Showing posts with label Friends. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Friends. Show all posts

31.1.11

Mon Amour

Paris, once again, proved itself worthy of my everlasting love. 

Just to make sure you don't forget it's a Parisian Taxi.

Having a little juice with Claudia.

And the best coffee in the world, an illy espresso.
In Sésame, located at the Canal Saint Martin.

The adorable waitress and the interior at Sésame.

A traditional Moroccan tea in the Parisian Mosque.
You can go here for food too...or to relax in gender-reserved Hammams. 

Local artist.
Can you see what's on it?
It was already there, rest assured.

Amazing bookshop in Saint Germain.
Must-visit on your trip to Paris.

Being intellectual on one of the comfy beds.

Fed up with books, time for cheese.
From Olivier Dubois, best French cheese-maker.
Dairy Heaven.

Time for a party.
Best interior I've ever seen.
Mindblowing.

And another one.
The Flatwarming of the "Couvent".

Sunday = Brunch.
Love at first sight. Every time. 

XX // T.L. 

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

26.1.11

Bisous Bisous

Today's post is dedicated to one of my best friends, because it's her birthday and she's one of those friends you just know you'll have forever. 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MA GRANDE KARINE! 

San Francisco - 2009.
So, as I told her to certainly not miss today's post, I want to tease her with some detail pictures of a few gifts I got her...

Here's where I bought the gifts.

Surprise Surprise

Ra Ra Ra
There's one more actually, but it's packed in paper, very delicate. So let's keep that one completely secret. 

On my hunt, I walked by a rather nicely decorated door. 



Mission accomplished. 

XX // T.L. 

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

7.1.11

Fresh Start

Finally, there it is. 

You know people always go on about this 'fresh start' on New Year and on how you're gonna do things differently this year? Yes, exactly, that feeling. 

I'll be honest, I didn't feel it. That is, until TODAY! (Long post, you are warned)

Strange however, because this year, I had one of the most memorable New Years I've ever had in my life so far...


But that feeling, nope. One of my best friends came over for New Year and my friends here have only just returned from their hometowns. So what's a guy to do? 


1. Sleep well
2. Eat healthy
3. Work out
4. Print CV
5. Hand out CV
6. Shopping
7. Get British Library Readers Card (this does sound so smart)
8. Trial day for 2 jobs


That trial day, was today. And boy, I liked it. I got a job at trial #1 and let's say trial #2 was a kind of snoozefest, they're going to call me on Monday, and I'll definitely check out the salary, but as for now, I regard myself hired at job #1! 


I don't exactly know why, but I really missed working. I used to love my job back in Antwerp, I used to work full-day shifts for fun...simply because I really liked my job. Workaholic? Maybe, but only if the job suits me. 


Best decision ever! 


I felt so happy when I was done working, I just saw this city through an entirely different angle. And life, actually. Meeting the people from this city on a different level, was really something I was looking forward to, oh boy, can you imagine the smile on my face already?


Anyway. Enough ranting about this fresh start-obsession! I can already imagine you sitting there and thinking...




So, I came home after a great day to find this wondeful video online, of one of my favorite blogs, The Sartorialist. 


Laugh your ass off at 2:35. 

Scott Schuman, the man behind the blog, is, as you can see, inspiring. Uneducated, daring and down to earth, he is out there and doing what he likes. Let's say this video showed me just what I needed and made this day even nicer. 

This very long post, written in a short amount of time, just proves I feel absolutely ready for 2011 and...I've got some very exciting plans inside my head which definitely need to be carried out this year.

To be continued...

XX // T.L. 

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

22.11.10

Oh My God What Have I Done

Crazy things like this don't need any words. 


This looks nice.

Requirements to eat it: knife & plate.

All finished.

I hereby take the time to praise my digestive system: without you I wouldn't have survived this...I also promise you a very healthy month before Christmas! 

Time to go on a diet! 

XX // T.L. Love - from, in and to - London. - The Londonist

9.11.10

Going Deeper Underground

Seville was amazing. Not only did I have the best city-guide ever, but Seville also surprised me. Sophisticated, inspiring and totally relaxed, perfect ingredients for a great stay. The streets were full of beautiful people, very well dressed (or at least the ones I looked at). 

And then...the food. Our days went something like this: breakfast - walking - coffee - walking - tapas - walking - tapas - drinks - walking - tapas. Not that I can complain, but sometimes we went a little overboard, luckily we had a good excuse: best friends that reunite must simply make the most of everything...and so we did! 

