frumpy flu

this little cartoon i saw online describes perfectly how i've been looking & feeling the past couple of nights - congested and sniffly and jet lagged -  under the covers by 7pm! today is a leap day - so hooray, i have one extra day to recover and catch up.

shutterbabe

for the (dimly lit restaurant) times when the iphone camera just won't do - this gorgeous new nikon has found it's way to the top of my things i covet wish list. 

music monday - sebastien tellier

a perfectly lovely haunting song and video for a chilly, cloudy, sinus congested and sniffly jet lagged monday back in lala land.

cidade maravilhosa

rio de janeiro did end up winning the bid to host the 2016 summer olympics and this video, produced a few of years ago showcases just some of the beauty of the marvelous city...
have a marvelously beautiful weekend.

cacau noir

i could (and have been) eating my way through the streets of rio. no matter what block you find yourself on there are spots on almost every corner that serve fresh juices, expertly pulled espressos and delicious bite size savory and sweet baked goods. one of my favorite little shops to indulge my constant sweet tooth in is cacau noir in ipanema and leblon.  they have heavenly delicious and beautifully designed chocolates and to this day i have not found a marzipan, guava or passionfruit filled dark chocolate as lovely as the ones sold here. 

maracuja

my ongoing obsession continues...

music monday - berimbou

eu amo esta canção...

and this remixed sampled version by cut chemist.

antonio bernardo

i have been in love with the jewelry designed by antonio bernardo for years. i have a few of his pieces and dream about buying more each time i walk by one of his beautiful stores in brazil. i predict he will become a huge hit in the states if he ever opens a store in new york or los angeles.
have a beautiful festive weekend e bon carnaval!

frutos do brasil

i remember the first time i came to brazil, about 14 years ago, i was blown away by the variety of fruits available - most of which i have never before seen, tasted or even heard of. there are dozen's of native brazilian fruits that are found no where else, with no equivilant english names -  varieties my taste buds could have hardly imagined. just take a look at the variety of fruit popsicle flavors available from one of the most delicious local brands, frutos do brasil.
don't even get me started on the options available at juice stands spread out all over leblon and ipanema!

absolut rio

one of my favorite brazilian designers,  oskar metsavaht has designed a limited edition absolut vodka bottle - only available here in brazil. it's a beautiful bottle, but i'm most excited to try the first ever mango passion fruit flavored vodka - yeay!

dia de heart

i heart coffee

i heart brazilian coffee

i heart brazilian coffee that always comes alongside little delicious savory and sweet treats.

feliz dia de valentines!

music monday - saudade

saudade is my favorite (brazilian) portuguese word - and this is my favorite song with said title.

"saudade, quero ver pra crer,

saudade de te procurar.

na vida tudo pode acontecer,

partir e nunca mais voltar."

later alligator

i'm heading south for the winter - actually, just for a couple of weeks. h and i are all packed for our 15 hour journey (yikes) and i plan on posting daily pics of as many lovely fruits and beaches and sunsets as i can wrap my little tan fingers around. 
have a journey filled weekend.

nozawa

there are a few dining experiences that alter and broaden your view of the food you have been eating. they are representative of a shift in how you used to taste and consume a dish and how from that first bite on, nothing will taste the same again. my first meal at sushi nozawa over a decade ago, was such an awakening. pre nozawa, sushi was just sushi - small slices of fish on top of cold sticky rice and cut rolls, usually always with avocado and almost always tasting alike. sushi was an activity, not a meal.
post nozawa, sushi became a mind blowing, delicate, buttery, fresh and nothing compares to experience. i know you can find sushi like this all over japan, and now, in the states, there are a handful of sushi chef's recreating amazingly perfect pieces of fish, but for me, sushi nozawa was an awakening of sorts - the beginning of my love for not just sushi, but for the craft and skill and importance of fresh, high quality ingredients that go into creating memorable dining experiences.
well, master nozawa is retiring at the end of this month (his expanding chain of sugarfish restaurants run by his son will attempt to continue to carry the torch) and so i had to go for one last final taste, a last pilgrimage of sorts. we sat at the small sushi bar and put ourselves in the masters hands (there is no menu at the bar) until we could not eat another bite. everything, from the starting tuna sashimi to the warm rice crab hand rolls and yuzu halibut were as perfect as i remember them being. no frills, no fuss and no avocado's and until i fly to japan or win the lottery and eat at urasawa- i suspect they will remain to be the yummiest.
sayonara sushi nozawa and arigato!

*photos courtesy of yelp because, well, i forgot all about taking pictures as soon as the first dish was placed in front of me.

overdue outlets

i don't think these are on the market yet, or at least readily available to the everyday consumer (i imagine they are standard issue inside some corner offices in cupertino), but i came across this image on a friend's art and design post and immediately thought of how highly obvious and thoroughly overdue the product is.... 
surely a design that after its inception, we can't imagine how we managed without... 

music monday - deep

op-ed contributor sujatha fernandes wrote a great, ear opening piece for the new york times last week about the 'protest' rap music emerging from the recent wave of revolution and discontent on arab and african streets. 
here is one of my favorite of those tunes, written and performed by egyptian rapper mohamed el deep. 

juicy juice

pressed juicery just opened up a couple of blocks from my apartment - right in the direction of our morning dog walk and well, i'm officially hooked and craving their detox #2 (pineapple, green apple, mint) and green alkalizer (cucumber, apple, lemon, ginger, cayenne) juices. their fresh pressed juice combinations are endless, beautifully packaged and a much needed addition to the hood. 
have a juicy fresh squeezed weekend!

downton abbey

i've long embraced my hopeless romantic, school girl side that demands to watch all the british television period dramas she can get her eyes on. from brideshead revisited to pride & prejudice and north & south - i've sat glued and giddy, watching all the mr. darcy's and elizabeth bennet's of the british empire on the telly. 
now i've discovered downton abbey and i'm hooked. i watched the first season in two nights and plan on catching up on the second season by this weekend (currently playing on pbs sunday nights). what can i say, i'm an avid sucker for strong, stubborn, and smart classic heroins who despite endless obstacles, discourse and delay always come around to finding perfectly dressed dashing lads to walk off into the british countryside with.
the romantic optimist inner me carries on, full speed ahead...

sleeveface

a friend posted this hilariously genius idea last week  - you take a record sleeve, add your body and voila - sleevefaces.... some of the creations are brilliant and i'm itching to make my very own out of some classy 80's vinyl!