Favela Chic

Cool London meets the back street of Brazil. In a nutshell this was my first impression of Favela Chic. Venue used to be a clean cut City of London type bar, which now has been transformed with bits from charity shops and demolitions. Sexy international crowd. The odd banker, sassy teens (best way to describe them!). By far the coolest London crowd I have seen. Will be back another time when I am not exhausted and preferably without an early morning flight the next day to haunt me

And if you don't believe me ... Favela Chic in their own words

FOR THOSE WHO DON'T KNOW
One year young in london. Ten years old in Paris.

The bastard brainchild of a Franco-Brasillian marriage with recent English adoptions....
Favela Chic. Dine. Drink. Dance. Sit. Stand. Jump. Samba. Rock. Pop. Lunch. Dinner. Lounge.Brazillian cuisine. French style. London attitude.
Favela Chic is a bar, a restaurant, a club, a carnivale, an East End knees up, a bordello and none of the above.
Late dinner service. Early dancing girls (and boys).
All hail our saviour - Caipirinha!
Vive La France! Disorder and Progress! God Save the Queens!

New York in a Flash

Admittedly I did gloss over my recent fleeting visit to NYC. It all went so quickly and the mix of emotions was intoxicating. So here it is ... I am thinking of living there for a while. Better even, I have made up my mind that I want to be there for the rest of the year. Visa docs are in progress and I will know either way this time next month. Phew!! Feels good to say it (ok, write it!) out loud!!

Up until two weeks ago I was in no man's land. Thinking it may be a good career move, so I would put up with it for a while. Previous visits I have always toyed with the idea of living in NYC, and now that the very real opportunity presented itself I didn't immediately jump at it. It only took a split second for all the doubt to evaporate. The moment I stepped out of JFK and into the humid June air, hailed a yellow cab and sat back for the rush hour drive into Manhattan, I knew! I like this place too much ... and how I kept forgetting.

Later that night sitting on a rooftop somewhere in the West Village, surrounded by good friends, my mind was made up. The next few days at work, the rush of successful meetings, the endless energy of my colleagues and the overall work atmosphere only cemented the thought.

What do we think? AlphaChick does NYC ... if I may say, it has a rather nice ring to it !!

Spotted

When I first moved to London ... more than six years ago ... I relished those spy like magazine columns which reported where celebrities had been seen shopping, drinking, picking their nose. It felt great knowing I live in a city where I could be bumping into my current idol (at that time this changed on a weekly, almost hourly basis) at any moment. Now that the gloss of London has worn off, looking back now I realise the likelihood would have been just as high wandering around Bondi.

Over the last few days spotted

Jemima Rooper, Fi from Sinchronicity ... the short lived BBC3 show which inspired the naming of this very blog. I was struck by how tiny she is, sitting there on the Victoria Line.

And tonight walking along Upper Street, there she was standing on the sidewalk having a chat ... Alexandra Moen from Tripping Over

Wet Weekend

Not quite what I imagined my first London weekend in a while ... but hey! This is London and rain is just part of the deal.

Friday night I had planned a run (didn't happen) before dinner at Kath's. I hadn't seen her in a few weeks and it was genuine quality time over a healthy salmon & asparagus dish and a small glass of Riesling.

Saturday came the much anticipated sleep in! Sleeping is right up there when it comes favourite activities, although it rates below sex it is still up there!! Followed by a stroll in the park (no run again!) and matinee of Swan Lake at Royal Albert Hall. For this I had to give up a VIP ticket to the Taste of London ... and it was unbelievable. If you imagine RAH is round and the stage was the 80% of the lowest level, all the seating tiered around it. From our high up box we could spy the impeccable patterns created by the dancers. It is my favourite ballet, and this was the first time I had seen a traditional production. I am still breathless ...

After retiring early last night I really had no excuse. This morning I was at a 9am yoga class! Battled Sunday traffic to make a 'relaxing' facial at the Urban Retreat (amazing what us, Londoners, put ourselves through for the sake of comfort), and then a late and lazy lunch with Bob and Marie. The last time I saw them was months ago, but with a little direction we covered all the major topics and can safely say we are 'up-to-date' on each other's lives!

All in all ... a wonderful weekend! Bring on the next one ... sans rain please :-)

Absence makes the heart grown fonder

I have been absent, I know ... A lot going on and definitely not enough sleep.

Last week while enjoying a beautifully crafted cocktail at the Pegu Club in New York, I had some time to think and reflect. I wildly jotted down things I wanted to write about ... so it is all coming your way. Good things do come to those who wait.

