Stay cool

“Keep calm and pretend you are at the beach.” — author unknown Load your favorite inflatable beach buddy onto the back of a hot yellow Nash Metropolitan beach car, then “take a deep breath. Get present at the moment and ask yourself what is important this very second.” — Greg McKeown *   *   * Photo by Jan … More Stay cool

Translation

“The world cannot be translated; it can only be dreamed of and touched.” — Dejan Stojanovic “Without translation, I would be limited to the borders of my own country. The translator is my most important ally. He introduces me to the world.” — Italo Calvino No translation necessary here… The Best! *   *   * … More Translation

Harmony

“You don’t get harmony when everybody sings the same note.” — Doug Floyd “Music is truly the universal language, and when it is excellently expressed how deeply it moves our souls.” — David O. McKay With more than 17,000 pipes, the world’s largest pipe organ is housed in Passau, Germany’s baroque 17th century St. Stephen’s Cathedral, … More Harmony

Simplicity

“Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated.” — Coco Chanel The high altar and ceiling frescoes in Melk Abbey, Melk, Austria, combine to create a symphony of form and color, adding to the church’s reputation as one of the most significant structures of the Baroque era. Yet it is one of its simplistic … More Simplicity

Wisdom

“The search for wisdom is like a search for gold.” — Lajlah Gifty Akita The Vienna Secession, a group of artists who resigned from the Association of Austrian Artists due to differences of opinion over artistic concepts, constructed what remains today as one of Vienna’s best known buildings. The stark white building with beautiful, gold … More Wisdom

Flavor

“If you want to experience joy, stop, slow down, and begin to pay attention to what you taste and smell when you’re making breakfast, when you’re in a restaurant, when you’re having wine, when you’re outside and it’s the beginning of spring and you can smell the earth getting soft under your feet. Pay attention … More Flavor

Light

“You have no need to travel anywhere. Journey within yourself, enter a mine of rubies and bathe in the splendor of your own light. — Rumi “Light, that first phenomenon of the world, reveals to us the spirit and living soul of this world through color.” — Johannes Itten *   *   * The Chain … More Light

Commemorate

“It takes a huge effort to free yourself from memory” — Paulo Coelho “The living owe it to those who no longer can speak to tell their story for them.” — Czeslaw Milosz Shoes on the Danube Promenade ― A haunting and moving memorial to the Jewish victims shot into the Danube in 1944-45 by … More Commemorate

Achievement

“Sometimes we feel that we’ve got to climb a mountain or raise a monument to leave our mark on the world. What we fail to recognize is that often we make a difference simply by existing, by handling what life gives us. Maybe the way we deal with our challenges and our rewards inspires someone else to … More Achievement

Material things

“The love for material things grows like a fungus in the soul and destroys the loveliness of the human heart utterly.” — Caryll Houselander Noted for its water-absorbing abilities, the amadou fungi was traditionally used as tinder, dating back to ice-age days. Today it is still harvested in much of central Europe and used to craft … More Material things