Circus outfit......

Et voilà ! Saturday night I will be the non convincing lion tamer......(a wink to Tangobaby and Anairam who guessed right about the missing accessory)

while trying on my outfit this evening, I wondered how women could wear a corset all day long in bygone days. It certainly helps to keep your upper part erect but to what price !

in case you wonder, no it's not a porno magazine lying on the floor but the Spanish Elle....

so, I just need to practice a bit more with the whip

except that I have no wild beasts around to tame......oh well...never mind....I'll whip up the cream and the air

Wish you a lovely week end full of zest and fun.....!
Promised, I will try to take funny pics of the circus party

pics: Monchéri

My little red circus corset....

My little red corset, I'm very fond of you and I know you like me too but please don't squeeze me too much otherwise I will faint in your embrace.....

This is what I whispered this evening to my new object of desire while trying my outfit on for next saturday party.

My dear friend Gym is celebrating her big 60th birthday this week end; she adores fancy dress parties and saturday's theme is the circus

here is my little outfit more or less complete. There's one very important accessory missing. I let you guess what it is ! (although, it's quite difficult to tell).

indeed I'm going through a red period of high heels and lacy things....I thought I didn't like corsets and in fact....hem...I can't wait to buy the next one !

this one was quite cheap (17€) and I just added the black trimming with crystals

and tiny pearls.

Tell me, do you also have a love affair with corsets or
do they leave you as cool as a cucumber ?

See you friday with my complete outfit on !

Sexy or tacky ?.....

Last wednesday I met up with my friend Ellie for a quick coffee and as we parted, I told her I needed to go to the florist shop down the main street of the village. I was thinking about red roses and instead of going straight to the florist, I entered the shoe shop next to it and heard myself saying : "holà, quiero unos tacones altissimos...en rojo" (hi, I want very high heels..in red).
And this is what I came up with....

mmm....I think I made a mistake...luckily they were very cheap. But I'm afraid they are also very cheap in the other meaning of the term. At least, Monchéri laughed. He found them...interesting and different from the boots I usually wear. You see, lately this has been my preferred uniform. (I've got the same velvet trousers in several colors and wear them all the time. sorry about the pic taken halfway in the shade)

still I think perhaps one day, I'll wear the sexy/tacky red boots...

but I love my black boots so much...life is tough isn't it ? (am standing in front of a stained mirror, hence the black spots)

talking about shoes....isn't this one a darling ? My friend Tim took this photograph which you can find on his etsy shop here. (do you remember the picture of the flamenco dress ? that was Tim too....do have a look at his shop !). And my banner, it's Tim too....

Mis queridos, my lovelies, I'm afraid I'll be very flighty this week
as my friends and I are busy little bees preparing our outfit
for a fancy dress party this coming saturday.

I will show you mine on wednesday....In the mean time, stay cool and be in love !

ps : I can't leave comments on some blogs where a word verification is asked (Cynthia, Khaled et al..) So annoying ! Does anyone have the same problem ?


pics : Marian, me

Money shoe pic by Tim Irving

My latest crush : Yasmina Khadra

Thanks to blogging friend Cuban in London, I’ve spent the last two days in the fascinating company of Algerian writer Yasmina Khadra reading two of his short novels Les hirondelles de Kaboul (The Swallows of Kabul) and L’Attentat (The Attack).

The novelist who is actually a man - his real name is Mohammed Moulessehoul – was born in Algerian Sahara. At the age of 9, his father sent him to a military school to become an officer. At the age of 18, he wrote his first book of short stories Houria which was published 11 years later. In 2000, he quits the army after 36 years of services to dedicate himself entirely to literature. After having lived a short period of time in Mexico, he settled in Aix-en-Provence in France with his wife and his three children.

Moulessehoul first chose to write under his wife's first names (meaning "green jasmin") for clandestinity reasons. But he also wanted to express his profound admiration towards Algerian women, their courage and undying hope.

The Swallows of Kabul (2002) tells about the destiny of two men and two women struggling to find a sense of dignity under the implacable reign of the Talibans in Afghanistan. Amidst the fury and violence of public executions, the maddening sermons against the Occidental world, Yasmina Khadra chooses to speak about love and weaves a poignant story of sacrifice and abnegation.
Mohsen who dreamt of becoming a diplomat sees his hopes shattered. One morning, as he watches a public lapidating, he throws a couple of stones at the victim. Going back home, he cannot face the horror of his act, doesn't recognize himself anymore and confides in his beautiful wife Zunaira, whom he considers as his last sun and hope.....
I will not reveal more and let you discover this beautiful tale which is more a song of surviving hope.

