« April 2007 | Main | June 2007 »
May 29, 2007
Memorial Day
Adam and I had a pretty productive Memorial Day. I realized last night that I had no idea where or what happened to the pine nuts I thought I had so I had to run out this morning to buy pine nuts. Adam bought a large high-definition flat screen TV recently so we went to Bed, Bath & Beyond to buy the side table to place the cable box and Adam's Playstation and I did some grocery shopping on my way home.
I went to the Italian market at Chelsea market specifically to pick up pasta for the dinner I was planning on cooking tonight for our neighbors. Luckily, this pasta dish doesn't require much prep work and we were able to start on it about an hour and a half before they were coming over though we were detoured by our neighbor coming over to help us install a wall lamp we bought (we're hopeless when it comes to anything involving the use of a power drill). I realized halfway into preparing dinner that we didn't have enough butternut squash for the dish I was making so I ended up cooking half of the pasta with the squash and half of the pasta with the sausages I had bought and, luckily, it worked out well. The perk of having a dinner party was we got to show off our Wii, which my brother generously gave Adam, that is really fun playing on a large flat-screen TV. I jokingly told Adam this afternoon that if the bomb hits and we still have electricity, we'll be set with all the food we have in our apartment and the Wii.
Posted by Jennifer at 12:10 AM | Comments (0)
May 24, 2007
New shoes and Chelsea Market
I was wearing a dress today that none of my sandals really matched so I ended up donning a new pair of sandals that I had originally bought to go with my bridesmaid dress for Karima's wedding under the mistaken impression that they would go with the dress. The problem with women's shoes and women's sandals, in particular, is that it's so easy to get stuck with uncomfortable shoes because try as you might gauge this at the store, you can never really tell whether they're comfortable or not until you actually walk outside in them. And, as soon as I walked outside in these sandals, I knew they were not comfortable sandals (these particular ones sport a series of straps which dig into the top of the foot). Not pleasant, particularly when you have a site visit for work and you're determined to go food shopping after work for a dinner you're hosting for neighbors. Normally, I would just put these sandals back in their box and let it collect dust but these sandals are too damn cute!
The bright side was that I actually got to shop at the Italian market at Chelsea Market. I frequently go there to browse but then think, if only I knew how to whip up a fabulous Italian dinner with all the things they sell at this store. Well, today, I went there with a purpose, and that was to purchase the pasta for the dinner I'm planning on preparing that I've only been able to find at this particular store, but I took the opportunity to walk up and down the aisles and picked up other things for the dinner, like some decadent sounding sausages and cheese to go with the sausages, and pre-made polenta and other goodies that I hope to use soon. I love food shopping.
Posted by Jennifer at 10:03 PM | Comments (0)
May 17, 2007
Eating in Harlem
I've had a few meetings in Harlem recently so I've taken the opportunity to try some of the eateries there. My first stop was Sylvia's where I ordered breakfast. The biscuits were great, the ham was pretty good, but the home fries were steeped in oil and salt. Having just returned from Trinidad & Tobago, today I decided to try a potato and channa roti at Roti Plus only to be let down--the curry was bland and I had enjoyed the doubles I tried in Trinidad so much, I wanted to enjoy the roti but I couldn't eat much more than a quarter of it. I ended up going to a nearby deli that I've had success with in the past but who's name eludes me that offers a deli-style lunch buffet with southern food. They actually had swordfish which was pretty good save for the high sodium content, ditto with the collard greens. I think someone needs to launch a sodium reduction campaign in Harlem. I did hear today, however, that there is an IHOP in Harlem, which is one of my favorite destinations so I might try to go there the next time.
Posted by Jennifer at 08:44 PM | Comments (0)
May 16, 2007
Side note
This is one of the reasons why I hate NYC or the New York Metropolitan Area--anytime you want to do something that's appeals to a significant number of any given segment of the NYC or NYMA population, you have to deal with the disappointment of sold out shows or waiting out the initial frenzy (if it's a film being released in theaters).
I'm not sure when tickets started going on sale or to what extent the opening of Philip Johnson's Glass House to the public has been publicized, all I know is that I only read about it after I returned from vacation, I asked people if they'd be interested in going within two days of finding out, and I booked the tickets today (less then three days after informing said friends) and this is how it went. I followed up with a friend around 2:30 to check on her availability, and then decided to check and see what dates were available. The ticketing website revealed a few times slots on only two weekend dates were available but after clicking on the times marked available an hour or so later I discovered that, actually, only one time slot was available. I e-mailed my friend and my neighbors to see if this worked for them and after hearing back from the neighbors less than half an hour later, discovered that tickets for that time slot were no longer available. I decided to try for the last time slot on a Monday or Friday but, unfortunately, there were none available so I was stuck purchasing tickets for a 2:00 tour on a Monday in September (September is the earliest month even these were available). It's times like this I wouldn't mind living in Iowa but, then again, things like The New Yorker Festival and the Asian American International Film Festival generally don't happen in places like Iowa.
