The Rise of Rooftop Bars – Why I Can’t Get Enough of Sky-High Sips
insight observations, just an opinion and ob..., Looking around, Memories captured, observing people, Personal Story, psychology of people w..., Reflections, Taking time out, writing community Sylvia Jimenez insight observations, just an opinion and ob..., Looking around, Memories captured, observing people, Personal Story, psychology of people w..., Reflections, Taking time out, writing community Sylvia Jimenez

The Rise of Rooftop Bars – Why I Can’t Get Enough of Sky-High Sips

In the last week I visited two new rooftop bars. One because its birthday month and doing something different on your special day is definitely Joie de vivre and the second,well, we don’t need an excuse for a midweek beverage other than for a girlfriend catchup and connect. With the many bars on offer around this beautiful city, why does the prospect of sitting outside in the fresh air, above the commuters on the ground watching the sunset make me want to push everyone aside as I run for the elevator?

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Embrace the Ocean's Lessons for a Calmer Life
a lighter look, insight observations, just an opinion and ob..., Looking around, looking forward, Memories captured, Opinion, Personal Story, positive mindset, Reflections, The Beach Sylvia Jimenez a lighter look, insight observations, just an opinion and ob..., Looking around, looking forward, Memories captured, Opinion, Personal Story, positive mindset, Reflections, The Beach Sylvia Jimenez

Embrace the Ocean's Lessons for a Calmer Life

Come summer or winter, you know where to find me—at the beach.

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Embrace the naked, my experience at the Onsen.
just an opinion and ob..., Memories captured, Opinion, Personal Story, positive mindset, Postcard commentary, Reflections, Taking time out, travel, writing community Sylvia Jimenez just an opinion and ob..., Memories captured, Opinion, Personal Story, positive mindset, Postcard commentary, Reflections, Taking time out, travel, writing community Sylvia Jimenez

Embrace the naked, my experience at the Onsen.

Sitting naked in front of strangers was not on my bucket list or my yearly activity-to-do for 2024 leading into 2025. Still, the power of shedding layers, enveloped by water has a certain thrill when we jump out of our comfort zone. The ancient Egyptians did it, and so did the Greeks, Romans and Mesopotamians. Scandinavians do ‘Sauna.’ Folks from Türkiye have perfected it and the Japanese are still doing it. Nothing screams ‘Vulnerable’ like baring your breasts or making sure your Punani is perfectly coiffed for people who don’t care. Yes, that’s right, don’t care. When you bare all at a Japanese Onsen or an Ottoman Hamman experience no one cares what you look like, so why should you?

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The Cicada’s are louder this morning
insight observations, just an opinion and ob..., Looking around, looking forward, On Writing, open letter, Opinion, Personal Story, positive mindset, Reflections, writing community Sylvia Jimenez insight observations, just an opinion and ob..., Looking around, looking forward, On Writing, open letter, Opinion, Personal Story, positive mindset, Reflections, writing community Sylvia Jimenez

The Cicada’s are louder this morning

I welcome the first day of 2025 not by the sound of the alarm, or the coffee machine that has an auto cleaning mechanism that scares the bejeezus out of us in the middle of the night, but by the sound of the Cicadas, which according to the encyclopedia, varies between a: the weather (well it’s pretty effin hot in Sydney today) and b: their mating season ritual, so in fact, these delicate little creatures of the male kind have woken me due to their persistence to procreate. Did I mention they were extremely loud this morning? And no, I’m not nursing a post new year celebration hangover and my ears are not ringing, I feel completely awake and if I had to take a breathalyser, It would probably come up as having .000001% of alcohol in my system, but nothing to get worried about. And it’s too early to move out from under the freshly laundered sheets in my oh-so-comfy bed. So husband has delivered the prescribed second latte, the cat has been fed and the dog has curled up for yet another mid-morning snooze and I am awake, like really awake listening to the Cicadas.

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Unexpected Joys: Human Connection in Japan
Connecting with people, insight observations, just an opinion and ob..., Memories captured, observing people, open letter, Opinion, Personal Story, positive, Postcard commentary, psychology of people w..., Reflections, travel, wanderlust, writing community Sylvia Jimenez Connecting with people, insight observations, just an opinion and ob..., Memories captured, observing people, open letter, Opinion, Personal Story, positive, Postcard commentary, psychology of people w..., Reflections, travel, wanderlust, writing community Sylvia Jimenez

Unexpected Joys: Human Connection in Japan

The trip to Japan was memorable not for its famous sights but for the warmth of human connections. A simple interaction with a kind store assistant named Koji highlighted the profound nature of kindness in daily life. Small gestures, like his assistance with laundry supplies, left a lasting impression, showcasing Japan's culture of respect.

