I recently stumbled upon my sketchbook that I took on my 2010 Europe/Egypt backpack trip. Recently, that trip has been surfacing as random train tickets and airline printouts, but luckily my sketchbook turned up.

The sketchbook I brought was from my amazing sister (a very talented architectural designer) who studied in Paris and Barcelona in 2009. It was a souvenir from Barcelona that can only be purchased in one store there (it can’t be found anywhere else in the world) and was the only sketchbook that the great Swiss architect, Le Corbusier, would use for his own drawings. I planned on drawing more, but when backpacking, you’re either exhausted, on a bumpy train ride so have no control, meeting too many great people or having too many great conversations. I did manage to scribble some things in our down time though, and although they are all unpolished, they help me remember many little details about the trip.

The first drawing is a half completed study of buildings lining a street in Washington D.C. where we had our layover. I was sitting in a den on the 4th floor (I think) of an apartment across the street. Everyone was asleep and for some reason, despite being on California time, I was up at 7am. It was refreshing to see a cold, crisp morning. (We don’t get much of that in the San Fernando Valley these days.) It was a pleasant stay with a pleasant view.

This is a view of cabins from our balcony in Interlaken, Switzerland. Nothing beats sitting on that balcony looking at the Swiss Alps with your feet propped up and a giant Swiss chocolate Easter bunny right next to you ready to be devoured. That’s all I really think about when I look at this drawing.

Just thought this was cute. A guy had flowers in Milan while he was waiting for his girlfriend (I assume) to arrive.

This is a very unfinished caricature I started with graphite on a train from Luxor to Cairo, Egypt. This, like all my drawings, are done from memory. Ever since I was younger, I challenged myself to look at something and study it visually and mentally, and try to recreate it with as much detail without reference. This method helps to expand your knowledge of your surroundings and how to create them from nothing, so you don’t feel stuck when you don’t have a model or photo to copy from.

Anyway, I drew this because my two traveling female friends and I were the only women on a bright train. We were surrounded by many Egyptian men who stared incessantly (out of curiosity mostly) and in a way, it was sort of uncomfortable. I needed something to do so I could force myself to sleep. The first thing that came to mind was a photo I took of a man sitting on a stone at Queen Hatshepsut’s temple. I never completed it because as planned, I knocked out.

Visiting Luxor and Cairo was completely eye-opening. It’s not often you see Asian American backpackers there I suppose so we attracted a lot of stares. I stared back. One of the most beautiful things were Muslim women whose faces were fully covered with their hijab, save for their eyes. Many wore layers of makeup as if to exaggerate the only physical feature they could expose. It was mysterious. My friends and I walked around in denim shorts and tank tops, but even a glare from a woman in Egypt could be as powerful as any spoken word. I used my one line scribble technique out of necessity – we rode a rickety old train from Athens to Thessaloniki, Greece and I couldn’t control my pen if my life depended on it.

Another long wait for a train. We made an impromptu detour to Krakow, Poland and arrived early but only had two hours to “see the city” before speed racing to Auschwitz. Two of us ventured out first while the other two either ate, drew or slept at the McDonald’s at the station. This is a drawing of Carrefour Convenience Store, while at said fast food restaurant.

Our turn to see Krakow. Years of war destroyed the city, leaving ruins of buildings that were never cleaned up. Despite this, many people rushed around the streets to get to work. Women were dressed up like it was NYC. I found this fascinating. This drawing is a cartoon of someone I saw crossing the street as we were wandering around. Behind her was a large mountain of rubble, but she was lavish with high heeled boots and a fashionable bomber jacket.

Lunchtime in Berlin. I was waiting for my curry wurst when I saw this man standing on a street corner waiting for the light. It was drizzling but he had his guitar out. Poor strings.

Threw this in for kicks. In our idle times, we would play a game I learned in high school when we didn’t pay attention in class. Someone starts a drawing by scribbling a line. Then we all take turns and build a drawing from that line until the paper is filled with objects that each share a side or element from another object. It’s amazing how much time flies during this game.

That’s about it! I still carry a sketchbook around as little details in my daily surroundings can have potentially great stories in my imagination. Helps for the practice, the inspiration and the memories. I’m glad because the non-traveler lifestyle isn’t as fast paced so there’s more time to create polished drawings, but looking back on my travel drawings reminds me how the moments in between grand moments still count, and you have to do what you can to make the most of it. To all the traveling artists: happy globetrotting, and happy art making.

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