what killed the dinosaurs?

In this guy's case, it seems that random vandalism was the cause of extinction... although I'm not sure it's vandalism if the target is graffiti to start with! All I know is that I'm not sure why random ugly tags are left up for months but this harmless little, ahem, 10 foot carnivore got partially dismantled. I'm just glad I made it out with my camera to get what was left of him. Dinosaurs aren't fully extinct yet in Barcelona however, I've definitely seen a blue triceratops or two around...


In other news, Spring has sprung. The weather is amazing around here at the moment!



Waiting for tourists around every corner?


dress via ebay, Camper shoes

a weekend in lyon part 2: the smell of lilacs

If the Saturday I spent in Lyon was a day for tourism, Sunday was a day for food, friends and flowers. Alexa took me up to a charming Sunday market in a part of the city I immediately forgot the name of. In any case, it had stunning views over all of Lyon, with its bridges and cathedrals. We met up with a friend who took us to an idyllic café which had been his "local" in high school (cue Alexa and I sighing over the impossibility of this ever having been our local in Canada). He bought us incredible pains au chocolat from a local bakery, and we had a convoluted conversation--since there was no language that all three of us spoke, he and Alexa spoke French, he and I Spanish, and Alexa and I English, obviously. During the French bits, I embarrassed everyone by taking pictures of nearby tables. The lady in the oyster shot was giving me the skink eye, but I felt it was my duty as a travel blogger to record people having oysters (and drinking wine) for breakfast.







Alexa bought the most beautiful bunch of fresh lilacs, which smelt like heaven and were dragged around all day (and looked pretty much the worse for wear at the end of it). The rest of time in Lyon consisted of:

1. looking at some of the city's many impressive murals... the one above was absolutely enormous and referenced Lyon's silk-weaver past.

2. buying cheese, olives, pastries and fruit at the maket

3. lookng for second-hand books that I might be able to understand at a market along the quay. I bought a copy of The Witches, which was probably a bit optimistic... should've stuck to Tin Tin.

4. Eating the spoils of the market sat on the quay, watching the world go by, and feeling smug that our picnic looked better than everyone else's!

blazing

Picture from Day 2 in Lyon are still coming, but I thought we were overdue for an outfit post in the meantime. I wore this today to the Saló del Comic, a fair that takes place in Barcelona every year. Albert's been going since he was a boy, and I've tagged along the past few years, despite the fact that I think I'd never read a comic book until university. After studying Persepolis in a Children's Literature class I went through a phase of reading some classic graphic novels (Maus, V for Vendetta and later I read classic Spiderman comic strips in Spanish to learn vocabulary ("cretin," "web-thrower" and "wall-climber" have been pretty useful in everyday life).

I still can't get into most comics as I either a) really dislike the style of drawing or b) like the illustrations but find the stories inane. However, the annual fair has some fascinating exhibits, and a chance to meet some of the writers and illustrators. We stood in line to get David Lloyd to sign V for Vendetta. That is a graphic novel I can get behind, with its critique of Thatcher Britain! The movie version is probably one of my favourite movies too... I watched it years ago with a friend, and thought "I have to buy this; the whole family is going to love this..." flash forward to my Dad letting out a happy little cheer as the Houses of Parliament explode!





blazer: gift (old), blouse: Desigual (gift), pants: H&M, shoes: Liz Claiborne (sales, old), bag: bought in London last year.

a weekend in lyon, part 1

My friend Alexa visited me back in the fall, and also last year, and actually we spent time together in Barcelona four and a half years ago too (we're friends from back home). Every time I've seen her in the last five years, basically, she's invited me to come and visit her in Lyon. I've been promising to go for at least as long. And last weekend I finally went. I had a wonderful two days, and I really don't know what took me so long!

On the first day, we went on one of those epic walks through the old city, took a funicular up to see some Roman ruins and a cathedral, narrowly avoided an entire "Holybus" full of ardent missionaries, wandered down a narrow pathway back to the city, ate Ramen noodles, collapsed on the sofa for a bit, rented bikes and rode them down the quay to a beautiful park (eyes smarting all the way from spring allergies), made crepes and a "healthy" desert consisting of strawberries, creme fraiche and broken up speculoos cookies, and went out for free drinks (white wine with cassis). And that was just Saturday... Sunday was even better!

