This is the local pub opposite my sister house. It doesn’t seem to be open very often and closes quite early – apparently it focusses on letting out rooms these days. We went out to a pub for a nice British beer in the evening (something that us a must for me, each time I am in the UK), but not this one – instead going to The Crown in Bildeston.
Tue-15-Sep-2026
On this day I walked to Brent Eleigh (where my mum stays) from my sisters house. By some miracle it was warm and sunny. Though by the time I finished my visit, the sky had darkened threatening rain again – that’s English weather for you. My mum has moved into a new room, which she is quite happy with – this is a view of the corner of the room and that’s my hat on the bed.
Tue-15-Sep-2026
I started this sketch during my layover between Iraq and the UK, but moment into it they called us to board – and move all the passengers to another waiting areas – so I had to finish this from a photo.
Sun-13-Sep-2026
Here is a sketch I did when leaving Erbil again. My flight was early but at a tolerable time of day. I was intending to spend more time on this but they called us to board the plane. I think the sketch actually looks better because of this.
Sun-13-Sep-2026
Here are some more sketches I did on the way to Erbil in Iraq, after sleeping fitfully on the plane and arriving for a five hour layover with a headache. The first is of a plane in Dubai airport (not my plane and obscured by many things) – where I feel I made my usual mistake of trying to capture too much instead of focussing on one part. The second was done in Terminal 2 (which you have to get to by bus), where I had run out of steam and was just waiting for my flight to be called.
Tue-8-Sep-2026
Here is my first sketch in a newly made sketchbook using Cass Art Cold Pressed Not Paper. Usually I used hot pressed but this has a fairly smooth surface for drawing on and for this sketch it seemed to take the paint well. I did this sketch at the airport in Metro Manila when I was taking a 3:25 am flight to Erbil via Dubai. At this point in the journey I was just trying to stay awake (by sketching) so I could get on the plane and fall asleep.
Tue-8-Sep-2026
This is the second sketch I did with Urban Sketchers Manila when we joined the car free Sunday sketch-walk event in Makati, in August. After doing my first sketch we went upstairs to have breakfast at 7-Eleven (the only place open in the building) and I decided to sketch this overhead view of the “Spirit of EDSA” sculpture. The text on the plaque says “at his finest hour”…but I was thinking it should really say at “their” finest hour – especially as the main figure in the sculpture is a woman!
Sun-30-Aug-2026
Here is the first sketch I did with Urban Sketchers Manila when we joined the car free Sunday sketch-walk event in Makati in August. It was a rainy day so we spent our time in and around the Yuchengco Museum. This sculpture by Eduardo Castrillo (in the courtyard of the RCBC building) was unveiled by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in 2001 and is a tribute to the strength and unity of the Filipino people during the non-violent 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution when the father of the current president was kicked out.
Sun-30-Aug-2026
Here is a sketch I did when my wife and I had breakfast in the local coffee shop after a morning walk.
Sun-23-Aug-2026