Had raclette + various French and Italian hams + steamed potatoes + pickles.
They even have a special raclette grill to melt the cheese.
And i learnt how to delicately portion my food so every bite would have a taste of everything.
Bet Dhanya would be pro at this, the only word to describe the way she consumes and savours her banana leaf rice is – meticulous.
Okay would like to end this post in a witty manner but everyone’s drinking so i HAVE TO GO.
Published on 15 December 2010
Due to the dates i was obstinate to fly on,
i experienced the longest transit i ever had (without venturing out into transit city).
12 hours transit in Doha (as we flew Qatar Airways).
Things to occupy self on transit:
Vogue UK Dec 10, hot choc + whipped cream + choc flakes
Monopoly Deal
We played Deal till it got a bit repetitive.
I suggested making the game interesting by betting that the loser has to hop to a wall on one leg and back in the airport.
Yes, we were that bored.
No, he didn’t agree.
The crappy thing about Doha airport is not only does it *not* have a bar,
but all the chairs have armhold dividers that prevent anyone from lying down to sleep.
Which i thought… is kind of evil for an airport.
Exhausted and jetlagged travelers are dying for a few hours kip,
and desperate ones learnt how to push some chairs to face each other so they could lie right in the middle.
Not-so-clever ones who follow suit (us) did the same and passed out till i automatically woke up right before we were to board.
I was in a bit of a blur and shrieked, “What time is it?!” to Clem, waking him up as well.
He awoke with a jump and a confused expression that blared WHAT TIME? DID WE MISS THE PLANE OH GOD
Maybe that’s why they put dividers on the chairs.
So people don’t pass out and miss their planes -_-
After roughly 8 hours from Doha-Paris,
we finally landed at 6:30am and took three trains to Flore’s apartment (Clem’s sis).
His parents and sis were there to greet and have brekkie with us,
we chilled till afternoon,
then Clem and i took a walk to Montmarte.
Look how stunted the Christmas trees are!
Apparently it’s really normal for people with small apartments.
There was a Christmas market on the way,
and i got a cup of vin chaud (hot wine).
Cards drawn by children hung off a tree,
which Clem thought were rather funny-awful.
I thought they were fascinating… i always like looking at kids’ art.
It’s been about 1°C-4°C since we got here
and DAMN it’s pretty cold!
We tried reverse psychology by chanting, “J’aime le froid, j’aime le froid (i love the cold),” while shivering down the street.
It helped for maybe half a second.
On the stairs up to where the artists’ square is,
are some buskers and random art.
The man in the wall looked SO real i thought he was!
At least… i think he’s fake… 0_o
A big circle surrounded a bunch of b-boys dancing, really well, i might add!
Another busker had a mini concert going on with the crowd seated on the steps in front of him.
He was singing some popular rock songs, so everyone was singing along,
which is the kind of thing i miss about Europe 
Watching the sunset from Montmarte with the skyline of Paris just under it was quite the perfect introduction to Paris for me.
Was really tired from the long journey so i really could just about make my way up the steps, let alone do something more energetic
That was Sunday.
Since we arrived we’ve been doing some sightseeing and eating
My French is improving drastically in a situation where i have no choice but to try my best to understand what everyone is saying,
and apply what little i’ve learnt in KL!
I read signs in the train stations like a kid.
And to improve my vocabulary,
Clem and i go through the descriptions in menus while we wait for our food,
or we stand in front of store windows.
At least my first words to add to my French vocab is to do with food and fashion!
Oh, and i bought myself some children’s books in French too!
Finally! A FULLY JUSTIFIED REASON for me to buy children’s books!
It hasn’t snowed since we arrived, but i’m not complaining.
I know it’s going to come sooner or later…
and we’ve been SO lucky it’s been extraordinarily sunny since we arrived.
Flore and Chloe said it’s been raining every day for a month!
The sun helps, but it’s still really really cold.
It’s so cold that:
- my make up has changed consistency and applying moisturizer is torture cos it’s almost freezing.
- we can’t feel our fingers even though we’re wearing gloves.
- i’m not so bothered about what i wear because nobody is going to see it all day under my big winter coat. i will not freeze for fashion.
- waking up in the morning reminds me of waking up for school in the winter, and half-wishing someone would STAB me in bed so i could die and not have to wake up in the horrible cold.
- standing next to the open window got my heart rate up -_-
- walking out into the street for first time in the day is like a BIG COLD SLAP in the face KAPOW
- Clem has started snoring (sigh)
Still, the cold is part of this whole holiday,
so i’m trying to EMBRACE LE FROID.
Embrace the cold, embrace the cold…
*reverse psychology*
