Post Holiday Blues

I've been neglecting this blog which is 1 part I-have-been-on-holidays and 2 parts life-has-changed-faster-than-I-have-been-able-to-keep-up. So now I'm using this winter hiberanation period to really focus on me and for once being in some semblance of stable life.

Anyway. That is all not very exciting. What is exciting is that I recently returned from holiday! My second trip to the US this year, my 4th in 4 years, but sadly likely to be my last for some time now. I think I need to give the North American continent a break from me for a while!

I'll try and post about my holiday highlights if I get around to it, but for now, here are some of my photo faves :)

 Perfect white sand and pristine blue seas in Barbados. I probably should have noted above that I actually spent half my time in the Caribbean, not just the US. And it was, like my last Caribbean trip, breathtaking. And blissful. And just what I needed!

Trunk Bay in St Johns, USVI. Consistently rated amongst the top 25 beaches in the world, and I wouldn't disagree!

A rare shot you'll see with me in it. I don't generally like posting photos of myself on this blog, but this is me hanging on a boat in St Lucia.

 The famous Alamo, in San Antonio, Texas. American History worthy.

Texas State Capital in Austin, Texas. I loved the architecture. I loved the patriotic scattering of the state Star on everything and anything. And I love this shot.

Laguna Beach, Orange County, CA. Teenage dream come true. I used to be obsessed with MTV's Laguna Beach, and am still a huge fan of LC. Long live MTV.

I realise all my photos look like postcard pictures I've stolen from the internet. I can assure you, everywhere was just that photographically amazing that it didn't take much to snap a postcard worthy shot, though I do like to claim some photographic skill ;) These were all shot on my beloved travel camera the NEX6 with kit zoom lens (I didn't even touch the second Sigma lens I took with me!).

And before you ask, I bought one item of clothing my whole trip! Yes, one! After enough visits to the US in as many years, I can definitely say I am probably one of the rare visitors who can abstain from shopping :)  

Charleston, South Carolina

Over the Christmas break I found myself in Charleston, South Carolina for a wedding. Charleston is a quintessentially cute, Southern little town with such a lovely colonial town vibe. It's recently been appearing on the 'new cool cities to visit' lists regularly, and I've since heard it is the second most popular place to get married in the US behind only Vegas (for obvious reasons).

The wedding I went to was seriously breathtaking. The best wedding I've ever been to, but I knew that would happen because the bride is the uber bride who has been planning this wedding since the day I met her (long before she even was engaged).

Here are some pics I wanted to share with you of the beautiful place that is Charleston!

I ate at the popular and hipster restaurant Husk that has all the Southern specialties such as this - pumpkin pie! We also had pigs ears lettuce wraps which were AMAZING!

 

This is an unfortunately badly shot photo of the building in which Husk is in - I was not my usual self this trip and really didn't take many photos, and didn't make an effort in most cases. I was just all about having a good time and soaking it all in!

Sunday brunch is, as always, a huge thing in the US, but in a religious southern town like Charleston, it is Halls Chophouse for 'Sunday Gospel Brunch'. I wish I had bothered to take a photo of the live, grand piano playing, soul crooner who sat in the corner entertaining us for the day. And for a bit of Southern hospitality, this was my complimentary glass of bubbly, after the restaurant owners started chatting to us!

And now for the wedding - at a beautiful plantation overlooking the river. Despite being in the middle of winter, it was a sunny warm Winters day which was absolutely amazing.

I do slightly regret having such a good time that I didn't stop to properly take photos of the sunset. But this is seriously how amazing it is - the following photo was taken with no filter on an iPhone. Is it not spectacular?

Southern food at the wedding - mac & cheese and chicken & waffles!

Beautiful beautiful florals - all painstakingly done by an amazing florist.

And for a sense of the main street - this was the high end shopping strip where you could literally get any designer item you wanted!

I love me a good holiday, and this was definitely one!

See you in 2014!

I've been slack again with my blogging, and I will continue be until early 2014 because today I head off to the US for a few weeks! A bit of a whirlwind trip really but I'm looking forward to catching up with some important people in my life and old friends who I unfortunately see rarely.

I will be back to proper blogging hopefully in early 2014, but for now Merry Christmas and have a safe and fun festive season :)

Duck and Waffle, London

As you might remember I just got back from holiday and as usual when I go to Europe, I try to make a stopover in London to see family. I ate at quite a few places which I will hopefully post about soon, but the first I will post about is the hot spot Duck and Waffle in the Heron Tower. It is 24 hours (!!!) but it is a funky urban eatery that is blessed with having an amazing view of the London city skyline and the shard due to its location.

