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Samba Through Life

When life gives you lemons, make caipirinhas.

  • About Me
    • My Paris Story
  • My Bucket List
  • Wanderlust
    • Life in Europe
    • Life in Asia
    • Life in California
    • Life in Brazil
  • What To Eat
  • Photo Diaries

My Bucket List

View from the Lalu Hotel of Sun Moon Lake, Taiwan. July 2015.

On My Bucket List

  • Dance Flamenco in the streets of Spain.
  • Live or work in Sydney or Melbourne, Australia.
  • Hike through the Amazon Forest.
  • Take funny pictures in Salar de Uyuni.
  • Visit Machu Picchu.
  • Do the Bali + Maldives tropical paradise thing.
  • Dance Tahitian dance in Tahiti.
  • Watch a fancy opera show. (Beijing Opera / Nov 2016)
  • Stargaze in the wilderness at skies so clear that I can actually see the Milky Way again.
  • Catch a fish while fishing.
  • Successfully catch a wave while surfing.
  • Learn French fluently. (Currently studying!)
  • Then learn a fifth language.
  • Work in another country for at least 2 years.
  • Eat tofu pot and galbi in Korea. And cheesy ramen.
  • Do a photoshoot in Taiwan.
  • Road trip around the entirety of Europe.
  • Learn to drive stick.
  • Selfie at the Iguaçu Waterfalls.
  • Go skiing at Avoriaz. (March 2020)
  • Open my own shop in a beach side town, selling jewelry & stuff I’ve collected from around the world.
  • Take my mom and dad on a Eurotrip. (September 2018 + September 2019)
  • Take my dad to a fancy steak dinner somewhere around the world.
  • Camping in the wilderness.
  • See the Northern Lights in person!!!
  • Camp in one of those bubble glass pods in the woods.
  • Buy a camper van and do an epic cross-continent trip.
  • Visit every Disneyland in the world🏰 (Paris, California, Tokyo done so far!)
  • Visit (and one day contribute to?!) The Sketchbook Project in Brooklyn, NYC.

Crossed off the bucket list!✨

  • VIP clubbing in Las Vegas for Halloween. (Calvin Harris at Omnia, Caesars Palace / Oct 2015)
  • Go to a rooftop bar in Paris. (Terrass Hotel & Rooftop Bar, Paris / September 2016)
  • Fly first-class internationally. (SFO–>TPE, China Airlines / July 2015)
  • Play beach racquet on the shores of Normandy. (Houlgate Plage, August 2016)
  • Watch fireworks on a beach. (Houlgate Plage, August 2016)
  • Swim in an infinity pool. (The Lalu Hotel, Sun Moon Lake / July 2015)
  • Go blonde temporarily…doesn’t have to be platinum. (Taipei, Taiwan / December 2016)
  • Adopt a puppy.  I actually adopted a kitten! His name is Koi, like the lucky fish. (Paris, December 2018)
  • Eat Spanish chocolate-dipped churro. (Barcelona / Aug 2015)
  • Eat a fresh baguette with salted butter in Paris. (Paris / Aug 2015)
  • Watch true flamenco masters live. (Palau de la Música, Barcelona / Aug 2015)
  • Have sangria while listening to Spanish guitar. (Barcelona / Aug 2015)
  • Have high tea in London. (Brown’s Hotel, London / Aug 2015)
  • Live in Taiwan.
  • Live in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Summer 2013)

 

bus

Our road trip along a winding road in South Island, New Zealand. Feb 2012.

Countries I’ve Visited (outside the USA):

