Happy Halloween!

Some very exciting events are swirling in my life. I'll have to make the time to write about them soon. But for now; Happy Halloween! (A holiday that's slowing making its way to Europe; more of it seems to surface with every year that I am still here).

Rue Aubry le Boucher: Paris

On the Streets of Paris:

Walking through the streets of Paris: a city whose grandeur and ever-so-enticing lyricism speak to my inner boulevardier. Paris is mystical like that; so much wonder, beauty, history, and myth is wrapped up within its city limits' streets. By sunset, its sidewalks turn into runways–or, catwalks–for those who prance and prowl the night.

Just Around the Corner:

Amsterdam is going through a period of rainless-ness. And the term 'period' in Amsterdam, in regards to rain, means but a few days. So, today, I savored the sun; as retaliation against the long winter nights ahead.

Breakfasting at Cafe Letting:

Café Letting is a cute little place to grab breakfast in Amsterdam; one of the few. I've been going there for a few years now (practically a regular I tell you!). These days it seems to be over-run by Anglophones, mostly American tourists. But I still enjoy their terrace, and their pancakes (and the fact that they have soy milk for coffee).

Love For: The Indische Buurt

Paris, France:

Whimsical Bubbles, in Paris:

John does Paris:

Lamppost, in the Jordaan

Amsterdamse School Architecture:

Amsterdamse School architecture arose in Amsterdam throughout the 1910-30s. Most of it is located in Oud Zuid, built around and for the 1928 Summer Olympics. These men of reliefs, and full of expression bricks, can be found here.

Bikes, on Bridges, in the Jordaan:

I've been cycling and walking around the Jordaan a lot lately; at lunch, on weekends, really… the list never ends. This area of the city, takes my breath away. Last year, when my significant other and I were looking for a house in Amsterdam to call our own, I was convinced we would settle in the Jordaan. 'How perfect', I thought. And in some respects, it is. But, if your house is not large, or new, then chances are it is: old, and small, and dusty. That's how I see Amsterdam these days, a bit old and dusty–yet still so full of personality. Funny how, as an American (and even from a city seeping in history, for American standards), I saw Amsterdam through the most rosiest colored glasses when I first arrived. I still do. But, the built environment, these days, I see completely different. And, as someone who studied architecture, the internal transformation of my thoughts on buildings, is even more special to me. What all this means, is that I'm absorbing more of the local culture and customs, understanding what's around me (and why it was built that way), processing those thoughts, and in return, creating a whole new outlook on the city around me. And now, those rose colored glasses are becoming even rosier; except this time, the lenses I'm looking through, have even more layers: layers of meaning; layers of history; layers of understanding; and layers of seeing the world, in a whole new way.

Rivierenbuurt: Scheldestraat & Churchilllaan

Tilted Gables in Early October:

Stadionweg Is:

The name of a street in the Oud Zuid neighborhood of Amsterdam, along which–directly adjacent to Olympiaplein–is located a wonderful bakery (if not the best bakery in Amsterdam), which is just happens be where Amsterdam's best croissant can be found. And those wonderful flakey, lekker, chocolate lovelies. The name of the bakery is: Le Fournil de Sébastién. I cycled there this morning, to stock up on both bread and pain au chocolat. It usually takes me between 25-30 minutes to cycle there from my house. But it's totally worth it. And the sun this morning, at 8:00, along the Amstel, sparkled.

Amsterdam: What have you done with the sun?

A wonderful week of summer-esque sun, has come to an end. Hello, autumn rains.

Saturday Evening Along the Amstel:

...because trees almost always line up perfectly, along waterways, in the Netherlands.

Fluidity: 'Like a flag floating in the air.'

Kijkduin, The Hague, the Netherlands

Sunset Above the Indische Buurt: