Fancy an Elevator Ride?

On Sunday, I left home early to get on time to my yoga class. In the end, my "early" was definitely not early enough. Not for the class I wanted to go to, not even for the one after that. 

Right upon getting in the elevator and pushing the "0" button, the light went off, the elevator made a weird noise and came to a halt. The rescue button didn't work. I didn't have my phone. Basically, I was lucky that my other half was at home and heard me shouting and making noise in the elevator. Thank you!

We were told a technician was on its way and should arrive within thirty minutes. I don't know if any of you readers have ever been blocked in your elevator, but half an hour is pretty long. Especially when you don't have a book with you or your phone to play with and even less when you need to go to the toilet. I was lucky to have my yoga bag - I could sit on it and cover myself with a towel when the cold started to get to me. Because, the technician didn't turn up in half an hour. Not even in an hour. It took him 70 minutes to make it to our place. And then, another 20 minutes to get me out of the elevator. 

My ride was about 15 cm long. And the technician had to force the door to get me out. The door stayed stuck after his intervention, as you can see on the pictures. 

Sorry, no pictures of me in the elevator, since I didn't have my camera (nor my phone).

I took the stairs down and up today. Even after my yoga class and carrying four different bags.

PS.: We wrote a letter to the owner of the building today. I wasn't the first one to get stuck, my husband went through a very similar experience three weeks ago (but he "only" spent 50 minutes in there). Beware of elevators, guys.

Autumn Love

The other day, someone told me they hate autumn. Ever since that day, I've been thinking about a my favourite season (positive attitude, right!). And the answer definitely is, I love them all. I like the never ending cycle of winter-spring-summer-autumn-winter-spring-summer-autumn-winter-spring and so on. I guess I need change. By the end of each season, I am really looking forward to the next one and there is something I love about each season. And thinking of it, there are no things I hate in a season. 

English Rose

Here you go with my favourite things about AUTUMN

• Air gets crispy and when the sun comes out, it's still warm and lovely.
• Rain falls often. Soft, misty, hard... it has so many different faces. I probably mentioned this alreadym but I love walking in the rain. All I need is a nice umbrella, a warm coat, shoes that don't get wet in 5minutes and I am ready to set off. 
• Warm socks, soft plaid and a hot cup of tea with a book on the sofa. (Can I get a fireplace, for Chrismas this year, please?)
• Foliage. For several years now, I've been dreaming of going to see fall season in New England. Not on the agenda this year, though. Thank you Pinterest for all the beautiful foliage pictures you provide.
• Walking around the city in the dark, when the sun starts to set earlier.
• Autumn is a great excuse for sitting around in warm cafes.
• Fruits - pears and plums and all these yums.
• It also means the festive season is one step closer. 

Fontainebleau Forest

Do you like autumn?

Northern Lights

Back in my student years, we went on a study trip to Finland, to the Helsinki metropolitan area. It was late November. I hope for snow but we got only cold wind and rain.

I am a sucker for Scandinavian design. In the little free time we had, I went to the Marimekko shop. Fortunatelly for me, in Finland, design is everywhere. Which means I didn't need free time to see it. My favourite part was definitely the Alvar Aalto Technical University Campus in Espoo.

A few shots from real Finland:

And a few shots from Finland in Paris:

This is the newly renovated Finnish Embassy in Paris. A beautiful mixture of old classic design (as Alvar Aalto lamps) and current young Finnish designers generation.

Here Comes the Sun

According to what I see on Facebook, road tripping in the USA has become a very popular summer holiday among my friends. Seeing all those beautiful pictures reminds me of that beautiful honeymoon we went on three years ago. I would go again. Anytime. Even though I am on honeymoon every day...

I don't know about you, but for me the greatest souvenirs I can bring home from a trip are things I can wear. It works a bit like my husband's scarf. If I wear them, I get to spend my day a bit where I bought them. Unfortunatelly, my amazing jeans from San Francisco are long dead, maybe because I wore them every other day... (where can I find great jeans again??). My earrings, a souvenir from Grand Teton National Park, a wonderful place in Wyoming, are still going strong. They made their way into my closet all the way from Grand Teton's Indian Arts Museum. That summer (and I hope this tradition continues), every week for several months, a different Indian know how and art was presented at the museum. I watched the lovely lady work her beads and loved it. I am ashamed to say I don't remeber if she was Hopi or Navajo, but I knew immediately, this was a souvenir that would have a special place in my heart. I had hard time choosing the right pair, they were all so beautiful.

I guess I picked the right one, for the moment and even though the golden colour is a bit faded, these are still one of the statement earrings I wear the most. 

They bring back memories of a warm summer day, of a skilled kraftswoman, of a long hike around the lake, of a huge ospray sitting on a tree, of a thundering waterfall and of sweet corn grilled on our campsite fire. 

Here came the sun, all the way from the lovely Indian lady, to make my day brighter.

Across the Border

First of all, sorry for this huge vacuum since my last post. I didn't really have access to the Internet last week. But I had access to family, nature, long walks and mountain air. 

Living in Europe, it feels great to travel around, forgetting there once (not so long ago!) were borders. Living, working, traveling where you want within this one big, beautiful and diverse place that is Europe. 

Last week, we went for two hikes on the Czech-Polish "border" in the Giant Mountains (Krkonoše). Up there, with the birds signing, the clouds and fog rolling from the valleys and the pure, fresh mountain air, I was happy. And quite importantly, my always dry eyes were happy in the mountaint air, too!

It's a great feeling when your legs hurt, because you spent your day hiking in a beautiful landscape.

Krkonoše <3 p="">

Côte d'Azur, Côte d'Amour

Leaving everything behind, taking just your husband and friends, your swimsuit, your sandals, your sunscreen, your hat and sunglasses, some sundresses, shorts and tops. Thinking only about what kind of beautiful place you will go to the next day, what beach with turquoise waters you will be spending your time at and what ice cream flavour to pick next. That's my idea of a relaxing holiday.

And it's exactly what happened to me last week. Lucky girl, huh?

Starting your holidays with a beautiful wedding weekend probably gives it the right kick off, too. Most people start their holidays with stress while packing (have you packed your toothbrush!?!), being late at the airport, at the train station or stuck in a traffic jam. I guess starting them with a happy feeling is a much better option.

I was a bit worried the happy feeling would go away with the wedding over, but it didn't happen. It stayed with me all week. I couldn't believe all these shades of blue were true, in front of my very own eyes, in the Mediterranean, so close to several big cities. Waters so clear I could see my feet perfectly and at one point, even the fish swimming very deep below me. Without a tuba and a mask, just watching through several meters of water!

The best thing about St Tropez are not the bling yachts, it's the sunset.

We stayed not very far from the city of Hyères. When I discovered it was in Hyères that the name Côte d'Azur was born in the 19th century, I could completely understand why. I might be a colour freak, but as well as I couldn't help but marvel at all the different shades and hues of green in the Lake District this spring, this time I couldn't believe the different shades of blue the sea had up its sleeve. Azure, of course, but also baby blue, cyan and cobalt, teal, sapphire, turquoise, sky blue and deep marine blue. Some of those blues were so strange, they didn't even seem natural. But they were! With no filters, no sunglasses on, my head just above the water in one of the Calanques, the sea had a Smurf colour.

 

 

 

 

 

Fish!

Grand Site des Gorges du Verdon.

 

Vulture 

Moustiers

Lavender Fields.

And in this water we walked, jumped in the waves, swam, had fun, ate ice cream, talked, dived and windsurfed. Yes we did!