..Amiens and macarons..

 Hi guys~

I am so sorry for the lack of updates , I will probably be busy until Xmas. This month has been horrible in my agenda and I hardly had enough time to sleep: studies of course (ultimate year is the most important and my lectures are once for a while interesting!), but I also started looking for work and spent days filling online applications... at the end for nothing! I was told that I applied one year too early as I won't be available this summer. Damn!

All this trouble because of the Japanese school system (did I mention that I was finishing my studies in Japan? I leave Paris in April for Osaka): in Japan semester starts in April and finishes in late September! Hence I am not eligible for any Graduate programs that hold trainings in July/August... That means I have to wait another year... one year free, what am I going to do    

Anyway, this is boring stuffs .

I decided to stop worrying about it, let's see what happen, maybe I'll win the lotto (okay this is definitely not going to happen as I hate this kind of games lol).

By the way, this is my interview suit! Classy?

1. Jacket & pants by PABLO by Gerard Darel [FR]
Boyfriend style! Totally trendy. I was looking for a traditional suit at the beginning but finally, the boyfriend style totally has me sold. It is not too sexy, easy to wear when you are tall and vey classy!

2. Silk blouse by PABLO by Gerard Darel [FR]
OMG I still wonder how I am going to wash it (should be only by hand, then you have to press it in a towel, etc.), but silk really is a top notch product.

3. Grey pumps by Minelli [IT]
Normal pumps with 6 cm heels, grey color gives a lighter touch to the outfit :)

Bonus comment in French (French is such a good language when it comes to say contreversory things lol): bon en plus comme en France les asiat sont toujours assimilées plus ou moins à des filles faciles avec un pois chiche en guise de cerveau, vous imaginez l'ensemble veste ultra cintrée + jupe courte ? Si j'arrive comme, ça les carottes sont cuites x))

I went to Amiens last week to see my boyfriend, in the north of France! I missed my return train because of the snow and did not attend the gyaru meeting in Paris, so sad I wasn't able to meet Nat, Alexa, Shabwouina and Monica ...

Fortunatly, I discovered some nice stuffs in Amiens!
Actually there is not much to do in Amiens when it comes to shopping or cultural events. I guess the best city in the world for culture would be Paris, and for shopping, it would either be Tokyo or London...

Only one big monument: the cathedral!

Impressive huh? It is 2X bigger than Notre Dame de Paris

The other thing to do in Amiens is trying their traditional macaron! Do you remember me talking about La Durée's macarons? Macaronって？Wikipedia attack:

A macaron is a sweet confectionery. Its name is derived from an Italian word "maccarone" or "maccherone". This word is itself derived from ammaccare, meaning crush or beat, used here in reference to the almond paste which is the principal ingredient.It is meringue-based: made from a mixture of egg whites, almond flour, and both granulated and confectionery sugar.

The confectionery is characterized by its smooth, domed top, ruffled circumference (referred to as the "foot"), flat base, mildly moist and easily melted into mouths. Connoisseurs prize a delicate, egg shell-like crust that yields to a moist and airy interior. The macaron is commonly filled with a buttercream or jam filling sandwiched between two macaron cookies.

Well I was surprised to learn than they were originally from this region, introduced by Catherine de Medicis. We went to  Jean Trogneux  and tried a set of chocolates and macarons (OMG I am literally drooling while typing this text lol)!

 So in the front, the Parisian macaron in pink for strawberry flavor.

(eh?  taken with my iPhone, can't believe it: the quality is stunning!)

So what does the macaron from Amiens look like?

So that is the original form of the macaron! No cream filling inside (it was added in Paris).

The almond taste is also stronger, although less sweet. Gosh, now I am addicted to this, need to eat it again next time I go to Amiens!

Last thought, I recently watched a surprising documentary on a new trend called the micro-wave gastronomy: nowadays these so-called restaurants are everywhere, they don't offer home made cuisine anymore to their clients, but industrial pre-cooked or ready-to-serve food. It started with desserts (industrial chocolate mousse, pies, etc.) and now sometimes the whole menu has been out-sourced!

I remember once I was having diner in a famous restaurant in Paris, near Opéra. The menu was expensive (around 50-60 euros) and my ratatouille came half frozen! Of course, I wasn't supposed to see that, the waitress took it away, quite embarrassed.

That is so sad to think that so many tourists come to France for the French gastronomy, and end up eating industrial food. Sometimes it can be even worse: some restaurants are tempted to go by low cost food, which is bad for health... Anyway from now I will be careful! Video link is below (in French only, sorry):