Feed Me

With breakfasts in a hurry and dinner to be skipped sometimes, lunch is quite the thing over in London. And I didn't even have to look for it, food just came popping up everywhere. 

Wardour Street, The Hummingbird Bakery: somebody very close to my heart whispered me in the ear these cupcakes are heaven. I didn't give in to these little pieces of Soho-sweetness, I'll wait for the perfect moment to try one, preferably with their number one fan by my side. 

Food for Thought in Neal Street was our lunch-spot of the day. They serve healthy vegetarian food in the context of the world's sustainability. This place was one of the London Fashion Weekend favorites to get those much needed carbs. I loved their vegetable mix with wild mushrooms, which went along with a mixed salad. 

Tried to capture it in a tasty way - did it work?

Silence in the city

But then, as we all know, there are moment when the flesh is weak and we give in...to a Strawberry Deluxe Scone. One of these things will do until Christmas time, a definite must-eat! 

Calories in disguise

XX // T.L. 

 Love - from, in and to - London. - The Londonist

You shall dance

The reason behind that lust for coffee was my lack of sleep, thanks to a live performance of Kap Bambino in the XOYO Club in Cowper Street, followed by Hot Chip music. 

I met up with Charles from Toulouse in The Hoxton Square Bar. Charles is one of the creators of Geometrie Variable. Since he hadn't eaten yet, what seems to be the habit here in London, I introduced him to Guinness - the liquid food. Sexy Swede Emma joined us, to continue the night at XOYO...

XX // T.L. 

 Love - from, in and to - London. - The Londonist

That's the spirit!

Definitely one of my favorite places around Oxford Circus, hidden in Great Titchfield Street: Kaffeina. 

Sleep is not an option, coffee is the option! 

Indeed dear Kaffeina. You smiled at me from far, showing off your heavenly Americano's and strong ristretto's...knowing this was your lucky day. Somewhere we hit it off right there, love at first sight. You looked lovely, both on the inside and the outside, I fell in love with your comfortable bench. Not to mention your lovely service. 

Point is, I didn't get much sleep last night, so the board was simply undeniable! 

XX // T.L. 

 Love - from, in and to - London. - The Londonist

First Thirst

Last night in Camden Town, we went to The Hawley Arms Bar. Great vibe, nice music...Amy Winehouse is supposed to spend her most sober moments in this place, so I felt like having a Guinness...

Camden Lock Bridge

Hawley Arms

Paris Paris it's Emeline

To be honest, I never had a Guinness before. It's really good, dark and surprisingly easy to drink and doesn't make you need to go to the toilettes every few moments. You can literally call this food in a glass, flavory and smooth. Nevertheless, I couldn't resist going for the familiar glass of red wine in Lock 17 afterwards, where Taku was waiting for us. This Japanese friend is taking me to the best Japanese place in Soho on Monday, those of you who know me well are right when you're thinking I'm dying for Monday to come! 

Guinness n° 1

XX // T.L. 

 Love - from, in and to - London. - The Londonist

Wear the movie

I came across some interesting campaigns that are set up as short movies, which seem to be the huge trend nowadays.


A first one is called 'A Love Story' by Michael Bastian for Gant:

My second favorite is Katey Judd covering Fever for Prada:

And by far the coolest shots are done by Robert Longo for Bottega Veneta, inspired by 'Men in the Cities' (narrator's voice is awful, very monotone, you are warned):

Et voilà, there you have a few ideas! I think it'd be cool if they showed these campaigns on Picadilly Circus, instead of the usual Panasonic or Vodafone sign showing up on the big panels. 

London, take note! Change your panels or I will! 

XX // T.L. 

 Love - from, in and to - London. - The Londonist

Take a wild guess

Today I did something that I've been wanting to do for quite some time. Look what I saw while I was doing "it"...

...

...

What do you think it was? No, I didn't go to a stripclub. Neither was it some kind of fancy restaurant. And no, it wasn't a lightbulb-shop either...it was a movie theatre! It was at The Lexi Theatre near Kensal Green, which was only playing one movie at a time. It had this really small entrance and a mini-bar behind the screen, it felt like watching a movie at home. The movie? Eat Pray Love, really...I've been obsessing about the book for a long time and the movie did meet my expectations! Take a look at the interior: 

Perfect Sunday night, followed by a delicious pizza at Caffé Pizza near to The Lexi. 

While this last picture has whatsoever nothing to do with this evening, I wanted to show the hilariousness I witnessed at The Regent Street Festival, "Japanese Miniature Girl meets Giant Dragqueen": 

Peace Out. 

XX // T.L. 

 Love - from, in and to - London. - The Londonist

Get Lost!

Getting lost is not one of my favorite activities, until today! 

I was supposed to meet at the Hyde Park Corner Station at 9am...but I never made it. Because this weekend, my line is not working. Not knowing my neighborhood perfectly yet, I took 2 busses and ended up not making the appointment, one stop away from Hampstead Heath Park. 

I felt bad for my friend, but I already was one hour late, so I decided to get off, because I heard good things about this park before. 

