Little Pleasures

When I was a young girl, I used to watch in fascination whenever my Auntie Cindy used to paint her nails. She would use crazy colour combinations and designs, I loved it. Now, I too love nail art and feel quite 'naked' without it. I loved gel nails and gel nail polish, it stays chip free for at least a month. Well worth the money and time spent. I especially love my nail art to have glitter and diamontes. :) It's a fun way to be creative. Your nail art can be elegant, goth, flashy, whatever you happen to be feeling. 

In the beginning I used acrylic nails and boy did that damage my nails ! The process requires your nails to be filed down before the acrylic is applied. This made my nails so weak and took a long time to recover.  Nowadays, I use gel nail polish which works just as well but with hardly any damage. 

The Japanese are especially creative in this area with 3D nail art, which a girl needs to take care especially when washing hair because it tends to get entangled, then, untangling your hair from the nail art is another matter :)  

Little pleasures like this makes my life just a little sweeter <3

My Beautiful Mother.

Spring cleaning the other day, I found this old picture of my Mother. Looking at it brought back memories of how she would regale me with stories of her life. It wasn't the easiest of childhoods having lost her Mother when she was at the tender age of nine. Being the eldest of five siblings, she had to grow up overnight. Brought up in a family where a stiff upper lip was de rigeur, she learnt how to suppress her feelings. One can only imagine the torment and heartache she must have felt, for one of the greatest tragedies in life is to lose your Mother.

Years passed, she grew into a great beauty, she became a singer, singing on radio and television. She was offered a record deal but passed it up to have a family. She made a lot of sacrifices in her life, gave up on her dreams, all for the love of family. I wish she didn't give up on the record deal, it would have been a cool legacy to leave her children and grandchildren. She is not one for mushy words but we know she loves us. I hope she knows how much she is loved and appreciated.

 Seoul ,one of my favourite cities to visit not only for the shopping but also for the gastronomical fare. The streets are clean and safe,the locals are friendly.

Nothing like sangye tang (ginseng chicken soup) to revitalise you. Apparently Koreans have this at the start of summer to combat the heat and for energy.

        This homemade red date tea was worth walking up a steep hill for, delicious to the last drop.

 A modern coffee house in a traditional setting.

 The Imperial Palace.

 The view from my hotel room at the break of dawn.

Loved walking through this alleyway lined with bamboo..

 

Ever since I can remember, I've always dreamt of travelling to far off places. I would lose track of time looking at travel magazines, reading books that would transport me to exotic locations. How I longed for the day when all my dreams would become reality. The opportunity presented itself when I became a flight stewardess . 

London, Paris, Amsterdam, Los Angeles, Copenhagen, Zurich, Sydney!! I was well and truly bitten by the travel bug which I must say still affects me til this day. Everyone, when they are able to, should travel. I believe it broadens the mind, changes the way one looks at the world. It is an education in itself, to see how others live and makes you appreciate what you have and realise the world is beautiful.