New Year 2015: Starting as I mean to carry on

I am a great believer in starting something as I mean to carry on, and if New Year’s Day 2015 is any indication of how the 364 days to come, then I cannot wait to enjoy each and every one of them. For waking up on 1st January of any year is always an experience of great hope for me – it may just be the difference of a day or the turn of a calendar, but with each new year there is a fresh benchmark by which a new list of ambitions and objectives can be measured, and other unfinished and unfulfilled projects relegated to the past. However this year’s 1st January was even more drizzled with the sweet nectar of hope – for how else can a person feel, when waking to bright blue skies, dazzling Mediterranean sunshine, and knowing that this place is not just a holiday destination, but a home.

The day that followed this happy awakening has been one of colours to cradle, flavours to savour, and sounds to nurture. For the sounds, the Vienna New Year’s Concert provided the perfect melodious backdrop to my morning’s cooking, a few hours hard labour which produced a mouthwateringly tender roast chicken with a rich cava-infused gravy and sweetly caramelised apples. So that was the flavour, and as for the colour – a sun-drenched barely-Wintery Palma de Mallorca was waiting just outside the window, and with lunch barely digested, Dominik and I rushed out into the streets to savour all of the splendid vistas which this city so unceasingly affords.

And of course the record of all these New Year’s treats is in the photos I’m posting, or at least the sights of our day are recorded this way. For the flavour of the food, I’m afraid you’ll need to get yourself an invite… And if you weren’t listening to the New Year’s concert in Vienna, I suggest you find yourself a clip on TV catch-up while you still can. But for the sights of my day at least, I come with gifts aplenty – a post full of photos freshly uploaded from a New Year’s day full of hope for the 12 months ahead.

All photos and written content are strictly the copyright of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown © 2015 and The Daily Norm. All rights are reserved. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited.