Colombine opened the notebook with an unusually official expression. To ensure they actually got somewhere, she proposed three simple rules: no pointing at every detail, no drawing at every corner, and no watching the clock. Mea particularly approved of the last one. Lu Cia prepared her pencil, just in case.
Illustrated fiction inspired by original Travel2City photographs. The places come from separate journeys, not a one-day itinerary. Characters, dialogue, props and some composition and lighting are artistic interpretations.
On Trnava’s pedestrian street, Colombine raised a finger and began with item one. Mea looked attentive, although the windows opposite had just caught her interest. Lu Cia listened with a smile that promised no regulation a long life. When Colombine finished reading, she glanced at the tower to see whether it was time to move on. Mea raised an eyebrow in silence. Rule three was in trouble before the vote.
“Does that tower count under the rule about clocks?”
In Bratislava, Mea raised her hand before remembering the rule. An ornament on the building opposite looked quite different from this angle. “Just this one,” she explained. Colombine looked at the pointing finger, then at the building, and finally tilted her own head. Lu Cia smiled. The exception had become a shared stop. The notebook stayed closed; such a small change of programme hardly required minutes.
Bratislava · The pencil gets ahead of the agreement
Beside a white doorway, Lu Cia borrowed the notebook. Only for one line, she said. But the curve above the doors continued, and another shape waited beside it. Colombine looked over her shoulder. “That is at least three.” Lu Cia nodded calmly and finished the little arch. Mea tried to keep her smile under control. Rule two was turning into a rather lovely drawing, and nobody wanted to rescue it.
Beside the Danube, Mea opened the notebook. Below the drawing lay three short lines, all ready for generous revision. Colombine admitted that the regulations had minor flaws. Lu Cia suggested testing them before the next outing. Mea crossed out the final item and both friends laughed. The boats beside the bank seemed in no hurry. For a while, they followed that example without turning it into a fourth rule.
“Rules cancelled. Outing continues.”
From notebook to book
The Map with No Last Page
Travel2City journeys continue between the covers of a book. Discover our illustrated travel world.
