Day trip to visist jewellery designer Wilhelmine Ltd in Lillesand, Norway

This week we have visited jewellery designer Trine @ Wilhelmine Ltd at her shop Kunstkolonialen in Lillesand, Norway.
If you have followed me on my Facebook page "Tilla's Jewellery" you may have seen some of the pictures I have shared from Wilhelmine Ltd. The reason is I really love and admire her jewellery work and I am getting very inspired from her movie clips showing the jewellery she is making.

In January she shared a film clip where she is creating little hearts and this was the extra push I needed to find a jewellery evening class to join.

The shop Kunstkolonialen is a dream with beautiful jewellery and clothes.
On the picture you can see Trine with her co-worker Natali. We talked a little about jewellery making which gave me more inspiration to continue to learn more, to create more jewellery pieces and to keep going.
This is my dream (but I will have to keep my day job).

Natali & Trine

"How to create a heart" by Trine W Rønnevig (in Norwegian only).

Photos from bike trip on Waikato River Trail

Hi all,

Photos from Waikato Rail Trail in January. We love it!

Inhale....exhale....

I have not been good at getting out of the office on time lately. Always staying a bit extra to do something I just have to do and then some more....you probably know how it is...
On Saturday I went with a friend to Takapuna Beach. We sat down, had an ice cream and just enjoyed the lovely scenery. Could not be any better than this, could it?

Friends visiting from home....

It is two weeks ago since my dear friends left us to go back to Norway after 10 days in Auckland. Yes, we had only 10 days but wow! did we do a lot of things while they were here!

We did sightseeing in the harbour of Auckland, Devonport, shopping, trip to Rotorua, saw the sheep show at the Agrodome, Wai-O-Tapu geothermal sculptured after vulcanic activity thousands of years ago, Taupo, Huka Falls (even saw a couple of young rafters going down the falls), lunch & dinners everywhere, visit to the farm & the in-laws, Matakana & concert, Omaha beach etc.
Lovely days with lots of laughs.

Here are some pictures:

Auckland on a very sunny day!

The Viaduct, one wedding and no funeral

Thursday night we went to the one year celebration of the Americas Cup win for Oracle Racing.
The venue was based in the Viaduct and while I was contemplating wheather I should attack the bar on my own or wait for my darling to come back from work, I took some photos in the Viaduct.

The weather was sunny and warm and the Viaduct was a busy place to be.

Shopping in Newmarket

Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh! Shoppaholic monster is back!

After a week on the farm, it was time for city life again, so I took the train to Newmarket for some much needed shopping therapy. It was lovely to see the city again. All the shops and cafes...ahhh...

Newmarket, known for its good selection of shops, restaurants and entertainment,  is in the centre of Auckland (just 5 minutes on the train from Britomart). Check this little movie from Newmarket (click on the 30 sec shopping tour link).

First stop was Cue, an Australian high fashion store known for its classic qualitywear with a twist.
Formal wear is not necessary where I come from, but here it is and with the Casual Friday being the norm, I was in big need for more workwear.

Allanah Hill

Skiing Queen light

During the Christmas weekend I got the chance to put my skis on for a little trip in the sunny, but cold weather (approx. -16C). 

It is not bad when you can just walk out the door, put the skis on and off-we-go!

Ok, I wasn't born with the skis on as some Norwegian are (poor mothers). 
I did grow up with a lot of skiing, but the few skills I had disappeared after moving to town and not practicing it anymore. 
Anyway, it is good fun to test it out, but must admit I get more and more chicken as the years goes by.

Luckily, I had my camera with me so took some photos for you to enjoy.

A weekend in Oslo

Last weekend my friend N. and I went to Oslo to visit my friend J.
This has been planned for weeks and guess who was looking forward to a weekend of indulgence in shops, restaurants and a late morning in the hotel.
We did!
We arrived Oslo on Saturday noon to icy roads and a lovely lunch at Bølgen and Moi, known for its very delicious food and I must say interior as well. After our blood sugar levels were back on track, we went to the hotel to put our bags into storage - and then it was straight into shopping heaven.
The selection of shops in Oslo are great and it is fun to have a look around. Not that we bought a lot. Shocking, I know, but I think we were a bit overwhelmed from the selection of brands.
Nevermind. We had a good time anyway. 
Ahhh...the lovely food at Olivia. I have to check the address, cause everyone who is visiting Oslo, should go to this lovely place.

