Memories of Summer

The lingering memory of summer this year is of blistering heat waves of over 100° F./40° C. that kept me glued to the A/C.



And yet, my small sketchbook reminds me that there were many wonderful moments with family and friends. Leila Hejaiej, a singer of classical Tunisian music, gave an excellent concert in Tunis. 

I sketched the musicians in her orchestra...in the dark.  











Then we spent the 4th of July in Korba (a beach town on the Mediterranean) 












and attended a graduation celebration with local musicians. 

The high point of the summer was a week in Lisbon, Portugal at a beautiful hotel that has a statue of San Marcos in the entry




















The hotel breakfast was royal. 







                        


The parks and museums were lovely.                














And of course, the restaurants were excellent--wonderful food. 

I'm glad I keep my sketchbook handy, or I might have forgotten what a good summer it was. 

Les Jardins Majorelle

While in Morocco last August, we visited the Majorelle Gardens in Marrakech. I managed a quick sketch in my journal inspired by the wonderful colors I saw there.

Their cactus collection was a sight to see.

A wonderful summer memory to cheer up a cool, cloudy day.

A Busy August

In August, we took one of my granddaughters to Morocco. 
My collection of airport sketches continues to grow. 










The trip started with a bang!--when the baggage conveyor belt ran into the bottom of the airplane. The damage was sufficient to oblige passengers to get off the plane and wait 6 hours for another plane.









We finally made it to Agadir (on the Atlantic).













The gardens of Marrakech were stunning, especially considering the city is in the middle of a desert.









Fountains take center stage--the magic of water.








































The Bahia Palace has wonderful tile work, interior gardens, and fountains. 

It was an enjoyable and memorable trip...

A Scorching July

Despite scorching temperatures in July, interesting things happened. I continued with Joanne Sharpe's online class, which resulted in cheerful mantra pages.

I managed to keep track of time.

For a cultural evening, I attended Verdi's Aïda at the Roman theater in Carthage. So I did blind sketches in the dark. 








Unfortunately, it was a poor performance.



We left at the intermission (first time I've ever done that!).



I went South to Djerba for a week with family members. 
Despite the heat (50° C.= 122°F.), it was an enjoyable vacation. Nice hotel, beautiful beach with a warm Mediterranean.



I enjoyed sketching the well-kept, beautiful camels and horses for tourists on the beach.

Camels fascinate me--they're so full of personality and have such interesting faces.


















Thanks to the heat, I managed to do some stitching in my fabric journal as well. Basically, I was glued to the AC while just moving my fingers...

June Zoomed By, Too

"Follow Your Bliss"

June's mantra pages were fun to do. 



As usual, my sketching was quick, but enjoyable to do.





We spent several days with the grandkids in Nabeul at the beach and visited ceramic shops. The many Russian tourists couldn't get enough sun and were mostly lobster red.

I am in love with my garden terrace. We have finally gotten the overhead jasmine and grape "ceiling" growing in the right direction and creating lots of shade...besides giving us some excellent organic grapes.

It's magic!

Then May Zoomed By

Looking back, May was such a pleasant month, with very pleasant temperatures.

I played around with watercolors in Joanne Sharpe's online class.









I managed to keep track of time...








and do some quick sketching.











I haven't shown my garden for awhile. 
I found an interesting branch that turned into the first of a wood folks series.


I gave him/her (?) a pink hat to go with the geraniums.

I regrouped some of my mosaic pots and replanted a couple of them.

Indeed, a pleasant month...