ヨーロッパのプチプラコスメブランド

最近ヨーロッパで大人気のプチプラコスメがイタリア・ミラノ発のKIKO。ちょっと日本っぽい名前なのか結構奇抜な名前も人気なのかな？フランスに住んでいたときホストマザーが夏のバーゲンでお店を発見したのがきっかけ。ホストマザーが買ってきたネイルの発色がすごーく綺麗だったので思わずモールに行って探してきたらティーンからOLやら層が広い人気店。お店は高級そうなのだけど、大体の商品が２００円～１５００円ぐらいとかなりお得。そのお店がジュネーブの国境沿いの街にもあると知ったので早速いってきました！

店の外見はこんな感じ。ブティックコスメ店っぽい感じがします♪

発祥地のイタリアではもちろんお隣のフランスやヨーロッパ各地でも店舗が出始め、かなりの人気。最近ではニューヨークとロスにも進出したそうで早く地元のサンフランシスコにも出てくれないかな・・・

今回は奮発して８点買っちゃいました。当初は７点だったんだけど、ある一定の価格以上購入するとプレゼントでもう１点ボーナスしていただきました♪　それでも４０ユーロ、１点につき大体５ユーロとこの品質では激安・大満足です。

リップステイン・グロスは一番のお気に入り。色も長持ちするし、発色もいいのですごーく重宝しています。KIKOが人気であるもう一つの理由は広告のモデルがアジア人やアフリカ人が多く使われているというのもあるのではないかと思います。ヨーロッパだとどうしても白人がメインの客層なので他の人種にとって合う商品がなかなかないんですよね。KIKOだと種類とか色が豊富なのでどんな肌の色でも合う感じでなじみやすく・使いやすいんです。そういう意味でもアジア進出近いと私は個人的に思ってるのですが・・・

Volume Attraction Mascara - かなりボリュームが出るマスカラで気に入ってます

Eyebrow fibers -眉ジェル、しかもファイバー入り！色も自分の眉にぴったりだし、長持ちするので毎日のメークにはマストアイテムとなりました☆

Daring look eye liner - 目が小さいのでアイラインはかなり太め。これは太い筆なので書きやすいです

ネイルはボーナスも入れて３色も買ってしまいました　汗。右はマット仕上がりで、左２つは艶やかな仕上がりなので使い分けてます

これからヨーロッパに来る方、お土産にもってこいですよ～

KIKO

** Just a warning that this will be a bit of a girly post so skip if you're not into cosmetics.Although if you're planning a trip to Europe, it may be worth to note the places to buy gifts for your mom, gf, sisters, etc. 

I discovered Kiko through my host mom in France. She's a genius looking for good quality good deal products and she came across them when they were doing a massive summer sale. They have great low-priced great quality things, much better than American cheap brands anyway. They're a cosmetic brand that emerged from Milan and they're quickly spreading around France and rest of Europe and I saw that there's a few stores in LA and NY area. So I was very excited to  find out they have it in the border city across from Geneva as well.

Bought all this, plus since I bought over a certain amount, I was even able to get a bonus product (+1 nail polish) my total bill of 8 products came out to be around 40 Euros, or about 5 Euros per product! It's a great deal and the quality is just as great. I've been loving ALL the products that I bought

My far favorite is the lip stain/gloss in one. It really stays on for hours and I love the texture of the gloss. Lots of nice color selections to choose from, espcially with my Asian skin it's usually very difficult to find a shade that fits me. But KIKO ads use a lot of Asian as well as African models as well so I can see how they're popularity is growing globally. I don't think there are any stores in Asia yet but I can see one coming very soon... considering they're very popular online

Volume Attraction Mascara - I love the thickness after I put it on my extremely microthin lashes!

Eyebrow fibers - They're mascara gel for my eyebrows, it stays on for hours and makes my brows look thick it's on my must-have for my everyday make up now.

Daring look eye liner - I have very small eyes so these thick liners make my eyes stand out nicely

Kiko nail polishes are the best. They're about 2-5 Euros but the qualities are almost that of department stores. Plus they come out with so many different colors and varieties, you don't feel guilty buying a lot..or should I be?

Hopefully they will open stores soon in Northern California as well, they're quality and prices are top-notch. But for now, look forward to it on your next trip to Europe... ;) (hint hint)

UN Bazaar

If there is one thing UN workers look forward to, it's the bazaar that's held in the end of November. It's a huge ordeal with long lines outside of Pregny Gate, loads of food and music coming into the quarters, and heaps of guards nervously watching us over...

