Double Sided and Draw-Stringed

Pants and Blouse - Zara; Pumps - Nine West; Bracelet - J Crew

Jeans, cords and drawstrings. Three things I love separately and oh so much more when combined. You can imagine how thrilled I was when I found these half denim, half corduroy, drawstring waisted skinny pants then! A drawstring waist is always a welcomed change from the regular button and zipper fly.

This photo shoot took place at one of the most touristy spots in Paris, outside of the Sacre Coeur Basilica in the Montemarte neighbourhood. Thankfully I had taken a walking tour of the neighbourhood a few days before and was let in on the secret deserted area behind the building. There was barely a soul in sight which was quite unusual for such a place, but definitely appreciated.

Guy Laroche

The scene outside the Grand Palais for the Guy Laroche show was nowhere near as chaotic as Chanel's show there last season but the street/attendee fashion was just as good. Highlights of the day include the girl with the baguette clutch, DJB somehow making it into the background of most of my pictures and falling down the stairs in the busiest McDonald's in Paris. You can view the full Guy Laroche f/w 14 collection here.

Paris Fashion Week Fall/Winter 2014

Ah, its that time again folks. I will be lurking outside of several shows for the next few days, snapping pics of all the amazing fashion as well as trying to get a glimpse of old lady Wintour, so keep checking back all week and next for updates on my adventures!

Image via dailylife.com (The article is interesting and worth a read.)

Lisboa

I said I saved the best for last except I just realized we didn't take many pictures in Lisbon...oh well.

Lisbon is amazing, it's very colourful and at times very seedy and run down, but not like "I wish I had pepper spray" seedy. I was surprised at how multicultural the city is and you can see the influence from Portugal's former colonies everywhere. Unfortunately, you can see the impact of the terrible economy on the city as well.

We decided to head to Portugal to escape "winter" and we definitely managed this on our second day. When the sun is shining the last thing you want to do is hang out in a dark museum. We decided to observe the city from a patio.

But on our third day the rain came, and it came hard. We decided to head to the Aquarium (which is apparently one of the best in Europe). Why are sea otters so cute!?

You can't help admire the graffiti in this city.

They even managed to get the trolly.
Portuguese wine is cheap, and because I'm not a wine expert, it's good. They have a self guided wine testing place where you purchase a card (loaded with credits) and a machine spits out samples. She told us $10 of credits was too much so we went with $5. She didn't say anything when we had to go back for another $5...
But how can you not drink that much wine when you get to stare out of this window.

There is also a Beer Museum, which I found strange because Portugal isn't much of a beer country.
We also headed to Belém, which is a part of Lisbon that is far from central Lisbon. We tried to walk there which was completely ridiculous.


Belém has a very famous pastry called Pastel de Belém (which is essentally Pastel de Nata). It is a pastry filled with warm custard, how can you go wrong with that?
We also has some delicious Green wine. It's called Green wine because it's young wine, not because it's actually green.

One of the things I miss the most about Portugal is stopping into a café and having a really cheap meal. Notice how full the wine glass is, that's because they ALWAYS fill it to the rim.

There is so much about Portugal that I remember, but it is the amazingly friendly people that I will remember the most.

Coastal Portugal

While making our way from Porto to Lisbon we stayed in a couple of small coastal towns. Visiting these places during the low season is a great time to experience coastal Portugal on the cheap.

Aveiro is called the "Venice of Portugal" which may be an oversell. It does have a few cute canals and bridges but I think the best part about this place is the beaches and therefore isn't at its best during February. We enjoyed our night here. DJB had a man cold so it was a good place for him to rest.

For some strange reason there were really filthy paintings on the boats in the canals.

One of the highlights of our trip was visiting the city of Nazare. Nazare is one of the most beautiful places I've ever been to.

You can take a funicular up to another town called Sito where you can get a spectacular view. Unfortunately for us (but not for our waistlines) the funicular was broken so we had to walk all the way up the hill.

This place is also home to a world famous wave that surfers try to surf in order to break world records. Some very unsuccessfully.

There is a great bar that overlooks Nazare, after our long trek up the hill we decided to splurge and spend a whopping 5 euros on this:

Of course when you are by the sea, you must eat seafood. Our favourite dish from Portugal was a type of seafood stew (with Monkfish). I'm so hungry right now just looking at it!

One more Portugal post left. I've saved the best for last! See you on Monday.

Cigarette Pants

Pants - Zara; Blouse - twik; Blazer - Jacob; Pumps - Reed Krakoff

Although I am trying to stick to my rule of buying only French brands while I am living here, sometimes I can't help but break this rule...especially when the non French item is on sale. That was the case with these cigarette pants that I purchased from Zara a few weeks ago. These high waisted skinny pants are comfortable and were perfect for a day exploring Lisbon. These photos were taken at one of the many gorgeous lookout points throughout the city. Check back early next week for our Lisbon adventures!