  • Thailand (Aug 2005)
  • Hong Kong (Aug 2005)
  • Costa Rica: San José, Puerto Límon (Apr 2006, Jun-Jul 2007)
  • Taiwan: Taipei, Taoyuan, Taichung, Tainan, Hualien (too many times to count)
  • China: Beijing, Shanghai (Aug 2005)
  • Japan: Tokyo (Aug 2005, Jan 2014, Jan 2017), Takayama, Nikko, Kamakura (Jan 2017)
  • New Zealand: Auckland, Wellington, all over South Island…(Jan-July 2012)
  • Australia: Sydney (Nov-Dec 2014), Melbourne (Jul 2012, Nov 2014)
  • Brazil: Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo (Jun-Aug 2013)
  • Canada: Montreal (Mar-Apr 2013)
  • France: Paris (Aug 2015), Normandy, Nantes (Aug 2016)
  • England: London (Aug 2015, Nov 2017)
  • Spain: Barcelona (Aug 2015)
  • Colombia: Cartagena, Minca, Palomino, Tayrona, Taganga (May 2016)
  • Portugal: Lisbon (January 2018)
  • Netherlands: Amsterdam (March 2018)
  • South Korea: Seoul (May 2018)
  • Monaco: Monte Carlo (September 2019)
  • Germany: Berlin (November 2019)
  • Vietnam: Ho Chi Minh (January 2020)
  • Italy: Venice (March 2020)
  • Switzerland: Geneva (July 2020)

Follow my adventures in Europe and Asia!

Places I Really Want To Visit:

  • France: Paris, Lyon, Strasbourg, Nice, Marseilles, St. Tropez
  • Spain: Barcelona, Madrid, Granada, Valencia
  • South America trip
  • Italy: Rome, Venice
  • Portugal: Lisboa
  • England: London, Hogwarts! 😉
  • New Caledonia
  • Wuzhen, China (烏鎮)
  • Bali
  • The Maldives
  • Croatia
  • Czech Republic
  • Ireland
  • Germany: Berlin, Hamburg
  • Sweden
  • Switzerland
  • Greece
  • Morocco
  • Mongolia
  • South Korea: Seoul, Busan
  • Antarctica

Do you have a bucket list? Share some of your ideas with me, I’d love to see them!😘

Comments

  1. Laure says

    December 6, 2016 at 6:21 am

    My favorites : “Dance Tahitian dance in Tahiti ” and “visit New Caledonia” 😉 <3

    Reply
    • joce says

      December 8, 2016 at 8:12 am

      Yesss and you know I was inspired by YOU Laure!! <3 Miss you beautiful!! xoxo

      Reply
  2. Your favorite cousin (who???) says

    February 25, 2020 at 10:37 pm

    Awww this is so cute Jocelyn, I love it!!

    Reply

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Meet The Author

Asian-American world traveler, food-obsessed digital marketer, and official ChopChick in Paris.

Follow me as I eat, dance, and explore every corner in my travels–both the grandiose and charmingly hidden.

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🇰🇷🍲My favorite Korean dish: spicy soft to 🇰🇷🍲My favorite Korean dish: spicy soft tofu stew aka sundubu jjigae🔥It’s so easy to make, less than 10 minutes in one pot. 

🙌🏼 R E C I P E 👩🏻‍🍳
I start with a sundubu broth packet (seafood stock) from @k_mart_paris, then toss in silken tofu, zucchini, onion, mussels, bacon, and an egg into the boiling pot. Cook for about 5-6 minutes (you can throw the 🥚 in later if you like the yolk quite raw). Serve into my earthenware bowl (a gift from @melissalim89 😋) which keeps stew hot forever. Finish with some green onion and red chili pepper flakes (gochugaru) on top.🌶

🍚Most of the times I have a bowl of rice on the side, or sometimes I add ramen noodles into the stew. Today, I was lazy beyond belief so I didn’t even make either—just had some radish kimchi on the side for a fresh pickle-y crunch.💥

❄️This is my one of my go-to dishes for lazy cold winter days...but to be honest I eat it all year round, even on sweltering summer days sometimes.😂💦

🇺🇸Back in the Bay Area, we have so many Korean restaurants that are tofu stew houses, specifically serving sundubu—I miss that so much and I can’t wait to see if that will come to Paris in the near future...@chopchicksinparis will stay on the lookout!😉🇫🇷
What’s in my bag?✨These are the things I never What’s in my bag?✨These are the things I never leave home without:
• my iPhone📱 
• lactose pills💊
• a notepad + pens📔
• toiletries kit💄
• snacks - I’m always hungry🤤
• water bottle (thermos for winter!)💦

