Do you have good intentions for the next year?

Take your time to make good intentions!

Write the good intentions in a little note book

such as the ones below:

in which you take a look once a day.

Many intentions will come true!

For the little note books,

post-it holders, note cards, please visit

 http://www.etsy.com/shop/golf4g

My good intentions are:

to make a good start

with my bijoux store

to make nice

lavender sachets and

lovely pillows

to take long walks

to read many more good books

and
to inspire many people with my blog

                                 

Kijkduin near The Hague! A little seaside resort!

There are some nice shops and a lot of

 restaurants at Kijkduin!

You can eat pancakes, 'poffertjes',

all sorts of fish,

Italian pizza and also Chinese food.

And you can (of course) make

 a long walk along the seashore!

Marlena de Blasi - That summer in Sicily!

 Almost a fairytale, Marlena de Blasi takes us with her on a trip to Sicily, telling in her inimitable style fascinating stories of love, landscape, aristocratic romances and food.

Green parakeet!

The bird is green with a red beak!

At the moment there live some 10.000 to

12.000 green parakeets in

the Netherlands. They live especially

in the citys, because there they can

easily get some winter food.

Old coffee grinder! Oud koffiemolentje!



Old coffee grinder, 1960!

I pour a little bit of coffee beans in the small cover and then I grind the beans. What remains in the small tray is delicious fresh ground coffee.
After I have cleaned the grinder of course.



Just found / vintage fabrics!

Venice/Venetië/Venezia - Basilica Cattedrale Patriachale di San Marco!



Basilica San Marco!

When we were arriving at Piazza San Marco the place was very crowded. I have tried to picture the great paintings above the doors. As you can see there is a lot to view outside and also in the basilica. The basilica is famous for its mosaics and the bronze horses at the front and many more (Summer 2008).

Book 'Vincent in Den Haag' - Vincent Van Gogh!

De roman van Theun de Vries handelt over de periode die Vincent van Gogh in Den Haag heeft doorgebracht. Verbitterd door een mislukte liefdesaffaire vecht hij verbeten om zich tot schilder te vormen. Arm, eenzaam en afgewezen, trekt hij zich het lot aan van Sien die hij beschouwt als een verschoppeling die hulp nodig heeft. De enige die hem bijstaat is zijn broer Theo, maar ook hij wijst Vincents relatie met Sien af. De auteur heeft vele brieven van Vincent en Theo gebruikt als leidraad voor deze roman. Vlot geschreven en boeiend boek. Het boek geeft inzicht over een belangrijke fase in het leven van Vincent van Gogh.

Theun de Vries's novel deals with the period of Vincent van Gogh spent in The Hague. Embittered by a failed love affair, he struggled to turn to painting. Poor, lonely and rejected, he withdraws the fate of Sien, which he regards as a pariah who needs help. The only one who supports him is his brother Theo, but he rejects Vincent's relationship with Sien. The author has used many letters from Vincent and Theo as a guide for his novel. Well written and fascinating book. It gives a better insight into an important phase in the life of the Vincent van Gogh.

Waiting for something to eat! A heron on my balcony!

Some Christmas impressions!

Peace Palace, The Hague!

The Peace Palace in The Hague is home to a number of international judicial institutions, including the International Court of Justice (ICJ) or World Court, the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA), the renowned Peace Palace Library, as well as the Hague Academy of International Law, which attracts law students from all over the world every summer.

The Peace Palace is one of the most photographed landmarks of The Hague and is accessible to the public through guided tours.

City center The Hague, The Passage!



Christmas Tree in The Passage, The Hague!



Christmas decoration lights in The Passage, The Hague!

I WISH YOU A MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Merry Christmas!

Stompwijk Drie molens! Three mills at Stompwijk!

Winter!

Summer!

Drie molens bij Stompwijk is een heerlijke plek om even te ontspannen, te wandelen, iets te drinken of zelf een kano te huren en een stukje te varen.
Three mills near Stompwijk is a lovely place to relax, to walk, to drink something in the little restaurant or you can hire a canoe to sail.

Ice fun!

 



Recipe: Sabayon!

SABAYON

Serves 4

Ingredients:

* 6 egg yolks

* 200 gr sugar

* 250 ml sparkling wine (prosecco, cava, Champagne), an aerated dessert wine or beer

Preparation:

Place in a large pan a layer of water to a boil. Use preferably a metal bowl. The technique in this way just to heat hot au bain marie.

Place the bowl on the pan and whisk the sugar with the egg yolks. Add the wine and continue whisking until the mixture has doubled in quantity, creamy and thick appearance. The sabayon strength should be such that it sticks to the guard. Serve immediately!

The problem with a sabayon is that you must whisk the mixture while heating. Do not whisk hard enough, then the yolk will solidify, especially where the pan touches the bowl (the bowl because that is the hottest).

Delft Blue 'sofa' and Het Prinsenhof!

Museum Het Prinsenhof tells the story of

William of Orange and his role in the creation

of the Dutch Republic.

By way of a collection of 17th century art

and handicrafts you can discover

the typically Dutch city Delft in

the Golden Age.

The statue on the right side of the picture

is of William of Orange.

In the back you can see the Delft Blue 'sofa'.



William of Orange



Christmas is his name!

Because he was born on 25th December 2002.

Name given by a little girl of 4 years old!

 

Now he lives in our house and

is a happy cat.

Almost 8 years old.

All sorts of Christmas cards!

Candle and Incense Gift Basket for Christmas!



If you like candles and incense, you would love receiving or giving a basket filled with candles, incense and other related gifts. Great gifts to fill this type of basket with include:

Scented candle!

Candle holder for
waxine lights!



Japanese Incense and holder



Coloured safety matches.



Paper Christmas napkins!





 

Himalaya!

Great movie!

Himalaya is a story set against the backdrop of the Nepalese Himalayas. At an altitude of five thousand meters in the remote mountain region of Dolpo, Himalaya is the story of villagers who take a caravan of yaks across the mountains, carrying rock salt from the high plateau down to the lowlands to trade for grain. An annual event, the caravan provides the grain that the villagers depend on to survive the winter. The film unfolds as a story of rivalry based on misunderstanding and distrust, between the aging chief and the young daring herdsman, who is both a friend and a rival to the chief's family, as they struggle for leadership of the caravan.

Lichtjes avond in Delft! Night lights in Delft!

All the lights in the city center

(houses and restaurants) of Delft

go out and Delft city center is

only illuminated by candles in the windows

of the houses, shops and restaurants.

In the middle of Grote Markt stands a huge

Christmas tree and the Town Hall is

illuminated too.

Christmas fabric!