CUT and DRY : TRAVEL

Showing posts with label TRAVEL. Show all posts

A Bit of Luxury

{Marina Bay Sands Hotel Infinite pool, Singapore. Located on the 57th floor, this pool offers fantastic views of Singapore financial area and if you swim up to the pool's edge, it looks like you're about to fall off the top of the world.}

Hope you all had a good start to the New Year! I hope 2020 brings you good health and happiness, and the fulfilling life that you all deserve.

Recently, I stumbled upon this picture of the Marina Bay Sands Hotel infinite pool while browsing the internet and thought I'd share it with you.
I wish I could afford to stay in this incredible hotel and treat myself to a bit of luxury someday, but my bank account doesn't allow for things like this.
In the meantime, I imagine myself floating in this amazing rooftop pool. Lol!

Hope you have an adventurous weekend! xx

(Photo via Marina Bay Sands Hotel.)

How About Having Breakfast with a Giraffe?

Giraffe Manor Hotel is an unusual hotel in Nairobi, Kenya, surrounded by 47 hectares of woods, in which Giraffes live in their natural habitat.

Not a bad idea actually, if only I could transport myself there! ;)

Hope you have an adventurous weekend! xx

(Photo via Giraffe Manor Hotel.)

Recalling My Trip to Amsterdam

Westerdok District, Amsterdam, Netherlands.

When I first visited Amsterdam over 10 years ago, I was really impressed by the Golden Age bridges and canals, houseboats, whirring bikes (cycling is key to the city's character), magnificent museums (Amsterdam has over 60 museums), floating flower markets, and of course the abundance of coffee shops.
My memories of my first visit to Amsterdam are the Rijksmuseum, Ann Frank's house, canals, houseboats, and a day trip to see Tulip fields.
Apart from these sights - that attract millions of people annually - I was also interested in exploring what street food to eat in Amsterdam.
I never imagined that French fries (patat in Dutch) are one of the most popular street foods in Netherlands. You'll find French fries stalls at almost every corner in Amsterdam. They serve it with a variety of mayo; mustard mayo, peanut mayo, spicy mayo...

My travel companion and I had decided to stay on a houseboat. This was a great decision. I think staying on a houseboat is the best way to enjoy the "Spirit of the city". The houseboat was terrific, it was clean and comfortable and had everything you need. They call Amsterdam the Venice of the North. The city has 165 canals, 1,281 bridges, and around 2,500 houseboats, due to the housing shortage in Amsterdam.

Amsterdam, the free-spirited Dutch capital is one of Europe's great cities. I do hope to visit here again one day.

Hope you have an adventurous weekend! xx

P.S. Sadly, I accidentally deleted every photograph I had taken from my Amsterdam trip. :(

(Photo via AirPano.)

Have an Adventurous Weekend

Outdoor infinity pool. Adelboden, Switzerland. What a...

Happy New Year!! Welcome back from the holidays! Hope you had a great, relaxing time. I wish all of you the best for 2015.

It's that time of year-one where we're all looking for New Year's resolutions. Every January, people like to make resolutions for the next 365 days or so. I don't make resolutions anymore (I'm a bit of an under achiever when it comes to making resolutions...hehe) but this year I've decided to make some goals for myself.

So. Here's my list of big and small goals this year:

Having McDonalds or a pizza once in a while won't hurt. A little of what you fancy...does you good.

A fascinating combination of lovely old houses, shops, restaurants, cafes, and cobbled streets. Plymouth Barbican, Devon, UK.

Morning light in my kitchen.

A trip to Ikea.

Cute animal metal boxes.

Today we're kicking off a new series here on the blog: Five Things Tuesday. We love this series, and hope you will too.
Well, I'm off to work now. Have a great Tuesday! xx

P.S. In case you forgot, you are awesome!

On Traveling

Lion at the base of Nelson's column. Trafalgar Square, London. For more, go here .

Some thoughts on traveling. I love travelling (traveling) because wanderlust is in my DNA. I love traveling simply because I need to explore and experience new places, cultures, etc. I love traveling because nothing helps you connect with your inner self...

A Taste of the New

This post was originally posted on September 29th, 2009.

Emile, a fifty year old wine maker, was in charge then, but he has now handed over his daughter Isabelle, who is continuing to make excellent wines.

I think in matters of wine and taste, the French generally contrive to give an impression of effortless self-sufficiency.

