So much happened during the last few days and weeks that I don’t even know where to start. For once, all news are fun and exciting – which is also the reason why my monthly recap comes so late. Life has simply treated me good and kept me busy in a positive way.
Let’s begin with the most surprising thing (for me at least): I got through my finals in Math and well, I actually can’t really believe that I’m going to be completely (!) done with my exams in just a few days. It feels all so unreal and most of all, I didn’t dare it to myself. Thinking about my “exhausting” history with Math, it feels almost a bit like a little marvel to me. Now there are just my oral exams in English and Religion left. And then I really are done with my school career! (Can’t say it often enough, feels still weird!)
Besides that, another exciting event is about to happen. My swedish friends will take “Studenten” (the swedish word for taking finals or in German “Matura”) next Friday. And since me and my class are the first ones to take our oral exams, we’re also going to be done by Tuesday, which means me and my dear friend Laura will be able to travel to my beloved second homecountry to celebrate Studenten together with my friends and my former class. This is almost like a little dream coming true, me and my friends talked about this day already two years ago and I didn’t believe I could actually come just because of all my exams. But it seems I’ve got the fortune all on my side in the past two weeks and well, you maybe can tell, I’m beyond happy! There probably won’t be any blogpost until I come back on 20th of June because I just hadn’t the time to prepare some posts, but you can follow me on @lizblick on Instagram until I’ll show you the highlights here on the blog.
Other than that, I have to update you on my little wishlist. Remember the bralette I’ve told you about in my april recap? Unfortunately, it was out of stock when I wanted to purchase it. Fortunately, I found a bralette just as lovely as the ones from troo (you can get a 15% discount there right now!). The bralettes from the Austrian shop Körbchen are handmade by the two owners and the quality and beautiful design is sincerely worth the price. I got the chance to meet one of the owners at this years Feschmarkt, which is basically a local market where mostly small shops from all around Austria are selling their items. Now, you’ve even got the opportunity to buy pieces from Körbchen online. They just started their online shop, which means that not all items are available yet, but at least my favorite one is already online! “Stella” (picture above) is beautifully made and really comfortable. I love the back too, just take a look yourself.
Since I can tick this bralette off my wishlist, time to add a new “wanted”-piece. Can we please agree on that this light pink dress would be the perfect choice for a nice summer evening on the beach?! Just a bit unsure about the size, since this is only produced in xs/s, but it looks too good to not order it and at least try it on…
And as usual, I want to share my five favorite blogposts from May with you.
Darja from the blog flying away doesn’t only visit wonderful places, she also takes stunning pictures. Her shots from the Red Sand Beach made me wanna travel there so badly as well!
Useful travel guide from Angie on hellopippa: The best adresses in New York to shop sustainably produced fashion.
A blog entry from Christine which I agree to 100% with. Why she didn’t like the so extremely hyped series “13 reasons why”: Click here! Definitely worth reading (in German) because I think you shouldn’t just watch the series without actually discussing the impact that it might have on its viewers.
Jana from bekleidet wrote another important article. She makes a plea to go outside and to experience things instead of just being in your usual work environment day in, day out.
Not so much of a recommendation because of the topic, but because this is in fact one of my favorite typical Austrian meals. Stef from magnoliaelectric tells you how to make “Kaiserschmarrn mit Apfelmus“. Mhhm, bon appetit!
Hopefully, June is continuing to be as good as it already is. I wish you all a very calm week ahead and just the best until you hear from me again in two weeks!
Seit ich vor einiger Zeit meinen kleinen Travel Guide von Monaco veröffentlicht habe, hatte ich keine Zeit mehr, um die letzten zwei Blogposts von meiner Reise an die Côte d’Azur fertigzustellen. Zumindestens einer davon, nämlich der Nizza Travel Guide, geht jetzt endlich online. Nizza war eigentlich unser Ausgangspunkt, denn dort hatten wir auch unser Hotel. Monaco und Cannes waren nur spontane Tagesausflüge, der Post zu Cannes folgt noch. Ich und mein Papa hatten nur ein paar entspannte Tages geplant, daher ist dieser Guide weniger gespickt mit Sightseeing-Empfehlungen, sondern eher mit Fotos und Eindrücken unserer Reise. Falls ihr selbst einen Trip nach Nizza plant, schaut euch auch diesen Post an, wenn ihr wissen wollt, welche Outfits ich eingepackt habe.
EN: Since I published my little travel guide to Monaco a while ago, I never had the time to finish the two last blogposts from my travels to the Côte d’Azur. Now it’s time for at least one of them, the travel guide to Nice. That’s where we stayed too, the trips to Monaco and Cannes (blogpost coming soon!) were just some spontaneous day trips. Me and my dad planned just a relaxed couple of days, which means that these blogposts contain most pictures and not so much of a “complete” travel guide with recommendations, because we mostly strolled around and didn’t do lots of sightseeing. Still, I hope you enjoy the impressions and get motivated to book a trip to the Côte d’Azur yourself. Oh and in case you wonder what to pack (and wear) on your trip to Nice, take a look at this post for some inspiration.
