#Au-revoir #Paris, onto #Sansebastian! #michelin #foodie #pintxos!

On the night of 9/13, we prepared for our 8am flight to Spain. We said our goodbyes to the little chateau in 16E district on the 2nd floor of a building on Rue Saint Francois millet. Goodbye weird toy yachts that our host collected, goodbye little standup shower that I almost slipped out of because it was elevated so high on a wooden platform (or maybe I'm just short according to European standards). Goodbye toilet that had a rope that hung from the ceiling for a flusher. Goodbye my host's mini fridge that had nothing but Jambon, jars of pate and jam, and other cured meats: bachelor food. Goodbye the bittersweet memories of a fairy tale turned reality check in this ity bitty icky apartment in the richest borough in Paris. The last day in the place was nothing like the first day. 

When we first arrived to the apartment, we felt like we were on set at a Vogue photoshoot. Everything looked lux: the expensive toy boats, the cute French window overlooking a quad, and the little kitchen area that had what we thought was a shelf but ended up being a hot plate that could be used as a stove top. It seemed so nice at first, until... maybe it was the tour around Paris because once we got back to the apartment for our last night, it felt dusty, lustreless and cold. This was a reminder that money doesn't buy you inner warmth and comfort and nice things always come with a price. The price I paid, I'd rather not say. Regardless, Paris was everything I wanted it to be for my first time and I have zero regrets and a million memories.

Still don't know how I survived without knowing a lick of French. I remember asking a random guy for directions because he was wearing an Oakland Raiders hat. The French idolize America and I don't blame them. San Francisco and the rest of the Bay Area is pretty damn awesome. I think at that point I was getting homesick, but I immediately forgot about home once we boarded the TGV Atlantic #8533 train at 10:28am from Paris to Montparnass to Hendaye then finally onto our intended destination, San Sebastian, the unofficial foodie city of the world with the most Michelin rated restaurants in the world. Stay tuned for the next blog where Katrina will share her knowledge about Spanish tapas, or as the Basque call it, #pintxos! Kai - e -sho! 

#Chateauversailles in #France: #itsabeautifulthing #aupassage and #wetsocks in the #rain

 9/13 Wednesday we woke up and went to the Louvre. We spent many hours walking down as many corridors as we could. After the louvre, we went to Champs Alyesees. Ate Pierre herme macrons and Mcdonalds (disgusting). We took the train To Au Passage and had an adventurous dinner: Oysters, barnacles, wine pairing, Blood sausage, veal tongue, salted egg brocoli leaves. Cucumber and béer with burrata. 

9/14 Awoke and dressed for Château Versailles. We commuted via train to the chateau. Rain, lots of it! I'm talking a ridiculous amount. I was not prepared for this weather even though mid September in Paris is expected to be gloomy-grey. Peddlers were trying to sell umbrellas for 10£. We walked away from one guy as he shouted more reasonable prices, "Wait 9£. Okay 6£??? Waiiitt...5£?" Bingo. Kat and I bought the little umbrella to get us through the rain. Luckily, we were wearing wool... I felt like I was wearing a wet "body sock". I hate wet socks! 

The Chateau was beautiful. I can only imagine how luxurious it was back in the day. My only concern was the smell. I felt like I was smelling Marie Antoinette's hair. Keep in mind, they did not shower back then... It was kind of like I was in a high luxury furniture consignment. We took photos many photos and tried our best to tour the garden in the pouring rain. I can still feel the water in Kate spikes black platforms that I borrowed. It wasn't as bad as the family in front of us while we were exiting. They were all wearing open-toed sandles, shorts and tank tops. Ouch. Sucks for them. After a few hours, we decided to take the train back into Paris.  We got off at the Eiffel Tower and ducked into a corner cafe. More noisettes and espressos to warm us up and get us energized. We bumped into our friend Ryan Jordan's cousin and best friend. BTW, Ryan Jordan is our buddy - he's a fashion designer in NYC. His work has been collected by various artists including Lady Gaga and Beyoncé. Check out his website here: www.ryanjordan.com.

After the drinks, we walked around the Eiffel Tower area and got a bit lost. I can't remember what we were looking for, but I do remember that I picked up some dim sum to go. So Asian, I know. Of course I would get dimsum in Paris. It was delicious. 

We went home to get ready for our last dinner in Paris. We decided on some Asian fusion restaurant that was disgusting and not worth mentioning. After dinner, we hung out by the theater at a corner cafe. It was in a really cool area. The area reminded me of LES in NYC- many young and artistic students in that area. More coffee and noisettes. We hung out there and people watched. At that point I was ready to leave Paris and head to our next destination in the morning. The next day we left our bachelor pad in 16E and took the train down south to... San Sebastián! 

