Summer will be here again

That's the hope and the flowers will bloom again.

Durham, England

Don't worry, summer will come again. At Crook Hall and garden, Summer 2015!

Travel plans

There's an empty place at a cafe in Berlin with your name on it.

Rosendals tradgard, Stockholm

I just found out that Rosendals garden in Stockholm will be closed permanently. Its a garden research center. Its very beautiful and very busy in summer. There's one less place to visit while in Stockholm.

New York and Klimt

Klimt's paintings are now in some parts of the world because of Holocaust survivors. Gustav Klimt was a Viennese painter and towards the end of his life, his clients were mostly wives of rich Jewish Industrialists, of which, August Lederer was chief among them. This is a painting of Serena Lederer. Till today the heir of the Lederer estate is still fighting the Austrian government for theft of Nazi loot!  The famous frieze, the Beethoven frieze by Klimt sits in the Seccession building in Vienna. It looks like the Lederer estate has lost that fight. Today both New York and Vienna are the two major places to see Klimt paintings. I had the privilege of doing both in 2015.

Dreams of summer

Its hard to come up with an encore. Being on the move for 3 months straight is hard physically. I'm still recovering and its been 4 months since I've been back. I may have a few short trips this year but definitely in 2017 I want another epic adventure. This time I want to be more prepared physically.

Mid sommar in Sweden

Here in February 2015 I was practicing for summer solstice in Stockholm, June 19 2015. It was rained out but I was there, in Skansen an opened air museum in Stockholm. I had fun anyway, arriving the same day from Copenhagen by train. After dropping off my bag at the hostel, I rushed to the ferry, took it over to Skansen, people were leaving but there were others who stayed or like me just arrived. It rained the whole day, the place was wet and muddy but we, me and other people from Austria, made the best of it. Maybe this can be an excuse to try again.

Smorrebrod

This is very Danish, open faced sandwiches. The bread is always rye bread. They eat very hearty bread, no white flour stuff! It is buttered and topped with a variety of things. Just pop into any shop at lunchtime and order whatever you like and how ever many you want. Very delicious. Miss it already.

2015 the year in review

In February 2015 I was in Italy, visiting Matera, Naples, Rome and Assisi. 2015 was so wonderful, in fact, each year and each day is wonderful. I can't forget this wonderful pastry I had in Naples, Italy. It is unique to Naples, the 'sforgiatelle', strips of thin and crispy pastry wrapped over a creamy custard filling.

Happy New Year 2016

Do you have any travel plans this year?

Choose worship

This Christmas, choose worship. Carry that worship in your life throughout the year. God said, 'For I know the plans I have for you, to prosper you.' May you have a very prosperous new year.

Remember this Christmas

Remember those less fortunate, those in war torn countries.

Travel alone

Its tough, one has to suffer a lot of indignities like getting lost in the rain. I envy those travelers when I pass their expensive hotels to see hotel staff helping load and unload the cars in front of the hotel. Wow, No one has ever helped with my luggage, in fact, the day before this picture, someone helped themselves to my luggage and walked off with it. What irony! Here I am, getting off the train in Bath, England, in the rain, all wet and bedraggled, trying to locate the hostel. I must look quite a sight. Anyway I'm scheduled to leave again, alone, in April, for a short trip to Japan.

Goodbye, summer

See you next year.

Nobel prize

Summer 2015, I'm sitting in the square in front of the Nobel hall. The Nobel prizes have just now been given out. We must live a life of serve to mankind.

Choose joy

'Joy to the world', says the carol. This season, choose joy, simple joy. Cafe in Stavanger, Norway where I found such joy.

Choose adventure

Happy birthday, Vienna 150 years. Here, a few years ago at the Kunsthistorisches museum, having lunch. I returned to Vienna 2 months ago. This building is a gorgeous palace and house some of Vienna's most priceless art. If you do visit Vienna, take your time, there's so much to see and experience.

Choose beauty

An old wooden house, a yard full of tall grass and fading lupins, its summer time in Aland in the Turku archipelago of Finland. Who would have thought there was beauty here? The sun was hot and as I hiked alone that day I wished the day would never end. The summers here, albeit brief, is so beautiful here. Its a beautiful world. Cherish this beautiful world, Cherish this beautiful life.

Choose life

'I have come that they may have life and that they may have it more abundantly'. In light of the terror attacks in San Bernardino, choose life.

Jamie Oliver's restaurant

The restaurant was simply named 'Jamie' but everyone knows its a Jamie Oliver restaurant in Bath, England. It was very tastefully and simply decorated. I walked in the day of my arrival, it was raining as it does in England. I had a very pleasant experience, eating 'porchetta' or roast pork which was a recipe that belonged to Jamie's friend, the great Italian cook, Genaro.