You should drink more water!

April 16, 2015 Virginie the Frenchie Leave a comment

“No water, no life. No blue, no green” – Sylvia Earle

Forget about make-up, beauty creams, vitamins, miracle pills, fancy clothes, jewels to make you beautiful… because a girl’s best friend is closer that you think, it is actually: WATER!

Water has many virtues: it helps to digest, to regulate body temperature, to help with weight loss, to feel full of energy, to have a clearer skin, to stay fresh, to prevent headache, to beat colds, to think clearer! With all these benefits it should definitely be part of your beauty routine ❤

We are supposed to drink around 2-3 litres a day… which seems like a lot! But you can make it fun by adding cucumbers, lemons or fruits in your glass of water, to spice up things so it does not get boring! Here is a lovely article with 20 cool recipes and amazing pictures that will make you fall in love with your glass of water! http://www.diyncrafts.com/7075/health/20-delicious-detox-waters-cleanse-body-burn-fat

Water spiced up with mint, orange, lemon and cinnamon!

I personally adore tea so it is another disguised way to hydrate your body and feel splendid! My favorite time being in the afternoon while blogging and enjoying an homemade iced tea or a warm and comforting cup of my favorite blend.

Delicious mint and lemon iced tea at “E for Ethel” cafe

You can also make it trendy and healthy at home! In Adelaide we are lucky to live near Mount Lofty and its natural springs. You can enjoy pure and refreshing water for a really decent price and it is always nice to buy local! It is non polluted, it is natural, high quality and it tastes good! Here is my tip: buy a 10 liter Mount Lofty water pack (easy to find at Coles supermarket), it is convenient, cheaper and environment friendly! Then buy a beautiful bottle: I went for “Voss”, they have really stylish glass bottles but their water is so expensive because it comes from Norway springs! So now what I do, I fill my trendy “Voss” bottle with my “Mount Lofty natural spring water“, I place it in the fridge and I have always fresh and pure water to offer. I must say the bottle looks pretty cool on my table which is always a PLUS to feel good about yourself or when you have guests!

And now a funny story: I am going to reveal a little secret about Mount Lofty 10 litres pack that only Australian people know because they were born with it I assume. It seems that foreigners don’t know how to make the water flow from the box… My friend Nasim (from Iran) and I (from France) made exactly the same mistake, turning the plastic button from right to left and the other way around… we turned every part of it but nothing happened, not a single drop of water. One day Nasim’s neighbor (from Oz) paid a visit to her and Nasim asked her if she knew how to use the water pack! Her neighbor smiled and said, “Oh, it is easy, there is a little trick to know” and she showed her! Then it happened the same thing to me and I spotted that Nasim had a Mount Lofty water pack at home too, so I asked her to show me how to use it and she said, “it is easy, there is a little trick”… when thinking of it I feel stupid now haha… don’t turn the plastic bit, it won’t do anything! For god’s sake it is not a French wine barrel with a small pourer to turn on and off! So the technique is to lift the small plastic bit up or down like if you were switching a light on or off and the miracle will happen, you will have your own fountain of water springing in your home ❤ magic!

australia, lifestyle

Adelaide Zombie Walk

April 15, 2015 Virginie the Frenchie 1 Comment

Have you ever seen a zombie walk? Basically it is a social gathering of people dressed as zombies walking around the city! It is becoming more and more popular and a lot of cities such as London, Montreal etc… are hosting a walking dead procession around Halloween time! I have seen a zombie march when I was living in Montreal and I must say despite the cold it was really entertaining some people were really into their “characters”.

I moved to Australia early September 2014 and when I heard there would be a zombie walk in Adelaide CBD in October, I decided to make it count! This time I would not just watch, I would be one of them: walking crooked, looking disconnected, groaning… But first, I had to find a costume, a character that would express my story… how did I become a zombie, what was I doing last before being bitten? Since I had just moved to Adelaide I did not have much (no accessories or clothes to trash) so I decided to go to a charity shop or like they say here an “Op shop” (opportunity shop)! For less that $10 I found a girly pink top and a dress that made me think of a gardener apron… I decided that it would be perfect since there were some gardening tools in my fully furnished house that I could use to complete my costume! Now I had my story: I was a garden lady taking care of my roses when I got suddenly attacked and bitten by a crazy zombie! Then the trick is about make up, then laminating my costume (using a cheese grinder!) and make it look dirty like I spent weeks wandering in the streets of Adelaide (I scrubbed it on the pavement and in the grass outside)… the result was absolutely perfect!