#bluemonday #itsabeautifulthing #camaraderie #loyalty #friendship #company

Ah yes, #bluemonday, the most depressing day of the year. 

Most are going backing to school and/or work from the holiday and new year festivities. The other day, my friend told me she thinks about seeking counseling every year at this time because the end of the happy holiday and family time is too depressing. The presents have been opened and we've hugged our families goodbye to set off into the world of work and school. The world is self-loathing, sad, and blue today, but the beauty of it all is that we're all sad and blue together.

Why not spend this day in acceptance as opposed to false happiness? Go up to your coworker and say, "Man, #bluemonday. Sucks". Share a sad story together and get it out of your system. I guarantee that the moment after will be a lightness and warmth in knowing that you're not alone on this day. Maybe the two of you will share a smile or bitter laugh, I guarantee that it won't feel so bad.

Have an acceptingly sad #bluemonday with your fellow mankind!

#itsabeautifulthing

-@PRTiffany

The New Year 2014: #itsabeautifulthing To Start Anew #visualize #recharge #safehaven

Most of us see New Year's Eve as an opportunity to sort out what we want to bring into the new year. We put a lot of pressure on this day because we believe how we start off this new year will determine how we will carry on for the entire 12 months. That's a lot of pressure for one day in the year, but I feel that parts of this belief holds true. I believe that how we start something will set the precedence for how the project will play out, however I don't believe that one day will determine the entire 365 days. I see the new year as a chance to "re-visualize" your goals and to give your vision a 365 day timeline is a wonderful tactic. 

1. Take a moment to yourself

Sit and close your eyes. Picture a sinasoidal timeline with each valley as a month in the year. Each month is going to have its ups and downs, that's a given, so prepare and accept that. But, just like a sinasoidal graph, it continues on.

2. Pick a sub-theme, one that will encompass all of your New Year's Resolution

Pick a theme and stick to it. Commit to it. But remember, the above all theme is "love".

-self-care

-family

-health

-career

-travel

-friends

-creativity

3. Don't put so much pressure on this day, it's just day one. It's a marathon, not a sprint

Yes, how we start something will set the precedence, but let's look at New Year's Eve as the last day of preparation before we start anew. Think of it as the wounded soldier that must retreat into the "safe haven" to mend any broken armor before re-entering the battlefield. Treat yourself kindly as well as those you choose to be around. If 2014 has given you too many strikes to your armor, polish your pelts alone and re-charge. 

Thank you 2013. Time to revv up and recharge. The gift to do so, well #itsabeautifulthing!

[Blog] #Paris: Red Light #Bastille District, #PhoGa, #Noisettes and #Cigarettes

9/13 A morning of hungoverness. The night before was spent in the icky Bastille District, which is known as Paris' Red Light District. Why the hell were we there? Just another part of Paris to explore. Nothing special. The area reminded me of the bar strip in NYC next to NYU, a typical place for college students to get wasted. That morning, I walked to thé market in thé rain. Melancholy and dehydrated.  Bought some fruit home. Amazing how the selection was so minimal. I bought some plums, blueberries and grape fruits. I never want to forget that walk. The rain and the cobblestone streets down 16e District was right out the 1st scene from Beauty and the Beast, minus the rain. 

Went to eat pho at Pho 14! No fancy French name - perhaps Maison Pho? No, just Pho 14. Straight to the point. Pho ga was damn delicious, but nothing compared to my favorite Pho Ga restaurant in San Francisco, Turtle Tower. After, had a coffee and cigarette, just like the French film called, "Coffee and Cigarettes" and conversed with a French gentleman on the topic of relationships. He said all men cheat. Thanks French guy. The waiter gave me his lighter. Thanks for enabling my temporary bad habit! Then another coffee ... And some tea...then another cup of noisette, which is a hazelnut espresso. We stayed out until 4am and instead of walking around the most confusing roundabout in Paris off the Opera train station (my God I felt like I was in The Labrinth), we ended up on a bar strip that reminded me of college bar hopping years. I think I had another espresso at some corner cafe. So wired. The Parisian way. I really like the presentation of the espresso at cafés. It's so precise it almost looks like a bunch of surgical tools... Ewe not appetizing when I describe it that way. Came home to tidy up and prepare for the next day's train ride to The Palace of Versailles! I will write more about the palace in a later post. 