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Everyday observations: The joys of teaching a teenager to drive
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Everyday observations: The joys of teaching a teenager to drive

The humid, hot day felt even more stifling in the back seat of the car. Jamiroquai played, doing little to ease my nerves. I watched as my teenage son took the wheel, his father in the passenger seat directing him on which lane to stay in. As I observed the other drivers on the road, overtaking, braking without warning and giving the finger, I had to ask, “How have people gotten their driving licenses?” The standards have seriously dropped, either that, or society is on the downward spiral of inconsiderateness, or that driver was just an [insert derogative adjective here].

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Friends come and go and come and go
Connecting with people, insight observations, Looking around, looking forward, Memories captured, observing people, open letter, Opinion, Personal Story, positive, Reflections, Taking time out, The Beach, writing community Sylvia Jimenez Connecting with people, insight observations, Looking around, looking forward, Memories captured, observing people, open letter, Opinion, Personal Story, positive, Reflections, Taking time out, The Beach, writing community Sylvia Jimenez

Friends come and go and come and go

I hear the ping of the messages’ arrival on my phone. It’s 5:45 am, fifteen minutes before my set alarm, but I already know who the message’s sender is. Madam Z is an insomniac and most days is found watching the sunrise at the nearby beach amongst the hard-core joggers and dog walkers. She listened intently the day I revealed my love of the ocean because ever since then, she has sent me a beach photo (almost daily) that lights up my bleary eyes even on the coldest winter days.

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Beachside morning and a shared moment
insight observations, just an opinion and ob..., Looking around, Memories captured, observing people, Personal Story, Postcard commentary, psychology of people w..., Reflections, The Beach, writing community Sylvia Jimenez insight observations, just an opinion and ob..., Looking around, Memories captured, observing people, Personal Story, Postcard commentary, psychology of people w..., Reflections, The Beach, writing community Sylvia Jimenez

Beachside morning and a shared moment

Today the beachside wasn’t just a shared destination, it was a reminder to appreciate the moment, the sound of the waves, the warmth of the 9am sun and a testament to how easily strangers sit close, upholding social decorum to not invade personal space and like a Mills and Boon novel, everyone was dreamy, and the atmosphere was euphoric.

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A is for Attitude that governs (my) 2024.
Connecting with people, humour, insight observations, looking forward, observing people, Personal Story, positive mindset, Reflections, Taking time out Sylvia Jimenez Connecting with people, humour, insight observations, looking forward, observing people, Personal Story, positive mindset, Reflections, Taking time out Sylvia Jimenez

A is for Attitude that governs (my) 2024.

As you are aware by now, it’s about observations for yours truly. Keeping my eyes open, eavesdropping and generally trying to look inconspicuous as I stare is what I can say hand-on-heart motivates me to understand the world. 2024 started with a nice glass of bubbly amongst a lovely group of friends as we watched the fireworks on the telly. Thanking my lucky stars I made it through what I considered 2023 to be an ‘annus horribilis’ year (although there were some great moments, like meeting new people and being able to realign and reverse priorities) generally speaking, wars, inflation, high-interest rates, bullying, not enough time to read and weather patterns resembling Armageddon meant that 2024 couldn’t come soon enough. January first welcomed an attitudinal change. While I don’t have a crystal ball to predict any future, there have been some (funny) observations of late that I believe will perhaps influence some key elements that I’ll interpret as a benchmark moving forward.

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Lost and Found: a mini self discovery in the back streets of Budapest
insight observations, Looking around, Memories captured, observing people, Postcard commentary, Reflections, travel, wanderlust, writing community Sylvia Jimenez insight observations, Looking around, Memories captured, observing people, Postcard commentary, Reflections, travel, wanderlust, writing community Sylvia Jimenez

Lost and Found: a mini self discovery in the back streets of Budapest

I wish I could say that hitting up Budapest solo was a calculated move, but honestly, I just followed my feet – they have a habit of taking me to the coolest spots! Budapest, this architectural diva draped in history, was my playground. While everyone’s queuing up at the tourist hotspots, I dove headfirst into the city’s secret nooks and crannies.