Making my way into the park, I followed fellow Sporty Spices to the top of the park, to find this view: 

Today it's a very sunny day, the view was amazing and the atmosphere was great. So many people running their ass off...LOVE IT! 

Anyway, AMAZING PARK! Huge fields, amazing views, families, young people, old couples...a true mix&match. After a while I got tired and needed to 'pop to the loo' (go to the toilettes). Apparently it was really my day to get lost...I thought I was going in the right direction, but ended up finding myself on the other side of the huge park...bummer. 

A few old grannies helped me out, and I ran through some very nice streets. The area is really residential: private streets, fancy cars and a chic (yet slightly old-fashioned) crowd. Finally I made it to my last destination near the station...the Euphorium Bakery, where I had a nice coffee and a croissant in the sun.

I enjoyed the crowd passing by, some models, some grannies, some families (with the good kind of young children, very mannered and silent)...the perfect morning. 

Note to self on this lovely Saturday: GET LOST! Sometimes (let's forget about the missed appointment) you should just step on the wrong tube and go for the adventure, because it might just give you a great starty of the day! 

XX // T.L. 

 Love - from, in and to - London. - The Londonist

Meet & Greet in the Sunny City

Buon Giorno, come stai?

I'm so happy to be able to tell you I've only had good weather since my arrival here...as in REALLY good weather, for London that is. A good portion of sunshine and a very nice temperature, which are, in my opinion, very good reasons to sit down for a glass of wine and enjoy a quiet moment in this crazy city. 

One of my favourite spots for a view: Temple Station.

This morning, Federica and I hopped on the Metropolitan Line to Oxford Circus. We arrived perfectly on time, and I can now proudly call myself an official student of the University of Westminster in London. Hardcore cool, it may be not, but still...

Some of us were feeling thirsty, so we went to this place right on the corner of Little Titchfield Street, to enjoy a drink (a double espresso in my case) in the sun. This is where I met Emma from Sweden, who joined me, Federica and Anne-Sophie from France...

Also, I proudly introduce my faithful Italian, Federica, who I described as the "female version of myself in the UK"...

We gathered again with the other people from our class until it was time for lunch. I got to meet Adam, also from Lund in Sweden, who is really Swedish, as you'd expect Swedish people to be. I impressed Emma and Adam with my basic knowledge of their language, still have to learn some more though. We ended up to eat at EAT on Regent Street, what a coincidence. But here comes the best part: I had a plate of cheap-ass SUSHI! I ate, I enjoyed and I knew it was good. 

In the afternoon, we went for a walk with half of the group, guided by a very funny little, energetic man. The best part was getting to know all these people, better! 

Say hello to the Raynaud sisters from France, Emilie & Elise...can you spot them? We also have Italian-French girl Mathilde, standing in between them...she's from Paris, good girl for sure! The only guy on the picture is Pedro Gomes from Portugal, a really cool person, with a very Portuguese attitude, love it! On his right, you've got Clothilde from France, followed by Anne-Sophie from France, who joined me for coffee and lunch before. Then...OLA! The two Spanish girls, Fatima and Adella...love these two charming characters and I think Adella is the most Spanish person you could imagine in London. Like me, she likes to have a healthy dose of fun and drinks...so we went to get this at The George Bar, on the corner of Essex Street. 

Our heads are pumping...so many things to do and arrange, but coming up are: London Fashion Weekend, Regent Street Festival and '80's clubbing! 

Absolutely loving every moment and advising you to do the same! 

XX // T.L. 

 Love - from, in and to - London. - The Londonist

Ready. Set. Go.

Hi!

So, finally, HELLO LONDON! The journey here was great, being dropped of by the people I love the most, after a very quick canal-crossing. First up was getting me into my room, check! Next was the drive to the hotel, check! 

Then we headed to city-mayhem. Oxford Street for some shopping and a much needed cranberry juice, followed by a stroll through Regent Street for some more drinks before dinner...where we ran into Pete Doherty, he was really nice, going on the picture with my sister, looking like his adorable self. If you'd like to run into Pete yourself, don't skip Ozer Bar on Regent Street then! 

Dinner happened in Soho at Zilli Green, an amazing Italian vegetarian restaurant, friendly service, CRAZY FOOD...I had truffle-risotto, yes, it was heaven. Note to self: you're too weak for Grappa-liquor. 

Next day, wandering from Picadilly Circus to the London Eye...coffee at Giraffe just next to the Waterloo Bridge, cool place (although a little queue). For the sweet-addicts: hot chocolate with marshmallows, approved by the sister.

Covent Garden welcomed us with open arms (and gave me some very nice black boots), after we passed the Somerset House, where you could feel Fashion Week buzzing up. Tired but happy, we sat down at Strada in Great Queen Street...delicious Insalata Fregolona, approved by myself and my company seemed to enjoy the pizza's. 

Kisses & Tears on West Cromwell Road at the goodbyes...

Exhausted & Happy, I go off to bed, but not before I give away some first impressions. 

Window on Regent Street

Covent Garden - Fashion Fête

GOODNIGHT! I LOVE LONDON & I LOVE LIFE. 

XX // T.L. 