9/14 We came home later in the night to prepare for our 8am flight to Spain. I said my goodbyes to the little chateau in 16E on the 2nd floor in a building on Rue Saint Francois millet or something or other. Goodbye weird toy boat that my host collected, goodbye little standup shower that I almost slipped out of because it was elevated so high on this wooden platform. Goodbye toilet that had a rope that hung from the ceiling for a flusher. Goodbye my host's mini fridge that had nothing but Jambon, jars of pate and jam, and other cured meats: bachelor food. Goodbye the bittersweet memories of a fairy tale turned reality check in this ity bitty icky home stay in the richest borough in Paris. This was a reminder that money doesn't buy you inner warmth and comfort and nice things always come with a price. The price I paid, I rather not say. 

Still don't know how I survived without knowing a lick of French. I remember asking a random guy for directions because he was wearing an Oakland Raiders hat. The French idolize America and I don't blame them. San Francisco and the rest of the Bay Area is pretty damn awesome. I think at that point I was getting homesick, but I immediately forgot about home once we boarded the TGV Atlantic #8533 train at 10:28am from Paris to Montparnass to Hendaye then finally onto our intended destination, San Sebastian, the unofficial foodie city of the world with the most Michelin rated restaurants in the world. Stay tuned for the next blog where Katrina will share her knowledge about Spanish tapas, or how the Basque call it, #pintxos! Kai - e -sho! 

[BLOG] I will always #Louvre you, #MonaLisa and #Barnacles at #Aupassage

9/12/13. On Wednesday, we woke up and went to the Lourve. We spent about 4 hours there and got consumed in the beauty of it all. ART. How did our society preserve all this art over the centuries? What compelled them to preserve some and leave other pieces behind, luck? Was it the status of the artist back in the day? Is there a specific type of art that speaks to the majority of our society which was the deciding factor of which pieces to keep? Is it just good marketing? We joined the crowd waiting to take a photo with Mona Lisa. One painting of one woman causes an endless swarm of "paparazzi" on a daily basis. I thought I was going to see a dead human body or the ghost of Marilyn Monroe when I made it to the front of the red rope. Mona Lisa. Who was she? She smiled at me, I swear. 

One piece almost brought me to tears by Anne-Louis_Girodet_de_Roussy-Trioson called, "The Entombment of Atala. I interpret it as a story of unrequited love, a Romeo and Juliet story. I saw Atala as a woman who wanted to do good. Then she fell in love, which was against her righteous path, so she drank poison only to find out that her vow of chastity can be uplifted, but then she died and it was all miscommunication. I commend her for sticking to the path she chose for herself. Her commitment wasn't to her lover, it was to a promise she's lived up to until she died. That my friend, is what I call commitment. However, it was a bit fickle for the church to tell her that she can suddenly be free from her vow of chastity. If they told her that in the first place, then she wouldn't have taken the poison. Side note: Love is about an even exchange of energy. As long as the two of you balance eachother, keep on truckin'. 

After the Louve, we went to Champs Alyesees and bought Pierre Herme Macrons and Mcdonald's (disgusting). I love McDonald's, but the Paris menu is not my favorite. We took the train To Au Passage(details below) and had  a thrilling dinner. Oysters, barnacles, wine pairing, Blood sausage, veal tongue, salted egg broccoli leaves, cucumber and béer with burrata. My favorite dish was the barnacles. I felt like we were eating Queen Ursula's tentacles. To view a wonderful collage from the dining experience, please view Katrina's Instagram: kat_uh_roo's photo http://instagram.com/p/eTPs8WAWaW/

I would describe the taste of barnacles as a hybrid of a sea clam and a lobster tail. It's probably the scariest looking thing that anybody could ever eat and does not look appetizing. However, if paired with a great red wine and vinegar dipping sauce, it's the best thing since lobster tail. 

Au Passage

1bis Passage Saint-Sébastien 75011 Paris

+33 1 43 55 07 52

#Chocolates #sierranevadachocolate #itsabeautifulthing #Foodie #strokeawareness

CHOCOLATE! 

Here are a few health benefits to chocolate: 

1. Chocolate lowers risks of stroke

2. Chocolate curbs your appetite

3. Chocolate may prevent diabetes

4. Chocolate protects from UV Damage

5. Chocolate makes you smarter

I'm not making this stuff up. Read this article from Huffington Post and see for yourself! http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/28/chocolate-health-benefits_n_1383372.html 

The chocolates in the photo are from a chocolate store called Sierra Nevada Chocolates in Reno, Nevada.

LOCATION:

1286 South Virginia Street

Reno, NV 89502

PHONE: 775.323.2462

FAX: 775.825.6060

EMAIL: cwchocolates@hotmail.com

-@PRTiffany