We went for sunset, though unfortunately it wasn't an amazing one (well not a blazing red and purple sky like I often see at home). But never fear, it was still a great view!

There is a great 270 degree view, including of the Shard. You can see the balcony tables below are at the chain Sushi Samba.

Now finally some pictures of some food!

Raw scallops and tuna - this was zingy and fresh which is of course is important with sashimi. Not a stand out though.

Spicy ox cheek doughnut with apricot jam - this was interesting, with a thick doughy outside covering the soft ox cheek meat. Definitely one to share as it isn't something you would want to eat too much of!

My holiday was full of eating lots of foie gras so this was no exception - the dish is called 'foie gras all day breakfast' and features nutella. This was a great mix but I'd definitely had better foie gras!

Now my favourite of the share plates - the pollock meatball (lobster cream and parmesan) to the left and then the paper bag filled with bbq spiced crispy pigs ears which were amazing!

Their signature dish is definitely the above - ducks egg with a crispy confit duck leg and mustard maple syrup all on top of a waffle. This is definitely hugely inspired by the popular dish in the US of chicken and waffle and definitely was cooked to perfection. The waffle perhaps could have been crisper but I think thats personal preference for how one likes their waffle. Definitely one to share!

As I'm a dessert fiend, we had a heap of desserts to share. Clockwise from the back was the vanilla baked alaska meringue, dark chocolate brownie sundae then the torrejas at the front which is like a french toast. Definitely my favourite was the baked alaska, but I love meringue. Again these were good, but not amazing.

What's my end verdict - well I think the prices aren't cheap, but the food is decent quality and you really get what you pay for with the amazing view and the fact it is a 24 hours joint! I could definitely see this being as a classier option than McDonalds or a kebab at 3am!

And lastly, this is one of my favourite shots - from memory I tried doing it HDR but the glare of the windows doesn't make it turn out quite so nicely. But still, amazing view over London :)

Holiday Shoe Haul

So I've been back for a week and I've unpacked in that haphazard way I always do to just have things 'out of sight, out of mind'. Well now I've got some time to actually sort through it so I thought I would do a post about some of my shopping.

Shoes have and always will be my weakness. Whenever I go into department stores, chain stores or really any store, I'll always go straight for shoes. Something about browsing shoes is just so much easier and better than browsing racks of badly hung and merchandised clothing.

Anyway this pic includes shoes my sister purchased but yes we carried back all these shoes back on our trip, plus all our other shopping goodies. We travel with quite small suitcases (most would call them the medium sized ones) so the amount we managed to stuff into our suitcases is quite a feat!

My shopping on this trip was very low-mid end range, rather than focusing on the high end as I normally would. Partially it is because I was looking for some fun fashion purchases to just colour my wardrobe without wanting to spend too much as I am meant to be saving at the moment!

The best purchases would definitely be these Marc by Marc Jacobs - they were having 70% off shoes! Even with the prices being more expensive because they were in GBP, 70% off still made it a good deal comparable to sale season in the US.

The other good buy was the Melissa for Vivienne Westwood orb flats from Liberty London which I ended up having to get a size up because they had sold out. Nevertheless, at 50% off they were a must buy for me! I would have liked them in black, but I do wear and own far too much black.

Oh I must mention I also love the T bar Zara pink and black suede shoes in the middle. I'm usually wary of buying Zara overseas because we do have it in Australia and everyone wears it. But these were love at first sight.

Post holiday blues

If you hadn't already noticed from my twitter account, I'm back from my holidays and of course with it being winter here in Sydney post holiday blues inevitably hit!

Actually, there's been lots of change in my life recently so I was in fact looking forward to coming home despite enjoying my time away from work and exploring the world.

I'll be trying to get back to posting more regularly again but bear with me while I return to my normal life schedule. For now, here's a quick photo from Glastonbury Music Festival which I attended as the last leg of my trip - it was absolutely amazing! If you ever get the chance to get tickets, go!

This is a photo of the Pyramid stage on the final night with headliners Mumford and sons playing. It's not even a great photo (I wish I had taken the time to stop and take better photos) but exemplifies Glastonbury's spirit so well!

Holidays!

Today, I head off for a few weeks overseas and so you may not hear from me for a while. So much happens in my life that I never get round to blogging about everything, and I never even finished blogging about my epic 5 months overseas from 2012. Anyway, I'm off again and you may recall I posted excitedly as one of the highlights is definitely going to Glastonbury 2013! So excited :)

In the meantime, I've scheduled a few posts while I'm gone and as always I'll be in twitter. You'll hear more real time updates about my holiday on twitter so click on the links on the right to follow me @AShoeAffair and stalk my holiday!

