Sweet Visual Aids

Follow me in my new blog: Globe Journey

2011-10-09T18:02:00.005+02:00

I´m currently in a one year sabbatical traveling the world! you can follow my travel journal at:

We are currently in Seoul, South Korea! next stop Beijing! :)

What a wonderful day!

2011-09-01T03:38:00.003+02:00

It seems such a cliche to say it.. but it is true! it was one of the happiest days of my life!

Credits: André Teixeira, Brancoprata

We had our pictures taken by the amazing Andre from Brancoprata!

The Wedding

2011-08-24T01:39:00.004+02:00

The wedding is almost here!!! 3 days to do!! :)

we are incredible busy with all the detail... man is hard work but a lot of fun!!!!! You can follow me at the moment in Globe Journey!

The Best beer in the world, is...

2011-07-15T20:34:00.000+02:00

In Belgium of course!! and is the Westvleteren 12 produced by Trappist monks from the Saint Sixtus Abbey! which is located in the little town of Westvleteren ! Which is damn hard to get! as you can only buy it from the Monks! once or twice a year...

I can tell you first hand! it is a pretty nice beer.. but watch out since it has 12 degrees of alcohol! Before coming to Belgium I really didn't like beer at all... but here in the country of beer... you always end up finding one that is pretty nice :)

Westvleteren is quite a drive from Brussels but well worth!

is in the middle of nowhere :) but if its sunny is quite nice !

almost there!!!!

here it is! the number one beer!!!

you can snack a croque-monsieur sandwich with pineapple and yummy cheese,

and for dessert.... apple pie with ice cream! the prefect ending!

and then ? sit back and enjoy your Westvleteren in a sunny day!!!

The next steps!

2011-07-10T20:16:00.002+02:00

We are in the final countdown! wedding in one month and a half and after the big trip.

The first step for the trip is to get vaccinated! .. how many vaccines do you need for South Asia and South America?... here is just the first bunch,

You can read more about our adventure at Globe Journey :)

We Graduated!!!!

2011-07-07T20:00:00.000+02:00

After two years of a lot of study... as you can see below,

The first pile of binders was the first year and after the second!

A lot of interesting subjects.... and some pretty heavy :)

The graduation day finally arrived!!! We graduated in Ghent although we studied in Leuven,

Yehhhhhh here we are with our fancy American style graduation suits!

After was time to party!!

It was two wonderful years! we met a lot of amazing people :) learned some extremely interesting topics... I will definitely miss it!

Will we hang our studying shoes?... (as some people apparently do in Ghent) we never know!

Why I love Portugal!!!

2011-06-21T22:20:00.007+02:00

Because is the country where I was born! because if full of beautiful people!! amazing food and wine!!!

In May I had the opportunity to go for a short break and it was just...... uma maravilha!!!

A walk in Chiado, with a stop for a refreshment in the Quiosque do Refresco,

stop for lunch in the Confeitaria Nacional,

followed by an amazing ice cream in Santini!!

and if you've been in the Chiado area.. you know.... the night might as well finish with a....

caipirinha/mojito for two.. or maybe three :)

Walking in Cascais.........

having an amazing grilled fish,

A quick trip to Faro, for the W day arrangements!

and since you are in Algarve... but better as well have!!!

seafoooodddddddddddddddddddd... a Portugal I miss you!!! counting down the days for August :)

What I've been up to!

2011-06-14T20:00:00.001+02:00

Normally I try to do a post at least once a week, but this last two weeks was hectic!

-Finishing up the MBA
-Going to Portugal to plan the last details for the wedding!
-Start selling out our staff here in Belgium! since we will be gone for 1 year!!

And building a new blog for our travel journal!! :)

It still needs a bit of work :)
I will continue as well posting in Sweet Visual Aids :) my little experiment in the blogosphere, which is almost 2 years old!

Its the final countdown!!!

2011-05-29T22:18:00.008+02:00

It is almost the end of a lot of hard work and commitment! I'm talking about working, doing an MBA in Part-Time and planning a wedding.. is not easy!

But is almost over!!! The MBA classes have finished! now we only have a business game (if you want to support my team :) just press in the link and Like us!!) and in the first of July we graduate!!!! yupi!!!!

Here are some pictures of what happen in our last class,

confetti war!!! yeeeeeeehhhhhhh!!!!

It has been two years of hard work but totally worth it!!

we are going to graduate again together :))) first University now the masters! :)

But the best is yet to come!! we get married in the end of August! and afterrrrrrrrrrrrrr we are going one year off!! to Travel Around the worldddddddddddd :)))))
as Barney Stinson would say: "is gonna be LEGEN...wait for it...DARYYYYYY!!!!"

This is yummy, where is it from?

2011-05-15T10:00:00.002+02:00

Thai food is just and explosion of delicious flavors,

food therapy for what is to come in 3months!!!!!!!!!

this was in Leuven, Belgium at the Thai House

Remembering Prague

2011-05-08T18:00:00.005+02:00

Working and studying in part time for almost 2 year has been quite demanding! But the reward is coming!! we are 3 months away from our wedding and a well deserved time off!!

My personal therapy to keep focus and move forward is to revisit our travel albums :)

This week I was getting inspired with the trip we did in July 2009 to the amazing city of Prague! which I simply loved!! and its the country of my favorite artist Mucha :)

The famous Astronomical Clock,

statues in the famous Charles Bridge,

Apparently touching the statue is a Prague ritual, It is supposed to bring good luck and to ensure that you return to Prague soon.

The impressive St. Vitus Cathedral,

Amazing Mucha's stained glass window inside the St. Vitus Cathedral,

Mucha's paintings in the Prague's Municipal House,

Prague is an amazing city!!

Prague is a beautiful city without any doubt! plus there is a lot of really nice jazz clubs :)
We stayed at the Hotel William which has a very particular decor :) kind of princess style ehhehe but it was pretty good, close to the Charles bridge and had a pretty nice price :)

This is yummy, where is it from?

2011-05-01T20:21:00.003+02:00

Super yummy ice cream, nectarine and raspberry flavors,

at the new Santini in Chiado, Lisbon!

yummmmy!

Impressive Normandy

2011-04-24T12:40:00.000+02:00

In 2009 we decided to explore the North coast of France, Normandy. I didn't know what to expect, it is an area with some heavy history.

What can I say! the food was amazing and the views just breathtaking! As always we count on our loyal guide from the Lonely Planet for the must sees :)

Our first stop was in what should be one of the world wonders, Mont Saint Michel!

after seeing this wonder we could only jump of happiness :P

When you are already 10km for Mont Saint Michel you see this wonder surrounded by green fields. I do regret not having a picture of this view! :P I did learn my lesson... never forget the camera charger when you travel, even if only for 3 days!!!

(picture via Wikimedia Commons)

I have no words to describe this place,

well I do have... WOW!!!

On food, we had some amazing Fresh oysters from the local poissonnerie of Trouville-Sur-Mer, Normandy, France!

The next stop was in Etretat to view this spectacular elephant rock,

Normandy definitely worth visiting again!! :)

Men! Louis XIV did know how to live well!

2011-04-16T20:41:00.010+02:00

In the summer of 2009 we visited the amazing Palace of Versailles. After seeing the Sofia's Coppola movie Marie Antoinette I already had my expectations high!! but still I was blown away by the proportions of the palace and its gardens... is just surreal! the amount of luxury and details that you find while visiting the palace!

I can only say!! Men!! the French did know how to live!

