Sprinke Glitter over Britain

 After too much pampering, 

too much drinking and a bad hangover from the Hen's Party

it was time to sprinkle glitter over London.

We soon realized that winter still loomed here,

deeply regretted not having packed any wool coats

yet had to do with my floral spring jackets.

 

 We walked Oxford Street, 

where Primark, Topshop and Selfridges were major shopping destination, 

and basked at the beautiful window displays for the Queen's Jubilee.

We walked down London Bridge or Tower Bridge, 

the two confused us quite a bit, 

we gawked at Big Ben, 

what else can one do in its magnificent presence, 

we found our first British Pub 

and tried their famous fish and chips 

and swore that we will enjoy every minute of our British adventure.

Cause we still have four more days to go!

Don't want to say Goodbye

Don't want to say Goodbye, yet forced to, as glitter is being blown back west.

Yes, the trip to this little town started off rocky, some reverse culture shock should have really been expected, 

yet with time and an open mind you can see all the beautiful things that surround it.

Wonderful friends were made, old and new, who shared a passion for camera whoring and drinking  juicy cocktails and lemonade.

Local fashion magazines were intensely read, beautifully attractive on the outside, but with a weak written inside, all while sipping Salitos, the weirdest combo of beer and tequila.

Cafes were explored, all while savoring yummy frappucinos and admiring the rundown neoclassical architecture of the old city.

Favorite restaurants were discovered, old ones revisited, all while sampling local beer and traditional cuisine 

bringing back sweet childhood memories of the villages that once hosted my summer vacations.

But all trips come to an end and so the journey continues. 

With a new pair of fabulous sunglasses and a sweater in the color of the season, glitter has packed its bags and is now flying towards London.

A charming day is planned, starting with a wonderful spa retreat in Covent Garden, wine tasting at Vinepolis and dinner at Gaucho Tower, because glitter is experiencing its first British Hen's Party.

 Few more days of story telling from Romania are still in the works but those will have to wait till glitter arrives safely home. 

In the meantime, my British adventures should keep us occupied.

The Lost Bride

Once upon a time,

 there was a maiden who planned a wedding this time of year.

She lived in her own built fairytale where she was in love with wearing white and living in a castle,

where a handsome prince would come to whisk her away to happily ever after.  

 Just an ordinary girl, who got caught up in fairytale books and forgot that at the last page turn, 

she had to wake up.

She was soon hit by the harsh facts of life 

that after the wedding comes marriage, 

and that happily ever after is just a sweeter term for "till things get bad".

So she broke the bond that held her fairy tale dreams together 

and with that, her wedding plans vanished into thin air.

It was not that marriage wasn't for her,

nor that she wasn't ready for marriage,

but rather that her knight in shining armor just wasn't the ONE for her.

Because a marriage to a person you don't love,

 is no fairy tale at all. 

Her biggest regret was that it took her so long to figure out this fact of life  

and in the process lose her beloved journal. 

An archive of wonderful magical inspiration not just for her but for others as well.

It takes time to heal all wounds, 

but soon she was back, ready to conquer the world again, 

yet  still the same dreamer she'd always been,

 because deep in her heart she still believes

 that one day she will get her fairy tale wedding.

 Dress from Tokyo, Japan

That Old Hereditary Chic

 photos by Laura

This is how a typical day in Bucharest looks like when glitter is in town.

Wake up early, get my hair braided by my fabulous gramma, 

paint my lips red, throw on my Pixie heels, realize I'm late already and just can not arrive painfully fabulous at my meeting, 

throw them in my bag, pull on my flats and rush out the door.

Take the subway, one of the few perfect things in a very imperfect city, 

throw my heels back on,  arrive 20 minutes late and flustered to my meeting with Laura and Andreea. 

Apologize excessively, then calm down and start walking, wobbling on the cobble stone streets of the old city trying to find Thomas Antiques.