In the meantime, I leave you with this amazing photo of a place that is high on my 'to visit' list ;)

Jumeirah Dhevanafushi, Maldives - CN Traveller Hot List 2012

Bali: Ku De Ta

When I was in Bali it almost seemed like a necessity to make a trip for drinks and dinner at the infamous Ku De Ta.

Our private villa was actually just down the road from the bar/restaurant so one night we took a nice walk down there to start with drinks.

The setting is just so beautiful for a glammed up place to drink - you can sip your drink while watching the sun set and as you hear the lapping of the waves. Plus if you're that way inclined you can even run into the surf then come back to retrieve your drink. Bliss!

 

Drinks were tasty, though at Australian prices, not the cheap as chips $5 for a cocktail many assume would be standard across Bali. But as the saying goes, you get what you pay for, and these drinks were delish! Of course you're partly paying for being able to have that breathtaking view and setting and in by books there is nothing wrong with that!

We actually moved seats twice because we wanted to get a different view and both times it was so comfy and relaxing.

Look at that sunset, right?

Anyway, once we had watched the sun set we moved onto the restaurant where we had a reservation for dinner. The restaurant is in a U shape around the bar area and so with it being all indoors its all low lit and moody for a very romantic feeling. While I'm sure there are many who go there for a romantic dinner, there were also lots of families and groups dining when we were there.

The menu is again Australian prices, however all items seemed very accesible and there definitely was something for everyone.

We had spent the whole day eating and doing not much else so we went for Entrees and some dessert.

From memory this was a seafood terrine.

This was a really tasty pork and soft shell crab salad mix that was well balanced and tasty!

Unfortunately I don't have any pics of our other entrees however here's an obligatory photo of dessert. Creme brulee...yum!

All in all, I've probably not done it justice with my descriptions but I hope the pictures of the drinks and setting speak for themselves. It was just such a relaxing way to spend the night!

Travel Tip Tuesday: One Cent Flights

It's been ages since I did a 'Travel Tip Tuesday' post so here's a good one if you're looking to travel soon - I came across this website One Cent Flights.

So how does it work? Basically its like an auction site where you bid for the price you're willing to pay for whatever flights they've advertised which include awesome destinations as Australia to the US and Europe. Basically you're bidding on the amount you will pay to then have their set travel agent book you the return flight on a set list of airlines (which are actually quite good, not cheaper budget airlines!) based on the travel dates you want.

Bids increase in increments of 1 cent, so you'll often see international flights go for less than $100! Bidding ends when no further bids are received and a set countdown timer runs out. The catch is that you have to pay for bids at a starting price of $1 per bid but if you're clever with your auction strategy, even if you bid say, 500 times, that's only $500 plus the auction price (which might be less than $100). At a total of < $1000, that's still cheaper than the average return flight internationally!

Now I'm not affiliated with them in anyway and I haven't actually tried it (as I've already booked my holiday for 2013!) but I thought it was something others might really get into. Even the domestic flights have pretty good deals.

When you sign up you get 5 free bids but if you want a bonus two, click here!

Happy Bidding!

Pre-summer tan

It's already been over a week since I returned from Bali and I think my tan is already quickly fading which is quite disappointing! The weekend only had nice weather on Saturday as well which was disappointing, because Sunday was the only day I had time to go and frolic in the sun at the beach =(

This was my tan two days after getting home - excuse the bad mirror pictures!

One of my work christmas parties is on Friday so I'll have some photos of how my tan has progressed since then...

I have to say, I quite like this pre summer tan business, it means that I feel better about going out in my summer dresses with a bit of colour to me!

I'm baaaack!

I'm baaaaack, and wasn't that a quick trip? I think so...I mean I flew in at 7am and was back at my desk at work by 10am that morning thinking, wow was I really just in Bali yesterday?

Anyway, I'll try to be better and quicker with my holiday post uploads this time in the coming weeks (you know I never even got round to blogging about my Europe trip which was now 6 months ago!) but in the meantime, here is a teaser...

Stunning view from Ku De Ta over the beach at night

Our private pool villa in Seminyak

Now I'm back with quite a nice tan - admittedly at first I thought my tan was pretty light on until I got back and everyone at work thought I was so tanned and I inspected myself in the mirror more carefully and realised they were correct! The weather here in Sydney is amazing this weekend too woo!

