Urban sketching tools

Urban Sketching is the act of drawing or painting on location in the cities or towns that you live in or travel to. It is your own visual diary of what you found inspiring or note worthy. I have been doing this form of art for 2 years now and I am absolutely enjoying it….

Strolling Through the City: A Parisian Adventure

TRAVEL DIARY: PARIS 2 On October 10th, we embarked on the Batobus, eager to explore multiple stops with the flexibility of hopping on and off. Linked to Jo’s Monday Walk First stop: Jardin des Plantes. Walked by without going in—hubby and I weren’t too interested. Went past the Botanical Gardens… This is the stop where…

Rue de L’Abreuvoir Windows

Rue de L’Abreuvoir and its aurrounds is a little Parisian paradise in Montmartre. It has cobbled streets, ivy covered walls, pink coloured cafes that makes it the prettiest street in Paris. Here are some of the lovely windows that can be seen here. Linked to Xingfumama’s Whatsoever is lovely Ludwig’s Monday Window

London Public Art for a Cause

Discovered a Gorilla Trail in the heart of Covid Garden in London. Was disappointed that I just saw 3 instead of the 15 life size gorillas that was scattered there. This trail aims to show the beauty of this endangered species as well as educate the people on what is being done to help their…

It’s the time for Christmas Markets

The Christmas tree lighting at Bunjil Place might have had a larger turnout if it hadn’t rained. The crowd came early at 3 pm but the actual lighting of the big Christmas tree is still scheduled for 8 pm. Linked to Debbie’s SixWordSaturday The atmosphere of the Christmas market is lively with crafts, Christmas cupcakes,…

Seating Benches in Montmartre

A picturesque park in Montmartre with abundant green benches. It is a quaint haven where one can sit to while away the afternoon, far from the noise of the city.

Light fixtures

For Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge I am featuring the different styles of lamps in France, Spain, Portugal and the UK. Old fashioned house lamp in the Cotswolds, UK Quinta da Regaleira ceiling lamp in Sintra, Portugal Classic lamp post in Barcelona. Old style wrought iron lamp post also in Barcelona,Spain Abney Park in Stoke Newington,…

A day in Montmartre

TRAVEL DIARY: MONTMARTRE 9th of October, our day started off early with breakfast at our hotel at 8 am. It wasn’t the usual buffet breakfast but wow was it so yum and healthy-ish. Great start of the day. Went on the metro just a 1 minute walk from our hotel. Emerged from this Metro station…

Tuesday Blue Streetart Window – 16

BRISTOL, UK After weeks away, I am back with my weekly streetart post linking it with Ludwig’s Monday Window Challenge. This is a fun challenge for me because I love searching for Streetart everywhere I go. It is not hosted by anyone, so if you want to join in, just post a photo. I found…

Capturing Moments and Embracing Empty Spaces

I am linking this to Patti’s Empty Spaces LAPC , Xingfumama’s Whatsoever is lovely Challenge and for Johnbo’s Cellpic Sunday for this week. These are photos that I took with my IPhone during my travels from October to early November this year. What lovely memories…

Seats in Park View Cafe

There was a train strike last 11th of November so we decided to just stay local and stroll in Finsbury Park. About an hour walk and it was time for brunch at the Park View Cafe Some round tables and chairs. Linked to Xingfumama’s Pull up a Seat Challenge

The windows of Liberty

Liberty is a luxury department store in London and the building dates back from 1875. It is one of the most iconic stores in Regent Street. The Liberty Clock is a mechanical clock that was completed in 1925. I like how it looks like clocks that you may find in European Old Towns. Linked to…

Looking up, looking down in Sintra

Situated only 25km from Lisbon, Sintra is a picturesque town that has extravagant palaces, ancient castles and stunning scenery. One of the most popular day trip from Lisbon that people take is to see the colorful Palácio da Pena. This spectacular castle is located high in the Sintra Mountains and is considered one of Portugal’s…

Finsbury Park doors

TRAVEL DIARY: LONDON Departed Melbourne on October 4th, I endured a challenging 25-hour flight (including stopovers and layovers), finally reaching Heathrow Airport in the early morning. Upon our early arrival in London at my son’s place, I resisted the urge to nap, aiming to maintain my sleep schedule. Instead, I took a stroll around my…

Post-holiday Blues

It’s common to feel a bit drained after returning from a vacation, experiencing what some describe as post-holiday blues. “I really need a holiday from my holiday.” That’s what people always say. I and hubby were away for a month and a half so feeling tired and jet-lagged is an understatement. Anyway…. Back to business….

