Weekend Recap

If you haven't noticed already, I don't blog frequently and I don't really blog unless I do something interesting enough to blog about. And don't get me wrong, I do interesting things often but I get lazy!

Since I'm lazy, I'm going to do a recap on my weekend.

Thursday was the last day of intensive French pre-lims. We had 4 hours of French a day for 10 days. CRAZINESS, but I did learn a lot. To celebrate, our professor took us to his favorite bar with drinks on him (well, one drink a person). It was super fun!

Here are some pictures:







A bar. Yeah yeah you get the point.

Moving on!

On Sunday after church, my friends and I headed over to Les Arts Decoratifs, next to the Louvre, to view a fashion exhibition -- Les Annèes 1990 & 2000: Histoire Idèale de La Mode Contemporaine Vol. 2.

Amazing pieces from renowned fashion designers were on display for all to see. Being a student under 25, I got in FO' FREE. It was an amazing experience. I go crazy over things that I like -- fashion being one of few things.

Photography was NOT allowed, but I couldn't help myself. I took some ninja shots of the designer's works. I hope I don't get sued. The ones I couldn't get, I drew sketches of, which I can't share because I don't have a scanner.


Margiela Hair Coat!


Helmut Lang -- one of my favorite designers


Lanvin par Claude Montana -- EXQUISITE wrap cape thing.


E2 -- recycles material from other designers to create own pieces.


Jewelry Section

Additional pics can be found on my flickr. And not too shabby for ninja pics eh? There were guards to avoid! Didn't get caught once ;) Not sure if that's a good thing or bad thing.

To wrap up:

Went shopping all day Saturday. My mom wanted me to post some pics of my purchases so here goes nothing. The Paris Solde season is basically over, BUMMER. But, here is what I managed to snag --


The LAST one. Olive green cardigan w/ fur and gold buttons (Zara). Only 20€! My new favorite cardigan. I want to wear it year round, but too bad there's spring and summer in between. Bummer.






Needed heels because I stupidly forgot mine at home. The only pair I brought is YSL black heels that are impossible to walk in on Paris cobblestone walkways. Zara -- 30€. Bought them without much thought, but they're really beautiful! Love them.



Some cheapo 5€ shirt I bought at pimkie. It's cute though. And too be fair it used to be 30€. I don't do florals because they're too girly for my taste, but it's black and sheer which adds some edginess I GUESS.





Loving Paris thus far. Still have so much to do and so much to see!
Classes started today. I only have French on Mondays and my professor and class are still the same as pre-lims.
Tomorrow I have 2 additional classes -- Fashion and Power and Global Media Seminar taught by Rachel K. Ward. I'm reading up on her and she seems AMAZING!
Only problem is that these classes are back to back from 12:30pm - 7pm in the same classroom, with the same professor. Worst scheduling EVER nyu?!!?!?!?!

Excited and scared at the same time for the workload to come.

Going to finish my French homework and go to sleep. Tomorrow is going to be a LONG day.

Until next time (:

Vintage Shopping in Paris

Today, I went vintage shopping with Betty and Zena in Les Marais (4th Arr. St. John metro stop.)

I had researched the "best" vintage shops in Paris in regards to price (#1) and merchandise and decided to take a look for myself.

First stop was Coiffeur, my hands down favorite place!



I didn't really get to take too many pictures because I felt awkward, first of all, my camera was getting too heavy, and there were just too many people.

Now this place isn't too big. The racks are pretty much right next to each other and since it was so cold out today, everybody -- me included -- was wearing huge jackets that wasn't making the room issue any better.

The one complaint I have about this place is that there is no room for breathing, although I'm sure today wasn't as bad as most days. I almost had a heart attack when I went into the store because I was mesmerized by how much merchandise they had and the cheap cheap cheap prices. You could find really nice things for just 10€, which I did.

I was eyeing a girl trying on a cute polka dot dress with puffy sleeves and as soon as she put it down, I asked her where she got it. Turns out she didn't want it so I walked off like a champion. However, I got home and tried it on. It is very cute, but it's just not me. I knew that at the store too, but I thought I would try to change up my style. It just doesn't work. I guess I'll have to give it to one of my friends or sell it. Whichever.


The clothes hanging are actually the curtains for the dressing room. Very cute, but very squished area. Notice how the picture is blurry from people being all around me and me not being able to focus. Or maybe I just suck at taking pictures.

Anyway, definitely check this place out if you're bargain hunting for nice vintage clothes in Paris. You WILL leave with something. Especially if you like eccentric knit sweaters (which I do). Only 10€.

And again, I don't have too many pictures because it was crazy and I was overwhelmed with excitement.

Next stop was Free'p'star.



