Jakthong in Paris

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Hotel de Ville: Jardin Demain
2007-05-30 17:39:00
In Paris, you never know where the day will lead you. Getting out of the metro to meet my friends last night I was greeted by a new project of Paris City Hall,The Jardin Demain - Tomorrow Garden. Over 2,000 square metres are transformed into an urban garden featuring the works of Parisian gardeners. For those who want more information, feel free to enter the Hotel de Ville , the city hall itself for the Exhibition of further explanation.Whilst strolling around my friend Monique noticed one scare-crow and called it me... Mu/ aka Jakthong. Well I'll let you be the judge of our similarities.Me, I felt like Alice in Wonderland.Paris blog chic Luxury fashion lifestyle

Paris Pigeons
2007-05-29 23:58:00
Paris is full of pigeons. They are everywhere spreading their hideous and annoying existence around the city of light. Sometimes I feel as if they have adopted the taste of human as to where to go.At Centre George Pompidou where armies of the young and arty and tourist-y gather, thousands of pigeons group up. On the quais Voltaire where some people go there for picnic or a romantic rest looking on the river, several pigeons do the same. There are pigeons in the parks, in front of Notre Dame, in front the Louvre, and once or twice I see some in the metro... practically everywhere. Sometimes even if their physiques are not present, their "merde" is, as if dog's are not enough on the streets already.I don't know who keep feeding them but they are all fat... How come human has learnt to help other species before they help each other. They feed unknown pigeons and ignore the fact that there are underfed Ethiopians. The pigeons here are so fat that I wonder why the Chinese restaurants ...
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Sex and the City Nostalgia
2007-05-28 15:02:00
As an ultimate Lover of Paris, and also a great fan of the show Sex and the City , it was my great pleasure that the last two episodes of the show were set in this City of Light. All the places that Carrie Bradshaw went to during the Paris Episodes have been set into some sort of a Pilgrimage Destination for me. Kong is one of the most remarkable of all those - the scene where Carrie meet Alexandr Petrovsky's ex-wife.It was one of the first places I went to when I arrived in Paris last year. Situated on the top floor of the Kenzo boutique overlooking the Pont Neuf, the oldest bridge of Paris, Kong is intensely decorated by star designer Philippe Starck, an enfant terrible of the French interior design scene. Prepare to bask in the modern geisha folly featuring heads of Japanese girls here and there and everywhere from the walls to the chairs to the plasma screens.This place, however, has become some sort of a tourist attraction by day and then heats up by night.I only go there with ...
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Paris near Summer
2007-05-27 13:34:00
Summer is coming...These days, if it doesnt rain, when I walk around Paris I feel as if I were in Bangkok again. The sun is piercing my skin and the heat makes me perspire. I complain about it to my Dutch friend Warsha and she yells at me laughing "But you are from Thailand!"It's true but at 30 degree celcius we Thai people already hide in the comfort of airconditioning, either at home or in shopping malls.Now every 10 minutes I'm in need of ice cream or fresh juice with a lot of ice. I always look around for the sign of ice-cream shops like Bathillon or Amarino, sometimes with no avail.And this is not even summer yet. I can't imagine it when the real summer comes... My studio doesn't even have a fan let alone air-con...Paris blog chic Luxury fashion lifestyle
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Jean-Charles de Castelbajac
2007-05-26 22:37:00
On Thursday after the final presentation, our dean madame Walker brought us to the Musee Galliera for Jean -Charles de Caste lbajac's exhibition.Though not a real fan of this French Marquis/designer, I adore his creativity and imagination and his absorbtion of arts. Many of his works are heavily influenced by Andy Warhol - also not my favourite artist to be honest.Nevertheless, it was a marvellous experience of strong colours, disco music and daring designs using strange materials such as the infamous teddybear coat that, to me, reflects the idea of "ready-made" arts like the works of Marcel Duchamps which also influenced Andy Warhol.I want that Robe France dress though... (the one with hello kitty head)Paris blog chic Luxury fashion lifestyle
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The End
2007-05-25 22:53:00
And we come to it at last... Yesterday was the last day at school with the final presentation of Givenchy Homme. I got up as, predictably enough, Audrey Hepburn which created a sensation with my great tutor Monsieur Roux who kindly gave my group 20 scores out of 20 for being chic and daring and funny, while the other judge who was shocked at my cross-dressing behaviour just gave us 12. Well, fair enough.As well as other things in the world such as books, movies, marriages, etc, etc, I don't like the ending. Be it a happy ending or a tragedy, the ending always leaves me sad and long for the time I spend with it.With this class, it leaves me depressed. With ten whole months of happiness and tears, of laghters and dramas, I can't imagine how fast time flies. Friendships are made and destroyed in such a short period of time. Some gave up on this course to the unexpected in the South of France, some gave up much later, but most didn't.There are already many who plan to go back to the ...

