I took this picture in Paris earlier this year. Really wishing I was on a plane somewhere / anywhere right now! 

Today I left Nice behind and decided to explore more of the Riviera.

Past the pittoresque marina....

and the Princess Grace Kelly memorial (which is where the fatal crash occured on her way to Monaco...)

Villefranche-sur-Mer. Everything about that village including the name is super charming.

Foie gras and rose wine. Nuff said.

A quick dip in the sea - quickly out again as it was way to cold for my little body spoiled by the lukewarm waters of the Arabian Gulf!

Saw some sweet lill' boats  - one that belongs to the Emir of Qatar amongst others. Although that was more like a ferry. Supersize my boat please!

It took 7 hours to walk from Nice all around Cap Ferrat and back to Nice again and the breathtaking scenery sure made up for the blisters on my feet!

I have been blogging like there is no tomorrow to make up for my summer break and there are still photos from way back to share! Next out - Dalaman, Turkey!

The view from my balcony...

Fantastic beaches!

I could run on the beach, in the forest or up the hills!

Stunning scenery and an opportunity to learn a few words of Turkish. Ya-Ya-Yo-Lu. Now that wasn't so hard  was it? :-)

New bikini from Reiss was a daily staple...

Did I say that it was stunning?

I found my Zen in Dalaman.

I wore my Bassike tee / dress from Netaporter a lot.

An express visit to London asks for an express blog post, so here it comes. (All photos taken with the CrackBerry!)

Munching on hotel breakfast whilst reading ELLE, Marie Claire and InStyle UK. Filled my bowl (and tummy) with Greek Yoghurt, berries, nuts, seeds, coconut shavings and honey. A cup of green tea to go with plus a slice of rye with some Scottish salmon make up a great breakfast.

(That was quite an elaborate description of my brekkie but I have recently been receiving a fair amount of emails and comments from you Lovelies asking me to highlight the nutrition part - since as many of you have noticed - healthy food and exercise are a big 'hobby' of mine. Is that something you would like to read more about?) 

Anyhow anywho, London was chilly!

I teamed my beloved ACNE jeans with pointy patent courts from Chloe, an oversized knit from H&M and my granddad's old tartan scarf. I don't know what I will do once those jeans fall apart! Drama.

I got to catch up with Alex - an old friend from Abu Dhabi days - which was LOVELY.

Alex knows me well enough (and confessed that he is a regular Candy&Cookie reader) so he suggested afternoon tea, which could quite possibly be one of my favourite ways of spending an afternoon! I am a huge Anglophile and an afternoon tea connoisseur.



I was educated that popping candy is the latest in pastries in Landaan! So here's a macaroon with popping candy sprinkles - hillarious!

I felt like I was going to get abducted by aliens. Luckily that didn't happen so I'm back to the comforts of my hotel room typing away and feeling all kinds of happy. Must be all the carbs haha. // Good night all...

I still haven't shared the Nice images with you! Ok here goes:

Amazing food, relaxed atmosphere, morning run at The Promenade, lavender scent en masse, flirty men, vintage shopping! All very Eat Pray Love.

Nice IS nice - pun intended!

My newly found Austrian friends took me out to a mountain lake that you only knew about if you were born and raised in TYROLEN! Every country is always best experienced with a born and bred native but that's no news...

I wore my oh-so-overexposed vintage jeans cut offs (time to get a new pair me thinks...), a Massimo Dutti shirt and my vintage tassel satchel, trying to look preppy with a boho twist. 

The bespoke lake.

The light bounced in the prettiest of ways and my photographer heart skipped a beat...

Converse - still the best choice of footwear for a guy if you ask moi.

I thought of jumping in, then I saw that bad boy.

Now I know I am being silly as it's just an innocent karp which is basically an uglier version of a gold fish BUT what if I accidentaly touch him? Slime alert!

I am spoiled with 5* hotel pools in Dubai. With no karps! (Please take note of the dripping sarcasm in that last sentence, in case it doesn't translate well...)

Martin wasn't affraid of the big fish so he jumped in...

whilst I soaked up the sun rays...

looked up at the bypassing aeroplanes...

had a lill' snack. Tyrolean buttermilk with blueberries - oh the liquid goodness. And not at all buttery - don't let the name scare you off.

So, I am still in Innsbruck and turning into a full time Mountain Heidi! Fashion has been severly compromised due to outdoorsy shenanigans. Not a red sole or a sequin in sight...

The other day I took a cable car up up high above the cloud level and decided to hike down back to Innsbruck.

About to literally step into clouds - never done THAT before!

At times the surroundings felt scary but there was nothing left to do but to keep on walking. Just another 6 hours to go, woop woop!

Aaaah. I see Innsbruck. Visualising the target makes the journey easier or so they say, the ones in-the-know...

Since I was all alone on the mountain, apart from a few superfast mountain bikers that would wizz past every once in a while, there was noone there to take my picture. Attempts to do it myself ended up with a few snaps of the top of my head. Unbrushed hair, make up free face. Red and on the sweaty side. It's all good....

Saw that little Heidi - esque house and decided to go over there and see how those guys are doing....

and it was blissfully serene and Tyrolean and pretty so I decided to hang around.

Candy and Cookie has been down due to technical reasons and I have been too busy to deal with it!

I really enjoy the creative part of blogging but the technical part gives me the creeps. Hopefully things should be back to normal now and I can't wait to share all the amazing images my camera memory card is bursting with. Ain't nothing like seeing the world through a lens!

So, last time I tried to blog I was in Florence, Italy. That post somehow vanished.

Sunshine, Tiramisu en masse, men that refer to you as Bella.. La Dolce Vita in other words.

After Florence there was Dalaman in Turkey where I detoxed after the Italy part of the programme so here I stuffed my face with ripe seasonal peaches and ran a lot - in the forest, by the beach, uphill downhill and sideways too. Outfits not very exciting, with focus on comfort!

Next stop - Nice on the French Riviera where I pretended that I had a scooter, found a great vintage store and ate my body weight in fresh seafood.

In the last few days I have spent hours and hours in the Polish bookshop on Boulevard St Germain... 

munched on delish Vietnamese food..

smelled and tasted silly amounts of tea from all over the world at Mariage Frères...

had the best pastries in Paris at Cafe Pushkin... (a must when in Paris, located at the top floor of Printemps department store)

I have always had a feeling that Istanbul was going to be my kind of place.

I love places that are hustly and bustly, with a great food scene, warm Meditteranean spirited people and lots of history, architecture, weird and wonderful sounds and sights. Istanbul is all that and then some. On top of things it's a bit messy - which I love. Places that are too organized bore me after a while - I like my cities with a twist of dirty rock'n'roll!

Anyhow anywho...

Note to self - always google the weather before a trip. One Candy&Cookie minus a jacket plus a LOT of layers.

A lift with a cristal chandelier is as fancy as it gets, no?

Pomegranate is a super fruit, packed with anti oxidants so I had myself a glass of ruby coloured of goodness.

This truly is a beautiful city, with that special kind of beauty that isn't 'right in your face' if you catch my drift? Couple of dirt roads, perhaps a bit of pollution, grey -ish coloured buildings.

However once by the Bosphorus you suddenly GET what all the fuss is all about. IrresIstanbul.

Mr Pretzel Man doing his thing.  

Aaaaah - the Grand Bazaar. Crowded, noisy and in other words my kinda hangout.

Lokum (Turkish Delight). I am a sucker for Turkish Delight! Give me!

The stall owner let me sample every flavour of lokum. 17 pieces later, happy times.

My day far from stopped there but this post is becoming borderline too lo-oong so let's save some for tomorrow!