Year: 2009

Taipei 101

Taipei 101. For some reason I am extremely fascinated by high buildings. Usually the first thing I find out in a new city is where I can get a good view. Taipei was no different. The first time I visited Taiwan I was only there for one night and the only thing I really knew about the place was that the city featured the highest building in the world (well, the highest officially opened one at least..). So the only plan I had for the afternoon was to visit this famous building. I went up to the viewing floor before the sun set and stayed until it had become dark and all the lights were out. Magic.

The pictures here are all from my hotel room at the Hyatt which is just across the street from Taipei 101. Very convenient for someone with my interests.

The base of Taipei 101 which is a very fancy shopping center

View towards the City Hall

Self portrait

When you go into the bar you are given a coat. They do not expect you to stay more than 45 minutes and I think we made it to 40. At that point my toes were frozen and desperately craving sunshine again. We had good fun in there though, drinking out of the ice glasses and enjoying the ice art.

Of course the drinks are served in ice glasses.

There were plenty of beautiful details.

If you have never been to an Ice Bar I can really recommend it. But do wear socks…

No, I have not been to London or New York. I was in Gothenburg where there is a restaurant / wine bar / café called Soho. It is a really nice place with several sections featuring different styles. You can stop by for a glass of champagne at the bar, cakes in the atrium or dinner in the dining room.

One thing I like about this place is that they have, in several places, printed text directly on the wall. This sentence I particularly like!

Today I went to Systembolaget, the Swedish liquor store. I was going to pick up some wine and beer for the weekend since this was the last chance for me before Sunday when I am cooking for my friends, Hana and Harry, who are visiting Stockholm.
When it was my turn at the counter the sales guy said: So, Miss, do you have id? I gave him a big smile and my id that says that I have been able to buy alcohol for about 15 years. He looked a little embarrassed but I took it as a compliment and left much happier than I was a few minutes earlier. What a sweetheart!

As any Swede would tell you, there is no better place than Sweden on a nice summers day. Last Saturday was one of those perfect days. I was visiting my sister, Helena, and her family close to Gothenburg. It was warm enough to go to the beach, actually swim and lay in the sun all day but without getting sun stroke. When we came back from the beach my brother-in-law, Micke, made us mojitos with fresh herbs from the garden. Perfect day.

Me and my nephew, Joel, coming back from the beach.

Christmas 2008 I spent on Big La Laguna beach in Puerto Galera in the Philippines. The hotel we stayed at (Campbell’s Beach Resort) was at the very end of the beach with a huge terrace outside the room. From there we had a great view of the whole beach. We could watch people snorkeling, swimming, eating and drinking at the beach front restaurants. We saw when people were coming and leaving. The beach was small enough to keep track of everyone staying there. After a week it felt like we were leaving a family.

Big La Laguna beach

Big La Laguna by night