Windows of Amsterdam

I had the great pleasure of returning to Amsterdam back in September, just me, without my fellas. I'm so grateful that I get to go there for some me-time every now and again. I was just there for three nights (one day we must go for longer - goddammit), but my friend Z and I crammed a lot in as per usual, without it ever feeling overwhelming.

All these windows made their way into my eyes and onto my camera, and this is the order I saw them in. It's interesting how the materials they used when they built these buildings are the same as what's been used here in London, but the two cities look so wildly different. It doesn't take a genius to guess which styles I prefer!

Another day another castle

More from a day trip this summer. We went to Hever Castle outside London on what felt like the last hot day of summer and it was pretty awesome. Beautiful gardens, a castle with a moat, a brilliant playground (modelled on the castle itself), a water maze (see pic 5) and a lake to explore by row boat or pedalo, to name just a few of the attractions. Next summer seems so far away right now, so it's nice to be a bit (ok, a lot) behind here on the blog. More catching up to come.

A birthday outing

I like "doing" things for my birthday, and as I'm more of an old lady than a party animal, that usually means wandering around an old house/castle/other town. This year, at the end of August, we went to Hampton Court to check out the old digs of Henry the VIIIth. We did the maze and the audio tour (they also do a kids version - genius!) and spent a good few hours soaking it all in. It's a shame that only the castles and fancy houses are left from all those centuries ago, as it would be really interesting to see how common people like us lived back then, don't you think?