 Love - from, in and to - London. - The Londonist

On the road

Pedestrian tunnel - Antwerp - between left and right bank of the Schelde

Weekend Knack Magazine

XX // T.L. 

 Love - from, in and to - London. - The Londonist

Three simple words

EAT PRAY LOVE

I bought this book 2 weeks ago in a little Indian bookstore. It cost me about £4 and it may have been one of the best decisions in my life! I don't know what it was that made me love this book so much, but I must tell you this book by Elizabeth Gilbert is a precious one.

With the movie coming to UK Theaters on September 24th, I want to show you 1 quote in the book that hit me like lightning, and made me love this book even more than I did already: 

"Happiness is the consequence of personal effort. You fight for it, strive for it, insist upon it, and sometimes even travel around the world looking for it. You have to participate relentlessly in the manifestations of your own blessings. And once you have achieved a state of happiness, you must never become lax about maintaining it, you must make a mighty effort to keep swimming upward into that happiness forever, to stay afloat on top of it. If you don't, you will leak away your innate contentment. It's easy enough to pray when you're in distress but continuing to pray even when your crisis has passed is like a sealing process, helping your soul hold tight to its good attainments."

The movie's featuring two of my favourite actors: Julia Roberts and James Franco. Here's the trailer, which looks VERY promising. Talking about my own journey: Italy: check, India: check...so in the footsteps of the movie, my next destination should be Bali...not bad, I say. 

XX // T.L. 

 Love - from, in and to - London. - The Londonist

Madness rocks the mind

Only five days left in my hometown, the lovely and delightful Antwerp...


Along with this countdown, of course, comes a healthy dose of stress: 

Mails (as in TONS of them) - Payments to be done (by and to me) - Texting - Calling - Scanning - Faxing - ...

My future depends on my all-in-one mobile and my new Moleskine diary*...a combination of technology and nostalgia, but both true lifesavers, I tell you!

But then, out of nothing, the universe sent me a very clear signal, through this picture in Weekend Knack: 

God knows who she is, but thank you babe! Both hilarious and beautiful, the picture calms me down and makes me realize there is nothing to be worried about. 

By the way, the message she's spreading, was invented by no one less than the British! Here's what Wikipedia taught me: 

Keep Calm and Carry On was a poster produced by the British government in 1939 during the beginning of World War II, to raise the morale of the British public in the case of invasion. It was little known and never used. The poster was rediscovered in 2000 and has been re-issued by a number of private sector companies, and used as the decorative theme for a range of other products.

Wonder if the people behind the shoot are aware of this? FYI, here's the poster: 

Me gusto! 


*Little story about this Moleskine: For this specific item, one should always go to Pencil & Paper, when in Antwerp. I needed one that also had the last months of 2010 in it, but (all confused) ended up buying one that only begins in January. Found out after I payed, while talking to the extremely friendly ladies who own the shop. Having a little diary-meltdown on the spot, they offered me a 2010 Moleskine...for free! Pencil & Paper, I thank you & I love you! 

XX // T.L. 

 Love - from, in and to - London. - The Londonist

Seeing blue

Bleu de Chanel...

I saw this perfume quite a while ago in an Indian airport, but didn't pay much attention to it. Until I found out the commercial was shot by the talented and legendary Martin Scorsese. And to add an extra pinch of coolness, it features Gaspard Ulliel, one of the most promising French actors, whom you can admire in movies as 'Paris, Je t'aime', 'Un long dimanche de fiançailles' and 'Le dernier jour'. He is also on the cover of the French magazine L'Optimum: 

So I thought, let's google this and find out what's the buzz about: 

Commercials for perfumes always appeal to me when they have that little 'extra'. Of course, this doesn't say ANYTHING about the actual smell itself...so let's grab hold of a free sample one of these days and take it for a test ride.

XX // T.L. 

 Love - from, in and to - London. - The Londonist

Reasons to live in London: #1

You can meet this sexy bitch! 

I'm talking about the one on the left. Can you recognize her? It's Miss Kate Moss, the legendary supermodel, who can still be seen in EVERY fashion magazine. Even after some scandals, which made her even more popular, she is still rocking her killer body and stunning face in ad campaigns for the world's most known clothing brands. All this, at the age of 36!

Often being a fashion icon, this is clearly not the case when she was playing a role in Little Britain. This series is as funny as the picture itself:

Anyway. Given the fact I'll soon reside in London, it's simple: I have to meet Kate Moss! How, where & when are questions that don't really matter, as destiny will bring us together: 

- She loves to party, so do I!

- She loves to shop, yes, so do I, although I might have a different budget! 

- She loves festivals, hell yes, mud and beats (with moderation, though)! 

- She loves coffee, YES, I could even write love songs about coffee!

Plus, it only takes us 30 minutes in the tube to reach each other's houses...CRAZY! So, as you can see, this unexpected meeting is bound to happen anytime soon. 

(And when it does, I'll swim across the Thames, naked!)

To end this crazy post about my ever-present Kate Moss-madness, let me show you a different, patriotic side of her: 

XX // T.L.

Love - from, in and to - London.