A ~ Z of Marvelousness: G is for Graffiti

Graffiti (or is it Street Art?)

• What's the difference between Graffiti and Street Art ? this

• This marvelous yellow wall might be the perfect cross between the two...

A ~ Z of Marvelousness: F is for Flowers

Flowers

• Spring flowers...promise of warmer days and brighter colors.
• Giving flowers dates back centuries - originally bestowed for their medicinal and herbal characteristics.
• A small bouquet is also called a nosegay, tussie-mussie, or posy...
• The "Language of Flowers" - to express feelings that can't be spoken.
• I took this picture at the Portobello Market in London in Spring.
• "There are always flowers for those who want to see them." Henri Matisse

A ~ Z of Marvelousness: E is for Eating

Eating

• "Tell me what you eat, and I will tell you what you are." - Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, author of  "The Physiology of Taste".
• These beauties (halva, baklava and turkish delight) are from Mohamad & Samir in Jordan. 
• Marvelous: traveling and eating.

A ~ Z of Marvelousness: D is for Dubrovnik

Dubrovnik, Croatia

• Marvelous: The beautiful, medieval city of Dubrovnik. The color of the sea and the the sky are almost exactly the same…
• The city is a UNESCO world heritage site and was founded in the 7^th century. It is seriously rich in history.
• The city survived the Croatian war of the early 90's a little damaged but will probably continue to flourish.
• Definitely a “must see”...

A ~ Z of Marvelousness: C is for Coffee

Coffee

• I prefer my coffee black but enjoyed this particularly pretty cup at 71 Irving Place, Gramercy, New York City, Irving Farm being one of the best coffee roasters out there.
• Where to even start singing the praises of coffee? The smell of coffee on a cold winter morning, sitting on the sidewalk, people-watching, sipping on a cup of coffee. Fellow coffee drinkers (the great like-minded) agreeing that coffee is always a good idea... Anticipating that first cup of coffee is often the greatest motivator to get out of bed.
• I know that Java refers to beans produced on the Indonesian island of Java but it does rolls beautifully off the tongue…
• A guy called Sheik Omar discovered coffee. After being exiled from Yemen, he started chewing on berries from a shrub to foil starvation. After roasting the bitter berries, he discovered their flavor and after boiling them he discovered the deliciously fragrant taste of coffee… People were so impressed with his discovery that he was invited back to his country and made a saint..

A ~ Z of Marvelousness: B is for Beach

Beach, Key Biscayne, FL, USA

• Turquoise water, white sand, blazing sun, lots of fun, maybe even throw in a picnic and a few palm trees – can it get any more marvelous than that?
• This is Key Biscayne Beach, FL, a five-mile-long barrier island just off the coast of downtown Miami.
• I took the picture after climbing the stairs all the way to the top of the historic Cape Florida Lighthouse 
• My favorite beaches: Copacabana Beach (Rio, Brazil), Blouberg Beach (Cape Town, South Africa), Kho Phi Phi Beach (Phi Phi Islands, Thailand), and the beautiful Boracay (Philippines).

A ~ Z of Marvelousness: A is for Amaryllis

Amaryllis

• Amaryllis Belladonna – even the name sounds marvelous...
• One tall, elegant stem and a cluster of huge, red funnel-shaped flowers.
• In Greek mythology,  Amaryllis was a shy shepherdess in love with a guy who only loved flowers. Because he would only love someone who brings him a new flower, Amaryllis pierced her heart daily for a month and from her blood sprang a crimson flower.
• It means “to sparkle”…true inner beauty emanating outwards…
• And native of the Western Cape region of South Africa (as am I)