I know. I have been a bad girl. A very bad girl. I totally neglected my duty to take care of this precious little blog for completely silly reasons. I told myself I had no time to write. I‘m too busy. I don't know what to write about. But, to be honest, the main reason why I have not written anything the last couple of months was probably the feeling of senselessness that was creeping up. Nobody reads it anyway. People like to watch 6-seconds-videos and read a handful of words on memes. They do not bother to read a whole article. I did not see why I should spend hours on writing a post when my only three readers were my parents and my roommate. And all this Social Media stuff to gain more readers exhausts the hell out of me. It is a science, did you know?

It took me months to figure out that I actually do not care how many people exactly read what I write. It is the writing process itself, the telling of a story. I guess, that is pretty much it...I love telling stories and that is what I will continue to do. Follow your dreams, yaaay!

To get to my point and yes, I know I have said this before: I am back. And no, this was not an invitation to stop reading.

This summer I have spent ten wonderful weeks traveling around North America. It felt so good to be back in the country that feels like home to me, see my former host family again and visit my favorite places from my year abroad in the States. One of these places is New York City.

It was my fourth time visiting this unique city and it still kept taking my breath away. There is this song "New York's Got A Piece Of My Chest" and, boy, it could not be more accurate. I definitely left part of my heart somewhere in between Brooklyn and Washington Square Park.

My trip this summer confirmed this yet again, but it also made sure that I was reminded of the fact that I hate hate hate Times Square. And people. Gosh, these humongous crowds of people pushing and shoving their way through Times Square and Broadway to be the first to see whatever there is to see. I took my boyfriend there, because I mistakenly was under the impression that it was something he just had to see. I considered it part of the whole New York experience. My dear friends, let me give you one piece of advice: It is not. In fact, nothing is.

I am so tired of lines like "X is an absolute must-see" and "If you haven't seen Y, then you haven't seen this city at all". Lines I am, too, guilty of using and believing in. If there is one thing I have learned and finally understood on this trip, it is, that traveling is not about seeing, but experiencing. Let us be honest here: Most sights kind of suck anyway and hurrying from one sight to the next is just downright stressful. I mean, do you actually miss anything if you have not seen the Statue of Liberty up close? I dare say, no.

Really, there is only one thing that you have to do: Wander around the streets and try all the food you find along the way - you know, soak up local culture and all. That is what we ended up doing and here‘s my selection of the best spots we encountered: 



Big Daddy‘s Diner
Address: 239 Park Ave South, btw 19th & 20th St, New York, NY 10003
Lord of the Fries: $5
Best thing on the menu: Bow Wow Wow (Waffle Sandwich with Fries, Hash-Browns, Eggs, Cheese
                                       and Bacon, but I got mine with Avocado instead)


Find them on Facebook (here)

If you seek the perfect American Diner experience, then Big Daddy‘s is the right place for you. Cosy interior design, great music, friendly staff and delicious food - what more could you possibly ask for? They also give their food funny names, which is a definite plus. 
My best friend T and I discovered it in December 2013 during a snowstorm on our way back to our Couchsurfing host and fell in love right away. Since then, I came back every single time I was in the City to introduce it to my travel buddies and Big Daddy‘s has never disappointed. 

T-Bone & the best breakfast on earth


Pokéworks
Address: 63 W 37th St, New York, NY 10018
Hawaiian Classic: $10,50
Best thing on the menu: Poké Burrito


Find them on Facebook (here)

Traditionally, Poke is a Hawaiian speciality - a raw fish salad served as an appetizer. Luckily for sushi lovers like me, you can now get this treat outside of Hawaii, as well. Please do no get me wrong, I would love to go to Hawaii, but I am miles away from being able to afford the flight. Sooo...Pokéworks in New York it is!

You can enjoy the raw fish in a salad, bowl or burrito. My personal favorite is the burrito as it is basically a giant maki roll. Just let that sink in for a minute. 
Choose one of their signature works or build your own poké and mix and match to your satisfaction. 


this is what happiness looks like


Baker‘s Pizza
Address: 201 Avenue A, New York, NY 10009
Pesto knots: 4 for $2,50
Best thing on the menu: all the Pizza!!


