last day in guadalajara

These are my last pictures from Guadalajara. That's not a promise or anything, because I'm sure I still have some in a random folder, and one day when I'm lazy or busy... however, from now one, we'll be transitioning into London!

These were taken on my last day, when I was feeling contented and nostalgic at the same time. And I was saying goodbye to my lovely vintage bicycle, which I don't believe I've introduced you to before, despite riding it every week down the closed streets on a Sunday morning (a great recreational initiative in Guadalajara). I was so sad to leave it and its lovely green colour and "1977" sticker. Usually my bikes have function over form; this one was the opposite. I know that stuff isn't so important in life, but sometimes it's hard to let go of nonetheless. Still, my boyfriend managed to sell it for more than we paid for it, and I did turn a little against it when it pulled a thread out of my dress. Don't you hate it when your vintage bike attacks your vintage clothes? Hehe ; )

Ah well, adios bici, and Mexico. It was fun.















Outfit:
dress: vintage
shoes: Aldo
cardigan: Current
sunglasses: from Sanborns

are you looking at me?

Behave yourself... because sometimes the trees really do have eyes... hehe. ; )

I realize that probably none of you believe that I'm actually in England at all, since I'm still uploading pictures of Mexico, but I'm actually really glad I had so many stockpiled. In addition to my continued homelessness (ending tonight), my camera is out of action due to my accidentally deleting the memory card last week. The photos are recoverable, but... oh, it's a long story. Anyway, I won't be showing you pictures of sunny October Greenwich until some time in November, and in the meantime I need to go buy a new memory card.

It's a shame that I didn't have a camera this weekend actually, because the weather here is absolutely beautiful. Seriously, it's been like Guadalajara, but without the humidity and storms!

Anyway, these pictures are actually from Guadalajara, from my endlessly photogenic former neighbourhood (Avenida Libertad, I miss you)!













Outfit:
jeans: Zara
t-shirt: Smart Set
shoes: Blowfish
earrings: from Mexico City
sunglasses: Toronto airport years ago---I think!

still in shorts

I know a lot of you are not only wishing for autumn, but already wearing your tights and cardigans. I like tights and cardigans as much as the next girl, but I can wait. And honestly, here in Guadalajara, it's only possible to wear a cardigan between about 8:30 and 10:30 am, and then maybe at night. I'm generally not presentable enough to be doing photoshoots at those times!

This t-shirt came free when I signed up for Guadalajara's public bicycle program. The head of the little man is actually an old-style bike, which I love. I'm a big supporter of public bicycle schemes in all cities; biking is one of the most fun ways to get exercise. I'm personally not a person who can go to the gym... it's so mind-numbingly boring. But scooting around on a bicycle, getting somewhere--that I love.


I kind of enjoy that my hair is as spiky as the plant in this picture. ; )













Outfit:
shorts: from Barcelona
t-shirt: free from Bikla
shoes: from ebay
belt: my sister's
necklace: self-made

Don't forget to enter my GIVEAWAY below!

grand house, by which once more I stand...

This is the third of my "mansions of Guadalajara" outfit posts (you can see the other two here and here). And, unless I get moving on an idea I have, the last one. This is also one of the most beautiful buildings I have ever seen, and there's a lot of competition in this neighbourhood. It was, according to the wall plaque, built between 1902 and 1922, and it currently houses the University of Guadalajara archives. I walked by it many times and finally took the plunge and went in to ask them if I could look around. They gave us a little tour of a colourful tiled interior courtyard and a beautiful tiled kitchen, and then we prowled the grounds trying to take photos unobtrusively.

I suppose these are also the last pictures featuring my sister Shona (who actually left a few weeks ago; these are a bit old) for a while. Though I certainly hope she'll come and visit me in London!

*title somewhat mangled from a Tennyson poem

















Outfit:
skirt: Winners
top: Smart Set
shoes: Blowfish
necklace: Whitby jet
earrings: hand cared ebony by Todd Woffindon

On Shona:
dress: H&M (from 2004)
shoes: Steve Madden

viva méxico!

Pardon my absence yesterday; I was having a distictly non-blogging sort of a day. However, I'm back with a vengeance! (Oh, and I was really delighted to discover some fellow literary-geeks/T.S. Eliot lovers among my readers.

Yesterday was Independence Day in Mexico (today is the holiday) and as it was the 200th anniversary of independence, it was something special. Last year we were in Puebla for Independence Day, but arrived late and managed to miss both the famous "grito de independencia" or cry of independence, and most of the fireworks. We then stood in the rain with a crowd of Poblanos and looked up at the palace where people wearing silk gowns leaned over the balcony to look down on us (the riff raff), until I wondered why we didn't all just start a revolution and storm the palace in search of a margarita...

This year we saw fireworks as we walked into town and I thought "oh no, we're going to miss it all again...." But luckily we didn't. The Governor of Jalisco came onto the balcony at 11pm to wave the flag and recite the famous grito, and we all joined him in shrieking "Viva!" and blowing horns. Afterwards the sky above the cathedral erupted with red, white and green fireworks.









Outfit: I decided to follow the red, white and green colour scheme of the Mexican flag, although I noticed with some irony after a few hours that I was wearing two Spanish brands. Oh well. Albs pointed out that Desigual is actually Catalan and Zara is from Galicia, so I guess that's all right!
blouse: Desigual
jeans: Zara
necklace: Ganérika (a café/Mexican ornament store near my house)



Viva México!

heat stroke and roses

The last few weeks, with the exception of today (cloudy and cool) have been absolutely scorching around here, and I've been stupidly spending mornings on the computer and venturing out in the afternoon, thus guaranteeing myself a shorter lifespan than necessary.

These pictures were taken mostly as Hospicio Cabañas, a famous museum in the centre of Guadalajara. I'm completely mystified as to why it's famous, since on the day we went there was only one exhibit--a mural. Luckily it was free day, so I didn't have to pay to see it, but still. After spending five minutes with the mural we wandered out into the interlocking courtyards that make up the building, and afterwards braved the terrible heat of downtown (by walking through a variety of fountains) and collapsed in the theatre cafe to have a glass of wine!



















Here I moodily comtemplate the error that led to my getting Chardonnay instead of Riesling. Blechhh.

Outfit:
t-shirt: my sister's
lace cover-up: Pull and Bear
skirt: oysho
shoes: Camper