When you enter you immediately view the amazing gardens that seem to go on and on!

than you enter the palace in which each room is just a feast to the eye, the paintings, fabrics!!

the amazing chandeliers!

if you feel too overwhelmed by the colors, prints and paintings... just open the window and gaze at the beautiful gardens,

recover your breath and continue the visit :)

If you plan to visit Versailles do buy your tickets online to avoid queuing for hours. Get there really early! otherwise you will need to queue as well to enter :P

Tulips Madnessssssss

2011-04-09T19:51:00.007+02:00

If you ever want to see a huge amount of tulips of every single color and with funny names! you need to go to Keukenhof in the Netherlands.

And now is the right moment! springggggggggg,

It is pretty impressive with an area of 32 hectares and 4.5 million tulips !!

after all the walking you can just sit back and relax!

a true explosion of colors!

definitely worth visiting :)

Miauuuuuuuuuuuuu!! the hard life of a cat

2011-04-03T16:20:00.006+02:00

When I'm feeling low... nothing better then some pictures of cats to cheer me up. Here are some I've been collecting in our trips,

I would love to be this cat sunbathing in Croatia,

Well in Paris.. you had to sleep in a painting! :P

In Amsterdam, Cats apparently like to lay on top of old records, nothing like the oldies!

super fluffy Cat in really nice home in Amsterdam,

And my sister's super cute cat Fafi!!! with Pinky

I've just received this precious picture from Fafi drooling! I had to post it hehehehehhe

:)

This is yummy, where is it from?

2011-03-26T20:27:00.003+01:00

Yummy breakfast,

with some amazing confitures and chocolate,

at the Tout Bon in Place du Luxembourg, Brussels

In Bruges!

2011-03-19T19:28:00.003+01:00

If you visit Belgium, Bruges is definitely a must see! Is a charming town surrounded with little canals and an impressive grand place!

the big tower very featured in the movie In Bruges (an interesting movie btw!),

guess what is the kind of shop you will find in every corner in Bruges... ChoOCOLATeee!!!

yummyyyyyyyyy!

and if you are not in the mood for chocolate.. which is hard to imagine.. :P you have the second best thing!

fritessssssssssssssss! with any kind of sauce! (this one was Samurai source)

After the carbs fiesta nothing better then relaxing in a boat trip!

ahhhh Sunn!! I've missed you!

Was Sunnny... but still quite COooooOOoooL :P

What is your favorite tea?

2011-03-12T21:00:00.001+01:00

I'm kind of a tea freak! Always exploring new brands and flavors. There is nothing better than a cup of tea on a cold winter day or an awesome ice tea in the pick of summer!

After a lot of tasting! Here a my favorites!

-From Kusmi tea the detox and love are yummy. I've found this amazing gourmet shop in Lisbon (located at Principe Real) that has every single flavor! and if you just want to take a bit you can by only 50grams

-Then we have the amazing Yogi teas that not only taste wonderful but also bring an insightful message,

-My new discovery is the Pukka teas! Their detox tea is also pretty amazing as well as the love! But what I like even better is the design of the boxes :)))

If you are in Belgium you can find the Yogi and Pukka teas in the amazing Bio-Planet shop in Leuven.

And you! what is your favorite tea?

29 years Ago!

2011-03-06T11:09:00.001+01:00

A not so small, little curious girl was born,

good for her that she meet someone that doesn't mind answering many questions,

:)

This is yummy, where is it from?

2011-02-26T11:16:00.003+01:00

I can clearly see a pattern in my last post on "this is yummy" chocolate !!! I cannot resist!! :)

One of the best hot chocolate with spices I ever had!!

being in UK of course I had to have it with a scone in the side :)

someone else that has a sweeter tooth then me :P

This was in the 1657 Chocolate House in Kendal, Lake District, UK.

Ahh Sun! Where are you?

2011-02-20T20:00:00.000+01:00

It has been a couple of weeks with out Sun :( So I had to cheer myself up! that was easy just looking at the pictures we took while in Stockholm in the Summer :)))

believe it or not it was 30 degrees there!!! :) without any doubt July is the best month to visit Sweden!

everyone was out enjoying the sun and having picnics!

even the dogs where needing a swim,

relaxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx,

a nice afternoon in Gamla Stan, Stockholm,

this is the place where we had those yummy desserts and with music,

walking along the river,

ahhh nothing like a good summer day!!!

cannot wait for spring to come!!

This is yummy, where is it from?

2011-02-19T10:36:00.002+01:00

I'm already craving chocolate just remembering this amazing chocolate cake, pastry and hot white chocolate,

yummyyyy,

at the Chokladkoppen cafe in Gamla Stan, Stockholm, Sweden!

Lisbon Urban Art

2011-02-12T21:00:00.001+01:00

While I was in Lisbon for Christmas I noticed a couple of abandoned buildings that are now works of art. It's a true pity that we have buildings well located in the center of Lisbon in this state... but at least someone used them for something!

-Avenida Fontes Pereira de Melo,

-Avenida Casal Ribeiro,

If you are wondering how they did it:

There is no place like your favorite childhood place

2011-02-05T20:41:00.007+01:00

I've lived my childhood in Lisbon right in the center of the city. I have no complains! the city has treated me well. But when you are a child you kind of prefer to be able to run around with no constrains, which is not so compatible with living in a city.

When summer arrived I knew what that meant :) going on holidays to a little country town in Galicia, Spain.

This year I had the opportunity to go back there for Christmas :)

the view from the hill looks like a painting,

Don't even get me started in the amazing food we had there :) cooked by my Aunt,

yes! the massive octopus!! after being prepared,

I can just say super duper yummy! Everything was cooked on this antique,

After all this I could just jump of happiness!

This is yummy, where is it from?

2011-01-29T18:10:00.002+01:00

A yummy tabla of cheeses and hams,

with my favorite sparkling drinks!

somewhere in Derbyshire, UK

What is your favorite online Magazine?

2011-01-22T19:00:00.000+01:00

There is more and more amazing online magazines! Here are some of my favorites:

Lonny Mag is about lifestyle and home decor,

(for the new issue press in the pic)

Adore Mag also on lifestyle and home decor,

Lovely decor mag from the By Fryd blog

Gifted Magazine from lovely Creature Comforts,

And then there is the amazing foooood Magazinesssss!!!! Like the Sweet Paul Mag

what can I say... super yummy eye candy!!

The new mag from the lovely food blog What Katie Ate,

Then there is the gorgeous magazines on weddings! From the amazing the Style me Pretty blog,

There is also the delightful mag from Utterly Engaged,

What is your favorite online magazine? :)

This is yummy, where is it from?

2011-01-22T00:00:00.001+01:00

Salade nicoise with fresh seared tuna,

and Duck confit,with crispy potatoes, wild mushrooms and frisée salad,

at Balthazar Restaurant, New York City.

Macarons are here to stay!

2011-01-16T19:00:00.006+01:00

Without any doubt Macarons are here to stay! Because they are super yummy and eye candy :)
Last month my sister went to Paris... and guess what I asked her to bring me :)

and of course I had to have a photoshoot with them!! this time with a digital SLR! my humble Canon Ixus has been good to me.. but an SLR is another league!

yummy flavors! of Rose, Jasmin mango, Blackcurrant Violet, Caramel with salted butter and Liquorice,

a close up of this yummy treats,

I also gave another task to my sister :) to get me some pictures from the tea room of Ladurée Bonaparte shop. Thanks a lot Sis :)))

it has a impressive room! I need to visit it next time I'm in Paris :)))

who can resist to the Macarons of Laduree? they should open a store here in Belgium!!!

This is going to be a full Year!!

2011-01-07T21:00:00.005+01:00

The year 2010 was awesome!! we visited some amazing places this year,

♥Amazing breath taking and always moving NYC!

♥Gorgeous Northeast England & Scotland!

♥Delightful Stockholm!

♥Revisiting our favorite cities: Amsterdam and London!

♥but 2011 is gonna be even better!