Posted by Jennifer at 09:26 PM | Comments (2)
May 12, 2007
Tobago, Day Four and the end of the journey
At the suggestion of Newton, we went to Adventure Farm and Nature Preserve to see more birds. They have hummingbird feeders and we enjoyed watching the hummingbirds buzz around the feeders and they will also feed other birds for guests. We looked on as various birds flew in to dine on bananas and bird seed, but the highlight was definitely seeing the Blue-crowned Motmot up close. They have lovely tails and are actually quite large birds. After Adventure Farm, we went to Pigeon Point, a popular and gorgeous beach in Tobago. It was very hot when we arrived and, unfortunately, we didn't have much time there since we had an afternoon flight to catch back to Trinidad, but I did enjoy watching the Brown Pelicans dive into the water for fish. My only regret was not having more time to practice snorkeling.
After Pigeon Point, we had lunch at a Middle Eastern eatery and then swung by the Tobago Hilton grounds, which sported just as much brown grass as found on much of the rest of the island. As we caught our 20-minute plane ride back to Trinidad (just enough time to skim the Tobago Express magazine), I was sad to say goodbye to the islands that had, in many ways, been such a paradise for me for the past eleven days (as you can probably tell from my photos, The Weather Channel's forecasts were completely inaccurate--I don't think I saw a rain cloud the entire time).
Black-throated Mango
Blue-crowned Motmot
Pigeon Point pier- an image captured by many Tobago postcards
Another photo of Pigeon Point
Look at that water!
Pond at Tobago Hilton
Posted by Jennifer at 02:01 AM | Comments (0)
Tobago, Day Three
The next morning, we got up early in hopes of getting a glass-bottom boat to take us out to Angel Reef to go snorkeling. We got ready quickly after we reserved a boat and I asked the driver to swing by Japanese Gardens on our way there so Adam could see the reef through glass bottom. We moored at Angel Reef and put on the snorkeling equipment I had been waiting to don and lowered myself down the ladder at the side of the boat to practice snorkeling. Unfortunately, I suspect I wasn't able to perfect the art of breathing through a snorkel and I kept getting water in my mask. Reluctantly, I decided to forgo snorkeling in favor of putting on a life jacket and peering into the water through my snorkel mask. I did see fish and would have enjoyed the experience more if it weren't for the fact that I was feeling sea sick. I gave up and we headed back to the hotel. I think I would've been better off learning to snorkel closer to a beach in shallower waters rather than attempting to do so in the middle of the ocean.
We were anxious to snorkel early since Karima's mom, Anne, was picking us up at noon. I hadn't eaten anything save for a bite of Adam's biscuit all morning and was pretty hungry and I was excited when Karima's mom suggested Jemma's. The food at Jemma's was good--probably o.k. by New York standards but I enjoyed the lobster I ordered. Before heading to Anne's house, we stopped off at Fort King George, a historic fort in Tobago. Hesitant at first, I was glad we went to the Tobago Museum located at the fort site since it's interesting to see artifacts of cultures that are largely underrepresented if at all--in this case, those of the Amerindian.
After the fort, we drove to Anne's place, a lovely house on a hill with a fantastic view of the ocean. It was the epitome of tranquility and had a nice porch with lovely cutouts that gave the veranda a Middle Eastern flair. In the evening, one of Karima's childhood friends stopped by and Adam and I exchanged bemused glances when she and her mom described how impressed they had been about all the food served at a wedding they had attended on Long Island.
Posted by Jennifer at 01:42 AM | Comments (0)
Tobago, Day Two
We woke up early the next day since we were going on a tour of Main Ridge Rain Forest with local bird guide/former forest ranger, Newton George. This was a trip I had looked very much forward to since Trinidad and Tobago are famous for their birds. Newton is an amazing bird spotter--of course, he has the advantage of decades of experience birdwatching in Trinidad & Tobago, but his skills were still very impressive nonetheless. We arrived at the rain forest, which happens to be the oldest rain forest preserve in the western hemisphere, early and I was surprised to discover how cool it was. Walking through the rain forest, while not the lush tropical rain forest I had imagined, made me appreciate the value of the forest in a slightly Miyazaki kind of way but it was Newton's bird spotting abilities and local bird knowledge that really made the excursion memorable. Most impressive was when he spotted a common potoo from hundreds of feet away, a nocturnal bird which looks normal when relaxed and camaflouges itself to look like the base of a tree when it senses danger. My photo of it isn't very good but you can find really good photos of it here
Highlights also included the hummingbirds which swooped past our faces, including the White-tailed Sabrewing, which can only be found in Main Ridge Rain Forest and in Venezuela, watching a Red-crowned Woodpecker clean out its burrow, and seeing the Rufous-tailed Jacamar and the Blue-backed manakin (unfortunately, we did not see the pair we observed display).
We returned to the hotel for lunch and then boarded a glass-bottom boat to head over to Little Tobago, an island off the coast of Tobago. The island was really hot but I definitely enjoyed looking at the Frigatebirds and Red-billed Tropicbirds (Little Tobago is famous for being in Attenborough's Trials of Life, which documented the propensity of some Frigatebirds to attack Tropicbirds in an attempt to eat their regurgitated food).
