264. Lucerne | Snapshots

Breakfast at my hotel on the second morning in Lucerne, Switzerland. I came here for the first time in 2007 on my previous Eurotrip, and this city was my absolute favourite during that trip. I still remember the feeling I got when I saw Kapellbrücke for the first time. But when I came again a couple months ago, I didn't enjoy it for a few different reasons:

1. Somehow it slipped my mind until 2 days before that I still needed to book a flight or train to Paris, so I got really stressed by that. Don't want to get too much into it but I spent hours searching until I finally got my ticket. I swear during my 2 days in Lucerne I spent the most time at their train station!! (But I won't complain. Swiss boys are cute/good people-watching)

2. I was REALLY REALLY looking forward to staying at the Villa Honegg - I got such a nice room booked too..but unfortunately I had to cancel it as I had no way to get there. It's a bit outside the city so the transportation there would've cost too much time and money (train with all my luggage, taxi, then having to go back to Lucerne to catch my Paris train, etc). Originally I thought my friend (with a car) was going to come with me to Lucerne, but then he wasn't able to..so without a car it was too inconvenient. I really regret not going there now. THIS WOULD'VE BEEN MY ROOM!! ugh. I think it would've been worth it. The hotel people were so nice though - they let me cancel my room, free of charge, even when I called them less than 24hr to do it. I will most definitely stay here next time I come to Lucerne.

3. The first night here I stayed at the Balances Hotel, which was AMAZING. I'm going to do a full review on it in a later post - I loved it a lot. They were fully booked the second night (the night I was supposed to be at Villa Honegg) so I had to do a last minute booking at some other hotel..after extensive searching I chose Hotel Monopol, (pictured above) which was a big mistake. Maybe I'm too picky with hotels but I didn't like this one at all. It was my least favourite out of all my others this trip..didn't really seem like a 4-star =\ The only good thing is the location - directly beside their train station, so at least I was able to catch my train to Paris on time..

4. I came to Europe by myself and went around all the cities by myself (for the most part), and for the first time during the trip I started feeling really lonely when I came to Lucerne. There wasn't much to do here, everything closed early, I was too stressed out, and this was right after I visited Munich (where one of my friends from Germany spent those 3 days with me) so I had to adjust to being by myself again. In all the other cities I loved going around by myself because it was a lot easier to meet locals and there was more to do, but Lucerne was different. Oh & the Monopol Hotel charged a ridiculous fee for the Internet, so I wasn't able to use it..which made me feel even more cut off from the world.

Ahhh this is like the most depressing post so far. I'm going to stop writing about the negative things now because I DO love this city and I love Switzerland. I went to Zurich as well, then Paris for 6 days afterwards and had the BEST time there. Really, the best time of this entire year probably :) hahah. So that made up for anything else I didn't enjoy in the other cities. I think I'm writing too much in this post - is anyone still reading up to this point?! I'll just end with some more random photos..









FACEBOOK | TWITTER | BLOGLOVIN'

263. cucumber sangria

I've been a bit lazy with blogging this week but I am back! With a short post. I finally made a Facebook page for my blog a couple days ago - if you can all do me a huge favour and LIKE IT PLEASE! My friend showed me his company page before & convinced me to make one..it's so cool looking at all the analytics/traffic you get from there. Leave me a link to your page too!


I got all these American Apparel nail polishes in the past 2 weeks. Clearly a new obsession. My favourite is the neon blue (although it's not neon at all..I'm not sure why it's called that). I find these pretty good quality and don't chip at all.

At O&B patio the other day, having this delicious cucumber sangria! It's the perfect summer drink (along with Swedish Mojitos and Radlers!!)

I was looking through all my ticket stubs, maps and receipts from my vacation. I wish I kept everything now, for the memories, since I usually throw out receipts and at times just stick them into my bag. The bottom of my bag was swimming in receipts so I dumped everything out. I realized these have a lot more memories/sentimental value (?) attached to them than all the touristy souvenirs I bought lol. I'll talk about this more in a later post but for now...

262. La Bauhinia | Shangri-La Hotel, Paris

La Bauhinia
Shangri-La Hotel, Paris
10 avenue d’Iéna
F-75116
T: (33 1) 53 67 19 91

On my second last day in Paris, I went for lunch at La Bauhinia; one of the three restaurants inside the Shangri-La Hotel. My visit to the hotel left quite a lasting impression, and I must say this meal was my favourite of the entire trip. In addition to an excellent three-course meal, I was very happy to be dining at one of my favourite hotel chains - the Shangri-La - especially their location in Paris, housed in a building of great historic significance.

They were fully booked when I was there, but I'd love to stay here on a future trip to Paris. The hotel is located at one of the best areas; in the 16th arrondissement within distance of Trocadero and across the Seine from the Eiffel Tower. Most of the rooms/suites have AMAZING views! Perfect for a romantic getaway in Paris.

I was welcomed by very friendly and courteous staff as I walked into the lobby. It was so beautiful I remember the first thought that popped in my head was: "wow!!"

Before I go any further, here's a bit of interesting history about the hotel:
It was originally built in 1896 as the home of Prince Roland Bonaparte; the grand nephew of Napoleon. Years and years later, Shangri-La acquired the building and spent four years to renovate and restore it. They ensured that the integrity of the original home was preserved. The hotel officially opened its doors in December 2010, becoming the first Shangri-La hotel of Europe.
The lavish interiors are reminiscent of the Bonaparte family. If you observe closely you can see their imperial insignias and ornate monograms incorporated into the details.



Located at the far end of the lobby, past this stunning staircase, you will find La Bauhinia. Decorated in Bordeaux reds and jade tones, the restaurant is directly underneath a glass cupola. This let in lots of natural lighting which, combined with music from a baby grand piano, created a perfect atmosphere for my lunch.

The executive chef is Philippe Labbé (aka Cuisinier of the Year in 2013 by Gault Millau!). The menu consists of both South East Asian and French cuisines. I love French food and seeing as I was in Paris after all, I went for the French dishes. I started off with this amuse-bouche. I regret to admit I do not remember what it was exactly, but I do remember it being absolutely delicious.



THE FOOD: Here's what I ordered. A very satisfying meal. Everything was well-prepared, well-presented, and tasted very fresh. I regret not writing this review sooner as none of what I ordered can be found on the menu anymore (I was here one month ago). I am not sure how often their menu changes but you can view what they currently serve here.

THE SERVICE: As you can usually expect with any upscale restaurant, the service was excellent. The servers were very friendly, attentive, efficient and knowledgeable about the menu. The food also arrived very quickly, with the waitress explaining every dish as they came.

BEST FOR: Breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea, business meal, an anniversary, etc. Although I didn't get a chance to have dinner here, I think this place is better during the day (when it's bright thanks to the glass ceiling). If I was to have dinner at the hotel, I think L'Abeille would have a better evening atmosphere.

THE COST: €€€€
A bit on the pricey side, it would be difficult to spend less than €100 ($130) per person on a three-course meal; wine, tax, and tip excluded.

Here are a few photos I took during the small tour I got after lunch.


Le Bar; cozy and elegant. I LOVED the horse paintings.



Walking around the salons/ballrooms, I felt like I was touring a grand palace like Versailles.