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Thursday 28 October 2010

Edinburgh - Paris - Tokyo and back again...







    Just two weeks away but it feels like a month and a day... 
    Thought I'd share with you the Etsy treasury I put together pre-departure as a sort of scrapbook of ideas whilst planning my holiday wardrobe. Please note: the sold sign doesn't actually mean I bought it, alas, but my capsule collection of  old favourites, some new socks (a Japanese essential!) and a very lovely new scarf (a present) served me very well. And my compact collection would have served me even better if we had managed to find a laundrette in Tokyo (funny such places don't have English language websites... aherm). I was very glad to have my quick drying, no-ironing and easily hand washable green dress. Phew! 

I didn't really need my raincoat as the weather was perfectly pleasantly warm for us but wish I had purchased the lovely konnichiwa tee as I kept getting "good morning" (ohayoo gozaimasu) confused with "ta very much" (argatoo gozaimasu) - oh what a funny inter-continental traveller I am! 

Two essentials were my notebook and pencil (and an eraser, being me) for collecting rubber stamps in and keeping my travel log book. And also a hankie for spontaneous bursts of tears at the sight of my boarding pass, an Edo-period silver incense burner (seriously),  chanting monks and the thought of going home.

One handy item now missing from the above list was Asking for Trouble's Tokyo Shopping Guide, as the proprietress is currently off to Japan herself. I did do a lot of shopping and have brought home a hefty weight of fabric and a large collection of silly stuff. A little too much silly perhaps as I very much regret not buying a beautiful bowl in a Kyoto garage sale. It's a world away from me now, just wish I wasn't...

Thursday 7 October 2010

dahlias of york
























The other week and at very short notice I paid a visit to the beautiful City of York. I had a wee while to wander before my train home and what wonderful wanderings there were to be had! I came home bearing some much needed buttons, a bargain bag of chutney, a poke of runner beans and sweet perfumed quince and, to cap it all a delightful bunch of dahlias, for the princely sum of one pound!!


Every autumn I plan to treat myself to a bunch but can only ever find them at Morningside prices if you know what I mean - too much to pay for such short lived blooms. The next day they were looking a little weary after their long journey north but I wanted to capture the occasion and got all artsy-fartsy in the process. I love the intensity of their colours and their complex shapes which look to me like folded paper puzzles.

Much more to come about my wanderings ... later. The 'results' have a couple of weeks yet to mature. What shall I get up to in that time? I wonder!