Taj Mahal (Oriental Marocco)

Brand: Ravensburger
Pieces: 500
Size: 49cm x 36cm
Product Code:  145348

The Australian government has recently announced our federal elections will be happening on May 18, 2019, where we are to vote for the party that will represent Australia on the world stage. 

Similarly, elections are taking place in India- with the general election scheduled to take place in seven phases from April 11 to May 19. 

Now I'm not really a follower of politics and the like- I honestly couldn't care less unless it has a significant impact on my life and the ones I care about- but I thought I would take the opportunity to put up a picture of a puzzle that has links to India and the news! 

This puzzle was pretty quick to do, however I'm not sure if it's actually available anymore- it may be out of print because I haven't seen it for sale in a very long time. On the box, it was called Taj Mahal but online (at the time of purchase) I kept seeing it listed as Oriental Marocco (which is why I put that title in brackets next to it).

The quality was great, the colours were vibrant and the image (as you can see), is lovely. I'm not sure if I would ever want to visit India considering all the poverty, but I can't help but be enticed by the beauty of this world famous mausoleum. 

Wonders Of The World

Brand: Cardinal
Pieces: 500
Size: 35.5cm x 27.9cm
Product Code:  -

This weekend marks the end of daylight-saving in my state of Victoria (as well as a few other states in Australia). This means that we have to wind the clocks back an hour, and endure darker mornings as winter slowly approaches. 

At this time of year, I often feel quite lethargic and yearn for a holiday away from work, and so this puzzle was both a joy to do (and a sad reminder that I'm nowhere near any of the places featured). 

Arranged in a photo-collage design, this puzzle features notable man-made and natural landmarks around the world, including the pyramids, the Colosseum, the Taj Mahal, Machu Picchu, Uluru, and the Eiffel Tower among others. Keeping with the travel theme, there's also a compass, map and travel documents scattered throughout the design. 

This puzzle has very small pieces (which account for the rather small dimensions of the finished puzzle) but the quality of each piece is outstanding, with sturdy, thick cardboard pieces that slot together well. I have found over time that I actually prefer smaller pieces, and this (along with some of the Japanese Tenyo puzzles I have previously done), well and truly meets the benchmark for quality that I'd expect.

If you have the travel bug or winter blues, simply want to reminisce on places you've been, or want to plan out where to go next, Wonders Of The World  should provide all the inspiration you need.

Indian Princess

Brand: Clementoni (High Quality Collection) (Fantasy)
Pieces: 1500
Size: 84.3cm x 59.2cm
Product Code:  31965

This is one of those puzzles that just struck a chord with me. 

I'm not sure why- perhaps it's the gorgeous design or the intense detail- but when I first saw it, I couldn't get it out of my mind. 

I left the store I saw it in and kept thinking about how much I would love to do it. But despite my interest, there were just as many reasons why I shouldn't.  

I already had such a large stash of puzzles at home, and, being a 1500 piece puzzle, it cost a little bit more than I usually try to spend. But it was calling to me...

Luckily, in the following days (as I ummed and ahhed and tried to justify buying the puzzle), the store decided to have a sale. Let's just say that I was a goner!

The white Clementoni box found itself in my possession and I was the proud and excited owner of yet another jigsaw puzzle. 

I was not left disappointed.

This puzzle, as mentioned above, features an absolutely gorgeous design of an Indian princess and her two tiger companions. They rest on luxurious fabrics in front of a scenic garden, with the iconic Taj Mahal visible in the background. 

The quality of the pieces was fantastic, as expected for the brand, and slotted together nicely. While some of the colours were similar, it was still relatively easy to differentiate each section. 

With a few little challenges (in the tigers' fur and the pink background), this puzzle is perfect for someone wanting a pretty design that might test their ability.