Owls In New York
As I’ve wandered around this interesting city I’ve seen images of owls – in statues, plaques, jewellery and even on a very very expensive glass.
The Wise Owl
The wise old owl
Sat in an oak.
The more he saw,
The less he spoke.
The less he spoke,
The more he heard.
Why can’t we be like
That wise old bird?
anon
In Central Park.
In Herald Square.
On the access door at the back of a statue in Herald Square.
A beautiful glass.
Jewellery in a market.
Frieze Art Fair New York Part 2
Here are some more photographs of the Frieze Art Fair held last weekend in New York.
Frieze Art Fair New York Part 1
The second annual New York Frieze Art Fair was held last weekend on Randall’s Island in the East River and we decided to go as it was a beautiful crisp sunny spring day. Artists from galleries all around the world were exhibiting, but I’m not sure if there was any representation from Australia. We bought our tickets online ( the only way to purchase them!) and chose to go by water taxi, a very pleasant 20 minute trip up the east side of Manhattan. We went early to avoid the Sunday and Mother’s Day crowds and were able to take almost all our photographs without anyone getting in the way. Here are some of the exhibits that took our eye.
The annual Gala at The Met was held two nights ago, with the opening of Punk: Chaos to Couture – a fashion extravaganza that anyone interested in fashion history will want to see. I was privileged to be able to go to the Member’s Preview and take photographs. Where would this genre of fashion be without Vivienne Westwood? Perhaps there will now be a resurgence in punk. 
Corner Windows In Barcelona
You can’t help but notice the architecture in Barcelona, and how all the corners of the city blocks in the Eixample district are truncated. This opens up the streets, some of which are incredibly wide anyway, and gives a much more spacious feel to the city as well as adding light and ventilation. Almost every building has a vertical row of protruding windows or rooms which are always glassed in. They are so striking and I just wandered around, looking up, taking photos. Here are my favourite ones. Look at the sculpture, painting, mosaics, iron work,and stained glass detail. Wouldn’t you love to live in one of these buildings?!
Door Knockers And Handles In Barcelona
Wandering around Barcelona, there is so much to see and photograph, so I am separating my photos into categories. Here are some of the better door knockers and handles. I especially love the Art Nouveau ones.
I’m rather taken with this Gaudi beehive handle available for sale along with many other styles in some hardware stores.
La Pedrera In Barcelona
You can’t help but notice the astonishing architecture of Antoni Gaudi as you go around Barcelona, and his last building, Casa Milà, popularly known as La Pedrera was constructed between 1906 and 1912 and declared UNESCO World Heritage in 1984. Today it is the headquarters of Fundació Catalunya-La Pedrera and houses a cultural centre that is a reference point in Barcelona for the range of activities it organises and the different spaces for exhibitions and other public uses. We stood in line for tickets and were in the door soon after opening at 9am and thankfully were able to go to the rooftop, which is only open on fine days. We were fortunate, as it has rained almost every day this week! I like the way only a small number of people are allowed in at a time, therefore allowing us plenty of room and opportunities to take photographs.
The imposing sculpture of limestone on a corner of Passeig de Gracia.
No two pieces of sculpture are the same.
Mirrors and mosaics on a door.
Looking up to the sky from inside the building.
Looking down the middle of the building from the rooftop.
Safety railings and steps on the rooftop. Strangely there were no railings around the edges on the building and these walls are only a couple of feet high!
I love these “people” sculptures. Notice that no two are the same.
Hair perhaps?
Incredibly pretty interior on the ground floor.
Painted wall detail.
Japanese People In Costume
All these photos were taken on a Sunday in Tokyo.We seemed to keep running into weddings which were quite beautiful and traditional. I’m so glad that the western mode of dressing hasn’t completely taken over.
Girls outside the train station at Harajuku.
Little Bo Peep?
Food In Japan
We stopped to admire food everywhere we went in Tokyo – because it looked so different from what we normally see, and the packaging and wrapping is done to perfection, with great care and pride. Here are some of my favourite photos and note the cost of a mango and a rockmelon in special packaging! Around AU$84 for the rockmelon and AU$54 for the mango.
Sunday Dinner In Tokyo
Our first visit to Tokyo and we are absolute tourists, doing an open bus tour to get our bearings – not recommended – and just going with the flow. We stumbled into a gem of a place called Tokyu Food Show in Shibuya and stayed for hours, sampling food and sake, and just walking around with our mouths open ( literally!)…. We thought we’d been to some pretty good places in the world, but today we think this one is the best, maybe because of it’s cuteness in packaging and detail, and variety of produce. We were tired and hungry at the end of the day, so decided to take dinner home. Unable to communicate in Japanese I purchased this delicious rice with mince and vegetables dish sold in a terracotta pot and bring it back to the hotel. It stayed hot for two hours.
Attractive food stall.
Rice cooking in terracotta pots.
Vegetables and meat are added.
Wooden lids for cooking.
All cooked and ready for sale.
This packaging got me in!
Vegetables in shapes make the meal so attractive.
The happy exhausted diner. The verdict – delicious, and I’d do it again to get another bowl!
Mary Dickinson 