(picture taken by Peter Kums)

Will be a year fully of special events!! ♥ may 2011 bring you everything you were looking for :)

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!

2010-12-25T21:16:00.000+01:00

I wish you a Merry Christmas and a Wonderful Happy New Year 2011 ;)

Cologne's Christmas Market Food!

2010-12-22T18:10:00.000+01:00

Cologne's Christmas Markets are with out any doubt one of the best in Europe! But what is really amazing in the snacks/drinks you can find there :)

To start nothing better then a warm Gluewine (hot wine with spices)

with some amazing potato dumplings with herbs and cream!

being in Germany is mandatory to have this amazing snack in the pic below,

or,

another typical snack is fried potato with apple sauce,

other yummy snacks!

plenty of yummy sweets,

handmade candy,

gingerbread cookies :)

Is a true food feast!

What's for breakfast?

2010-12-05T21:40:00.005+01:00

Breakfast is definitely the most important meal of the day! It's also in the morning when you least want to spend time cooking since you are probably sleepy!

I normally have some super yummy Dorset Cereals with yogurt and some blueberries easy to make even under the influence of sleep! . The cereals I buy them at the amazing English shop, close to Brussels, called Stonemanor.

The cup on the above picture is from the amazing shop Fishs Eddie in NYC, damn those 20 kilos! if I could I would have brought much more dinnerware they have some super original pieces :)

Another yummy breakfast is scones with jam and some black tea! I've done a post some time ago and now to make them. I normally bake the scones on Sunday and freeze them for the rest of the week. You just pop one out of the freezer in to the microwave with the defrost program and is ready to eat!

For the ones wondering what is written in the tea cup is in Portuguese and is something like: "Life with out friends is like a garden with out flowers" :)

My last addition to breakfast food is some amazingly easy pancakes, recipe from Jamie Oliver. I came across a super cute video of Jamie doing some pancakes with his daughters over at {frolic!} and I had to try them out!

Here they are, some amazing banana pancakes with yogurt, honey and blueberries.
Unfortunately the light was not the best when I took the picture,

super yummyyyyyy!

This is yummy, where is it from?

2010-11-28T15:24:00.002+01:00

Some teriyaki salmon and risotto,

in Prague, Czech republic.

Let's Sail away

2010-11-21T21:00:00.001+01:00

In the end of August we did our first sailing trip the great Capitan Matthias! We departed from the Roompot Marina in the Netherlands,

our super nice ride, Pandora!

the sleeping chambers,

for dinner some amazing Zealand mussels, this was for two people btw :)

preparing the trip for the next day,

Rise and shine!!!

the boats impressive GPS,

Start rolling the sail and lets go in direction to Zierikzee!!

the view!

moving the sail every time we wanted to change direction was hard work, but manageable! Sailing is definitely a good workout!

the boats that get the mussels,

and some pretty ancient boats well recovered,

time to get some energy back!

we arrive to Zierikzee and there seems to be a celebration going on :)

some kind of mussels related celebration,

interesting new way of kayaking :)

time to rest for the next day!

a sample video of our next day sailing :)

This is yummy, where is it from?

2010-11-07T20:00:00.001+01:00

A super yummy goat cheese and ham pancake,

and a classic American pancake with bacon!

from the Pancakes! Amsterdam

Anthropologie Stores

2010-11-06T13:30:00.002+01:00

Their stores are pretty impressive in terms of decor. I while go I had the opportunity to visit the London store in which they have an impressive garden wall!

While in NYC and Washington DC a stop in an Antropologie store was mandatory!

the shop of Antropologie in George Town in DC. Some pictures from the Rockefeller center NYC Antropologie shop,

the decor details are impressive!

in my to get list! the amazing Penguin Classics with the covers made by Coralie Bickford-Smith

Now is also possible to order their clothes at http://www.anthropologie.eu/ and pay in euros which is handy :)

Super Easy Yummy Scones!

2010-10-30T20:00:00.001+02:00

I've tried this recipe from Jamie Oliver's book Ministry of Food several times and the scones always came out excellent! Its also pretty straight forward recipe :)

*Makes 10 scones

-120g mixture of sour cherries and/or raisins
-orange juice, for soaking
-450g self-raising flour, plus a little extra for dusting
-2 teaspoons baking powder
-120g butter
-pinch of salt
-2 large eggs
-5 tablespoons milk, plus a little extra for brushing

*To make your dough

Preheat the oven to 200C/400F. Soak the cherries and raisins in a little bowl with just enough orange juice to cover them. While they're soaking, you can either pulse the flower, baking powder and butter in a food processor just until the mixture starts to look like breadcrumbs (don't be tempted to over-pulse) or you can rub them together by hand (that is what I do). Transfer to a mixing bowl and make a well in the middle. In another bowl, beat the eggs and milk with a good pinch of salt. Then pour your beaten eggs, milk, cherries and raised into the well in the flour mixture and stir well, adding a splash more milk if necessary, until you have a soft, dry dough.

After just roll out the dough with a rolling pin and cut 2cm thick or as you like it best :) . Dip the pastry brush into some milk and brush the top of each scone. Bake in the preheated oven for 12 to 15 minutes until risen and brown.

result super yummy scones!!!!

what to put on them!?!!?!? what about homemade jam!!!! recipe from my second favorite cook Rachel Allen!, Summer fruit Jam recipe

nothing better then an afternoon tea with some homemade scones and jam!

yummy :)

Photo fun

2010-10-30T19:00:00.001+02:00

While in Stockholm every time we went back to the place we were staying we passed this statue, I ended up taking some pics of it during different times of the day,

sunshineeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee,

cloudy day,

By the way this is the Statue of Charles XIV John at Slussplan :)

This is yummy, where is it from?

2010-10-23T13:00:00.000+02:00

Pulpo a la gallega (Galician octopus) ,

and Albariño wine,

at Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, Spain

Organic shops in Stockholm

2010-10-17T21:16:00.010+02:00

Following the suggestions in the Stockholm guide from Design*Sponge we visited some really nice organic shops!

First stop was in the Deli Nytorget,

they've put to good use the vegetable wooden boxes,

interesting to see that the majority of the organic products are all from UK!

my favorite drinkss are from the Belvoir Fruit Farms! If you find them do try their drink Summer Cooler (Fresh cucumber and mint with bubbling spring water and a hint of spirit-soothing geranium blossom – this delightful and unique blend is a real thirst-quencher). Is truly summer in a glass!

Next stop the Good Store,

they have a really nice tea selection,

I really like the design of the boxes! again from another UK brand Clipper. Their website is also really nice! In a recent post from the blog Tea For Joy I've found that these incredible labels from Belvoir and Clipper as the yummy cereals Dorset are all made by Big Fish.

another super cute labeling!

another really nice drink! Next stop Östermalms Saluhall market

a true treat to the eye and stomach!

To finish! dinner at the vegetarian restaurant Hermans. Great food with an amazing view!

they have a really nice relaxing area,

and a really amazing view!! for a really reasonable price,

yep! it was a buffet.. guilty!! but it was super tasting!!

amazing desserts,

some interesting words of wisdom in their wall,

and,

tea bags that bring some messages of wisdom,

in general they have a nice sense of humor,

If you visit Stockholm this is a mandatory stop :)

This is yummy, where is it from?

2010-10-13T19:00:00.001+02:00

I've noticed that I have a little obsession... photographing food. I've just realized it reviewing some vacation albums and seeing tones of pics of food :)

So why not share them! Some might look nicer to the eye then others.. but I can guaranty they were all yummy!! :) So here it is a new section of the blog "This is yummy, where is it from?"

Fresh oysters with some lemon from the local poissonnerie of Trouville-Sur-Mer, Normandy, France!

