travel stories

I'm not going to write much here today, since I did a fair bit of writing yesterday. And today I've done some writing here and here - travel stories from our third day in Croatia. We were 10 days in Croatia and I just finished sorting through the photos from day 3. Needless to say, there are more Croatia photos to come.

Because of the photo I have posted above, today's Friday Flickr Favorites are all about roses. I think the photo was taken at the flower marked in Hong Kong, I found the print among some old photos when I was home in Sandnes a couple of weeks ago.
Rose - Roses - roses - fallen - Happy Valentine's Day

I'm Astrid

Arch tagged me a while ago, so now it's time for me to give you 8 facts/habits about myself.

1. I've been a girl scout for many years and I used to be a very outdoorsy girl (now I'm just normal outdoorsy). In high school my friends and I had a tradition to sleep under the stars once a month. We always did it during weekdays, so we came straight from the woods, the mountains, the beach - or where ever - to school. In my class I was know to been the girl with moss in her hair...

2. After high school I planned to join the army (befalsskolen). I'm happy I didn't.

3. I'm tall. 181 cm.

4. I'm not very daring when it comes to my hair. I have never done anything else than cut it. No highlights, no colors, no nothing.

5. I'm organized and tidy (but cleaning bores me). For example: All my photos on Flickr are neatly organized in sets, and my Croatia photos are chronologically organized in the Croatia 2007 set.

6. When I travel I always pack in a backpack, not a suitcase.

7. I have a tiny scar on my right foot from from a ski pole. I walked barefoot through a river during winter (the river had to be crossed and I didn't want to get my boots wet), when I started to slide on the ice on the bottom of the river, I used the ski poles to keep steady. My feet were super cold so I didn't feel a thing.

8. I'm getting married next year.

Bonus info: I love olive trees, but I don't like olives. I'm sure the taste will grown on me with time. That's what I'm so happy about in the photo above. The trees, not the taste. We were driving a scooter around the island of Vis in Croatia, and I just had to have a photo of all the olive trees. Btw, I didn't drive, Sølve did. Must have been a funny sight with both of us on a tiny scooter. Also, I wonder if anyone can look great wearing a helmet...

One last thing today. A Flickr favorite: 8/20/05. Lena Corwin's wedding photos really inspire me.

Time to go back to my writing.

favorite spot

I'm a very big fan of this photo.

The photo above is my current favorite spot in my home. The orange sofa by the window. This is were I keep my huge stack of unread magazines. You can see some of them in the window sill, and some under the table. Hopefully I'll have time to snuggle up here soon, with magazines, a blanket and some nice wine. Red wine, because autumn is soon here.

my shoes are green

Todays Flickr favorite is a photo I absolutelly love: B'day girl

Remember I told you yesterday I wished I had my gloves? Today I wore them, and I'm glad I did. Tomorrow I might have to wear a hat.

busy days

Hei friends, how are you?

I'm just stopping by to tell you I have some very busy (yet fun) work days at the moment, which leave me with very little time for Flickr and blogging. I haven't forgotten my Friday Flickr Favorites. Since my time is limited I will post one Flickr favorite each day this week. Just to give you a tiny piece of daily inspiration.

lost in translation #01

Today I bought strawberries to cheer me up while working. Yum!

Btw, autumn is getting close here in Bergen. When I rode my bike to work this morning, my fingers got cold and I wished I had my gloves. Now when I was out getting a coffee (at 7:30 pm I'm still at the office), my nose got really cold. At least the sun is shining. For now.

how about galoshes?

I'm a big fan of practical yet stylish stuff. So how about galoshes?

Swims are practical, stylish and Norwegian. On the website you can read the story behind the product, and also see more elegant photos and design. There's even a shop. It's a pity swims are only made for men.

on my wish list

Hei.
I'm back in my office in Bergen after a couple of days working in Stavanger. My mind and thoughts have officially landed after the Croatia holiday, and now everything is about work. I have busy days and weeks ahead, which will include more traveling (which I'm really excited about). In the meantime I'll post more photos from Croatia on Flickr (I picked up the films today - yay!) and I'll (hopefully) give you a daily dose of inspiration here on hei Astrid.

