an artist in the making?

gaudi's handprint

stunning views

park güell

Commissioned by Eusebi Güell as a stylish park for Barcelona aristocracy, Park Güell is a showcase of Gaudi's finest work and absolutely breathtaking. Just a pity about all the tourists.

la sagrada familia

Almost every inch of the facade of this incredible cathedral was covered in scaffolding and the mark of construction was everywhere. Even inside the windows you could see the criss-cross of layer upon layer of scaffolding poles. I'm not one for taking photos of famous iconic photos covered in scaffolding so I took a shot of its spires, although now I think about it the scaffolding is as much a part of the cathedral as the stone itself as construction began in 1882 and it is not predicted to be completed for another fifty years so. A missed photo opportunity perhaps? Oh well, we'll have to go back then wont we? I wonder if it will be completed in our lifetime or if Nate will have to visit it for us?

hola!

No post for a few days as we've been in Barcelona. We spent three short days there and it wasn't nearly enough. We went along with Woz's office for their annual Christmas trip so we were put up in a swanky hotel in the centre of town which was such luxury for us as we normally travel on a pretty tight budget.

Barcelona - what an amazing, surprising, inspiring city. Had we not gone as part of the office trip I am not sure we would have made it there as it wasn't high on our list of travel priorities but having been it is now top of our list of places to return. I have seen images of Gaudi's work countless times but I can truly say that I had no real appreciation for them until I saw them in the flesh and in the context that Gaudi designed them for - nature.

There are some places you can visit and upon returning home you're happy to have seen what you've seen and experienced but at the same time are quite happy not to see again. Been there, done that. There are others which infect you like a virus and you leave knowing that they will always be in your bloodstream. There will always be something inside you that longs to return to have the opportunity to understand the city.

We will be back, for at least a week next time to see all the places we didn't manage to get to and to just enjoy the culture and feel of the city.

If you're planning a trip to Europe, Barcelona is a must see!

has it been two years already?

December 31st 2006. When Woz and I left Melbourne for London that date seemed like a lifetime away yet here it is fast approaching and my visa is running out. You may have read earlier this year that Woz was granted British citizenship thanks to his Scottish heritage. Nate also has a British passport which leaves little old me with my Australian passport.

It's all very last minute but I've organised an interview at the British Home Office later this month to apply for the extension of my visa. Unfortunately they don't allow you to apply until 28 days before it expires so I'm really hoping they approve it as it will leave little time for Woz and I to whip up a plan B. They tell me it's all a matter of paperwork.

As I was feeling a little reminiscent I had a look back to this time last year in our archive posts and saw that by mid November last year we were waking to cold frosty mornings and it made me realise how mild it has been lately. While we daren't leave home without a coat, scarves have been a fashionable accessory rather than a necessity and gloves haven't even got a look in.

I remember visiting our friends Karen and Eric in London while we were still living in Melbourne several years ago. Having left our Summer to travel over here in the peak of Winter Woz and I were wearing thermals head to toe, coats, scarves, gloves and hats. I remember so clearly Karen leaving for work in an unbuttoned coat with bare hands, head and neck on an absolutely freezing morning saying 'Oh it's not nearly cold enough for gloves yet'. I remember thinking she was absolutely mad and yet here I am, doing the same thing.

upgrade

I've upgraded this site to make it much easier for me to edit (no more html) and at the same time changed the appearance slightly.

If a post has a comment against it the best way to view it now is by clicking on the title of the post and you will be able to view the post itself with the attached comments below. You can easily return to the main page by clicking on 'Home' below.

Happy viewing and remember, we love youse all!

fun at the park

I met Woz at the park again today on his lunchbreak. It had been a while since I'd taken Nate to this particular park, which I visited almost every day in Summer. It was a very different experience; hardly a child in sight, the trees almost bare and the ground littered with coloured leaves. It was a cold day and the park was lacking in atmosphere, but for Nate ... his Dad was with him and fun ensued!

self portrait

is there an electrician in the house ...er ... boat?!

Who ever said that electricity and water don’t mix? How right they were.

The short story is that water leaking from our water pump which feeds water from one end of the boat to the kitchen and bathroom always seems to find its way to the only electrical wiring that is below the floor in the hull of the boat. I'm happy to say that with a problem solver onboard we are back to normal with full lighting again.

Candles back into the cupboard ready for the next romantic dinner or power blackout.

candle lit

Who said that living on a boat wasn't romantic? Something weird has happened with the electrics in our boat and so we're left with power down one side of the boat only. Thankfully, the computer and television (our computer monitor) are working but we've been left without any lights which means that we're lighting hundreds of tea light candles by late afternoon. Fingers crossed Woz will work it out tonight when he gets home.

eerie

We woke this morning to an eerie yellow light and a grumbling sky. These photos were taken (by Woz) just minutes before it bucketed down with rain.

comment to your hearts content!

