After my mini sabbatical from Boarding Pass, I’m so happy to be back and in full swing. Pia Jane Bijkerk is one of the most talented women around from her work as a stylist, to her most recent work as an author (you must see her book, Paris: Made By Hand if you haven’t already!). She is truly a woman of the world, originally from Sydney, Australia, spending lots of time in Paris, and currently calls a beautiful houseboat in Amsterdam home. Pia’s style is so calm and romantic, and inspiring in how she manages to capture a handmade feel in the digital world we live in. {Thanks so much for the inspiration, Pia!}

last trip taken:
Paris, France
next trip on deck:
Sydney, Australia

one place you would go back to again and again:
there are so so many! But I do love Vancouver and Vancouver Island, I could go back there time and time again.

place you’d most likely recommend a friend go visit:
hmm, that’s tough. Of course I tell everyone they must go to Australia at least once in their life – it’s an incredibly beautiful country.

preferred method of transportation:
I am really loving the train.

place you’ve never been but dying to go:
I made a pact to a dear friend that I would visit his homeland Tibet, when it was free/ autonomous. In the meantime I do what I can to help bring peace to Tibet.

place you’d never go back:
I don’t like going to touristy places and avoid them like the plague. But every now and then I find myself in such a place for work, or by chance and I always make a mental note to never come back. Some touristy places are unavoidable so in these cases, I always search out the hidden treasures.

most memorable trip in 2 sentences or less:
My first trip back to Europe from Australia in 15 years was poignant, to say the very least. It will be the subject of an upcoming book.

how do you prepare for a trip?
with a few mental check-lists, a pocket full of maps and contacts, and a very loose itinerary.

how do you record your travels when you’re traveling?
I make very brief notes in my diary and pick up little leaves or flowers from wanders and press them between the pages. Sometimes I will take my journal if I know I will have the time to write. And of course I take photographs. And most recently I’ve added soundscapes – I create about 3 little sound recordings which I combine with my still photographs and post on my blog.

what is your favorite thing to photograph in a new place?
The landscape. The trees. The nature. I love nature and I love how the flora and fauna changes from region to region. I also love to capture ‘the light’ which is always so different in each place. And also interiors – I am so inspired by how people decorate – or don’t decorate – their home.

on an average, how many pictures to you take on a trip?
It completely depends if it is a work trip or for pleasure. If I’m on holidays I actually refrain from picking up the camera. As I am shooting all the time for my work, I see everything ‘through the lens’, even if I’m not shooting so the only way I can take a break from this is to ensure I do not have a camera nearby, otherwise I will see everything as a potential photograph. So, on holidays I take about 10 photos! On a work trip, it could be hundreds.

what’s in your “designer travel kit” ?
I’m not sure if anything I take could be called designer! I’m pretty practical when it comes to traveling. And I just use what I have – interestingly enough, with the intense travel I’ve done in the last 3 years, I only recently bought a proper suitcase! I am still yet to buy a decent carry on bag. My travel camera is still the same 400D I bought 3 years ago. I carry 2 lenses, one of which is a wide angle. I have just added a polaroid camera to my travel kit – it is such a great way of making quick, beautiful memories as you can write on it and stick it straight into your diary. And my sketchbook /journal is a moleskine.

Links:
blog
soundscapes
portfolio
book: Paris: Made By Hand

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