Birds Of A Feather

Shots from Danielle's birthday bbq. It is my firm belief that everyone deserves a bundle of balloons on their birthday...

After a two year cold war, Danielle's bird Pete and I are finally friends. We never figured out why he hated me in the first place.  However, we hypothesized many theories. Some of which include my abundance of jewelry, my bright nail polish, the over the top hats and hair accessories I'm rarely without, my "strong" personality. Not sure what it was but apparently he's over it and though I pretended not to care that he was terrified of me those two years, I did and I'm ecstatic that we're bosom buddies at last :)

We're The Lucky Ones Filled With The Sun

My tour de Europe continues with some photos of our trip to Lucerne, Switzerland. I sure hope you guys aren't sick of my vacation photos yet. And if you are, worry not, this was our last stop :)

Switzerland is the tops. So beautiful in such a different way than Paris and Venice. The rolling green hills spotted with tiny cottages, the beautiful lake that seems like a calm ocean, the shiny happy people holding hands....okay I'm getting carried away now. But it was a treat and probably our favorite part of the entire trip...

Beautiful, right?? Shout out to Jash on his photography skills. He can make a flat old tire in the middle of the desert look cool and sexy. We have tons and tons of more avant garde-esque pics which I will be posting in the coming weeks. Thanks for reading friends :)

xxoo

Sheva

La Dolce Vita

Ahhhhhhh Venice. The fact that we almost didn't make it here made actually being here so much more magnificent. I couldn't wait to walk around the narrow cobblestone streets and cruise the canals on a gondola.

But really I just couldn't wait to wear this dress. It is the most spectacular thing I own at the moment. I bought it at Shareen's Vintage a couple months back and have been waiting to christen it in Venice ever since. It just seems so Venetian. That makes no sense, I know. It's a pretty dress and I wanted to wear it in a pretty place. So there.

Happy Happy

Happy Birthday to my best friend and pseudo-sister, Danielle!! 

Show Me The Way To The Next Whiskey Bar

Admittedly, when our passports were stolen in France, I was not the picture of poise and grace. However, after a few temper tantrums and "why me's" Jash and I decided to make the very most of our extended Parisian visit by renting bikes and riding around the city. We landed at Pere Lachaise, an old cemetery and one of our favorite destinations in the city. That may seem a bit morbid, but the maze of tree lined cobblestone roads leading to century old tombstones is such a peaceful place to get lost in an otherwise lively and boisterous city. Plus, Jim Morrison is buried here and it's always interesting to watch the diverse and enthusiastic fans come and go. Some smoke joints, some throw roses, some try to look cool in photos. One guess which category I fall into...

Yep, that's Jash pouring some out for the homies. This was probably my favorite outfit of the entire trip. It consists of a skirt I long-term-loaned from Danielle and a silk Max Studio dress-turned-top. The shoes are my poor man's substitutes for Swedish Hasbeens. Put it all together and you get an ensemble that's simple, comfy and chic enough for the streets of Paris.

Well. That's it for the Paris segment of my postings. Stay tuned for Venice and Lucerne. And Happy Friday y'all!! I could not be happier this jet-lagged workweek is over. I intend on unpacking (nope, I haven't done it yet) and sleeping the days away. Au revoir :)

We Can Reach Our Destination But We're Still A Ways Away

So yesterday I received an email from my dad with "????" in the subject line. Four question marks. Not one or even three, but FOUR. Clearly, something was up. I opened the email to discover a very straight-forward but ominous message. "Sheva- is everything ok? I sense not..." I immediately responded to assure him that, yes, everything is okay and ask why he would sense otherwise. Turns out the cause for his concern was my "sudden lack of blogging." :)

Well, it feels good to know I have such a devoted reader, even if it is my dad. Apologies again for my spotty blogging lately. I had several technical and travel complications on the trip that made blogging difficult. Also, toward the end of the trip I really wanted to enjoy some time completely disconnected from my real-life. That is, after all, the purpose of vacation.  And disconnecting with everyone and everything else helped me reconnect with Jash :))

But here I am again. Back at it. Still having some technical difficulties as I'm coming to you via a brand new computer. But I assure you all (especially you, Dad) there will be no more long hiatuses from West Native.

Anywho. Here are a few train travel shots that my budding photographer bf snapped on our trip. We took alotta trains. Its a lovely and relaxing way to get from point A to point B. I will say this though- my next vacay will most certainly be of the beachside resort variety. I loved seeing so much of Europe in a relatively short span of time but, my word, it is exhausting. There is a lot of planning and stress and room for error when embarking on such an ambitious trip. Next stop: Hawaii.

The Lights Are Much Brighter There

Apologies for my brief hiatus. Our European adventure took a sudden and unexpected turn when our passports were stolen in Versailles and we were thus stuck in France until we could get replacements from the embassy. There are certainly far worse places to be stuck but this almost meant we wouldn't make our trips to Italy and Switzerland. Thankfully, we got our passports pretty painlessly and were on the first flight to Venice. The remainder of our trip was abbreviated but just as lovely. Those photos to come soon- Jash is in the process of editing as I type this.

Alas, I am home now and very very jet lagged. I will more than likely be useless at work tomorrow as I've been wide awake since 2 am!! Jet lag aside, I've never been happier to be home after a vacation. There's a lot I love about traveling, but nothing beats my home sweet home with my equally sweet friends and cat :-) Here are a few snapshots from beautiful downtown Los Angeles....