24 Hours in Venice

So I've had a bit of a holiday, definitely more relaxed and ready to tackle my last 100 days in London!

 I finally went to Italy and it was just what I imagined and hoped it would be!

I have since decided that (1) I want to move to Rome and (2) I might have a bit of a problem when it comes to the need to take photos - 1,000 in 5 days! 

Of our whirlwind 5 days in Italy, we spent 24 hours in Venice. The thunderstorms at night excited me! The people selling plastic helicopter things irritated me (but not as much as the umbrella/rose guys in Rome). But most of all, wandering through the tiny passageways and walking in circles amazed me! The island is unlike anything I have seen before and I definitely need to go back for a longer period of time to really get past the "touristy" façade.

On Monday morning we decided that we were going to walk around and try and see as much as we could. We thought that since we had pretty much covered Per Rialto and Piazzo San Marco the previous evening we must walk in the opposite direction to the signs. We could not escape them! No matter which direction we turned we landed up walking back towards those places or - coincidentally - our hotel!

 At this stage we decided it might be a good idea to visit Lido and the Giardini, both of which were completely different to the areas we explored the day before  (Lido had cars!!)  but so peaceful and exactly what we needed!

Before I get to the photos - my sister has started a really interesting blog - Studio Gold - which is worth a look! She also introduced me to Pinterest which I can see will provide me with many hours of procrastination in the months to come!

First Post

I've been toying with idea of starting a blog for a while now, but I have always come up with excuses which stopped me from carrying through with it. These range from not knowing what I would write about to thinking that it would be really difficult to create one and would take more effort than its worth.

I'm pleasantly surprised that it did not take that long to create - I did spend forever trying to make it look 'right' however and then another few hours dragging things around the screen while I put off writing anything. But now no more excuses, the time has come. 

I'm currently on secondment in London, which unfortunately means that I work a bit too hard some (most) of the time, but I am fulfilling a dream that I have had since I was a little girl. I love the fast-paced environment and constant movement. It always makes me wonder where everyone is trying to get to and  what are they thinking about while they gracefully overtake tourists who walk through London underground stations with dazed expressions of pure panic and excitement. 

View of London from the London Eye - December 2010

I love how easy it is to travel from London, in April I spent 5 days in New York and realised a new dream to take the place of my 'London dream': I want to live in New York for a few months. This has surprised me, because up until recently I did not have much of a desire to go to the States, but now I am constantly looking up flights and imagining myself exploring the streets of a city that is so similar to London yet so different.

Stature of Liberty - New York - April 2011

Not only do I live for travelling, but I absolutely love taking photos of the places I've been and the things I've done. Whenever I go on a trip I always make sure my camera is packed... even before I check that I have my passport and tickets. This was my main motivation to to start a blog - I wanted somewhere that I can post my photos so others can see them. Therefore, most of the photos I will post will be my own.

So, I have mentioned my passion for travelling and photography... I also love cooking. I specifically enjoy finding a really complicated recipe and making it - without a trial run - for a dinner party. My latest obsession is making a layer cake - the more layers the better. Unfortunately I don't have the right equipment so it will have to wait till I move back to South Africa in January where I will have access to my mother's kitchen.

Finally, I love music! I can't play anything - but I listen to it all the time and am constantly on the lookout for a new band or song that I can listen to on repeat till I know all the lyrics. The music I like changes all the time and depends largely on my mood. At the moment my favourite song is 'To the Wind - Eastern Conference Champions' and my favourite band is Kings of Leon. I saw them play at Hyde Park in June and it was one of the best experiences of my life!