Another HIT. There were also too many people here, but there's no question as to why. The ambiance was similar to Coiffeur's but they definitely had more things because the store was a tad bit bigger with a downstairs included.



The stairs leading downstairs were too narrow and kind of dangerous. It lead to a room FILLED with second-hand clothes, including extremely cheap but real leather jackets. I found one for 20€ but it didn't flatter my body. It was actually really annoying to dig through clothes, STUFFED and PACKED onto the racks and also dig through other people.



As you can see, everything was a mess. A huge mess that I didn't want to deal with, so I just bought a belt for 3€ that is too big for me...and was meant to wear with the dress that I'm not going to wear anyway. LOL. FAIL.

But, I did manage to buy my FAVORITE purchase of the day in this messy pile of shoes --



I got this pair for only 10€! I asked the shopkeeper how much it was and he said something with an accent so I couldn't understand. I'm like..3...0? 30? He said no, adfjai;odjaisd. I'm like...uhhh. And he pointed to the sign that said 10€. I was dumbfounded! C'est fantastique!


Look at these beauties.



Can you believe it? Neither can I. Wonder why they were still there...Wonder if I'm the only one who finds them so intriguing. Anyway, they're mine now and they're so ME! WHOOOOT.

Anyway, here are a few more shots of Freepstar.






dresses only 10€!

Stopped by other vintage stores along the way but none were as good as these two stores. Prices were a bit higher and the merchandise was not as good.

It was too cold to go to another one (sister store of Freepstar) that I planned to go to, so we just ate and left.

More shopping updates to come!

Paris, so far.

So I've been in Paris, France for 5 days now and so far it's been pretty awesome. Everyday is another new gift from God -- nothing is predictable.

This is the NYU center where my classes will be starting Jan. 31! Really eager to learn French and culture.



I'm living by myself in a chambre de bonne -- a small studio apartment. It's a 10/15 minute walk from school and the nearest metro stop is 15/20 minutes away. Kind of an annoying walk too with winding roads and such, but I manage.
At night it gets really sketchy because everything in this area closes before 11pm. Hardly anybody is out on the streets after that. It's dark and quiet which really worries me. I REALLY hope nothing bad happens to me. But I know that God is with me always.

My room is small and has no doors except for the door to get in and out of the room. The bathroom, shower, sink, kitchen, desk, and bed are all mashed together in one space. Kind of funny. Very cute though, and very French.

Take a look see at my space --

Sketchy hallway to get to my door.



My door. Numbaaa 9.









Me being cool.



Right now it's the time when everybody is scrambling to find friends, hanging out with whomever, and talking to everybody about anything. But, I think groups have already formed -- groups of which I am not a part of as usual. I never really seem to belong anywhere, which is why leaving Pilgrim for Paris was really heart wrenching (the only place that ever made me feel like I belonged).

Food here is great, but I am already missing Korean food. Currently craving kimchi, dweji gogi, and rice. And sulung ttang!



This place is a 10 minute walk from where I live. It is absolutely delicious! For 5,70 Euros, you get a whole baguette sandwich, a drink, and dessert of choice. My usual is a ham/cheese baguette, drink, and chocolate macaroon. Amazing, but does not stand a chance against Korean food.



I've been having red wine with my dinners because that's the French thing to do, but to be honest, I don't really like wine. Maybe it's an acquired taste?



Paris is so clean! I love it. There are garbage bags on the sidewalks that people actually use. The metro station is incredibly easy to use but some transfers are way too long with too many stairs (I think Parisians love stairs btw). Things look pretty old school but work well.

There is service on the metros! Well, they're not really underground.



Doors are manual to save energy. Parisians are very energy efficient! Love it. Just hold and pull the handle up.



Yesterday, I went on a tour in the heart of Paris. Did the touristy thing and saw all the hot spots. I was blown away by the beauty. Further proof that God does exist. Without a God, I cannot imagine how these things would be thought of, erected, and preserved.

Too lazy to explain each individual thing so you can just visit Paris yourself and go on a tour. For now, you can enjoy the pictures and live vicariously through me:







I want to do this with my husband one day. But -- the Parisian government cut the locks off from time to time when there are too many hahaha. So, the "love" is not really eternal.



The combination locks made me laugh. So, if your love does not work out you can come back and take the lock off. Sad, but funny.









Okay, you can enjoy the rest of the pictures on my flickr. (http://www.flickr.com/chrisdeanly)

Might get some Korean food tonight in Koreatown. Haha. If I feel like leaving my room on this gorgeous Saturday afternoon.

More updates to come!

I will leave you with some prayer requests:

1. Continue my relationship with God and never lose sight of my purpose in life.
2. Find at least one good friend whom I can go to for anything.
3. Find a good church to go to regularly.
4. Not be homesick.
5. Do well in my studies.

Merci, Au revoir!