Almost Ready

Or, alternative title for any Polish speakers out there: Słowo się rzekło, kobyłka u płotu...or something along those lines...

This is my entry for 's The Adventure Begins contest. I was going to go with another character-on horseback- in forest- kind of scene, but then I decided to try something else. I tried to illustrate that moment when you're almost ready to go, your things are packed, the road is waiting, but still you hesitate and try to catch those last few quiet moments before you set out...

To be honest this picture was terribly difficult for me. It included everything I have trouble with drawing: architecture, indoors scene, a very clear foreground/background distinction, failed attempts at perspective...Hence the meagre result. But I was so happy to actually get it done on time! By the way, the map, which is based on Idrisi's Tabula Rogeriana is actually the right way up as Idrisi's maps (and probably most maps in this and earlier periods) would have been oriented  with the South up.

On a different note I have no idea how my Kanza (the dog) ended up in the picture with them, but sometimes sense and reason has to give way to an urgent need...
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watercolour and a bit of white gouache
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Edit: I've tried to tweak the contrasts to make it look a bit more like the original.