Montreal

or the American experience in French and English :)

Short but intense trip, we walked and walked and walked some more, ate and ate and ate some more, swam in a hotel swimming pool, had brunch with a lovely lady, got snowed on (I can't quiet figure out why we didn't get a cold), got jumped on by a hungry squirrel, had countless pumpkin spice lattes at Starbucks (no, we don't have pumpkin spice lattes in Europe), walked through wonderful parks, saw many houses for sale we said we'd buy, and saw a lot of vampires we would not buy. And yoga was, once again, more practiced off the mat than on :)

Yesterday was spent travelling back to Brussels, we landed this morning way too early for my liking, and I'm functioning on a two-hours sleep night, so if you allow me, I will show you some pictures before my brain shuts down.

Enjoy :)

Rue Sainte-Catherine

Pecan pie - 'nuff said

Frites!

Port of Montreal

Can't help taking photos of paths in woods - this and lamp posts, don't ask

If by any chance you want to read more of my musings, as promised you can find me over there!

Maple syrup covered banana

Source 

No that's not something I ate today, but that gives you an idea of where I'm going to.

Ok ok, more than a hint, I already wrote it several times in previous posts, so it's not much of a secret is it?

I cannot believe that tomorrow at this hour I will be in Montreal, Canada. The other side of the world. I mean the other other (ie not Japan this time - it's late here and I still have to pack so humor me please)

That doesn't mean you will be left alone until next week, at some point in the week you will find me over there, so look out peeps!

Have a great week and Halloween :)

"Your head must bow to your heart"

This is what my Yogi Tea of the day says, isn't it beautiful?

What I find beautiful too is you the wonderful response to my last post I got from you, dear readers, and the great posts by Linda-Sama, Y is for Yogini, Svasti, and many many others. Thank you everyone for your posts / comments, I guess somehow we should all thank Tara Stiles for the inspiration, it's been a great week of yoga blog reading :-)

Let's not forget that we can react, let's not forget that words are powerful, let's not forget not to take things for granted, let's not accept everything and anything, let's not forget to take a stance, let's not forget who we are and where we come from.

But now on to lighter stuff as we need to get some rest too, right? When I saw this list on Rachel's blog, I figured it would make a nice weekend blog post, so here we go :-)

1) What is your favourite time of day?

I love the morning, because it's yoga and breakfast time. I absolutely love breakfast.

I also enjoy the evening, when the light starts changing and the sun sets over the rooftops, so beautiful...

2) Where and when did you meet the love of your life?

I met him in Brussels, 8 years ago. But he's French too (oh the irony!). I had been living in Brussels for a couple of years, and I went to a party. He had come over from Paris just for the evening, and we hooked up straight away. It took another three months before we became a couple, and a few months after he left his job and apartment in Paris to come over to Brussels and live with me, "because I'm worth it" :-D

3) What three words would your friends outside the blogging world use to describe you?

Funny, smart, reliable. I guess. You would have to ask them!

4) What country would you like to visit and why?

Japan: done; Canada: we're going to Montreal end of October (yeah we're crazy like that). Lovely Boyfriend has always wanted to visit Canada, especially Montreal and Quebec City. Full disclosure: we are considering moving all the way there, so we're going to check it out :-D It will not happen right now obviously, but we're starting to prepare. We'll see...

5) What is your favourite dish to cook?

I have no idea. I would say quiches, I've become quite good, crust and all. But come to think of it, I love cooking my cashew coconut risotto, always a hit. I think I wrote some time ago that I would post the recipe, I promise I will!

6) Salt or sweet?

Sweet. To be more specific, really dark chocolate always wins me over. 

7) What are your must have make-up or beauty items?

I love Nuxe products, but they're not cheap. I'm fond of the "Huile prodigieuse", not cheap but it lasts quite some time, so good investment. Got to get myself a new bottle by the way. I also love their lip balm.

And Lush's "I should coco" soap, love it!

8 ) What are your favourite flowers?

I have absolutely no idea, honestly. I think I love most the flowers that remind me of my childhood, nothing fancy, just the flowers that you can find everywhere in the country: forget-me-nots, daisies, etc. I also love orchids.

9) What do you think are your worst vices, honestly?

Let's see... I am not patient, ouch. And my ego can have trouble shutting up sometimes. And I love dark chocolate, but is this really a vice?

10) At what time of your life were you happiest and why?

When I travel, especially with Lovely Boyfriend. But here and now is also a good place :-)

Have a nice Sunday!

Enoshima, Japan

Blanks

I'm a crazy list maker, you already know that. I won't go grocery shopping without a list (doesn't stop me from buying stuff that is not on the list, though), I make to-do lists at work, I make lists for goals, I should maybe make a list of lists.
When I so this list here and here, among others, I knew I had to fill in the blanks too, you know, sounds like fun, because lists are my idea of fun.

