Favorite Food Places in Berlin

Hi Guys!
Without a big intro, I just want to show you guys some of my favorite places to eat in Berlin. All those places have vegan options and are super affordable and to be honest, I don't even get to test many other places because I'm just waaay to much in love with these.

1. Haferkater
They started out as a small startup in Friedrichshain but have opened another Store in Prenzlauer Berg as well as a pop-up store in both Berlin and Cologne Central station. They make porridge, salads, cookies and probably the best coffee in Berlin. In fall and winter they also add soups to their menu.

 2. Alisna
 Best Kumpir in town and super nice service located in Kreuzberg (U- Schlesisches Tor). Best place to hang out after ballet class and refuel! They also make amazing coffee, however they don't offer any milk alternatives. Veganize your order on special request.

3. Zeit für Brot

It's really hard to walk past this Cafe because the smell is just incredible. They make the best cinnamon buns I ever had and the rest of their selection looks just as amazing! It's a big bonus they're located in the Alter Schönhauser Straße, just down the street from Pro Danse.

4. Brammibal's Donuts

Just three words: BEST DONUTS EVER! Also they're completely vegan and have an amazing selection of Donuts all handmade and fresh!

5. Dolores

Custom-made Burritos, Burrito bowls and other Mexican dishes. Super delicious!

I hope you enjoyed this post.

See you soon!

Laulie

College Life

Hi Guys,
I mentioned before things are going to be very hectic this year for me with juggling dance, blogging and college so I thought I'd just give you a little update.
I finally have all my classes figured out and am generally pretty happy with my schedule. That's the thing with college at least here in Germany: you get to decide which classes you are taking, there are requirements of what you have to do of course, but ultimately you are the one actually coordinating your schedule. At first that sounds pretty cool, but guys I can tell you one thing, it is seriously frustrating and really hard work!
Basically I felt like the world was conspiring against me because like half the classes I should be taking were either during my ballet classes or interfering with something else. I have almost everything I need to take coordinated now and take some more classes in my minor so I can make up some of the stuff for my major next semester. Sounds complicated, right? It is and sometimes I just think: what was I thinking when I signed up for this?
But well, I take 23 hours of classes this year (20 are recommended but I am behind so I need to catch up).
Anyway, like some of you know, I major in Spanish and minor in English, which I'll hopefully be able to interchange but for now I'm happy with this.
So I take my college classes in the morning and then go to ballet, pretty much every day except for Thursdays, where I have linguistics in the morning, then go to ballet and take another English class in the afternoon.
I love my schedule because it really gives me time to focus, as I tend to procrastinate at home, but there really is no time to do this with the way my classes are right now. I still get to take all my ballet classes and go to the gym and will hopefully also be able to handle the workload.
I also don't have to wake up at 5:30 in the morning every day, which is a big bonus too, at least in the winter months. Since I have my laptop with me at all times, I'll also be able to blog regularly.
I hope you enjoyed this little update, I have an exciting post coming up very soon and am also working on some new recipes to post!
See you soon!
Yours,
Laulie

PS: Christmas time is approaching fast and I love advent calenders. If you do, too, go check out this fit calender from the Protein Projekt here and pre-order yours today!

Why I’m not vegan anymore

Hi Guys,
Some of you might know that I used to be a vegan for about 6 months and I just want to give you some background on why I chose to not call myself a vegan anymore.
First of all, I still love to eat vegan, I have vegan meals frequently and eat plenty of fruits and veggies. I’m from Berlin so eating out is fairly easy too and I still go to a lot of vegan restaurants or pick vegan choices from the menu. I don’t eat meat but have started to occasionally eat some salmon, because I like it.
I have added yoghurt back into my diet and love eating regular custard. Those are obviously not my reasons for quitting veganism but it does have a part in it.
My main reason for quitting veganism is simply that I’m sick of reading labels and then putting away something I really want because the second to last ingredient is milk powder (I didn’t just make this up, that’s the case with my favorite granola). I want to be able to go to a restaurant with my parents without having to order my pizza without cheese because let’s face it, it’s so much better with cheese on it.
I don’t want to limit anybody because of my diet, I want to be able to go to a restaurant with my friends and just order something, get a cappuccino even if they don’t have soy milk ( happened last week).
I like donuts but don’t want to go to a vegan donut store anytime I’m craving some.
I just want to eat my mom’s cooking without having to ask if she used some butter or milk and put her in a bad mood because she feels like I’m restricting her on the things she always used.
To sum this up: I want to eat the things I like without checking if they’re vegan and then be disappointed because they’re not.
Hope that’s understandable to you!
Yours,
Laulie

