DISCOVERING SHOE DESIGNER CHRISTIAN LOUBOUTIN'S NEW EXHIBIT

Today I had the privilege of meeting Christian Louboutin and previewing L'Exhibition[niste], a provocative presentation of his works over the last 30 years. Housed in the Palais de la Porte Dorée from February 26 to July 26, 2020, these are the tickets to buy to if you're in Paris for fashion week or, more simply, you just appreciate beautiful things. Here’s a highlight reel of my day...

THE MUSÉE DES ARTS DÉCORATIFS PUTS HER BEST FOOT FORWARD

Several of you have asked questions about the fashion exhibit Marche et démarche, une histoire de la chaussure at the Musée des arts décoratifs, seeing that I mentioned it twice in my earlier post about Christian Louboutin’s exhibit L’Exhibition[niste]. So here are some photos to whet your appetite. If you’re thinking about going, RUN, don’t walk. This exhibit ends soon on March 22nd, 2020.

BRIGHT LIGHTS, BIG CITY, LITTLE GIRL

The following is an article I wrote for my niece when she turned 10 years old. Today she turns 21. Pass the tissues, please...

While most people dread a four a.m. wakeup call, for nine-almost-ten-year-old Gabriella Gajo (she’ll hit double digits in one week) last Saturday couldn’t have started early enough. With her doll Samantha tucked under one arm, the young Florida resident flew from Orlando to New York to live out the American Girl dream.

​Accompanying Gabriella was her grandmother, Julieta Gajo, who told West Orlando News: “When Gabby was six I promised her that if she were a good girl I would take her to the American Girl Place to celebrate her 10th birthday.” Fast forward four years, and there they were in the Manhattan boutique and café sipping milk from tiny teacups and eating chocolate mousse from itty bitty bowls.

A PERSONAL ACCOUNT OF THE WORLD TRADE CENTER ATTACKS

Some of the things I learned at flight-attendant training:
How to extinguish a fire.
How to do the Heimlich manoeuvre.
How to inflate a dinghy.
How to prepare passengers for an emergency landing.

The module regarding hijackings was notably light. We watched a video, and briefly discussed the possibility. But what they didn’t teach us, or rather, what nobody could ever learn, was how to deal with the terror in terrorism.

A TRIBUTE TO AN ICONIC MONUMENT IN PARIS

I took this photo exactly one month ago on March 15 from inside the Shakespeare and Company cafe. I had come from my dentist’s office in search of a hot chocolate (doesn’t everyone go for hot chocolate after a dental appointment?). Waiting in line, I looked out the window to admire the Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris and, as I often do, felt both grateful and inspired to live in this beautiful city.

CONFECTIONING MACARONS WITH THE PROS

Who can resist the macaron? Two airy, meringue-like cookies (there's some almond powder thrown in for good measure) sandwiched around a creamy ganache filling. Today, March 20, is feted across France, and other sweet-tooth countries, to honour these addictive confections. Started in 2005 by celebrated pasty chef and chocolatier Pierre Hermé to raise funds for cystic fibrosis, the honorary day is known as Jour du macaron or "International Macaron Day." In this post, I share my experience meeting the illustrious Macaron Man and making macarons for this first time. It was a sweet day indeed.

FILIPINOS DON'T MERELY CHOOSE BABY NAMES, WE DESIGN THEM

Ah, the frustrations of finding that perfect baby name. Even before conception, parents debate the potential doom of names like "Richard" (oh, but then they'll call him Dick), "Lise" (no, no, no, it rhymes with sleaze) or "Penelope" (my ex-girlfriend's dog was Penelope) - this last one being a double whammy. For a name not only decides the identity and fate of an innocent baby, it demonstrates the creativity, originality and sophistication of his or her parents. My family could, single-handedly, win awards in all three of these categories. We Filipinos, you see, are masters of name poetry. We don't simply choose names for our children; we design them.

EXHIBIT SHOWCASED PARISIAN DESIGNER’S KEY FASHION MOMENTS

Yesterday, one of the fashion world’s giants slipped away to the other side. After Balenciaga, his mentor, Alaïa and Saint Laurent, Hubert de Givenchy’s passing whispers yet another farewell to a fading, glamorous era of haute couture. In the autumn of 2014, I was fortunate to catch a retrospective on Hubert de Givenchy at the Thyssen-Bornemisza museum in Madrid. Givenchy had a special place in my heart because for my very small and intimate wedding about one year earlier, I had chosen to wear a simple Givenchy cocktail dress - in black. (I was a rebel bride.) This LBD is one of my prized possessions and, conveniently, I wear it all the time.

FASHION WEEK IS EVERY WEEK IN THE CITY OF STYLE

Paris Fashion Week may be over, but Paris never quits her full-time role as Fashion Capital of the Universe. There are five museums that I highly recommend for those of you enchanted by the history of fashion. See fashion houses Yves Saint Laurent, Chloé and Louis Vuitton up close and personal, plus discover two more museums that regularly hold fashion exhibits. And as an added luxury, because fashion is all about treating yourself, I've included my favourite cafés and restaurants nearby. 

THE GLORY OF K-BBQ, A.K.A. KOREAN BARBECUE 

Affectionately dubbed as K-BBQ - just like K-pop (Korean pop music) or K-beauty (Korean cosmetics and skincare) - Korean barbecues are tiny carnivorous feasts grilled right at your table over a central bed of hot charcoal. Oh sure, I had eaten at K-BBQ restaurants before (namely in Los Angeles, Berlin and Toronto), but never before in South Korea. So coming to Seoul for the first time and indulging at a galbijip in its Motherland was not only a big check off my foodie bucket list, it was also a major highlight of my trip to Seoul.