Happy Friday, readers! Today I’m excited to be sharing the first in a new series with you. It’s called Wish You Were Here!, a monthly collection of unique, unusual and beautiful travel-related discoveries I’ve found on the internet. From places to stay and visit, books, videos and photography, to festivals, vintage travel pictures, instagram accounts, travel stories and products. Best scrolled through with your Friday morning cup of coffee, on your afternoon tea break or over an early evening cocktail. Enjoy!
1 (Above) Thatched-roof holiday cottages in the seaside village of Gearrannan Blackhouse on the Isle of Lewis in Scotland, by photographer James Alroca.
2 Every year since 2013, Japan hosts an annual National Pillow Fight Contest and these are the advertising posters for the 2021 event. They feature Olympic gymnast, Airi Hatakeyama, in a series of poses the represent the pillars of pillow fighting: throw, dodge and defend. Unlike in the west, the pillows are thrown not swung – the Japanese word for pillow fight is makuranage, which literally means pillow throwing. Who knew! Found here.
3 Kalverstratt, one of the main shopping streets in Amsterdam, 1973. Found here.
4 This old smock mill in the Kent countryside sleeps two and is available to rent on AirBnB.
5 While chasing a tornado near the small town of Earth, Texas – yes, that’s a real place! – earlier this week, amateur photographer Laura Rowe captured this enormous cloud filtered with pastel sunlight. “We were between the sunset & the storm, so that cast an amazing light on the storm. Pls don’t steal it,” she says. Prints are available on Rowe’s site.
6 Hand-painted signs illustrating streets named after food in Madrid: there’s Barley Street, Lettuce Street, Olive Grove Street, Shell Street, Aubergine Street to name a few. They’re the latest obsession for Leah, behind the website, Madrid No Frills. See more here.
7 Mount Fanjing in south-western China is home to a conservation area, a nature reserve and these two temples, perched precariously atop New Golden Summit, 2650 metres high! I’m terrified of heights so just looking at the people up there makes me feel giddy. If you’ve a head for heights, you can visit the temples if you climb the 1000 steps up! They were originally built over 500 years ago and have recently been restored. Take a closer look here.
8 Window Swap is a website where strangers upload recordings of their windows views, so you can open a new window somewhere in the world!
9 Salt glaciers in Iran. Apparently, southern Iran is home to the majority of salt glaciers and the most active salt glacier in the world. Found here.
11 The interior of The Colony Hotel Palm Beach, Florida, decorated by bespoke wallpaper designers, de Gournay, to reflect a fantasy version of Florida.
11 Escape to the hills through this luxury coffee-table book, Mountain Escapes, which sees you armchair travelling to exquisite treehouse cabins, jungle retreats and cosy mountain lodges. Buy it from Amazon or Bookshop.
12 Immerse yourself in the new Bob Ross Experience at the Bob Ross Museum at his former home in Indiana.
