Birthday Plans for a Weekend in Milan, Italy

Woke up with a great yoga sesh this morning at Yoga Shala.  Yoga is an amazing way to start the day, and it totally kicked my ass. I went for a run yesterday morning, and I was totally feeling the back-to-back work outs.  But I wanted to get some workouts in before my BIG birthday weekend for my 30th in Milan, Italy!

We've been planning our trip for about a month now, and thankfully we started that far in advance since it was hard to find a flat to rent (we always use www.airbnb.com).  For us, planning a vacation/trip is like therapy.  You get to research, decide and plan exactly what you want to do and where you want to go.  Since this is our second trip to Milano we had a better idea of where we wanted to stay, and what we wanted to do.

Here's a run down of our plans:

Thursday we take the train from Monte Carlo, Monaco to Ventimiglia, Italy and then a second train straight into Milano Centrale.  The total train time is about 4 hours, putting us there just after lunch!  We will get the keys to our flat and then we plan to head to the Triennale Design Museum. David's a Creative Director, so he thrives off of Museum outing and gets some awesome inspiration.  I'm also into design (albeit more the fashion type)...but I can definitely appreciate the interior and architectural aspects and get some inspo for our apartment in Miami!

Our dinner reservations are at Ristorante Guerrini, which was rated highly on TripAdvisor for both good food and romanticism. It's my official birthday on Thursday, so I hope to enjoy an amazing meal and some special wine!

Friday is a shopping day!  Whohoooo, we will start at the outlets ( Il Salvagente ) just outside of the city center, and then make our way back towards the middle.  Stopping for lunch at Nobu Armani. And then hitting up the shops nearby, and a late afternoon Aperitivo.  Dinner reservations are at Don Carlos...which again was highly rated on TripAdvisor as well as the Michelin Guide. This restaurant is a bit more fancy...I can not wait! 

Saturday is another day of shopping and exploring. We plan on checking out the San Marco church and lunching at La Latteria (which was recommended by the New York Times). We don't have dinner plans for Saturday, and plan on asking the gentleman we rent the flat from...since it's always good to take a locals suggestion.

And finally, for Sunday we will check out the renowned brunch at the Bulgari Hotel before catching our train at 3pm to head back to Monaco.

I'm looking forward to an amazing trip with my hubby and explore more of Milan.  Hopefully we have made some good selections for a weekend trip to Milan and will give an update and details when we get back next week! Happy early birthday to me...cheers!

Pink Full Moon April 2013

So my week last week was just crazy, starting off horrid and ending quite nicely. Here's a little run-down:

Monday. Woke up and immediately was having a terrible day.  Sunday night I got the news that my mom's mom was very very sick and in the hospital dying.  She did not have the strength to eat, speak...and apparently had "brain poisoning" from the cocktail of medications that the doctors were administrating in an effort to keep her alive.  I woke felt guilty about not being able to be with my mother to give her strength and support(me being here in Monaco and her being in Indiana, USA). I also was mid-cycle of my period at this time.  Another indicator that I wasn't pregnant.  That this month was another failure. 

Tuesday.  Another bad day, much like Monday.  Just can shake the feeling that I'm a bad person. Nothing seems to make me feel better, I just cry and cry...even sitting at my desk at work.  Crying for no apparent reason, with nothing that my dear husband can say to make me feel better.

Wednesday.  Feeling relatively better.  I go to the 2 hour full moon yoga class at Sunshine Yoga and get some insight.  Apparently the full moon this month was the "Pink Moon", and has some significance for the rebirth of spring. She said that there was a reason that we all had been feeling strange. Here's an interesting blog post about this phenomenon.

It was at this class that during our mediation/relaxation at the end Cathy said, "let everyone enjoy their own happiness." It was in that moment that I realized that whenever I find out someone had a baby, or someone else is preggo...I get jealous.  But the fact is, that everyone is entitled to that happiness. And just because they got pregnant, doesn't mean that it won't happen for me.  There isn't a limited number of women who can get pregnant and my friends being preggo give me less of a chance of falling pregnant.  I need to be happy for each and every woman who gets to experience the magic of pregnancy and birth, and in that happiness it will help my universal pull to be just that: pregnant. And it doesn't stop there...I shouldn't judge a fat person for not having control, or not having motivation to exercise.  Maybe they are happy like that...and they are ENTITLED to that happiness (and that goes for anyone no matter what makes them happy: doing drugs, drinking excessively, eating poorly, being lazy).

