0 - WELCOME

Spring is (sort of) here!

Hope you are all doing well. February was a whirlwind for me, and I’m glad that I’m back in NYC. I spent the last 2 weeks traveling across UAE, India and France — it was a much-needed getaway, but as always, it’s nice to come home to my own bed. This month, I’ll be heading west to ski for a couple weeks. Can’t wait to get back on the mountains!

Thanks as well to everyone who participated in my jewelry giveaway on Instagram last month! Hopefully I’ll be doing more of these in the future :)

1 - FASHION

Spring Wishlist

Lately, I’ve been having a familiar feeling of “I have nothing to wear” when I look at my closet. Of course, that’s not actually the case — it’s more about styling pieces in fresh ways. For spring, I’m looking to update my wardrobe with a few items like baggy pants, mini skirts and ballet flats. Here’s what I have my eye on:

Five Things I Bought

As always, here are the goodies that I bought and loved last month.

2 - TRAVEL

India

Where to begin? India is such a vast country and in the 1.5 weeks that I was there, I visited Delhi, Agra and Jaipur (the “Golden Triangle”, aka the tourist starter 3-pack). There are plenty of cities that I wasn’t able to check out (like Mumbai, Udaipur, Jodhpur and Goa), so the following is focused on the places I visited this time around:

Things to Do

• Delhi: Delhi has an incredible amount of culture and history, with a plethora of temples, mosques and forts. We spent 2.5 days exploring New Delhi and Old Delhi. Through our hotel, a guide took us around the city, which was helpful especially for the former, which can only be described as organized chaos. You’ll want to be with someone who is familiar with the area and can speak the language

• Agra: Agra is home to the Taj Mahal, which is a must-see. We went on a sunrise tour, which meant a 3 AM pick-up from Delhi in order to make the 7 AM sunrise. It was worth it, as big crowds began to descend on the mausoleum when we left around 10 AM. We also went to the Agra Fort, which is another main attraction

• Jaipur: Jaipur is known as the “Pink City” and is incredibly beautiful. Jaipur is in Rajasthan, a state in Northern India. We spent some time touring with a guide, who showed us around the many forts and palaces. The city is known for textiles, stones and rugs, so be sure to pick up some goodies!

Where to Stay

• Oberoi Hotels: We loved our stay at the Oberoi New Delhi and Rajvilas in Jaipur. The service was impeccable — I can’t wait to stay at another Oberoi property in the future

• Delhi: We also stayed at the Leela Palace, which was great. Other hotels that I’ve heard good things about include the Imperial and the Taj Mahal/Taj Palace Hotel

• Jaipur: Another great hotel in Jaipur is the Taj Rambagh Palace — the former palace was converted into a hotel, so you can only imagine how beautiful it is

What to Eat/Drink

• Hotel Restaurants: The safest places to eat tend to be at hotel restaurants, so we spent most of our time there. In Delhi, this included the ones at the Oberoi (Baoshuan, Dhilli), Leela Palace (Megu, Jamavar) and the Imperial (Spice Route)

• Non-Hotel Restaurants: In Delhi, we enjoyed Lazeez Affaire and Haldiram’s

• Street Food: Unless you have a resilient stomach, I would recommend against eating street food (otherwise you may be spending some time in the bathroom lol)

• Types of Food: I love a good dosa and vegetable biryani. I also had an incredible mushroom tawa masala at Lazeez Affaire that I am still dreaming about

General Advice

• It is very likely that you will get sick in India, however safe you try to be. Don’t drink tap water! Some websites even recommend not to have cold drinks/anything with ice, but I was fine. My boyfriend and I eventually got sick from other food though, which I guess is a rite of passage in India

• Modest dressing is important and a sign of respect — you’ll probably attract unwanted attention if you dress in a manner that is in any way revealing. Don’t wear tank/low tops, short shorts, etc. I pretty much only wore loose clothes (not all that stylish, but at least I fit in)

• If you are visiting for the first time, I recommend arranging for a private car and tour guide to take you around the attractions (we did it through our hotel). Some places can be quite busy and hard to navigate, so having a guide and designated car was helpful. Uber is readily available as well

• I was in India for a wedding — if you’re looking for great quality Indian outfits, I recommend Kalki or Pernia’s Pop Up Shop (both have good options for men too)

• People say that India is somewhat of a culture shock. It can be if you’re not prepared — be sure to do your research!

3 - OTHER

4 - PARTING NOTE

I’ve been watching a lot of foreign language films lately (like Bollywood, French, and Chinese). If you have any favourites, please send them my way!

Until next month, friends.