The High Street, Oxford, England, 1890s. I really like this hand-coloured photograph – and judging by recent visits the ‘cityscape’ has not changed much in 120 years.
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Travel
Why is a raven like a writing desk? More photos from my weekend away in picturesque Bath, Somerset. It’s so pretty there, I couldn’t stop taking photos.
Farmhouse breakfast at Monkton Farleigh. I was so sleepy I poured coffee into a juice goblet…
Below is a photo of the Bertinet Kitchen, high on the hill above Bath. This is the home of aforementioned best pain au chocolat EVER. It’s not just a bakery – it’s also a kitchenware shop and they host some classes that sound amazing. For instance: a four day course on baking, pastry and patisserie, and recently Anna Hansen, of Modern Pantry fame, taught there.
We asked our taxi driver He dropped us off by the canal, a few miles out-of-town. From there we walked back into the centre. I loved the sign written names of the canal boats. Crispy Duck!
And to finish… a touristy shot of the girls and I outside Bath Abbey, grimacing at the cold and the encroaching rain! If Bath is this nice in the middle of winter, it must be glorious in summer.
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Photos from a weekend away in picturesque Bath, Somerset. I got up ridiculously early in the morning, and jumped on a train to meet my pals Ali, Wayde and Shona. The first thing we did, and one of the highlights of our trip – was visit the Roman Baths.
There we walked around the remains of an ancient temple – constructed in 60-70 AD; and bathing areas, which were developed over the next 300 years. Over time the complex has grown, with other buildings built above street level in the early 19th century.
And this was just the first few hours of our visit! The architecture of Bath is gorgeous. More coming soon – including details of the place where I had the best pain au chocolat of my life…
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Check me out! The lovely team at CLEO Malaysia recently got in touch, and asked if I could share a memorable trip for their travel special. Conveniently I had just eaten my weight’s worth in fromages en Français. Other travel junkies featured included the familiar faces of Young – Half Girl, Sarah -Yes and Yes, and Olivia - Make Believe. And I got an introduction to the blogs of Cheesie – Cheeserland, Andrea – Green Tea, and Benita – Purrsie. All these women have FASCINATING and diverse lives – their blogs are great reads!
Thank you CLEO for letting us share; Paris, I miss you…
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Belgium has a great mix of cultures – half Flemish, half French. Brussels in particular captures this spirit – it’s in the Flemish side of the country, but the majority of inhabitants are native French-speakers. It’s a lovely place to explore. You’ll probably notice a common themes running through these photographs; Brussels is famous for waffles, chocolate, frites, comics (it’s the home of Tintin), and the Manneken Pis.
Tintin and Snowy! Spotted from the train rolling into Bruxelles-Midi/Brussel-Zuid station.
An example of the two languages living side by side. Also, Brussels has really nice trash cans.
(Is that an odd thing to notice?)
The Grote Markt (or Grand Place) was a square of breathtaking buildings. Gold, ornate, and utterly gorgeous.
Brussels has lots of cool street art/comics painted around town. There’s also a museum dedicated to comics!
The finest Belgian chocolate – in owl form.
A true polyglot, Brussels melds old and new architecture.
Putting the Pis in “piss-take” – there are tributes to Brussels’s favourite son, the Manneken Pis, everywhere.
Then after a night out and some excellent French food, it was back to London. I think we’ll be back to visit very soon – Belgium is only 1 hour 50 minutes away from London by Eurostar. It’s amazing to someone who has spent their entire life living on an island!
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This week Thom and I zapped off on the Eurostar to Belgium for our first city break since moving to England. Being greedy ambitious adventurers, we figured we had enough time to see the sights of both Antwerp and Brussels. After getting up way too early in the morning for my liking, we caught a breezy train to Antwerp – one of Belgium’s Flemish cities.
The beautiful cathedral in the heart of the old quarter. We stayed in a quaint little hotel right behind it.
It seems like you can get waffles everywhere in Belgium – even from train station vending machines.
We stopped for coffee & lunch to escape the chill. Despite my mittens, I wasn’t prepared for how cold it was!
There are dual language editions of this daily newspaper, in two different colours (green for French).
Antwerp’s retro-winkels, AKA vintage stores were great. Best find: a set of antique chocolate moulds for €20.
We spent most of out time just wandering the streets, ducking into interesting shops, and taking photos. One evening we went spent a few hours in a tiny bar, making friends with some locals, and then later, the Frites man. It amused him no end to explain all the different chip and mayo options to two enthusiastic tourists…
Next stop: Brussels!
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On Saturday Liss, Thom & I headed to Stoke Newington to check out the weekly car-boot sale at the Princess May. It was my first time in Dalston and I loved it! We picked up some breakfast at the street market – hot naan bread wrapped in newspaper, priced at 2 for a pound, then coffee at a Turkish cafe. Then it was off to the school yard to do some serious fossicking.
We came home with some good booty – a 35mm camera of Russian origin for £10 , a Patricia Highsmith book for £1, that bold red bird-printed dress for £5, and a set of mint-condition fondue forks for £5. The forks were a most fortuitous find because next week I’m holding a little fondue get-together to celebrate my birthday.
Perfect!
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London – September/October 2011. Roll number 3 with the Diana Mini captured the last of the summer light. I love shooting film, but I’m not sure how committed I am to the Diana Mini. It might be time to pull out the Canon AE-1, and get a sturdier satchel (I have my eye on a Cambridge batchel) to carry all my crapola round with me.
A majestic building in Bloomsbury.
An alternate view of Marble Arch. (I always get the sublime Jeff Buckley in my head when I hear those words.)
A flat white at Flat White, Soho. Good coffee is hard to come by in this city (country?). All the best places are run by Aussies & Kiwis, which is not that surprising.
A day trip to Oxford feat. The Queen.
I adore Hyde Park’s deck chairs in the summer… But goodbye to all of that for now!
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August, 2011. Images of a black and white Paris, shakily shot through my Diana Mini.
As you can see, I didn’t do a very good job of exposure or winding the film on – but I like the ghostly quality of all these images. Roll 1 down, many more to go.
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London so far: Polish beer and lipstick / free information, stacked high on the street for commuters to pluck / museums, museums, museums / summer fruits / wise advice in Shoreditch / a pint or three at the Ten Bells (Jack the Ripper’s stalking ground) / riding a (double-decker) bus home from Sean’s Smashday party in Bethnal Green…
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Repeat after me:
It’s football, not soccer.
It’s football, not soccer.
It’s football, not soccer.
It’s football, not soccer.
It’s football, not soccer.
The game was football, Chelsea versus West Brom at Stamford Bridge. Security and hopes were high. A first I didn’t really know what was going on, but thanks to the man behind me, who had the crackled voice of a market seller, I kept up with the plays. And the players, as he graciously named every one – “COME ON DROGZ!”
The final score was 2-1 to Chelsea. Everyone in blue went home happy, and I must remember to always call it football.
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Finally home. Which is what I’ll be calling London for the foreseeable future. Right now I am crashing at my brother’s house in Surrey Quays – until next week when I move East into a cute little house with a warm kitchen, a back garden, and a tube stop.
Above is the view from one of the said quays; the buildings are far beyond on the other side of the Thames. And if you walk a little further, you’ll get to a boat called the Wibbly Wobbly – it’s a floating pub!
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Marsh Gibbon aka Swamp Monkey is a tiny village nestled in the English countryside somewhere close to Oxford. I oohed at thatched roof cottages, played pétanque, wandered through a churchyard, got to make friends with several nice ponies, ate at some cozy pubs, and whiled away the summer days…
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