Sail Amsterdam 2010 memoire

SAIL AMSTERDAM is a festival in which beautiful old boats sail in the canals of Amsterdam. It takes place end of August every five years! Boats from all over the world gather in Amsterdam. Locals sail with their own boats, drink eat and greet other people from their boat. I went there with my friend R. who was taking pictures. And guess who was really happy to stand in front of his dslr lense!

Me!

 I was walking and chatting around with my friend, I was wearing colorful clothes and I was feeling happy not following the map - that was given to us to navigate through all the different places where boats were parked.

R. is pointing at me - I dunno why. Here you can see what I am wearing : 

a desigual skirt,

 a light blue short jean jacket pull'n' bear, 

an old  black knitted bolero

a scarf  ( I dunno if it was a stylish choice in the end, but it worked for my mood!), 

black leggings

an eastpak bag (bought 3 years ago from Vienna and travelled in most places where I have travelled:)) 

and a mng bag.

Quite a lot and not so carefully picked!But for practical purpose: water and food in the backbag. Wallet and phone in front.Scarf and leggings for the changeable dutch weather. The jean jacket when it's cold above the bolero.:P

We went on some boats and I tried out what I would do if I was a pirate like my grand-grand-father* (* that's a long story). Most boats had beautiful interiors.

All this post will be sent to Santa, because for this Christmas I want a boat. I have my island, now I want my boat.I've been nice all year long, in case you didn't notice.:)

PS.: Please do not use the photos without asking my permission (I will ask R.).

Design For Usability

Yesterday was a great day. We had the opportunity to travel to the University of Twente and attend a workshop there about product impact.We splitted into groups and studied cases of products that had a certain impact on users;

1.the moving poles set to prevent cars from entering the city centre on particular hours; people don't notice or they try to sneak in and they get accidents.
2. the electrical meters ; they could afford playing a role in user's energy consumption.
and 3. the OV chipcart, a system for prepaying a certain amount for using the train and how people use it or forget to charge it.

Here is the last year's logo.

I had a cool team - two master students and a cute lady - we had great collaboration (don't take that for granted, I heard that in someone's team, two girls started fighting over brainstorming).
After the workshop was over, it was raining and it was already 6 so we decided to go back home. Getting into the car, I remembered I didn't take any pictures, so I just took the view from my window;

So, here you see different perspectives of University of Twente.:)

The organizers were really hospitable.

It was the right place to be, the right day.

Thank you University of  Twente:)

Dutch Design Week Eindhoven

notice the foofoori I'm holding and the one standing on my scarf

see where I got it from... isn't it cool?

I'm copying from Melvin the Machine site:

In full he is called Melvin the Magical Mixed Media Machine, but he also listen to the short version Melvin the Machine. [..] This ‘machine’ that will be assembled by means of a contemporary crowd-sourcing method is not in fact a design machine. Instead of actually designing a product, it mainly provides an insight into the design process. The makers, the designer duo HeyHeyHey, are after what they call the 'super moment' and the experience of it, rather than an end result.

Eindhoven Snowy Days

Buses in Eindhoven. I observe them as if they were wild animals.

I never get too close. Buses and knees do the job.

 

Neighbourhood tree. This tree is really beautiful.

I have many pictures of it carrying snow, see?

I don't know what's this, I see it when walking back from the University and 

I have seen it to a couple of t-shirts in the gym lately. It might be a political socialistic party.

 

My future car..

I'm very fond of technology ;)

 Neighbourhood again. Looks like a peaceful village, 

only you don't know who's your neighbour.

This was a tribute to the Snowy Days of Eindhoven, the days of glory and royal white purity. The days of falling-off-my-bike-twice-every-day.

The Wheel in Maastricht

Two Sundays ago, I was in Maastricht with my cousin and a friend from the University. And I took this amazing picture. I am still wondering how it is half so perfectly greyscale, while the sky is blue. Maybe I can practice in photoshop with it a little.
So Maastricht was amazing of course, as you can see. It looks like a french village. Yet it has a lot of life! At least when we went there! We pumped into the Philarmonic Orchestra of Maastricht that was playing forming a parade. And we found a jazz band jamming jazz around 5am in a very small cozy place, in front of a small audience, possibly their wives and children. Men around their 50's singing old jazzy songs spontaneously and full of passion! In Greece, it's rare to see an improvisation!Jazz is posh in Greece..
Later on, we went to another live country concert in a normal bar.So much fun, I danced as usually a lot!

Entrance of Maastricht

Cute! I want to have a bike painted like this.

Netherlands and Me

A beautiful Friday morning with my father wandering in the Canals and the Jordaan Neighbourhood, Amsterdam...




I want to keep this Friday.. and save it in a nice clean place, next tomy other favourite days in my life. The following video is dedicating to my beloved Konna. It was originally made for her.



A day from home to University in Eindhoven. My Neighbourhood. Something really bad happened to my neighbourhood today. I saw ambulances and police cars and a red-stripped ribbon hanged on the trees. That might mean 'area under investigation'. I don't know anything else. I hope no one is hurt.


and me one of the first days to University. Look what I choose to wear! Everybody would think of me as a weirdo fashionista!

It's time to leave baby

My life is lately on the rush. I am working long hours, even on weekends, I am leaving on Saturday for holidays on the amazingly beautiful island of Skopelos (my father's birthplace) for five days, then Berlin for one day, Stockholm for four days and Berlin again for one day, then back to Thessaloniki and then Halkidiki to the student camp-that-is-almost-for-free!
That was vacation. End of September I am leaving for My Master, oh yes! Such a big change in my life. Leaving behind everything I love and treasure such as my sister, my friends, my family, my life, my house,my clothes :P. I am going to the Netherlands, Eindhoven. I really like the subject of my master - I don't want to reveal now more about it, the only I can say is that it is considered a Professional Doctorate in the Netherlands, it last two years and it takes place in Eindhoven. I am really excited, but sad that I have to leave all I love behind. And my deepest fear is maybe that when I come backmany things may have changed...I would have spent two years of myself there, being out of my favorite people lives, talking with them on the phone and missing them..
But still on the other hand, I want to go. Because I believe that this particular Master is going to open for me new paths to explore and widen my career options.And since this choice seems to bring me closer to what I want to do professionally in my life, I feel that I want to go. As I say to my profile, I crave for hapiness. Of course, that might seem obvious, everybody does. But I have set it as a purpose in my life. So, I was thinking that work is about 8 hours a day (a normal work on a normal day). Plus 1,5 hours to go and come back from work and prepare for work (that is the minimum amount I could thought of. I need much more for the time being). That is about 60% of your time. Then you have another 40% to eat, drink, bath, put some clothes on and see friends or your kids or the ceiling if you are bored. But leaving out all the necessary things, only 20% of your day can be used for fulfilling my inner need to feel complete, happy and self-conscious. That's too little. I don't have the time to stare at the ceiling any more as I am always on the rush seeing friends in my 20%. And I miss a lot of things I don't have time to do. Being crafty and creative for example. Or meet new people or go dancing! SO, that's why I am going to the Netherlands!To advance this 60% of my daily routine in the future!What do you think?
And if you have any idea about how is life up there, in Eindhoven,Netherlands, don't hesitate to leave a comment!