Happy Friday everyone. Woke up to snow this morning…not impressed 😦 I’ve been pretty busy this week, hence the lack of posts, sorry! Looking forward to a nice, relaxing weekend! Here is a roundup of my favourite finds on Pinterest this week:
Outfit envy
Incredible beach house
Adorable puppy
Favourite quote
Favourite photo
On my Europe trip in 2006 my friend and I spent a few days in Prague. At our hostel we heard about a road trip that you could take, which took you out to some smaller town in the Czech countryside. One of the benefits of having no real schedule was that we were able to hop right in the van and just take off. It was great to get out of the city and explore a part of the country that I probably never would have. Today, I’m going to tell you about one of the strangest (and creepiest) places I’ve ever been…the Sedlec Ossuary in Kutná Hora.
One of a dozen or so UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the Czech Republic and one of the most popular day trips from Prague, Kutná Hora was once a booming silver-mining center. For a time in the late Middle Ages the town rivaled Prague for splendor and influence in Bohemia. Those days are long over, and today much of the town earns its money from tourism.
The Sedlec Ossuary is a small Roman Catholic chapel, located beneath the Cemetery Church of All Saints in Sedlec, a suburb of Kutná Hora in the Czech Republic. The ossuary contains approximately
40,000-70,000 human skeletons which have been artistically arranged to form decorations and furnishings for the chapel. Here is the story about how a church of bones came to be:
Henry, the abbot of the Cistercian monastery in Sedlec, was sent to the Israel (Holy Land) by King Otakar II of Bohemia in 1278. When he returned, he brought with him a small amount of earth he had removed from Golgotha and sprinkled it over the abbey cemetery. The word of this pious act soon spread and the cemetery in Sedlec became a desirable burial site throughout Central Europe. During the Black Death in the mid 14th century, and after the Hussite Wars in the early 15th century, many thousands were buried there and the cemetery had to be greatly enlarged.
Around 1400 a Gothic church was built in the center of the cemetery with a vaulted upper level and a lower chapel to be used as an ossuary for the mass graves unearthed during construction, or simply slated for demolition to make room for new burials. After 1511 the task of exhuming skeletons and stacking their bones in the chapel was, according to legend, given to a half-blind monk of the order.
Between 1703 and 1710 a new entrance was constructed to support the front wall, which was leaning outward, and the upper chapel was rebuilt. This work, in the Czech Baroque style, was designed by Jan Santini Aichel.
In 1870, František Rint, a woodcarver, was employed by the Schwarzenberg family to put the bone heaps into order. The macabre result of his effort speaks for itself. Four enormous bell-shaped mounds occupy the corners of the chapel. An enormous chandelier of bones, which contains at least one of every bone in the human body, hangs from the center of the nave with garlands of skulls draping the vault. Other works include piers and monstrances flanking the altar, a large Schwarzenberg coat-of-arms, and the signature of Rint, also executed in bone, on the wall near the entrance.
This was a completely unique experience to me…I mean a church of bones?!? Really!! One of my best recommendations to a fellow traveler would be to make sure that you don’t let the opportunity to experience new things and places you’ve never even heard of pass you by. An itinerary can be a great thing, but don’t be fixated on it because you never know where a random road trip could take you!
Happy rainy Friday. Another dreary April day here today, but at least it’s warm out…can’t wait for a few hot, sunny days! Hope everyone has a great weekend, in the meantime here are my favourite Pinterest finds this week:
Favourite laugh (sign in front of a bar)
Favourite painting (Leonid Afremov)
Gorgeous black tie gown
Summer nail colour
Best quote
I love a good drink in the summer. Fruit is fresh, the sun is hot and a fruity drink just hits the spot so well. Here are five drinks sure to make your backyard the place to be this summer. All drinks found on Pinterest.
Blood Orange Margarita (Makes 1 drink)
Ingredients:
Directions:
1. Rub the rim of a glass with an edge of a blood orange slice. Swirl the rim through a small pile of sea salt to salt the rim.
2. Combine all ingredients into a cocktail shaker, add ice and shake for 15 seconds.
3. Put a few cubes of ice in your glass. Strain the cocktail into the glass and enjoy.
Electric Lemonade (Makes 1 drink)
Ingredients:
Directions:
1. Add a handful of ice to a tall glass
2. Add blue curacao and vodka
3. Top off with lemonade to taste
Pink Grapefruit Maragrita (Makes 4 drinks)
Ingredients:
Directions:
1. Rub the rim of an old fashioned glass with an edge of a lime slice. Swirl the rim through a small pile of sea salt to salt the rim.
