JOYFUL GRATITUDE #45
This weekend Paolo and I are heading to Prague ! It’s the first time I go there so I’m really excited to have 3 days to explore the city. We will go to watching tennis (the first ever edition of the Laver Cup) and spend the rest of the time soaking in the atmosphere, discovering wonderful places and hopefully eating lovely cakes 😉
Here are a few more memories of our lovely time in Capraia… The ‘mulatiera’, a beautiful rock path that the mules use to follow to carry goods up and over the hills to remote parts of the island.
The splendid colours of the vegetation, lush and green in some parts and a drier orangy-red in other spots.
I’m captivated by the warm colours of salt-damaged surfaces that are so gorgeous in their imperfection…
Spending time looking through my holiday pictures takes me back to those moments and I’m reminded of the sun shining on my skin, and the tug of leg muscles slightly tired from hiking uphill, and the joy of spending all day outdoors… Can’t wait for the next holiday!
The village of Capraia has many wonderful little streets to explore and I spent several late afternoons strolling around to try to capture their beauty on camera.
My strategy was to walk around and enter the tiniest side streets and alleyways, following them to see where they would lead me… And I was not disappointed.
The Bougainvillea was flowering pink and purple everywhere giving a festive atmosphere.
People tend really well to their gardens and trees, and every corner I turned led me to another gorgeous place.
I also loved the warm coulours of the houses, different shades of yellow and pink, and how the flowers often matched perfectly with the walls.
Just back from Capraia with sparkles in my eyes about how beautiful the island is. With its 20 square kilometers it is the perfect size to explore by foot: walking to small coves for a swim or hiking up the hills to see the steep west coast plunging into the sea, with Corsica visible on the horizon.
The summer colours of the plants on the hills were beautiful (green, orange, yellow…) and apparently in spring with many flowers blooming it is even more spectacular (a good reason to come back;).
The village at the top of the hill is very pretty with its warm colours and many tiny winding streets to explore and get lost in. We had our appartment there, it is blissfully quiet, perfect for a good rest (indeed many afternoon siestas were enjoyed!).
The sea is amazingly transparent, and it beckons you to jump in from the rocks and refresh yourself after hiking under the sun. Underwater a ballet of fish awaits you, swimming leisurely around the rocks. So beautiful!
JOYFUL GRATITUDE #23
My trip through Thailand was amazing! It was a perfect blend of exploring Bangkok and making my way down to the South via Suratthani on my own, and then meeting up with wonderful friends to celebrate a wedding and travel on the paradise islands of Koh Samui, Koh Phangan and Koh Tao.
Everything was so different from Amsterdam that it took no time at all to switch into holiday mode, forget any thoughts about work and be in the moment. I must say trying all sorts of delicious foods, learning to navigate my way around Bangkok, observing buddhist rituals in the colourful temples, exploring the bustling streets with their tuk-tuks and street vendors, as well as getting regular massages really helped to disconnect from daily grind back home:)
I feel so privileged to have had the possibility to discover some of this beautiful country and had the time to explore at a leisurely pace without rushing. I will be sharing some pictures and impressions over the next weeks.
JOYFUL GRATITUDE #22
The count down has started and I’m down to my last days of work before leaving on a very well-deserved holiday (if I may say so myself;). This term has been extremely busy at work and I’m so excited to have some down time to relax, explore Bangkok, chill at the beach in Koh Samui, enjoy Thai food and especially catch up with wonderful friends who I haven’t seen for a long time.
I leave my lovely house plants in Paolo’s good hands while I’m gone. I’ve also dug through my archives and found some pictures of plants to entertain you in my absence so watch this space. In the meantime, I hope to discover many beautiful tropical plants on my travels and will report back when I return:)
JOYFUL GRATITUDE #18
I’m very grateful for a lovely weekend with Paolo discovering Nijmegen for the first time. Despite the cold, we walked around the park overlooking the river Waal from Nijmegen’s hill and wandered down the little streets of the town.