I have decided to change the settings on this blog to allow anyone to comment on the posts. Initially I set it up so that you had to be a registered member of blogger to make a comment thinking that it might help in filtering spam comments, but with all the millions of blogger users out there I don't really think this is an issue.

So ... if you happen to be reading this blog and have the time to comment please do so. We'll receive an e-mail in our inbox telling us you've left a comment and we'd love to hear from you!

7˚ C

Not sure if this story will make the headlines today in Oz but in tonight's news we learned that the Prince of Wales has joined the bloggers union and has started up his very own video blog. It shows a typical day for the Prince starting at 8.30am in his office, before heading off for a grueling schedule of meeting and greeting the commonfolk, sharing witty anecdotes and shaking hands. Not unlike my day really and I think the Prince will be surprised to learn he has some competition on his hands if he thinks the British public are going to warm to him and to his site. He may have millions of pounds and a team of professional web designers on his side but who could compare with the exciting lives we lead over here at Look out London, whose entries have become decidedly more lengthy since my becoming a desperate housewife and whose adventures are always entertaining? Take today for example; woke up absolutely freezing, lit the fire, made some porridge, got Nate ready to go out, waited ten minutes in the cold for my first bus, swapped buses 15 mins later, sat on the bus for another 45 minutes, then hung out with lots of mums and toddlers, back on the bus again in time to get home for 'Neighbours' before cooking dinner. What could be more exciting than that?!

Suffice to say, I love my new life ... work, who needs it?!

who's the boss?

Woz had a meeting close to home today so he came home for lunch. I wasn't the only one happy to see him. Nate just cuddled into him and sat there very content. Me, I have to entertain him all day with toys or silly faces. Got me wrapped around his little finger already!

that's a new idea!

A package arrived today ... trashy girly mags and tim tams. Thanks Karen! A girl after my own heart!

shop 'til you drop

This weekend we undertook a manic shopping expedition as we realised that Woz was in desperate need of clothes. Our usual haunt is Oxford Street in central London which has anything and everything you could possibly want but is jam packed with Christmas shoppers this time of year. The thought of navigating a buggy through the crowds was unbearable so we decided to head out to Bluewater, a shopping centre in Kent which gives Chadstone a run for its money. In size it would most probably be comparable, but unlike Chadstone, Bluewater boasts a chaplaincy service and a place for peace and quiet which consists of a listening space and a space for reflection. Quite frankly, I think Chadstone is seriously lacking in these services. I know I have been almost inconsolable at times after discovering I had bought an item at full price only to find it on sale at another shop on the other side of Chadstone. If only I had have had a chaplain to console me I may have had the strength to resist the double choc, choc chip muffin I immediately consumed upon my findings in an effort to stifle my grief.

Anyway, although busy, it was nothing on Oxford Street and we navigated the buggy around with ease, managing to find loads of clothes for Woz. One our pursuits was a new suit. As I was waiting outside the change room of a clothing store while Woz tried on a suit we were told to evacuate the shop immedately as there was bomb scare. We were told to leave everything, so Woz came running out of the changeroom in a suit and bare feet with his shoes and clothes in hand. We scooped Nate up and made our way out to another part of the shopping centre which was deemed safe with all the other shoppers. We wandered around for a while (with tags hanging out of Woz's trousers and jacket!) wondering if we'd be let back in to return the suit and for Woz to change his clothes. After clearance from the bomb squad an hour or so later they re-opened the area (turns out it was a bag of post which hadn't been picked up!) and Woz marched back in with his suit. In all the rush we could easily have gone home with the suit and to be honest didn't think the staff would have even been aware that he had been there as he'd taken his own clothing out of the store. Of course we didn't entertain the idea of not paying for it but when Woz returned the staff were very impressed to see him and had been placing bets as to whether he'd come back!

how we change ...

Anyone who has known me for very long will know I am always cold. Yesterday I headed off at midday to meet Woz for lunch at work. I was wearing a thin t-shirt and another equally thin long sleeved t-shirt on top when I powerwalked past a digital sign on Tottenham Crt Rd which displays the current time and temperature. It was 9˚ and I wasn't even cold! Granted I was setting a decent pace, but if I was in Melbourne I'd have a hat, scarf and gloves on and be complaining to anyone who cared to listen about how bitterly cold it was.

bonfire night

Tonight is Bonfire night and as I write this I'm sitting at home in front of our fire looking out the window at a spectacular show of fireworks. They've been going for a good hour or so now in all directions and as we have the glass roof over our sofa we're able to see the whole thing. Beautiful.

Although the official night is tonight, the fireworks have been going off constantly for the last week or so and last night we headed down to Ravenscourt Park with friends to see a firework display and warm ourselves by the humongous bonfire. Nate slept through most of the show courtesy of some baby ear muffs which was a relief as we weren't too sure if we were being a little too ambitious in taking him. Our first Bonfire night in London as this time last year we were riding home from a weekend trip to Northern France on our motorbike watching the fireworks from a distance.