1. The most adventurous thing I've ever done is... going to the UK for a year on an exchange programme when I was a student. I was seriously shy and had never got away from home, as my local university offered the studies I wanted to take. They also were part of an European exchange programme, and I took a shot at it. I already loved the UK back then so no wonder I signed up, hell yeah! And I had to, wait for it,  TALK TO PEOPLE so I wouldn't spend a whole academic year miserable on my own.
This and stepping on a yoga mat for the first time, truly had no idea what was in for me. That said, I still have no idea!

2. If I were a pair of shoes I would be... a pair of Doc Martens. These ones, the originals:

Ok embarrassing confession: I used to have a pair of those, I got them when I was 17 and would wear them every day. I mean, EVERY day, until 5 years later I had to throw them away. So I cut out the little tags at the back and kept them as a souvenir. For years.

3. My preferred mode of digital communication is... email, definitely.

4. I feel happiest when... I'm having a good laugh with Lovely Boyfriend. He's my boyfriend, my lover, my best friend, and I think being able to laugh with your partner is essential in this kind of relationship. It's easier of course when you have the same lame humour.

5. A little dream I have for my life is to...travel the world, fall in love with a place and move there, and be my own boss.

6. The one modern convenience I could NOT do without is... Fridge or washing machine? Tricky one...
How about the internet?

7. Music, movies, TV or books: if I could only choose one to enjoy I would pick... books. I've always been a huge book lover, reading is my hobby of choice, too sad I can't read as much as I would like to but hey, choices... Music is close though.

Enough ramblings for today, I have to take care of my kitchen turned into a baking lab. "And it burns, burns burns", you know...

Take care.

Tokyo Part 2 - tradition

Yep, yogis' favourite flower, the beautiful lotus

Not only did we see the "bright lights, big city" that Tokyo is, we also got to see some older gems embedded between the tall buildings and the public transportation network.

The purification fountain, important step not to be missed before going further in the Meiji Jingu sanctuary

First the Meiji Jingu sanctuary, dedicated to Emperor Meiji, and a Shinto shrine. Shinto is the oldest religious tradition in Japan, in which there is no one God but a myriad of spirits, nature-related, called Kami.

"Prayer tree" at Meiji Jingu

The most important Kami is Sun Goddess Amaterasu. Fellow yogis and yoginis, when you salute the sun, send a prayer to Amaterasu, can't hurt ;-)

Shinto is the most important religion in Japan, along with, of course, Buddhism.

"Red Lantern" shrine in Asakusa

Buddhism, contrary to Shinto, was imported to Japan. It appeared in the 6th century via China and Korea, and despite small conflicts at the beginning between the two traditions, they have been "countrymates" for centuries now.

The Great Buddha of Kamakura, 13,35 meters tall, impressive and so peaceful!

A vast majority of Japanese people believe and happily mix the two traditions. Our guide Eri, a middle-aged Japanese woman who spoke a verey good French, prayed in all the shrines and temples we visited. After all, the more you believe, the more your are protected right?

Onto a whole different subject but it belongs to tradition to:

Traditional meal in Kamakura

Now, confession time: you see this lovely bowl of sashimi, with all kinds of fish and fixings? I ate it all. And I had even more fish during our stay.
It doesn't sound like a big deal, but it was to me, as I am a vegetarian and have been for about a year and a half. I know finding the right food for us would be difficult, especially as we went to traditional restaurants with our guide, so we decided to just let go and adapt.
I didn't go vegetarian because of yoga, but I think it fits in the way I practice yoga, this is part of my way of respecting ahimsa. That said, what also fits in my way of practicing yoga is to be alive and not die from starvation. Food was offered to me, it would have been plain rude to turn it down, not to mention how hungry I was after all the walking, and I ate it. And to be completely honest, it was the best fish I've ever had. Ever. Melt-in-your-mouth fish. I figured that if I was to have fish for the last time, it would have to be in Japan, of all places. The only thing I couldn't bring myself to eat was meat. The mere sight of meat made my stomach pull an ice-skating programme, triple axels and all.
I don't feel guilty, I feel ok, and now that I overdosed on fish I'm back to vegetarianism.  And it suits me fine.

Other confession: I stayed off the mat most of the time. Easy, given that technically I didn't have a yoga mat, but the carpet of the room floor at the hotel. My practice consisted in enjoying, seeing, feeling, spending quality time with Lovely Boyfriend and just taking care. Great practice if you ask me :-)

Tokyo Part 1 - modernity

So, Tokyo, Japan...
As you know, Japan has been a dream of mine (and Lovely Boyfriend's actually) for, like, ever. And we decided this year would be the year we would go. And we went!

We were there for a little over a week, we flew to Tokyo on August 4th and came back last Friday, August 13th. I wont bore you with how long the journey was and how uncomfortable plane seats are when you really want to sleep (and I'm short. Can't imagine what it's like for tall people).