Find them on Facebook (here)

Baker‘s Pizza is this tiny little pizza shop with a great atmosphere and checks all over the place. I know I use the expression "heaven on earth" far too often, but I am telling you, that is the only one that comes anywhere near to how their Pizza tastes. And wait until you have tried their Pesto knots! They sell their Pizza in a typical New York manner, by-the-slice, but definitely stand out from the crowd. You want to know how good it tastes? So good I went back three times during my eight days in NYC.





xx Lena


Photos taken in: New York City, USA

The kids are cheering. Sparkles in their eyes are competing with the shooting star shower that’s happening above us. They are jumping up and down in excitement next to the “grown-up kids”, who are just as excited, as they are watching the campfire burn higher and higher. I look around at all those faces I know so well, at the people who have been my summer family for a very long time. The ones I might not have a lot in common with, but I definitely share a deep love for a very special place and uncountable amazing memories with…


“This year, we need to vacation at a farm, before I am too old for that kind of stuff” My ten year old self knew exactly what she wanted to do that summer of 2004. My golf-obsessed dad, on the other hand, had a very good understanding of how his ideal summer holiday would look like. You might have guessed it, it was not a farm. But because I was a spoiled kid – and because my dad is the best at researching things he wants – we found a compromise. Austria’s first farm offering a driving range to golf obsessed parents like my dad. While I wasn’t sure about my dad’s choice in the beginning – I needed attention, after all – I changed my mind as soon as I stepped out of the car and into the magical world they call Zechnerhof. Screaming kids were chasing a donkey, sheep and goats through the backyard, their parents were watching as it was the most normal thing in the world and I loved it instantly. Of course I did. Which 10-year old wouldn’t? It took me all of 2 minutes to find friends and for the rest of the week we were chasing animals, jumping into haystacks, taking care of baby rabbits, riding horses and most importantly: playing cops and robbers together. My parents only saw me whenever I was hungry that week – ok, I am hungry a lot, but I think you get the point. The rest of the time I was off going on adventures with my new friends. At the end of the week I cried rivers because leaving that happy place broke my heart a bit.


Back then, I didn’t know you could fall in love with a place, but that summer I did. Little did I know how many places would follow that first love straight into my heart. I’ve seen my fair share of the world, lived in truly amazing places, but none of them stuck with me quite as much as Zechnerhof did.

Of  course we went back the summer after. And every summer ever since. With all the other friends my parents and I had made. Year after year, our group got bigger. Some people stopped coming for a while, but eventually, they all found their way back. As our group changed, not only we got older but also the farm changed. We watched it grow and evolve just the same way it watched us “mature” – if we really did is still questionable, though. Obviously, we don’t chase animals through the backyard anymore. We do, however, jump into haystacks, still. We also still spend rainy days playing board and card games for hours. We go hiking and mushroom picking and fishing and biking and partying and everything in between and it is simply the best.


It’s hard to describe that perfect simplicity and bliss I feel every summer. It’s like even though we don’t really see each other throughout the year, we’re all a big family that week. We’re all taking care of each other, go hiking in weird combinations of people, leaving strangers wondering how we’re all related. We take care of the others’ kids, support each other and at the end of the week, we all have drinks around the campfire, sing songs and get a bit sentimental. It’s so simple, yet so special. It’s one of those rare places were the guests don’t feel like they’re kings, but more like family members. Don’t get me wrong, the Glanzer’s are doing everything to make their guests happy. But it’s little things like sitting in the kitchen to clean the mushrooms we’ve just picked while G, the Glanzer’s son and chef at the farm, is preparing our dinner and cracking jokes. Or when C, boss and entertainer, sits down at the campfire with us. These things might be tiny but they do make you feel special.


For years now, two English families go on the long journey from London to Zechnerhof, because they can't stay away either. When they left to go to Venice and Sicily last week, I asked  O, 12 years old, if he was excited for the trip. “I’d rather stay here”, was his answer. I knew exactly what he was talking about.


Some of the people around me won’t come back next year. I think of all the people I’ve met here over the years and the memories we’ve made. I know I will see them again in the future. Because everybody comes back, eventually. There will be loads of opportunities to annoy the other guests with how loud we are, to leave our stuff all around the place, to show the others that a little part of us belongs to this place and a little part of it belongs to us.

What is left to say to my 10-year old self is this: I might be too old to go on a farm holiday. But I will never be too old to go on a Zechnerhof one.