Signs in Lisbon

Currently, hubby and I are leaving Lisbon and are on our way to Porto via the Alfa Pendular or the CP – Comboios de Portugal. I haven’t posted in the past couple of weeks (or months) because things have been kinda hectic. So now I am linking this to Johnbo’s Signs in Lisbon Markets Some…

Framing my Travels

Sometimes intentionally but most times unintentionally, I use arches and openings on walls to frame my subject. For me, the purpose of framing is to guide the viewer’s eyes to what I want to emphasise and ultimately create a better composition because of it. Some of these photos I have used before but bear with…

Country town of Yarragon

The Queen celebrated two birthdays each year: her actual birthday on 21 April and her official birthday on the second Saturday in June. But now, for the first time, we are celebrating the King’s Birthday Long Weekend which takes place from Saturday 10th June to Monday 12th June 2023. It is a public holiday today,…

Sitting is an art

Sitting can be an art as seen in these Quirky and colourful benches in Bonifacio Global City or BGC in the Philippines. A stylized bench that looks like a pea pod in a park. A strong hand grip. Two figures reaching out to each other. Inspired by Xingfumama’s Pull Up a Seat Challenge and for…

More Doors in the Philippines (part 5)

You may all be getting tired of it so … promise… this is my last post about doors from my trip the Philippines. I don’t think I have any more photos of doors left to publish anyway. Inspired by Dan’s Thursday Doors Challenge

Boardwalk Benches

This was in Frankston when I had my moody walk a few weeks back. Linked to Xingfumama’s Pull Up a Seat Challenge

An afternoon in Tooradin

We strolled along the jetty and watched the sky as the sun sets. This was in Tooradin, a quaint fishing village in the bayside township, southeast of Melbourne. Inspired by Jo’s Monday Walk But first, I had an ice cream cone to quench my cravings. Sometimes there’s a scenic cruise operating here in the area….

Cloudscapes and Skyscapes

“Clouds in the sky very much resembles the thoughts in our minds! Both changes perpetually from one second to another.” – Mehmet Murat ildan I am a fluffy cloud kind of person. they’re so pretty and so I basically take a photo of it every time I see it. Here are clouds taken from nearby…

Is it raining … or not?

The sky in my backyard And at the same time, the sky in my front yard. Will have to wait a few more minutes to see what’s going on. Haha Inspired by Hammad Rais’ Weekend Sky

Another look at the Convent and its Doors

This is a continuation of my walk last Sunday at the Abbotsford Convent. Aside from windows and public art, I also found so many doors. Founded by The Sisters of the Good Shepherd in 1863, there are 11 buildings in this site. Built in 1887, this building was primarily used as a ‘finishing school’ for…

Dream… Create

It may be McDonald’s for you, but it is called Maccas here in Australia and McDo in the Philippines. This is how McDo looks like in one of the branches that we passed on our roadtrip last February 2023. Inspired by Xingfumama’s Pull Up a Seat Challenge.

Caleruega Chapel

This is the Caleruega Chapel of Transfiguration located in Nasugbu, Batangas in the Philippines. It is a beautiful church known as the most popular wedding chapel around Tagaytay. It is perched on top of the highest hill surrounded by panoramic views. Unfortunately the grounds were closed because there was a retreat going on that day….

Monday Windows in Batangas

Well, I am still in my reminiscing mode so here are windows from my latest trip back home. Batangas is one of the most popular tourist destinations near Metro Manila. It is where you can find the well-known Taal Volcano. Here are windows inspired by Ludwig’s Monday Window. This accommodation was built high up which…

A Moody Walk

When I first saw the theme of the challenge for this week, I was confused as to what direction I was going to take. There were so many different ways of tackling the subject. But it was a Sunday and my hubby and I decided to go for a weekend walk to relax. So there…