how to spend a saturday afternoon in london

“by seeing london, i’ve seen as much as the world can show” - samuel johnson

old sammy boy may’ve been slightly biased–what with the whole ‘tired of london, tired of life’ diatribe (clearly he never had to take the 43 bus home from old street on a rainy monday night)–but he had a point. if you can’t find a way to amuse yourself in london, you may be beyond pleasing.

try, for starters, the vibrant, bustlingly dickensian borough market for brunch with a limitless menu of sarnies, salads, raclettes,  paellas, mezzes, cakes and more (with plenty to sample)…

go for the smoked toulouse sausage sandwich with rocket and mustard and a flat white coffee (a bargain for six quid as it’s a three-mealer, i.e., breakfast, lunch and dinner all-in-one)

then follow it up with a clove-filled mulled wine (three quid) served up with a smile (free)…

if you’re up for stroll, venture down the south bank and catch a free concert along the way under blackfriars bridge…

brave the crowds at the tate modern or hop on a bus down to shoreditch to check out some galleries for something completely different. like PETROL, a show of painted car bonnets, at signal gallery on curtain road…

or just walk around to see the art on the street.

total cost for all that food and culture = 11 quid.

scenes from barcelona

the pride of catalunya

one of the things i love about catalan culture is the fierce pride that transcends each generation and is palpable throughout the streets of barcelona. on a sunday evening outside the gothic cathedral you can find dozens of people from all walks who have dropped their shopping bags to join in on the sardana, the national dance symbolising catalan unity.

a description from barcelona.com:

Sardana dancers link hands with raised arms, forming circles which grow bigger and bigger as more people join in. Traditionally, couples can join in at any point, but cannot cut in between a man and his partner on the right. When the circle gets too big, the dancers form more circles. People of all ages and ranks in life join hands and dance as if to emphasize that whatever their differences, they are first and foremost Catalans. The spirit of unity generated by the sardana is truly impressive. An extremely disciplined dance, the sardana calls for exact movements and expert timing, provided by a leader in each circle. For this reason, unless you think you’ve really got the knack, it’s generally inadvisable for visitors to join in – one wrong move can put the entire circle out of step.

it’s quite moving to watch…and makes you want to be part of the club. what other culture do you know where people will spontaneously join in on the national dance?

shopfronts of barcelona

 

a little street art

spotted this banksy graffiti on holloway road. wonder how long it’s been there…

where i’ve been lately

it’s been quite a month so far…first stop, dusseldorf to see my bro (and some art):

next stop, new york for some enticing new business meetings (and enticing new york pizza at lombardi’s yum):

then, a quick hop down to tulsa for my mum’s birthday:

(wasn’t actually there long enough to take any pics)

but there’s more in store before november comes. stay tuned…

pink loulou launches

the lovely and dynamic skye campbell, who i met and had the pleasure of briefly working with in sydney, has just launched a gorgeous little line of quirky cool rings, necklaces and cufflinks called pink loulou. she scored the cover of harper’s bazaar australia with her ‘patriotic moment’ necklace (see cover above). nice little bit o’ pr there. i’ve already placed an order for an insignia ring…a modern take on the signet ring.

check out the line at www.pinkloulou.com. they ship worldwide!

(more) scenes from paris

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

to autumn

jardin du luxembourg, paris

palais de tokyo, paris