tic... tac...

tourneau - E57th st & madison - map it here
Time flies...
This time tomorrow... will be next year...
Tic... tac...

joyeux noël from brussels

manneken pis - rue de l'étuve - bruxelles - belgique - map it here
Who doesn't like Manneken Pis, one of Brussels tiniest, most famous and most irreverent resident? He dates back to 1619, is located close to the Grand-Place and symbolizes the independent spirit of the residents of the city.
On occasion, you can find him wearing something on. The little rascal is spoiled: he often receives costumes from foreign dignitaries visiting our city, or for special occasions, to honor a profession or an event, ... This is a tradition going back to way back when... He even has something that every New York girl would be very jealous of: insane closet space!!! Indeed, this little guy has a museum to keep all his costumes!

Joyeux Noël!
Merry Christmas!
and... "Happy Festivus for the rest of us"

I have added a few links at the end of this post so you can visit his wardrobe and explore the Grand-Place.

grand-place - bruxelles - belgique
[apologies for the poor quality - this jewel of a site deserves so much better...]
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learn more about our little friend here:
• http://www.manneken-pis.com
• Manneken Pis on wikipedia
• costume calendar
• a few pictures of the little guy dressed up

learn more about the Grand-Place here:
• take a 360 tour of the Grand-Place: http://www.world-heritage-tour.org
• Grand-Place on wikipedia
• Grand-Place on http://whc.unesco.org

mon beau sapin... roi des forêts...

somewhere on main street - cold spring, ny - hudson valley - map it here
This picture was taken a few months ago in Cold Spring, a popular weekend destination in the Hudson Valley. It is an easy trip for the intrepid New Yorkers venturing out of the city for a day of antiquing in the country. The train ride along the Hudson River is a little over an hour, costs about $20 round trip and is absolutely gorgeous.
I think it is a little christmas treet is doormat for a very spoiled little dog. It is also a reminder to make sure you decorate your tree... ;)

greetings from barney's new york

[... more to come...]

greetings from bergdorf goodman

[... more to come...]

greetings from bloomingdale's

bloomingdale's - map it here
This year, holiday windows at Bloomingsdale's rhymes with 50ies, 60ies nostalgia and Tony Bennet songs. Each window illustrates a classic tune of the holiday season.
Let's peek in! Feel free to sing along as these tunes are playing outside of each window. :)

***

Jingle bells...

Jingle bells, jingle bells
Jingle all the way
Oh, what fun it us to ride
In one horse open sleigh
[...]

Winter wonderland...

Sleigh bells ring, are you listening,
In the lane, snow is glistening
A beautiful sight,
We're happy tonight,
Walking in a winter wonderland.
[...]

Have yourself a merry little Christmas...

Have yourself a merry little Christmas,
Let your heart be light
From now on,
our troubles will be out of sight
[...]

I'll be home for Christmas...

I'll be home for Christmas
You can count on me
Please have snow and mistletoe
And presents under the tree
[...]

Santa Claus is coming to town...

You better watch out
You better not cry
Better not pout
I'm telling you why
Santa Claus is coming to town
He's making a list
And checking it twice

He'd better check it twice, that list! I don't know about you but I am a bit worried when I read his list... Are you on the list? Hmmm???

greetings from coach

coach - 595 madison avenue - map it here
For those who need some convincing that a girl can never have enough bags...

... or smoking hot and fantabulous crazy shoes... which you wouldn't be able to wear anywhere, anytimes, anyways...

greetings from vuitton

louis vuitton - fifth avenue & E57th street - map it here
The Vuitton façade on Fifth Avenue already looks as if it was gift wrapped all year long.
It could thus be a bit of a challenge to find ways to create even more sparkles for the holidays. And that's when the magic neon decorations come in. Ah neon lights... always groovy and fantastic.

greetings from the plaza

the plaza hotel - central park south - map it here
I took this picture a few weeks ago, on Thanksgiving day. Since then, they pumped up a bit the holiday decoration - more pine cones, more bows, ...

penn station, dressed up for the holidays

penn station - 34th street & 7th ave. - map it here

maxilla & mandible - holiday window

maxilla & mandible - 451 columbus avenue - map it here
In Manhattan, you can almost find anything you want if you know where to look. For that unique gift for the person on your list "who has everything", Maxilla & Mandible may just be the perfect place for your holiday shopping. Paleontology (fossils), osteology (bones), entomology (insects), malacology (seashells), anatomy, jewelry, ... they have it.

"A shop for the truly discerning shopper...", as they say in that vintage video on their website.

Picture credit: yelp.com

autumn in central park

central park - map it here
This was taken a couple of weeks ago, on Thanksgiving Day. While everybody is watching the parade, this is the best time to snap a few pictures of the beautiful autumn colors in the park. And catch that perfect shaped tree with its little carpet. ... which leads me to this gripping question: does anybody has a trick to remove coffee stains on a carpet? "Someone" was clumsy enough to drop a grande latte on a rug, although the cup was securely standing on the edge of the coffee table next to the book pile that sits next to the laptop that... Yep, I am not proud.

lipstick jungle

lipstick building - E53rd and third ave. - map it here
Here's a touch of glamour with the Lipstick Building. Its unusual shape and color was inspired by... lipstick. It has three layers stacked like an opened lipstick tube. Here's a much better view.

The first time I saw it, years ago, I would have bet it had something to do with cinema. I always found its rows of windows to look like film canisters. I guess someone needs to spend more time at Lancôme.

stop - listen - enjoy

times square subway station - map it here
I attended one of the best underground jam session a few weeks ago. No, it was not at the Blue Note, the Village Vanguard, the Iridium or other smoky hideaways. Nope. It was in the Times Square subway station.

I figured I was in no rush to head home and just stopped, curious and intrigued by the crowd gathered around these guys. Before I knew it, they captivated me for at least 40 minutes. They were that good.

They sold a lot of CDs and visibly enjoyed giving a good show to the big crowd assembled to hear this jazzy conversation.

Apologies for the poor quality - iPhone does not like neon lights.

un indien dans la ville

thanksgiving day parade - central park west - map it here
I found the Big Chief of last week pow-wow.

you are here

corner of vanderbilt & dekalb Ave, fort greene, new york - map it here
What do you do on gloomy rainy day? Either you stay home, mad at the sky, watching DVDs and drinking hot cocoa. Or, you explore a new neighborhood and stumble on something that can brighten your day. Which is what I did yesterday and discovered Fort Greene, a Brooklyn neighborhood. And I stumbled on this very nice mural.

If you enlarge the picture, you might be able to see little dots on the map - people of the neighborhood where invited to put a dot in the spot where their home was located.
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To learn more about this mural:
• a little video that will show you the mural being completed: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VO7Gvmdd1zE
• Tillie's of Brooklyn, the coffee shop that hosts it: http://www.tilliesofbrooklyn.com/mural.html
• and the blog of the artist, Ellie Balk: http://www.tilliesmuralproject.blogspot.com/