2. Combine the grapefruit juice, lime juice, triple sec and ice in a blender.
3. Pour into a large pitcher (or just keep it in the blender) and pour in the tequila, stir.
4. Garnish with a lime wedge and serve!
Strawberry Champagne Spritzers (Makes 1 pitcher)
Ingredients:
Directions:
1. Slice your strawberries into vertical slivers, tear mint leaves roughly, and add both to a large pitcher.
2. Squeeze the juice of 6 meyer lemons and gently muddle (muddle = mash) the ingredients using a wooden spoon.
3. Add equal parts sake & champagne, and lots of ice.
4. Squeeze a dropper full of vanilla stevia into each glass before serving.
Strawberry Watermelon Mojito (Makes 1 pitcher)
Ingredients:
Directions:
1. In a large pitcher, combine sugar, mint leaves, and lime juice. Muddle the mint leaves with the end of a wooden spatula.
2. Fill the blender with watermelon and then add strawberries. Blend until smooth and combined.
3. Pour watermelon mixture into the pitcher. Add rum and stir well until combined. Serve in chilled glasses and enjoy!
I don’t know about the rest of you, but I have most definitely hit a wall today…the Wednesday rut. So, to pick myself up I compiled the best of the best Sex and the City quotes. These things are awesome…and funny…and oh so true (most of the time)! Did I leave any of your favourites out? Let me know in the comments of you have one to add!
“I like my money where I can see it, hanging in my closet.” – Carrie
“The most exciting, challenging and significant relationship of all is the one you have with yourself. And if you find someone to love the you that you love, well, that’s just fabulous.” –Carrie
“I once was broken up with by a guy’s doorman: ’I’m sorry Ms. Hobbes, Jonathan won’t be coming down. Ever.'” –Miranda
“I know your friends fine. Charlotte is the brunette, Miranda is the redhead and Samantha is
trouble.” –Big
“I’ve spent $40,000 on shoes and I have no place to live?! I will literally be the old woman who lived in her shoes.” – Carrie
“Life gives you lots of chances to screw up which means you have just as many chances to get it right.” – Carrie
“I’m looking for love. Real love. Ridiculous, inconvenient, consuming, can’t-live-without-each-other love.” – Carrie
“I will not be the first one to speak. And if he never calls me again, I’ll always think of him fondly. As an asshole.” – Carrie
“For your information, her ass is fat because she just had a baby! What’s your excuse?” – Samantha
“How many guys do we ever hit it off with? Very few, and even if we do, those relationships don’t last, and even if they did, men die first, so we’re right back where we started.” – Carrie
“Miranda was a huge fan of the Yankees. I was a huge fan of being anywhere you could smoke and drink at two in the afternoon without judgment.” – Carrie
“There are very few things this New Yorker loves as much as Sunday brunch. You can sleep until noon and still get eggs anywhere in the city, alcohol is often included with the meal, and Sunday is the one day a week you get the single woman’s sports pages: the New York Times wedding section.” – Carrie
“We’re not barren, we’re reproductively challenged!” – Charlotte
“The gay straight man was a new strain of heterosexual male spawned in Manhattan as the result of overexposure to fashion, exotic cuisine, musical theatre and antique furniture.” – Carrie
“He only has one ball and I have a lazy ovary. In what twisted world does that create a baby? It’s like the Special Olympics of conception!” – Miranda
“It took me a really long time to get here, but I’m here. Carrie, you’re the one.” – Big (Awwww)
Good morning! For my Travel Tuesday post today I will be showing you photos of the Colosseum. Like Paris, Rome has too much to offer to try and condense into one post, so I’ll be splitting it up. I’ve been to Rome three times now (2004, 2006 and 2010) and I’ve loved it every time. I find the Colosseum fascinating. Its construction started in 72 AD and was completed in 80 AD. Just consider the history for a moment. The fact that this piece of history is still standing is just incredible.
Originally known as the Flavian Amphitheater, the Colloseum was the largest building of the era. In its glory
days, the Colosseum was able to seat 50,000 spectators for gladiatorial contests and public spectacles such as mock sea battles, animal hunts, executions, re-enactments of famous battles, and dramas based on Classical mythology. The building ceased to be used for entertainment in the early medieval era. It was later reused for such purposes as housing, workshops, quarters for a religious order, a fortress, a quarry, and a Christian shrine. Although today it stays partially ruined because of damage caused by devastating earthquakes and stone-robbers, the Colosseum is an iconic symbol of Imperial Rome. It is one of Rome’s most popular tourist attractions and still has close connections with the Roman Catholic Church, as each Good Friday the Pope leads a torchlit “Way of the Cross” procession that starts in the area around the Colosseum.
This monument is really a site to be seen. I love history and having the opportunity to visit a place with so much was an exciting experience.
Ladies, please, please please stop wearing Ugg boots and skirts, dresses or shorts. It does not look good. You look like Britney Spears circa 2008, not a good look. Thanks, have a good day 🙂
Glitter and Grapes 