Travel
Museum of Musical Instruments, Berlin
A visit to Berlin, for me, must include a visit to the holy shrine of music: the Berlin Philharmonic Hall, home to the Philharmonic Orchestra, both closely associated with two of my musical hero’s; Beethoven and Karajan. After a second visit and two evenings of heavenly music I still was drawn to the place. Close…
Monet Gardens
In the province of Normandy, France, lies the quiet, picturesque town of Giverny. Here the impressionist painter, Monet, lavished love and care on his garden for over 40 years. The lush garden with its profusion of flowering shrubs and brilliantly coloured flowerbeds still conjures up images of Monet’s paintings of water lilies, the Japanese footbridge…
Knysna Elephant Rides
On the fringe of the Knysna woods is a facility for orphaned African elephants. This project was started with 2 abandoned elephant calves in 1994. Today the matriarchal herd is led by the first calf, now a fully grown elephant, Sally. The herd numbers eleven at the moment. There are also a smaller herd of…
The deportation memorial, Paris
On the end of the island behind the Notre Dame cathedral in the small garden is a memorial to the 200 000 people, mostly Jews, that was deported by Nazi’s to concentration camps in the second world war. Most of these people never returned. From the walkway behind the cathedral the memorial is not visible. You need…
Babylonstoren , Western Cape, South Africa
Between the tons of Paarl and Franschoek in the Western Cape Wine region is the beautifully restored historic farm of Babylonstoren ( Towers of Babylon). What better place to recreate historic gardens than on a farm with this name ( referring to the biblical ‘Hanging gardens of Babylon.) )
Museum Chagall, Nice, France
On a hillside in Nice, surrounded by a lush mediterranean garden lies the museum dedicated to the painter Marc Chagall. This is the first museum built in France to permanently display art of a living artist. The museum was built with the cooperation and involvement of the artist. The permanent art works on display depicts…