Hotel de Ville
2007-05-23 03:26:00
Since 1357, the city of Paris' adminitration has been located on the same place where the Hotel de Ville , city hall, stands today. The square in front of the Hotel de Ville building was a huge gathering place for public executions. Although there are still many ceremonies executed there for the public these days, only the traffic is deadly. Sometimes, in the summer, if you walk pass it, the sand is put in and the square is transformed into a beach volleyball-ish area with young boys and girls playing. In winter, the square welcomes the cold by creating a humungous ice-skating area for the masses. It's very picturesque to ice-skate with the divine architecture as the backdrop. Last February, I thought I was back in Asia on Chinese New Year where they held some sort of a chinese circus there. One day the fountain turns shocking pink, etc, etc. Even on normal days, passing by the city hall, admiring its facade is still a real treat. The Hotel de Ville just never ceases to amaz...

Louvre: The Unfinished Task
2007-05-21 12:47:00
It is not humanly possible to finish the Louvre in one day, so it has become my collective task to preside over the museum a wing a visit. It started from the Italian and French paintings, to Egytian Arts to Arabic Arts until last Saturday my task was complete with the Napoleon III's apartment on the Richelieu wing right on the top the Cafe Marly.This apartment of the French version of the Last Emporer is extremely striking, albeit a little too elaborate for my taste. Pictured above, Me having Headache already in the first room. The quintessentially Napoleon III style is what is called Pastiche - an imitation to the past styles. Here, I shall take you on a tour, This is an imitation of a Renaissance Dining Room, grim but regalAn Imitation of a Louis XVI Salon, observe the ribbon motives both on the top of the Canape and on the upholstery, as well as the symmetrical paneling of the walls.This third example is the Grand Salon imitating that of the Louis XV style, bent legged chairs a...
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Birth Right Gender
2007-05-19 00:20:00
It's been quite a while that I had had the great freedom of wearing what I want. Now that priviledge is at its end. Next friday, I will have a n interview for my internship - something I would have treated nonchalantly had it been in Bangkok. However, internship is one of the few ways to secure my stay in Paris... I cannot risk to lose any opportunity, thus some conformity is rather wise in this case. Having cultivated only the feminine side for the past 9 months, dressing up as a man for job interviews is quite a challenge. Today I tried on most of my "serious" men's wardrobe to choose the right "style" for the day; formal with an individual touch...The result is a super duper messy room that looks as if it was a war zone with most of my clothes here there and everywhere.To perfect the look, I need a slim tie... slim trousers... and a slim jacket ---- all from Dior Homme....Donation anyone?Paris blog chic Luxury fashion lifestyle
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Girls Night Out
2007-05-17 19:41:00
Last night, we went to a night club in a boat at Quai de Bercy called Libertalia by recommendation and company of my good friend Warsha.We had the most wondrous mango juice there before we danced our hearts off with Warsha's friends, one of them, pictured below- Dara, to the ethnic beats of the French/Morrocan/R&B music. If you can't imagine how it is like, try imagine the Lion King. Here is the picture of us: from left to right, Yours Truly, Warsha, and MoniqueParis blog chic Luxury fashion lifestyle
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Policeeeee!
2007-05-16 20:29:00
After the result of the French Presidential Elections came out, there have been quite a lot of little riots all over the country. Not the one who would watch television, I didn't realise this until one day while I was glising theatrically around Odeon area.There are Poilice vans here and there and everywhere with strange vehicles that look like a bus that they use to clear snows from the road.There are Poilice vans here and there and everywhere with strange vehicles that look like a bus that they use to clear snows from the road.There were no manifestations nearby but I'm scared of being near a lot of policemen. However, I had a deep desire to be stopped by them and to be asked of my ID now that my visa is still valid.... LOL So that I could show them that I am a LEGAL alien.In two months' time, if I couldn't find a job or enroll in another school, my visa will be expired and the sight of just ONE policeman will have a bigger shocking effect than the whole army like that day...P...
