Day 7 was the last day for sunshine and beach before coming back to Paris. Our friends took us to a beach and we watched the interesting people, quaint boats and striking colours.
It’s so great to catch some last minute sun before coming back to the routine of work. Don’t get me wrong, it is great to be back now!
This Turkish pop song was played everywhere when I was in Istanbul.
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The architecture of Istanbul makes for most of its charm. The architecture in this magnificent city depicts a large mixture of structures which reflect the many influences that have made an indelible mark in all districts of the city. The ancient part of the city (the historic peninsula) is still partially surrounded by the Walls of Constantinople, erected in 5th century (just a little bit old!) AD by the Emperor Theodosius II to protect the city from invasion. The architecture inside the city proper contains buildings, statues, and functional constructions which came from Byzantine, Ottoman, and modern Turkish sources. The city has many architecturally significant entities. Throughout its long history, Istanbul has acquired a reputation for being a cultural and ethnic melting pot. It really feels like the point where the East meets the West. Such a gorgeous combination. As a result, there are many historical mosques, churches, synagogues, palaces, castles and towers to visit in the city.
I just love the mosaïques, the gold arabic script, and the stone.
Day 5 was a day of exploring the Grand Bazaar, the Spice Bazaar and the surrounding areas. Bear with me, I got very camera happy and took lots of photos.
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Posted in Holidays, Musings, Travel, Turkey
Tagged architecture, arts, charme, emperor theodosius, food, grand bazaar, Istanbul, life, market, shopping, spice market, sunshine, theodosius ii, travel, turkish sources, vacation, wondrous place
The fun continues! On my fourth day I walked around the “Asian” side, the side that is less modern, more traditional, and where you can find all the monumental mosques. This side of Istanbul has so much history to offer, and being Australian, where the history is relatively modern, makes me feel like I am walking in Disneyland, or in a documentary.
The freshly squeezed Pomegranite juice is just incredible, and very tart!
View over the water.
And of course, Turkish coffee, my favourite!
Gosh, how am I going to be able to go back home after seeing all this? I could stay here another month and explore because there is just so much to see!
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Posted in Holidays, Musings, Travel, Turkey
Tagged asian side, charme, coffee, disneyland, documentary, health, Istanbul, life, mosques, pomegranite, shopping, sunshine, travel, turkish coffee, vacation, wondrous place
Burgazada is one of the Princes’ Islands. It is pure magic. You can only access it by boat, and there are no cars on this island, just bikes and horse and buggy.
It is officially a neighbourhood in the Adalar district of Istanbul. Burgaz is a common setting and even a major theme for writer Sait Faik Abasiyanik, where he also lived. The island consists of a single hill 2 kilometres across.
There are not many tourists here, so it’s perfect for a lazy restful afternoon.
What do you think?
There are so many photos to come- so stay tuned! 🙂
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Posted in Holidays, Musings, Travel, Turkey
Tagged burgaz, Burgazada, charme, countryside, food, horse and buggy, Istanbul, princes islands, sunshine, travel, vacation, wondrous place
On our way to get the boat from Marseille to Bastia we had an afternoon in Aix en Provence. It’s a city with many fountains, and the vibe and culture are polar opposites to Paris.
Being only thirty minutes away from Marseille, it really feels like a Mediterranean paradise. The apartments are precious and the cobble stones remind the people that walk on them of France’s long history.
I couldn’t resist, this olive and fig bread looked so good so I got some to snack on with fresh goats cheese.
Posted in France, Holidays, Travel
Tagged Aix en Provence, charme, countryside, food, life, nature, petit village, plants, travel, vacation
Throughout history, Bastia was a rich city thanks to its geographical situation, being between the mountains and the water. For many centuries it was a wealthy city. The people of Bastia saw the city destroyed during WWII but its economic importance for Corsica is still high.
Walking around Bastia gave me a great idea of the previous glory and wealth of Bastia. A lot of the apartments need renovating. It feels like an old world enchanted city.
The presence and respect of Napoleon is also very strong, even after all these years.
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Posted in France, Holidays, Travel
Tagged charme, Corsica, countryside, food, nature, petit village, travel, vacation, wondrous place
Erbalunga, which is in the “Cap Corse” region of Corsica stole my heart. It feels enchanted. You really can imagine Napoleon in these parts of the world. To make things even more magical, the weather was perfect.
Our week in Corsica followed the coast. We went from town to town, each as charming as the next.
In Corsica most of the houses are covered in some kind of vine.
How sweet is the life of this Corsican cat?
The grilled salad was so fresh, and was a perfect accompagnement to the sun. The feature of the salad was the crumb fried mozarella. I am going to teach myself how to do it to recreate this mind-blowing salad.
My lovely little friend Zoé. She had a hot goat’s cheese salad.
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Posted in Corsica, France, Holidays, Travel
Tagged cap corse, charme, cheese, cheese salad, Corsica, countryside, food, life, nature, petit village, recipe, recipes, salad, travel, vacation, vegetarian, wondrous place
I have to say, I make a goooooood guacamole. It’s all about the seasoning. When you get the quantities of herbs, salt and lemon or lime right, it’s like heaven on a plate!
You’ll need:
2 avocados
Lots of herbs, any herbs you like. (I’m herb mad)
A lime
Paprika for seasoning
Olive oil
2 tbsps of crème fraîche or sour cream.
Mash it all up and add half of the herbs in the actual guacamole, and half on top as decoration. You can also add a diced tomato, I would have, but I didn’t have any in the kitchen.
I like my guacamole chunky, I don’t it to be a smooth paste. I like tonnes of herbs and seasoning, so that the smell and flavour transport you to another place.
Thanks to Meg for the last two photos, you should check out her lovely blog here.
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Last week at the puces de Saint Ouen just outside of Paris, we discovered the wonderful vintage stands selling things that date back to the 20’s and before! I got these charming champagne flutes that I lusted after.
What do you think?
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Posted in France, Mervelous Homes, Vintage
Tagged apartment, champagne, charme, home, market, petit prix, shopping, vintage lovers, vintages
I’m on the boat from Marseille to Corsica. It is around a 10 hour trip. We will arrive a Bastia. Just seeing the ocean makes me realize how much of a nature girl I am. And being away from Paris makes me realize that there are so many things I love about Paris.
One of them being macarons. Seems so cliché for a foreigner living in Paris, but I can assure you that there is (almost) nothing more delicious.
J and I are doing a macaron class in September.
Here is a little picture to get your appetite up and going!
Happy Wednesday from Corsica xx
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