Summertime...and the living's easy

It's officially summer! Yay for everything associated with the season: sun, heat, beaches, flip flops, cocktails, terrasses, cocktails on terrasses, friends, road trips, and fun music!

Punk is not dead

Camden Town may have become one of my favorite places in London...Colorful shops with huge Doc Martins or Converses above the door, and salesmen with the most fascinating mohawks walking around with signs advertising their shops, are among the first things you will notice. If you keep walking and turn into one of the side streets, you will discover food markets with the most delicious foods from all over the world. I found bubble tea, one of my favorites! A piece of advice, don't eat before you go there...you will want to try a little bit of everything. If you're patient enough to walk through all of the markets' shops offering clothes, accessories, and art work, you can probably discover some little treasures. And weather permitting, enjoying a beer while overlooking the canal sounds like the best way to spend a sunny Saturday/Sunday afternoon!

Camden Town

Voyage, Voyage

Girl Talk

Let's get a little girly and talk about summer and (mostly) shopping. Summer is by far my favorite season, and I just can't wait for flip flop season to be here! I've also always been a fan of Roxy and their cute clothes and fun prints. Today I discovered Quiksilver has launched a Quiksilver for women line. I thought Roxy was Quiksilver's line for women, but apparently this new line is aimed to be more classic, urban, and grown-up than Roxy. They have really beautiful pieces made from the softest materials....the shoppaholic in me just cannot resist this. Quiksilver, why are you doing this to me!!!

A little montage of my favorites...Don't be surprised if you see me in any of these...All pics from Quiksilver's website !

Now all we need is a little sun, warm summer nights, a beach, mojitos...

Highlights from the Highlands

Coming out of the train station, as I was stepping out on the streets of Edinburgh for the very first time, I was greeted by the sound of bagpipes. With a big smile on my face, I thought there is no better way to say 'Welcome to Scotland!' than this ( and of course, on a less romantic note, I also thought how clever that bagpiper is to position himself right by the train station where all the tourists are...but let's not spoil this magical moment!)

Welcome to Scotland!

If you are ever in Scotland, make sure you try some of the local delicacies....first, the deep fried Mars bar! In some places, you can also have other chocolate bars deep fried, so I tried the Snickers bar (which I still dream of!).

For the brave, there is also a dish called haggis. I'm not brave so I didn't try it. But it is a scottish specialty and it consists of sheep organs (we'll leave it at that) mixed with spices. I was assured it was really, really good...but when I know what it's made of, I can't really get past that.

Deep Fried Snickers Bar at Clamshell, Royal Mile street

Grassmarket

Edinburgh Castle glowing at night

Just because they're so cute, a picture of the highland cows!

It's spring!

Sakura

There is a bulgarian tradition on March 1st, where 'martenitsi' are exchanged with friends and family. Martenitsi are bracelets or ornaments made of white and red string, and are a symbol of health and happiness. They have to be worn until spring comes, or until you come across a stork or blooming tree. In the latter case, you have to tie your martenitsa to the tree. Here are my martenitsi tied to perhaps a cherry blossom (sakura) tree or maybe a plum tree....in any case, a blossoming tree :) It's spring in the UK!

More info on this tradition here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martenitsa

My collection of 3 martenitsi tied together

London Love

Umbrellas at Picadilly Circus

There's something about London...it makes me happy. The city has soul. Behind the old buildings and rainy weather, life is vibrant.
Everything seems to be moving at a frantic pace: people walk fast, taxis and double deckers pass you by in lightning speed. In the middle of all this chaos, there's even room for mounted police (with their own traffic lights depicting horses).
There are people everywhere. Lots of people and all kinds of people. From pretty yuppie boys to punks, the city has it all covered.
There is always something happening, wherever you look: while waiting to cross the street, a rollerblader 'flash mob' passes you by in a flash second (some even brought their dogs with them!). Walk by Trafalgar Square, and more than likely, there'll be a gathering or manifestation of some sort (sometimes it's hard to tell what it is for, as everyone seems to be supporting different causes). With so much going on, and so much to see, I don't think I could ever be bored in this city.

Double deckers rushing by

Big Ben and the London Eye