Back to college survival guide: favorite snack foods + free healthy bar code

Hi Guys!
So it's finally time to go back to college and to be honest I'm slightly nervous because  I've been so busy the entire break (which was almost 3 months by the way) and have ansolutely no idea how I'm going to juggle 20 hours of classes plus homework, reading and studying with that already crazy schedule. But for real, I waited an entire month for my hair appointment because I simply had NO time and classes haven't even started!
It's also going to be a lot more serious this year, I finally got the minor I really wanted and now I'm super motivated and can't wait for classes to start.
To top it all off I still haven't found an apartment so I have a 1.5 hour communte every morning, which is tons of fun if you have class at 8am.
But anyway, as you can imagine, this year is going to be all about food prep to avoid spending loads of money at the cafeteria and going broke at Starbucks.
Today I have some of my favorite snack and breakfast foods that are hopefully going to get me through this crazy year.
I got them all of www.protein-projekt.de, they are an awesome side with tons of snacks, protein bars and healthy foods and also have a huge selection on vegan products and workout gear. Definitely check them out for some awesome deals! At the end of this post I will also give you a link to get a free hejbar with your order! Definitely use it, I love these bars to death.

Did I mention I love hejbars?! Well I love all of them except for ginger, because I just absolutely hate ginger but my mom really loves that bar too!

The natural crunch musli is probably one of my favorite musli so far. It got all my favorite things in it (chocolate and cashew nuts is a killer combo) it is not everly sweet and has a fair amount of protein!

They also sell some clif bars you can't get anywhere else in Germany! Peanut Toffee Buzz is one if my absolute favorites ever since I tried it in the US, not just because it has caffeine it it. It's just aboslutely delicious.

Some more flavors of clif bars and also they have the Complete Cookies by Lenny&Larry's which are just amazing. Of course they are cookies so naturally not the healthiest thing in the world but they are vegan, have a fair amount of protein and fiber and are soy free. My favorite flavor is definitely White Chocolate Macadamia.

Also try the protein bars by hej nutrition, I love those too!

Yep, there are Bounty, Snickers and Mars Protein Bars and the Protein Projekt got you covered. Disclaimer: they are not like the real bars at all, but still a tasty protein bar.

So far my favorite vegan protein powder. It dissolved super easy in water, abosolutely no clumps and tastes better than any protein powder I ever tried!

These are only some of my favorite snacks from www.protein-projekt.de but they have so much more, so definitely check it out! I can't wait to try more of their stuff!

Also: they launched their Protein Projekt Advent Calender today, you can pre-order yours here. It comes in a regular and a vegan version and I absolutely plan to get one myself!

This is also the perfect chance to get a free hejbar, just shop with this link and you can get a free bar of your choice with your order: http://pp.team/laulie-hejbite

See you soon!

Yours,

Laulie

PS: Excuse the picture quality, I finally got my new camera, so the pictures are going to improve a lot very soon!

My Pointe Shoe History (+get a free Hejbar)

Hi Guys!
I feel like pointe shoes are one thing everybody seems to struggle with. Few are lucky and find their perfect pair early on but for most of us it's a long way of disappointment and frustration. Well, at least for me... So, today I'm going to recap on all the pointe shoes I've had, what I liked about them and what I didn't like.

My first pair of pointe shoes was Bloch European Balance. They looked good and at first the box was pretty comfortable. They are not overly hard and a good shoe for beginners. The main problem I seemed to have with them was that they just wouldn't bend in the right place and the box went soft very fast. I was also between sizes and went for the smaller pair, which caused them to dig into my heel until they were broken in.

My second pair were Bloch Triumph. They are said to be a beginners shoe (because they have sued tips), which I really can't agree with because they were pretty hard, at least for Bloch shoes. I struggled with breaking them in and getting over the box, even though I have good arches. When they were broken in, they started bending in all the weird places again, that's a problem I had with all Bloch shoes I tried. They bend too far towards the box, so they don't support the line of the foot properly for me.

After that I went back to the European Balances, this time half a size up and one width down. It seemed to be a good fit at first but when they were broken in, the heal started to look a little baggy and I was sinking slightly in my box. They also died very quickly.