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Nostalgia
2007-05-15 23:13:00
They say that first impression lasts a lifetime.Browsing around the photo collection on my laptop, I'm hit by the photo of an old crush... The Love at First Sight...It was the first and the last time I met him...We went to see the opera together and then I ruined it all... for good.When will I be over him...Paris blog chic Luxury fashion lifestyle
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The Marais Weekend
2007-05-15 01:07:00
Like in most major cities, few inhabitants of Paris have their own gardens. However, the urban planning throughout centuries offers quite a lot of public green space, giving the Parisians the proximity to nature. While some flee to the countryside to get some fresh air on weekends, others find their peace in one of the parks laid in the neighbourhoods of the city.Situated in the heart of the Mara is and being arguably one of the most beautiful squares in the world, Place des Vosges is frequented by locals and tourists alike. This square was built in the early 17th century and was the first of its kind to have all 36 buildings built to the same design. Expect to see a lot of little children especially on Sunday though.If you are not up for the massed humanity on the green grass there you can go to the Hotel de Sully instead. There is a little door connected no. 7 Place des Vosges to the back of the Hotel de Sully. There you can't sit on the immaculately laid gardens but you can sit o...
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Paris Public Space
2007-05-13 21:26:00
I've always adored Paris ' Urban Planning. It's really a republican city given the way it opens itself to its inhabitants, and, of course, its tourists- Beautiful parks dotting every neigbourhood, the various quais along the seine giving everybody an euqal chance to appreciate the river, etc, etc.Among those is the vast square in front of the Hotel de Ville, the city hall. In winter, the square is transformed into an ice skating heaven. In summer, sand is put on the square providing a place for a Parisian version of a beach volley ball. In spring it's empty but there are always activities nevertheless. In this picture, two friends are "Sailing" in front of the Hotel de Ville. It reminds me of people who "used to" play kites in the Sanam Luang which is litterally translated as Royal Court or Royal Garden in Bangkok Summer. Nowadays, I don't know anymore what people do there...Paris France fashion lifestyle chic luxury
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Espace Louis Vuitton
2007-05-11 23:57:00
Being a fashion student in Paris, the name of the Espace Louis Vuitton had been mentioned to me every now and then as the place where the company showcased their support for the arts. However, it was only today where I happened to be running my errands on avenue Montaigne that I finally got a chance to visit the place. And to my delight it was also the first day of its new exhibition "La Tentation de l'Espace".The exhibition features human's dreams of travel into space starting from NASA's archived collection of unpublished photographs, the sleek installation "Sternslr" of Nicolas MOULIN inspired by images of Saturn by the Cassini-Huygens probe, Yves Klein's "Globe Terrestre Bleu RP7" that anticipated the first astronauts who discovered that the Earth appeared blue in the space, to the Production of Philippe Starck that would take us into the space with fellow astronauts. There are also works of many more artists in the exhibition that would last until 26th of August. The big pl...
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Artificial Nature
2007-05-10 22:53:00
The French has always been known for their distinguishable gardens. For classical gardens, no one beats the 17th century's formal glory of the gardens of Versailles, where the royal view from the Halls of Mirrors led King Louis XIV's great ambitions to the distant horizons. The 21st century takes French Gardens into another level. As land becomes scarce, and the needs for nature becomes greater, Patrick Blanc decides it's time to go vertical. The result is just divine.For the past few years, Patrick Blanc's vertical gardens have spotted the major cities of the world, even my home town, Bangkok. But this latest Jean Nouvel's creation of a Museum, Musee du Quai Branly, is the most breathtaking. Being the ONLY major cultural project in the long reign of President CHIRAC, the Musee du Quai Branly houses the indigenous arts and civilisations from Asia, Africa, America, and Oceana but not European. The objects featured there are as outlandish as the Museum is to the neighbouring Haus...
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Dress to Kill
2007-05-10 00:47:00
In Paris, I'm always addressed as "Madame" even when I am in my most masculine outfits. However, there are times when I crossdress, be it a party or more crazily, a school presentation.The pictures above were taken last week at my school for my group's presentation. We were asked to make an export plan for a French brand to whatever county so we created the whole Brand up with me as the owner, HRH Princess Jacqueline de Bourbon-Valois... In the presentation, my only duty and the Madame Royale is to talk la-di-dah as it was one of the only things I could do but the professor (the Blond lady) seemed too impressed for words with my dedication. And that led to her introducing me to her friends in Paris who two days later invited me and my friend Monique to their "Drag" party.The party was held in a private house close to China Town of Paris. The hosts were very hospitable and the star of the show MAX, a mexican-russian boy (?), was just divine.I again ate too much and drank one too ma...