The weather wasn't bad either...to be honest it was beyond amazing. We reached 30°C, in November. Crazy! Seville is definitely worth a visit. The atmosphere, the food, the things to visit, the little streets. Often called the frying pan of Europe and the city of tapas, I hope this post got you all warmed up to book your tickets!

Thank you guapa for the lovely week-end! 

Soaking up the sun in Alcazar

Tapas - wine - dessert (not ours)

Seville - you were amazing
But, London was calling. My timing in going back home was better than it was when I left for Seville. Although I left on time (so I thought), I apparently took the slow train, which stopped two or three times before finally arriving at London Stansted at 17.25. My gate was closing at 17.35!

This, my friends, was followed by what could be described as a movie scene. I took my trolley under my arm, ignored the tons of people waiting to pass the security (didn't even notice if someone was angry or not), ran to the gate (which was very far)...saw 'Final Call' next to my flight: panic! I arrived in the hall of my gate, to find yet another line. Ignored it as well. Apparently, the entire line was waiting to board the flight: WTF?! 

Coming back went very smooth. Upon arrival though, I thought it'd be a good idea to tear up my train ticket and throw it away. No control on the train (if you're from Belgium, you think like this) = no control ever. But, alas, there they were. 3 big security guys. The inevitable happened...I needed to collect all the pieces of my ticket and my receipt. Luckily it was the only thing in the litter, so no dirty things went down. But still, I felt weird. A few sad looks on the face and they let me through. I was the last person leaving Liverpool Station that night, London, I'm back! 

After a good night sleep, I woke up in very different conditions. There was nobody besides me in the room. No best friend's face to greet you and...the weather! Horrible. This was about to be a not so interesting day with a lot of chilling, groceries and laundry. 

I wanted to get back in the groove of things, so I decided to do something new that night! I met up with Emeline and Taku to go the Old Vic Tunnels, to attend a very unusual theatre night, performed by Platform: an inspiring group of people who dedicated their free time to bring you a very pleasant evening. Plus, it was FREE! 

The night was amazing and so unexpected. A play about love in London and all the facets of this crazy city, in an amazing setting: overground tunnels! And there it was...I FELT AT HOME! The attendees were all Londonders and I felt one of them. 

A night to be called a true success, followed by a lovely (Spanish) wine in a local pub. I hope some pictures might give an impression, but the feeling I got that night...can't be explained. I was back home and I felt happy. London. I love you! 

Wise words. Platform presentation book. 

Tube-scene

Marriage in the tunnel

This says it all. 

XX // T.L. 

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

31.10.10

Scary Times

Well, let's say my first Halloween was a blast! Mathilde and her flatmates organised a mixture between a Halloween and a housewarming and it ended up being an amazing success. Everyone dressed up, complimented others on their costumes and an amazing time was had by everyone...it was amazing! 

My intention was to be a blasphemous priest, who'd marry Mathilde and Margaux, the scary bride and groom of the evening. It turned out to be a great costume, a true disgrace to the priests of this world: job well done! 

My headpiece and tights = eye-catchers! 

Let's get married!

I declare you...

HUSBAND AND WIFE! 
Hope you all had a very nice Halloween!

XX // T.L. 

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

25.10.10

Happiness

I was talking with my best friend on Skype before and realized that no matter if you're in London or Spain, reality is something you don't always like to be faced with. Hearing her complaints about things that needed to be fixed, made me think about my own 'struggle' to settle down in mad funky London. 

Simply put, a new start is something that will pay off, but at the same time it will test you. But when ,after all, you find yourself surrounded by happiness...you know you've made it. And every place on earth has prepared its little test for you, whether it's food or formality causing you distress...I always believe that in the end, all will be alright! 

This brings me to my philosophy on life, or part of it. Be prepared to learn from every experience in life!

It might be a hard struggle with little pay-off, or it might be a party opening endless doors for you...it will teach you something. Shit happens, but you can learn from it, you'll get wiser. 

Everything happens for a reason, is actually what I'm trying to say. 

You may find this is bullshit and believe that you cause everything what happens, but in my case, I won't ever blame myself for something bad happening, it's something that was meant to be & I'll get benefits from it...in the long run. Turn every negative into a positive, which will make the positive things even better...and your life will look very different. 

So my dearest friend: read this & hang in there...OLA QUE TAL? 



XX // T.L. 

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

22.9.10

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