45.5...the best kind of energy boost

Maybe it was because i saw Miwa's post yesterday, or maybe it was because i was craving pancakes (i always am...), i was so lucky when my childhood friend suddenly invited me out for pancakes today. I had a four hour class in the afternoon and only half of my reading assignments done, but how could i say no? I hadn't been able to see her properly in a while, and i had so many things i wanted to hear about from her, so it was a lovely catch-up brunch before i dashed off to school. Lovely company + good food has always been the most simple equation to instant happiness in my life.

At Latte Graphic in Japan

45...time travel in Bra(s)il

Can you believe that it's almost October? i always use cheesy cliche phrases in my posts but aiaiai, TIME FLIES. Halloween will come, then thanksgiving (though my family and i don't really celebrate that - it's hard to find a full on turkey in Japan), followed by Christmas and bam, it'll be New Years before we know it. Honestly speaking, i actually look forward to the new year, it's become my favourite time of the year - for the past few years, my family and i have travelled to different locations on December 31st so
a) we don't have to worry about the whole new years culture of cooking for hours on end to prepare for January 1st (quick Japanese lesson: we call it gantan)
and b) we can spend the first day of the year relaxing in a nice hot bath.
But there are so many things to get through before all that, so before i get ahead of myself, i'll just enjoy the now and the fall along with the good food (hope you all do too).

Before i forget to do this, here are some more snapshots from my summer - these are from my trip to Brazil (i prefer writing 'Brasil' since that's how they spell it over there *respect*) If anyone reading/seeing this has photos up from their summer, i'd love to see them so please leave your links in the comment section below!

Taken in New York during transit - such b-e-a-utiful weather,

i wished we had more time there!

i just HAD to eat stuff at the airport but aiaiai,

bad idea, they gave us so much on the plane though it was already 12pm at night...D:

On our way to the bookstore - Since i was in Brasil during the World Cup 

(didn't get to see the games live but just being in the country was enough to feel the

excitement buzzing all across the country)

there were many places decorated like this. I've always loved how patriotic this country is.

Outside Livaria Cultura (one of the best bookstores i've ever stepped foot in - picture below!)

this display was up to celebrate the previous five wins for Brasil.

(i wish i could tell you who the five golden players are! - does anyone know?)

i would definitely live here if i could :)

(This is the Livaria Cultura in Av. Paulista, Sao Paulo)

Rua Pamplona at night

There is so much graffiti covering the buildings in Brasil but this was one in support

of Corinthians (Mini Football info: They won the 2012 Fifa World Cup against Chelsea)

THE SKIES.

Though it rained a bit during our stay, the sky was usually so beautiful.

This (Portuguese)
&
This
&
This

I'm pretty sure that that's Luiz Felipe Scolari...

Shopping Paulista, one of the biggest shopping malls near Av. Paulista.

A church near Paraiso, Sao Paulo

i wish i knew what this plant is, i find it quite cute. 

Paraiso, Sao Paulo, the first place i lived in 12 years ago in Brasil.

...and some more graffiti for you to enjoy!

There are more photos to come (along with more photos of food - i'd have to say that out of all the places i've been to, i still believe that Brasil has the best food), but here's some for now. There are so many more places i would have gone to in Brasil but it was so nice walking down streets i spent some of my childhood afternoons on; i may have grown but going to Brasil was like seeing an old family friend who doesn't age. It was nice being back to one of the places i call home!

Have a nice week :)

44...pot-pourri

Though i didn't get through half the things on my 'TO-DO OVER THE SUMMER' list, one of the unexpected fun things i did do was make pot-pourri from roses - the petals are still in a bag while we wait for their aroma to increase (if that's even possible?) but i can't wait to open it to see the outcome!

(Perhaps this is a bit embarrasing to admit but i didn't know that pot-pourri also meant "A combination of incongruous things" till this summer...well it's always interesting to learn.)

Of course, while we were waiting for them to dry, i took some close ups of these gorgeous petals before they turned brown so i thought i'd post those shots to start my blogs with photos from the summer.

Now i will get back to snacking on chocolate and reading about Antonio Negri and Michael Hardt (the chocolate helps me stay awake) but hope everyone gets some well-needed rest before another busy week. 

Interesting fact of the day that has nothing to do with anything on this post - apparently Mercury reaches it's greatest elongation today so if you're a stargazer, you'll be able to see that along with Spica on its right.

｡:*+゜゜+*:.｡.*:+☆