to meet halfway

Nearly sixty-five days and nights have gone by since the last time I posted a photograph here. It's been way too long and I missed Fantastique Mémoires incredibly. So much water has gone under the bridge and Southern winds have brought many changes and new challenges into my life.

Over the past couple of months I have returned to Australia and moved into a new place in a beautiful neighbourhood, where old wooden houses are delicately adorned with rose gardens and the streets surrounded by trees. I have spent a good while at home, nesting serious books by the bed and my collection of matryoshkas and Eiffel towers on top of the fireplace (also known as old brown heater).

I am once again working on my thesis and attending classes at university, so now I spend most of my time reading, writing and editing while drinking heaps of cups of ginger & lemon tea. This is the main reason why I have been away for so long. But I promise I will be more consistent in bringing to you the colours and shapes that have been embracing me so cosily all of these days (I still have many photos from my spring and summer in South America and new ones from autumn here in Melbourne).

I hope that all of you have been happy and surrounded by birds.

And I also wish to thank each one of you for your support, even while I was away. It was dearly appreciated!

Brazil

Soundtrack: The Cascades by Fleet Foxes.

Ps.: I have a few surprises on the way and I honestly CAN'T wait to share them with you ;)

redemption at fingertips

Brazil

Soundtrack: Teeth in the Grass by Iron & Wine.

love in slow motion

Brazil

Soundtrack: Anchored in You by Shawn Mullins.

heart wide open

Brazil

Soundtrack: Printemps by Coeur de Pirate.

to drown beneath dark clouds

My heart is broken. 

Over the past few days Brazil, my home country, has gone through what has been considered the worst natural disaster in History. Countless mudslides and floods in the South East region, where I am from, have devastated beautiful areas and destroyed the lives and homes of so many. Bridges were washed down, trapping people where new mudslides could occur at any time. And because they can only be reached by helicopters, they have run out of food, water, medicine and are in desperate need of assistance, especially to those who have been injured. Families have lost a large number of their members, one alone has lost a total of 17 people, and many are still looking for their loved ones, sometimes digging underneath the mud and what's left from their houses with their bare hands, hoping to simply find their bodies and give them a dignified funeral.

One can only fathom the pain of losing the ones who meant the world to them and the despair of having to start life again from scratch. My heart and mind are with them. Every one of them.

If you want and can help by making a donation to aid the ones who have been affected by the floods in Brazil, I have found two serious institutions online that will put your donations to good use:

Brazilian Red Cross

CARE

I can only imagine how it feels like to be in the midst of an even greater natural tragedy, such as the earthquakes in Chile, Tahiti and Pakistan, for example, or the tsunamis in South East Asia. I wonder how one can start over after going through so much pain and losing almost, if not, everything they loved. Where do they find the strength to move forward? Is it faith and the hope that one day life will be good again? Is it the support from wonderful human beings who donate their time, effort and so much more so that they will have a second chance at living with dignity? What is it that allows them to rebuild a life and feel happiness in their hearts again?

allured by nature

Brazil

Soundtrack: Me and You and a Dog Named Boo by Lobo.

to sail past ghosts

Uruguay

Soundtrack: Sailor Song by First Aid Kit.

♥♥♥ Happy 1^st Year Anniversary to Fantastique Mémoires ♥♥♥

Collecting have always been a huge part of my life. As a tiny person I would store in my bedroom all sorts of things, from dolls and ballet slippers to gemstones and porcelain dogs. Each had their special place both in my heart and between the pink walls at my parent's apartment. However, nothing would compare to the excitement of collecting photographs. Photographs of everything and everyone. No matter how inconvenient I had to be. Clicking my days away did not only turn me into a hazard for the ones around me back then, but also made me realize that such hobby enabled me to put into matter a pictorial archive of my family's collective memory.

As I have been spending quite a while with my family back in Brazil, where I was born, I had the chance to revisit the past a few weeks ago. I sat on my grandmother's bed and opened a box, probably heavier than me. It was filled with honeymooners in itty-bitty bathing suits, babies in the swimming pool, family trips to the farm and awkward moments some would rather forget. I was instantly back to the 90's, running around the house with my sister Isis. And to go back to one's childhood... feels as if Proust and I were sharing a sweet-and-sour caramel madeleine!

This is why photography occupies such an important place in my life. And that is the reason why I created Fantastique Mémoires a year ago, so that I could remember my steps and you could see what I have seen, as magically as I can capture.

I hope the images here displayed have touched your hearts and, perhaps, transported you to where I have been. Even if just for a moment.

Thank you all so much for the amazing support! And thank you also for your lovely comments (it may take a little while, but I always reply to every one of them!) and for sparing a few minutes each week to peep around Fantastique Mémoires!

And as if my heart and spirit weren't filled with love already, through the blog I also have met Thea, Hannah, Krissy and so many other beautiful girls who have so much to offer to the world. It's been a fantastic journey and without each and every one of you, it would have never been as blissful.

May the wind take you where all dreams come true!

Remember: There is always something magical to look forward to right around the corner...

♥♥♥

♥♥♥ Happy New Year ♥♥♥

This year has gone by like lightning and I'm starting to think that the older I get the faster they will all go by.

I hope I'm wrong.

I wish you all a magical 2011, filled with love, peace, happiness, good health and prosperity. 

May you be surrounded by family and friends, smiles and giggles, trees and mountains. 

And I hope that each and every one of your dreams come true!

♥♥♥ Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays ♥♥♥

I wish you all the happiest of times, surrounded by family and loved ones! 

I hope that you've found what you wished for under the tree and that your hearts feel warm and are filled with joy.

an ending to live for

Brazil

Soundtrack: Westfield by The Salvadors.

... and with these flowers I cover the walls our dreams live within

Brazil

Soundtrack: Flowers in December by Mazzy Star.

to start fresh

Brazil

Soundtrack: The Park by Feist.

breathlessly

Brazil

Soundtrack: Hear my Train a Comin' by Jimi Hendrix.

womb within heart

An entire week has gone by and no photographs were posted on the blog. 

I was away traveling through thick and thin beauty and had no opportunity to get connected to the rest of the world. 

I thank you all for being so patient and promise to post more photos from now on, so that each week you too can see what I have seen :)

Brazil

Soundtrack: Earth Intruders by Björk. 

nature's hunger

Brazil

Soundtrack: Piece of my Heart by Janis Joplin.

to read one's mind

Brazil

Soundtrack: Thinking Out Loud by Emiliana Torrini.

(to hope for) the deployment of distance

Mar del Plata, between Argentina and Uruguay

Soundtrack: Distance Disappears by Bobby & Blumm.

the short life of shadows

Brazil

Soundtrack: Shadows by Au Revoir Simone.

reminiscence of one's youth

Brazil

Soundtrack: Long Nights by Eddie Vedder.