Forty Winks Friday. Frankfurt Edition.

I had a fabulous adventure to the Esprit Montmartre Exhibition 

at the Schirn Kunsthalle art gallery in Frankfurt.

After spending hours wandering around and soaking up the

artwork of Picasso, Van Gogh, Steinlen and

Henri deToulouse Lautrec,

I looked down into the atrium and was rewarded with

a group of Frankfurt Nappers.

Comfortable cushions perfectly placed

for a little rest after visiting the exhibits.

My Shanghai Nappers would be jealous!

German Gems #1

Excuses to drink more wine!

Drink wine and save the planet..

win/win!

Moments in Time: 10 April 2010, Fuxing Park, Shanghai.

Today's random date selector landed on 10 April 2010.

Shanghai has many public gardens, lovely spaces

to get out and enjoy life, socialise and exercise.

Fuxing Park, located in The Former French Concession,

is the only French styled park in Shanghai with 

symmetrical flowerbeds and fountains.

Fuxing Park is always full of colour and vibrancy

and is one of my favourites.

10:56

Ballroom dancing along the avenue.

10:58

A game of cards in the sun.

11:04

Busy bee making the most of the new spring blooms.

11:37

An amusement ride, where you can shoot endangered species

for points as you race around the track. Really!

11:42

A little concert in this corner of the park.

11:44

Enjoying a dance to the music.

11:48

Some special time with Grandma.

Fuxing Park: 516 Fuxing Middle Road, Luwan
near Chongching Nan Road, Shanghai.

Forty Winks Friday. More market snoozing.

I have visited the Shanghai South Bund Fabric Market

many times and it has been the first place I go to

on my trips back to Shanghai.

Well, maybe after a dumpling stop!

It is the place to go for new clothes.

You want it, they can make it,

any size, any colour, any style!

As well as filling my wardrobe with clothes, I have also

captured a few nappers on my Fabric Market adventures.

From couriers waiting on deliveries, tailors waiting

for clients, or bored husbands waiting for wives,

I found them there.

Shanghai South Bund Fabric Market
399 Lujiabang Lu.
near Nancang Jie.

Metro Line 4, Nanpu Bridge.

南外滩轻纺面料市场, 
陆家浜路399号, 
近南仓街

Moments in Time: 18 January 2013

Today's random date selector landed on

18 January 2013

We had just had our first English Winter and were a little

disappointed that we didn't get a longed for 'White Christmas'

so were all happy when snow was forecast.

The 18th dawned and many schools were closed, but not ours.

I took the dog for a walk with no snow in sight. By the time we returned home

the snow had set in and our backyard was covered in white.

11:23

Plenty of snowflakes for Ralph the dog to catch.

12:18

School closed, had to hit the road to pick up my girls.

Happy to have a 4x4 with anti skid!

13:42

We learned that not all snow is suitable for building snowmen,

this stuff was like building a sandcastle with dry sand...

hence our 'snowblob'

14:10

The walkway to our dog walking field, clear that morning

had become a beautiful white tunnel.

14:11

Spotted a cute little Robin.

14:22

Dog walking field turned

Winter Wonderland.

15:12

Church End and the duck pond

take on a postcard look.

15:19

Snow topped red phone box...

and time for a pint at The Green Dragon!

Forty Winks Friday. Water town dreams.

There are many fascinating water towns

close to Shanghai.

Qibao is a short subway ride on Line 9,

a little further out you will find Tongli 

or Zhujiajiao.

It is lovely to explore, relax and enjoy the

history and charm of these ancient villages.

You can ride on a canal gondola and view the town from the water.

Have lunch at a waterside restaurant,

watching the gondolas glide by.

Do a little shopping at one of the countless stalls.

Moments in Time, 12 September 2011

Today's Moments in Time 

random photo file is 12 September 2011, Shanghai!

Here are a few shots of my day.

12:16 

Wanshang Bird and Flower market,

buying crickets is serious business.

12:18

The chosen one.

12:22

Perusing the Cricket keeping paraphernalia.

Tiny food bowls, nets and of course cricket ticklers!

12:31

Shanghai transport

Cheap and cheerful to luxury.

12:56

Relaxing on the street.

13:06

Fabric purchases Lujiabang Lu.

Forty Winks Friday. Auto slumber!

The drivers of Shanghai often have lots of time to wait around, 

so they get to nap, in relative luxury, between jobs.

Comfy padded seats to sprawl on, doors to open and provide fresh air,

a foot rest and an opportunity for this napper snapper to snap!

The joys of a reclining seat with headrest.

This school bus driver was always well set up

with his chair and foot cushion stashed 

in the luggage area ready for his daily nap, 

after he had finished reading his newspaper of course!

Moments in time

I have just completed a 'Document your every day life 

for 5 days with photos' challenge on 

my personal facebook page.

I really enjoyed the challenge 

and remembered my Shanghai days when I 

would usually put up a few photos a day,

giving my friends from home a taste 

of my every day life.

Seems my friends want me to keep snapping away, 

so every week I will post photos, either from the week or 

chosen randomly from my catalogue.

Moments in Time

My everyday life for 5 days last week.

Day 1: 29 April 2014 16:49

Ralph the dog catching bubbles.

Day 2: 30 April 2014, 10:23

Wisteria on our walk

Day 3: 1 May 2014, 13:34

Making Chinese tea quail eggs

Day 4: 2 May 2014, 09:46

Blossoms next to the bottle recycling bin.

Day 5: 3 May 2014, 14:34

Bratwurst in a bun in down town Frankfurt

Forty Winks Friday. Market snooze

I have always been fond of a good market and

I spent many an hour wandering through

the markets of Shanghai.

I was lucky enough to have a small bird and flower market not

far from my Shanghai home, a nice stroll to pick up some flowers 

or food for our pet hamsters.

I was also rewarded with a napper or two on each visit!

Suzhou Spring

I am loving my German Spring in the forest, extraordinarily green with colourful blossoms everywhere. Spring was by far my favourite season when we lived in Shanghai. After the long, grey months of Winter, the city came alive. The bare plane trees in the Former French Concession become tipped with green, pink and white blossoms on trees appear, shedding the cloak of Winter. We loved escaping the big city of Shanghai and heading out to Suzhou for Spring weekend breaks.

The Pan Gate garden in the south west corner of Suzhou is smaller than it's famous counterparts, the Humble Administrators Garden and the Lingering Garden and much more peaceful. The Pan Gate is the last remaining water gate in China and is over 2500 years old. The RuiGuang temple in the garden is said to be over 1000 years old though the main attraction in the Spring is the garden.

It is lovely to stroll through the pavilions and enjoy the enchanting, colourful blossoms in the springtime. Walkways take you over bridges where you can stop and feed the biggest Koi you have ever seen in the ponds.

Not far from the Pan Gate Garden, you will find ShanTang Old Street, with brightly coloured lanterns blowing in the spring breeze. You can wander along the canal and sample the delicious street food on offer, stopping at shops for local handicraft.

We loved to jump on the tourist boats, the calm and quiet man powered wooden boats rather than the motorised ones, so we could meander along the canals and delight in the daily life along the way. Locals fishing, doing the washing, whitewashed houses along the water's edge overhanging trees covered in blossoms.

Perfect way to spend a Spring day in Suzhou!