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Paris Je T'Aime
2007-05-08 22:13:00
Paris is the City of Love and this movie "Paris Je T'Aime" more than confirms it. I highly reccomend every Paris Lover in the world to see it. Believe me, every stone here is magical. Just watching this trailer makes me want to cry already.Paris France fashion lifestyle chic luxury
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My Routine Paris
2007-05-07 21:04:00
My Previous Life in Bangkok consists mainly of a quotidient routine of going to Siam Paragon, Siam Square, Siam Centre, and Siam Discovery... Those 4 humungous shopping spaces are situated right next to each other and I went there for all activities in my daily life from shopping to drinking to eating to seeing movies and even to going for a walk! Reborn in Paris , full of enthusiasm and determination to explore, I decided to discover new places to hang out and I did. However, after having been tracking my going-out behaviour for the past 4-5 months I am sad to learn that my life has become some sort of a routine again... The list of places I patronise is far from being extensive and would go as below;1. Mirama on rue Saint Jacques where they serve, for me, the best Cantonese food in town. 2. Tea at Laduree and Mariage Freres.3. Meals and meals at Cafe Marly in the Richelieu wing of the Louvre.4. Wondrous cocktail at Le Fumoir.Now I fear that my unadventurous self is getting into wha...

Parisian in Mourning
2007-05-06 20:17:00
The 2007 French Election has come to an End with the Nicolas Sarkozy's victory... I'll be in mourning now.Paris France fashion lifestyle chic luxury
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Paris Markets
2007-05-04 15:18:00
Another joy of living in Paris is its markets. When I was living in Etienne Marcel area, I was a stone throw away from a pedestrian street called rue Montorgeuil that is lined with specialist shops from a gourmet bakery and butcher's to a place where they sell only foie gras and wine. It is always vibrant there and much more fun than shopping in a normal supermarket. Now that I've moved to another district of Paris I'm still in spitting distance to rue Cler, yet another pedestrian street of grocery shopping; only much more posh and slightly more costly.I love sitting in the Cafe du Marche right in the middle of rue Cler observing the bourgeois people in my neighbourhood shop and checking out their cute sons.Paris France fashion lifestyle chic luxury
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Remembrance of Things Past
2007-05-01 02:37:00
When my good friend Pim announced her trip to Paris early last month I made up a plan and took a stroll in each neighbourhood for the past memory of places I had been to. For the first Arrondisement, the list consists of something like Cafe Marly, Colette, Kong, Le Fumoir, etc, etc. Among those is an intimate salon de the called Cador which is situated right behind the Louvre just a Church away from Le Fumoir on the rue Admiral de Marigny. (pictured above is Carrie Bradshaw from Sex and the City having her tea at Cador) Much to my dismay, when I visited it right before my friend's arrival, the place was closed. The windows are painted white without anything saying when it would be re-open. I said to myself that day that my friend wasn't lucky only to find out now that it's not only her but me also.Tonight I went to Le Fumoir for an after dinner drink and on the way home I walked pass Cador. My French friend told me that it's gone for good, sold to some self-service sandwicherie...
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Role Model
2007-04-30 12:22:00
I've always been a fan of Glenn Close and a BIG fan of 18th Century France. And when they put these two together the result is sublime. This video I found on Youtube is a Sophia Coppola's Marie-Antoinette-inspired choice of music, presenting it contemporarily and slightly edgily.Paris France fashion lifestyle chic luxury
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Bonjour Paris!
2007-04-29 14:22:00
Oh My God! Oh My God! I stumble upon this fabulous excerpt of this movie of the one and only Audrey Hepburn and the most stylish man in America Fred Astaire singing and dancing in Paris .Don't you just adore them and their heavily accented French (Audrey Hepburn's French is perfect though)?Paris France fashion lifestyle chic luxury

High Time for Tea
2007-04-29 02:46:00
For everyone who has seen Sophia Coppola's Marie Antoinette, I hope that you still remember the blooming jasmin tea she was serving her brother the Emperor of Austria. She says that it is from China and it really is- only it is now available for us non-royals at one of my favourite Salon de Thes Mariage Freres. Usually when I go there to be arch and ladylike with my girlfriends, the unadventurous side of me always orders the same teas that I am familiar with; Darjeeling, and Cha Thai (which is from my country). Only this time that I happen to sit next to the owner of this uber chic establishment (he is also from Thailand) that something memorable to my tea experience has happened. I have, of course, read about him here and there from time to time on magazines when I was in Bangkok but what really makes me recognise him is the nervousness of the waiters who fall over themselves making us comfortable. The result was divine!Being asked of reccommendation du jour, the handsome blond wa...
