Home Thoughts from Abroad

Oh, to be in England

Now that April's there,

And whoever wakes in England

Sees, some morning, unaware,

That the lowest boughs and the brushwood sheaf

Round the elm-tree bole are in tiny leaf,

While the chaffinch sings on the orchard bough

In England - now!

And after April, when May follows,

And the whitethroat builds, and all the swallows!

Hark, where my blossomed pear-tree in the hedge

Leans to the field and scatters on the clover

Blossoms and dewdrops - at the bent spray's edge -

That's the wise thrush; he sings each song twice over,

Lest you should think he never could recapture

The first fine careless rapture!

And though the fields look rough with hoary dew

All will be gay when noontide wakes anew

The buttercups, the little children's dower

- Far brighter than this gaudy melon-flower! Robert Browning

Exhibition Alert

Oh là là I cannot wait to see this! 'High Kicks & Low Life: Toulouse-Lautrec prints' beginning this Friday, May 14th (also my birth date). The Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool, is hosting an exhibition by the artist Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, featuring prints that show the glamour and style of 19th century Parisian theatre and daily life.

For more details click here

Fashion Fancy

Its rare that I spot something in a shop that I love, yet this colourful and quaint little range recently caught my eye and I can actually say I love it all. Ladybird brooches, fringed clogs, pastel-sugar colours, birdy-prints... so pretty, so British, super nice. I'll take one of everything please. N.W.3 thumbs up from CC.

Now where did we leave the car...

What-a-lovely-little-family

It's bleak up North

Not a soul around

Only the comfort of the clouds

Bleakness living on

and on

Bank Holiday = Blackpool

Fish and Chips

Sea Air

Big Tummies

CC in the Country

I can smell the farms
I can hear the birds
I can see the cows
I can touch the grass
I can drink cold cold water from the tap

I can laugh out loud and no one will hear me

xx Wedding Weekend xx

Six months of waiting, now two lovely friends of mine tie the knot this weekend. The sun is shining, the air is clean, smiling faces, happy times. Two outfits; one stripes one spots. Dainty shoes, vintage and new. Blood red nails: Red trickers. Perfect combination.

YES

I LOVE EUROPE (here is a list of my initial observations for this comment)

a) the efficiency of the people

b) witty remarks

c) the pace of walking

d) the cool, fresh air on my skin

e) the buildings

f) empty trains

g) graffiti on trains

h) empty streets

i) people waiting their turn

j) friendly response from strangers (including hotel staff, take-away owner, flight staff)

k) the level of people's voices

l) not having to wait for the green man (no threat from the police)

m) Mezzo Mix

n) a bath waiting for me at the hotel

Yes, Love for my Europe indeed.

Mother Nature

One day to go, will Mother Nature free the skies, dissipate her dust cloud and allow an ash free flight path home? CC and GS remain in high spirits. Families and friends wait for their imminent arrival.

"Please Mother Nature, be kind, calm down Eyjafjallajokull, rescue the residents and animals of Fljotshilio and send everyone home safely..."

If CC had wings she would flutter her way across the blue yonder, GS would follow and with his almighty strength push the ash from their path, into a whole new galaxy.

****************************************

Sky

Snow filled the skies in December

Dust fills the sky in April

Will CC and GS make it home in time...

So as they wait, they wait with Pulp Fiction and

Neil Diamond...

Wall pictures

Vintage Fashions

Seek and ye shall find... Found some lovely little vintage Hong Kong fashions today. All will be uploaded to Yellow Polkadots soon. Gorgeous flowery blouses, retro sunglasses and jewels too! I know how to treat a girl!

Lots of love

USB Trees!

(click here to buy a tree!)

I need

fresh air in my lungs

a bath for my body

for now sit down showers will do...

Pearl. S Buck

My new read:

The Good Earth

Pearl S. Buck

In 1938, she became the first American woman to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, "for her rich and truly epic descriptions of peasant life in China and for her biographical masterpieces."

I finished this book in two days. I think it is the best book I have ever read. I recommend this author to all. I am now on the hunt for the other books from the trilogy; The House of Earth which include Sons and A House Divided. The complexities of Pearl S. Buck's characters are fascinatingly hidden, how they each furtively evolve throughout this novel made this a special read for me.

If you are currently looking for a new book to read, I suggest this, The Good Earth!

Pearl Sydenstricker Buck

Concentration

is the key to a successful shopping trip in Hong Kong. Today I left the house knowing I had to find something for the two weddings that are fast approaching. Shopping is not straight forward in Hong Kong. Ok, there might be lots and lots of shops, but this makes it all the more tiresome.

As I may have mentioned previously Plazas are the way things are done over here. Huge plazas, that all look very similar, modern interiors, everything on offer, trying to think back to that "floaty nude dress..." is so difficult. Once you have left a shop, it's pretty strenuous to return to it! So today, I went shopping alone, knowing it was going to be a long day, ready for the task that was in front of me.

Tsim Sha Tsui (TST) is probably one of the best shopping spots and if you're really not happy with what you have there, then you can jump onto the Star Ferry and head over to Central. Harbour City (plaza) does have literally everything under one roof. An amazing designer boutique section including Marni (my favorite), huge array of shops, food and dining, whole floor dedicated for children, beauty, home, stationary... but finding your way around it, impossible. I was in there for so long, looking for one shop that I had noticed a couple of weeks before while eating at a nearby restaurant. I didn't get stressed out, I simply took my time, ignored people barging into me and glided around in my own little world. Until, something caught my eye in a shop, a shop without customers, with three members of staff. I debated whether to go in as I knew there might be some hard-selling tactics on the cards, but as I was on my own, pretty relaxed I thought I would check it out. MISTAKE.

"Hello, welcome""

"Hi"

(Instant shop assistant glued to my side)

"You can try"

(Right in my face)

"Oh, thanks"

"Why don't you try this? This is nice, you should try this"

(Pulls out a random dress off the rail, unlike anything I have looked)

"Pardon"

"Try this"

(Holds it up to me)

"No, look this really isn't what you do, this isn't how you sell something"

(I walked out)

When I got home and told my husband the tale, he said it's a real sorry state when they have to bring themselves to that level, really go for the hard sell and degrade themselves like that. One of Hong Kong's tourist pulls is the shopping element that this city hosts. But having all these shops on offer, designer after designer in plaza after plaza with hardcore sales staff pushing you throughout, the experience is spoilt. I know when Manchester announced that it was opening it's second Vivienne Westwood shop I thought it was a bit of a shame, was it really necessary? Hong Kong hosts over 12 Vivienne Westwood shops...

Hong Kong Counterfeit

Retro time keepers

This website is wicked! Sells retro watches and other pieces super cheap. This Casio watch model is my favorite, I've been searching all over Hong Kong for it but had to succumb to buying it on the internet! I love it!

Dudes of Hong Kong

I liked the look of these guys today so I took their photo...