After recently leaving my teaching post in Dar Es Salaam to move to Nairobi for my husband’s new job, I now find myself ‘in between jobs’ and consequently at a rather interesting crossroads in my life. The million dollar question, well, million shilling question is this: Do I continue with teaching Art and English or do…
Tag: travel
Sketches of Tanzanian Markets
My family and I are in the process of relocating from Tanzania to neighbouring Kenya; so as one East African adventure closes, another begins… Although I may have physically left Tanzania, I am still keeping my memories alive by finishing off drawings in my sketchbooks. These sketches will go towards bigger art projects, involving acrylic…
A few of my favourite things – sketching, camping, watching the sunrise and listening to The Pixies
Much as I like raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens, my favourite things list is more likely to include camping in remote places, sketching and painting, watching a sunrise and listening to alternative music. So when a recent holiday involved all of the above, I was happier than a Von Trapp child having a…
A Botanical Paradise
After nearly three years of living in Tanzania, I am still amazed at the botanical paradise which surrounds me everyday, all year round. From the hibiscus flowers and bird of paradise plants in private gardens, public municipal areas and hotels, to hedgerows at bus-stops heavy with bourgainvillea and frangipani petals lying on the floor, the…
I am the resurrection and I am the life – The tale of Bertie Rooster
This is the story of the luckiest, most cock-sure cockerel that has ever lived – Bertie Wooster. We bought Bertie about a year ago. We named him Bertie, because my youngest daughter, Frida, has difficulties pronouncing the letter r and says wooster rather than rooster, hence Bertie Wooster. He soon had a lady friend which…
Feed your Head – An Alice Inspired Afternoon Tea
If you ever feel like disappearing down a rabbit hole on a busy Saturday afternoon in central London, then I know the place to escape to – where waiting for you, you’ll find afternoon tea, a glass of champagne and a Mad Hatter’s Tea Party. The Alice in Wonderland themed afternoon tea, held at the…
My Pen and Ink City Panoramas
A few years ago when I was going through a minimalist phase I did lots of simple pen and ink sketches, trying to capture faces, places and buildings in just a few black lines, by reducing everything back to its basic elements. Part of this project included a series of panoramic sketches I did of…
Checking out our local neighbourhood
When there are more power cuts than power, you don’t tend to tick very much off your to do lists. And here in Kigamboni, the “rural” neighbour to Dar Es Salaam, over the last few weeks we have had power cuts lasting days and nights and days again. Putting up blog posts is down at…
Dadas at the fish market
I’ve been painting this picture in my head for months now. The Kivukoni Fish Market in Dar Es Salaam is always busy. Both inside and outside the market walls there are scores of people; inside fishermen and traders huddle together around the many different catches of the day, outside house dadas dressed in brightly printed…
“How do you avoid the tourists in Stone Town?” said the tourist.
In the blistering heat of the sub-Saharan sun lies a labyrinth of narrow alleys lined with tall once whitewashed, now crumbling buildings. A walk through Stone Town’s higgledy piggledy streets, most of which are too narrow for cars, is like stepping back in time, providing you can ignore the high-tech gadget carrying tourists. The town,…
Regressing to my teenage gothic self at Whitby Abbey
One hundred and ninety nine steps up from a harbour town stands the imposing Gothic remains of a 13th Century abbey. On a clear day you can see for miles around, out to the North Sea on one side and across the Yorkshire moors on the other. And on days when the weather is rainy…
Swedish Summertime – and the living is easy
One of the things I learnt about Swedish people in the three years that I lived there, is that they really know how to celebrate and enjoy the summertime. In a country that is cold and dark for muc… Source: Swedish Summertime – and the living is easy