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The Royalist
2007-04-25 17:26:00
I look forward eagerly to the results of the final French Election on May 6 with great excitement. Being a non-French inhabitant, I'm granted the opportunity to observe but not to vote, the same opportunity shared with all the Sovereigns in Constitutional Monarchy countries. By this, I shall remain silent and keep my Royal mouth away from politics while my beloved country is divided into two just like Paris itself, Rive Gauche and Rive Droite. Why, I live in the Rive Gauche so you know who I'd choose. Non?Paris France fashion lifestyle chic luxury

Another Spring Weekend
2007-04-22 13:52:00
It has become some sort of a routine for me to go out of Paris on weekends for some "Fresh Air"- something too utterly bourgeois for me to adopt. This weekend we (Monique, her mum, her cousin and little me) go to Chateau de Malmaison, the retirement place of Josephine, Empress of the French. Compared to Versailles this chateau seems extremely manageable. However, a real admirer of Madame de Pompadour and Marie-Antoinette, I find the Empire Style furnitures in Malmaison less refined than the Louis XV and XVI style and too heavy and masculine for my taste.The gardens here, though, is divine; a French Formal-ish layout in the front and Jardin-a-l'anglaise in the back with a lot of shades to rest and retire from the hassles of the city. I wish I wore a light white cotton dress so that I could just lie down on the grass daydreaming like I usually do. Paris France fashion lifestyle chic luxury
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The Dreamers
2007-04-20 13:59:00
Showing a picture of Laduree Wedding Cake to a French classmate Florent, he laughs pointing at my face saying that Marriage is my ultimate dream. He doesn't know me. But at least he perceives me as the helpless romantic person which is partially true. I might not be pursueing marriage (either white or normal), but I've always been in search of my Prince Charming. Well, at least dreaming of meeting one in my lonely bed...Walking along the rue Faubourg St Honore, the window displays of Lanvin strikes me as very fun and cool for an ancient Fashion House. With the mannequins' heads being those of animals such as lions, donkeys, chicken and many more, I'm reminded that there is no such things as a Prince Charming. Especially when a dream making, most illusional industry like Fashion confirms this I doubt that I would succeed in finding one... In the world where imperfection makes humanity is there really a place for a perfectionist like moi?Paris France fashion lifestyle chic luxury
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Marie Antoinette Phase
2007-04-16 22:47:00
After 100 times of Sophia Coppola's Mari e Antoinette every night before bed I entered the Versailles phase. It was reinforced by a visit of an old friend Pim from Bangkok, a friend I know from Chulalongkorn University- tedious old place where some ridiculous traditions are idiotically observed for ages.Anyway, I held too many tea and dinner parties to warm my new place up then Pim and I had too many trips to Laduree, Mariage Freres (where we had blooming lotus tea like Marie Antoinette ) and Pierre Herme (where we got to taste the.. sorry I forgot... special salt they used in making macaron - also very Marie Antoinette),so we decided that we needed some fresh air so in a wink of luck I waived us invitations to a picnic on Easter sunday in the Forest of Saint Cloud just west of Paris. The picnic company was consisted of innumerable French people of 2 generations- middle aged and underaged, a couple of Russian pianist and dancers, and two Thai GIRLS. I was in a very simple cotton coat...
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Last Breeze of Winter
2007-04-16 18:00:00
I'm frightfully sorry that I'd been absent from my blog for ages. The internet just didn't work at my place, leaving me all RETRO... Well now Spring has come and the heat is all over France. But before we get into that I'd like to make up for the whole month of March as it was the last breeze of Winter . The sun has finally followed me from Bangkok to Paris. The pictures you see are the Musee Rodin's famous Gardens right in my neighbourhood. It was the day I skipped class and followed the sunlight, the First sun of Spring that brings the bloom of the flower called Jonquille or Jonguille or whatever it's called which is the first bloom of Spring in France. The month after that day which is about now is the moment I enjoy the sun like I'd never enjoyed it before. (Those who know me from Bangkok know well how much I despise the sun.) I'm a new woman.Paris France fashion lifestyle chic luxury
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