the week :: through the lens

it has been on the back burner, i have not been taking a lot of photos for a while now, and that should change. so i put the "hand made" lens back on the camera body and got started this week. it touched me in a special way, as i wander and have the camera ready be it in the kitchen, or living room table... this enables me to see with new eyes and i like it. we will see if it sticks, it is a start to a new friday review of what caught my eye. there is to be said, that i was inspired by erin boyle and her blog "reading my tea leaves". she does a wonderful job and it is so inspirational to have a look at her photos...

:: 1. the back for the target quilt 

:: 2. a project started

:: 3. while we helped our friends moving into a new house 

:: 4. the rooster is getting prettier every week

:: 5. and i love the summer sky

family

an other little look back 10 days ago in virpazar, we stood there at the edge of the river, looking out onto the meandering river flowing into lake skadar. it was, we are all clear on this one, a wonderful family vacation and so much fun with the kids.
thinking back, we were very uncertain about the whole kayaking idea, as thea is not really at a paddling age yet and elias can be super focused and speed oriented in contrary to amos. that boy prefers leaser and story telling, even while working.

well it worked out in all kind of pairs. what we did not try was, having elias and naomi in one kayak. it is interesting to say the least, how our youngsters are building up their character. i so love to watch them, those 10 days of family vacation were awesome in this regard too.

thank you my family for taking me along.
i absolutely love you, each and every little and big person in our family.

yesterday - summer day

an unsexpected visit by our cousin was marking yesterday.two very happy girls, all day long, playing what ever was popping up in their mind. lots of play with the chickens, swinging and some time indoors, while i was doing loads and loads of laundry, taking advantage of a wonderful sunny day to air some bedding.
it all was like a dream going to bed in a sun filled fashion, this is one of the best things, which can happen to me.
later in the afternoon, we went to a little park and playground near by, as the girls wanted to go there and climb. more fun and i got to read a bit. if you ask me, it was a perfect summer vacation do what you want day and for a perk, i even got the laundry done!

more of those days, please. i would take them all.

summer's bounty

the heat and with it the seeds of summer.
i love the scent of dry grass and plants, the summer's glowing heat and withering of plants has something very sobering and sad in it. though never the less it is new life. still appearing in lifeless form, but then again, full of new life.
lot's of shades of gray and brown and yellows, not bright and flashy, but camouflage and hiding. getting ready to be put into fertile soil and bringing forth new life.
there is something about seeds, they come in all forms and shapes and ways to be traveling and put into new ground.

inspiring and so much summer at this moment, i love ti and can't get enough of it.

the week :: through the lens

it has been on the back burner, i have not been taking a lot of photos for a while now, and that should change. so i put the "hand made" lens back on the camera body and got started this week. it touched me in a special way, as i wander and have the camera ready be it in the kitchen, or living room table... this enables me to see with new eyes and i like it. we will see if it sticks, it is a start to a new friday review of what caught my eye. there is to be said, that i was inspired by erin boyle and her blog "reading my tea leaves". she does a wonderful job and it is so inspirational to have a look at her photos...

 :: 1. the evening in the castle of kyburg

 :: 2. what a cool sigh

 :: 3. siesta, pause, fresh tomato and cheese with bread

:: 4. purple thorns in their beauty

:: 5. o my boys, i love you!

at kyburgiade

up at kyburg, the castle i love to see from far, while running in the mornings. it is a wonderful strong hold looking over the surrounding woods of winterthur.
we got tickets to a concert of the kyburgiade, a wonderful concert series each year at the beginning of august. i have been looking at the program last year and many times before. this year some friends looked at the festival an were thinking of joel and me.
we went to listen and absorb all there is of the four seasons original and recomposed, interpreted by daniel hope. it was fantastic, just wonderful to soak it all up and the orchestra as well as the soloist were superb. the the castle itself the perfect place, the weather could not have been better, a gift joel and i absolutely enjoyed.

thank you neighbor ladies!

montenegro II

then the second part of our vacation was at the nature preserve of skadar lake. we stayed in virpazar at guest house ivana . super nice and spacious, we all enjoyed the solitude and quiet. a walk into the little town, grocery shopping with ice creme was a must. some very special light at the evenings, as it was supposed to be a stormy night (which ended up not being).

an other take at kayaking, this time on the lake, all quiet and still. exploring islands which are cow pastures... we realized it early enough to hop back into our kayaks... and on we went to find a spot ideal and idyllic for a lunch break. we found it! the farmer even went that far to prepare two tables and a chair in the shade of the willows.... :) no, just joking, but it was fun to discover those long lost tables and chair and we had a little "in the boat" picnic.
a wonderful lake for kayaking, so many kinds of sea weeds and reeds and lilies. in some spots super shallow, sandy ground and great for swimming and playing in the water, the absolute best fun for the kids, even better than cliff jumping in the days ahead!

to our astonishment, we discovered a little "free library" in the town of virpazar, i want one of those libraries in my neighborhood too...

and then on our last day, we enjoyed a wonderful long boat tour on the lake. very impressive, especially after so many hours of paddling in a kayak, that motor boat was super fast. it was a treat and we were able to go to places we just could not have paddled ourself's. we went through areas covered by sea lily pads. the guides have to cut those corridors out for the boat tours. lots of pygmy cormoranst, grey heron, swifts and different species of ducks.
we visited a little monastery, just one monk lives there, has his bees, his little vineyard and a generator, some cats and a dog. a wonderful tiny chapel and a breath taking view out onto the lake a gorgeous spot of nature.
that last night we had dinner in town, fish and eel and of course fries and grilled vegetables with a wonderful dessert, something like a cake soaked in rich milk and caramel sauce topping, yummy and this all while the sun was setting.

now at home, going through the pictures and talking a lot about our adventures in montenegro, vacation lives on and it seems to be a likely country we will be visiting again.

montenegro I

it was a wonderful 11 days we spent in montenegro.the planned family vacation at a not super crowded spot on the adriatic sea. it all started out, that we felt like, we wanted to do some type of water vacation, as the kids love the element. my idea was to go north and enjoy the fjords of norway. though the kids were not up rot this, as swimming and snorkeling was on their minds. so the discussion was on, where to go, within europe and not to hit the hotspots, like southern france, italy, korsika, spain? well there was a lot of looking around, and some more trying to find a good location with the possibility of those activities, like kayaking, swimming, snorkeling, and going into a city. i found a wonderful helper with beyond travel. 

they quickly came up with the idea to visit montenegro, specifically the bay of kotor, and so we did!
a little insight into the past weeks are posted here

 not just sports but there are other hobbies which needed to be enjoyed

 and a short but bike tour with spectacular views

 then of course lots of kayaking and sun bathing, watching the clouds

we climbed the walls of kotor, picnicked and enjoyed every moment of the breathtaking view of this natural and cultural historic site

 had a lovely tiny apt to stay in and feel at home almost as part of the extended family of our hosts

enjoyed wild life and the not so wild side of it as well. visited cetinje


and more tomorrow