While my uncle Peter and I were planning a trip to France- long ago-we've decided that we would begin with a visit to the vineyards of Alsace. It was my first time in my entire life that I visited a winery.

Alsace is one of France's most appealing wine regions. It is scenically beautiful and its climate is reliably mild.
It is a delight for the gastronome (it has more Michelin stars than any other part of France).

Alsace wines are sold in a tall, slender, green bottle, known as a flute .
Most are vinified dry and have respectable levels of alcohol, making them excellent partners for food.

I have very fond memories of my visit to the Wines' Road, in Alsace, France.
I was impressed not only by the pretty villages but by the openness and enthusiasm of the producers.
The Alsace Wine Route runs through small towns and villages, one of which is Dambach la Ville where the winery is.
Dambach la Ville is a traditional village with half-timbered houses, narrow streets and flower-decked-balconies.

My uncle's friends, Emile, his daughter Isabelle and her husband Jacques, gave me a wonderful welcome during my visit to the small village of Dambach la Ville.

The winery is housed in a charming old butter factory and they produce a dry, food-friendly white wine of the Pinot Gris grape variety.

It's fun reading Masters of Wine's description on the bottles: flowery, fruity, spicy, smoky, stylish, fragrant, racy...

As I relaxed over a glass of their delicious wine I wondered if I would be able to resist wine living so close to a winery. (Haha!) xx
(Updated)

A Glimpse of Paris

The Eiffel Tower.

The Eiffel Tower is one of the most famous structures in the world. This magnificent structure is an iron lattice tower located on the Champ de Mars in Paris.
It was named after the engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the tower.

Read on and enjoy a range of interesting information about the Eiffel Tower .

Cinnamon Palmiers.

A palmier or elephant ear is a French pastry in a palm shape or a butterfly shape. Delicious!

How to make Cinnamon Palmiers .

Chicken Cordon Bleu...the easy way! No flower mixture, no egg mixture, no bread crumbs but it did taste as good as the traditional version.

The Chicken Cordon Bleu, a classic French dish, is meat with prosciutto ham and cheese filling, that's rich and tasty.

How to make authentic Chicken Cordon Bleu .

I was dreaming about Paris yesterday; would love to frolic around that lovely city today. I know that people often say that Paris is a fabulous city to get lost in...We do love Paris but France is more than just Paris!

Do you like French food? Have you ever tried any of these?

Hope you have a great weekend! xx

(Top photo by Joey Zanotti via Everything You Love To Hate)

Flowers, Quotes, Cookies and...Randomness

White Chocolate and Cranberry Cookies have always been high on my list.

I thought I'd treat you to a bit of a random post today...positive randomness I love.

Summer memories never fade away...

I grow herbs in small pots outside my kitchen. They stay neighborhood cat free...they don't have much to do with them!

{Photo of Bruges taken on my Brussels trip three years ago. Bruges is a charming little town in Belgium.}

{It really feels like Fall outside!}

{Be the person your dog thinks you are.}

I firmly believe that it's really useful to get exposed to randomness from time to time...try new things, travel, talk to people, search for new friends. The more we are exposed to randomness (and take the opportunity), the wider our perspective becomes and the more confident about our own ability to deal with life's challenges we become.
All too often, I found myself spending more time exploring the unknown, thinking, exposing myself to interesting things, taking in new experiences. Somehow randomness fires inspiration. Eventually.

I'd love to hear, do you seek out randomness to stay stimulated? Or do you tend to go the routine route?

Hope you have a wonderful weekend! xx

P.S. I've finally reached the fifth step today. Yipee!

Under Construction

Beautiful view of Hydra island, Greece.

CUT and DRY will be under construction this weekend. I am in the process of revitalizing my blog...doing actually some work on fixing up the links, html, archives and pages.

In the meantime, here's a photo from a trip to Hydra island, Greece, if you'd like to see.

I hope you have a great weekend and I look forward to seeing you next week. xx

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Wishes + A Journey

Majestic London Buildings.

My dears, what are your plans for the weekend? In less than 40 hours, I'll be on my way to London for two weeks- so wish me a safe trip!
I'll be staying in London for a few days then I'll be meeting up with a couple of friends in Plymouth.
I would really, really, really love to visit my good blogging friend Tracy as well (she writes the greatest book reviews and also runs the "Pen and Paper" blog), if only I could convince my friend Mark to drive me over there.