Zombie Walk - 2014 - 131 — Hungry and scary zombie!

Then I joined my peers and it was really good fun. Some costumes were unbelievable and very realistic! I could swear some people have been zombies in previous lives… if it does make sense! Thousand of zombies got together to raise funds for Foodbank SA which is a noble cause (you can donate money or non perishable food)! The event is very well organized with policemen closing the roads where the march takes place (East terrace, Rundle street, Pultney street and Pirie street)… it is hilarious to see people faces when you are walking down the streets: some are curious, some are excited and others are totally speechless because they have no idea what is going on, why all this blood and these strange faces… I am still smiling when thinking of this old couple who nearly had a stroke when they saw me 😉

Zombie Walk - 2014 - 059 — Marie-Antoinette had it coming!

I think it is so cool that Adelaide can compete with other major cities by hosting a really amazing and entertaining zombie walk with thousands of walking dead marching on our streets! When you think it all started a couple of years ago with a few people who were passionate about it and decided they will make it happen no matter what… at the beginning it was a really discrete and small event but as the years go by it is getting more and more famous and important and I think it is wonderful to be part of it!

Zombie Walk - 2014 - 234 — Did you ask for a pizza with anchoves?

Adelaide Zombie Walk

Every year in October

http://www.adelaidezombiewalk.com/index.html

lifestyle, School

Red

April 8, 2015 Virginie the Frenchie Leave a comment

She stopped the car at the red light. She looked briefly into the rearview mirror and she noticed her eyes were still red from crying. The roses were lying next to her on the front seat. She was wondering who was sending the flowers; probably somebody who wanted to feel good about it! Each damn year on Valentine’s day it was the same old scenario: a beautiful deep red bouquet would be delivered to her work place without a card or a message. In a way it felt good that somebody cared about her, but at the same time it hurt so much because it also reminded her of the passion and love she once had, which had been tragically and irremediably taken away from her.

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This text is one of my assignments from creative writing class. Rather than starting to write from an idea, I was encouraged to start with a word that would act as a trigger for writing. The idea is to explore the sounds and meanings of words, to get new ideas and perspectives. I was asked to write only a paragraph (short story) using the trigger word: RED by sound or by meaning… it was up to me! I must say it was interesting because I never proceeded this way before… generally ideas or images drive my creativity! So it was interesting to start from a simple word as “red” and build a story around it! I am happy with the result because I managed to create a story in just 100 words! What I really enjoyed about this exercice is the fact that at the beginning I had no idea where my story would go… I just knew I would use “valentine’s day”, “roses”, “traffic light”, “passion” because they are deeply associated to the red colour but my story really took life under my pen with the words I was using one line at a time, growing like a deep velvet rose on the heart of my white page filling it with its warm colour!

australia, lifestyle

Peaceful Adelaide Himeji garden

April 6, 2015 Virginie the Frenchie Leave a comment

“If you look the right way, you can see that the whole world is a garden”

Do you have a secret place where you enjoy going to dream and clear your mind? A poetic place where you feel free and inspired?

I know a lovely garden in Adelaide that is an invitation to inspiration. It is as beautiful as it is peaceful with its enchanting trees and flowers. It is a Japanese style garden celebrating religiously the beauty of nature. I like to walk slowly surrounded by the sound of silence on the stepping stones so I can admire every tiny detail. I enjoy gazing at the calm water of the lake and listen to the birds singing happily in the deep blue sky. I love the sound of the chanting waterfall melting poetically into the beautiful landscape. Everything is in harmony with nature and my heart feels at peace here.

I like to kneel in front of the magic stone bowl and feel the fresh water on my hand and my face. It is said that the holy water will purify your spirit and your soul: it is like leaving all my worries behind me and starting from fresh with a humble attitude.