Stockholm's Thousand islands cruise

2010-10-09T19:40:00.006+02:00

If you want to take the best of the Stockholm's archipelagos I would definitely recommend the thousand islands cruise! Its a full day of amazing views!!

It departs from the Nybrokajen port,

and with some cake and cafe... yep in Portuguese it can be kind of tricky the cake word :P

amazing views,

during the trip you see some really amazing houses close to the shore,

red, white!

pink!! with the super cute little boat house,

nothing better than laying back and relaxing in the sun in your own little island!

We also stopped in some really amazing islands like this one,

that has some really nice guest houses,

you could also take a bit of sun and swim,

as it incredible as it my sound the water was much warmer then the water in Algarve ...yep true!!! .... but they don't have as many sunny shining days as we have in Algarve :P there had to be a trade off !

You also had a pretty nice lunch and dinner in the boat! I was positively surprised! Normally in this organized trips food is normally nothing special! But on this one there was a lot of local treats!

yummy food with a view!!!

we saw some super nice boats along the way,

as some pretty huge cruises!

definitely one day well spent!!

Stockholm Rocks!!!

2010-09-29T20:27:00.003+02:00

Yeeh!! this city simply rocks! especially in the Summer!! Amazing views and don't let me started on the fashionable people you see all around!

Here is a sneak peek of our amazing week there!

Summer in Stockholm is relaxing and enjoying the sun!

doing boat trips around the archipelagos,

visiting amazing islands!

riding your bike all over town!!!

with out forgetting your best friend :)

and always in style,

and most of all sharing the experience with your partner in crime ♥

What is your favorite bike?

2010-09-18T21:16:00.000+02:00

My favorite bikes are definitely in Amsterdam! There you can see an amazing variety. The colors, the personalization of the bikes is just a feast to the eye!

Blue seems to be the color of choice!

also mixing colors is very popular,

there had to be a polka dot bike :)

The classic old dutch bike,

I really ♥ this red and orange bike...

but is also difficult to resist to a pink bike!

super personalized bikes,

The family bikes,

The Paul Frank bike,

with super cute details, "Let's make a picnic"

Yes, Amsterdam is definitely the place of cool bikes!

Tea time in the beautiful City of York

2010-09-12T17:30:00.001+02:00

What better place to have an English tea then the beautiful city of York!!! With it's impressive cathedral,

Tudors style houses,

Little tea places,

and with a lot of shops selling my new obsession... cake stands!!

We went to Bettys a traditional tea room with a great ambiance. Not only for tea but for some great hot chocolate,

the full tea set,

and some super tasty sconesssssssssssssssssssssss!!!

yummy,

and on top of that a pianist playing some amazing songs,

that is tea time in York at Bettys,

What about PYO... Pick your Own fruits!

2010-09-02T19:20:00.001+02:00

So! there we were going in direction to York when in the road we saw this sign:

and quickly we decipher it : PYO = "Pick your Own" in this case strawberries and raspberries. I had never done something similar so we stopped to enjoy the sun and some nice strawberries!

with a little plastic bag at hand.... ready set go!

there was quite a number of families with small children there :) If it is already fun doing it as an adult imagine as a kid! we did see some kids all covered in strawberry red :)

it was a pretty nice experience! just the smell of fresh fruit!! and the colors... and don't get me started on the amazing taste! .. yep they do taste pretty different from the supermarket ones :P

and here is what we collected!!!

yummyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!

It was a really nice find in our road trip! PYO rules! need to find if there is something similar in Belgium :)

I've even found this cool website on how to find farms in UK to PYO!

Alice in Wonderland Amazing Topiary gardens!

2010-08-21T22:56:00.008+02:00

I had never seen such an amazing topiary garden as this one! I really felt like Alice in Wonderland at the amazing Levens Hall Gardens in the Lake District!

its just magical! to be in a garden like this...

Simply Impressive!!!

The picture below reminds me of a garden coming out of a Jane Austen book! probably from Emma :)

I could have spent the hole day there! just wondering around and enjoying the view!

secret gates...

gorgeous!

"A grade I listed garden dating from 1694 – through a combination of circumstance and love the gardens at Levens Hall have survived in their original design. The topiary is some of the oldest in the world and justifiably famous. "

simply amazing! no words to describe it! :)

It was one year ago!

2010-08-14T21:03:00.005+02:00

Yep! Time does sure fly! It was on a Friday evening one year ago that I thought I love so much reading other peoples blogs, being able to see life from their eyes, visit new places see new things... Why not create my own blog to share the nice things I come across ?

and that is how Sweet Visual Aids was started!

What can I say about me! I'm a Portuguese girl from Lisbon living in Brussels for almost 4 years with my partner in crime. I came to Brussels due to a great working opportunity and since then it was been a wonderful ride so far! I've meet a lot of nice people and had the chance to explore in more detail Belgium but also all the neighboring countries ;)

If you are wondering about the super cool paper cups! I've bought them at a really nice store called Papermash. They are designed by IaM Designs. You can really get creative with them,

:)

Edinburgh, Road Trip

2010-08-08T21:03:00.007+02:00

In Edinburgh we only had the time to visit the Castle which is simply huge! it took us

almost all the day! But very impressive,

the tourist crowd now populates the castle... some hundred years ago was another story!

Impressive fireplaces,

incredible stained windows,

there is so much to see in this castle that you really need some directions!

After a lot of walking nothing better then a super tasty castle tea at the Queen Anne Café!

a very interesting pic I've found in one of the expositions!

Next stops previewwwwwwwwwwwwww

the! lake

topiary gardens

at the Lake District! :)

Scottish Borders RoadTrip!

2010-08-01T17:12:00.021+02:00

In the next phase of our road trip we went from the Hadrian Walls in direction to the beautiful town of Kelso in the Scottish borders!
Equipped with our loyal Lonely Planet of Great Britain! Which gave us some suggestions of super nice places to sightsee on the way to Kelso.

First stop! The impressive Caerlaverock Castle

some very curios cows looking very suspicious to us :P

we can say the same about this mountain sheep!

Somewhere along the Northumberland National Park on the way to our next stop the Traquair House which is one of Britain's great noble residences that was constructed around 1107!

The Traquair House entrance,

Their amazing Maze!! I had never seem one as big as this!!!

it was a lot of fun to go around it :)

in case you got stuck... there was a special exit :)

The impressive Kelso Abbey,

Our second bed and breakfast! The Old Priory right in the middle of Kelso

It was a city B&B but really nice! I specially enjoyed the bedroom!

how nice is that dressing table!!

They had in the hall my favorite flowers peonies which left a really nice smell all around!

In addition to a nice room they have a pretty amazing garden!!!

The breakfast room was also very cozy!!

again as in the previous B&B they also have an impressive hutch!!

full with super cute milk jug's as this one,

breakfast table with a gorgeous garden view,

and a full English breakfast!!! What else can you ask for :)

Next stop!! in direction to Edinburgh!!!

Northeast England Road Trip

2010-07-24T18:00:00.006+02:00

There is nothing better than a road trip to really get to know a country's little secrets and to have the flexibility to always change your plans if you feel like stopping in a place for a bit longer.

This year since we were going to a friends wedding in Blackpool we planned a road trip going from Northeast England to Scotland. We arrived at Uk in the Hull port using the P&O ferries.

And headed in direction to the Hadrian Wall. Programmed it in the GPS and here we go! The route we had sent us through some really beautiful small roads,

The landscape around the Hadrian Wall is just breathtaking!

Following the pedestrian path around the Hadrian Wall,

The amazing tree in the middle of two mountains! what a vieewwww

a closer look with the sun shining!

gorgeous sunset!

