Happy Birthday, M!

As much as I love being in New York, I can't deny that I miss my family and friends sometimes. And these past few days I've been missing them more than ever!

Today is my best friend's birthday and, although I did have lots of fun having dinner and going out with my girls in New York, I couldn't stop thinking about not being with her. Last year we started brainstorming what we should do to celebrate her birthday––and our ideas were so good we should have started a party planning business right there––and had the best time ever. And this year I'm miles away and with no chance of seeing her today.

But I did spend some time looking at old pictures in my laptop. Most of them were absolutely horrible––we weren't particularly good-looking during our teens––but they made me laugh––and cry a little––from all the great memories they brought back. I really wish I could be with her right now... But I know that not even the distance will tear us apart.

I'm really, really glad that I have shared the past two decades of my life with this girl––and I'm sure she doesn't need me to party hard and have a blast today on her birthday!

Love you baby, Happy Birthday!

Photography: Laura Beltran-Rubio

PS. I'm including a couple extra photos from a few years ago below. They were the only decent ones I found in my laptop, and unfortunately I don't have access to all our childhood photos, which are at my parents' house in Colombia.

Sister's Birthday Celebrations

My sister turned 21 last year and we decided to host a small celebration for her. We went to have lunch with my mum at a new Italian restaurant in Bogota named Primi. The food was pretty good, although I didn't really like the fact that the menu is so small I had a hard time trying to choose what I wanted to eat.

We shared most of the dishes––as we always do––to have a bite of everything. We ordered prosciutto e mozzarella for a starter, and then ordered ravioli, meatballs, fish and vegetables, and tagliata with salad. We then have Nutella pizza for dessert.

We then went back home and had a small party with my sister's friends. We ate tons of cake and had a lot of fun, but what's definitely most important is that my baby sis was super happy and she probably won't forget this birthday –even if she didn't have a crazy trip to Las Vegas or anything of the sort!

Love,

Photography: Laura Beltran-Rubio

Happy Birthday, Sis!

We all know that my favourite person in the whole world is my beautiful sister. Not only because she's the little fairy that was sent to take care of me while we grew up, but also because she's the perfect example of fighting for life and being awesome on the way! She's taught me to always think positive and fight for what I want, while loving myself and being happy.

Last year, we spent her birthday in Madrid, doing what she loves the most: eatº–yeah, she's even more of a foodie than I am! We had some delicious brunch, followed by the best paella in town! It was definitely an unforgettable day for her.

Today she's turning 21! And although we're not Eurotripping this year, I really want today to be special. So we're definitely going out for lunch, and hopefully I'll get her to finally share some prosecco––or maybe even a Margarita?––with me! We're also going to get her a new laptop, so she can start working on her awesome design projects for school.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BABY!

I still remember the first time I held you in my hands, and how happy I felt about my little sister being born. I remember skipping class in kindergarten because I wanted to make sure you were doing good, and I remember wanting to kill those bullies who were mean to you in middle school. From this little baby just entering primary school you've grown up to be a wonderful woman and I'm sure your future is full of amazing surprises!

I will miss you to the moon and back when I'm in New York!


Photography: Laura Beltran-Rubio

Birthday Celebrations: The Food

It's definitely not a secret how big of a foodie I am. So, of course, I had to go out to a good restaurant to celebrate my birthday. In fact, I went to two: one on Saturday evening and one on Sunday for lunch––although this event is unrecorded because dumb me left the camera at home! But when I went for dinner with my family to one of my favourite restaurants, called 100 gramos, I did manage to shoot some yummy pictures. In case you're wondering, it's my favourite restaurant because every dish is served in a 100 g portion, which means they are small enough so you can eat at least 3-4 and try lots of different things.

Of course, I had to eat more than what a normal person eats, and overdosed myself with no less than 9 different dishes––without counting bread, tea, and birthday cake! Here we go...

I started with a delicious strawberry juice, which was as good as it looks!

Then came some pain brioche, which was mostly eaten by my mum, who could basically live out of bread!

The first actual dish to be served, was a bowl of fried eggplant...

...followed by some cold salmon slices with oranges and olive oil.

Then I had some crab terrine with toasts...

...and a Spanish tortilla with Iberic ham...

...shrimp salad...

...and shrimp soup with coconut milk...

...followed by chicken wings.

Then came dessert, starting with chocolate ganache and Baileys ice cream...

...and followed by a lemon cream with vanilla ice cream

After all this food, some tea was required, which I drank while they brought the check in this oversized cookie!

And then I was ready to blow the candles off and eat some cake!

Love,

Photography: Laura Beltran-Rubio

Birthday Girl

As I told you yesterday, this new year will start with my birthday celebrations. Today, I'm sharing with you my outfit. I chose to wear a summer dress––the first one of the season––that my mum bought for me as a birthday present. It is absolutely beautiful, with a pale blue background and some colourful patterns on it.

Unfortunately, the weather wasn't king enough for me to be able to wear it sleeveless, so I had to put a blazer on top. I was actually going to wear a denim jacket, but I was going out for dinner at one of my favourite restaurants––of which you'll know more tomorrow––so I decided to wear something a little more elegant.

I wore it with one of the purses I bought in Paris last summer, and with the same shoes I wore for my last birthday –and this was coincidence, I swear! I also chose to wear some blue bracelets that would match the colour of my dress, including my brand new Hermès bracelet, which I bought in Rome.

Come back tomorrow to see some delicious food pictures!

Love,

First Anniversary

Time definitely flies by when you're having a good time. Only a year ago, I decided to start this blog, in a rush to write about everything and anything that came up to my mind. And now I'm celebrating its first anniversary. Crazy, huh?!

As you might have noticed, I took over a full week off blogging. As much as I love writing and seeing you read my posts, I needed some time off, to think about the blog, and come up with a new plan for the upcoming year.

Don't worry, I'm not taking the blog offline. I enjoy doing this so much, that I might die if I stop blogging. But I do have some new ideas I hope you will like.

Just as last year, this year will start with my birthday––because, yes, I turned 23 yesterday! But I will bring you more fashion, more travels, and more food. I might hopefully add some improved photography. Oh, and I have a huge surprise for you by the end of the summer.

So tune in tomorrow for new posts, and please come back often for updates. Don't forget to like my Facebook page, and follow me on Twitter, Pinterest, Flickr and Instagram. Oh, and please, please, show me some Bloglovin' ! This would mean the world to me!

'Til tomorrow,

Winter Essentials: Beanies & Parkas

My friend Diego had his birthday on Monday, so we went out for dinner and some drinks to celebrate. To be honest, he's one of my favourite people in the world because he's got such a good energy that you can't stop being happy whenever he's around you. But I especially loved on his Birthday how he was so excited about it that he even made us all sing to him. He also asked the waiters if they could do it but they didn't like the idea that much...

Another thing I love about Diego is his honesty. And how he loves bossing around and telling everyone what to do... Which is exactly why I'm writing this post! He told me I was looking pretty the day of his birthday and told me to go and take some pictures with the clothes I was wearing and upload them on the blog. And since I love him so much because he's a great friend, I'm following his instructions.

Love,