But London is brrr freezing cold already! It seems like winter has come early this year.
Winter officially starts on 21 December. (The winter solstice, the time of year when the Sun reaches its southernmost extreme in the sky, will happen on 21 December 2012.)
I hope we all have a good winter.

I look forward to snapping some good London and Plymouth photos...as I pretty much take my camera wherever I go!

I'll try to pop in to read and comment on your blogs when I can.

Have a wonderful weekend, my dears, and keep warm! May your days be filled with joy and blessings!

Till we "meet" again,
Love and hugs. xx

P.S. I'll-miss-you-all-immensely...missing you already!

(Bottom photo by akialam d via Pinterest)

Five Likes Tuesday

So when I need a quick reminder I find quotations helpful.
My grandmother always used to tell me this: "If you have a lemon day keep sweet, and don't let the lemons get to you... maybe the next will be a glowing day!"

Tesco Snack Melton Mowbray mini Pork Pies.

They are chewy, luscious, and dangerously delicious. Once you've tasted these pies, nothing else will suffice!

A pork pie is a traditional British meat pie; it consists of chopped pork and pork jelly sealed in a hot water crust pastry.

It is normally eaten cold as a snack and it tastes really, really good! I could so fancy one now!

't Minnewater Tea-Room/Creperie in Bruges, Belgium. All I can say is that I seriously had one of the most delicious Blueberry waffles with Blueberry syrup there.

{At this point, just wanted to say that I like the way Americans mix sweet with savoury, so it is entirely normal to see chocolate pancakes with maple syrup served with bacon.
I just love American breakfasts!}

Aged Parmigiano-Reggiano (Parmesan) cheese. This is so good; very flavourful and so delicious.

Not sure what this delicate flower is, but I sure love it!
Does anyone know?

What are your five favourite things from this past week? I'd love to hear. xx

Wholesome Awesome: Devon, England Photos

Drakes Island from Torpoint, Cornwall.

This is a photograph of autumnal warmth, with the setting sun casting a pink glow, and the beautiful colours heating up the lovely Drakes Island early in the afternoon.

Drakes Island from Torpoint, Cornwall.

I'm back home after a pleasant, issue-free journey to Devon, England visiting friends and relatives and I am excited to catch up with all your blogs and comments.
I really love to travel and continue to use my travels as inspiration.
Travel is more than just going to a place; it's an inner journey as well. Journeys tell a lot about who we are and what we can be. In essence, every journey is a journey into a rediscovery of our identity. Don't you...

I'm heading off to jolly old England to meet with two good friends of mine I haven't seen them in years.
As you read this I am probably on my flight to Devon, England. I might even be devouring (blush!) delicious fruit scones with clotted cream and having a nice cup of tea.

As I write this I can already smell the freshness of the gorgeous English countryside.
So I probably won't be able to do my posts regularly, but I will continue to answer emails, read and comment on your lovely blogs.

I'll see you all back here soon! xx

P.S. Please excuse that I'll be slow to get back to you.

Beaches: Bantham Beach, Devon + Perspective

Bantham Beach, one of Devon's best known beaches, UK. {Photos taken in November 2010.}

It has been nearly seven months since my last trip to Devon, but these photographs keep making me feel happy.

I'm excited to share these images with you and take you all on a journey within my photos.

Bantham Beach is a beautiful sandy beach on the south coast of Devon, UK, ideal for water-sports, especially surfing.

I love to watch people surfing.

I'd love to take a stroll down the Bantham beach. I've been feeling the travel bug pretty strongly as of late.

Composition And Perspective

A brilliant photographer and wise person once told me.
"Use your creativity to:

*"build" your image,

*figure out what perspective would be best,

*make your photographs tell a story."

Actually, I've seen pictures with stunning color combination and perfect exposure - taken with big, fancy, expensive cameras, but they look quite ordinary. Because in my opinion they lack two major things:

Composition and perspective.

If you're into photography you may have heard of "The Rule of Thirds". It is one of the basic techniques and refers to the way a composition is constructed. (Of course, there are many Photography Composition Rules - but rules are meant to be broken, right?

The Rule of Thirds is to imagine breaking an image down into thirds- both horizontally and vertically. Ideally your picture will fall in or near one of those intersections. (Highlighted in red.) The human eye tends to be more interested in images that are divided into three parts, vertically and horizontally, with the subject falling at or along one of those divisions.