Does it seem like a lot or a little? What are your essentials when you’re out and about?👜👟
💫Thankful for the start of a new year. Working 💫Thankful for the start of a new year. Working hard to kick off 2021 with a happier, more inspired, and more balanced 𝑚𝑜𝑖.✨🌼How are you feeling about 2021 so far?
✨New blog post: 𝙼𝚢 𝟹 𝙵𝚊𝚟𝚘𝚛𝚒𝚝𝚎 𝙷𝚘𝚕𝚒𝚍𝚊𝚢 𝚃𝚛𝚊𝚍𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜 𝚒𝚗 𝙿𝚊𝚛𝚒𝚜🎄

🎅🏼Pre-COVID-19, I would normally spend the holiday season in between France and California, sometimes even Taiwan.✈️

🌎It’s a time of year full of joy and travel, reuniting with my family and friends abroad and spending time together (eating😋🍜🥟) all day. 

🇫🇷After 4 years of living in France, I’ve come to love new holiday traditions that are so different from the ones I grew up with. 👉🏼Link in bio to discover my 3 favorite French holiday traditions! Hint: one involves cheese🧀

😷One of the hardest things that I’ve had to deal with (and for many of my friends too) in 2020 is accepting I haven’t been able see my family abroad for almost over a year...and I’m still not sure when I’ll be able to next. Despite this, there’s a lot to be thankful for! I’m grateful for our good health and that I have my new extended family here in France.❤️Wishing everyone a healthy and smooth end to 2020–and sooo looking forward to a fresh start in 2021.🎉
🔎I spy with my little eye...a carrot. Can you f 🔎I spy with my little eye...a carrot. Can you find it?🥕✨

In other news, I feel like it’s freezing cold in Paris already and it’s not even officially winter season yet. I would say the Californian in me will never adjust, but somehow (and I have no idea how) I survived 4 years of Boston winters in university...so I should be able to handle this.😂❄️🥶
🌊𝑔𝑜𝑡 𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑎 🌊𝑔𝑜𝑡 𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑎𝑣𝑒𝑠, 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑛𝑜 𝑏𝑒𝑎𝑐ℎ🌵*𝑒𝑥𝑐𝑢𝑠𝑒𝑧-𝑚𝑜𝑖 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑎𝑑 𝑝𝑢𝑛*

🍜This year I’m making Taiwanese beef noodle soup over Facetime with my mom for Thanksgiving. Growing up in California, our family ate a combination of Chinese, Taiwanese, and American food for our Thanksgiving dinner. And usually we’d eat at more than one household on the day, between family and family friends and celebrating together in our community.🥡🍻🥢

🇫🇷Since moving to Paris four years ago, I always get super homesick around this date, but this year it’s even harder. I wish my family and friends around the world a healthy, safe, and delicious Thanksgiving Day. Missing you all dearly.🥧🧡
i wish i had the motivation to wear flowers in my i wish i had the motivation to wear flowers in my hair everyday🌼despite all the days sort of blending together now...friday is still my favorite day of the week🥂✨bon weekend à tous!

🧋definitely going to get some boba milk tea as a pick-me-up💕what are your weekend lockdown plans?
✨small things that make me happy right now in lo ✨small things that make me happy right now in lockdown: 
📞 facetime with my family
🍑 peach + sage green colors
🍊 clementine season
🥂 rosé + white wine
🌼 tiny dry flower bouquets
🪴 my lil plants 
☕️ taiwanese oolong tea 
🎶 ukelele covers

❣️what small (or big) things have been making you happy lately?
🔊• S O U N D O N• 🎶 Lazy Sunday ukelel 🔊• S O U N D  O N• 🎶

Lazy Sunday ukelele session with Koi Koi as my “enthusiastic” audience😹💤

💬Note: I accidentally reversed the lyrics—it’s supposed to be “𝐶𝑎𝑢𝑠𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢’𝑟𝑒 𝑚𝑦 𝐼𝑟𝑜𝑛 𝑀𝑎𝑛...” not “𝐼’𝑚 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝐼𝑟𝑜𝑛 𝑀𝑎𝑛” ooops🤦🏻‍♀️

The original song is {𝙸 𝙻𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚈𝚘𝚞 𝟹𝟶𝟶𝟶} by @stephaniepoetri✨Love it so much!
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