Saturday, September 13, 2008

All is full of love


(photo: http://www.wanderlost.org/)

Is it because of the butterflies in the air, of the lovely sunny day, of Björk sensually singing in the background, or of the expectations which bring butterflies back again to my tummy? ...
All is full of love.
"You'll be given love
you'll be taken care of
you'll be given love
you have to trust it
Maybe not from the sources
you have poured yours
Maybe not from the directions
you are staring at
Trust your head around
it's all around you
all is full of love
all around you
All is full of love : you just ain't receiving
All is full of love : your phone is off the hook
All is full of love : your doors are all shut
All is full of love"
Björk

Thursday, August 14, 2008

Interior design with Mexican flavour


In the past eight months I moved three times. You probably know how it is, boxes in, boxes out, unpacking, arranging, and so on. The most attractive, exciting and challenging for me though is the decorating part.


When I first came to Mexico, there were not so many places where you could buy nice (and affordable) furniture, but things are changing for the better. There are more and more attractive furniture stores opening in Baja, and I was lucky enough to meet Maria Luisa Reynoso, a wonderful person, interior designer and owner of Simmetria, furniture and decoration store in La Paz, which offers a wide selection of Mexican furniture combining colorful tradition and contemporary style, and individual personalized consulting. Malis, as her friends call her, is also an excellent interior designer and decoration consultant, and if you need a tip for what to do to give your home, an office, a store or a hotel, a special touch of your personality, she’s the one to help you with that and beyond. I had an interview with Malis for a Baja California Sur magazine Home, and here is an excerpt from the article.



Living in Baja is like a dream come true. Sunny weather, amazing contrasting nature, oceans, pristine beaches, friendly people and so much more. There is this Mexican flair in the air, which you can bring also to your home with lovely strong colors, exotic details, and a touch of passion and emotions. At my visit to La Paz, Malis took me to see one of her recent projects, a case study and example how a Mexican home can be elegant, classy and comfortable to welcome the family home. We visited a model home of Villas Aguamarina, a development of 28 beautifully crafted Mexican villas in Pedregal de La Paz, a home to which she gave that style and that special Mexican personality.


Malis explains her work: "When thinking about a decoration for this project, I wanted to give the house a touch of elegance, style, quality and simplicity, yet in a Mexican way. It is really important, that the quality of the construction goes hand in hand with the furniture that you pick. And in Pedregal de La Paz, where influence of nature is essential, I was able to focus on natural material and fabrics, which are also my favorite: wood, wool, cotton and leather among others." She continues: "I was looking and thinking about each space individually, I wanted to create an ambient which is cozy, not too crowded, with the right amount of furniture and accessories, so people would enjoy living here."


A model home of Villas Aguamarina feels very cozy indeed, in fact, it feels like a home. It makes you want to pack all your belongings and just move in. The play of colors, materials and details is what you will find fascinating in this home. Colors are very important, says Malis. They give the house a touch of personality, and make the space warm and appealing. "When searching for colors to match the house with the ambiance and environment, I walked the neighborhood around the house, I took a piece of dirt, desert, sand and stone and created my ideas and colors based on them," Malis explains. The composition of the ground in Pedregal de La Paz for example is completely different from the one in Pedregal de Cabo San Lucas, in Cabo it is brown, and in La Paz it is pink, an amazing work of the nature.


Playing with materials and matching them with colors creates a unique combination and connects the space together. And details, which you might not even notice, but would miss them if they were not there, they add the flare to the house, that special something that catches your sight everywhere you turn and bring out the beauty of the house; even if it is for a simple thing like placing a candle in a special place.



Interior of the house has some special features, like a beautiful tall, thin and elegant palm tree in the centre of the house, smart and functional arrangement of rooms (I would say it is family-friendly) and terraces from every bedroom with their own personality, but also matching the adjacent room. Every terrace and outside space has a special ambiance. It is connected with the inside of the house, but different. The concept for the outside spaces has aroused from the imagination what would people like to do outside their rooms. Have a breakfast at the terrace perhaps, or a dinner at the sunset; maybe relax or read a book, or entertain with family and friends at the patio with community pool and palapa, overlooking the aguamarine waters of the Sea of Cortes.



It is true what they say, the home is where the heart is. And by adding to your home your favorite color or some special detail it will make it more personal, more ‘you’. Visit Malis at Simmetria, she will welcome you friendly, show you around her beautiful store stocked with plenty of ideas and many of details you’d love to take home with you immediately. She will share with you stories about her decoration projects, give some valuable and useful advice, and if you want, she can help you transform your house to your special home, too.

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Swimming with the dolphins

There are (currently) 10,100,000 hits in Google on 100 things you need to do before you die. I haven't made up my list yet, but, swimming with the dolphins is one of the things I warmly recommend.

I've always liked dolphins (remember Flipper?). While living in Slovenia, I wanted to adopt a dolphin through organisation Morigenos. Adoption of a dolphin of course doesn't mean that you'll have him in your bath tub or swimming pool - it means that with a small yearly fee you can contribute to the research and protection of the dolphins. And besides that you will be also able to learn more about the dolphins and their way of life, follow your dolphin in his adventures etc.

Here in Baja California Sur, living so close to the ocean, and being able to see them from Pedregal or my favorite beach in Zacatitos, I finally might adopt a dolphin. I just need to find where. You can adopt a shark in La Paz, but I still want my dolphin. Last Sunday I went to get to know them a little bit better, and see, if they are indeed as nice as they seem. And they are. I was swimming, playing (and kissing) with Monet (or shorter Mo), the dolphin from Cabo Dolphins, a dolphin center in Cabo San Lucas. If you have the chance, go swim with them... They are so soft, gentle and amazing. I'm looking forward to my friends visiting me in Cabo, as I promised I will take them swimming with Mo and his friends too.

The only things I was missing in Cabo Dolphins is a research center, or some other dolphin-firendly activities, which would enable you to learn more about them, give a contribution to research of their lives and preservation. But, I hope this will change soon too.

If you like dolphins, you might like also:

- Le Grand Bleu, the movie, amazing movie by director Luc Besson, with Jean-Marc Bar and Rosanna ARquette... check the trailer

- Deep Blue, the movie by BBC. They say: 80% of life on earth lives in ocean, yet more people have walked on the moon than have seen the ocean's deepest floor.

You can see more photos of my swimming with the dolphin experience here.

Monday, July 21, 2008

Suckers for sunsets

One of the most amazing things about living in Baja California Sur are sunsets... They are incredible, every single day they change their shape, color, intensity... they are different, but always amazing. Our balcony at night becomes a theatre for performances of the dancing sun. And we can never get tired of it.



Sun performance from our balcony, Cabo.



@ Buzzard's beach, San Jose del Cabo.



@ Pueblo Bonito Pacifica, Cabo San Lucas, with a setting for a private dinner at the beach.



@ Pueblo Bonito Pacifica, Cabo San Lucas.



@ San Jose del Cabo.

Wednesday, July 9, 2008

ESCAPES



We all need to escape from time to time. Be it an escape for vacations, summer retreat to your second home, for a weekend, a day, or even just for a moment, escaping into another dimension, another imaginary world, escape into dreams which give us enthusiasm and joy for life.

In Baja California Sur we have many places we love to escape to - and that's what this magazine is all about. ESCAPES is a magazine - or better your getaway guide to Baja - which I am doing with my company Grupo Riveras.


I hope you like it. Next issue is coming out in September, your comments are welcome.

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