Five things make an LJ post

[shewhomust]

1. Thanks to lamentables for telling me about a project to photograph all of China's ethnic groups: wonderful formal studio groups against carefully arranged props. It's impossible not to imagine the photographer in Victorian dress, with a big plate camera - except that oh! the colours! There's an article about it here in English, but for bigger pictures go to this Chinese site.



2. Cooking like a moomin: SelfMadeHero are planning to publish a recipe book containing all the secrets of Moominmamma's kitchen. Reading between the lines, it sounds as if what they plan is a collection of Finnish recipes, including things mentioned in the books, and with Tove Jansson illustrations. Still sounds irresistible. (More information on the Forbidden Planet blog, including a picture of a gingerbread moominhouse).



3. Sunday's walk took us from Sunderland Bridge along the Wear almost as far as Page Bank, then turning uphill to Tudhoe, where we had lunch at the pub - and back along the bridle way. (map). The morning was a long haul, partly because some of the paths, particularly through the woods, didn't exist, or weren't where we expected them to be. There were patches of snow on the ground from Friday's fall, but the sun was bright; a tiring walk but an enjoyable one.



4. Saturday's Guardian magazine was a food & travel special. I particularly enjoyed Jeannette Winterson in Mantua (picture gallery here) and Matthew Fort following the Ancien Canal du Berry.



5. And in the Travel section of the paper, this Spanish holiday sounds wonderful (the Casa Olea has a web site, with very pretty pictures which are a bit slow to download), and so does Macedonia: so many places to go!