We stayed in and around Tokyo, but there was so much and so little time that we just walked and walked all over the place. And then we did some walking, and we saw this:

Ikebukuro

View of Tokyo from Sumitomo Building in Shinjuku

Harajuku

Shibuya by day

Shibuya by night

Akihabara - there's a place full of these things, with I don't know how many floors...

This place is amazing. Truly. It is crowded, loud, lit all day long, and yet... yet you never feel stressed out or overwhelmed by noise, it is a really strange feeling. The Japanese society is a very complex one, with so many codes and rules, yet this is the place where you enter a shop thinking you will find there some comics you know or some fun stuff, and then when you go up one floor every shelf is covered with porn (live or animated). The people here are so polite and respectful that the control freak inside of me has started glowing with contentment.

We loved every second of it, and it all went too fast. But we are already making plans to go back there, probable when we win the lottery :-)

Part 2? Traditional side of the city, plus a few confessions, so stay tuned!

Sayonara for now

So, today is the day. The day when a lifetime dream is being fulfilled.
We are so excited, you cannot even begin to imagine! We're leaving our apartment in less than 20 minutes, first to catch a train to Paris' airport Charles de Gaulle, where we will meet our group, and then we're flying to Tokyo, landing tomorrow at around 2pm local time (yay jetlag!).

I won't be posting from there (mind you, not that I post everyday anyway), but I'll make sure to be back with plenty of photos and amazing experiences to share with you.

I don't know what my yoga practice will be, I guess I will stick to love, contentment, and soaking it all in!

So for now, have a great time, and I'll be back with some funny and exciting stuff :-)

source

L'ego n'a pas sa place

Ah ça fait du bien de revenir...

Je vais pas faire un récap détaillé du week-end, mais qu'est-ce que c'était bien! Du temps pour nous, et du quality time, mais voui... Soleil, mer, bon miam, tout y était, c'était court mais bon. Et si vous cherchez un restaurant végétarien à Malaga, allez à Canadu, plaza de la Merced 21, ils ont un hoummous rouge (avec betterave) à tomber, miam miam!

Sorry pour la photo pourrie made in iPhone. Nous avons donc croquettes de pommes et pignons sur une assiette, et sur l'autre endives et hoummous à la betterave, yummy!

A Malaga j'ai à peine pratiqué le yoga, je n'ai pas exactement pris le temps, et j'ai donc recommencé mercredi, après quasiment une semaine d'arrêt. C'est là d'où vient mon titre, même si ce n'est pas tellement évident :-D

J'ai d'abord fait un podcast de Wade Zinter mercredi. Puis hier soir je suis allée à mon cours habituel de yoga Indian, sans oublier ma petite séquence au lever. Entretemps je suis tombée sur l'histoire de la posture du guerrier . Et alors?

Et alors hier soir je n'étais pas contente de moi. D'une part parce que je n'ai pas réussi à faire certaines postures que j'ai déjà réussi dans le passé (mon équilibre est resté en Espagne il faut croire), et d'autre part parce que je n'avais pas à ne pas être contente de moi. Mon corps m'a dit "pas ce soir chérie" et c'est tout, mais je n'arrivais pas à me défaire de cette insatisfaction.

Et ce matin, au moment de ma petite séquence matinale, alors que je bougeais en guerrier, tout s'est mis en place. Tout a "fait sens": je me suis rappelée de l'histoire du guerrier Virabadra, de la parabole et de ce qu'elle signifiait, du combat mené par le coeur contre l'ego.

Et ce matin ma pratique a eu d'un coup plus de sens, et j'ai mené mon combat.

Je l'ai gagné, temporairement du moins. Mon plus gros problème dans la pratique du yoga n'est pas le fait de ne pas arriver à prendre des postures correctement, ce n'est pas un problème du reste. Mon plus gros problème, c'est de mettre ce fichu ego en veilleuse :-D Pour ça le yoga est une vraie école d'humilité, et ça, ça me plaît :-)

Loooooooong week-end

qui s'annonce, rha ça va faire du bien!

Malaga, nous voilà! Plus l'heure tourne, plus j'ai hâte, même si ce n'est que pour 2-3 jours, ça va faire du bien avant la frénésie qui s'annonce au bureau.

Comment je vais faire pour tout combiner jusqu'à la fin de l'année, j'en sais rien du tout, entre le boulot qui va me demander beaucoup de temps et d'énergie, le yoga et autres passages à la salle de sport, et ne pas oublier mon cher et tendre bien sûr...

Ce long week-end est l'un des derniers que je pourrai lui consacrer vraiment pleinement avant la période de folie qu'on va traverser ici, qu'on a déjà commencé à traverser d'ailleurs.

Et fin novembre-début décembre, un déplacement de plus d'une semaine à Paris, on peut pas dire que j'ai hâte... D'autant plus que ça veut dire des journées de dingue, avec de la nourriture sur place rapide et pratique, donc genre chips et biscuits, ça va me plaire ça pffff... J'ai intérêt à faire une réserve de boooons trucs, héhéhéhéhé :-)

Back next Thursday!