I think I have an obsession with balconies.  Sometimes I even think that a balcony is more inviting and cozy than a huge big garden, where there is a lot of work to be done and you really have to like gardening.   Some people are really good with plants and know how to create beautiful garden rooms.   I really admire them.   Unfortunately, I am not one of them.   Perhaps because I used to live in apartments (called flats) when I was living in London and I never had a big garden.   But I liked decorating a small balcony when I had one.   Just with a table and chairs and a couple of flower pots. 

When I walk around Montreal I always admire the balconies and the stairs.   I take pictures of streets and the stairs and sometimes of the balconies if I can get near enough, or I ask some friends to send me pictures of their balconies. 

Here are a some more pics of balconies.

lots of plants on this little balcony.

lots of lovely stairs and balconies on this street.

A small narrow balcony looking out onto the street

 

Ever since I remember I was fascinated with Asian culture, reading books about China, India, Tibet, Japan and other countries.    As a matter of fact one of my all-time favourite books is MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA by Arthur Golden.  I have read this book so many times that I remember some pages by heart.    

Yes, and it does not stop there.   I also love to collect Buddha statues in all shapes and sizes.  I think that a home looks very nice with a Buddha sitting on a table or a bench right next to a Bamboo branch.   There is something serene about this look.  Since then I also read a lot about Buddhism and the whole Buddhist philosophy.  I think everybody should read a little about it because we could learn from it.     Herman Hesse’s book “SIDDHARTHA”  is an eye opener.  

My own book about Buddha:

which is also available on Amazon.  This little book has a collection of Buddha’s best quotes, together with pictures I took.  There are also a couple of pages about the Basic Teachings of Buddhism.

I also have various Buddhas sitting in my garden room, in-between the plants.   In the evening when it gets dark I light little lanterns and it gives you a very serene and relaxed feeling.    Buddhism is all about meditation,  to relax and stay calm, and to be able to face one’s problems.   

One of my other favourite books is “THE BOOK OF TEA” by Kakuzo Okakura and you can find all kind of different versions of this book on AMAZON.    Even today, 100 years later when it was written, it is still a bestseller.  

 

 

 

These are some of the romantic balconies of Montreal.  They look very nice in summer.

The last one is the large patio of a ground floor apartment.

There are many old buildings in Montreal.   Some of the most popular areas are Plateau Mont Royal, Outremont, Rosemont and of course Westmount.   Many of these houses have been family homes which now have been divided into apartments.   Some of them were already built as duplexes or apartment houses.

Here is another older apartment which just looks amazing:

A small balcony overlooking a busy street.   On the opposite side there are houses with the famous Montreal outside stairs.

The streets of Montreal start to look very nice when leaves are changing colors beginning of October.                                             

This is the beginning of fall.  Soon the streets will be full of colourful leaves.

 

 

 

 

here a few pictures of the famous Stairs of Montreal

 

source:  FLICKR.COM

 

Here a cute little apartment in Plateau Mont Royal in Montreal, where they have the stairs outside, leading up to the apartment.  This is a very famous feature of Montreal.  There are streets and streets where you see outside stairs leading up to various apartments.

 

 

I like the global Boho look with Kilim carpets and colourful cushions from India or China.  Together with exotic plants and Bamboo leaves one can really create super interiors.

HERE PICTURES FROM MY OWN HOME:

 

I always change the cushion covers and move the furniture around and this is how you can create a new look without spending money.

I found this super picture on the internet and I liked it so much I made

a copy of it.   This is NOT my picture.   This room is UNBELIEVABLE !!!!!!

I LOVE BOHO STYLE INTERIORS !!!!!

Here some pics of the garden in summer.                                         

 

 

 

 

Tina walking around and checking the neighbours.

 

 

Already missing the summer days.

Here a couple of pictures of living rooms I found very nice.

a home in Montreal

 

a home in Rosemere

 

an appartement in Vienna

 

 

 

 

 

 

I often drive to Vieux Terrebonne, a small town north of Montreal, which is a lovely little town with ancient houses and narrow little streets, full of cafés and restaurants.    In the middle there is a very big park and a river just next to an ancient looking library.    Every time I go there I think that I am back in the last century, but in a nice way.

Here some pics

The library in the background.

A lovely old house

cute little gardens in front of the houses.

     a little doggy looking down

       one of the cafés.