Hi there,
How are you?
I have no specific subject this week. Not that I haven’t been busy, I have! A lot has been flowing in my direction. Last Thursday I had an exciting conversation with Helena from the German Cemetery in my hometown. They have a youth program, and I will be helping out with a debate/workshop on freedom of speech the following week. I will be talking on behalf of Amnesty, for which I am still volunteering when an opportunity rises. But more on this next week.
On memories and movies
It is a mystery the way your memory works, and it will stay a mystery for a while.
Over time we get an overflow of pictures and movies, so a personal movie of almost five decades ago is a real thing to treasure.
Over a year ago we needed to empty our parents’ house. A moment where memories resurrect. I got hold of our childhood movies that were taken by my father on 4mm film. Since there are four of us, we wanted to digitize them, and I asked for quotes from different companies. There is a big difference in price, depending on to what level you want them “corrected: or “‘cleaned up.” I found a company that put the films on four hard copies. It worked out well.
Looking at these movies, memories–but also questions–arise. It was a different era: All the adults smoking at all the parties. Education had different limits, and children had more freedom to explore for themselves. I enjoyed watching the old-fashioned hairstyle and interior design.
You can see a little glimpse behind the scenes in the movie underneath. Nowadays I prefer wine to beer. Maybe the aversion to beer was created at one and a half years old?
I am still as creative and persistent though, when I really want something 🙂
Enjoy and till next week,
Sophia
A visit to Antwerp! Always fun… Been there?
Took the train to Central Station – a beautiful one, if you haven’t been there – followed by the subway to the Groenplaats. Last days of sales. I felt the urge to go into a few stores in the city of fashion. A hit! A whole outfit from Julia June, a Belgian brand, and one of my favorites, at half the price! That evening I told hubbie how much I saved. “And what did you spend?” was the answer. “The same amount!” 🙂
Alongside the river Scheldt I walked towards ‘t Eilandje (translation: the small island), an upcoming neighborhood with new museums, a little marina situated in the old docks, and and a great location close to the new port of Antwerp.
Many of you are on vacation right now. This is always a great moment to take the time to wander back through times long gone, or make new plans for the busy times ahead. Today I want to write about the vacation we made to the US, three years ago. This morning I started reading through my diary, but unfortunately I didn’t write very much about that trip. I made a photo-book though, and will share a few pics along with memories that stuck to my mind – those must be the best ones, right?
I hope to inspire you, or give you ideas if you’re ever traveling in that direction! This poster I made for Youngest when he had to give a presentation on his trip.
July 2014
Seems like ages ago. We traveled to the West for a family vacation, the last time with the five of us.
Summit and New-York
We were warmly welcomed by our old friends in Summit, where we used to live over fifteen years ago. Summit is a pretty small town in New-Jersey, with easy access to Manhattan with the train. Want to know who went to school here? Meryl Streep! She went to Kent Place, a private school, while our kids went to a (very good!) public school. We walked by our old house on Harvey Drive. It is a pity Youngest didn’t remember much of that time.
You must recognize this famous image! Do you remember the photographer? It is Steve McCurry.
Two early birds – Daughter and I – hopped on the train on Saturday. Destination: the exhibition of Steve McCurry in Brussels. The exhibition was slated to end on June 24th, but I was so happy to hear it was extended until August 20th!
After two hours and a bit on the train, we stopped at Paul’s for a coffee, tea and a delicious strawberry pie. We slowly walked towards the Beurs in Brussels (ten minute walk from Central Station in Brussels).
The set-up was great, all the photos printed on huge forex canvasses, with roof to floor transparent curtains, and all the light focused on the pieces of art. You get a free audioguide with your ticket, where McCurry’s voice (and the translator) tells you the story behind the photos.
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