“Perhaps Danish happiness is not really happiness at all, but something much more valuable and durable: contentedness, being satisfied with your lot, low-level needs being met, higher expectations being kept in check.”
Quilotoa or The Condor in Love
"Some time ago, a young woman lived in the highlands near lake Quilotoa. One day while taking her sheep to pasture, she saw a tall and handsome man in the distance. He was wearing a colourful poncho and a white scarf."
SoCal Plant Life
It’s incredible to see how much vegetation transforms and frames our understanding of a space. Los Angeles, and much of Southern California is rugged, arid and painfully in the midst of a devastating drought.
SoCal Escape
There’s a moment in air travel (specifically) when all the planning, packing, researching and organizing becomes real. I wish there was a word to describe that little moment where you go from picking up your bags to strolling on Venice Beach.
Baños, Ecuador
The truth is, it was a swing that first got me dreaming about Ecuador. Now it was time to find it.
Cumanda Centre, Quito
In a UNESCO-protected city, packed with breathtaking historic architecture, one of the most inspiring buildings we visited was a newly built rec centre. We stumbled upon it quite accidentally.
Quito's Canines
The hundreds of dogs roaming Quito’s streets can’t really be called stray. Free might be more appropriate. Well-fed and often well-dressed, they seem happy to go about their day’s business.
Ecuadorian carvings and alpaca soap
Here are some things of beauty we brought back from Ecuador to give away or (greedily) keep for ourselves.
Quito: Cultural Capital
In the few days we spent in Quito, art was on every corner. In fact most of the painstakingly restored, UNESCO-protected buildings housed exhibitions—from ancient to contemporary to craft.
Hello Quito!
The historic city twinkled by night, stretching way up into the clouds. And by 6am the skyline began bleeding colours from pink to blue like a dripping watercolour.
Packing Light
Since packing lightly & efficiently has become a bit of an obsession, I thought I'd share some of my recent (mostly local) travel finds below.
The Laurentians + Montreal
We spent some peaceful days in rural Quebec over New Years, followed by a few days in Montreal with friends who love to eat as much as we do.
Wildsam Guides
A refreshingly minimal travel book arrived in my mail box last week. Without photography or any of the traditional guidebook devices, the pocket-sized volume weave interviews, anecdotes, personal essays and stunning design.
Roulette's Roads
The work of artist Alex Roulette has me dreaming of the great American road trip. His paintings seem like moments seen through the window of a moving car.
Rooster, Portugal
The legend of the Rooster of Barcelos tells the story of a dead rooster's miraculous intervention in proving the innocence of a man sentenced to death. The rooster has since become the unofficial symbol of Portugal.
Aga Khan Museum
Last weekend we spent a few hours strolling through one of the most inspiring public spaces I've visited lately.
Grey County
As I get older, I crave and appreciate nature more. Same goes for gloomy, grey days.
St. Lawrence, Toronto
While I have some gripes about my city (transit/politics/real estate), I love my hood! We've lived in the St. Lawrence market area for the last 7 years. It's one of the most historic, diverse and walkable neighbourhoods in Toronto.
World Press Photo '14
Here are the highlights from the annual showcase of the best in visual journalism.
The Last of the Selk'nam
“Here I am singing, the wind is carrying me. I am following the footsteps of those departed."