Just checking in and saying hello to all! Photos taken in early spring ( what the… and summer´s about to end?!) at  La Rioja-Alavesa region very near here. We´re just neighbors, ya know.

So one sunny afternoon, just hopped in the car, turned on the radio at full blast and rode away until sunset.

Here´s a black and white photo of this picturesque town whose name I´ve forgotten by now. hahaha!

So how´s life nowadays?

Luvlots,

Che

Yup, it´s been a long time. But I´m still here, alive and kicking. So many stories to tell, photos to show but less memory to upload. hahaha! Anyway, here´s what I´ve done while I was gone:

St. Denis(front)

St. Denis (back)

I went back to Paris again. Yup, I did! I even got to visit this chirch outside of Paris in St. Denis, the burial site of the French monarchs. But then,

I also stayed true to what I´ve always planned to do while in Paris. That is, to visit Museé D´Orsay, Lu Louvre, etc. and to see what´s inside:

Galeries Lafayette

this exquisite store and then later regretting that my budget is very limited for me to buy something that I really liked. lol! Anyway, I also did a lot of things while visiting Paris. Hope to tell you more about it soon!

Take care,

Che

When you visit Lisbon, don´t forget to visit the Lisbon Oceanarium. I assure you, you´ll be having the time of your life when you´re there and be more conscious of the environment and water conservation. Details of the Oceanarium here. Moreover, it´s one of the few aquariums in the world to house the gigantic ocean sunfish which you can see in the short slideshow which I had learned to only do today, lol.

It´s a two-thumbs up, indeed!

Happy short viewing, dears!

Che

First stop: The Church of Sta. María

Then just beside it is the Hieronymites Monastery:

This beautifully constructed ornate structure was built during the time of the Portugal King Manuel 1 to commemorate Vasco da Gama´s return from India. 

Thus, this type of architecture was named Manueline, from the king´s name. The Monastery is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, all the more reason to visit this architectural wonder.

I love posing beside and inside historical places. It gives me a vicarious thrill of  what were things like in those times but I doubt if the monks would dare go out and receive me because I´m wearing my loose top, leggings  and my flip flops. lol! By the way, the monks don´t live here anymore, they have since moved out.

For a 3-day trip, we´ve been to a lot of places in Lisbon and in the countryside. I hope to update soon.

Ciao for now!

Che

Our first trip of the year was buying chocolates somewhere in Palencia, Spain. As a side trip, we stopped by the Monastery of San Isidro which is on the other side of the choco factory and store. This was where the original choco recipe came from. First made by the the Trappist monks.

It was a foggy and very cold day and I was a shivering a bit because I didn´t wear something thick but the travel and sights were worth it. That small box on the upper right hand corner of the mosaic photo contains the remains of the Beatified Rafael Arnaiz, one of the Trappist monks who led an exemplary life.

This was what I wore:

The monastery and it´s grounds were huge. We were able to take a peak inside the small chapel and at the farthest right of the photo which can´t be seen below is the main entrance to the church.

Below is the reason for the trip, to buy chocolates and other chocolatey goodies from this store. They sell hot choco too and ´to go with it a couple of biscuits!  Isn´t that yummy?

And the most delicious part of the post?  The mouth watering goodies which you can see below:  

This box wasn´t actually what we bought during the trip. We bought this after Christmas at the supermarket. lol!  During the trip, we bought 3 small boxes  of assorted bonbons and choco biscuits but since I wasn´t able to take a photo of the loot, this will do for now.  

So what about you? Do you like choco hunting trips too?

xoxo,

Che

PS: Later, we drove over to Palencia, but that would need another post.

It´s a hundred year old tradition here in Spain. The feast is never complete without eating the traditional ¨rosco¨ and so dieting had to take a backseat for this day.

Who coudn´t resist this delicious concoction of  a tasty piece of round bread filled with mouth watering whipped cream? No, it´s not just an ordinary whipped cream, it´s  flavored with orange blossom essential oil which made the whole conction a truly  melt in the mouth! Moreover, in other bakeries of Spain, the bread could be added with ham, more dried fruits and fruit jellies, etc, etc.

So for once, I gave in and calories be damned. hahaha! Anyway, here´s what I wore on the parade:

It was drizzling and so a good pair of suede rubber shoes is necessary. It isn´t bad that the heel added a few inches to my uhurm ¨cute¨ frame too. So how´s everyone? I have a lot of interesting posts lined up just for you. Stay tuned!

Hugs,

Che

New Year for me is all about good luck and a little tradition that is… I make it a point to have colorful and round things  around me, even on the menu. So how about some stuffed mushrooms ( photo taken before topping with cheese and popping in the oven), assorted whole grain bread with a variety of seeds/nuts, smoked salmon with sliced black olives and  jamon serrano with egg, diced green, red and yellow bell peppers?

For dessert, I made some cinnamon rolls. My first cinnamon roll and it was a disaster, hahaha! The rolls were quite soggy at the bottom. I must have added too much butter on it. Nevertheless it tasted good ( EM liked them) and so the effort was worth it.

Here´s a candid shot of me while preparing for the rolls to finish:

You see, I really mean it when I say I celebrate the year with  circles. I even wore dots! So how´s 2011 been treating you so far? I wish everyone  a year full of great things, success and good health. I know there´s going to be a lot of hard work  for us to be successful this year  but as they say: You aint getting it if you don´t sweat for it. So good luck to us!

Hugs from here,

The Christmas Eve Menu was:

Stirfried shrimps in olive oil, diced garlic and dried parseley bits, Waldorf salad from some fiber, Vegetable-Meat Pie for more fiber and calories for the snow and Strawberry Cheesecake for extra calories just in case it snows again. hahaha!

And of course an excellent bottle of wine to compliment the simple feast. So how did your Christmas celebration go?  There´s still more eating and drinking marathons to come during New Year´s Eve and so good luck to us! In the meantime, allow me to share what I´ve been wearing these days, a thick sweater and a pair of skinny jeans or thick tights with my new favorite lace-up boots:

Happy Holidays to one and all! I hope you´re 2010 was inspiring, fun and just a teenie bumpy than last year and that 2011 will bring you lots of luck, success and good health. As what they would always say in here: Tchin tchin to all!

Hugs,

Che

Below is the main altar of the church. I´ve been here twice, in both times the town was buried in snow. Fortunately this time, it wasn´t snowing.

I swear the salad looks yummy! It isn´t just as photogenic as it looks or maybe I shot it at a bad angle. hahaha! It has goat cheese on it.

A side trip to a forest reserve in Irati, still part of the Navarre region. I didn´t know the picture would turn out so well because it was raining hard when I took this. So breathtaking, no? I think most of these trees now have gone bald because it´s almost winter. Glad that I took some parting shots before leaving this place.

Lastly, here´s a photo of me while doing another side trip in another town where once stood a 200 yrs. ( not sure, hehe) arms factory. Most of the time when we travel around here, El Marido always makes this surprise side trips which I find entertaining.

One thing I do always ask him whenever we travel  is how cold  the place´s going to be and are is it gonna be a hilly place. I just need to be prepared. The shoes, I mean. lol!

So how have you been? Looks like, my posts have been sporadic this year. I hope to update you more next year. Hopefully…

Ciao for now!

Che

But there´s a lot more to see and admire in Bilbao. Like this park… and…

the magnificent view from the top of a mountain even on a very cloudy day.

But yes, Bilbao makes the Guggenheim or is it the Guggenheim that makes Bilbao?

Just reminiscing our summer trip to Bilbao. Happy week everyone!

Che