Was ich vermutlich am meisten in Nizza mochte, war die entspannte Atmosphäre. Es hat sich herausgestellt, das Mitte März die perfekte Reisezeit ist, zumindestens für uns. Es waren überhaupt nicht viele Touristen vor Ort und nachdem ich ohnehin nicht der “Strand mit hunderten Touristen teilen”-Typ von Mensch bin, hatte ich auch kein Problem damit, dass es noch nicht warm genug war, um schwimmen zu gehen. Viel wichtiger war es, dass es fast immer sonnig und angenehm warm war und während unseres 5-tägigen Aufenthalts gab es nur einen einzigen bewölkten Tag. Also wenn ihr auf der Suche nach einem ruhigen Städtetrip im Frühjahr seid, denkt über eine Reise an die Côte d’Azur nach. Weiter unten findet ihr auch ein Beispiel, wieviel so ein Kurztrip nach Nizza euch kosten könnte.
What I probably enjoyed most in Nice was the really laid-back atmosphere. It turned out that mid-March was just the perfect time to go there, at least for us. It wasn’t crowded at all, and I’m not the “sharing the beach with hundreds of tourists”-type of person either, so I had no problem with the fact that it wasn’t warm enough to go swimming. More important, it was almost always sunny and warm outside and while our 5-days long stay we had only one cloudy day. If you are looking for a very calm citytrip during spring, consider the South of France. Down below you can find an example of how much such a short trip to Nice might cost you.
HOW TO GET THERE
Nachdem unser Trip doch schon eine Zeit zurückliegt, ist folgendes nur ein Preisbeispiel. Wir haben Economy Light gebucht, was 8kg Handgepäck inkludiert. Geflogen sind wir mit Austrian nonstop von Wien nach Nizza und zurück. 8kg ist meiner Ansicht nach mehr als genug, vor allem wenn man keine exzessiven Shoppingausflüge plant (was ohnehin zu teuer käme). Ich habe heute nachgeschaut, wieviel es kosten würde, von 9.3. bis 14.3.2018 nach Nizza zu fliegen, mit denselben Konditionen. Es ist nach wie vor so billig wie vor einem Jahr, nämlich 108€ pro Person. Der Flughafen, und insbesondere die Landebahn, sind übrigens auch erwähnenswert, denn die haben sie praktisch direkt am Wasser gebaut und somit hat man beim Landeanflug einen spektakulären Blick auf das Meer.
Since our trip was a while ago in mid-March 2016, this will be just an price example when we went there. We booked Economy Light which includes 8kg handluggage with Austrian Airlines nonstop from Vienna to Nice and back. In my opinion, 8kg of luggage is more than enough, at least if you don’t plan to do excessive shopping there (which would be too expensive anyways). Today, I looked up how much it would cost to fly to Nice from 9.3. until 14.3.2018 on the same conditions, and it’s actually still as cheap as it was for us a year ago, 108€ per person. The airport in Nice is by the way also really beautiful, or especially I should name the landing, because they built the landing field more or less on water, which gives you a spectacular view over the sea while landing.
HOW TO GET AROUND
Um vom Flughafen ins Zentrum zu kommen hat man zwei Optionen. Entweder, man nimmt die Buslinie 99 welche alle 30 Minuten Richtung Nice Gare und wieder zurück fährt (6€ für die einfache Fahrt) oder man geht zur Zugstation Nice St. Augustin und nimmt den Zug von dort nach Nice Ville. Für uns war es irrsinnig kompliziert den Weg sowohl zur Busstation als auch zur Zugstation zu finden, was eventuell auch den vielen Baustellen geschuldet ist. An der Bushaltestelle haben total viele Leute gewartet, und obwohl man schneller dorthin findet als zum Zug haben wir den Bus nicht mehr erwischt. Als der Bus dann endlich kam mussten wir Tickets beim Fahrer kaufen, aber nachdem mein Französisch nicht existent ist und die Busfahrer sehr gestresst waren, haben wir nach einer halben Stunde Warten aufgegeben. Schließlich sind wir wieder zurück zum Flughafen und haben an der Information gefragt wie wir zum Zug kommen. Nice St. Augustin ist am nächsten, aber es ist mindestens genauso kompliziert dorthin zu gelangen wie zur Busstation. Zum Glück bekamen wir an der Information eine kleine Wegbeschreibung und ich kann euch nur empfehlen, euch diese Karte direkt zu holen, denn die wird das Vorhaben um einiges einfacher machen. Wenn ihr schnell seid und nicht viel Gepäck zu tragen habt, seit ihr innerhalb von 15 Minuten am Bahnhof. Ist man einmal dort, kommt man superschnell und billig ins Zentrum (max. 10 Minuten und 1,80€ für die einfache Fahrt).
To get from the airport to the city centre, you have two options. You can take the bus number 99 (yellow route) which departs every 30 minutes towards Nice Gare and back (6€ single journey) or you walk to the train station Nice St. Augustin and take the train to Nice Ville. For us it was really complicated to find our way both to the bus station and to the train station. There were lots of people waiting at the bus station (which you could get to more easily) but we didn’t manage to catch the bus. When the bus number 99 finally arrived we had to buy tickets at the driver, but as my french is non-existent and the bus drivers were all really stressed, we gave up after approximately half an hour. Instead, we went back to the airport and asked at the information desk how we could get to the train station. Nice St. Augustin is the closest one, but it’s just as complicated to walk there. Luckily, the people at the information desk had a little map there which described how to get there. If you want to take the train go to the information desk directly in the first place to get this map, this will make things more easy, I promise. If you’re fast and don’t have lots of luggage to carry, you can get to the train station within 15 minutes. Once you’re there, it’s an easy and cheap way to reach the city centre (max. 10 minutes and 1,80€ for a single ticket).