The Attack (2005) takes place in Tel Aviv. Dr Amine who is Israeli of Arabic origin works as a surgeon. We see him taking care of the victims of a bomb attack which happened in a restaurant. Supposedly the kamikaze was a woman concealing a bomb under pregnancy clothes. At the end of the day, Amine goes back to his house to rest but is suddenly awakened in the middle of the night by the police. A nightmare awaits him as the police reveals him that the kamikaze was his wife.....
Cuban's review of the book was so enticing and enthusiastic, I just had to read it...

I was totally enthralled by the beautifully metaphorical style of Yasmina Khadra. I read both texts in the original version in French (to the question of why Khadra decided to write in French rather than in Arabic, he declared that he found a certain "universality, rigor and splendor" in the French language). The more I was reading the more I was amazed by the constant flow of poetical images even when describing the cruel reality of death, destruction and violence. Khadra’s mother, born a nomad in a Sahara tribe was a story teller and undoubtedly Khadra inherited this gift, only that he put his words in writing.

On the same topic, (the israelo-palestinian conflict) if you still haven't seen it, may I recommend you the movie Paradise Now (2005), which I saw a few months ago and would actually love to watch again. This movie by Dutch-Palestinian filmmaker Hany Abu-Assad tells about two friends, living in Naplouse, who have been elected to commit a double suicide attack in Tel Aviv. But things go wrong and the two young men will be set apart. While they both try to find one other, they both experience doubt and lack of conviction. And the only remaining question is : is violence a solution to freedom ?

Tell me what you will be reading or watching this week end.....
Enjoy it !

Granada, the city where you cannot rush.....

I find it quite impossible to rush in Granada...there is always a street artist catching my attention and these tree guitar players were just too good. I wonder why I never use the video function of my camera. Next time, I will....They were playing Entre dos Aguas de Paco de Lucia and it was really fantastic....

but here is a video of the maestro himself in 1976. Enjoy ! (besides the hairdo, I think he looked terribly sexy....)

Gothic love in Granada......

Mis queridos, I'm so sorry to have been away from blogland for so long. I want to thank you all for your very kind messages on last post about Madagascar. (Last news is the situation remains precarious but hopefully a peaceful solution will be found soon through dialog).

In the meantime, life goes on in Granada and I've been so busy with various things that Valentine's day nearly went unnoticed ! Saturday, I was having coffee in the sun with my friend Gym, on paseo del Salon when I saw this adorable couple passing by and I just ran after them to ask them, please let me take a photo of you because you are so cute ...



She was wearing a full length black lacy dress and it's a shame I didn't take a full portrait of her. I asked her : "te vistes asi especialmente para San Valentin?" did you dress like this especially for Valentine's day ? and she answered with a demure smile No, es que soy gotica... No, I'm gothic...I think they look perfectly adorable...

So, what did you do on Valentine's day ? Hope you had a great time with your loved one(s) !

I spent saturday morning looking for a sexy outfit with my friend Gym, for her fancy dress birthday party at the end of the month. We had lots of fun rummaging through lacy corsets and all types of garters. Then we treated ourselves to a lovely Valentine's girlfriends lunch in the nicest Morroccan restaurant in Granada, where the waiters are....hum...very cute and charming....

And back home, there was another sexy guy waiting for me with a little suprise......but I'll show you another time !

Mensaje especial para Cristina :
espero que la foto te guste y muchas gracias ! por cierto me gustaria invitarte con tu novio a una fiesta en el valle de Lecrin el dia 28 de febrero. Es una fiesta de disfraces y el tema es el Circo. Bueno si os apetece venir mandame un email y ya me pondré en contacto contigo...Un abrazo y otra vez, me encanta tu estilo !

pic : me

Good morning Madagascar.......

This is the island my family originates from. After having spent numerous years in France, my parents decided to build a house there and share their time between France and Madagascar.

As soon as I heard about the recent upheavals in the island, I’ve been calling them every two-three days to check how they were and what was happening.

So briefly here are the facts: the young mayor of the capital city Antananarivo, called for a general strike on January 24^th and a huge demonstration took place to protest against the policy led by president Marc Ravalomanana, and the lack of freedom of expression. Apparently, the two men had already a very tense relationship since Andry Rajoelina was elected mayor of the city.

It only got worse when Rajoelina's private TV channel Viva was banned for having featured an interview with former president Didier Ratsiraka, last december.

Two days after the strike, thousands of people demonstrated again in the capital and set fire to the National Radio and Television building and some stores belonging to the president's family, causing the death of 68 persons. Since then, the mayor has been relieved of his duties but is firmly determined to win the battle. He refused his dismissal and proclaimed himself the new leader of the country and started to organize a transitional government.

left, Andry Rajoelina and right, president Marc Ravalomanana. Both men come from entrepreneurial background.