This was a Sunday and all the restaurants around the Hadrian Wall were closed....Incredibly enough the takeaways were all open! So we ended up doing a bench picnic with some super tasty Indian food!

It was reallyyyyy good tasting... pity I can't recall the exact names of the dishes :(

Since it was on and off between raining and the sun shining we saw some beautiful rainbows

After all that sightseeing we stayed in a super cute B&B in Haltwhistle called the Kellah Farm

At Kellah they had a really nice breakfast room,

we had homemade sausages and fresh eggs!

Next stop heading to the Scottish borders!!

Northeast England & Scotland RoadTrip

2010-07-05T22:56:00.008+02:00

During this week we are going around beautiful England & Scotland. Here are some pictures taken along the way!

I loveeeee Rainbows!!!!

the famous Robin Hood tree!

more to come!!!

Space invaders take on Paris!!

2010-07-01T20:29:00.000+02:00

Last time I was in Paris we paid special attention to this interesting Space Invaders Mosaics that you can find all over Paris.

Googling about it found out that this is the product of the work of an urban artist call Invader!

More about the artist, from his website,

"What made you choose Space Invaders as the main character for the project?
Lots of reasons. I see them as a symbol of our era and the birth of modern technology, with video games, computers, the Internet, mobile phones, hackers and viruses. And "space invader" is a pretty good definition of what I'm doing... invading spaces!"

(pics from David)

If you would like to see if there is some Invaders conquering your city check out..

Super Lovely Purl Shop in Soho

2010-06-06T19:00:00.003+02:00

For everyone that loves knitting, patchwork, crochet etc! This is a delightful shop to visit!

I loved this super cute bunny finger puppets! Which I found out in their blog they have a tutorial on how to make them!

I'm just a beginner in the crafting world! but it was a true delight to go through the different yarns, fabrics etc!

Amazing patchwork!

start up fabrics for a quilt :)

an explosion of color!

fabriccccccccccc madnesss!!

Different knitting patterns!

They also have a really inspiring blog called the purl bee, in which the show cool craft projects!

We love Cupcakes!

2010-05-30T22:57:00.007+02:00

Last weekend I was in Lisbon :) , every time I go there I always end up wondering around in Bairro Alto there is always something new going on in this trendy neighborhood. This time I've came across this new Bakery that has some of the most amazing cupcakes I've ever tried!

I've been to the famous Magnolia Bakery in New York City and I have to say I like these Cupcakes better! :) . This bakery is called Tease and is located at Rua do Norte.

I had the above cupcake and it was super yummy!!! I love the detail that the cupcakes are served in vintage china, being myself a collector of vintage china being served in them was a true delight!

This lime one was delicious as well!!

The bakery has a really vintage look like and old tea house,

but with some rock and roll vibe as well,

super cute poster! "Keep Calm and Eat a Cupcake"

more super eye candy cupcakes,

If you are visiting or living in Lisbon! Is worth to go check it out! :)

We want candy!!

2010-05-23T22:52:00.009+02:00

We had to see an old school candy shop in NYC! We went to the famous Economy Candy

I've never seen so many different types of candy!!

remember PEZ!!!!

Every single flavor of Jelly Beans!

Some instructions on how to create your Jelly desert!

Huge lollipops!

yep... we didn't resist buying some sweets :)

The High Line, NYC

2010-05-16T19:44:00.003+02:00

A must see for me in New York City is the High Line, which is a public park built on a 1.45-mile-long elevated rail structure running from Gansevoort Street to 34th Street on Manhattan's West Side.

"The High Line was a freight rail line, in operation from 1934 to 1980. It carried meat to the meatpacking district, agricultural goods to the factories and warehouses of the industrial West Side, and mail to the Post Office. "

The views from the High Line are really nice, you definitely get a different perspective on the city.

There is a couple of places where you can just sit and relax.... enjoy the sun :)

Walking through the High Line you have this impressive building:

The design Hotel The Standard! Next time we comeback I will get a room in this hotel! The view must be simply amazing!!!

In can only imagine the delightful Sunset from these rooms!!

The High Line, definitely worth to visit if you go to NYC!!

The New York City Food Classics!

2010-05-08T23:02:00.002+02:00

In New York city you can basically find any type of food your might be looking for... but we just went for the classics!

First challenge: In search of the perfect slice! We started at the famous John's Pizzeria at Bleecker street the pizza was amazing! Huge slices with a hole lot of taste!

The second place we went was Grimaldi's Pizzeria in Brooklyn.. we couldn't believe the amount of people that were queuing there....

30mins later.... here is the yummy pizza!

they have an interesting wall dedicated to Frank Sinatra,

I couldn't make my mind on which was the best pizza :P

Second Challenge: find the best Pastrami Sandwich! It was easy! we just went to the famous restaurant from the movie "When Harry Met Sally"! Katz's Delicatessen

They had the biggest wall of fame I've ever seen!

here it is the famous Pastrami Sandwich! simply huge! but tasty :)

Third Challenge: The best burger in town. It was with out any doubt the Shake Shack in Madison Square garden!.. yep.. we had to queue again... for 35min I have to admit... but it was an awesome burger!

the picture is not very appealing ehhehe ups :P but they were super yummyyyyyy!!!!!..
so good that we ended up going there a second time.. Guilty :)

And then there are the nice surprises!! Like this little restaurant we found in the financial district. We were trying to cross the Brooklyn bridge that day to go the the Grimaldi's Pizzeria but we were so tiered that we gave up and ended up in that restaurant.. in which we had some super tasty sandwiches!!

Tracking back our steps in google maps I was able to find that the name of the restaurant, which is Meade's. We had a tuna sandwich with spicy sauce,

and a vegi portbelo mushroom sandwich!

When traveling one thing I love is to go to the local food markets, In new york we visited the Chelsea Market and I simply loved it!! Fresh and appealing food and a super good fish store.. yep.. fish.. which is not the most appealing thing to look at there it was really nicely displayed.

The Lobster Place, where we got some really nice sushi,

Our yummy lunch for that day!

By the time we thought about dessert we were so full... that I just took this nice pic as a memory souvenir, Cupcakessssssssssssssssss madness :)

Spring in New York City

2010-05-01T20:48:00.013+02:00

New York city! It has been an amazing trip. We were really lucky with the weather!
Last time I've been in New York was during the Winter, seeing it again in the Spring was a true delight!

Strolling in Central Park on Easter Sunday,

Central Park is simply huge! After strolling for a couple of hours still we didn't reach the other
end in Harlem.

Walking around Midtown, Chelsea, The Meatpacking district...

In Madison Square garden the famous Flatiron building

Where currently you can find Antony Gormley's status on top of all the buildings,

The Urban Jungle!

some where near Huston Street, West Village

Is just a delight walking around the different neighborhoods!

New York, New York here we come!!!

2010-03-28T21:00:00.001+02:00

What a wonderful city New York is!! I have already been there in 2008 but I feel that I still have so much to discover !! Next week I will be there again :) to check out all the spots I've missed the first time.

I've already have my top list:

-Central Park Picnic with some goodies from Dean & DeLuca , discover all the hidden places!

-Visit the museums I've missed the first time! the Met, Guggenheim !

Andy Warhol's Campbell Soup at Moma!

-Take a break and read a nice book at the New York Library Main Branch,

-Have some yummy cupcakes!! This ones below were from the famous Magnolia Bakery,

-For lunch adventure myself in China Town!!

-Climb to the top of the Empire State Building! The picture below was taken from the top of the Rockefeller center

-Get discount tickets for a Broadway musical!

-Go for the first time to a opera production at The Metropolitan Opera

And definitely get lost wondering Manhattan's coolest neighborhoods. Any advices are more then welcome! :)

Why do we love Macarons?

