out and about

I was so happy that I got my first picture considered photo-of-the-day here, that I decided to grab my camera and shoot the sunrise. When the alarm clock rang at 6 am, I turned to the other side of my pillow for a few seconds. When I got out of bed, around 9.30, the sun was up and no signs of clouds. I decided to shoot something else, other than sunrise, since he got up so early. Went to an abandoned house that's been calling my name for some time. There I was, at the right place. Click... what? click... Damn, I forgot to bring the SD card for my camera. Good thing I always have a spare one. Click, click... what the...?!? Damn, my battery is out. Good thing I always have a spare one :) And there I was, alone, on an autumn day, as if it were summer, walking down the beach and enjoying the countryside. A great day to remember :D

An abandoned city. Thousands of people were re-placed in another country, where their culture was everyone else's and left behind the empty spaces. A ghost city, empty houses, no roofs over our heads. An abandoned church and many paths to discover no sounds to the wind that blows between no one's walls.

Almost there

As always, I'm so, so, so, so excited about my next trip, that I cannot stop reading about it. Got every book I could about Istanbul and Turkey. As always, a year would't be enough to see and do all I'm planning... As always, I know I'll love to be there and I will be back sure that I wil return...

My heart and mind stopped. Breathing was meaningless. As I saw a monk running down the stairs and almost ignoring me, I followed him when he came back to the terrace. Yes, it was one of those moments when we'd like to press the pause button and just stay there, as time went by for the rest of the world. I'm sure it lasted for a few minutes, but in my mind, I was absorbing that light and feeling the silence around for a personal eternity. And I would never have guessed that the monk was rushing down the stairs to get his digital camera and capture the moment. He did it and so did I :-; From a cloudy sky, suddenly came rays of golden light just above the Potala. A magical moment, specially when I think that I was at the most important monastery, the Jokhang, seeing the most important symbol of Tibet, with such a mistical aura...

One year ago...

It seems like yesterday that I was inTibet. I can still feel the smell of butter in the monasteries, the energy of pilgrims around the Barkhor or the unique feeling that I had at sunset, at this square. My arrival at Lhasa was the most exciting thing I did as a traveller. I will always remember this trip as the best of all. A chance to see a different culture, to question myself about the future and our role as citizens of a free (?) and democratic world. Made me more human, more aware that I am so lucky to be here, right now, as I was to be there a year ago...

Colours

When we go shopping and feel a hole in the tummy, it´s guaranteed that you buy too many things... Here, at Nashmarkt, I bought everything I deserved and some more... I start to get hungry just of thinking about those olives, pepperoni and the colourful fruits... Makes me remember of my trip to China, where I ate exclusively sweets and fruits... nhami

Vienna

The best way to relax... Have a moment with my latest addiction to caffeine and sugar, sit in a gorgeous caffe, listen to the piano player and just watch people passing by, in a city where one can feel like a princess... Surely, a place to visit again.

Colours

The amazing thing about sports is that it has the ability to bring people together or far appart. I was in the middle of Germany's and Spain's party, in Vienna, before the big game. Everywhere I was, I could feel the energy of fans. The greatest thing about it was that both countries celebrated together. I don´t particularly enjoy football, but I was caught by the spirit of the game for a few days...

It is a precious moment to walk into someone's house and be part of it. Sometimes, just by admiring the beauty of gestures, I felt the dedication and the and the magic of being part of faith. Here, I was invited to take some pictures by a budist monk. The first monastery I had ever entered. He shared it's mistery with me. The following day, I searched and searched the same place and was never able to find it. I think it disappears when it doesn't want to be found, as all powerful places do. Instead, I ended up inside another monastery, at a budist ceremony, among hundreads of monks. A moment I'll never forget... so deep, introspective and full of stenght that I didn't want to take any picture of it. The magic stays only in my heart... as the smell of yak butter candles that gave every place the dimness of faith, secrecy and dedication.

On my way

Still Tibet... The sky is made of cotton pieces that seem to be falling on you, the earth is endless in its greens and browns and the ansiety to get to my destination doesn't exist. I was trying to breath this all in and keep the feeling in my heart... and I did it. Each time I look at this photos, it all comes back as if I'm there right now. I was on my way to the highest salt lake in the whole world!Can you believe I was at 5000 mts high?

For a long time I wandered how it would be like to visit a few places - the list is increasing day by day - however, I could only post firstly this photo I took in my first night in Tibet, while I stood at the window for hours, afraid that the view wasn´t real and that it would have gone away during my sleep.