december 2018 finds is the last list of this year.
mallorca
we started the month in mallorca, the biggest of the balearic islands. we spent one day in the capital, palma de mallorca. then, we drove around the island. it was serene.
1. my favourite place in palma was the caixa forum building. it is known as gran hotel and is a modernist building by architect lluís domènech i montaner.
2. we visited the fundacio pilar i joan miro. it’s wonderfully located on a hill overlooking the sea. it has several wings as well as a sculpture garden.
find another half an hour to visit the jardin marivent downhill. it’s full of even more miro sculptures.
3. i had no idea that there is a local language called mallorqui. it’s a relative of catalan and valencian so we could partly understand it.
4. we spent two days driving around the island. the endless natural views were wonderful.
as a caveat, since the island is invaded by great numbers of (mostly) german tourists, everything seemed more expensive. food was generally bad and overpriced.
5. a notable exception was la rosa vermuteria y colmado. next to caixa forum, two adjoining places with shared menu and staff. you must try the vermut and crema catalana. but you can’t go wrong no matter what you order. it’s busy and they don’t take reservations so prepare to wait in line.
6. it took me over 20 years to buy another pair of birkenstocks. i don’t know why. i know i’m gonna be very happy with my new arizonas.
7. i started human acts by han kang last month in bucharest. but i put it down for a while because it’s not an easy book. i finished it around mid december, exactly when romania was remembering one of its own massacres, the 1989 revolution.
the books uses a multiple pov system to be able to keep the reader focused on the deaths of the gwangju uprising.
weirdly, we visited gwangju last year. it was an unremarkable rural city of 1,5 million. i had no idea about the 1980 movement. but now i know.
the violent stifling of the public protest sounds a lot like what happened in romania during and after the revolution. people were killed and their bodies hidden in order to keep the whole murderous effort under wraps. my mom recently told me that the bodies of the romanians who started the revolution in timisoara in 1989 were burned. and then, their ashes were poured in the sewers…
i read the last lines of the book in tears and i’m crying now, too.
8. i also read teoria king kong, the auto-biographical book by virginie despentes. i noticed that the translation into spanish is by former partner, beatriz/paul preciado.
it’s an interesting feminist book. but since it was published back in 2006, i wonder if the author still stands by it in whole. i don’t agree with all her ideas.
9. i tried the primark x alessandra steinherr collection. i bought the plump and glow facial in a stick because i used to have a similar korean product and loved it. unfortunately, it’s not that good. it smells more like a glue than cosmetics and it has a hard, grainy texture.
anyway, i also got the pollution solution oil-free gel hydrator and i love it. beautiful texture, no smell, good results.
have you tried any products from this collection?
10. yemitas are traditional spanish sweets made with egg yolk. watch the video for more info as well as the recipe.
11. a little architecture porn never hurt no one.
12. learn a useful skill!
13. great insight by esther perel in what it takes to have a lengthy and mutually satisfactory relationship.
14. i miss bloc party. don’t you?
15. plan coeur is a very new french netflix series. i went through the 8 episodes in one evening. well, is there any other way?
16. by chance, i came across interviews with tricky. i watched and i liked them.
17. i’ve been following david hallberg on insta for a while. read this article to find out more about this great ballet dancer and his beauty routine.
18. i found out about depeche mode live in berlin – a film by anton corbijn, their long time collaborator. the teaser for it is my favourite live version of enjoy the silence. the set includes 5 cds. we’re considering buying it.
19. this is a good song by romanian band mono jacks.
20. apparently, there is a documentary out there about deus’ frontman tom barman. it’s called tempo of a restless soul.
as a side note, deus start their 26-date european tour at the end of march, celebrating 20 years since their amazeballs album ideal crash.
21. i read the christmas issue of vogue paris. on the cover, jane birkin with her famous daughters: loui doillon and charlotte gainsbourg. i bought the magazine for charlotte and i was not disappointed. there’s plenty of interesting related content.
22. shoplifters completes the top 3 best films of 2018. a beautifully subtle and subversive japanese film about the family you choose. i loved it!
23. i have been in love with the tiger lillies for years. and especially with martyn’s voice and feeling. so it’s no surprise that i love this track.
24. i do not understand why ms. neutral keeps on modifying her body. but i’d encourage you to listen to the interview. you’ll find out about parallel worlds.
25. the municipality of valencia opened the parque central.
although large, it is only part of a future project that aims to submerge the neighboring railroad tracks and use the surface to complete the existing park.
until then, the new park is full of people, kids and dogs, which goes to show how needed it was.
this list and this year have come to an end. i wish us all an eventful and productive new year, we deserve it! 🙂
photo credits: little aesthete and copyright owners
video credits: copyright owners, little aesthete