WHERE TO STAY
Ich kann euch unser Hotel nur von Herzen empfehlen. Wir haben uns für das Ibis Styles Nice Centre Gare entschieden, welches ein modernes und freundliches 3* Hotel in der Nähe des Hauptbahnhofes ist. Die Lage war vor allem deshalb so toll, weil man schnell die Umgebung von Nizza erkunden konnte. Das Frühstück war wirklich gut und die Angestellten waren außergewöhnlich nett und halfen uns bei jeglichen Fragen. Wir haben knapp 300€ für vier Nächte im Doppelzimmer inklusive Frühstück bezahlt. Als ich kürzlich den Preis für fünf Nächte von 9.3. bis 14.3.2018 abgerufen habe, hat es 460€ gekostet. Es gibt sicherlich noch billigere Angebote für Nizza und diesen Zeitraum, aber wenn ihr ein angenehmes und gutes Hotel sucht schaut euch vielleicht auch das Ibis Styles Nice Centre Gare näher an.
I can only tell you from my experience that our choice of where to stay was really great. We stayed at the Ibis Styles Nice Centre Gare, which is a modern and friendly 3* hotel close to the main railway station. This was perfect to explore the surroundings of Nice. The breakfast was very tasty and the staff extremely friendly and helpful. We paid almost 300€ for four nights in the double room inclusive breakfast, but as I looked it up recently, five nights from 9.3. until 14.3.2018 would be 460€. I guess there are probably cheaper offers available, but if you want to stay at a nice and comfortable hotel maybe take a look at the Ibis Styles Nice Centre Gare too.
DAY TRIP RECOMMENDATION
Als wir an unserem zweiten Tag im Süden Frankreichs nach Monaco gefahren sind, sind wir an einem total herzigen Dörfchen namens Villefranche Mer vorbeigefahren. Der Blick aus dem Zug war so schön, dass wir uns entschieden haben, am nächsten Tag einen Abstecher dorthin zu machen. Leider war das der einzig bewölkte und nicht ganz so warme Tag, sodass wir nur einen halben Tag dort verbracht haben. Aber es war es trotzdem wert, ich hab die bunten Häuser und engen Gässchen geliebt und der großteils unverbaute Blick aufs Meer war auch ein Highlight. Das Zugticket hat auch nur 1,80€ one way gekostet.
When we went to Monaco on our second day, we drove by a lovely village called Villefranche Mer. It looked so sweet from the view of the train that we decided to go there on the next day. Unfortunately, this was the only day which was a bit cloudy and not so warm so that we spend just half a day there. But it was worth it either way, I loved the colorful houses and the beautiful sea view. The train ticket to Villefranche from Nice costs just 1,80€ one way.
FOOD
Nizza hat einige kulinarische Highlights zu bieten. Auch wenn wir meistens nur ausgiebig im Hotel gefrühstückt haben und demnach untertags nicht so hungrig waren (und wenn, dann haben wir uns nur Snacks im Supermarkt gekauft), haben wir nach guten Restaurants für das Abendessen Ausschau gehalten. Leider machten wir auch eine schlechte Erfahrung in den “Touristenstraßen” von Nizza, wo die meisten Leute draußen gegessen haben. Die Qualität des Essens war leider überhaupt nicht gut und zusätzlich auch noch ziemlich überteuert. An unserem ersten Abend in Nizza sind wir nur in kleinen Gassen herumgelaufen wo kleine, gemütliche Restaurants zwischen den Häusern versteckt sind. Ich würde euch wahnsinnig gern das Restaurant in dem wir in der ersten Nacht gegessen haben, empfehlen (siehe Bild) nur leider habe ich vergessen, den Namen dieses guten Lokals niederzuschreiben. Die Eigentümer haben sich auch eine Zeit lang zu uns dazugesetzt und mit uns gemütlich gequatscht und es war einfach ein wirklich süßes Plätzchen. Nehmt euch unbedingt die Zeit und spaziert in den Gassen fern der Restaurantmeilen herum und seid auch nicht abgeschreckt, wenn nicht so viele Leute draußen sitzen. Das ist meistens deswegen, weil es ziemlich versteckt hinter den großen Straßen liegt und Mitte März einfach noch nicht so viele Leute unterwegs sind, die diese Gassen entdecken.