2010-03-21T19:00:00.002+01:00

Why do we like them so much! It might be the fact that we can find them in ever imaginable color! the visual appeal.. Or that they are amazing tasting!! They are indeed a true explosion of flavors and colors!

The last time I was in London I couldn't resist to buy some of my favorite macarons in Laduree at Harrods,

I know that we shouldn't play with food.. but I couldn't resist to try doing some photo styling :)

I love their boxes they are super cute!!

The Flavors above are Pistachio, Coffee, Lemon, Liquorice , Raspberry and Praline! I have to say that the Lemon and the Liquorice are my favorites! such and explosion of flavors! You can find all the existing flavors here

My new challenge is try to bake them!! I just need to get my hands on this book:

Lovely bottles design

2010-03-13T20:00:00.012+01:00

Its already a habit every time we visit a new place we always end up browsing through supermarkets! It is an interesting experience as you discover new products.

This time in London we found a lovely supermarket chain called Waitrose. The soft drinks section was a total perdition! So many lovely bottle packages I could not resist!

This brand BottleGreen has some really lovely bottle designs,

I simply love their new party bottle!

Another brand that has a nice bottling is Belvoir.

The calligraphy is simply beautiful,

Both Bottle Green and Belvoir are cordial drinks an extremely sweet non-alcoholic fruit flavored drink concentrate that is diluted with water.

The bottling of This Water is simple but very lovely,

All those three brands are originally from UK.

Anthropologie in London, Shop Tour

2010-03-09T21:00:00.003+01:00

When following bloggers in US we soon get familiar with the delightful brand Antropologie.
Recently they've open their first European shop in London at Regent Street.

I had the opportunity to visit it this weekend and I was very impressed by the selection of clothes and home decor items. The shop it self is full of vibrant colors and very organic.

The flowers in the image below were made of plastic bottles, what a nice DIY idea :)

What is simply delightful is their attention to details in the decoration of the shop,

How cool is this garden wall ??

Super cute book case,

The decoration is simply a feast to the eye, there is so many small details. Like the one below, it looks like some kind of patterns for ribbon making.

I would love to have a bed like this one !

In the household appliances section, full of vibrant colors.

I cannot resist to these colors!!!

A very interesting decor idea, to add some drawings as the background paper of the closet,

I was very impressed indeed with this shop! what a great concept! I would describe it as very ethnic, colorful and organic shop :)
I'm looking forward to seeing this shop in New York next month! ;)

Dille & Kamille, a gorgeous store

2010-02-28T20:25:00.002+01:00

Some time ago I already had made a post about Dille & Kamille a delightful household appliances store. The last time I've visited this store I had my camera with me! so here are some pics !

They have everything from kitchen to garden supplies!

Its incredible all the amount of supplies they have! some I had never seen before in my life.

I was so focus taking the pictures, that now I realized where the bakers twine spool was stored! in the above picture in the left top corner! Well I will get it in the next trip! :P

Some nice jam,

my little obsession... baking books!!! this ones have some really attractive covers :)

Some traditional sweets,

Simple delightful!!!

Randomess in Paris!

2010-02-20T20:20:00.017+01:00

Some curious snapshots we took this summer in Paris,

Probably not the safest street in Paris!

Huge soap balloons being made in front of the Centre Pompidou

Biking in Paris,

Super yummy cheese fondue dinner,

A must see in Paris the Shakespeare & Company book store,

This picture!! was a true surprise that my humble camera capture it,

The City bike! more and more we see it in the major European cities,
a great way to discover any city :)

Ahhhh, Laduree macaroons gorgeous colors and super taste!

Cute couple riding the bike dressed in Care bears, maybe they were taking
engagement pictures who knows!

Sweet Cupcakes Liners!

2010-02-13T21:13:00.017+01:00

I have a little obsession in collecting Cupcakes liners, they are simply super cute :)
And everyones enjoys more eating a cupcake decorated with a nice cupcake liner.

My own collecting of Cupcakes Liners that keep on growing!

my latest acquisition from Hema, 200 liners for only 2.99 euros!

If I talk about cupcakes liners I need to talk about baking :) here are the apple and raisin muffins I did last weekend,

One of the things I enjoy about baking is the nice smell your house is left with!

The recipe comes from my all time favorite baking book Bake from the amazing
Rachel Allen,

here is the Muffins recipe being read by my two new little friends,

Also, I've recently in Etsy I've found this super cute CupcakeSocial,

for valentines day!

my favorite one :)

The sun is shining!

2010-02-07T18:00:00.008+01:00

After a couple of weeks of snow and grey.. the sun is shining again! Nothing better to spend a sunny day then taking a stroll in beautiful Leuven!

In Leuven we can see a great sample of the Belgium typical architecture,

In the left corner the gorgeous Town Hall.

The correct Waterloo Flea Market

2010-01-31T19:00:00.001+01:00

In a previous post i referred that i had gone to the Waterloo Flea Market.. but guess what!! i went to the wrong one :P it happens. In the description it said it was located in the Carrefour in Waterloo.. but there is two Carrefours in Waterloo!!!

This time i went to the correct Waterloo flea market, here are the pictures to prove it :)

This one caught my eye, a vintage scale!

I always get amazed on how beautiful the sewing machines were before, now they are just a big piece of plastic. They lost the charm.. that this Singer machine has

They have quite a number of antique furniture,

this one ... restored would be gorgeous!

How cute is this antique baby stroller,

a really old looking Teddy,

some vintage door knobs,

I've found interesting that some one would sell his old gas boxes...

Vintage Phonographs,

There are some true treasures to be found in the Waterloo Flea Market!

Ready to eat in 25min!

2010-01-25T19:15:00.001+01:00

Ready to eat in 25min! you can bet on it :) There is nothing more simple then doing a Quiche or a Tartelette!

Here are my favorite recipes!

*Courgette Quiche:

1 shortcrust pastry
2 eggs
2 natural yogurts
1 courgette
2 tomatoes
250g Mozzarella
olive oil, salt, pepper

1.Preheat the oven to 200 degrees C ( or follow the temperature from the shortcrust pastry instructions)

2.Cut the courgette and fry it until is gold, put apart. Cut the tomatoes and mozzarella in little pieces.

3. In a medium bowl combine the eggs and yogurt. Also add some basil leaves. Season it with salt and pepper.

4. Arrange the pastry case, combine the mozzarella, tomatoes and courgette. Cover it with the combined eggs and yogurt mix.

5.Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes, or until golden brown on top. Let it stand 5 minutes before cutting.

If you don't eat eggs you can change the receipt to replace the eggs and yogurt with
250g of Tofu and a 1/3 cup of Milk. In a blender combine the tofu and milk until smooth, adding more milk if necessary. Blend in salt and pepper. Use this mix instead to top the quiche.

*Quick Salmon and goat's cheese tart

"375g pack ready-rolled puff pastry sheet
4 large tomatoes, thinly sliced
100g French goat's cheese
300g sliced smoked salmon
handful of chopped chives

1.Pre-heat the oven to 200C

2.Line a roasting tray with baking paper, Unroll the pastry on the the tray and cut to your preferred shape.

3.Scatter on the slices of tomato, then crumble the cheese over and finally arrange the salmon on top.

4.Pop in the oven, on the top shelf, for approximately 20-25 or until the pastry is golden.

5. Just serve, sprinkle with chopped chives."

This receipt is from the Fay's Family Food

Yummy!!! this is what i call healthy fast food :)

The Portuguese Life

2010-01-17T17:13:00.002+01:00

One of my favorite stores in Lisbon is with out any question "A Vida Portuguesa ". Its one of those stores that makes you travel in time just by looking at the different objects they have!

The concept is really cool, they've recovered many of the traditional products that Portuguese people used to buy 50 or more years ago, that unfortunately started being lost with time..

