What a life-changing year!  So much has happened and during certain moments, I honestly never thought I could get through 2011 without a major breakdown mais voilà, here I am and here are the highlights of my 2011:

Best decision:

- Of course, I have no idea what the future will hold but I feel, with every molecule of my being, that leaving Paris is and will always be one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.  I have been unhappy for a long time and I have to take charge of what I feel/want, so this decision changes everything. Literally every single thing. I wholeheartedly believe that those changes will be for the better. My favourite quotation of all time has pushed me forward and I just know that everything will be okay: “Every man is his own ancestor, and every man his own heir. He devises his own future, and he inherits his own past”. H.F. Hedge

Favourite experiences:

- Easter Mass at Sacré-Coeur was absolutely amazing particularly since my mother was visiting.  She doesn’t understand French but it is our favourite church and listening to the nuns sing and the children say “Happy Easter” in every language from Mandarin to English to Russian to German was amazing.

- Afternoon Tea with my friends at La Bauhinia at the Shangri-la, also known as the Shangri-wow. Such a diverse group of women and realise how lucky I am to have met each one of them.  Gosh, I’ll miss them so much.  

- Sharing good food, crying, laughing and having a merry old time at Le Meurice with someone I treasure: Madame Boisclair AKA the nicest person I have ever met. 

- Snuggling up with my kitties – love them!  Yes, crazy cat lady!

- Staying at Paris’ Plaza Athénée.  This was a dream come true!

- Watching La Source at Palais Garnier (Opéra National de Paris).  Not only was the production wonderful, to actually be inside one of my favourite buildings in the world, watching an opera was just spectacular.  It was even more memorable as I had just moved out of my apartment and it was a much-needed moment of happiness. If you haven’t been here, you absolutely must!

Best view:

- Sitting in the Jules Verne restaurant (blog post to follow) located on the Eiffel Tower, overlooking the city and enjoying a good meal and a wee bit of bubbly.  This was made even more special because I shared this moment with my dear friend Jessica. If you’ve ever had this view of Paris, you’ll appreciate how breathtaking it is. If you haven’t, get booking!

Best buy:

- When I bought my first pair of Repetto ballerinas, I swear my feet wanted to kiss me.  They’re so comfy and just make walking a pleasure.  In actual fact, my “au revoir Paris” present to myself will be a trip to Repetto next week to stock up on a few pairs.  For a wee fraction of the price of designer ballerinas, these are a must and so much more comfy than Chanel ballerinas… Save those pennies!

Best meal:

- The best meal I had this year was without a doubt lunch at Camélia at the Mandarin Oriental with my lovely friend Stephanie.  I wish I could relive this lunch over and over again.

Favourite blogs:

- LatteLisa is utter perfection.  I actually don’t read this blog very often because it completely consumes me and nothing gets done.  However, when I have two-three hours free, I sit with a pot of tea and a ridiculously large supply of chocolate and catch-up with the limitless beauty of the posts.  Plus Lisa is lovely!

- Maya Beus needs no introduction – she did all the illustrations for my blog, is super talented and strikes me as being a very strong woman.  Yes, I heart Maya!

- STYLE’N is Naina’s blog full of chic personal style, delicious Indian-inspired recipes, design and a wee peek into her fabulous life.  

- Emily from Cupcakes & Cashmere never ceases to amaze me.  I swear, everything from food to style to interiors just looks fabulous.  I don’t follow any of the major bloggers except her, mainly because along with being super creative, she seems nice.  She also has a book coming out, which I preordered from Amazon.

Favourite Tweethearts:  

 - @Ilana is so funny, gorgeous and when she’s not occupied with her crazy cat lady duties, she writes novels and tweets sarcastically, much to my pleasure.  I once went on a date with a guy who informed me that my sarcasm wasn’t very becoming.  I suggest he avoid Ilana.  

 - @3smallapples can usually be found sporting a new cardi, eating a crunchie and desperately trying not to murder her work colleagues, all to amusement of the Twitterverse. Plus she has to most hilarious ‘About‘ page ever.  

Favourite beauty products:

- NARS ‘Mascate’ matt lipstick

- Bioderma créaline solution micellaire

- Sanoflore mattifying moisturiser

Best advice:

“Do what is right for you” – one very simple piece of advice, but it led to me making some major decisions and putting me on the right path.

How about you, what have been the highlights of your year? 

So, I’m ending this year by embracing the positives and looking forward to what is sure to be an amazing 2012!  As Mark Twain said “There is no sadder sight than a young pessimist”. 

Thank you for reading – I so enjoyed reading your comments over the last year.  See you in 2012 and a very Happy New Year to you all! 

Post-shopping with a friend, we decided to stop off for a spot of lunch at one of Paris’ finest hotels, the Mandarin Oriental on Rue Saint-Honoré. Camélia welcomed us with a delectable dessert counter and we almost went skipped the savoury stuff but thank the heavens, we came to our senses. The cannelloni stuffed with butternut squash (served with a green salad) was utter perfection and if you ever saw how we were eating: so slowly, savouring every mouthful as we ate in silence. Seriously, using one’s mouth to talk would have detracted from eating and no can do! I never order pasta in a restaurant because other than spaghetti with a tomato sauce, I’m not a big fan, but this was delicious. The butternut squash was cooked with a wee crunch, the pasta al dente and the sauce light in texture and rich in flavour. They also have the best salted butter in Paris. Do they make it? How? Hallelujah for Camélia!

We were quite full but you know me and sweet treats, plus we’d already seen what was on offer and let’s be honest, we’re really not that strong-willed. Going with the hotel’s namesake, my friend opted for ‘Le Mandarin’ which is a dark chocolate mousse and in honour of the location, I chose ‘Le Saint-Honoré’ – puff pastry filled with vanilla cream and caramel. As someone not keen on pastry, I was blown away.

Great service, very clean and the calming nature from the huge courtyard is nice. Bar 8 is also pretty cool. Definitely one of my favourite spots in Paris.  If you like good living and beautiful aesthetics, the Mandarin Oriental will not disappoint.  Now I just need to stay there.  Yes, the eternal optimist!

Camélia
Mandarin Oriental
251 Rue Saint-Honoré
75001 Paris
France
+33 (0) 1 70 98 78 88