The Dick Bruna House

The Dick Bruna Huis at the Centraal Museum in Utrecht is dedicated to the work of the Utrecht-born illustrator, Dick Bruna who created such iconic characters as the white bunny, Miffy (or Nijntje as she is called here in the Netherlands) and her friends, Boris and Barbara Bear and Poppy Pig. The Dick Bruna Huis is, however, not merely a Miffy Museum, because Bruna has such an impressive portfolio under his belt as cover designs for Dutch and international best-selling crime novels - e.g. by Georges Simenon (Maigret) and Leslie Charteris (the Saint) -, poster commissions for Amnesty International, the Red Cross and other organizations, postage stamps, postcards and prints. The Bruna collection consists of more than 1200 works, including original sketches and drawings. Through a documentary, you can learn about how Bruna works and why he feels that simplicity shall be the key to his compositions. It's worth visiting the musueum to learn more about the artist and his legacy that goes well beyond the Miffy world.

"Simplicity leaves lots of room for the imagination, and that's what people find appealing in my work." /Dick Bruna/

Baking Inspirations

I have a thing for vintage cookbooks. They are so inspiring in a time when homemade sweets are almost only limited to cookies, brownies and muffins; they remind one that it is not impossible to prepare pastries like Buchteln ("sweet buns") or Hefekranz ("yeast wreath") and a great variety of cakes at home. My two personal favorites are Hajková, Mária. Édeskönyv. Bratislava: Madách Könyvkiadó, 1986. and Gööck, Roland. Das neue große Kochbuch. Gütersloh: Bertelsmann Lesering, 1963.

Mondscheintarif

Mondscheintarif ("Moonlight Tariff") by Ildikó von Kürthy was extremely amusing, even as a book. It is a Bridget Jones-like tale of Cora Hübsch, aged 33 3/4 and her waiting for the phone to ring... In the theatre of Lüneburg, Britta Focht created a great one-person show from the bestselling novel, her performance captures brilliantly the appeal and humor of the original story. It is an ultimate feel-good show that helps a great deal understand those sneaky female dating tricks. As for following the storyline in German, well, let me just say that it was of great help that I had read the book before.

Flea Market Finds

I love flea markets, never left any with my hand empty. This time, I found a lovely ceramic jam jar with a matching oil dispenser and an oil and vinegar cruet set decorated with bright ethnic patterns (made by Villeroy & Boch). My absolute favorite though is the vintage metal enamel lunch box that can hold only a tiny portion of soup or main dish.

Frequent Visitor

This is Tante; at least that's how I call her, because her real name is not known. She is a huge Maine Coon living in the same apartment block as us and paying a visit to our flat almost each day. She is absolutely not a lap cat, but likes being close by, lying alongside me, on the couch. Tante is a little clown and very similar in behavior to Simon's cat.

Keukenhof, the Garden of Europe

The Keukenhof flower garden near Amsterdam is the world's largest bulb garden with seven million bulbs (e.g. tulips, narcissi, hyacinths, daffodils etc.) planted each year. The park was established in 1949 by the mayor of Lisse so that Dutch bulb growers could show off their latest hybrids. The theme of 2010 is ‘From Russia with love’ that can be seen in the flower mosaic of St. Basil's Cathedral as well as in many Russian inspired floral arrangements with matryoshka dolls. The park is only open for two months in spring, from the end of March to mid-May. It is a truly spectacular experience, maybe the Carlsbad Flower Fields I visited a couple of years ago is the only one that could be matched to this magic.

Hanami in Germany

Hanami means "flower viewing", however "flower" almost always refers to cherry blossoms (or in other words "sakura"). The practice of hanami is a centuries-old Japanese custom and although it has lost some of its spiritual significance during the years, the weeks between late April and early May are still a great time to enjoy the beauty of spring.

The extract of cherry blossoms known for their nourishing properties is used in many skin care products. Here are the best ones:

Bath & Body Works Moisturizing Shampoo
Organix Conditioner
The Body Shop Body Butter
L'Occitane Lip Gloss
Neobio Moisturizer
San Francisco Soap Company Soap Bar
Demeter Cologne Spray
Bison Lip Cream