But now! you know were to find them! :)

Here are some pics from my visit,

Coração, Products to clean metal and furniture.

the traditional ceramic Swallow very used for inside and outside decor

The original books used by generations of children on their first,second and third grade!

Super cute agenda from Planeta Tangerina, has amazing illustrations! could help it had to get one :)

Claus Porto!!! i already had a post about their gorgeous products

the famous Couto toothpaste created in 1932 and it was not tested in animals!
also very known by their publicity slogan “anda na boca de toda a gente” (something like is in everyones mouth)

I had a couple of them when a I was little :D

super cute plastic sewing machine and yep the needle even moves!!!

to practice your math!

trandicional tuna, sardines and squid cans.

some of their present packs, super cute!

Gorila chewing gum!!! followed me for many years :D the best flavour was always Orange!!!

You can further browse their products at A vida Portuguesa online store.

The! Vegie Lasagna

2010-01-10T19:31:00.001+01:00

This is one of my favorite recipes, its inspired in the lasagna from Jamie Oliver's Ministry of Food. But instead of having meat we replaced it with some great veggies. It serves around 4-6.

-Ingredients

For the Bolognese Sauce

1 aubergine
1 courgette
250g of mushrooms
2 medium onions
2 cloves of garlic
3 carrots
3 sticks of celery
olive oil
2 heaped teaspoons dried oregano
2 x 400g tins of chopped tomatoes
sea salt & freshly ground black pepper
a small bunch of fresh basil
50g Parmesan cheese

For the lasagne

250g dried egg lasagne sheets
1 x 500ml tub of creme fraiche
100g Parmesan cheese
1 large ripe tomato

-To make your Bolognese sauce

Cut the aubergine and fry it until is gold, put apart. Do the same to the courgette and the mushrooms.

Peel & finely chop the onions, garlic, carrots and celery - don't worry about technique; just chop away.

Place a large casserole-type pan on a medium to high heat, add 2 lugs of olive oil, your oregano and cook and stir. Add the veg to the pan and stir every 30 seconds for around 7 minutes or until softened and lightly colored.

Add the tinned tomatoes followed by the aubergine, courgette and mushrooms. Fill one of the empty tins with water and add to the pan . Stir in a good pinch of salt and pepper.
Pick the basil leaves and place in the fridge for later. Finely chop the basil stalks and stir into the pan.

Bring to the boil, then turn the heat down and simmer with a lid on for 45 minutes, stirring every now and again to stop it catching.

Preheat the oven to 190C / 375F / GM5. Remove the Bolognese sauce from the heat. Finely grate the Parmesan and stir a quarter of this into the sauce.

Tear and stir in any larger basil leaves, keeping the smaller ones aside for later. Have a taste of the sauce, and season with a little more salt and pepper if you think it needs it.

The original recipe suggests to boil the lasagna sheets, i don't do it as i'm using Barilla sheets and they cook really well.

Spoon a third of your Bolognese sauce into the bottom of an earthenware oven proof dish. Follow with a layer of lasagna sheets. Dollop over a third of your creme fraiche and smooth it out to cover the lasagna sheets. Sprinkle with a good pinch of salt and pepper and another quarter of your grated Parmesan. Add another layer of lasagne, and repeat the layers twice more, finishing with a layer of creme fraiche and the remaining Parmesan.

Top with some slices of tomato, scatter over the small basil leaves and drizzle with olive oil.

Cover with foil, place in the preheated oven and bake for 20 minutes.
After that, remove the foil and cook for a further 35 minutes until the lasagne is bubbling and golden.

The yummy result! :)

From Autumn to Winter, Let It Snow! Let It Snow!

2009-12-20T22:30:00.006+01:00

Back in September i started taking a picture of the same tree in order to track the seasons changing! here is the result so far :)

Last Thursday snowed a lot!!!! for my joy :) until we had to get the car out of the garage :P

How dreamy everything looks with a bit of white!

"Oh the weather outside is frightful,
But the fire is so delightful,
And since we've no place to go,
Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!"

I couldn´t resist... here is my snowmen! it looks like it came out of the movie Nightmare before Christmas,

Merry Christmas!!!!

Delightful Cologne's Christmas Markets!

2009-12-13T19:00:00.003+01:00

Cologne's Christmas Markets is without ant doubt my favorite one! There is not only one market but 6 different ones!!

The Cologne's Cathedral Market,

some nice Gluewine (hot wine with spices) and fried potato with apple sauce!

Next Market! Alter Market, full of cute Gnomes everywhere

Lovely rustic little houses,

Is a great Market for presents and nice treats!

Pure injection of Christmas spirit!!!!!!!!!!!

The Gnome overlooking the activities!

Super cute Pig making soap bubbles :)

The dreamy Neumarkt,

There is nothing best then going to Cologne's Christmas markets! a lot to see and taste :)

If you are planning to go check out this free map of the markets.

Eye Candy Pictures

2009-12-05T19:00:00.001+01:00

One of my favorite photo stream in Flickr is the one from i.Anton. It has some of the most dreamy pictures I've seen!!!

simple love the snow pictures! they are so dreamy!

This is the cutest pose a cat can do! is like he is think really hard on something :D

Santa!!! i want a pink bike ;)

this picture, seems so simple yet beautiful. The red lipstick is gorgeous!!

(all pictures from i.anton)

What a talent to capture such inspiring pictures!!
Aren't they dreamy?

Christmas presents ideas via Etsy!

2009-11-28T20:00:00.006+01:00

Sometime ago I did a post regarding Etsy , since Christmas is closer and closer, here is some inspiration!!

Twisted Earrings from shlomitofir

A super original Foks scarf from Celapiu

Gorgeous Acrobats Print from MissBrigette

Mushroom Ring from DayDefyProject

Super Cute little Bunny from prettyrandomobjects

Red Bear from ememem

:) isn't Etsy the best!!!

The cutest way to attract customers to your shop

2009-11-22T15:41:00.001+01:00

While i was visiting Gouda in the Netherlands i came across this really cute children's shop,
which had the perfect why to attract people :P to see the shop..

How cute are they????

What is it about cats sunbathing in art Galleries? is not the first one I've seem them,

simply cutenesssss!

The Commons, a great initiative!

2009-11-15T17:46:00.013+01:00

Recently in Flickr I came across the Commons initiative. Its basically a set of galleries with some of the best world's public photography archives! You can easily get lost there just browsing through!

One of my favorites is the Nickolas Muray gallery from the George Eastman House's,

These are some colorful and full of joy pictures!

This is just a wonderful gallery of many! I also found out that one of the Portuguese institutions involved is the library of Calouste Gulbenkian foundation. How cool is this! although far away i can still enjoy their photography archives!

here are our famous trams! And this one goes directly to my home! :)

Time flies when you are having fun!

2009-11-08T22:30:00.001+01:00

Yep! Time does sure fly when you are having fun! It has been already 3 years since I'm living in Belgium!

As everyone knows the weather is the main complain for people that are from the south or Europe.. so no pictures of grey sky's! but instead! the nice sunny days we have! :)

Sunnyyyyyyyyyyy

When is sunny in Belgium people go to the parks and relax and enjoy!!!

Gorgeous Belgium, cities like Ghent!

Snow snow!!! we love it! being from Lisbon you had to drive quite a bit to see snow! and now!! we just go outside :) yep if freezing cool when it snows but is so much fun!!!

Another thing great here are the Christmas markets! they are so charming!

It has been three full years of European exploration!

Waterlooooooo!

Moet & Chandon in Epernay,

The amazing cathedral of Reims!

Mika concert in Arras,

Zurich!

Stockholm!

Keukenhof garden in the Netherlands!