Water bowl (Chozubachi) so visitors may purify themselves

I like to contemplate the sea of sand. It is the perfect spot for contemplation thinking of the immensity of the sea, the waves, the continents. If you close your eyes, you can hear the sea… As Buddha said “With our thoughts we create the world” and it is up to us to make it beautiful!

I could spend hours in this enchanting garden: dreaming, reading, having a picnic, doing yoga… but suddenly I hear the ‘clack” of the Shishi-Odoshi: a large bamboo tube filling with water until horizontal and then emptying causing one end to hit a rock with a deaf noise. It brings me back to reality: happier, rested and aware of the beauty and power of nature… already time to go but I will be back soon, I promise 😉

Adelaide Himeji garden

South Terrace

Adelaide SA 5000

http://www.postcards-sa.com.au/features/himeji_garden.html

lifestyle, School

With or without you…

April 2, 2015 Virginie the Frenchie 6 Comments

One of my first assignments in creative writing class was to write about an object without letting the readers know what the object is until the end of the story. I was also asked to add some dialogue to my text and to keep it up to 300 words. It was a challenging exercice but it was also very interesting. I had fun working on that piece and I thought it could be a nice idea to share my text with you… so try to guess what is my object before the end of my story 😉 and let me know what you thought about it!

With or without you…

His adjusted wide and round eyes were following me. His long and curved arms trying to surround me. I could perceive his soft cold touch on my face as he was bending over my ears.

‘Hey, look at me! Am I that transparent!?’ he whispered.

‘Leave me alone! I don’t like what I see; when I am looking in the mirror I don’t recognize myself anymore. You have turned me into something I don’t like! I don’t want you!’

‘Can’t you see beyond the end of your nose?! We are a perfect fit! Deep inside, you know you need me! I am making a huge difference… without me you are confused and lost and without you I am worth nothing!’

‘I don’t need you! To me you are just an accessory! Go back to your confined place with your black suit and fancy tattoos! I hate you!’

When I entered the cafe, I was so angry I nearly missed a step and bumped into a young man. The waitress asked me what I wanted to order. I spotted the board menu hanging… it could have been Chinese!

The waitress stared at me waiting for my answer… painfully, I realised that I had been lying to myself: I desperately needed it!

I reached the unloved black pair of glasses in my crumpled bag so I could see now: cascade of words, cakes appearing on the counter, intensity of colours, faces around me and the expression of surprise in my fiance’s eyes! He had been standing here, witnessing the whole scene and I had not noticed! Only he could see through me!

He said, ‘Even with your glasses on, I think you still look pretty!’

australia, food

So glamorous, so girly!

April 1, 2015 Virginie the Frenchie Leave a comment

I think our lives should be more often like in the TV shows when it comes to have a latte with a good friend! Don’t you think?! Let’s face it: the Gilmore girls have “Luke’s dinner”, Friends have the “Central Perk”, Zoe Hart (Hart of Dixie) has the “Rammer Jammer”… and sometimes when we watch these programs we wish we had a place like that too! A place that feels welcoming, cosy and warm. A place that feels like home and different at the same time. Your place!

Well, a couple of days ago, my friend Nasim (from Iran) and I discovered an absolutely charming tea salon called BTS! It is the perfect place to do some catch up with your girlfriends. I must say that the decoration, very “boudoir” style, reminded me of the film “Marie-Antoinette” from Sofia Coppola and we just felt like royalty!

We sat on a beautiful and comfortable black sofa and we were heavenly treated by the friendly staff. It is a very girly chic cafe where the pink and the black bring an elegant and feminine touch to the place!

We spoiled ourselves with delicious latte: Nasim picked a coffee and I chose a tchai. We had a really interesting conversation and we did not see the time flying by, we were in another world. There were appealing and colourful cupcakes dancing on the counter… they looked delicious and from what I heard they are a real treat! I wish I had one… next time I will! If Blair Waldorf (from Gossip Girl) was having a tea party with her friend Serena, I bet this is exactly the place where they would meet!

So next time you are in Adelaide CBD and you are looking for a chic dessert to share with a good friend, don’t look any further and head to this intimate tea salon to share all your little secrets ❤

BTS

61 Gouger Street

Adelaide CBD, 5000

http://www.btscafe.com.au