Oh, and Alexa's neighbourhood... apart from being one of those delightful multi-cultural areas with kebab shops and Chinese supermarkets, and being right next to the river, contains a Jules Verne themed carousel! Heaven.








she's also my most stylish friend...






flamingos in the park


health food

dress around the world

A favourite dress a few ways (a la Rebecca), in a few different corners of the world (and on two different people).

I've had this dress for two years (it was a present from Albert, who caught a glimpse of it on sale from across the room, where he was rummaging in the men's section). I wore it frequently in my brief time living in South Africa, to markets in Johannesburg parks and roof-top nightclubs and to the beach in Mozambique. I sweated around Mexico in it a fair bit one particularly warm summer, and lent it to my sister so she could do the same. When I came back to Europe, the dress and I both had to adapt to winter temperatures again, and I layered blouses or long-sleeve tops under it.

Now I can't wait for warmer weather to start living in this dress again...




Pictures 1 and 3 in Barcelona, 2 in Guadalajara, Mexico, and 4 in rural Catalonia.

barcelona by day

Parc de la Ciutadella

Barcelona is one of protagonists in my life, but less so on my blog, which is unacceptable. To tell the truth, during all the years I've lived here I've gone around with a camera trying to capture what makes the city so magical for me. I'm not in the least satisfied with the project so far--ultimately our attachment to cities is emotional rather than visual and I expect I'd have no more luck if I tried with Vancouver or anywhere else. Nonetheless, here are some recent photos showing reasons why I love Barcelona... I expect a "... by Night" post will be coming along at some point!


Sometimes you wake up in the morning to music and the sight of horses, goats, and greyhounds parading down the street.


And giants


laundry flapping in the morning breeze


the park, reverberating with practicing drumming circles, lindy-hop get-togethers, pic-nickers, highly competitive table-tennis players, and who-knows-who else, on a sunny weekend afternoon.


More parades of giants


going for lunch on Sundays and taking along a whisky or grand-marnier flavoured cake from a local pastiseria.


burgeoning social protest: Plaça Espanya is blocked by protesters on the morning of the recent general strike.


Creative uses of public space: children use Rambla de Raval's famous Botero cat sculpture to get a better view of the stage during a public concert.


...and sunset on the beach.

loveliest of trees the cherry now

Loveliest of trees, the cherry now
Is hung with bloom along the bough,
And stands about the woodland ride
Wearing white for Eastertide.

by A.E. Housman

Photos by Albert
dress: J.Crew (gift), shoes: Camper, star pins: Alexandra Grecco... and each and every item outshone by nature!

day of books and roses

Feliç dia de Sant Jordi for those of you in Catalonia, and for those who aren't, it's a festive day we should all consider importing!

Sant Jordi (Saint George) is the patron saint of Catalonia, and it's a day of love and literature here (the literature connection comes from it being the birthday of Cervantes, Shakespeare, and incidentally my dad), with people gifting each other roses and books. As I type, there are rose sellers every few meters throughout Barcelona, and book sellers massed on some main promenades in the centre. People typically play hooky from work for an hour or so to wander the stalls and enjoy the carefree, happy atmosphere. On a financial note, Sant Jordi alone is responsible for an enormous percentage of books sold in Catalonia all year (as much as 10% this one day).

Albert and I had a little substitute celebration in Bonn yesterday. : ) Just as fantastic as the rose and the books was the fact that he managed to get Gummy Bear wrapping paper!

I got Albert an illustrated guide to his own neighbourhood in Barcelona, and he got me a book on self-portrait photography (ha!) and an Asterix comic in Catalan to improve my vocabulary. :)

For a glimpse of a more traditional Sant Jordi, on the streets of Barcelona, check out last years post!

Photos by Albert

Zara blouse, Snoozer Loser skirt, Alexandra Grecco floral crown