Vacation countdown

I'm heading to Bali today so you won't hear much from me over the next few days! Never fear, I'm only gone for 5 days and I may have scheduled some posts in the meantime ;)

I'm excited to just be getting away from life in Sydney for a bit and really taking time out to RELAX! I haven't done that in the longest time!

If you have any Bali tips send them my way, I'll be checking my blog most probably :)

I spent the last few days trying to pack and got to the realisation I should just be packing swimwear and floaty dresses. Priorities, right?

Here's my swimwear rotation:

So blogosphere, I'll catch you all on the other side of my holiday!

Oh and one more thing - HAPPY THANKSGIVING to all my American friends. Times like these make me miss the US =(

Counting down to November!

I just cannot wait until November because then I'll be....

Going to Bali!!

I've actually never had any desire to go to Indonesia or Bali, especially when there are so many exciting places to go around the world, but when I saw cheap Jetstar flights that coincided with certain dates that allow me to have a mini reunion in Asia, I just had to book flights!

Plus life has been so hectic lately that I am dying for a break. I am seriously wishing my holiday is for next week because all I want to do is sit in the sun, laying out on a sun bed and reading a good book. Relaxation and sun is all I need! So that's why I was OK with going to Bali and I cannot wait.

I'm looking at accommodation at the moment and it all looks so...blissful. Have you been to Bali and where's your favourite place to stay or favourite thing to do?

Holiday Dreaming - Memories

I'm always dreaming of holidays - some might say "You only just got back from holiday!" but it has already been 2 months since I returned and I feel like I'm already in need of another!

I was reliving my holiday memories this weekend, particularly of the Greek Islands because it was absolutely breathtakingly beautiful and an amazing few weeks of bliss.

These photos are from Santorini - the view of Oia at night and the Black Beach <3

Take me back!

Where to next?

London: Louboutin Anniversary Exhibition

So my travel posts are all going to be a bit out of order since I can't help myself but excitedly share some of the highlights!

As a shoe lover, it was of course hugely exciting to end my travels with a trip to the Christian Louboutin 20th Anniversary Exhibition at the London Design Museum. It was a bit disappointing that we missed meeting the man himself - he was presenting a talk a mere 18 hours earlier(!) - but we literally jetted into London and spent our last moments there viewing shoe porn, eating Pinkberry and enjoying Pierre Herme macarons (my favourite!).

The exhibition is compact, but beautifully presented, taking visitors on a bit of a visual journey through the mastermind's creative shoe journey. You're not meant to take photos in the exhibition but I just had to capture the breathtaking beauty in some way so snuck in some sneaky (albeit slightly dodgily shot) iPhone photos to share with you!

Shoe trapeze at the entrance

Shoe carousel!

 The shoes are presented in a rough chronological order, but also separated by 'themes' such as the Fetish room (more on that later), original early designs and special one-off pieces.

One of the 'highlights' is a Dita Von Teese hologram performance which playfully appears to be taking place right before your eyes on an elevated stage, with a staircase of beautiful 'performance' type shoes cascading before it.

This pair is one of those beauties and just so happens to be one of my sisters' favourite pairs in her collection!

The famous Anemone <3

Earlier I mentioned the 'Fetish' Room - this was a display setup solely for the David LaChapelle photographic collaboration from 2007. For those that don't recall, Louboutin made a series of purely exhibitionist non-wearable shoes which were provocatively photographed by LaChapelle, a style he is most well known for.

And of course I couldn't resist a shot of the famous patent black Pigalle 120s! I am yet to wear mine, but reading the blurb expresses exactly what this cult shoe is about - beauty and art in something wearable (or perhaps not so wearable, depending on who you ask).

And finally, Dita's very own cabaret strasses. These are amazing in real life - she has such tiny feet - and you can even see where the perspex sections are ripping from wear. Amazing!

So while this may not have been the best fashion exhibition I've been to, it was still beautiful to see a mock setup of his workroom, see videos and understand his long journey to Shoe God. I have a theory that perhaps this exhibition didn't seem so 'WOW" because shoes are so accessible - every season we see these shoes in real life in our local stores and even if we can't afford to buy them we can still for a moment try them on and fantasise over when we might be able to wear them. With other couture exhibitions I've been to (Jean Paul Gaultier, Yves Saint Laurent and Valentino are the few I've been to), you're seeing true Haute Couture pieces worth hundreds of thousands which would never normally leave the atelier so they perhaps have a greater sense of allure.

Even so, if you're in London, I suggest you get your hot little heels down to the exhibition for a squiz. It's well worth it if you're a Louboutin fan and shoe lover!

Visit the exhibition at London's Design Museum until 9 July.