This is an old picture I did while wandering around the gardens in Magdeburg.
A day in Magdeburg
Back on the Saale
Going back to draw along the Saale River in Bernburg I chose to draw the spillover next to the old paper factory, the Bernburg Castle sits in the background up on the hill. The paper factory ran on hydro power until it shut down during WWII. Now, the factory generates electricity and is open every Tuesday to the public. If I ever make it here on a Tuesday I plan to visit. Otherwise, just sitting on the bank of the river and enjoying the view is enough.
Saale Bernburg
Finally worked up the nerve to sit on the river bank with my computer and draw. I really like my Surface Pro and the pen feels good. I also like my ham sandwich with lettuce and tomato.
Bernburg is a beautiful little town straddling the Saale river in the middle of no where, Saxony Anhalt. It’s several hours from anywhere else by train, if the train is running. Makes it the perfect place to ride my bicycle, eat picnic lunches, and lounge on the river bank.
St. Michael’s pulpit
Jet lag is fading. Fixed a nice breakfast of fresh bread and ham with coffee. Wandered over to St. Michael’s Cathedral and drew the pulpit. There were maybe 2 other people around. It was quiet.
A Day in Antwerp
Being so jetlagged yesterday I didn’t see the second football match between Uruguay and Portugal. I made it about 6 minutes into the match and was out cold.
Good news was I was awake really early and decided to catch a train to Antwerp. Glad I got there early. What a beautiful city and I had the streets to myself. I wandered around for about 4 hours in a cool breezy morning drinking coffee and eating pastries.
Now it’s 2pm and I’m going back to Brussels to see the Comics Museum. It’s housed in a gorgeous art deco warehouse. I can’t read the French comics, but I love to sit in the lobby and stare at the ironwork.
Brussels, painting in the park
I arrived in Brussels after a long 12 hour red-eye flight full and kept awake by hour after hour of tubulance. The plane bounced around enough that my tea kept trying to slide of the dinner tray. It was all I could do to get the tea cup to my mouth and take a sip.
I arrived in Brussels too early to check in to my hotel so I left my luggage with the front desk and went for a walk. It’s a beautiful Saturday morning, cool breeze blowing and no clouds in a perfect blue sky. I sat in the park drinking coffee and painted this young woman who sat nearby texting.
Wonder if my room is ready. I’m tired.
Sunburnt and exhausted; as it should be
Last day in Budapest. I’m wiped out. It’s been 37-39C since I’ve been here. At lunch I get on the train to Vienna and tomorrow I’m flying home. It’s been a great trip, but I need to rest and get back to the cooler weather of Hong Kong. Never thought I would say that.
Happy Trails!
Budapest, It’s Hot…
Yesterday was hot. I was out the door earlier today to get my drawing done before today got even hotter. I sketched the city from atop the Citadel on the only shady bench with a view. I had to wait a few minutes to get the occupied bench, but most tourists are in a rush and I didn’t have to wait long.
From the Citadel I went back down to the river and caught the tram towards the park. It was close to noon and I had to work to find shade to paint.
I was done around 2 and it was hot. Time to seek refuge in some a/c and wait for sundown. Even a/c inside is little help in a place that rarely sees temperatures above 28-30 degrees because it can’t compete with the extreme hot weather.
Budapest in the Morning
There are too many world heritage sites in Budapest to count. Budapest is the city Prague wants to be. I got up early to avoid the heat and had coffee while painting in the shade of the ferry ticket office. I painted quickly because the sun was rising fast, and once I couldn’t squeeze into the remaining shade I quit.
After a great lunch at a local cafe I decided to stay out of the sun and went into the market hall. I paid my dues of a cappuccino to sit along the balcony rail, put on my headphones to drown out the crowd noise, and sketched this picture in about an hour.
Kastola Kaucinov
For the last day and a half I haven’t been able to look inside any of the local churches. The doors have been locked accept when Mass is going on. But I was out walking by 7am and came across this church with unlocked doors. I took a few minutes to sketch the interior, paid my respects to God, and went off to get coffee.