Nice has a lot to offer when it comes to culinary highlights. Even though we mostly ate a lot at breakfast in the hotel and therefore weren’t hungry during the day (and if so, we just bought some snacks at the supermarket), we choose to look out for good places to eat in the evening. Unfortunately, we also had one bad experience in the more “touristic” streets of Nice, where most people sit outside and eat. The quality of the meals we ordered wasn’t good at all and additionally, it was pretty overpriced too. On our first night in Nice we strolled around in narrow alleys where small and cozy restaurants are located. I would love to recommend you this place where we ate on the first night (i’m getting hungry again just by looking at this picture!) but unfortunately I forgot to write down the name of the restaurant. The people who run it took the time and chatted with us a long time and it was simply a lovely place to be at. Take the time and walk besides the main restaurant-streets and don’t be put off by the fact if there aren’t many people at some place. This is mostly because these restaurants are hidden in between bigger streets, and in mid-March there are just not that many people who go and explore these alleys. MUST SEE
Wie schon früher erwähnt, haben wir nicht viel Sightseeing gemacht. Die einzigen Plätze die wir wirklich “besucht” haben, waren die Promenade du Paillon und der Place Masséna. In der Nähe dieses Platzes ist auch Galeries Lafayette wo ich Ohrringe und einen Ring gekauft habe, die vergünstigt waren. Würde ich nochmal nach Nizza reisen, würde ich definitiv auch ein paar Parks und Museen besuchen, wie etwa den Parc Phoenix, das MAMAC oder das Musée Matisse.
As I’ve told you before already, we didn’t do much of sightseeing. The only places we really “visited” were the Promenade du Paillon and the Place Masséna. Close to this square is also the Galeries Lafayette where I bought earrings and a ring, which were on a discount. If I would travel to Nice one more time, I would probably also visit some parks and museums, like the Parc Phoenix, the MAMAC or the Musée Matisse.
Nun, ich muss gestehen, dieser Post kommt ein wenig spät. Mein Trip an die Côte d’Azur ist mehr als ein Jahr her, aber es warten nach wie vor einige Bilder darauf, gezeigt zu werden. Als Ergänzung zu meinem kleinen Monaco Travel Guide von Februar hier also ein paar Bilder von meinem Outfit dass ich an diesem Tag getragen habe. Ich hab das wahrscheinlich schon öfters erwähnt, aber bequeme Looks sind für mich das nonplusultra während Reisen. Dieser Look ist ein fantastisches Beispiel dafür, was ich üblicherweise trage. Monotone Farben, angenehme Stoffe, locker geschnitten.
Und vielleicht ist das hier auch ein guter Tipp für die Packliste, falls jemand von euch plant, Südfrankreich im Frühjahr zu besuchen. Ich war im März dort und wie ihr sehen könnt, es war warm, sonnig und das Wetter war einfach viel besser als hier in Österreich.
Übrigens vermisse ich meine kurzen Haare die ich damals hatte. Jetzt ist fast ein Jahr vergangen seit meinem letzten Frisör-Besuch und ich hätte irgendwie Lust, meine Haare wieder auf diese Länge zu schneiden…
EN: Well, I’ve to admit, this post comes a little bit late. My trip to the Côte d’Azur was more than a year ago, but I still got pictures to show. In addition to my small Monaco travel guide from February here are some pictures of my outfit which I wore on that day. I guess I’ve mentioned this a couple of times before, but I always prefer comfy looks while traveling. This one here is a perfect example of what I’m usually wearing. Monotone colors, comfortable materials, loose cut.
And, on top of that, it might be a good packinglist-tip for those of you who plan to visit the Côte d’Azur in spring. I visited Monaco in late March and as you can see, it was warm, sunny and simply a lot better than the weather here in Austria.
By the way, I actually miss my shorter hair I had back then! It’s almost a year since I last cut it and I kind of wanna get back to this length again…
Todays look is from March 2016.
Blouse: Zara (old) | Pants: Zara (old) | Cardigan: Weekday | Shoes: Vans | Hat: Only | Sunglasses: H&M (old)
As I was really busy this week and still will be next week, I thought I’d write a post in advance. Time for another monthly recap! I can’t believe how fast time is slipping away, seems just like a few days ago that I’ve written the march recap. A bunch of cool stuff has happened this month, besides the usual school life. Apropos school life, I told you already in my march recap about my big math test which I unfortunately failed at, but last week I got this “last chance” to see if I’m allowed to take finals and yes, I made it!!! I was extremely anxious before the test, but finally the enormous time of studying paid off! I will take my written finals this week in German and English and next week in Math. The oral exams are first in June, although I’m really looking forward to it, because I’m very interested in the subjects I chose. I’m going to graduate in Religion, English and History.
And what’s about the “bunch of cool stuff”? Well, first and foremost, the Shooting with Monika and Matthias, that I’ve by now probably told you a thousand times about, was for sure the highlight of my Easter holidays. Thank you by the way for all the lovely comments on the pictures, I appreciate every single one! I don’t know if I at some point already told you about my second instagram account, where I only upload pictures from shootings, unlike I do on the account linked in my sidebar. Some pictures are the same as the ones I’m showing here on the blog, even though I won’t upload them in the exact same order, so you might catch a glimpse at images which I haven’t shown on the blog yet.
Furthermore, I came across some really great articles in the blogosphere this month. I definitely recommend you to take a look at the following:
I adore Maddie and her way to put personal experiences into words. If you haven’t already read her article about things that we try to find at far away places while they are right in front of us,please switch immediately to her blog.
Jana, whose style of writing I love just as much as Maddie’s, published an entry that got right into my heart. She writes about old times, unforgettable moments and about a life worth living. Nostalgia.
I’m in urgent need to travel again! No, but seriously, my wanderlust hit this month a new level. I simply want to explore new places, meet new people and see something different. Mia from heylilahey just came back from her trip around the world and wow, just look at those awesome pictures from Costa Rica! I’m in love. And her budget guide for travelers is also very helpful.