Then came Mirella Whisper for me. I think those were actually one of my favorite pairs of pointe shoes, even though they were a little small for me. I got fitted into them online and got them for free to write a blogpost about the service. I really liked them though and they had a 3/4 shank, which made my feet look really pretty. I wore them on all photoshoots in London.

Along with the Mirellas, I also got a pair of Bloch Dramatica, which are from the Eurostretch line by Bloch. I loved them and they looked great but they died EXTREMELY fast. But the stretch satin doesn't make the heel look baggy and you don't even have to break them in. The only problem I had was that t felt like the shoe was sliding off my heel all the time, which was because of the stretch material. It never did though, so it's all good.

After that I tried Grishko for the first time. I had a great fitter in Berlin and was fitted into Grishko Fouette, because my teacher wanted us to try some more tapered shoes. I liked the Fouettes and they looked good but I was really scared of turning on them because the platform was narrower than I was used to and I couldn't warm up to that at the time. It was also really annoying that they didn't have a drawstring.

Next I tried Grishko Triumph. I liked them but mine were actually too narrow so my feet looked sickled a lot. But dancing on them was great. I would have probably stuck with them if I hadn't wanted to try Gaynors.

So for the next 1,5 years, I wore Gaynors and thought I had found my perfect shoe! And what happens next? Yep, my feet grow. But of course, they don't grow half a size, they grow ever so slightly that my current Gaynors are very uncomfortable and will give me bruised toenails if I dance on them but they didn't grow enough to fit the half size up.


I was lucky I always had a pair of regular pointe shoes, just for the feeling. I had a pair of Bloch European Balance Strong in Miami, which were okay and lasted me for the 4 weeks I was there but I didn't love them enough to get them again. I also tried Grishko Dream Pointe and fell in love with them. it took some getting used to because they are tapered too, but this time I feel a lot more comfortable with the shape of the shoe and they are 3/4 shanked, so I really love that too. I'm going to stuck with those ones for now and ordered a new pair of them.

The Dream Pointe is not a traditional paste shoe per se, they have a plastic sole and are said to last longer. The only problem I had with the pair I had is that the shank just broke in the middle, so there really isn't a way of dancing in them once they are broken because the plastic is really digging into my foot. I still love them and they lasted me about 2 months.

Now I have to wait for my Grishko order to even do pointe because I didn't expect my Grishkos to break that suddenly. I will try to glue them though and will keep you updated on how that went.

My Grishko order includes a pair of Dream Pointe, Dream Pointe 2007 (they were recommended to me by a fitter) and Grishko Super Triumph. The reason I got 3 pairs of shoes is simply because shipping taked FOREVER and I got 15% off, which made each pair about 45€, try finding pointe shoes (except for Sansha) for that price, I dare you.

I will keep you updated on the shoe situation.
Yours,
Laulie

Some of my dance shoes, this was taken back in February, so there'd be about 3 more pairs of pointe shoes now. Also let me know if you want some reviews on ballet flats!

PS: I have teamed up with www.proteinprojekt.de to give you a free healthy bar with each purchase from their site! Shop via the link:  http://pp.team/laulie-hejbite

My Ballet Story

Hi Guys!

This post was meant to be up yesterday for world ballet day but I got stuck in Berlin during the storm and was busy refreshing newspages for updates on how to get home.

Right now, I’m on set for “Berlin Station” Season 2 and have nothing better to do so here we go.

I started Ballet at the age of 3 at a local ballet school. I loved watching ballet but soon started hating the classes so I quit a year later. I spent a long time hating ballet after that, I can’t even say way but I guess I was traumatized.

At 14, I came across this show called “Dance Academy”, which was the first time I actually took the time to watch ballet again and it made me really determined to start ballet again. I wasn’t flexible at all, so I was determined to change that and started stretching every night. It did pay off and I got my splits within like a month, but at one point I was just too over ambitious and injured my hamstring. My self-diagnosis was that it was probably a tear because I heard something rip and I had problems with that leg for years. That didn’t get me down though and I started taking classes at a small ballet school run by a russian teacher.

It was a small class and there were only 2 other girls in my class. I was getting discouraged very fast so after about a year and a visit from a former student of my teacher’s I decided I really wanted to improve faster and started really making an effort, trying to take in as much as possible and watching ballet videos on youtube every chance I got.

My first ballet performance was 3 months after I started ballet and I was proud as hell I got to be in it because we got to perform alongside professionals from a Russian touring company in Swan Lake. In a way that’s actually still my biggest performance to date, if you go by audience size.

