We are the tourists

Seeing as it will be ages before we can easily travel again, and that I at the moment keep taking pictures that don’t vary so much, it’s probably a good idea to work through some of 2019. So here we are, back in Paris, in late July. As we were travelling with children, we felt that we had to tick off the most obvious places to visit, and started off with the Eiffel Tower. I’m not a fan of sticking to the beaten path, and certainly not in peak season, but I know how cool it was for Oomoo to see the sights. Although in the end, the strongest memory of that trip will be how some of the adults in our group pretty much ended up falling out. Going on really long holidays with friends is hard work, but I’m sure you knew that already. Aaaaanywaaaaay…

… here’s Arc de Triomphe - tick.

And Pere Lachaise cemetery - tick. The cemetery was about a half hour walk away from our hotel, so on our second day there, we strolled there in the light drizzle. It was fortunately very quiet, and a respite from the heat and the crowds.

Bit of an unfortunate surname, don’t you think?

This tombstone. I mean, amazing, isn’t it? So many questions.

And yeah, we went to see Jim Morrisons grave, which I’m sure must have been moved or something, as I have a memory of seeing it the last time I was there about 24 years ago, with people sitting around it playing guitars and generally trying to be far out, man.

Now it was empty and sealed off, apart from this impromptu chewing gum memorial.

Later the same day we walked close up to Notre Dame to check on the repair works since the huge fire.

We also found ourselves at Places de Vosges at one point. My eyes were playing tricks on me as I couldn't really read any depth in these buildings, so they looked a set to me.

Crazy to think how these were built between 1605 and 1612. I’d love love love to see what they’re like on the inside.

Crazy to think someone managed to get that scooter up there. I’d love love love to see how they got it up there.

Paris people

Still have some pictures left from last year’s summer holiday in France... On the way home from the Dordogne area, we and our friends stopped over in Paris on our train journey home, which actually was the stupidest idea ever. We’d just had 12 really chill days in the countryside, but then finished the holiday off with all the other tourists cramming the capital, just missing the hottest day ever recorded by 24hrs (+42,5 celsius/108,5F!!). Looking at these pictures now, they’ve taken on a different meaning, and made me for the first time miss the world before. To be able to travel to other places, or just simply hang out with friends by the river, or stopping somewhere for a good cup of coffee is not something we take for granted now, is it?

Oomoo had to (as part of his extracurricular homeschooling he does with two classmates, in lessons set up by the parents) write himself a letter from now, to when he started his school year six months ago. A letter from the future in other words. It’s very funny but also sad, and gives perspective on what we’ve just had to accept as our reality now. Imagine telling yourself back then that there would soon be a worldwide pandemic that would stop the world functioning from how you always known it. That hundreds of thousands of people would die from the disease, and in order to stem the spread, most countries would have to go into lockdown for months, and that you wouldn’t be able to see your extended family or friends. That you’d have to queue to buy food in the supermarket, and that for the first two weeks of locking down, the shelves would be mostly empty. That you would have to stay at home, but you were allowed out once a day (if you were lucky enough to live in a country that would let you), as long as you kept moving. The strange thing is, it turns out you won’t mind it, and that you’ll be happy enough to be slightly wary of society opening up again. That the time in isolation was like a well needed pause, with time for you to think about what or who actually is important in your life, which in itself means that you’re a lucky so-and-so to be able to sit there and ponder over it in the first place. That going into lockdown was relatively easy, but you know that what comes after is going to be harder, and weirder. So you might have to tell yourself it’s always darkest before dawn. That there surely will be a silver lining, and that this too shall pass. Cheesy, I know, but it’s the truth Ruth.

Strange days

Hello peeps. How you doin’? All good here; everyone is in good health and spirits, going into week 5 of the lockdown. It’s a strange time for sure, but it’s also strange how quickly one adapts to what is now our new everyday life. We are of course very lucky to live how and where we live, and so we feel grateful for what feels like a pause. And again, I stress how lucky we are to just be able to feel that we’re on pause, and not losing family members or our livelihood (not yet anyway for the latter, but that will hit hard once society opens up again, but there’s no point in worrying about it yet, as there’re nothing that can be done about it). It’s all so surreal, and equally surreal is how strange life just a few months ago seems, and how we just took it for granted. So, looking at these pictures from our summer holidays in France last year now feels like 10 years ago, from a bygone era where holidays were not an abstract concept like it feels like now. These were taken in the neighbouring villages to where we were staying, and weirdly that same feeling of being on holiday is where we are at now, but knowing full well of the nightmare that is going on at the same time out there. Strange days indeed.

Just read this blog post on the Modern House Journal, and I think it perfectly sums up what I’m feeling right now.

Painting with the moon

Aaahhh, the magic that is light painting with a camera, but this time with a twist! Using the moon as the light - yeeeeeah! So, back in the summer (when we were in France), after having put the kids to bed, we stayed out on the terrace, chatting away in the moonlight. I wondered what would happen if you tried to do a light painting with the moon, and this is the result. Mr Famapa had way better skills, and could actually draw proper things, where as I went for the more abstract style. There’s a super moon on Wednesday, so look out for it!