40 Hours in Ibiza

Wonderful, warm, slightly insane ...

The Weekend

The long awaited JB and AlphaChick reunion is finally here!! In 12 hours I'll be with her in Ibiza, for gossip, sun and party. Judging by our conversation earlier today ... party has begun !! Yeah baby!!

Ghost

Just as I decide I am totally over something, a surprise is always awaiting around the corner. Walking along Upper St tonight jaded, jet lagged and anticipating a delicious Ottolenghi salad (in lieu of a scrumptious Ottolenghi cake) ... there is it was. The Ghost store. And just as I was thinking Islington is not quite me ...

New York, New York

Alpha is off to New York ... for a bit of work and a bit of fun! Catching up with old and new friends and of course some shopping.

Sampling one of the new business class only airlines, and so far so good. From arrival at Stansted to reaching the lounge (check-in, security, comfort break, quick browse in duty free) ... 20 minutes. If the other end is this seamless then I am happy to forever wave goodbye to BA for this route. Not sure about you, but the extra hour in bed is a sure winner for me!!!

P.S. It only got better. Noise cancelling Bose headphones. Completely flat bed, complete with sheets and a snugly duvet and down pillow. Restaurant quality food - the monk fish with wasabi mash was delicious. The service continued to be a flawless example. At JFK it was 35 minutes from touchdown to sitting in a cab. On the return flight I slept like a baby for 5 out of the 6 hours. Opting for a 'breakfast to go'. Now that is a nice touch!

Good Vibes

I fixed my Ipod shuffle! Walking to work this morning listening to my favourite tracks, it is amazing what it does for your mood. It is going to be a fantastic week!!

How Not to Get a Date

Although you may have realised am not really sharing the juicy bits with you anymore. This one had to be told.

A few weeks ago I met a guy in a bar. Using the word 'met' quite liberally. It was more like he approached, offended my friend and then would not go away. I found his persistence quite entertaining. This led to more conversation and he asked for my number. I wasn't too convinced but had found him quite witty and I figured any guy who has the nerve to approach me deserves a chance. After quite a bit of to-and-fro I succumbed and he left us to get on with our evening.

Given that the whole experience could have been viewed as embarrassing, borderline humiliating, I was very surprised when I heard from him less than 24 hours later. Over the next 5 or 6 texts a date was arranged for the following Sunday.

Sunday came along, and he texted early afternoon pleading for a rain check. His brother had just gotten engaged and he wanted to celebrate with him. Fair enough, family does come first in my books. Rearrangements were made for the following Sunday. This is the bit where it gets a bit suspect, or annoying rather ... He cancelled again (on Friday) saying he was spending the weekend helping out with his mother's gardening. Ok, again I would dump a guy I don't know for Mum too. Am free tonight, he says ... Tonight being Friday night and I on my way to the Old Vic. Anyway, we arrange a mid week drink. Venue and time were undecided and when I didn't hear from him the day before, I made other plans. Subconsciously I figured he would cancel again. Sure enough at 2pm the following day I got the following text (approximate wording, the original is long gone):

Hey you, I haven't forgotten about tonight but cannot get out of client drinks. Are you free tomorrow?

Needless to say, I didn't answer and moved on with my secondary plans for the evening. The 'tomorrow' he refers to was Friday night. Does he really think he can get away with a prime slot for a first date, given he hasn't even bothered to pick up the phone! I was getting annoyed and had to be reminded I didn't even want to go out with this guy in the first place.

A week or two passed and I had completely forgotten about him. Then last Friday night the following text arrives:

Hey, I know we never dated but it was not through lack of
interest, how are you? *insert name

Now I had to laugh, again it has come to Friday night and this guy has no one to hang out with so starts texting away. Really, to you guys reading this ... pick up the phone if you want to be taken seriously... I didn't respond but a few hours later thought a piece of advice might do him good. Why do I feel the need to do that sometimes ? Personality trait or fault?

Me: Fair enough, but we have arranged to meet three times on each occasion you have canceled last minute. To tell the truth it seems a bit too much effort.

I sent it off. Happily skipping down the street, stupidly thinking he'll 'GET IT' and move on to pester another unlucky soul. But of course I'm wrong ... he responds:

Ok thats fair, can I try again one day, last chance for an idiot?

Now this is the 'pity card'! Brought it right home ... this started out as a 'pity date'. Needless to say the last one didn't get a response.