{simple pleasures} world of wonders: monde des merveilles

“A truly great book should be read in youth, again in maturity and once more in old age, as a fine building should be seen by morning light, at noon and by moonlight.”

— Robertson Davies

far from the simple geometry of downtown chicago's highrises wearing their mies van der rohe influence proudly like a royal cloak; and a mere two-hour train ride from the elegant cityscape offered up by haussmannian paris, lies the fine art nouveau architecture of victor horta + henry van de velde and the grandiose castles of yore in belgium. architecture from all genres, both secular + religous, is indeed just as enchanting by day as by night, at dawn or at dusk. 

{simple pleasures} falling off the map: tomber de la carte

“And if travel is like love, it is, in the end, mostly because it’s a heightened state of awareness, in which we are mindful, receptive, undimmed by familiarity and ready to be transformed. That is why the best trips, like the best love affairs, never really end.”

— Pico Iyer

tomber de la carte: i had the pleasure of visiting brussels, the capital of belgium and the capital of the european union, with its fragrant, peaceful parks, its ornate, art nouveau architecture and its inspired, plant-based cafes. i'll unfurl the world of sustainable brussels in separate posts over the next three weeks, and i'll also take you on a tour through the port city of antwerp {including a jaunt through the home of portrait artist peter paul rubens}, and finally, we'll breathe in knokke, a sparkling seaside town in flanders with a brilliant view of the north sea. traveling continues to shape + mold me, and as travel writer pico iyer observes, our trips never really end once we've come back home.