"Lower Silesia"

Wroclaw: A Fleeting Glimpse

Sunday, October 26, 2014

I flew in on a Monday, flew out on a Wednesday -- but what I saw of Wroclaw, Poland, was postcard-lovely. Much of it is relatively recent reconstruction, given that the city lay in ruins after WWII.

I went to the Philharmonia one evening to see Mario Hossen and Les Orpheistes Festival Orchestra of Vienna play Vivaldi. The concert hall itself was nothing to look at, but there was no need for anything to distract the eyes given what was coming out of the musicians' instruments.

Concert at Philharmonia, Wroclaw, Poland

Daylight hours found me at the office, but a colleague kindly took me on a nighttime ramble around the Old Town, university and Ostrow Tumski.

My last day there, I took an early morning walk around the Rynek (market square) in a chilly, driving rain. I huddled beneath a doorway, trying to keep my sketchbook as dry as I could.

Rynek - Wroclaw, Poland

Wroclaw has gnomes and vintage neon signs and a cathedral and trams (I do love trams) and lots and lots of bridges. All of which (and the pierogi!) will certainly bring me back again.

Alsace

A Weekend in Strasbourg

Monday, October 20, 2014

Strasbourg, France

Tagged along with M. to Germany a few weeks ago, as he was speaking at Frankfurt Book Fair. We flew out a few days early so we could spend the weekend in Strasbourg, France.

Half-timbered buildings, Strasbourg, France

I expected the half-timbered buildings (aside: they are really tedious to draw even after you figure out the pattern) and the ubiquitous flammkuchen (tarte flambee). Turns out Strasbourg is also multimodal transportation heaven. There are trams and riverboats and bicycles and pedestrian-friendly squares.

Place Gutenberg signage, Strasbourg, France

Tourists, Strasbourg, France

Oh yeah, and a famous cathedral.

Cathedral, Strasbourg, France

We had a nice meal at La Corde a Linge, a riverfront restaurant that specializes in spaetzle and is thematically decorated to evoke a vintage laundry.

La Corde a Linge restaurant, Strasbourg, France

I didn't even get to the EU Parliament building or the Rhine, and I hear there's great biking among the vineyards in Alsace -- all to-dos for a future trip.

Connecticut

Ocean Beach Park, New London, CT

Sunday, October 19, 2014

Yoga at Ocean Beach Park, New London, CT
Sept. 20 was a lovely (though breezy) day for the Walk2End Alzheimer's at Ocean Beach Park in New London. As we waited for it to get underway, I sketched a yoga class on the beach and then the pavilions and event tents.

Walk 2 End Alzheimer's, New London, CT

Pavilions at Walk 2 End Alzheimer's, New London, CT