Thursday. Feeling better yet. Resolve to figure out our struggles of getting pregnant and make an appointment with my gynecologist.

Friday. Have a great day. Get a phone call from my mother that my grandmother is doing well. That she was sitting up, speaking and even eating and drinking!  Wow, what an improvement...even the doctors are amazed(was it the pull of the full moon that helped her recovery?)! I'm feeling the strength of the renewal and hopeful that the next few cycles will be the very time that I will finally get pregnant.

Was anyone else feeling crazy last week? Does anyone else find it interesting the impact of the lunar cycles on human behavior and emotions? Do you agree that each and every person is entitled to their happiness?

Bit by the Bug

So I finally got sick from the bug that was going around. Sooooo not fun!

Today I'm feeling much better, PLUS the sun is out.  I think it's a sign that spring is nearly here. Here's to hoping!

In the meantime enjoy the end of your week! I leave you with: a cute puppy, weekend outfit inspiration and something funny...enjoy!

Positivity for a New Week

Well, it's the start of another week....and here's to moving forward and hoping that this week is better than last.

Last week was full of tears, disappointment, loneliness, anger, isolation, poor eating, too much drinking, laziness, and numerous other things that were bad and not how I want to live my life.

Therefore this week will be full of: fun, friendship, laughter, smiling, eating healthy, drinking in moderation, running and exercising, cleaning and more!

I already started the week out right with this cute little outfit to make me feel more confident and walk a little taller.

So here's to a great, awesome, wonderful, amazing week tout le monde!!

Last Weekend in October

Happy Monday everyone!
Last weekend we spent in Nice at our friends place, and had a super fun weekend!

Our friends view in Nice!

Friday night we went to Hussard in Olde Town Nice which was very nice. We went with another couple and ordered the appetizer platter to share. Then for my main course I ordered the lamb confit with mashed potatoes.  OMG, it was so good.  The platter had a great mix of burratta cheese, parma ham and foie gras with fig jelly on toast points.  And my lamb was melt in your mouth delicious!  Despite the shit service, we will definitely be going back.  I would rate it a 4 out of 5 stars, and with improved service this could easily be a 5.

After dinner, we ventured over to Akathan Pub just down the street.  Had a couple more glasses of wine while enjoying the live music, then called it a night.

Saturday I spent perusing the antique shops near the Nice Port.  Found this amazing little gem, for just 20€.

Vintage Guerlain parfume bottle!

Saturday night our friends hosted dinner, before going to see James Bond at the cinema.  Great dinner and great movie!  Funny enough my favorite part was sneeking wine into the theatre.

Sunday we got up early to head to Biot's flea market.  What a BUST....it was full of complete junk so we were in and out of there pretty quickly. The weather had turned cold very quickly around 11, so we decided to venture to the Leger museum.  On the way our driver insisted we stop in the forest to go mushroom hunting.  Wow, so happy we stopped....found these amazing Chanterelle mushrooms to go on our steaks for dinner!

Hand picked Chanterelle Mushrooms!

We finally checked out the Fernand Leger museum, which was pretty cool and at just 5€ totally worth it.

Our friends outside the Leger Museum in Biot

Winter has finally arrived in South of France...time to pull out the winter jackets.  Brrrrrrr....dinner tonight with friends visiting from Miami.  YAY!!

Leadership

Just finished Steve Jobs biography, and I can't help but process his leadership ability, skills, and styles.

In the short 10 years of my professional career, I have come across every style of
Leader.

First was Wayne Willegas at celebrity cruises, he was the VP of marketing for the majority  of my time there. He was a warm, welcoming guy with an open mind for ideas and even though I was young he was always encouraging of my ideas and my efforts.

Next I moved onto an advertising agency run by two Jewish women in Miami. These women had owned and operated the agency for over 20 years and the one and only client for that 20 years was Sandals resorts. I came into my management role here, and found a very hostile environment. Every time I was in front of them, it felt like I was in front of a firing squad. They would fire away questions, and I would scramble to answer having to learn to be quick on my toes. These women micro managed every aspect of the business, and would one day scrutinize certain things only the next day to completely overlook them and find them irrelevant. They were hard to please, and easily distracted. However, there was a redeeming factor of feeling like you were family. They would ask about personal things, and actually listen and offer advice. It was a strange place to work, very stressful...but it taught me so many invaluable things. Despite the rigor, I wouldn't change it for the world.

