his place is special to me because I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to live and work here for the past year. Rio is an impossible city; full of breathtaking beauty, frustrations, joy, and complications. Its busyness and hustle lie in stark contrast to the unmovable tranquility of the mountains and ocean that cradle the city. Although this map may seem jam packed with details, I actually had a tough time paring down the places and references I included!

Being invited on holiday ten years ago by family friends when I was just 15 was the beginning of many years of adventures in this special town in Austria. Their love for it prompted it to become a home from home for them and I am privileged to have shared many trips, celebrating birthdays, Christmas and seeing in New Year surrounded by family and friends. I learned to ski in these beautiful mountains and have spent many hours having fun exploring the town and the local area. Schladming is special to me not only because of the breath-taking scenery, beautiful churches and quirky bars and restaurants but because of the memories I have made there with the people I love. My next visit in a few short weeks will see us toasting in 2020 and may my adventures long continue in this beautiful little place.

This place is special to me because...I just moved to Austin this summer, so it's my new neighborhood that I have enjoyed exploring through food. These are a few of my favorite breakfast spots in downtown Austin. Here it's Tacos over Burritos in the morning, and I have to say the Migas at VeraCruz are the best! My favorite trendy, chill and work places are on the west side, along with some great diners. But, the absolute best place is a bit north of downtown so I had to squeeze it in - Bird Bird Biscuit. It is worth the extra drive - get the fresh fried Queen Beak sandwich it's the best in town!

The city where all my memories live. Bashkortostan is beautiful, so are the people I met there. Miss it tremendously, therefore is the map!

This place is special to me because I climbed to the Tiger’s Nest monastery and visited with the monks. It was an arduous, extraordinary journey which will never be forgotten. The town of Paro also features the National Museum of this amazing country, which is filled with friendly people, cows, and dogs everywhere.

This place is special to me because I live here and frequent all these places of the New West Riverfront regularly. New Westminster is the oldest city in Western Canada. Yellow and blue are its colours. I had fun challenging myself to use a limited colour palette for my first ever illustrated map! Some fun facts:
1. The World’s Tallest Tin Soldier stands at 9.75 meters high.
2. The sculpture at Hyack Square is a reproduction of an iconic photo taken 3. at that intersection during war times in 1940.
4. The chair at Hive Cafe is made (by Hive City) completely of cardboard.
5. Pier Park has won several awards for urban design and even includes a small man-made beach.
6. WOW Westminster is a giant sculpture of the letter W using four shipping containers.

I love living here! It’s historic, tight-knit, and has the charms of both a bigger city and a small town.

This place is special to me because I love living and working here, surrounded by the colorful architecture of Downtown Queretaro. I really enjoy going on walks around the beautiful streets and plazas where you can sit and experience the happy atmosphere. Its a place where you find all kinds of activities, from music and film festivals, to museums, theatre and nightlife. 

Welcome to Bienne, a unique Swiss city that is both French and German speaking, and holds the beauty of both water and mountains. Experience a tour of my beloved's city through his 8 year old eyes: all his favourite places in one map! *My first illustrated map, handmade without access to photoshop or any other editing software!*

This place is special to me because I get to live here! I originally came here from the prairies and was meant to stay for only three months. That was over 20 years ago! I love the mountains, trees, ocean, wildlife...I even love the rain! This place is paradise to me and I can't imagine living anywhere else.

This place is special to me because I grew up driving to these places on the weekend. Each places has memories of delicious food like fresh baked bread, oysters and crab. There are beautiful natural landscapes of redwood forests, rolling golden hills, and views of the sea. These places on this map are the places I take people who visit and are the places I love to show off.

Imagine what an ocean of fresh water would be like and this beautiful slice of Ontario comes to mind. Georgian Bay, (part of the (Great) Lake Huron, features more than 30,000 islands and 2,000 kilometres of shoreline. It is world renowned for incredible swimming and boating, boasting endless beaches and long smooth rocks, decorated with majestic pines. It has a rich marine heritage and is home to some of the most impressive waterfront properties in North America. I feel very lucky to have this gorgeous piece of nature an hour’s drive from my home.

This place is special to me because I have wanted to go to California since I was a kid, and I finally got the chance to visit this year. This map represents a few of my favorite places I discovered while there, from the Santa Monica Pier to Disneyland. I also loved seeing the ocean and palm trees along the way!

This place is special to me because I moved here 4 months ago and I always loved this city. Kecskemét is a small town near to the capital, Budapest. I wanted to catch the main character of the city and draw the most iconic stuffes on it. Kecske means goat and the symbol of the city surprisingly is a goat. You can find beautfiful art deco bulidings with cermic decoration. Kecskemét is a very artistic town, many amazing artists came from here, for example Zoltán Kodály, the amazing musucan. The National Ceramist Studio is also takes place here, and the Kecskemét Film aNimation studio, where many amazing movies had been made.

This place is special to me because I'm in awe that such a little strip of coastline can hold all this abundance of wildlife and wonder. In one stroll you can experience ALL the weather, hike the trails, swim or enjoy the ocean, shop for eclectic local wares, eat home made food, and drink a locally brewed beverage. My children often have their classes on the sand dunes or watching the salmon spawn in the fall. I'm very grateful to live here.

This place is special to me because it holds the perfect harmony of the old and the new, and it’s the place I call home nowadays. I have been living in Madrid for a decade, and this is one of my favourite neighbourhoods. Bubbling with life at any time of the day and night it’s a place where you can find the trendiest people and places. Art exists inside galleries and museums but also in the streets, hip bars, pubs and cafes. My favourite thing are the contrast: the little old grocery shop next to the latest design shop, the bar that has been serving people for a 100 years (true story) packed with the trendiest crowd... If you’re into shopping here you will find the best vintage shops, and the newest design too. I have listed my favourite places in the area so you can have a complete day exploring: you can see art, grab a coffee, go shopping, have a bite, a drink and even dance all night.