Monday, September 23, 2013

No Carbs!

My friend and flatmate has decided to do a no-carbs 3 days marathon starting tomorrow. Being such a great friend (modest, modest), I have decided to help her conquer the next three days by joining her marathon myself. 


 It's gonna be great!

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Tuesday, September 17, 2013

Home Kong

As some of you might know, I lived in Hong Kong before. I was fascinated with it since I arrived back in February 2012 and I grew to consider it my home until I left in May. Over the summer I just couldn't help but wonder about moving back to Hong Kong for good. In the past seven years I lived in so many different countries, but I have never felt so at home as in Hong Kong.
Therefore I just took the plunge and moved back with a friend of mine.


We are settling in our shared room and celebrating by enjoying the great variety of food that Hong Kong offers.



Coconut smoothie at Shek O
Japanese food is so good and CHEAP here!
Green tea!!


 If you need a pick-me-up, but you don't want to feel guilty about indulging in XXX calories, I recommend sharing your dessert with friends ;)
 And then go for an amazing hike!



Love life boys and girls!

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Sunday, September 15, 2013

Summer Summary

Due to my intense summer schedule I haven't posted anything in a while. So here is the summary of the past three months:

I was first in Amsterdam to hand in my thesis and celebrate the moment with my friends 
Great brunch at Le Pain Quotidien
I was lucky enough to stay at my friend's loft in Antwerp, she also graduated so we celebrated with pimms


In July I spend almost two weeks in Russia visiting both Moscow and St. Petersburg.
Such a great Country to travel to!
I was so glad that my friend speaks a bit of the language thou, cause in Moscow it is not easy to get around otherwise...







In a bar ;)

Who else is obsessed with Anastasia mysterious story?
I am typically a seaside person, especially in summer, my vacation place of choice is by the beach. Mountain and cities I would put aside for winter holidays... However I am so glad my friend convinced me to visit St. Petersburg in July. It is honestly the perfect time. Weather was so great that we even got to go to the beach!


Beer size in Russia ;)

Crazy things happen in St. Petersburg...


After Russia it was finally time to go home, back to Italy to see my family and friends.
Home sweet home!
Villa Olmo
Of course one thing I absolutely love about Italy is the food. It's the food I grew up with and the food that makes me feel the healthiest. Esselunga Superstore is hands down the best supermarket in my area, that's why when I go there with my mum we stock up big time!

Best salad ever!
Gratin tomato and broccoli with parmesan cheese by my great friend who always loves to experiment with new recipes. 

She also makes amazing scones and "geographical biscuit"

Since she came to visit me, we thought it would be nice to organize a BBQ for her to meet my Italian friends



My last Italian brunch
 Lastly, my summer concluded with a family vacation in Turkey. We went to Antalya which of course is amazing.



I simply cannot live without summer
Love life boys and girls!































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Sunday, June 16, 2013

Italian (Fashion) Industry

Today a bit of a different post:

 I finally graduated from University few days ago. I studied International Fashion Management in Amsterdam and now I am in that strange limbo before finding a job in the industry.

 Being Italian I am torn between going back to my Country or not. However the economic and social situation, even in the fashion industry, is making it harder for me to decide objectively.

 I read the following statements from Bertelli, the Administrator of the Prada group, and I found them very provocative. Unfortunately I agree with him...

 Sorry that it is in Italian, I will try to translate the main points. Bertelli says: "To introduce young people in the working world means to having to take care of them and teach them a job. In order to do this, companies have to be presented with the opportunity and a load of work that can aloud them to do so. Right now Italian companies do not have enough work to be able to hire young people."
He then continues his provocation answering to the Italian government saying: "Instead of talking about young people, the government should worry about bureaucracy - there the money can be found to avoid the increase of IVA (taxes). In Italy the industry produces results and the government throws them out of the window. To raise taxes (again!) would be a national disaster. To reduce holidays would be the solution to earn more and be able to hire more personnel" he says, "six weeks of holidays a year are way to much".

Bertelli also talks about tourism in Italy: "The tourism situation is disastrous, how can we even talk about tourism, when we are not even able to resolve Malpensa and the other airports' problems? There are not direct flight, the hubs are Frankfurt, Paris and London" Then, referring to politicians' effort in the issue he says: "I never hear a politician talking about tourism in the sense. We are (Italy) after Spain. In Florence, Rome and Venice there is a touch-and-go tourism. In Venice there is a more quality tourism thanks to the Triennale, but when you look for services, you cannot find them."

What do you think of Patrizio Bertelli's provocative answer to a government that is not listening to its Country?

Below is the original from Fashionmag.com

 "Giovani vuol dire introdurre persone che non sanno lavorare e che vanno condotte ad imparare un lavoro". Lo ha detto l'amministratore delegato del gruppo Prada Patrizio Bertelli intervenendo al '5 Luxury Summit' organizzato a Milano dal "Sole24Ore".
Patrizio Bertelli, qui con Miuccia Prada. Foto: Ansa

"Per fare questo - ha continuato Bertelli - le aziende devono avere l'opportunità o una mole tale di lavoro da poterselo permettere. E al momento le aziende italiane non hanno abbastanza lavoro da potersi permettere questo flusso di giovani".

"Invece di parlare dei giovani, il signor governo metta mano ai costi della burocrazia. Là troverà i soldi necessari per evitare l'aumento dell'IVA". "In Italia - ha continuato Bertelli - l'industria produce risultati e la burocrazia li butta dalla finestra. Aumentare l'IVA - ha detto ancora - sarebbe una sciagura nazionale".

"Ridurre le ferie è la soluzione per far guadagnare di più i lavoratori e assumere nuovo personale", ha aggiunto: "Sei settimane di ferie sono un'enormità".

"La situazione del turismo in Italia è disastrosa", ha detto l'amministratore delegato del gruppo Prada riferendosi al turismo. "Come possiamo - ha continuato - parlare di turismo se non abbiamo neanche risolto il problema di Malpensa e degli aeroporti. Non ci sono voli diretti, gli hub sono Francoforte, Parigi e Londra". Riguardo l'impegno della politica in tel senso, l'AD di Prada ha detto: "Non sento mai un politico parlare di turismo in senso lato. Siamo sotto la Spagna. A Firenze, Roma e Venezia c'è un turismo mordi e fuggi. A Venezia c'è turismo di qualità con la Triennale. Ma - ha concluso - quando cerchi i servizi non li trovi".

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Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Healthy Meals While Studying

We all know exams and deadline are deleterious for our health in many ways.
Probably the easiest thing to cut out in order to gain more time is food.
I however am a firm believer in the power of study breaks, specifically when they involve food.
I try to cook some good, healthy choices that will also give me more energy to go on with the study day. Here are some examples:



Morning snacks of fresh fruit like mango, or light lunch with a mango and avocado salad topped with Parmesan cheese and extra virgin olive oil.



Easy and quick lunch/dinner is whatever vegetable you have just cut and cooked 20 minutes in the oven with a bit of salt and extra virgin olive oil.



If you have the change to prepare some food before hand I recommend some sort of vegetable pie. Mine are usually made with zucchini, broccoli o spinach, one or two eggs and some Parmesan cheese over the top. I make the dough from scratch as well. This will last me about three days, so yummy!



Same goes for lentils, I will cook a big portion that will last me for four days or more. Here I mixed organic lentils, green beans, carrots, cilantro, red onion and ginger.




Finally when I really need carbs energy I go for pasta. I try to eat the gluten free kind, but sometimes it's just not available. I cook my own tomato sauce and enjoy every bite!







 Hope you liked this post, let me know if you have any questions or want to see any of these recipes in details :)

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