Weekend fun

Can you believe it is already Sunday evening? I can't, but I am happy to report it was a good one. Last night I hosted my first girls evening since we moved to this apartment. I had the girls from work come for a casual evening with drinks and food. I didn't go overboard in planning something fancy, because it was not that type of evening. Instead I went for simple food and plenty of white wine. Also I read in Food and Wine magazine that the secret to a nice party is to serve dishes that are delicious weather they are hot, room temperature or even cold. The result was a nice and fun evening with the girls, that I hope we will repeat again.

My dress for the evening

It felt like spring dressed like this

Cheese plate 

All the food was vegetarian, and the salad above has carrots, pomegranate and goat cheese

Tulips can be found at the market, so my house is ready for spring

This is how the table looked like, without the desert that was brought by some of the girls and the
bruschettas that were served fresh from the oven

Desert near the homemade guacamole and salsa (everything made by the girls), not very picture perfect but I tell you, delicious

Before the night ended we took this picture, only a few of us...

Today, after the apartment was cleaned, this little corner became my favorite. 

Jamie's Italian in London

I am a very big fan of the British cook Jamie Oliver. I love his cooking skills and he is an inspiration when it comes to recipes and trying new cooking methods. So you can imagine that when Paula suggested to eat at his restaurant in London, I was incredible happy with the idea. The place is very cozy, the staff is young and friendly and the food is delicious. The only thing missing was seeing Jamie there. But I guess you can't have it all, right? 

Italian bread selection with olive oil and vinegar

We had a very fun afternoon, chatting, remembering our childhood years. So proud of my younger cousin.

The best brownie we ever had so far

Life lately

This past few days summer seamed to have gained control over Switzerland and we spend most of our time outdoors. Still I don't know if I am ready for the summer heat. I mean I love summer but my spring wardrobe is not ready to back off yet especially since I just got some nice jackets that I want to enjoy wearing. So please spring stick around some more.

Yellow flowers, just adore them.

Lunch in Mulhouse, France with our friends.

Sunday outfit

My sweet husband 

Ski weekend part 2

Schatzalp

The view from our room

As promised, I still have to share some pics from our weekend in Davos. The hotel, Schatzalp (in English, the treasure in the mountains) has this great story. It was built at the end of the 19th century and from 1900 to 1950 it was a Sanatorium. The architecture of the place is still intact and as I went through the doors I felt that I was transported at the beginning of the century. Thomas Mann, the famous German writer, found inspiration here when he was visiting his sick wife in the summer of 1912. His stay became the foundation of the opening chapter (Arrival) of the novel The Magic Mountain, in German Der Zauberberg. We were very pleased to discover the history behind the place. The view from the room was amazing and the food in the restaurant was to die for. A very special weekend!

The food was delightful

Vintage phone at the hotel entrance

I just loved this soup pot, oh and also the soup :)

One of the cats from the hotel. So cute 

Hello Kitty! 

The hotel terrace in the evening. I love the chairs, they are so old fashioned.

Dinner at the candle light

Summary of the past week

I have some good news: we got the most gorgeous apartment and I couldn't be more happy about it. It is a 2 bedrooms roof top, with a great terrace, nice kitchen and we just love it. Of course all we do now is talk about it and plan new purchases that will make it our new home. But until the great moving day (in 2 weeks) let me show you our last week in pictures.

We celebrated Valentines day all week, first we had a nice evening at home with flowers and chocolates from Traian and then, on Thursday we went for sushi ...so delicious. Last night was BBQ at the house, we celebrated our friend's birthday.

Friday, my day off, I went for some shopping. It is time to start getting ready for spring and I got shoes from Zara, skirt and accessories from H&M, all in bright colors. Saturday it was sunny, the perfect weather for my new blue skirt.

I finally made cupcakes on Friday. I wanted so bad a cupcake and I did this recipe. Thanks Linda, they were wonderful.

Have a great week, bright and sunny!

Do you fondue?

Have you seen the movie Captain America? It's not the best movie in the world, I'd say it's the usual superhero Hollywood movie that you watch when you just want to get cozy on your nice couch. (or at least that's how I watched it). The reason I am mentioning this movie is because it has this funny scene, that revolves around the meaning of fondue. I am not going to get into the details but let's just say that this line "Do you fondue?" stuck with us and especially on Saturday when I did my first fondue at home. I got the fondue set for Christmas and we had our first fondue dinner at home. It was delicious, maybe a bit too much wine in the recipe but all in all it was great. Ah and if you thought that fromage fondue is a French thing, think again, because it is as Swiss as it can be (I made that mistake).

So do you like fondue? Did I get you in the mood for some melted cheese?

A Christmas to remember

This was my first Christmas away from home. Until now every Christmas I would drive home to my parents house and spend a proper traditional Romanian Christmas with the family. This year was time to start creating our own traditions, at our new home in Switzerland. And we managed to create the perfect setting for the perfect Christmas with friends. We cooked, we ate and drunk good wine, we laughed and enjoyed the company of great people, we gave and received presents and we managed to relax watching Christmas movies. Thank you Emilia & Robert, Cristiana & Ioan, my hubby - Traian for this very special holiday. Looking forward to many more together.

Christmas Eve

Santa's Elves 

Full House 

Christmas table

And the Bird, that was so delicious 

The boys enjoying the food and the wine :)

Around the table - Cristiana and Ioan

Desert - Chocolate cake, my Moms recipe.

Me and our youngest guest, Bianca

Have a look also at the presents I gave and received this Xmas. I love all of them!

I got: 1. The Carrie Necklace 2. Pandora Charm Bracelet 3. A very pink fluffy robe 4. A very stylish hair brush with a matching purse mirror and a Twilight necklace for the fan that I am 5. A cheese fondue set for all the dinner parties I am going to host 6.  A shoe calendar for 2012 so that every day I have a new inspiration.  

I gave: 1. The Steve Jobs Biography for a passionate reader 2. The Xbox 360 Kinect for a playful husband 3. Mac Cosmetics for a beautiful friend 4. A knitting set for a very creative friend 5. Logitech Speakers for a former DJ 

[Pictures taken by Emilia, my photographer friend  and by Traian, my hubby]