Rigi-Kulm, Luzern

I was treated by my sister and her fiancee to a lovely weekend this last week, and it made for a great break in what seems to be a rather static lifestyle I'm living at the moment. They are currently based in Switzerland and so during that weekend, they took me to Lucern for lovely scenic trek. It was a far cry from the kind of hiking they're used to doing but it was nevertheless astonishing. Driving up to Luzern was beautiful. The lakeside view of the hills and yachts and the cozy little hamlets were too picturesque, even for my measly Lumix. When we finally got to Rigi, we took a cable car (the only downer in the trip was that the car was full of children. There are certain places that are simply not where crying infants should be, and this was one of those) high up into the mountains where it actually started to drizzle, but it didn't stop me or the tourists. I just wish I had brought a macintosh of a hoodie as I was a tad nippy for the most part. Funnily enough, when we came down the slope, the car was baking hot- as was the rest of Lucern. Anyway, have a look at my little Heidi-of-the-Alps adventure!

Film Rolling: Paris 08.11 (Volume I)

It's been a year since my maiden voyage to the city of lights and to celebrate that anniversary, I finally decided to have the film rolls I used developed. Okay that's a lie. So I've always been slightly broke whenever I thought about having it processed- but the important thing is that now that I'm a part-timer again, I can afford a trip to Boots.

The camera I used was an old Minolta SLR I picked up at a local charity shop. It came complete with the packaging and extra wide shot lens for practically nothing. I wasn't sure if the thing worked and if it hadn't, my whole Parisian break would have remained undocumented (for the most part anyway). Thankfully the camera worked out great and the shots came out beautifully. I hope you enjoy this first installment! So this set includes shots from Saint-Denis Basilique where I stayed. I should have done my homework because all that time, I was playing neighbours with the remains of Marie Antoinette!

Procrastination At Its Finest

With an essay to hand in 24 hours and an exam waiting around the corner, you'd think I'd have have more sense than to just set off for Paris and forget about everything. Well, I didn't forget about work- I finished my essay two hours before my train was due for Gare du Nord, and I've started revision the minute I got back home this morning. If anything, I think the four days I spent with my friends Tash, Laura and Jess at Rue de la Rouchefoucauld were the most therapeutic since the start of the Christmas holidays. There was no stress, no fatigue, no worries. I also loved that this time around, there was a sense of familiarity in the air.

Penguins and T-Bone Steaks

I haven't been to a Zoo in yonks (!!), so when I was in Zurich, my sister suggested that her beau Chris take the rest of the family out to see the adorable animals while she pulled a Nigella-worthy coup in the kitchen. We had two hours to spare, so why not? I took some photos and all the animals were so cute! (except the constant smell of dung and the random hovering bird above my head sort of drove me a little crazy....). There were camels, lions, creepy Amazonian frogs (but beautifully jewel toned!), even a snow leopard that was having a bit of a snack! My highlight though, was hands down, the march of the penguins. No, I don't mean the movie. Apparently, every day the zoo keepers take the lot of resident Happy Feet-ers on a waddling stroll around the vicinity of their quadrant. They even had a Daddy Penguin, leading everyone in the parade! It was all a bit too precious, that I turned into a penguin-stalker for a good ten minutes.

A Frosty Greeting

Bonjour! Paris Day One

After months of preparation, unabashed bragging and never ending last-minute-shopping runs, the time finally came. I was off to Paris! I have been dreaming of the day ever since I can remember wanting to be a can-can girl wearing a beret and eating a baguette while singing Belle's 'Bonjour'. Since it was my maiden voyage to the City of Lights, and Love (non-applicable), I made sure I knew where I was going. Of course I didn't go at it alone. I was with three of my bestfriends; Carla, Danes and Becky. Luckily, all four of us wanted to see and go to the same places and do the same things so I made an itinerary tailored for the week. With a little help from the Paris Ex-Pat, the Girl's Guide to Paris, my housemate Virginie and my mother's trusty map, we were off across the channel and onto the Continent.