Lisboa

I have to be honest, Portugal is not one of the places that I wanted to visit. We were doing a little pilgrimage to the Fatima Shrine which was the main reason why we travelled to the country. I guess I underestimated it. After a brief tour (less than a day) of the city of Lisbon, I am in love. The city is full of character and charm. I am not a lover of architecture but the beautiful buildings with colorful mosaic tile walls and little balconies really had me at hello. It is not the cleanest city but the graffitis that are all over the place gives it its rough edges. I  loved walking its small alley ways and cobbled streets. It is not a bustling city as I recall. Being there gives you that sleepy town feel and that is what I liked about it. 

Vasco De Gama bridge highly resembles the Golden Gate bridge in SF.

that's me in the corner...that's me in the spotlight.

the cutest McDonald's branch ever.

Beautiful mosaic tiled walls.

Tram transport system

Singapore Fling

On our way to the Philippines, we dropped by the Lion City of Singapore. I am just in awe of the cleanliness of the place. I am very particular with public toilets and if I have to control the call of nature, I would, if I am not satisfied with how clean it is. In Singapore, that is not a problem. 

Here are random photos.

And don't let me even start on their airport. It is considered one of the cleanest airports in the world for nothing.

And yes, the airline food is great.

Summer Dream Outfit

Denim jackets, wedge sandals and surprise, surprise pleated skirts are back. I remember owning a pleated skirt in navy blue when I was in grade school. If my memory serves me right, it has not made a comeback since then, until now.

Since the skirt is in a bright coral orange color, I would just keep accessories simple and neutral. Cocktail ring included when I would normally go for color.

images via the web

Best Nudes

Unexpectedly saw this pair of Jessica Simpson shoes and now I am a fan. They are very comfortable, I could run in them. The heels are just the perfect lenght for someone like me who is not used to wearing heels. I have yet to find out who is the distributor here in the UK as I just saw this single pair at TK Maxx. I know nudes are the fad, nude court shoes to be exact (thanks to the Duchess of Cambridgeshire's influence) and I thought I would never jump on the bandwagon but after seeing them and trying them on, I jumped without thinking.

The Princess Bed

It has been the topic of talk for the little girl for the last 3 days. She said, she now wants a princess bed in her playroom. She was like "mommy, there is a space in my playroom for a princess bed. Can you get one for me so I don't have to sleep in your bed?" and I was like, where did that come from? Oh well, my baby is growing up and she now wants her own space. Sad but exciting.

I have been surfing the net for that, a princess bed. Apparently, it has to be pink according to the 3 year old. I have shown to her the photos and most of them were a big NO. Some were tacky and some were classy. I was just so glad that she is like me, she likes the classic princess bed and not the typical ones that is all over the place. Here are the choices I have shown her.

I thought this will give her the wow facto but it didn't.

It's not like I can afford it.

And not this one. She said she doesn't want a car bed.haha.

The reaction to this was "Uhmmm, NO!"

I was hoping she wouldn't say yes to this because this just screams tacky.

Another big NO.

We both wanted this but our old bed which is now in the guest room has steel frame and in the cold weather, the moment my hand brushes the headboard, it is really cold. So despite the classy look of this, it's a no.

We both agreed on this and hopefully we find one like this that is within our budget as things aimed at kids are just ridiculously priced.

And this princess bedroom I so love...

All photos via the web.

Jamie's Italian

I was not expecting fine dining quality but I thought the food would have been at least something that is out of the ordinary. I was expecting the experience would have been different from just going to any high street restaurants considering that it is a little bit on the pricey side. If I remember it right, the last time we spent that much was in a fine dining French restaurant. That was a few years back though.

The children's menu is all in this Viewfinder. It brought back memories as I used to have one of these as a child. I think this is so original and distracts the kids from boredom while waiting for the food.

We had Crispy Squid  and Truffled Fries for starters.

The Crispy Squid was good but I could have had something as good as this in La Tasca, if not better.

There wasn't anything special with the Truffled Fries and there should have been as truffles are like gold when it comes to cooking.

please bear with the picture quality. it was dark and Sonny is just getting to grips with using his dslr.

My mains was Shrimp Linguine. Tasty enough but not much different from the lovely pasta I could have had in Ask Italian.

Sonny's Seafood Risotto was the real disappointment. It was watery and tastes fishy in the real sense of the word. There were bones everywhere.

I won't even start on our dessert which was Tiramisu. It tastes just like something taken out of Sainsbury's dessert section. If  you want good Tiramisu, you will find it at Adesso's Italian in Dunstable. Otherwise, go to this trattoria beside the Colloseum in Rome where the mister and I had the most amazing Tiramisu ever.

Maybe I was just expecting too much knowing that it is from a Michelin Star Chef or maybe the food was really not that great. 

I would probably go back if only for the service because when it came to the food, I could get it anywhere else. I would go to Carluccio's anytime.

Very child friendly though.

Jamie's Italian, Milton Keynes
3-5 Silbury Arcade
Milton Keynes
Bucks
MK9 3AG