On my wish list: A pair of high waisted skinny jeans. I'm so tired of low waists.

Photo of Scarlett Johansson looking good in high waisted jeans (and red lipstick) at the Imitation of Christ fashion show, from Vouge.

even more travel thoughts

Even more travel related thoughts today. Bits and pieces on my mind, things that make me happy.

- I just noticed I have a tan line from the earrings I wore the whole holiday.

- I'm still waiting to pick up the films I shot while in Croatia. I like this kind of waiting and not knowing what to expect from the photos.

- Thursday evening we had a Croatia inspired dinner: fried white fish (should have been grilled, but we passed because of the pouring rain), and a mix of boiled potatoes, spinach, garlic and herbs. Simple and so good.

- I'm glad we brought home a couple of the great Croatian wines we enjoyed there; the white Posip Cara from the island Korcula and the two reds Zlatan Plavac and Plavac, both from the island Hvar.

- I actually didn't shop anything else than food and wine. Not sure what it means. Maybe it simply means that it was a totally relaxing holiday filled with great food, wine, sun (oh how I miss the feeling of the warm (not burning) sun on my skin!), friends, and my love, Sølve.

This Friday's Flickr Favorites are inspired by traveling:

chairs by Frosk - makes me want to read my book on the deck of a ship when it's a little cold, so I have to wear a blanket
where the happy music came from by h2okatcher - makes me want to go back to this truly wonderful Italian village
Dawn at Concordia by Kelly Cheng - makes me want to go hiking in mountains higher than the Norwegian mountains (2469 m)
Cinghiale by rdesai - makes me want to go food shopping at market and in small shops in Italy, France or Croatia
Chairs at Salotto 42 by Hypnotic Aubergine - makes me want to have cappuccino and watch people go by at an outdoor cafe in a country where the temperature is so comfortable that you can actually sit outside all year

I'm off for a couple of days, for fun and work. I'll write again next week. Till then, happy times!

more travel thoughts

I like the process of traveling. It's time out and I can just sit still and read my book. Or a magazine. I prefer a book. I always read lots and lots of magazines at home, and rarely books, that's why I prefer catching up on my "must read" list while I travel.

I especially like traveling by train. There's always something to see outside the window, you can walk around, and it doesn't makes me sick, like boats often do. But traveling by boat is nice too. Especially when the weather is good, and I can enjoy the sun and my book on deck. Like we did on our holiday i Croatia. We actually spent two whole days on the deck of a boat. I read a lot in the Croatia guidebook (I like learning about the places I visit) + "The Time Traveler's Wife" (thanks so much for the book Mathias and Jördis, I really enjoyed it).

Speaking of traveling, have you seen simply photo's lets travel to concept?

Travel thoughts

It was hard to concentrate on work Monday, no doubt about that. It was better yesterday, and I suppose it will be even better today. I've already got several new commissions, so I really can't be lazy or mentally on holiday anymore. Still I'm thinking of traveling. I love traveling (who doesn't?), but I haven't traveled so much over the last couple of years as I wish I had (instead Sølve and I have been busy rebuilding too many apartments).

I've uploaded some photos to Flickr from our first day of the holiday. Sølve and I haven't been on a real holiday together since the last time we were in Croatia, three years ago, so we decided to splash out on accommodation the first night. We booked a room at the five star hotel Grand Villa Argentina. There were fresh flowers in the bathroom (top photo) and a pool boy handing out towels by the private hotel pool and bathing area. The location was spectacular - overlooking the sea and the old town of Dubrovnik.

