Is the only thing worth seeing in Birmingham the sunset?

Last weekend we went to Birmingham for the Focus on Imaging 2013, Europe's biggest annual imaging show. We decided to make a weekend out of it and headed off to Birmingham to check it out. Not my favourite city in England so far I must admit but I am sure there is more to it than what we saw. The central parts were pretty nice but that's about it. I liked the fountain at Victoria Square though!

Day after we went to Bicester Village - the place where you can find branded products at discount prices. Masha picked up a very nice Ralph Lauren vest. Much nicer than mine!

And on the way home we were lucky enough to catch the sunset. A perfect ending of the day!

In deep water with fotoble.com

So, I'm into deep water - have done something I've never done before... Have built a website. Of course I haven't built it from the beginning. We bought a shell and then we set it up. THAT was complicated enough!!! If we'll ever build a real website simplicity will be needed! It should be like a Mac - easy to navigate and intuitive. Can't say that this was. But getting the hang of it. And it's fun!

Of course it's a photography website. It has a section for weddings, one for portraits and one for modelling. We call it fotoble.com (cool name don't you think?). It's still under construction but here it is:

Fotoble

For the wedding pictures we started out with Jakob and Linn, my baby brother who got married last fall. What could be more perfect?

My niece Alexandra was the obvious choice when we posted our first portrait pictures.

The modelling part was less obvious but we chose from a couple of different shoots. One of which was Annaliese Dayes.

See you at fotoble.com!

Shooting Annaliese from America's Next Top Model

The other weekend we got to shoot Annaliese Dayes from America's Next Top Model. Annaliese was great and we all had a lot of fun! The clothes are designed by Mercy Ogole and Claire Appelby was the makeup artist.

Isak and Emmelie visit London

Isak and his girlfriend Emmelie came and visited London this weekend - very nice! And they were luckier than mom was last weekend. No rain and spring in the air - 10 degrees this weekend! Wonderful! We started with a walk across London Bridge...

...then via Borough Market to South Bank. 

Across Millennium Bridge to St Paul's.

Then Isak wanted to go to a pub that looked like a pub. We took him to Blackfriars Pub just off  Blackfriars Bridge. Isak approved and tried to check in. 

We were nicely treated. Beers, ciders AND flowers... 

When getting outside we ran into a different kind of party... Only in London... 

Then off to Leicester Square and China Town before heading home via dinner at Hoxton Grill and a beer at BrewDog in Shoreditch. Long day and we saw a lot. We think our guests went to bed happy!

Happy Lunar New Year!

Mom is here visiting over the weekend and luckily her visit coincided with the celebration of the Chinese New Year. Unfortunately London offered the worst possible conditions - four degrees and rain. We defied the rain, put on our ski jackets and headed to Trafalgar to help welcoming the year of the snake.  

Mom tries out some toys. Maybe a present for someone lucky...

Anybody up for learning some Mandarin? 

After spending some time at Trafalgar Square we headed off to China Town. We figured we would have a look and maybe have some Chinese food. 

The rain kept falling...

...but we were happy anyway

Although, it turned out we were not the only ones craving a Chinese adventure and some cuisine... Gerrard Street (main street in China Town) was packed. Lots of people and some magic creatures...

We gave up on the idea of Chinese food - just not doable... We went on to one of our favourite places, an Italian restaurant off Leicester Square. Just outside we ran into a dragon and her guardians.  

Looking south

It's February and a little bit warmer. Spring is coming but is not here yet. Every day we think about southern latitudes and we're waiting... Longing.... Good things come to those who wait!

Very determined young lady

My little niece Alexandra loves to take a bath. Always asking for it. But it's not always her mom lets her get her way. Then she takes matters in her own hands. Get your doll, your ducks and your other toys and create your own bath! Almost as good!