On Sunday we visited Vigelandsparken. For those of you who have been there, will probably only remember all the naked sculptures. Actually 212 of them. This is the biggest sculpture park in the world where the sculptures are made of only one artist. His name is Gustav Vigeland (1869-1943). He was also designing the park itself and the park was finished between 1939 and 1949. Isn't it lovely and peaceful?
The most popular sculpture is "Sinnataggen" (the angry boy). You can see him in the background of the picture of my dear friends N. and J.

Thank you Ms. J for being a fabulous guide!

Ms. N and Ms. J - a lot happier than Sinnataggen

Santa "train" in the forest

If you had a chance to visit Jegersberg in Kristiansand this weekend, this is what you would have seen.
About 100 small children with fire logs walking in the forest. This is a yearly tradition arranged by the local Tourist Association (web page in Norwegian only).

I am sure this is a nice break from all the hustle and bustle before Christmas.
Aren't they cute?

Candle holder made of snow

A little taste of Auckland

I came by this beautiful presentation of Auckland on my search for medication for my travel bug.
Isn't it great?
A good mix of beaches, sea life, sailing, city life & restaurants and magnificent nature.
Where's my ticket?

All made by Tourism Auckland



I think you may be able to handle this one as well...

Great Barrier Island is a remote, tranquil and untouched paradise 90km north east of central Auckland. Located at the edge of the Hauraki Gulf, Great Barrier Island is one of the most unspoilt places you'll ever find. From tramping through native forest, to sea kayaking around coves and inlets, there are endless ways to explore this stunning adventurer's paradise.

Also featuring a look at the Medlands Fishing and Longboard Surfing Competitions on Great Barrier Island.

Winter reality

Woke up from my warm summer memories and realized winter is still on.

I had a trip to Mandal (approx 45 min west from Kristiansand) to visit my friend Nina today.
The weather is freezing. The wind make the temperature feel like it is -15C and it is not refreshing any more.
I can tell you that. This weather make you appreciate the heat inside your house.

I took these pics with my mobile phone on the way home this evening.
The Christmas decorations are out and it looks pretty cosy. I will try and get some more pictures from the main street later.

This is from Skippergata, one of my favorite streets in Kristiansand.

Christmas decorations in a shop window

Summer memories

The boxes have gone (and yes...they will end up with dear Mrs. M until we have our own place - see her cheecky comment on my last article), my shoulders feels way lighter and the apartment is very empty.
Winter has arrived here, -10C at the moment. Freezing...Yes....

My thoughts are with you all out there in the cold wherever you are in the world. It is painful to be cold. We need warm memories. That's why I hereby send you some warm thoughts with the help of my pictures from Auckland last summer.

Have a cup of tea, get your blanket, close your eyes and think about your favorite beach, white sand, blue skies and summer music.
Are you there yet?

Devonport, Auckland

If you leave me, can I come too?

...and then my dear husband left to go to the land of the long, white cloud.

Let's hope he will have a good time with family and friends and something positive will come out of this trip.
Won't say anything more.
No jinxes, just hopes.

Eat, Pray, Love - Max Foundation Movie Event

The movie has been and gone (for this event anyway). I hope you liked it. I did...

For all you lucky women who are in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch or Hamilton mid October.
Max is arranging a night with a movie, fashion show, nibbles and drinks.
Have fun! Tickets: NZD 45,-.

For more info, read here.

The Tall Ship Races

A couple of weekends back we had visit from The Tall Ship Races. It was the first time for Kristiansand being a hosting town for this great event. If you don't know what it is, think old fashion sailing boats, young people learning to sail and great chances to see new places and big ships competing against each other. The ships are sailing to different European cities and this time it was Kristiansand's turn to arrange the big event in Norway. Other cities the ships had visited was Antwerp in Belgium, Aalborg in Denmark and Hartlepool, United Kingdom (which was the last stop-over during the race).