Kinderdijk Windmills,

Amazing Prague!

Croatia!

Uh laa laa!! Paris , Paris!!

London Town!!

and we are still having a blast in Belgium! :)

Remembering Barcelona!!!

2009-11-01T17:12:00.001+01:00

Back in 2005 i lived in Barcelona for about 6 months! and it was one of the best experiences i had! I shared a tiny tiny 34m2 apartment on the Carrer Mozart, in the trendy Gracia neighborhood, with my great friend Carolina!!

We went to Barcelona do to an internship sponsored by the European program Leonardo da Vinci

Here are some snapshots of those wonderful moments!!!

In Barcelona there is always a hole bunch of people in the streets! at any time! specially in Passeig de Gràcia! so you will never feel lonely
In the corner of the picture you can see our mascot the Galo de barcelos a traditional Portuguese souvenir!

It was a Sunday afternoon we were at home having a relaxing time.. out of the blue we start to hear music! we come outside and here they are the Castellers in the middle or our square!

Barcelona is Gaudi, Gaudi and Gaudi!!! and we love it!

do see Casa Batllo with an audio guide, is really worth it!

Gorgeous Park Güell!

BCN is all about fooodddddddddddd

the famous Xampanheira! were you can have some cava! with a Botifarra sandwich, simply yummy!

cheers!!!
there is always something doing on in the Barrio Gothic!

Beautiful Montserrat!

the most awesome party ever!! is in the Gracia neighborhood and is called Sant Medir. A lot of people in horses come and throw you candy !

our catch that day was good and colorful!

Gorgeous view Barcelona from Tibidabo

Port Aventura is really a blasttttttttttt

Great moments!!!!

Barcelona is a city that is fully alive, full of diversity, events, colors etc
With out any doubt one of my favorite European cities!!!!

Amsterdam, a simply unique city

2009-10-25T16:40:00.001+01:00

Its not the first time I've been in Amsterdam, but every time we go we always end up seeing something new and surprising!

Cannot help taking pictures of Dutch bikes,

Nothing like taking a stroll on the the Farmers Market on the Noordermarkts street,

the white furniture recovered, simple but beautiful!

flipping the porcelain cups I've found out that they are made in Belgium!!

The flavors, smells and visual delights of the bio farmers market,

The unexpected in the canals,

probably a bachelor party,

in Amsterdam you can always find floating cakes slices :P

new means of traveling,

Strongly recommend renting a bike in Amsterdam, specially one that doesn't shout out load... tourist :P you can rent a low profile bike at...

When cycling around the canals from time to time we had to stop to see some of the coolest stores in the Jordaan neighborhood,

vintage houseware shop,

We had to stop at the Albert Cuyp Market!

the traditional sandwich with herring, not the most appealing to the eye but tasty!

cute cat taking care of the fabric stand :P

traffic jammmmmm!

some interesting finds..

this one made me smile!!!

Simple, recycled and unique, this is Freitag

2009-10-17T21:00:00.002+02:00

The brand Freitag is one that should inspire people to think outside of the box. This brand does all kind of bags specially the messenger one. They are made with materials like well-traveled truck tarpaulins, unraveled seat belts, bicycle inner tubes beyond repair and recycled airbags. Since they are made or trunk tarpaulins they are pretty resistant!

I had the opportunity to visit their main store in Zürich. Its simply impressive, is built out of cargo boxes!

You could go until the 4th box.

Each bag they produce is unique, since it will be cut out of a unique truck tarpaulins. This image simple translate this point very well,

(image from Freitag)

The other weekend while strolling in Cologne we ended up finding a Freitag shop, i really like their minimalist and well organized way of showing their products.

They had quite a lot of unique products!

Also if by any change you have some spare truck tarpaulins you can always sell them to Freitag :)

Simple, recycled and unique!

We love cookies!

2009-10-11T16:03:00.000+02:00

One of the easiest things you can bake are cookies, easy to assemble and fast in the baking.

The most impressing ones I've seen are this Giant Toblerone Cookies
simple to do and cause quite and impression as they are simple Huge!!!!!

You can use toblerone or another normal black chocolate they come up always really tasty!

Hugeeee super duper cookies!

If you are looking for a more nutrient cookie then there is also the wonderful Oatmeal and raisin cookies from Rachel's book Bake.

The recipe is the following (makes about 30 cookies):

110g (4oz) butter, softened
110g (4oz) caster sugar
110g (4oz) soft brown sugar
1 egg
2 tbsp water
1tsp vanilla extract
250g (9oz) porridge oats
110g (4oz) self-raising flour
1 level tsp salt
110g (4oz) raisins

1. Preheat the oven to 180’C (350’F), Gas Mark 4.
2. Cream the butter in a large bowl or in an electric food mixer until soft. Add the sugars and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add the egg, water and vanilla extract while still beating. Reduce the speed and gently mix in the oats, flour, salt and raisins to form a dough.
3. Using your hands, roll the dough into walnut sized balls and place slightly apart on two baking trays.

4. Bake in the oven for 12-25 minutes or until light golden brown but still slightly soft in the center.
5. Allow to cool on the trays for a minute before transferring to a wire rack to cool.

They are simply yummy at any time :)

Universal Sync between bloggers!

2009-10-03T12:32:00.002+02:00

The other day i was taking a stroll in Leuven and remembered that i had to buy some tofu for my quiches. So i went to this Asia shop and bought my tofu.. but you know you never end there in shopping.. there is always something more that catches your eye! and this time were these really sweet tea boxes! i have no doubt the tea is great but the boxes were simply delightful just for 2.50 euros each!

The other day i was reading the blog Oh Joy! and guess what i found!

(image from the Martha Stewart's website)

The exact same tea tins! used in a way i wouldn't imagine at a first glance. But it is nice idea for center pieces, simple and delightful.

Also following one of my favorite blogs Decor8 here they are again!

(pic from Decor8)

If your closest Asia shop doesn't have them you can buy them here

Digging a bit more about these tea tins i came across another way to use them.. rather then storing tea!

(pic from CountryLiving)

Endless possibilities for a simple and pretty tea tins!

This is what i call a Universal Sync Between bloggers :)

J.Crew why not Europe?

2009-09-27T14:00:00.002+02:00

When reading blogs from US we end up noticing what are the brands that most inspire people to consume :)
And J.Crew is definitely one of them, it has simple designs but full of charm.

Being more and more a global economy, what i don't understand is why J.Crew doesn't invest in Europe. There is market here, people are always looking for something new and inspiring.
What is strange for me is that if we go to j.crew website they do import to Japan.. but zero countries in Europe.

(pictures from j.crew )

I suppose they already have quite a base in US, they might not see the profit in coming to Europe. Yep, Europe is quite a challenging market, since its different cultures, mentalities etc. But still if we look at a Massimo Dutti you can find it every where in Europe, not the same style as J.Crew but for sure the same people that shops in Massimo Dutti would related definitely to J.Crew. Still these are just assumptions from a not totally informed person.. that would like to shop at J.Crew in Europe :P

Well, i cannot complain so much regarding good shops we can find in Europe. For instance in Portugal we have Lanidor a Portuguese brand that also does inspiring clothes,

(pictures from Lanidor)

It can be found already in some European countries like Spain, Ireland, Germany and Switzerland.

Lets jump 2!!

2009-09-21T21:50:00.006+02:00

We really like to let it all go and simply have fun and Jump!!!

Fly beneath one of the most impressing Parisian Monuments!

This one is not yet the jump.... but the devil eyes we got in the pic :P

Jump in London to salute the Queen!

Jump near the Ghent canals, but try not to fall in them :P

Rock the small towns party with some jumps!

being in Brussels... its mandatory to jump in front of the Atomium!