Pension Zechnerhof
Marbachstraße 67
8861 St. Georgen

Tel: +43 3537 258
Fax: +43 3537 258-4
e-Mail: info@zechnerhof.at 
Web: www.zechnerhof.at


YINGDEAW homemade - bake from heart
Address: Siam Square One (4th floor ), Bangkok 10330
Ice cream: 75 THB (roughly €1,90)
Best thing on the menu: homemade waffles - my personal
                                            fave: Strawberry Honey Lover)


Find them on Facebook (here)




To all the coconut lovers out there: Thailand is the place for you. Coconut pancake, coconut ice cream, coconut drink, coconut waffle, coconut cake - all coconut everything. As luck would have it, my friend A is madly obsessed with anything that contains the tiniest bit of coconut and proclaimed Thailand her personal heaven. And exactly that passionate and unconditional love for coconuts lead us right to my personal heaven: YINGDEAW homemade. 

Back in February, A and I attended a basic course at a traditional Thai cooking school, where we learned to make five different dishes and yes, you guessed it, two of them had coconut in them. You can imagine how happy A was - not even our cooking instructor could have overlooked the fact that she loves this particular drupe. On account of this, he gave us several tips on where to find his personal favorite coconut dishes in Bangkok. To make sure we actually get to the places he was talking about, he was kind enough to provide a note - only problem was: everything was written in hieroglyphs, uh, Thai. 

So, after a pathetic attempt of decoding, we had precisely two things on our to-find and eat list:
1) coconut pancakes at a local market just around the corner 
2) coconut cake at a cafe in a shopping mall

Long story short: the coconut pancakes are yet to be found and the coconut cake turned out to be rather disappointing. I mean, don't get me wrong, it was quite tasty, but it reminded me of the Austrian quark cake too much. Now you must think, we wasted a whole lot of time for nothing, but no! Right next to the notorious chain cafe that serves the oh-so-famous coconut cake, I spotted a cute little cafe that wanted to be checked out. And, oh, was it worth checking out!!

pure deliciousness
Not only do YINGDEAW homemade serve waffles satisfying every single taste bud in your entire body and a variety of homemade ice creams and cakes, but they also score with their friendly staff and their cosy atmosphere. Can someone please take me back?

So this story confirms once again this one old saying that - I'm pretty sure - goes something like this: "The best things in life you stumble upon while you are on a coconut hunt with your crazy coconut-loving friend." 

xx Lena


Photos taken in: Bangkok, Thailand

 The thing you need to know before coming to Estonia is this: they are not the most outgoing bunch, these Estonians. A tiny little detail that I just couldn’t wrap my head around when I first got here and one that I tend to ignore like a pro nowadays. After all, overwhelming them with all my joy and love was how I got most of my Estonian friends. The fact that it took quite some time to convince them that I am not a crazy person, on the other hand, is also something I like to ignore like a pro.

So you can imagine how weirded out Krõõt Kukkur, the funniest Estonian illustrator and designer I have met so far, was, when I found her booth at a design market and got a little too excited about her products. After our Papetri Paperworks post I’m sure all of you know that Lena and I take our designer hunts seriously. And that we can get a bit overjoyed when we find something we really like. Well, Krõõt didn’t know that. All she knew was that a random girl asked her out for coffee to talk some more about her designs after coming back to her booth a billion times and touching her amazing backpacks twice as much. Amazingly enough, she agreed to meet up with me anyways, once again proving that my approach of just overwhelming them with emotions can work sometimes.


Picture: coucou.ee

Speaking of overwhelming situations, I’ve spent the last two hours trying to figure out how to fit everything there is to say about the girl with the thick black stripe tattooed around her arm into one blogpost. Because to be honest, I wish I could just put our whole hilarious conversation up on here. During our one hour long chat a couple of things happened: 1) the sun was shining – worth mentioning because this doesn’t happen that often in Estonia. 2) I couldn’t stop laughing about her funny comments on her own life. 3) Turns out that Krõõt has the most random things to tell about herself. Exactly my kind of person. 

She carries a board game with her wherever she goes. Quit art school due to a lack of interest in perfectly parallel lines. Doesn’t consider herself a crazy cat lady but is scared of her own cats’ – who sometimes think they are dogs – anger. Loves making people uncomfortable with her postcard collection of road kills. Has the most amazing bike. Doesn’t only design backpacks and illustrates whatever she can – from beerbottles to CD-covers – but is also working on a career in the tattoo industry. (I’ve got a feeling I need to support that…) And she doesn’t care about marketing and promoting her products. She just creates. I think that’s my favorite thing about her. And that she made me feel better about being lazy sometimes. Apparently this happens to the best of us.