One article that made me quite thoughtful this month was this one from Linn. She comments the election in Turkey and makes an enthusiastic plea to make use of our voices. Justine wrote an essay about why it doesn’t matter what’s happening to you and why instead it’s more important how you handle such situations. I agree on what she has to say, even though I sometimes struggle with this attitude myself… And Stef talks on magnoliaelectric, a fantastic blog which I follow since some years now, about her desire to just write spontaneously again, without thinking too much about it, something that I can absolutely relate to.
And what would be a monthly recap without a wishlist what to buy next? In particular this (way to good looking) bralette you can see above! I wanted to buy it last week when I saw that it was sold out… 🙁 The description says it’s limited but I subscribed to their newsletter and let’s cross fingers that they’re going to produce a few more pieces! The brand itself is called troo.ch and is very recommendable, since they produce in a transparent way and because of the fact that all of their designs are simply gorgeous! The prices are not too high either, between 40 and 50 Euros I’d say is a fair price for a quality piece like that. So if “Grace” isn’t going to be available soon I’ll definitely look out for another piece from their shop.
As I mentioned above, I won’t have much time for the blog until next week due to my final exams. Maybe I’ll publish some prepared posts, otherwise you’re going to hear from me next week on Sunday. I wish you all a nice week!
In letzter Zeit habe ich öfters Überlegungen zu einem Thema angestellt, dass wohl vor allem im deutschsprachigen Raum weiterhin eher verrufen ist und nicht so gerne thematisiert wird. Nationalstolz. Der Begriff wird so gerne und so schnell ins politisch rechte Eck gestellt, seit jeher wurde die Identifikation mit der Heimat dort gelassen und nie wieder aus dieser Ecke abgeholt. Doch warum, frage ich mich, ist das so, dass man in meiner Heimat Österreich mit dem Verständnis aufwächst, dass es etwas Unangenehmes sei, stolz auf sein Land, seine Herkunft zu sein? Wieso habe ich mich früher so strikt dagegen gewehrt, ein Dirndl (traditionelle Tracht) zu kaufen, geschweige denn zu tragen? Wieso habe ich mich immer eher beschämt abgewendet, wenn jemand die österreichische Flagge zeigte, immer mit dem Gedanken im Hinterkopf “Das sind doch nur die Einsiedler vom Land, die alle nationalistisch gesinnte Parteien wählen”? Wieso konnte ich keine einzige Strophe unserer Hymne singen und wieso hatte ich kein Bewusstsein für die Dinge, die dieses Land, in dem ich geboren wurde und aufgewachsen bin, ausmachen?
All diese Fragen trafen mich wie ein Schlag, als ich zum ersten Mal gelebten Nationalstolz in meiner zweiten Heimat Schweden erfuhr. Und auch auf den Vorbereitungsseminaren für mein Austauschjahr wurde ich zum ersten Mal mit den Eckpfeilern österreichischer Mentalität konfrontiert. Ich verstehe nicht, warum sich selbst die “gebildetere Schicht” Österreichs regelmäßig anmaßt zu behaupten, man könne nicht gleichzeitig für Patriotismus und für eine offene, freie Gesellschaft sein. Wir wähnen uns in einer Union, die sich auf europäische Werte beruft, während wir es nicht einmal zustande bringen, uns über die Werte und Grundsätze unserer eigenen Herkunft, unseres eigenen Landes bewusst zu werden. Wie sagt man so schön, in einer Beziehung sei das Ich im Wir so wichtig? Ja, das ist es! Und zwar auch im großen Rahmen. Vielleicht eine gewagte These, aber ich formuliere es trotzdem so radikal: Nachvollziehbar, wenn sich Menschen nicht mit einer großen, vielleicht auch unbekannten, Gemeinschaft identifizieren können, wenn sie sich nicht einmal mit ihrem eigenen Heimatland auseinandersetzen. Auf exzellente Art und Weise damit geworben hat Alexander Van der Bellen während seines Bundespräsidentschaftswahlkampf, indem er äußert erfolgreich den Heimatbegriff endlich aus dem verstaubten rechten Eck geholt hat und erkannte, welche Inhalte unser Land ausmacht. Nationalstolz muss nicht neu definiert werden, er muss nur gelebt werden.
Es lässt sich auch ein anderes Sprichwort in diesen einen größeren Kontext übertragen: “Man kann erst jemand anderen lieben, wenn man sich selbst liebt.” Wer weiß, vielleicht stimmt auch das in der Beziehung zwischen Europa und den Nationalstaaten. Vielleicht muss man, um sich in einer großen, offenen Gesellschaft wie die der EU, zurechtzufinden, sich erst wieder einmal als stolzen Bürger seiner Heimat sehen, um sich schließlich auch als Bürger der EU zu identifizieren. Patriotismus ist in meinen Augen keine Verweigerung einer vereinten, offenen und weltumspannenden Gesellschaft sondern ein Besinnen darauf, welche Werte mir in meiner Herkunft wichtig sind und wie ich diese nach außen hin vermitteln beziehungsweise auch revidieren will. Weiß man nämlich selbst nicht, wer man ist, wird man das auch nur schwer anderen näherbringen können.
