Seattle

It was our first time to visit Seattle and we're in love with the "Emerald City" at first sight. Emerald City is its nickname, referencing the lush evergreen forests of the area. It's about 170 miles (270km) north of Portland, Oregon and 140 miles south of Vancouver in British Columbia, Canada. We would like to visit Victoria, British Columbia's capital, which is about 100 miles by passenger ferry -hopefully next summer :) Seattle has nice, cool summer weather, and a great place to escape from the heat of Dallas. Winter is wet with the temperature around 45-55 F degree (8-13 Celsius). It's a great, exciting city and people here are so charming.

This is the first Starbucks store, which has been at Pike Place Market since the coffee company was founded there in 1971. There are many tourists in this store just to buy souvenirs. Along with Starbucks, there are many companies based in Seattle, such as department store Nordtroms, internet retailer Amazon.com, Microsoft... The famous Pike Place Market- Public Market. It's really fun to visit this place. The market is big and there are a variety of goods.
The famous fish throwers at the Pike Place fish market. It's a fun thing to see for tourists. In the picture below, there was a fish in the air.
Riding on the Duck Tour was so much fun. My kids loved and enjoyed it so much. This Duck Tour bus tours you around the city on land and becomes a boat to tour you on Union Lake.

The bus becomes the boat.

1st ave in downtown. Art Museum and Pike Place Market are nearby.

Another fun thing to do, and a great way to see the city view, is to visit the Space Needle. It features an observation deck and the rotating CitySky restaurant. Space Needle has become one of the symbols of Seattle. It was built for the 1962 World's Fair, and has become the most recognizable landmark in the city. It's been featured in the television show Frasier, Dark Angel, Grey's Anatomy, iCarly, and films such as It Happened at the World's Fair, Sleepless in Seattle, and The Twilight Saga: Eclipse.Union Lake seen from the CitySky restaurant at Space Needle.
It was a clear day, so we could see Mount Rainier from the Space Needle.
Downtown Seattle as seen from the rotating CitySky restaurant.

Space Needle and downtown at night.Sunset at Elliott Bay.
Seattle's best waterfall: Snoqualmie Falls, located just 25 miles outside Seattle. The Falls were featured in the popular cult television show "Twin Peaks".
Thank you everyone for visiting and your comments! Wishing you a wonderful day ahead! Kisses...Hanh ;)

Shoes and Clutch update

Nowadays, I love to collect Alexander Mcqueen pieces which they were designed before his tragedy. Yes, I'm still sad for what happened to him whenever I think about it. He was truly a genius.
This clutch is from the pre-fall 2010 collection and I'm lucky to have it. I purchased it at the store 4510. The clutch was sent to our apartment in Portland while we were there last week. I adore the clutch. When I flew home from Portland, I decided to carry it in my carry-on. Guess what? When I went through the security gate, they didn't allow me to carry it on! It's considered a brass knuckle; a weapon. We waited about 15' for their meeting to see if they would allow me to carry it on. It was so serious. I was so nervous and I was so thankful that they all agreed to let me carry it on. It's hilarious how a clutch could be a weapon. Actually, I understand their point. A happy ending.

These are brass knuckles.

My new addition to my shoe collection: Givenchy boots. I love the stitches and how they look old and dusty.

Another addition to my shoe collection: Alaia boots. They're so comfy.

These two pairs of Proenza Schouler shoes in the pictures below are in my wish-list. I'll be so happy if I have one of them :)

Thank you everyone for visiting and your comments. Wishing you all a fabulous day!! Big hugs...Hanh :)

St Tropez

One of the favorite parts of St Tropez was that walking around the Port of St Tropez. There are a lots of nice boats, yachts, stores, restaurants...The sunset at the port was so beautiful.

My nephew and his fiance came along with us on the trip. They both are young and successful people. I'm happy for them :) We had lunch at Le Club 55.
It was hot. We were all sweaty, tired, and happy :)
We had fun playing rock, paper, scissors.
My nephew's fiance and the kids did some dance.
So sweet! Thank you everyone for visiting and comments! Wishing you all a fabulous day ahead! Kisses...Hanh :)

Cannes, France

You probably know that Cannes is one of the best-known cities of the French Riviera, a busy tourist destination and host of the annual Cannes Film Festival. It's also famous for luxury shops, restaurants, and hotels.

We had a day trip to Cannes when we were in Provence. Before I came here, I imagined a picture of Cannes. I don't know if I expected too much... I was disappointed a little bit. It's a bit drab when you're walking along the streets; however, it's very pretty when you're off its shore and look from the ocean (this is a good excuse to be on a yatch :) And yes, we had a great time. Here are some pictures.

Look, it's very crowded and its beach is narrow. From June to September is busy season.

We also took a ferry to visit St Marguerite island, about half a mile off shore from Cannes (this is a chance to see Cannes from the water). The island is famous for its fortress prison (the Fort Royal). You can see it from the right side of the picture below. Now, it's the Musee de la Mer (Museum of the Sea) and features items recovered from ancient Roman (first century BC) and Saracen (10th century AD) ceramics from shipwrecks off the island. You also can view a number of former prison cells, including the one occupied by the legendary Man in the Iron Mask.
This is the road to go up to the Museum of the Sea.

At the entrance (the gate) of the Museum.

Here are the ceramics.
The shore of St Marguerite island.
Cannes seen from St Marguerite island.
The family picture was taken from St Marguerite island with Cannes in the background.
Pictures of my girls playing tic tac toe when we had an ice-cream snack at one of the cafe bistros on the Boulevard de la Croisette along the waterfront.

Kid's clothing from Crewcuts-Jcrew.

Thank you everyone for visiting and your comments! Wishing you all a wonderful day! Big hugs...Hanh :)

Paris

We had an amazing time in Paris. My kids enjoyed the city very much. This is a long post with tons of pictures.

It was perfect that there was a summer fair at Tuileries Garden, just cross from the hotel where we stayed on Rue de Rivoli.

Cotton candy is a must-have when kids go to the fair.
We did a lot of fun rides and games.
Here it comes! Taking pictures in front of the Eiffel Tower.
At Palais-Royal. Yes, another day at the Eiffel Tower. We had dinner at the restaurant on top of the tower, the Julds Verne. It was awesome. The kids really enjoyed it.
They did some silly poses and enjoyed the night at Eiffel Tower.
We took a boat ride along the Seine river. Then sitting beside the river enjoying the city. Oh, too much sun! One more picture before bed time from our balcony.
This is the view from our room. Our room faced Tuileries Garden and we had an awesome view.
More views from our room.
and more. The Louvre was in our view.
More...yes, we could see the entire Rue de Rivoli.
Mona Lisa at the Louvre museum.
Huge Monet panting at L'Orangerie.
Took the kids to visit Notre Dame cathedral. This is the back side.
Opera House is ahead.
Place Vendome column.
Place de la Concorde.
Arc de Triomphe is ahead.
The spiral stairs lead to the top of Arc de Triomphe.
The Avenue des Champs-Elysees seen from the top of Arc de Triomphe.
Some angles of the louvre at night.
Looking straight to Tuileries Garden from the Louvre.
Eiffel Tower at night.
Eiffel Tower day time.

Thank you everyone for visiting and your comments. Wishing you all a fabulous day ahead!! Kisses...Hanh :)

ps: kids's clothing from Crewcuts-Jcrew