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How much do we really notice all that is around us?
a lighter look, insight observations, Looking around, observing people, On Writing, Personal Story, Postcard commentary, Reflections, Taking time out, The Beach, writing community Sylvia Jimenez a lighter look, insight observations, Looking around, observing people, On Writing, Personal Story, Postcard commentary, Reflections, Taking time out, The Beach, writing community Sylvia Jimenez

How much do we really notice all that is around us?

We often take for granted how much we really notice in our environments. Our brains are able to recognize and process a tremendous amount of information. We may not always be consciously aware of the details, but our subconscious constantly takes in and processes information from our surroundings. We may not be able to recall specifics, but when we become more mindful of our environment, we can begin to notice more of the details that may have gone unnoticed before. It’s amazing how much we can observe when we take the time to really pay attention to what’s around us.

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2023 rules according to me
#keepinghealthy, communications, Connecting with people, insight observations, just an opinion and ob..., looking forward, open letter, Opinion, Personal Story, positive, Reflections, Uncategorized, writing community Sylvia Jimenez #keepinghealthy, communications, Connecting with people, insight observations, just an opinion and ob..., looking forward, open letter, Opinion, Personal Story, positive, Reflections, Uncategorized, writing community Sylvia Jimenez

2023 rules according to me

The ball dropped, the gong went off, the clock struck midnight. 2023 was born under a sky of crackers, hugs, kisses, smooches and well-wishers (those who were awake at least) who welcomed the new year with (I hope) the anticipation of better things to come. My very own FB post read a summerised version of the below.

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Niceness is (thankfully) still alive
Connecting with people, insight observations, Looking around, Memories captured, observing people, open letter, Personal Story, psychology of people w..., Reflections, writing community Sylvia Jimenez Connecting with people, insight observations, Looking around, Memories captured, observing people, open letter, Personal Story, psychology of people w..., Reflections, writing community Sylvia Jimenez

Niceness is (thankfully) still alive

This post is more of a happy affirmation rather than an observation, but if taken in the context of human behaviour, then I’m pleased to say that people are still inherently nice. My youngest, Master V, is employed as a Trolley boy at a local garden nursery. It is his first officially paid casual job means he is privy to the perfect balance of fresh air, movement and a clientele of grey nomads with a common interest of the gardening kind. And for me, it’s a great source of character observations for my upcoming stories, but that is for another time.

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Where have all the love songs gone?
80s flashback, a lighter look, Connecting with people, insight observations, just an opinion and ob..., Memories captured, Personal Story, Reflections Sylvia Jimenez 80s flashback, a lighter look, Connecting with people, insight observations, just an opinion and ob..., Memories captured, Personal Story, Reflections Sylvia Jimenez

Where have all the love songs gone?

I wouldn’t say I’m stuck in a time warp, but my teenage years in the 80s have had a profound psychological impact on my memory. The other day, the clever little elves at Spotify suggested a ‘recommended playlist.’ It was titled ’80 Love Songs,’ which I found confusing as I had not listened to anything remotely close (to pick up on the algorithm), but it got me thinking, ‘Where have all the love songs gone?’

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Water Therapy
just an opinion and ob..., Looking around, Memories captured, observing people, Personal Story, positive, Postcard commentary, psychology of people w..., Reflections, travel Sylvia Jimenez just an opinion and ob..., Looking around, Memories captured, observing people, Personal Story, positive, Postcard commentary, psychology of people w..., Reflections, travel Sylvia Jimenez

Water Therapy

The locals laughed and scoffed about my thermal bath mania. Warning, if you don’t want to be confronted with the myriad of rubens-esque physiques, then my suggestion is to omit the customary soak in the mineral-laden waters of Budapest. But if you are like me, and believe all female figures are interesting and extraordinary, then dive straight in, well, no diving, but immerse yourself in the 38-degree water and let the stress of the day simply melt away [pun]. What I loved most, apart from the medicinal aspects, was that regardless of one’s form, all inhibitions were left at the door. Granted I attended on Tuesday Ladies only day, but it was the one few places where being at ease with one’s body was the norm.

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