Wie in meinem letzten Post versprochen, hier ein paar mehr Bilder von dem Nachmittag mit Monika und Matthias. Sowohl im letzten als auch im vorletzten Eintrag habe ich schon ein wenig von den Hintergründen erzählt, wie es zu diesem Shooting gekommen ist. Es war ein wirklich schöner Nachmittag und wie ich früher bereits erwähnt habe, der Verlauf und auch die Ergebnisse von diesem Tag haben mich wirklich positiv überrascht. Ich bin weit weg davon, in irgendeiner Art einen “professionellen” Anspruch an meine Bilder zu haben und habe aus diesem Grund bisher auch nur mit guten Freunden von mir fotografiert, wo ich wusste, weder ich noch meine Freunde haben Erwartungen an das, was nach ein paar Stunden “durch die Gegend streifen” herauskommt. Daher auch die riesige Freude, als wir bei diesem Shooting nach gut drei Stunden alle zusammen am Bahnhof saßen, um schnell alle Bilder zu sichten. Ich wäre die letzte gewesen, im Vorfeld zu behaupten, dass diese paar Stunden fotografieren in solch diversen und schönen Bildern enden. Monika und Matthias haben sich wahnsinnig toll ergänzt und schlussendlich wirkte es beinahe so, als würden wir uns alle schon seit einer Ewigkeit kennen. Meine Begeisterung für diesen fantastischen Tag nimmt kein Ende, und weil ich nicht weiß, welchen schriftlichen Rahmen ich diesen Bildern sonst geben soll, wurde es wieder einmal eine kleine Lobeshymne. Und ach, als kleinen Cliffhanger für die nächsten paar Portraits, die in einem etwas anderen “Setting” entstanden sind: Martina, die bunten Kamele, sie warten noch auf ihren Einsatz! 😉
EN: Finally some more pictures from the shoot last Monday, just as promised. I’ve told you in the last two posts already about the background of this shoot and how it came that I photographed for the first time some kind of a “pair shooting” (although these two are more like siblings, also because their facial expressions were sometimes incredible similiar!). It was a really beautiful afternoon and as I’ve written in the posts before, I got really surprised by the outcomes of this shoot. I’m far away from having any “professional” demands towards my pictures. This is also why I until now only photographed good friends of mine, when I knew that neither I nor my friends got any expectations on the results. We were simply strolling around and when we found an interesting place to shoot, we stopped and took a few pictures. Hence, we were really happy after this shooting when we all together sat at the train station, taking a quick look at all of the pictures. Monika and Matthias complemented each other really good and after three hours of shooting, it almost seemed like we have known one another for longer. My enthusiasm for this fantastic day has no ending, but since I didn’t know what else I should write within the context of these pictures, this post turned once more into a hymn of praise.
I’ll definitely publish some more portraits which we took in a quite different “setting”.
Falls jemand interessiert daran ist woher ich die Inspiration für diverse Posen und Settings bekomme, schaut gern auf meine Pinterest Wand. Ich sammle die meisten Ideen dort und liebe es, diese dann auch in meinen eigenen Bildern umzusetzen. Bin ich übrigens die einzige hier, die so verrückt nach Pinterest ist? Ich könnte Stunden auf dieser Plattform verbringen… Von nichts lasse ich mich so leicht ablenken wie von Pinterest, und plötzlich ist wieder eine Stunde vergangen.
<<<<< Der ultimative Beweis dass wir mehr Spaß hatten als es auf den Bildern oberhalb aussieht. 😉
EN: In case you’re interested in my source of inspiration, just take a look at my Pinterest board. I collect most of my ideas there and I just love to transform those ideas into my own pictures. Am I the only one here who is so much into Pinterest? I mean I could spend hours with collecting pins there…
today’s a special day! My blog is online since exactly four years now and it feels both like a long and a short span of time. When I think of the blog itself it really feels not like four years, maybe also because I took some time off in between (like during my exchange year) or didn’t post regularly (which I still don’t do, but that’s another thing…). On the other hand, thinking about what has happened in my life “offline” and besides the blog, four years seem like an eternity. I had just turned 14 when I started the blog and published the very first entry which you can see above. I wrote mostly about myself and already at that time I knew that I don’t pursue a “blog career” – meaning: no obligation for regular posts and being completely free regarding creating content and taking time to publish anything on the blog. Since this very first post, I still feel like Lizblick is my little public diary, with the exception that I’m able to share my thoughts with you which I really like about this kind of “diary”. Plus, it’s nice to look up old postings and to remind myself what I’ve done during all these years (especially since I have a very bad memory…). I hope to be able to continue this journey and maybe also get in contact with even more people, sharing and discussing all the big and small things in life which make me glad, upset or thoughtful.
All in all, these four years have been an amazing time and I’m really looking forward to what’s coming next.
Apart from the birthday words there is another reason for this slightly special day. At least for me, because my latest shooting on Monday was a bit different than the ones I’ve done before. I’ve already told you in my last post a little bit about the background.
Maybe you noticed this already if you have followed the blog for some time past, but my love for photographing started almost at the same time I began writing on the blog. Photographing was somehow always the connection between the blog and my personal life. It’s the same thing with photographing as it is with the blog, I do it because I like to keep memories and because I feel absolutely no kind of obligation to be professional. I don’t feel the need to fulfill someone else’s expectations and I can do simply what I feel like doing. After a time, when I photographed pretty much everything in my surroundings, I got more and more interested in people and portrait photography. I like how the expression of people tells a story and exposes their very own, private feelings.