I like splashing out like this once in a while. But then again, staying in hotels like this is a bit impersonal. In Croatia it's very common with private accommodation. It's cheap and really something different than a hotel. Some apartments are obviously holiday homes, it doesn't seem like anybody live there. But other apartments or rooms are really people's homes. Like the charming, cute little place we stayed at on the island Vis (bottom photo). It was an old lady's home. She didn't speak a word English, but that didn't keep her from talking to us - a lot. We smiled an nodded. I don't think there were any big misunderstandings. There were no air condition, photos of her grandchildren on the walls, and she even changed the table cloth for us. Maybe the first one wasn't good enough?

So, I think, when traveling I like a bit of both; the (expensive) luxury and the very personal experience. How about you?

I'm back

Hei guys! Just a short note to tell I'm back from my holiday in my home town Sandnes and from the 10 days in Croatia. It's Monday and it's the first day in the office after the holiday. Oh boy! It's a hard day. So much catching up to do. I have lots of photos from Croatia to share with you. You'll find them (in chronological order) in this Flickr set. So, at the end of this day, I hope I'm ready for everyday life again. Right now I'm still mentally on the pebble beach of Milna on the island Hvar...

The photo above is from the sea side restaurant at the hotel we stayed at our first night in Dubrovnik. Wine, sun, friends - happy times!

days off

It's time for my vacation. Yay! I might be online for another week while I'm in my hometown Sandnes, but I don't know if I'll have time for my daily posts. On August 2nd we leave for Croatia, where we're spending 10 days in the sun. I'm really, really looking forward to it, and I promise to bring back heaps of photos. Who thought I won't? Haha! The photo above is from our last vacation in Croatia in 2004.

make up the wall

This is just great! Make Up the Wall via one of my favorite interior design magazines, Danish Boligmagasinet.

Birdy Num Num

Great leather designs from British Birdy Num Num (via a back issue of LivingEtc). I wish they had an online shop so I could buy some of these beauties. They don't seem to have a retailer in Norway. Hmmm. That's a good idea... ;-)

family weekend

Happy Monday!

This is where I've been this weekend. Just a super slow Internet connection only suitable for reading e-mails, so no blogging and Flickr the last couple of days. It's really lovely being offline for some days, don't you think? I worked a little (by the desk seen to the right in the photo above) and had lots of fun with my nieces (1 and 3,5 years). Hope you had a lovely weekend too.

breakfast and faces

The weekend is here. I hope the week treated you well, and that you will enjoy some lazy breakfasts during the weekend (you know I love breakfasts). Some rise and shine inspiration from Red magazine might give you some ideas (photo above, click the photos to view them larger). Even though my week has been busy with work, I'm slowly getting into the holiday mood. So, I had a look in my archives and found this holiday breakfast photo from the island of Hvar, Croatia (top photo).

Friday Flickr Favorites. I think photographing people - and their faces - is hard. It depends so much on the person you photograph. Here are some great people photos I have faved:
Afternoon
singing and playing guitar
31c
snowfall
Analivia en la cocina

sofia coppola + marc jacobs

I simply love this advertisement for Marc Jacobs perfume.

dnmark

I like this table by Danish dnmark.

pure style

One of my favorite sites online is Jane Cumberbatch's Pure Style. I'm sure may of you already know of the site and Cumberbatch's lovely books. The website says that the DNA of Pure Style is: "Romantic, inexpensive, natural, simple spaces, functional, easy feasts, homemade, thrifty, timeless, cool, country, family, going green, modern..." To me this is just perfect! The photo above was e-mailed to me a little while ago as a newsletter. PS: Click the image to view it larger.

catching up

Hei there! How was your weekend? Mine was very wet but excellent. The hike was perfect! Jördis and Mathias have started uploading their photos from the hike, I have to develop the film first. Today I have a lot of catching up to do - on Flickr, in blogland, and work. I have a busy work week ahead. Btw, if you wondered where we hiked, it was in Stølsheimen. We stayed at Selhamar and Åsedalen.

The photo above is just a chair a like. I have no idea where I found the photo.