Friday or Day 76: What a girl needs...

Get cosy. It is going to be long.

As these last weeks I am extremely busy with my never-ending projects in the University today I write the must-have-need list of an architecture student with a twist. So what a girl needs to feel good and loved in a far-far-away land.

There are ten seriously important things and ten not-so-very-important but charming nevertheless.I will begin with the important stuff.

1. First I shall put my loving and caring family which is over there but still feels like is constantly with me. Sometimes they are real pain in the ***, sometimes I want to cry because of them and at the end I just smile. Love you all!
2. Love & sex & stuff. Here stands a real mischief of a man who I love dearly and who manages to keep me calm.
3. Friends. Here I have none of them. Ok. Maybe one to be honest. But it is not the same. I love to hear a line or two from my friends although they rarely write.
4. Work. I am so grateful for the complexity of my studies sometimes. They just take all the time I have here.
5. Architecture as in: "Look that f*****g building over there! I just can't imagine how it stands on its own." Architecture is everywhere. On the street, in the metro, in the bus, in the park (benches, people!), in my head, almost written on my forehead
6. Knowing that I will get home sooner or later.
7. Knowing that my place is where I am happy. Home is where your hearth is. (pun intended, architectural jokes... I know, I  know... shame on me...)
8. Cooking different meals every single day. No recipes. No magic. Just me naked in the kitchen and a preheated oven, some sharp knifes,fresh products and some salt&pepper.
9. Books. Terry Pratchett and his magical world which I read on the floor in FNAC from time to time. I love book stores where you can sit and read some pages.
10. My green blanket. New and only mine. A personal touch every single night.

And here is the rest that keeps me sane.

1. The sunrise which I get to see every morning from my train and the perfect sky in Valencia. 
2. The fresh baked sweets that one Arab woman sells in a bakery two blocks away.
3. Oranges! Orange balls of beauty everywhere!
4. Nights with my room mates in the living room.
5. Ugly Guys & Girls in Spain. Or UGGS. Yeap. There are everywhere and this makes you feel good in some way. Like you think that your country still has some beautiful people. At least all of my friends are beautiful. And I mean HOT! Edit: But my mate in the flat is just great! She is tall, dresses unbelievably cute and has a sense of humour! And lives with me! YAY!
6. As talking of hot people: you should meet my female colleagues from Brazil... they are so unbelievably beautiful. And they are smart, well-driven, cute, always ready to help. A shining light in the misery of the spanish selfishness.
7. Earl grey with milk. Everyday. At least 4 cups. Hot and freshly made.
8. Shopping. Something small every month. Sexy underwear, cosy pyjama, purple socks, Kashmir blue dress... 
9. Mail. Blogs. Internet. Stumble Upon. And no FB... or at least the minimum possible.
10. Drawing. Writing. Notebooks. Moleskins. Finocam's 2011 agenda. Tom-bow markers, coloured ink for my fountain pen...

So this is a touch of the surface of what a girl really needs. Everybody feel invited to share what do you need. I am eager to know it!

Photos: *the-eyes-of-edera

Monday or Day 62: Mallorca as in Palma de Mallorca

Hi again from my near 10 day break! Hope that everybody is doing fine and enjoyed the last week of October.

I was so worked over that it was impossible to write anything here, even a short post was out of my reach. I had to do two different projects for the university, change my flat, then I got really ill so it was pretty intense week but it ended fine and now is the time for long and I expect interesting post.

First some geography and history for the curious. The Kingdom of Spain or as they call it : El Reino de España consists of the continent part, the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean Sea, The Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean and the autonomous cities of Ceuta and Mellila that border Marroco in Africa. The funny part is that every autonomous part has a capital city which decides the general direction of the future of its inhabitants. There are 17 autonomous communities and The Balearic Islands are one of them.

So what do I know about these islands? There are situated in the Mediterranean Sea and there are 4 big islands: Mallorca, Menorca, the famous Ibiza and Formentera. The capital is Palma de Mallorca situated on Mallorca, a really big city with two faces: the commercial-tourist part and the historical- artistic side. They speak Catalan. Ok thats it for the dry stuff. Here is the map for general information:

Now my personal point of view:

The flight from Valencia-Manises is exactly 45 minutes.They serve you a coffee or juice, you drink it and in the next moment you have to collect your baggage and leave the plane. The airport in Mallorca is big and is 50 years old. Planes leave and arrive every couple of minutes as the main transportation of people and goods is by air.

My first shot on the island:

A second one 30 minutes later:

To verify my landing on the island- here are my legs :")

And for my own surprise I was really charmed by the island. First of all it has mountains and I mean BIG ones for an island. The highest peak is Puig Major with 1445 meters above sea level and according of the tourist guide there are even few days with snow up there! Second the nature is just great! The sea is in such blue-green colour that you can stare in it for hours. And they have some serious architecture in the capital city with historical value. But what I liked most is the calm and slow pace of living there. It is not like the ever partying Ibiza, but it has some spirit by itself.

For the architectural part...in the next post. :")

Have a wonderful week!

photos: me!