This brings me to the following pictures from our shoot last Monday. First of all, I’m beyond grateful that I was able to shoot these two beautiful human beings, Monika and Matthias. Monika is a dear friend of mine and I really admire her positive, open-minded character. A countless amount of time we talked about shooting ideas and she is just so enthusiastic about every single one. And, as I told you in my last post, I’ve never met Matthias before, so I literally didn’t know what expectations he would have towards the shoot or simply what he was like. I was really surprised and glad that he turned out to be just as cheerful and excited as all of us. And well, we didn’t wanna stop shooting because after the “awkward first half an hour” (as I call it) it was just getting better and better with every minute. I think we all enjoyed this afternoon to the fullest. So huge thanks to both of them and of course also a million thanks to my beloved friend Martina, who always makes everybody laugh and have fun! Those days are exactly the reason why I love photographing so much. The pictures below are just a few which I think sum up this post/the day quite good, but there will be of course a lot more which I’m gonna show you soon.
Happy Easter and have a great beginning of the week!
Where to
start. Well, the last weeks have been quite stressful but also emotionally exhausting. There isn’t
much I’ve done except studying and sleeping. One reason for that was our final Math test, which I was really nervous and anxious about since it decides if I’m allowed to take my finals in May. Unfortunately, I didn’t manage to get a good grade on the test and this means I’ve got kind of a “last chance” the week after our Easter holidays. I’ve been struggling with Math since the very beginning of my school career but now that I’m so close to the end I just wanna get this whole thing done and never think about it again.
Besides my personal life happened something else which made me feel extremely upset. You probably have heard about the terror attack in Stockholm too. I got messages on my phone when my friends on facebook marked themselves as being safe. Just about ten minutes before I should hold my presentation of my final paper in front of a committee. Hearing about this awful news, especially because it happened in my beloved second home country, was horrible for me. The topic of my final paper was, silly enough, Austrians in the Swedish Exile. I was supposed to talk about similarities between the asylum policy in Sweden today and during the Second World War. So pretty much all I should say was that Sweden handles immigration issues really well but the moment I got the news about the terror attack I felt completely lost in my issue. I didn’t feel excited and enthuasiastic about the presentation anymore. However, I’m really blessed to have such understanding teachers who always help and support their students whenever needed. The presentation itself then went well and I was just glad to have it done, even though in my thoughts I was constantly in Sweden and by all my friends there. Mitt fina Sverige, jag beundrar dig för ditt sätt att hantera så pass svåra och mörka situationer där alla befinner sig i sorg och osäkerhet. Jag hoppas att människor rycka nu ännu närmare till varandra. Mina tankar är hos er. Stockholm i mitt hjärta.
Except the horrible news from Stockholm, the last weeks went by quickly and some good things happened too. First of all: I’ve got a job! At least I think so, since we didn’t talk about the exact details yet. I’m so happy to finally have made some decisions for the near future. The job itself seems to be great because I’ll work at the airport, which I think is really fascinating. I’m going to start working there in exactly one month and I couldn’t be more excited about it. Certainly, this seems to be a good first step into some more future-stuff-planning.
After the presentation of the final papers (which was by the way also kind of our last school day because now we only have to attend the subjects in which we are going to take finals) me and my classmates went to the appartement of our dear friend Luise where we celebrated this very last day of our school life. As I’ve said a couple of times before, I just love my classmates and even though I’m glad to go out of school soon, it’s sad to know that we’re not going to see each other every day in class after that.
The first days off from school did I use to do several things which I wanted to do for a long time. Such as ordering two books. One from Astrid Lindgren (“Die Menschheit hat den Verstand verloren”), a book where her diary entries during the Second World War are collected. The second one is from Joachim Meyerhoff, whose first book my class teacher recommended to me. Now I’ve ordered part 2 of his trilogy (“Wann wird es endlich wieder so, wie es nie war”). If you are looking for an enjoyable book, written with careful chosen words, I can only suggest you to take a look at his books.
While I’m happy to read something different than the literature for my final paper, I was also looking forward to the release of the fourth (and unfortunately last) season of Skam. I think it’s really cool that Sana is going to play the main character this season and I hope it will be as good as the seasons before. Something else I recently discovered is the online shop Ecco Verde. As I have to wear make-up for my job, I need to get new make-up and this is the ultimative opportunity for me to finally buy natural cosmetics. This BB Cream from purebio which you can see on the picture above seems to be the perfect choice, but I wanna look through everything first and then decide what I’m going to purchase.
And last but not least I’ve to tell you about a really exciting shooting which I had on Monday (sneak peek above). Me and my two friends Martina and Monika wanted to shoot together again, but we never managed to set a date and plan things properly. Because of another friend of ours and also kinda through coincidence we contacted a guy named Matthias and asked him if he wants to shoot with us. We said that we’re going to see if we find a possible date during Easter holidays but spontaneous as we are it was more of a last minute decision to meet and shoot on Monday. Honestly, I was a bit unsure how it’s going to be, mostly because I’ve only photographed good friends of mine before but also because of the fact that I never had like a “pair shooting” either, so far it was always just me and the “model” and nobody else. Maybe I’ll manage to show you some of the pictures already on Sunday, but one thing I can tell you already: The pictures turned out to be amazing and I never ever expected such great results!