After about 1,5 years I was certain I wanted to do more ballet but it wasn’t possible in my school, that was only offering an hour a week.

Luckily there was a new school set to open when I entered 11th grade and I started going there 4 times a week, not just for ballet but also modern, jazz and acro. The part I was most excited about was finally starting pointe. I had never realized how lucky I was with my feet, because I never worked on them before yet my teacher allowed me to start pointe due to my natural arch.

Before starting at the school, I injured my other hamstring, probably another tear, though the doctor couldn’t be bothered to actually find out what’s wrong with it. I heard a tear again, during warmup in school PE class (we did gymnastics). That was a huge set back and the injury still hurts sometimes.

The other girls in my pointe class had been on pointe for a while, so I always had motivation to get better. 

I loved trying out different styles of dance, although ballet will always be my favorite.

I quit acro after 2 years after showing absolutely no talent for it (basically I’m scared of everything and have no strength at all, which is a great combo for acro).

After finishing high school I had more time and wanted to do more ballet. I did my research, talked to some people and decided for community college classes with this wonderful teacher in Berlin.

It started out as just one day a week but it quickly turned into more as I absolutely loved her classes and the environment there.

I did my community college classes and trained at my ballet school for a year and even got to perform a solo with my ballet school, which was both exciting and incredibly nerve-wrecking for me as I’m really not the most confident person on the planet. I loved the opportunity though, which made it all the much harder to decide and leave the school at the end of october, but there are more opportunities out there for me, I want to move to the city, spend some time abroad and really need to focus on university.

I tried getting into dance programs at universities, which did not work out for me. I’m not sad about that though, seeing the competition there really made me realize that I have A LOT to learn and it’s really hard getting into those programs.

I’m happy with where I am in my life right now, I’m happy I get to travel and study the (academic) thing I really want to do in college now. I have a super encouraging teacher who keeps pushing and reminiding me that it doesn’t take a fancy school to be a dancer. If it’s meant to be, I’ll get there, if not I still have my college degree to fall back on, which I wouldn’t have if I studied ballet full time.

I hope you enjoyed this post!

Yours 

Laulie

Favorite Everyday Makeup

Hi Guys!
I asked you if you were interested in some makeup related posts and I got ALOT of messages saying yes, so here I am, hoping someone will even read this...
This is kind of exciting for me, makeup is actually how I started out on Instagram and eventually stopped because I just realized how stupid it was to spend as much money on makeup as I did. I still love it but I try to actually use up some stuff. I also wear waaaay less makeup now, I remember around 10th grade, I spent like half an hour each morning doing my makeup and that was not because I was bad at it, it was because I was just wearing so much of it.
Now I hardly bother putting on mascara but back then I did the whole show... eyeshadow, eyeliner, 3 layers of mascara, etc...
The products I'm showing you today are things I have used for years now and repurchased several times (most of them).

The essence powder absolutely rocks, I've probably used it up about 10 times already.

The mascara is absolutely awesome and that liquid liner was my best friend back when I wore a cateye every day. I usually get it in waterproof but they were out of that one last time I went to the store. It's like a felt tip liner but since it's liquid it lasts way longer cause I can use a felt tip liner about 3 times before it stops painting.

I usually just wear the garnier mattifying bb creme because I don't need to use a beauty blender for it (I'm just lazy like that... and even worse at cleaning it). It also has awesome coverage and is mattifying yet not too drying. When it gets to dark for me in winter I love the fit me matte and poreless by Maybelline.

The concealer has good coverage and matches my skin tone really well and the setting spray does an awesome job at keking my skin relatively matte during ballet class.

For my eyebrows I love the perfect brow pomade by p2 and the make me brow eyebrow gel by essence.

The lipstick is my number one, all time favorite and I literally wear NOTHING else. I probably wear it in all of my instagram pictures too! It's the shade 420 from the matte lipstick collection by trend it up, which, unfortunately is only available in the German drugstore chain DM.

Okay technically not makeup but I absolutely love all my Victoria's Secret Bodysprays! I didn't realize I had that many but well...

Rush and Vanilla Lace are new, which is why they are still full, Passion Struck reminds me of Miami because I wore it there every day so it kind of makes me sad using it now...

My absolute favorite is Coconut Passion, I used up a whole bottle and a mini bottle of this, which is real dedication people!

I hope you enjoyed this post and I can't wait to do more of those!
Yours,
Laulie