We had to warm up regularly and which was a great excuse to stop in wonderful cafés and indulge in hearty sandwiches and rich cakes:)
Thanks to Paolo’s perseverance and good luck, we even got the last two tickets to watch a play version of Jack Kerouac’s On The Road that just happened to be playing that evening at the theater. The actors were captivating and their way of telling the story was gripping!
My personal overview of the places I loved the most in Madeira:
Sao Vicente is a village on the Northern coast where we stayed for the whole of our trip. It’s a quiet village however it does have a supermarket, some restaurants AND two good bakeries (perfect to enjoy a bolo de arroz or pasteis de nata after a long hike).
I spent many hours watching the changing light over this sea view while Paolo attempted to catch the elusive bodiao, a typical fish from Madeira. With help from the local fishermen as well as trial and error, Paolo fine tuned his technique and managed to catch the bodiao on our last day!
Sao Vicente is surrounded by mountains, with the base of the hills covered with terrace cultivations of vineyards and other crops.
Good conditions for hiking in the mountains in Madeira are not a given, as it is sometimes sunny on the coast but very misty on the peaks. We took our chances one morning and were very lucky as it was sunny when we started on the walk from Encumeada towards Pico Ruivo.
After the steep hike up hundreds of steps on the mountain top, you are rewarded with breathtaking views and on the crest at times you can see both the sea of both the Southern and Northern coasts.
Swimming on the Northern Coast of Madeira is not always easy because there are large waves and strong currents. But luckily there are the natural pools of Seixal, where you can swim safely to the sound of the waves crashing on the volcanic rock. We practically had the pools to ourselves that day:)
I already wrote about it here… Best succulent garden ever!!
We discovered this village by chance and I immediately fell in love with its tiny winding pathways between houses and beautiful gardens. At the bottom of a steep stairway, you can access the peaceful rock beach which is perfect for swimming and chilling, and watching the sun set at the end of the day.
This was my favorite walk along one of the levadas (man-made waterways that cross the island of Madeira to bring irrigation to the fields and vineyards).
A headlamp is needed as there are several tunnels, including an extremely long one, where you have to squeeze yourself against the wall with only about 15cm for your feet and walk alongside the levada.
Not only was there a light at the end of the tunnel, there is the most stunning, secluded valley with rushing waterfalls, lush ferns, mosses and plants. Definitely worth it!
(Thanks to Paolo S. for the photo!)
It’s kind of ironic that after enjoying Madeira’s wide open spaces, high peaks and beautiful coastline viewed from the many ‘miradouros’, one of the first things I feel like sharing here is something as small and seemingly insignificant as moss.
As we went on hikes in the volcanic mountains of Madeira, we came accross the most spectacular walls of mosses along the levadas and beneath waterfalls.
The shapes, textures, colours and combination of the mosses were so varied and different from anything I’d seen before. The mosses seemed to grow relentlessly, sometimes in thick layers, basking in the humidity.
It was really fascinating to observe them and I loved the patterns they formed, and how they interacted with each other. Paolo was very patient while I struggled to somehow capture them on camera.
It reached a peak one day while we were sitting on a log and eating our picnic, and I started to ‘see’ things… The mosses in the picture below look to me like minuscule sci-fi villages with mushroom houses and diminutive trees. Aren’t they amazing?!
Not only do I love spotting plants who dig their roots into cracks in the sidewalk or holes in walls, I also feel the same passion for luscious green urban balconies, stoops and windowsills overflowing with plants and succulents. (I’ve already mentionned it here before:).
Tomorrow I’m heading to Madeira for 2 weeks holiday (YAY!) So as I’ll be far from the internet, I scheduled some posts from next week featuring pictures I dug up from my archives. I hope those beautiful balconies and windowsills spotted during my travels will bring you as much simple joy as they bring me:) (and in the meantime hopefully I will discover some more while exploring Madeira!)
Cultivating joy 