Um ehrlich zu sein, beneide ich jene Menschen, die rational und schnell Entscheidungen treffen können. In letzter Zeit habe ich mir auch immer wieder gewünscht so jemand zu sein. Vorallem jetzt, wo es wieder einmal nötig ist, einen Blick in die Zukunft zu werfen, um nicht völlig verwirrt in einigen Monaten dazustehen und mich darüber zu wundern, warum ich das alles nicht schon eher in Angriff genommen habe. Dabei geht es gar nicht darum, dass ich planlos bin und keine Ideen für meine Zukunft habe, denn das habe ich eigentlich schon recht genau im Kopf. Es sind nur so viele Entscheidungen, die auf einmal getroffen werden wollen: wann mache ich das, wie mache ich dies, um was soll ich mich zuerst kümmern, was kann warten. Ich habe so viele Ideen und Pläne und Wünsche, die ich am liebsten alle auf einmal erledigen möchte. Da kommt wieder ein Charakterzug von mir zum Vorschein, der gerade jetzt aber wohl eher Fluch als Segen ist: alles zu überdenken und schon gefällte Entscheidungen erneut infragezustellen. Ich möchte eigentlich nicht gleich studieren, zuerst arbeiten, mit dem Geld ins Ausland, danach für das Studium bewerben, hier studieren, dann eigentlich gern wieder nach Schweden. Was ist aber wenn ich für das Studium nicht genommen werde, wann soll ich mich für Arbeit bewerben zwischen den ganzen schulischen Aufgaben, wo soll ich mich bewerben, wie soll das gehen, dass ich zu einem Hearing für das Studium gehe, während ich eigentlich vorhabe, zu dieser Zeit im Ausland zu sein… Und sollte ich nicht vielleicht doch gleich studieren?
Manchmal wäre ich einfach gern ein Entscheidungsmensch.
Todays look is from February 2017.
Coat: from my mum | Shirt: Vintage via Dogdays Of Summer | Denim Jeans: Mango (old) | Belt: from my dad | Shoes: Gamloong via Humanic | Earrings, Ring: H&M (old)
Today, it’s the last day of our little semester break from school, which means tomorrow starts a new week with new tasks for the second semester. It will also be the last school semester ever for me, and I’m just beyond excited to end school soon. At the same time, a very vague time lies in front of me and all my classmates. It’s definitely going to be hard to leave the surroundings I got so used to in these four years. Nevertheless, I need to keep focused at the last couple of months which won’t be easy. The first part of our A-levels will be the final paper which needs to be handed in this friday at the latest. I’m so glad because I finally finished it last week on Monday and it feels just so good to be done. I’m gonna print it these days and then the only thing left will be the presentation in front of a committee, but since I really enjoy talking about this topic it won’t be too difficult.
Oh and then of course today is the Oscar Night too. Needless to say that La La Land is the biggest favorite this year. I’ve seen it I think two weeks ago with two friends of mine. I don’t know, maybe it was because of the high expectations I had, but it didn’t really catch me like other movies did before. The Storyline wasn’t the most exciting one, and I kinda just waited the whole time for a highlight, some deeper message behind it, but there was none. Still, it was a great evening and especially the music deserves in my eyes an Oscar. Really great songs, which I could listen to for hours and hours. My absolute favorite one is Audition – The fools who dream.
Then I read some great blogposts this month. Masha for example gives some tips for a more hygge life on her blog and also explains the word hygge. It’s a Danish term actually, in Swedish it would be called mysig. In Scandinavia, these words have so many different meanings, but I think Masha explains it very good. It also reminded me how badly I miss this mentality.
Maddie, whose blog dariadaria I absolutely adore, has written two really amazing articles (to be exact, one of them is a vlog). First, a reflection about herself and how to answer the question “Who am I”. Secondly, a video where she talks about seven reasons to travel alone. I thought about this quite often in the last couple of days, because I really want to go and travel solo for a couple of weeks/months after I graduated, but I don’t really know yet where/when/how. Her video just made me so excited about going abroad once again soon.
The next super interesting blogpost actually fits the issue of traveling solo. Jana writes about being alone in public. Even if you choose to go alone somewhere, there is always this little feeling of what other people might think etc. etc. I by myself feel sometimes really weird in places, where everybody seems to have someone to talk to.
Last but not least, Kristina Bazan published a massive travel guide to Tokyo on her blog. I need to admit that I’ve never been really attracted of the countries and cultures of Asia, but after I got to know some people from China and Japan during my exchange year, I got more interested about traveling there. And this Guide just reminds me once again of my endless Travel Bucket List.
Besides the Wanderlust, I’ve got another major craving right now. Aren’t these glasses you see on the picture above amazing??? They are called “Voyager” and are produced by the sustainable label Viu Eyewear. Not only are their glasses good-looking, but they have also prices which are actually affordable. They are without doubt on top of my wishlist, but I wanna wait with buying one pair until they open their new shop in my city.
Since the next four or five weeks are going to be quite stressful, I prepared some posts for you. Hope you like them and I wish you a good start for the week ahead!
