sunshine, freckles, copenhagen

more on Flickr.

Nothing like staying at home...

There is nothing like staying at home for real comfort.
Jane Austen

Funeral Blues

I have been thinking how far it is from remembering to forgetting.
It's strange.
It's utterly strange
to say goodbye
for one last time.


"Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone,
Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone,
Silence the pianos and with muffled drum
Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come."

good morning, twenty ten

Fresh starts. Thanks to the calendar, they happen every year.
Just set your watch to January.
Put your past behind you and start over.
It’s hard to resist the chance of a new beginning. A chance to put the problems of last year to bed.
Who gets to determine when the old ends and the new begins?
It’s not a day on a calendar. Not a birthday, not a new year.
It’s an event, big or small, something that changes us. Ideally it gives us hope.
A new way of living and looking at the world.
Letting go of old habits, old memories.
What’s important is that we never stop believing that we can have a new beginning.
But it’s also important to remember that amid all the crap are a few things really worth holding on to.
(From Grey's Anatomy)

Christmas Time

It's Christmas time, picked some pinecones from the woods to make ornaments.




knead and bake



curl up and read

the creative habit

Do something everyday, regardless. Nothing will happen unless you first initiate a process of cause and effect. This starts with an action. Reawaken the possibility of possibility. Reawaken it with play. - David Horvitz
I will say create something everyday, regardless.





So I keep reading. I read Obit, An alphabet for Gourments, The Stranger, How to be an Explorer of the World, The Creative Habit, Design as Art... I read What Should I Do with my Life? even. Eventally, I found the most inspirational messages from Moominpappa at Sea.

"I'm going to get some sleep. Problems often solve themselves while one sleeps. The brain works better if one leaves it in peace." - Moominpapa

"You have to be angry sometimes. Every little creep has a right to be angry. But he's angry in the wrong way. He's not letting it out. Just shutting it up inside him." - Little My

iamsterdam

Day 1 5.45 Schipol Airport
Arrived early in the morning, I decided to go to Utrecht to meet Miffy first. Following the Oudegracht canal, I found the Dick Bruna Huis and the Centraal Museum without getting lost.




Dick Bruna Huis is a wonderland. If I were 5, I would run crazily around like other kids. Matisse and Gerrit Rietveld are the biggest influences of Dick Bruna. The Centraal Museum possesses the largest collection of Rietveld designs in the world.




Wandered around Lijnmarkt & Oudegracht in the afternoon. There are many fun little shops like Prod's and Primes which has a rich collection of Barbapapaitems.

Dille Kamille is a beautiful shop for accessories of kitchen and garden.

Prinses op de Erwt has kid stuff of brands like club geluk, kik kid, kids case and room seven.




Leaving Utrecht, I went back to Amsterdam by train. It took me a while to get the bearing right. Still I managed to find the hostel at last. Accommodation in Amsterdam is not cheap. I just booked a shared room. I do not expect anything fancy but this one is really... one word, daggy.


Day 2




Got an iamsterdam card from the tourist office in the morning. The card gave me access to around 20 museums in 2 days. Van Gogh Museum is famous for its long line. Waited for almost half an hour to get in. The audio tour of Van Gogh Museum is one of the best in the world. It's like taking an art appreciation class. I always think Van Gogh tells us practice could make perfect. In the creative world, talent may help a lot. but if you are really committed to create, it's possible to accomplish something extraordinary.

After visiting the Van Gogh Museum, I went to Overtoom to check out marqt. marqt is a high-end supermarket with cool design. Down to Ten Katestraat, it's a market that sells vegetables and fruits.




The rest of the day is all about photography. First I visited Huis Marseille, the museum of photography. The current exhibition is portraits of families in the Netherlands by Taco Anema.




I'm totally into the exhibition of Richard Avedon at foam.

"There is no such thing as inaccuracy in a photograph. All photographs are accurate. None of them is the truth." Richard Avedon


Day 3


I started the day at Hortus Botanicus, the botanic garden. Over 4,000 species of plants are growing in this garden.




Joods Historisch Museum (Jewish Museum) is a total surprise. I was drawn to the museum by its logo. It turns out the design of the museum is even better. The children's museum is soooooo cool. It helps kids to learn about the Jewish culture and history through cooking, drawing and music.






Next stop is science center NEMO. The architecture is by Renzo Piano.

Then I checked out the Stedelijk Museum in De Nieuwe Kerk (The New Church). It's an exhibition about "Holy Inspiration, religion and spirituality in modern art". I can tell for sure I don't like contemporary art.

To have a rest, I took the 75-minute boat tour to have a good look at the city along the canal. Last, I finished the day by visiting the Rijksmuseum. As the museum is undergoing a major restoration, only a small part of the museum is open to public.


Day 4






It's my second last day at Amsterdam. First I went to Albert Cuyp market. What interested me most is the shops on Gerard Doustraat.

Blond Amsterdam has a wide collection of fun lifestyle products.

Kinderfeestwinkel has everything for kids.

Duikelman offers professional cooking tools.






Following the Amsterdam Design Guide made by Danielle from the Style Files, I checked out shops at Negen straatjes. Of course, droog design, frozen fountain and kitsch kitchen are too good to be missed.

Day 5



On my last day at amsterdam, I went to De Oude Kerk (Old Church) to have a glimpse of sunday service in dutch. Then I went to the Piet Heinkade region to check out all the modern architecture. I guess my camera knew its the end of my journey. It decided to take a break. So, I could only let the pictures stayed in my mind.