When the sun is setting, between dusk and darkness, there is a moment when the light turns blue. And the world stops for a heartbeat.
I love the concept of a siesta – when I’m on holiday. How anyone can work with a siesta breaking the day in two, is completely beyond me. But on holiday, the break at midday is the ultimate luxury. As an additional benefit, there is no better time for photography than very, very early in the morning.
Roman Forum in sunrise.
I apologise for a delay in posting. Ever since the plane touched down back in Johannesburg, I’ve been run off my feet.
“The perfect day is a balance of culture and pleasure”, repeated our travel guide for the 4th time as we boarded the bus in Pompeii and headed towards the Amalfi coast.
Check.
In one aspect my trip to Rome has been a bit of a disappointment: I wanted to practise my people photography skills and maybe do some street photography. However, my patience ran out quickly. It is practically impossible to take a picture involving people, without everyone being glued into their phones, either taking photos or messaging – and this includes the nuns(!) Only today, as I strolled quite far from the tourist area into a local park, was my fate in humanity restored.
I like to think of myself as someone who does not like shopping. And I don’t. At least not the kind that requires me to systematically go through store after store. But who can resist the allure of an unexpected find – The I-don’t-want-to-resist item in a little store in a back-alley you are unlikely to ever return.
I’m an accidental shopper.
It’s easy to find good food in Rome – as long as you avoid the biggest tourist centers. It’s much harder to find good food that is not Pasta Carbonara, Pizza Margarita or Veal Saltimbocca.
Local tasting menu celebrated ingredients from close by – an experience worth every kilo gained.
Fried artichoke is a specialty of the Jewish Ghetto.
In the past few days, I have visited more churches than in the last 3 years combined. Most churches in Rome were built to bring a sense of awe – a job well done! But as with most awe-inspiring things, if you look closer, you find touching, interesting and funny details to bring them close.
Rome is city with over 900 churhes, 200 flavors of gelato and 3000 years of art. It’s a city where a city gate designed by Bernini isn’t necessarily even mentioned in the guidebook. It is hot, crowded, expensive and chaotic. It is breathtaking.
Holiday. Rome.
Due to my connection in Zurich, the flight took me over the Alps. A majestic sight from any angle.
I’m cheating here a little again. I only saw the Alps on Saturday morning… However, as I started to travel on Friday, I think it still counts as the same day.
My breakfast during the week does not vary much. I’m fond of some Finncrisp (dried rye bread) and fruit (the type of fruit varies tho) – as simple and easy as it gets. However, as I saw these bake-in-a-mug breakfast muffins, I was unable to resist. And I’m glad I didn’t. It was delicious!
About the maximum amount of cooking I can fit to a weekday morning.
In winter it does not rain for 6 months in Johannesburg (Or at least it shouldn’t…). This means that by mid-winter, it is dry. And dryness inevitably means grass fires – some natural, but most of them not.
I continue to be puzzled on how casually South Africans treat these small fires. As long as they are under control, they are left to burn. For example, there was a small tuft burning in the neighbourhood park. The first time I saw it, there was a park maintenance team standing next to it, but after careful consideration they left it to burn. It was still smouldering the next day (unless somehow there was a second, unrelated fire at the exact same spot.
The Hadida found it quite worrying, tho. Although a little less worrying than a little puppy charging him from behind.