A. Rajoelina wearing the orange scarf as a sign of contestation

"we thought the demonstrations would gradually come to an end....said my father on my phone, this morning, but on sunday, thousands of people gathered in front of the presidential palace and the police started to shoot killing 28 people, I heard but I'm not sure. This is bad...and the minister of defense just resigned and is now replaced by an army officer, and this is not good at all..."

I can hear my mother talk by his side. I know she’s sad and thought this was bound to happen. Madagascar is a very poor country and the growing gap between the very poor and the very rich makes her sick. I dare not tell her she’s quite privileged herself to live in a sheltered house and in a manucured area. At least, she tries to do her bit and has made plans to build a school in the countryside outside Tana, although now she confesses being confused. She had faith in president Ravalomanana as for the past few years, the Malagasy economy gained some strength through foreign investments, but his recent purchase of a Boeing 737-700 worth 112 billions of ariary (the malagasy currency) the equivalent of 43 millions of euros, made her quite angry.

“you know, she said, supposedly this is the budget allocated to education and research….so here it goes !

If you add to this that 70% of the population lives below the poverty threshold and 49% of children under five are ill-nourished, this costly purchase appears shocking if not obscene.

"Oh...and the last thing you should know, my father says, is about this Daewoo contract...

- What’s that ?

- Well…imagine half of the land is confiscated to grow corn to be exported to South Corea

What you mean ?

- There is a lease contract signed for 99 years between Madagascar and Daewoo. Supposedly for free…we don’t know much about it yet, but like I told you, it’s about letting 1 million hectares of good land without seeing any benefits for us !"

I wish I could have stayed longer on the phone with my parents. I’ve read a few articles about this contract between Madagascar and the South corean mega firm. To think Madagascar was a former colony which won its independence and then now what ? Is it going to be one of these lands newly exploited by rich countries in order to feed its people while the people of Madagascar have barely anything to eat ? So sad.....



pics: i can't even remember where the pics are from surely... AFP

upside down....

excerpts from tea time conversation last sunday

Gym : this rain is so depressing...I really feel like staying in bed all day

Lyn : so are you still having a birthday party at the end of the month ?

Gym : of course, I am ! and the theme is the circus....what you think ? could be funny...well I don't know.....as long as you come dressed....

me (on the computer) : why can't I burn the f... CD ?

Lyn : dressed up

me (to Gym) : so you don't eat your cake ?

Gym : I don't know....mmm...is it cooked ?

me : but of course, it's cooked ! Lyn, do you want some more tea ?

Lyn : yes, please....I think the cake is good.....may be it's because it's so white and you think it's not cooked enough

me : oh..it's because I put it upside down (tossing the cake)...look...it's actually brown and quite burnt on the top

Gym (jokingly) : ah that's better ! still it really tastes like raw eggs and raw flour....

me (laughing) : oh come on...it's just a plain génoise....! and I do it all the time but it's true, it's quite bland....

Lyn : I quite like it with some jam on it...

Tim (to me) : so do you still want me to do this podcast for you ?

me : oh yeah sure....! do it now !

......

Gym : .....I mean , doesnt' the world look upside down right now ?.....

Lyn : I know...everybody's struggling....everywhere

me: I heard the Spanish press was in a terrible state...didn't know

Gym : and who's got a job anyway ?

me : oh come on....well actually, my sister lost her job last week...Well she didn't really lose her job completely but the publishing company she works for told her : look, we can still employ you but on a freelance basis

Lyn : oh God !

Tim : Lala, how do you want this podcast to look like ?

me : funny how I can never manage to bake a good spongy génoise

.....

Lyn : eh, this is a really nice fabric you have here....

me : oh this ?....it's a sheet ! I know it shouldn't be here....am a bit messy at the moment...

Tim : It seems I can't do this podcast...how weird....

me : I got this phone call last week from one of the organizers of the Workshop tradeshow in Paris. She said, look there are still some stands left for the march session if you want

Lyn : so are you going ?

me : are you crazy ? I told her I wasn't ready to commit suicide yet...

(we laugh)

me : no...I think it's more reasonable to wait for october.....

phone rings

me : I bet it's Monchéri saying he's late

Lyn : as usual

me : Holà cariño !

(Monchéri says he's arriving with some good old movies)

Tim : oh...but we've got to go now ! and tell him he can give me my Xmas present next time we meet !
.....

Oh I do love teas on sundays with my friends and a piece of semi-cooked génoise !

I've been busy on monday and a bit gloomy too so I rather felt like posting something light today.

On a frivolous note, how do you like my new handmade ring (the one with the little pearls) ? Not really marketable yet because it needs some improvement but somehow, I like it this way....

Thank you very much for your concern for Madagascar.
you bet I definitely post about it in a couple of days

Wish you a serene start of the week and certainly not upside down !

pics : my favorite tea cups and teapot which everybody laughs at because it looks more like a tureen