Finally, finally, finally…I’m now a proud owner of a Green Star Juicer! Yey!

I have surfed the net for the best juicer to invest on and found out that the best kind is the “grind and press” machine because they do not heat up. Apparently, when you get a centrifugal juicer, it generates heat and kills all the nutrients in your fruits and vegetables — so all your juicing efforts are useless. The most recommended brand by raw food enthusiasts and cancer patients is the Norwalk, the only juicer that is used by the Gerson Institute. I didn’t get to buy this juicer because it goes for a whooping $2000! So, I just bought the next best thing, again, as per raw food enthusiasts and cancer patients — the Green Star Juicer…and I love it!

I never thought that I’d get to drink raw celery, spinach, wheat grass, and broccoli…and not puke. But with my Green Star, I can mix these veggies with strawberries, kiwis, apples, carrots, and other fruits…and the mixture actually tastes great! Not yucky at all. Promise. :)

So maybe you’re wondering why I’m juicing? Well, it’s the yummiest and simplest way to get all the nutrients we need. Most days, I am guilty of not being able to follow the recommended serving of veggies and fruits that we need daily. A veggie lasagna is definitely more tempting than a bowl of fresh veggie salad, but the former is cooked and has less veggies in it; thus, less nutrients. Now that I am juicing, I can finish one tall glass of veggies and fruits without effort…it’s really delicious!

For those who live in Paris, I got mine from the health shop Pousse Pousse in the 9th arrondissement. It’s Green Star’s authorized distributor in France. The owner of that health shop, Madam Lawrence Aboucaya, is very kind and accommodating. I am actually excited to go back to her shop and sample her healthy cuisine. Oh, she sells fresh wheat grass, too! :)

Happy healthy living, everyone!

Posted: April 23rd, 2009 under Health.
Comments: 12

I have always wanted to join a European religious pilgrimage when I was young. Of course, at that time, I never even thought that I will live in Europe one day. So now that I am here, my first agenda was to visit the nearest pilgrimage site in the city where I live in — and that is the Chapelle Notre Dame De La Medaille Miraculeuse (Chapel of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal) at 140 rue du Bac 75007 Paris.

It is in this chapel that Mama Mary appeared three times to a novice,Catherine Laboure, in the year 1830. Perhaps, the most significant outcome of those apparitions was the request of Mama Mary to make and distribute the Miraculous Medal, the design of which was shown by Mary herself to Catherine. This happened in November 27, 1830 at 5:30pm during Catherine’s meditation, and the official transcript given by Catherine is as follows:

Catherine first saw a picture of the Blessed Virgin, standing on a half-globe holding in her hands a small golden globe, with her feet crushing a serpent. From the open hands of the Blessed Virgin, beautiful rays of light where shining and at that same moment Catherine heard a voice saying:“These rays are symbols of graces that Mary obtains for people.” Then an oval formed around the apparition and Catherine saw emblazoned in a semi-circle this invocation, until then unknown: “ O Mary conceived without sin pray for us who have recourse to you”, written in gold letters. Then the picture turned and St. Catherine saw on the reverse side: the letter M surmounted with a little cross and below it the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary. Catherine then heard these words: “Have a medal made on this model. Those who will wear it with confidence will receive great graces.” (Source: Official Website of the Chapel of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal)

We spent an hour touring this beautiful chapel and we lined up along with other tourists to buy Miraculous Medals for ourselves. I wanted so much to go near the altar and have a good luck at the incorrupt body of St. Catherine, but they were having a special ceremony for the Sacred Heart of Jesus and I was unable to go near. I guess I will just have to come back to take a look at St. Catherine and pray at the foot of altar where Mama Mary said these words:

“Come to the foot of the altar, it is there that graces will be showered on all those who ask with confidence and fervor”.

For those who wish to send their prayer intentions to the sisters of this chapel, you may do so here. I pray that all your prayers will be answered by God in one way or another. :)

Posted: April 22nd, 2009 under Paris.
Comments: 5

This is a little bit late, I know…but I just can’t bring myself to write about Easter Bunnies when I overdosed on them last weekend.

I was innocently taking my walk on my usual route and I realized that the chocolatiers of Paris all came up with their own versions of Easter Bunnies. They were all provocatively displayed in their stores and I must have seen a thousand chocolate bunnies staring at me on my way to the grocery. To be honest, I almost went inside one shop which sells Lindt Easter Bunnies. But my, I will be the tallest one in there! Out of delicadeza, I opted not to go inside and just leave the chocolates to the kids. Sigh. It sucks to be an adult.

