OLD AND PEELING

 I am fascinated by old doors, especially those whose paint is peeling.

NEW YEAR'S COFFEE AND COOKIE

 Went for a neighborhood walk yesterday morning. Weather was sunny, clear, and crisp. Stopped for a second cup of coffee and a typical Serbian cookie, an 'orasnica ' o-RASS-neet-sa), made eith crushed walnuts, a bit of sugar, and held together with beaten egg whites. The café's name is Crna Ovca (SIR-na OV-tsa), meaning 'black sheep'. 

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

 Self-portrait for you on New Year's Day.

BANANA DOG

Madhu does not like firecrackers and hides under my bed or in the bathroom. In neither of those places this morning, but I found her in my banana.

HEATING PLANT, JUST AFTER DAWN

 A distant view of the heating plant from my window.  That's steam, not smoke, thankfully. 

TO SNOW OR NOT TO SNOW?

Most of December I have been battling the flu and hope I'm going to beat it. Feel much better.  That said, I haven't been out much with my camera.

This is a photo from 2012 of the mountains below Kopaonik Mountain, about a three-hours' drive from Belgrade. I tried to find out online if there is snow there now (there was when the photo was taken; I was higher up), but couldn't find out for sure, so you can TRY YOUR LUCK ON THIS LINK.
 

MONTMORENCY FOREST, NEAR PARIS

 Back to Paris (or close by!) to show you this misty, early morning photo of a glen in the FOREST OF MONTMORENCY.

EDUCATIONAL

Funny the 'new' things you notice even though you've walked by them many times. These are trees on one side of the Faculty of Dramatic Arts across the street from me. Lest one wonder, they're labeled!  "Breza" is "birch,", "lipa" is "lime tree/linden, " and "javor" is "maple". There are two maples, so it seems. 

CARTIER FOUNDATION

 

Nothing to do with the photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson, but rather the  CARTIER FOUNDATION OF CONTEMPOARY ART in Paris.

I was impressed.

CHRISTMAS COOKIES

 My friend in Paris is German, but she has lived in France for years. While staying with her and her husband, she made several kinds of Christmas cookies. The above recall the sand tarts of my youth in Pennsylvania where there is quite a Pennsylvania Dutch (misconstrued from Deutsch).  I make ones that are rolled and cut with Christmas cutters, not the little pretzel-shaped ones, but the taste is the same!

MAYBE A BIT INCONVENIENT?

 I love dogs, I really do. Big or small. I came across this fellow (or maybe gal) in the train from the outskirts of Paris. The train wasn't crowded for a while, but after a while it filled up. The dog paid no mind and the owner didn't make any effort to at least make the dog sit up, allowing for a person to stand. Non-chalance par excellence...and not good manners.