Picture: coucou.ee

But speaking of Krõõt’s creations: let’s “briefly” talk about why I got so excited when I found her booth. First of all, her illustrations are super cool. I know, that is probably the worst description you’ve ever heard. But in lack of the right art vocabulary, this is what you have to deal with for now. I’ll work on it. In any case, I’ll just give you a list of my favorite things in her collection:

  1. Her backpacks. Because they are completely made by herself. And because the inside is covered in one of Krõõt’s prints. And because they just look cool. Again, amazing vocabulary, Kathi.
  2. Her packs of cards. Because each card has a different illustration of some person’s face on it. And because the joker is a cat. And because every time I look at my pack – of course I bought one – I am reminded of that time when I was playing cards with Lena and her family – and L lost. Let’s just say she is not good at loosing. To be fair, I had been warned by her brother. And her mom. And her dad. So just take this as a warning from me. If you want to have a nice afternoon in the sun with L, don’t bring any games. Might ruin the atmosphere a bit. (I love you, Lena!)
  3. Her “Why did you cut down the tree…”-collection. Because she says she doesn’t fight for our planet being saved while she actually raises awareness with more than one of her collections. And because she does it in such an easy way. And because cute animals staring at you, asking you why you destroyed their home really does make you think.
Photo: coucou.ee

That was the longest and most rambling post I have written in a long time. I hope you got a glimpse of the awesome person behind the name Krõõt Kukkur. If you ever want to meet her, she works in one of Tallinn’s best restaurants. Not going to tell you which one, though. You’ll have to find out yourself. Or hit the next design market. Or check out her homepage or instagram and contact her on there. Don’t forget: Overwhelming them with emotions works best!

Have a lovely Monday, everybody!

xx Kathi

P.S.: Due to a lack of photographic skills I didn't feature any of the pictures I took of her. I want people to like me, after all.

In a country with the highest top model per capita ratio in the world, where the Prime Minister is mostly known for his brightly colored socks and the President is never seen without a bowtie, nothing surprises me anymore – at least fashion-wise. This being said, everything was different when I first moved to Estonia. All I knew before coming here was that 50% of Estonia is covered in trees. Nobody ever mentioned an obsession with bowties.

So I was quite confused when I started school last September and saw a couple of people wearing bowties every single day. Was there a secret uniform I didn’t know of? Frankly, I didn’t care. All I wanted to know was exactly where these amazingly stylish pieces came from. Why they are so special, you ask? They are wooden - because when in Estonia, you should take advantage of all the trees – and oh-so pretty.

Well, it turned out that one of my fellow Student Council members and friend, Kristjan Oro, is the source of this amazingness. About a year ago he co-founded his own company – ŠIKK – with his best friend, Ats Jõgi, dedicated to crafting wooden bowties in all sorts of shapes. After six months of rummaging through his magic box of bowties over and over again and giving everybody the same present for Christmas – you guessed it, ŠIKK bowties – it was long overdue to sit down with Kristjan and talk about his startup journey, the biggest struggles of being an entrepreneur and his plans for the future.
Photo: ŠIKK
The two major things I learned during our extremely serious chat were these: When in business with your best friend of eight years, yell at each other every now and again. Helps you clear the air. And stay sane. And friends, for that matter. It seems to work for Kristjan and Ats. After a year of yelling at each other, they are still best friends. They even like to spend their free time together – if they have any. Which leads me to the second thing Kristjan taught me, this being how to manage your time and simultaneously not to get completely confused by to-do lists. (Something I really need to work on.) I quite like his system: A to do list classified from A – if you don’t do this immediately, you’re fucked to D – tell somebody else to do it.

But all jokes aside, I am sure that these two have a bright future ahead. I am not just saying this because Kristjan is my friend. I truly believe it. Because their bowties are just too cool not to love them. And because the personal touch the products come with is amazing in this impersonal world. And because in just one year, they managed to be featured in the Estonian Song Contest and the Estonian version of “Got Talent”, thus making ŠIKK bowties something that is worn by stars. Next challenge: The President.

For everybody who really wants one of these unique accessories now, it is your lucky week. ŠIKK will be launching their brand new online store in the next couple of days and they are shipping anywhere in this world. But you should be quick; I am planning to fill up my suitcase with them. Can’t guarantee there will be any left when I’m done shopping.

Show them the flying floordrobe love and check out ŠIKK's Facebook page and its Instagram account to see more pretty photos of the bowties and to be up to date on the exciting new product that will be launched very soon!

Photo: www.facebook.com/sikkdesign/
Have a great week, everybody!

xx, Kathi


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