But as I am writing this…I now wish I did get myself one of those Lindt Easter Bunny chocolates! But at least I can keep this picture / advertisement as a testimony of how life sucks when you get past 13…

Posted: April 15th, 2009 under Random Thoughts.
Comments: none

I grew up with the Gboys as my extended family. These crazy guys from Ateneo are like brothers to my husband, and so they are family to me as well. They spent four eventful years in high school together…so you can just imagine the bond and the love they have for each other. Eventually, a lot of them got married…and some are still getting married. And this post is about the video that some Gboys (including my hubby…what a surprise!) filmed for their beloved classmate, Gibby, who got married to Sab last March 28, 2009. My hubby decided to be part of this video because we know that we won’t be able to go to their wedding as we are already en route to Europe on that day. I watched the filming of this video — which took a whooping four hours or so (for the love of Gibby and Sab) — but, I’ve never imagined that it’ll turn out this nice, and this crazy!!! The song choice is really meant to be corny to add to the humor…and well, the acting is meant to be “boy band-ish” too. Gosh, I have never laughed so hard…I can imagine how pleasantly surprised Sab was during her wedding day with this being part of the wedding reception program. I mean, who would have thought that they have friends (who are all professionals, by the way) who are willing to be this cheezy?! Hahaha! That’s what friendship and love do, I guess. :)

To Gibby and Sab…we love you and we are soooooooo sorry to have missed your wedding. I sorely missed all of you after watching this video, and it has definitely made me feel lucky to have so much love in my life through you both and the rest of the Gboys family. Indeed, indeed…there is much love to go around.

NOTE: This video was conceptualized and edited by John Unson — a really talented guy. You should hire him! You’d be crazy not to. :)

Posted: April 10th, 2009 under Random Thoughts.
Comments: 3

Paris is flooded with tourists all year round, but most especially during summer. They say that Parisians escape to their country homes to avoid the mad rush in the metro and almost anywhere during this time. And I guess with the throng of tourists flying in, the hotels are fully booked around this time. But I think there’s a better and cheaper alternative to hotels if you don’t mind cleaning after your own mess — rent a Paris apartment!

There are a number of agencies who rent apartments short term or long term, and they usually have reasonable prices and their apartments are well located. I can really vouch for one agency — My Flat in Paris. We have rented with them for a couple of times already and their apartments are really beautiful, well-located (Central Paris), and well-kept. Their service is superb, too. Not to mention that they speak English really well, so you can go ahead and forget about the language barrier. :) And if you are fairly new here in Paris and wouldn’t want to risk getting lost from the airport to your rented apartment, you can also ask them to arrange an airport pick-up for you and their chauffeur will promptly pick you up at the airport and carry your luggage, too. I cannot overemphasize what a big relief it is to have someone help you carry your luggage. If you’re lucky, your apartment will have an elevator, but if you’re not, you will have to deal with very narrow stairs…and I tell you, it is not easy to trudge all the way up with your bags in tow.

Now, if you are preparing for a really grand Paris vacation, why not rent a designer Paris apartment? A La Carte Paris specializes in such, and I guess they are the only ones who market their apartments as “designer apartments”. I have met the owner of this agency, and I can say that he really takes great effort in providing world-class accommodations and have really put his heart in coming up with great designs for each of their apartments. You should see his office! It’s really nice and warm in there…so I guess you can expect the same in any of their 70 apartments in Paris. Their apartments are also located in Central Paris, and they have already prepared booklets for their guests which has all the information that a tourist will ever need to have a wonderful vacation in Paris. Isn’t it thoughtful of them? :)

For those who are coming over to Paris to work, I think it’ll be a great idea for you to get an apartment near La Defense, Paris’ business district which is just outside the Paris border. I came across the family-owned apartment rental, 5Pierre, which has apartments in the La Defense area. I have personally visited one of their apartments and found it to be nice, practical, and with well-thought-of layout — well-suited for busy professionals.

But of course, apartment renting might not suit everybody. It is still nice to have somebody fix your bed and bring you breakfast — especially if you’re on a holiday. So go on, book a hotel and pamper yourself if you must. Paris hotels won’t disappoint, I’m sure. :)

Posted: April 8th, 2009 under Paris.
Comments: none