Happy Halloween!!

Happy Halloween Everyone!!! May your evening be filled with tricks, treats, and lots of candy!

bisous,

M&M (&J!)

Halloween... France Style

Happy Halloween everyone! Unlike many of you who started celebrating halloween this past weekend (I was sooo jealous of all the fab fb pics), the people of Paris only celebrate the holiday on its official day, which is today! That means tonight will be filled with tricks, treats, costumes, and more! Halloween is not traditionally a French holiday so there are several differences in regards to how the night is spent! Here is a look out how the French spend this ghostly night:

Traditions & Decorations:

In the States, many towns celebrate Halloween with grand parades where candy is given out to children and hundreds show off their costumes. Additionally, elaborate decorations fill shopping malls, streets, and people's front yard. People really get into the holiday and this is seen everywhere! France however, is lacking in the spirit department. There are no special events like parades, hunted houses, and pumpkin carving activities. Perhaps the closest things to this would be a special hunted night event at Euro Disney. There is literally zero Halloween spirit anywhere!

Trick or Treating & Candy:

Sad to report, there is no trick or treating anywhere in Paris. My heart breaks for all the little French kids who are unable to eat candy until their bellies hurt! Furthermore, you cannot even buy the big bags of candy! Grocery stores seem to have skipped Halloween and gone straight to Christmas since there are displays for advent calendars already!

Costumes: 

Here is a little known fact: the French LOVE a good costume party. Maria recently traveled outside of Paris to visit a friend and got to attend a real French costume party. She reported back that the costumes were absolutely crazy and very intense! Unlike many Americans who simply use Halloween as an excuse to dress, how do I put this gently, sleazy, many French will put on full out suits and masks! Most young French people (I'm talking between the age of 20 and 30) will dress up tonight!

Tonight Maria, myself, and some friends will wear ears (we are not quite sure what animal they belong to...) with black dresses and painted faces. We plan on visiting some bars and clubs and getting as much free stuff as we can since we will be wearing costumes! Hope everyone has creepy night ;]

bisous,

M&M

Journals

Meg and I recently purchased gorgeous handmade journals! We want to ensure that we don't forget any details about our time here and be able to look back fifty years from now! Cannot wait to write about our experiences and thoughts :) 

bisous, 

M&M

Monday Wisdom

Happy Monday!

bisous,

M&M 

A Department Store Like No Other

Galeries Lafayette is truly the most amazing department store in the world... arguably a work of art! Obviously the clothes are beautiful, but the building itself is AMAZING. Located at the Opera stop on lines 3,7, and 8 this department store is a must see. We could not help but snap pictures of the clothes lining the rack because they were so beautiful and photographed so well! There are 6 floors plus  basement packed with shoes. The store includes floors just for bridal, lingerie, perfume, many restaurants and a beautiful rooftop terrace. Literally there is something fab for anyone, especially those who love fashion! The rooftop is definitely, in our opinion, the best view of Paris, away from the tourists. We believe that Taylor Swift shot her video the other day since because the Opera is exactly behind her just like our pictures!

Here are some of the highlights of our shopping trip:

We had to stop at Longchamp so our friends could make some purchases! !e grabbed some pictures there and I managed to snag some pictures of Meghan without her knowing which came out beautiful!

It was such an enjoyable morning spent with friends and such beautiful things. We could have spent the whole day wondering around among the clothes and purses, but unfortunately we had to leave to take a mid-term. Thankfully we killed it on our midterm! Maybe all of the fashion brought us good luck...

Bisous,

M&M

Peter Pan Collars

There is something to be said about the peter pan collar. It is simple, it is classic, it is lady like, yet it has the ability to really enhance an outfit, pulling it together for a polished and simply stunning look. Women around Paris have really embraced the peter pan collar and it can be seen on everything from sweaters, shirts, to dresses and coats. And hey, if Pippa Middleton has been photographed rocking a peter pan collar on SEVERAL occasions, then you know it's a hit. I have a fabulous black silky top with a peter pan collar that Maria wears beautifully on a regular basis and another more basic tee with a collar that is great for class with a pair of boots. Here is a look at perhaps the classiest trend on the street today:

Lace 

J.Crew Top

Similar Here

Similar Collar Here

Similar Collar Here

Asos Dress

So many options, so little time!

bisous,

M&M

A Taste of Home

Fall is definitely one of Maria and I's favorite times of year, and one of the highlights of the season is without a doubt pumpkin spice lattes from Starbucks. They are so warm and delicious and just ooze fall. Maria and I finally caved and went to Starbucks for a latte this past weekend and our taste buds were not disappointed! 

yummm

nothing like a latte on a damp, rainy day

so good 

loving our lattes!

Nothing like a latte to bring a little fall spirit to Paris and to warm up a rainy day!

bisous,

M&M 

Travel Guide: Madrid

We visited Madrid a little while ago and decided to post some tips and places to check out!

FIRST: Stay in SOL!! It is the best place spot to stay in Madrid. There is plenty of shopping, near the metro and walking distance from killer clubs and bars.

The best way to see a city is from high up:

We did a great double-decker bus tour! We highly suggest it for your first day so you can get a feel of the city's layout and whats out there. Here are some pics from up top!

Loved the pink!

Fell in love with these windows!

ME Hotel Rooftop Bar and Restaurant:

From the outside!

We had an amazing meal at the restaurant! We highly suggest the fruit martinis. They were made from such yummy fresh fruit. The food was so amazing as well with lots of choices. Many of us enjoyed some great pastas.

Maria at the table

View of one of the bars in the restaurant

The girlies!

The Rooftop:

Since we ate dinner at the restaurant we were lucky enough to skip the line to get up to the rooftop and get free admission as well. The view was so picturesque and amazing! It was great to have a view of the city at night with all the lights. There are perfect spaces for just relaxing and enjoying your friends.

"The Penthouse is an ultra-chic rooftop bar owned by Rande Gerber, celeb nightlife entrepreneur and husband of Cindy Crawford. It’s located on the roof of Hotel ME Madrid Reina Victoria, in Plaza Santa Ana, and has a great view of central Madrid. The crowd is dressed to kill, the waitresses are smoking hot the drinks are pricey and the place is often frequented by Spanish celebrities. Best to get here for happy hour, because although it’s open till 3am, the line to get in is insane after midnight."

Rooftop View

Teatro Kapital: 7 Story Club

If you want an amazing crazy club experience this is the club! It is 7 stories with different music and themes on each floor. The top floor also is on the terrace. Each floor has 2 bars and awesome dance floors. It was a great time if you want a wild night. 

Meghan, Maria and Landen 

On a last note make sure to try paella!! It is a specialty of Spain and is very tasty :)

Madrid was a beautiful city and we highly suggest it to anyone. Everywhere we went you could feel the Spanish culture, everyone was very welcoming and there were plenty of awesome places to go out to! 

Bisous,

M&M