It's a big event for sure, think of it as a global Xmas market. 70+ countries put out food stands, mini shops, and performances to start off the holiday season. Veteran UN workers know which stands they need to head to, and it's always a chaotic scene. I wasn't able to see everything and frankly everything was quite expensive but I was able to enjoy a few things midst the crowds.

Turkish sweets..yum!

Also Turkish coffee

My favorite...dolmas!

Argentinian empanadas

Back to Office Life :)

Sorry for the late update but I just wanted to update some great news: I started working!  My work involves standardization, (Japanese) law, trad analysis, and trade classifications.  I won't get much into the work detail but I'm happy to tell you I now work as a part-time consultant at the UN.

The chance emerged quite randomly and unexpected series of events. During this past summer I spent 2 weeks at the United Nations Graduate Study Program. I was part of a working group in which I vastly complain about the lack of supervision and organization of my work... to a high ranking  UN economist lady, who happened to be the advisor for our working group!

 But to be fair, it was a lot of work involved and I had to pull strings together to present and issue this document. In any case, I don't know whether I stood out because I was an outspoken rude student, a student who is studying about standardization, or because I was Japanese but one day out of the blue she emailed me if I'm around Geneva for lunch... lunch?! I could've turned it down but I decided to go anyway as I also thought she would be able to give me some feedback on the document we submitted to her.

Turns out that she said she was looking for someone to work on a project involving tariff and trade laws and classifying them in to standardized data. And even better yet, they were looking for someone who knows Japanese to look into laws in Japanese. I can instantly see why bells rang in her head for me. The project itself did sound very interesting but at this point thinking she wanted just a few hours to help her out, like a research assistant I just said "why not?"

Then it turns out she actually wanted to hire me as a consultant and it was a whole formal process of interviews and resume comparing. They ended up offering me the position but I was a bit hesitant.. they wanted me to come in for about 25 hours a week. Even though my course load is not as high, I still do take 6 classes. This was a big commitment. I ruminated over this idea for weeks but finally decided to give it one big shot (eek!).

Honestly it's been quite an excruciating schedule managing everything. On the worst days this is what my schedule looks like:

6am - get up
7-8am - commute to school 
8-10am - class
10-12pm -readings for a class
12-7pm - work
7-9pm - apero or some sort of symposium event
9-10pm - commute to home
10-12pm - dinner
12-2:30am - study for an exam

You'd think just working is hard enough but student and work balance is seriously excruciating. But nevertheless I'm surprised to say I enjoy what I do. For one thing, I learned a lot about Japanese society reading through these laws. The text is horridly complicated but it's been a good practice in Japanese skills. Secondly, it perfectly fits into what I've been learning in my studies. And I do really like the atmosphere that I work in. The one thing I've always been lucky about is that I have really great coworkers and supervisors (for the most part).

Guess in the end, all that started out with some edgy rebellious attitude help a bit? No, I am kidding. Frankly I've been extremely lucky and I'm blessed of the experience I've been getting out of. More updates to come!

View from our building

It's still quite expensive to afford cafeteria lunches at the UN..So bentos it is!　

Extra:
Sometimes I work from cafes in the UN compound, just for a change. It's interesting to hear all the different languages and events people are here for. The other day, I had an interesting guest knocking on the window...peacock(s)** ! It's nothing really unusual at the UN but a bit uprising they were staring at me!

According to a UN tourguide, the peacocks were a gift from an Indian maharajah. When Gustave de Revilliod de la Rive, bequeathed the palace to the UN/Geneva he requested that the peacocks remain on the grounds...so they do, till this day! I sometimes spot them and they're so used to being around humans that they are so chill and poised. They're the real residents who literally own the palace for sure.

IKEA Holiday Buffet

The greatest thing about IKEA in Switzerland is that they have the best bang for your food...even in the most expensive city in the world which is a life saver for students. Every holiday season they have a buffet of holiday food/Swedish food and this is a godsend.. I've been looking forward to it and I'm so happy I was able to get my hands on it... a plate full of food (pig!), cake, and coffee for a mere 10 CHF. It's the best deal in town. For those of you in Switzerland, this is a must.