Finally I find myself in Monaco with the most laid back of bosses. There are months at a time that no one in the office sees him or even knows where he is. There is a complete lack of communication, and the general direction of the company is unclear. However, it's his way of making you figure things out for yourself. No hand holding, no judgments once you do actually see him. Just, an ease about him that we will figure it out in due time. Yes, this creates all sorts of red flags for me....for example how do we pay our overhead when we haven't had revenue in nearly 6 months? Among other questions.

But what has all of this taught me? What is the lesson to be learned here? What is the best leadership style? How do I want to format my own leadership style?

I wish I had the answers to all these questions. As I hit 30 next year, I want to be on the right path and moving towards a bright future...but at this time I seem to only know that what works for me doesn't necessarily work for anyone else. And with each employee that I manage, my leadership style seems to adjust in small ways in order to facilitate a good working environment.

Muich Countdown

Happy Monday everyone!  We're off to Munich in just 3 short days, and how am I suppose to work when we plan on checking out all these amazing things:

1. Munich Olympic Stadium
2. Schloss Nymphenburg Palace
3. Neue Pinakothek Art Museum
4. Oktoberfest
5.  Andechs Monastery
6. Dachao Concentration Camp

Think we can fit it all in, plus Michelin Starred dinners and lunches in just 4 short days?  We shall see....CAN NOT WAIT! 

First Blog Post

Been living in Monaco since December, 2011 and here's what I've learned so far:

1. American friends who say they will keep in touch are liars.
2. French work ethic is different than the American work ethic.
3. I love to travel, it's what keeps me going.
4. I hate my current job.
5. I have an incredible relationship with my husband that can basically withstand anything.

Let me expand on these:

1. American friends who say they will keep in touch are liars.
With the invention of skype and facetime, keeping in touch with people abroad is BEYOND simple.  In fact, I speak more to my parents now that I live impossibly far than I did when I lived 1.5 hours away from them. That being said, of all my say 10 closest friends from Miami I have spoken / skyped with ZERO of them.  I even go out of my way to email friends asking to Skype and still nothing.  Lesson learned: I had shit friends to start with.
NOTE: I guaran-f*cking-tee what when it's comes time for one of their vacations and they are coming near the south of France one of them will FINALLY want to skype.  Guess what, I'll be busy...getting my tan in Italy. SO there bitches.....
Double NOTE: I like my new friends better anyways, SO there again bitches.....(read - yes, my feelings are hurt on a regular basis and I hide my feelings with mean comments)

2. French work ethic is different than the American work ethic.
Well DUH....didn't learn about "Laissez fair" in high school for nothing. This sh*t is still in full effect today.  The less work they have to do the better.  Even when you're constantly following up, they will still screw something up along the way.
NOTE:  I'm 100% sure there are many, many exceptions to this rule...BUTTTTT I have yet to meet or work with them.

3. I love to travel, it's what keeps me going.
Clearly I love to travel, or I wouldn't have been insane enough to move all the way to Monaco. But the more time I spend here, the more opportunities I have to travel within Europe.  At this rate (one trip per month)...I've already traveled nearly as much here as I have in the US. This summer we checked out:
-Italy
-Turkey
-France
-Switzerland
and by the end of this month will have checked off Germany as well.  Without a trip on the horizon I get pretty depressed. Which just means that I need to start checking airfares....and book our next trip.

4. I hate my current job.
Came here, pretty excited to work on taking this company from an events company to an ad agency.  AND ALL OF A SUDDEN my boss wants to change directions completely and now I'm stuck here, working on stuff I'm not passionate about and wasting a TON of time in the meantime.  UGH, I'm used to 12 hour days, pressure to succeed, quick and almost always last minute projects.  Who in the world ever thought I would miss that? Well, there I said it...I miss it.  Bring back the stressssssssss pretty please. And leave this new direction / no direction to the birds.

5. I have an incredible relationship with my husband that can basically withstand anything.
So it turns out moving abroad, not knowing the rules and having to figure out everything on your own will either make or break your relationship.  I mean, yea, there were times I thought I was going to claw his eyes out.  But now that we can see the light at the end of the paperwork, visa, carte de sejour tunnel....he is my GOD SEND!  I do not know what I would have done without him.

And there you have it: my first blog post.
I'm going to keep at this.  Telling you about my adventures in wonderland (aka Monaco)...some good, some bad and almost always ridiculously funny.  So enjoy :)