Get ice cream craving on the way, find a gelato cafe, then see the " Closed" sign, 

curse while the scorching Bucharest sun is getting hotter and hotter, and my mom's chic dress from the early 80's is getting drenched in my sweat.

We finally find Thomas Antiques, order some lemonade and quench our thirst while sitting aristocratically on their plush, old world chairs.

Because that's one of the few things that I still love about Bucharest. 

Amazing cafes, thirst quenching lemonades, beautiful stylish girls,

 my mom's old closet and the chance to find that style might be a hereditary trait.

 Wearing: Vintage dress and earrings, Aldo belt, Pixie shoes, Coach bag, sunglasses borrowed from Laura.

La Dolce Vita

photos by Laura

Because my days in Bucharest are numbered,

Because there's so very few worthy events in town,

Because vintage fairs are the " It" place to go see and be seen,

Because shopping is always on my mind,

V for Vintage was the ultimate weekend destination.

In the spirit of Italian Chic

I teased my hair, winged my eyeliner, wore  Missoni, threw on a pop of orange and lived La Dolce Vita.

At least for a day.

And since glitter can't travel by itself,
it choose a fashionable wanderer in the form of beautiful Anaivilo,
who proved to be the best shopping buddy a girl can dream of. 

The result: lots of goodies for the treasure chest and an empty wallet.
Satisfaction guaranteed though!

 Wearing: Missoni for Target top, Zara skirt, Zara kids shoes, Coach bag, Vintage earrings, Hairdo by my sister.

Love is in the air

  photos by Sandra 

For more jaw-dropping photography visit her blog : The Hearabouts

After the dark storm come the chill winds and by morning, somehow, the ugliness fades away and the beauty slowly rises. 

It might just be that when you meet beautiful people, who share your passions and interests, who are kind and helpful, cheery and bright, you forget that the nasty clouds of stormy past can always loom over your head.

In Bucharest, you can still experience this feeling on the beautiful cobble stone street cafes in the old town where people-watching at sunset with my favorite bloguettes is the perfect way to end the day.

Sip on a lemonade, snack on a quesadilla, finish off with a kiwi cocktail and you have the recipe to the perfect afternoon.

And when you have around you the most wonderful and talented photographer,  who understands  beauty where others see ugly, who can transform the ordinary into magic, the air changes into love. Love for a city that still keeps a tiny bit of mystery and intrigue and maybe harsh words spoken too soon can vanish in the air and be replaced by love.

Wearing: H&M fringe cover-up, Patricia Fieldwalker silk tunic, AE denim shorts, wedges from Osaka, Japan, Coach bag, Claire's ring and nails, Candy Bracelet, Vintage belt and earrings.

A proud place to call home

Bucharest is my hometown, the place where I was born and grew up as a child yet with each visit here I find myself more and more detached from its culture.

Yes like every city it has the good, the bad and the ugly, yet it seems with each year passing, the good slowly deteriorates while the bad and ugly multiplies at a rapid speed.

Yesterday was my first day back in the city and I had an epiphany:

Romania is a country that strives so much to appear modern and westernized, yet it fails to understand the actual definitions of those terms.

A country entranced by the glamorous ideologies of the west yet enslaved by its fundamental eastern roots.

Time will tell all if this country will be able to break free from its torturous cultural chains and become the country it so desperately strives to be.

Because regretfully I have to state that,

 I believe that everyone who grew up during the communist regime must unfortunately vanish before this country has the slightest chance to greatness.

And yet I am afraid that too strong of a legacy has been left on the new generations left to follow and therefore the country might be doomed for life.

For the good of the nation and so that once again I can be proud of being Romanian,

I hope they will prove me wrong. 

On a slightly lighter note, I had a great time meeting up with some of the city's fabulous bloggers and be awed by their sense of style.

 Laura, Nookie, Alice, Sandra and Eve are a fresh breath of colour in this dark, gray city.

More meetings with the girls coming soon!

Wearing: H&M Dress, Pixie Shoes, Coach bag, Candy bracelet.