何度も繰り返して申し訳ないのですが、とにかく高いスイス。外食なんて学生の身で持っての他なので普段は会社か学校の食堂（それでも1400円はする　涙）で我慢しているのですが・・・例外は学生の強い見方、イケア。家具やインテリアが学生にも優しいプライスで手に入る上、食べ物はおいしくて安い。ここスイスでもお手ごろ価格で本当に感謝してます。スイスはお肉やお魚は高級品なのでどーしても食べたくなったときはイケアのスイスミートボールで満たしています。

さて毎年クリスマスシーズンになるとスイスのイケアではホリデービュッフェが開催されます。1200円ぐらいで一皿で取り放題のスイス料理プラスデザート&コーヒーが!　去年に続きもちろん今年も行ってきました（しかも一人で）ああ、幸せ♪　また友達と来ます。日本ではこういう企画は聞いたことないのですがどうなんでしょ？ スイスにこの季節いる方は是非！

祝「一時」就職

報告が遅れましたが、11月より契約社員ではありますが、無事「一時」就職いたしました。職場は国連です。ちょっとびっくりですが、本当に運がよかったのと縁に恵まれたおかげだと思っています。

事 の始まりは7月に国連大学院生プログラム、といって毎年大学院生を対象とした研修プログラムで2週間にわたって色々な国連機関や仕組みついて学び、最後に 実際に国連の会議でするようにワーキングループに分かれて最終レポートとプレゼン発表をするもの。これがかなり大変でグループをまとめたり、レポートの編 集をしたり私ともう一人の人でリーダー役で大変だったんです　汗。しかも本来は国連のアドバイザーの方がつくのにあたしのグループはあまり関与なしで、最 終提出の時にハーバード出身のエコノミストのアドバイザーの方にブーブー文句いったんだよね　笑。その印象が強かったのか、あたしが基準法について学んで いるというのが脳裏に焼きついてたのか9月に入っていきなり「ごはんでも食べに行かない？」とのメールが。会って怒鳴られるかと思いきや、とあるプロジェ クトを手伝ってもらいたいとの事。頭の中では大学でよくあるリサーチアシスタント的などうでもいいお仕事かなと思いきや、その後は履歴書やら面接やらで妙 にいろんなプロセスがあるな～と思ったらコンサルタントとしてのちゃんとしたポジションのお仕事でした　汗。

コンサ ルタントといってもパートなのだけど、週25時間働いて欲しいとの事。うーん・・一応あたし今学期6クラスあるんですけど？！悩むに悩んだ上引き受けるこ とに。仕事の内容は複雑なのでちょっと書ききれないのですが、日本の法律と非関税法を照らし合わせてデータ収集するといったもの。仕事と学業の両立は半端 なく忙しいけど不思議と無理ではない。前に証券会社で働いていたから激務には慣れているというのもあるんだけど、仕事の内容がかなり興味深くていい同僚や 上司に恵まれたおかげだと思っています☆

とはいえこういう風にお仕事が回ってくる、しかも国連からというのはかなーり稀で今まで聞いたことがないので本当にラッキーとしか言いようがないのですが、与えられたチャンスそして周りの期待を裏切らないようしっかり頑張りたいと思っています。

国連の食堂は貧乏学生にとっては毎日は無理なので大抵はお弁当持参です♪

オフィスはこんな感じ。これは上司のデスク。噂によるとこの国連のデスクは50年以上経ってるらしい。アンティークですかっ！

Cohort Love

When I first found out that my entire master's program was under 20 people, I was a bit scared. I'm used to big things. My high school class had close to 500 people. My college.... easily in the thousands. Many of the programs I applied to for grad school ranged from about 50-200 but under 20 was a lot less than I had ever experienced. When I showed up on the first day of orientation, I found out I was just one of 13!  I worried if we'd all get along with being such a small cohort. What if we were all so different we'd never agree on anything ?

 And yes, we don't. We seldomly all agree. But we always find consensus.

Though we all come from different backgrounds, nationalities, and expertise we've all grew close to one another in one way. As of now in our third academic semester, we have dwindled down to 10. But I feel that our bonds have just strengthened. Moreover, it really shows how efficient and effective we've become since we've worked so close with one another.

You really feel this when you interact with other graduate students from other masters. I've been taking class at the nearby Graduate Institute this semester; and though their establishment is high quality I find that the quality of the overall work done is nothing close to where we are (sorry!). The interaction, quality of work, and coordination that we've developed over the past year has been nothing but amazing.

In our last academic semester, we have less chances to see each other as we are all taking various electives. Nevertheless it's these rare moments we get together for a meal that I really feel the sense of belonging and real appreciation for the small size class we have. To a great cohort and good food (Persian!)