Chandelier or Lustre?

I've always loved chandeliers. If I could, I would have one in every room in the house. Right now I only have one in my dining room. After moving some furniture around yesterday, I realized I could hang small one in the den and maybe in the foyer too! This one above is from the Vernaison market in Saint Ouen flea market in Paris. I'm so excited!  The hunt begins.

The Doors of Italy

I love everything about wooden front doors in Italy--the paneled wood, the ventilating grill above, the brass kickplate below, the knobs/knockers/handles. Most of these pictures were taken in different towns of Umbria, and some in Rome. I have lots more but got dizzy uploading them.
Enjoy these...

The Peninsula, Shanghai vs. the World Expo

Luxurious was the word.  The air-conditioned lobby was a welcome intermission  between the events of the day, a perfect break from the heat and humidity outside. And even if you can't really compare it to the bigger and more impressive lobbies of its sister properties in Hong Kong or Manila, it was quite sufficient. In the evening, the public areas are all nicely lit. Whoever designed this hotel has a thing for low key lighting and I believe it makes all the difference.

To the Coolest...

Happy Birthday Coolio!

I guess you've left disco behind and are now on to Justin Bieber. From now on I think you're going to teach us what dance music is, instead of the other way around. I loved your 7th birthday party last year--which you planned all by yourself. You invited a dozen of your best girlfriends to a disco party at home.

Shanghai Xiao Long Bao

source

I first discovered Xiao Long Bao in 2002. We were staying at the Four Seasons hotel in Shanghai on a fun trip with 3 other couples and someone in our group had asked the bell captain where we could get  really good xiao long bao, a flavorful pork dumpling with soup inside. The hotel staffer directed us to his favorite cafeteria a couple of minutes' walk from the hotel. 

No Blogspot from Shanghai

We just got back from Shanghai.  Perhaps it's because of the Shanghai World Expo that just opened in May, but it seemed like everyone and their grandmother was in Shanghai!

 

 At Xin Tian Di, after dinner stroll

We had dinner on a Thursday evening at a restaurant in a mall beside Xin Tian Di, the famous leisure street. It was quite crowded for a Thursday night-- but it was nothing compared to the crowd the next day at Nanjing road, the pedestrian shopping street. It didn't help that it was also extremely hot at 38 degrees, so it wasn't very comfortable to be walking the streets with the crowd. The only other time I was in Shanghai was in March some 8 years ago, and the weather was much more pleasant than it was now.