architecture, art, beach, inspiration

at Anderby Creek

First few days of spring, and a beautiful day on the east coast of Lincolnshire. Wide sweeping stretches of sand and dunes where the land meets the North Sea

We took the VW camper for a drive to our favourite local beach at Anderby Creek

Here we find some fascinating installations Structures on the Edge, small scale artistic architecture designed to respond to the natural elements in semi-remote coastal locations

At Anderby Creek sits the Cloud Bar, a larch clad building with a cloud viewing platform and cloud mirrors reaching up to reflect the sky down to the earth. It has a cloud spotting menu and is endorsed by the Cloud Appreciation Society. I love it

Just a little further along the beach is the Round and Round house. It was selected from the international Bathing Beauties (re-imagining the beach hut design competition), as being ideal for bird watching. I love how internally it spirals up to the sky

We explored further south along the beach this time as the day was so beautiful, and found the Sound Tower at Chapel Six Marshes

Perched high in the dunes, this structure is designed to focus on our senses and the windswept nature of the site. After climbing the steps and entering the bright yellow interior, the building unexpectedly tips forward to give a view of the beach, the sky and sea. Brilliant

These simple structures sit effortlessly in the natural environment. Quirky and fun, with the element of surprise, they enhance this lovely stretch of beach; and I’m on the look out for more…

inspiration, Sunsets

alternative sunsets

One of the things I missed most when I moved from my old home was the sunset views across the open fields. The skies were simply stunning some evenings

Where I live now is amongst the trees, and I don’t get a view of the horizon unless I’m out and about at sunset. At first I felt sad that I no longer have a clear view of the beautiful end of the day skies in the west from my home, and I miss that. However, I continue to look for the sunset sky and it has shown me some beautiful and unexpected alternatives. The light is reflected through and onto the trees around us, with amazing colour shows some evenings

ancient oak on fire

golden silver birch

changing colours of the pines

I am reminded of other stunning alternative sunset views on my travels

sunset reflections

mountains in Scotland

A recent campaign “Sunsets for Kate” by a brave lady Kate Morrell from Wagga Wagga, Australia, is a reminder of the great gift of sight. Kate is losing her eyesight due to Usher syndrome, and her sunset views will soon be lost altogether. A fellow student on the online “Do What you Love” e-course, she is appealing for as many sunset photos as possible to view before it’s too late for her, and to raise awareness of this condition. Kate’s story is an inspiration and humbling reminder to appreciate and make the most of each and every precious view…

France, inspiration, motorcycling

Les Plus Beaux Villages de France

France is wonderfully diverse, and travelling by bike last summer enabled us to seek out remote areas, but also to find delightful rural villages on the way. Tumbling down hillsides, these were feasts for my eyes

We were so fortunate that although unbeknown to us, our route would take us to these special places

Lagrasse, Aude; a medieval village south east of Carcasonne

Minerve, Herault, Languedoc

Minerve, perched on a hillside amidst rugged scenery of deep gorges, I couldn’t believe the dramatic views as we stumbled across this amazing place

Beautiful Olargues, Parc Naturel, Haut-Languedoc

Mik and I made a short visit to Olargues, a cluster of houses above “Devil’s Bridge” dated 1202, where reputably the villagers made transactions with the “devil”. Tiny streets and alleyways, steps, stone doorways and arches, it is a place to roam and explore, and even though a small village, I felt we could easily become lost here

There is a museum of art and tradition, which we didn’t find, however we found an amazing portrait artist within the village, Els Knockaert. Stunning paintings, and a warm welcome to view her art:

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Staying in a tiny hamlet in nearby Riols, we explored the surrounding countryside on our bikes: mountains, gorges and lakes and went wild swimming with bright turquoise dragonflies hovering over a cool river pool. Truly magical….we will be back

our ramblings in the beautiful South of France

freedom, inspiration, Scotland, travel

Inspiration in the Far North

Travels on my bike to Scotland always inspire me. Astoundingly beautiful, remote and other worldly, I couldn’t believe it when I first traveled there with my husband on our motorbikes a few years ago and that I had not been before. We have been back to the north west coast and Outer Hebrides again this summer, and as we leave I can’t wait until we come again…..

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