The container harbour was cleaned and food stalls, restaurants and market stands were placed in the area. The whole town changed, heaps of people visiting and about 80 concerts during the weekend.

The weather was as usual not supportive. It was raining quite a bit during the weekend and in the end we surrendered to the raingear to see some of the concerts on Saturday. Sure it was a funny sight, us in full raingear sitting outside on the wet benches drinking coffee and watching local bands playing. It turned out to be quite a nice day. Later the same evening we went back to see other concerts.

Lovely Copenhagen

Last week we left for a trip to Copenhagen, Denmark. Life had gone a bit quiet at home and the RC-44 cup was on in Copenhagen which meant catchup's with people we know and a bit of shopping and dining for us both.

Copenhagen is a great city...and I know you like to read the facts, so here we go:

Facts from http://www.visitcopenhagen.com/press/statistics_and_facts/about_copenhagen "Copenhagen, Denmark's capital and Scandinavia's liveliest city, lies within the Øresund Region, which encompasses Scania, on the Swedish side, and Zealand and the island of Bornholm on the Danish side. Copenhagen has a population of around 1.7 million; the Øresund Region has a total population of 3.664.000 million".

Christianshavns Kanal/Channel

As you can see, Copenhagen is big enough to get lost in and to do a bit of exploring.
It is approx. 10 years since we last time visited the city so we needed a bit of exploring (with the help of a map) to find the main street called Strøget and to get our bearings again.

Spring....

We are heading towards spring here, though it seems to only be on the calendar. The wind is cold and the spring flowers are still inside the apartment.
There is hope though. We are in May and the national day is on the coming Monday. Every school will be participating in the parades with flags and songs, orchestras will be playing and the weather will be great. Yeah right! At least it is a day where we can eat as many hotdogs and ice creams as we want.....(don't tell me it applies to kids only!!!)

Here are some photos from previous summers from both the south and north of Norway.

Søgnefjorden, south, summer -04

Søgnefjorden - the red houses are just for boat equipment...I think...

Life on the farm

We are living on the farm at present which is normally a fairly quiet life.
That has all changed though.

Since last year, two goats have moved in. They suddenly arrived one morning, nobody missed them and they have since stayed here. They didn't have any names before we arrived (we came and stayed too!).
Now they are called Tikka and Masala (after the famous, delicious Indian dish containing goat meat...yeah...I know it is mean...). The last week, they have also been called Louis and Vuitton, but that is another story.

Tikka is also called Houdini since she very often escape the pen to eat from the delicious vine plants.
The cows seems to like the plants as well, so there must be something good in there.

Here are the goats:

Tikka in the background and Masala on the way
exploring

Tikka is sceptical. Where are my vines?

Symonds Str & K-road

Autumn has definitely arrived in Auckland. No doubt about it. The first autumn day (according to the calendar) was on the 1st of March and since then the weather has gone from good to even better (it has cooled down a bit)...ha ha

I had a walk up Symonds Street yesterday morning. It is an area I really like to walk around because of the lovely buildings. I especially like some of the older University buildings and churches.

My favorite church would be St. Paul's Church. It has lovely doors and windows and was a good photo target. Have a look:

St. Paul's Church
Construction date: 1895 - Architect: William Henry Skinner.

Greetings from a fishing virgin

Hi all!

Something  big has happened to me (a snapper that is)! I have been on a fishing trip and caught fish! Incredible. It was my first fishing trip (ok, I have been on a fishing boat before, but never actually been fishing).

I was asked a while ago by my in-laws to go fishing with them and some of their friends, but I was sceptical. Me fishing? I love to eat fish, but to actually fish? Hmmm...needed some time to think about it.

Then my better half couldn't come fishing due to work and I was asked again. Still sceptical. You don't have to fish. Just come for the trip they said. So I thought: Why not. I could take some photos and enjoy the view.

I was picked up by the apartment. I had packed a backpack of warm clothes and wet weather gear, sunglasses, camera (yes...I did remember it!), crackers and chocolate (I even forgot I had it in my backpack!). Got on the boat, approx. 40-45 foot one, so looked safe enough. Didn't want to get too close to the water...

After a while we were all onboard, probably about 10 people. All the guys had been fishing before. Some even had their own fishing rods.