Speyside at sunrise
Little Tobago
Yellow-crowned night heron
Tobago's national bird, the cocrico
Posted by Jennifer at 12:39 AM | Comments (1)
May 11, 2007
Tobago, Day One
The next morning, we flew all of twenty minutes to Tobago and took a taxi to our hotel and the western tip of the island. I was surprised by how dry the landscape of Tobago was--I knew it was the dry season but it wasn't until our taxi driver indicated it was the driest dry season in nearly a decade that I better understood the reason for the brown grasses and trees. The ride was long and the road windy but we got to see the entire southern stretch of Tobago, which was dotted with sheds, goats, hills, and beach. As we pulled into the entrance of Blue Waters Inn, I thought we had reached paradise, looking the expanse of aquamarine water below.
We had lunch at the hotel restaurant, which overlooked the beach and then hit the beach itself. The water was warm and pleasantly shaded and small fish darted around the shallows. I decided against lounging along the beach afterwards though after I saw the multitude of ants walking along the sand and felt the stickiness of the ocean water on my skin (the salinity of the ocean water in Speyside, where our hotel was located, seemed quite high). Instead, we retreated to our hotel room. After showering, we lay our heads down to take what we thought would be a brief nap and ended up waking up two hours later, after the sun had set.
I had heard good things about Jemma's, a local restaurant and Tobago institution and, after being told by hotel reception that lots of guests walked there, we trudged up the hotel driveway towards the main road. Walking through the nighttime soup of humidity in pitch black darkness was a surreal experience, one I probably would not like to repeat. As it turned out, Jemma's ended up being closed so we had dinner at a nearby restaurant and happily took a taxi back to our hotel.
Adam at Blue Waters Inn
Speyside
Posted by Jennifer at 11:50 PM | Comments (0)
Trinidad: Day Seven
The big day finally arrived. I primped my hair, hoping it would look better than usual (Karima had asked me to be her maid of honor) and headed over to the hotel where Karima was staying. We chatted for a while and then Karima's hair and makeup artist arrived and went to work. Halfway through, her photographers arrived and they snapped away. Karima looked beautiful, of course, radiant, and the hair/makeup person finished about five minutes before the ceremony was to begin--luckily, we were only a few minutes drive away but we had to walk down the aisle almost as soon as we got to the church. The ceremony was lovely and, afterwards, we headed over to the reception place, a charming ranch boasting ponies and peacocks by the entrance and beautiful grounds atop a flight of stairs, which is where the reception took place. After a brief period of taking pictures, we headed up to the reception, which kicked off with the wedding speeches. Most of the wedding speeches were memorable and funny and, after dinner, there was a lot of calypso and soca-infused dancing and revelry. I really enjoyed the tassa drums but what made the night special was watching Karima and Greg dance from start to finish. It was definitely one of the best weddings I've been to.
Karima and Greg's first dance
Karima and one of Greg's best men showing their moves on the dance floor
The newlyweds
Posted by Jennifer at 11:34 PM | Comments (0)
Trinidad: Days Five and Six
I had heard nice things about Maracas Beach and, the next day, Greg took Rachel, Tom, and I there. I was surprised to discover that the beach was located by the top of a road that winded itself up a mountain but the views along the road were lovely. I was thrilled when I saw the beach--a beautiful, white sand beach sporting numerous palm trees and beautiful blue ocean (prior to going to Maracas, I hadn't been to the beach in at least three years). I waded in the ocean and then met Rachel, Tom, and Greg at Richard's Shark & Bake, a legendary institution in Trinidad. People flock to this food stand and, while I thought it was good, I didn't really feel like it was anything to write home about. Afterwards, I waded in the ocean some more and then lay out in the shade of one of the palm trees.
Unfortunately, my body decided to protest the trip to the beach and I first felt the symptoms of sun stroke (chills and aches) in the middle of the night which disappeared by morning but then returned after a trip to the supermarket. Karima's wedding was the next day and I certainly didn't want to risk not feeling well or, worse yet, not being able to attend so I reluctantly cancelled a trip to Caroni Swamp (besides Trinidad's national bird, the scarlet ibis, I really wanted to see mudskippers) and decided to stay home and rest. I felt better by the evening, luckily, in time to imbibe some of the delicious rum punch that our housemates (which had expanded beyond Tom, Rachel, and I) whipped up.
Scenic view near Maracas
Maracas Beach
Richard's Shark & Bake, the Shake Shack of Trinidad
Posted by Jennifer at 11:13 PM | Comments (0)
Trinidad: Days Three and Four
My friend Karima knows I love birds and she made reservations for us at Asa Wright, a popular birdwatching destination in Trinidad. We arrived around the evening and, instantly, I was enchanted. Asa Wright boasts a large veranda overlooking the forest with hummingbird feeders and views of additional bird feeders at ground level. Hummingbirds frequented the veranda feeders while other birds, including many brightly colored birds, frequented the the feeders below. After dinner, we watched a documentary on the wildlife of Trinidad & Tobago and, afterwards, Greg's friends, Rachel and Tom, and I set out for a brief nighttime walk. We saw a formidable trail of leaf-cutter ants as well as a bat, which swoooped around our heads.
The next morning, we went for a guided tour along one of Asa Wright's trails, the highlight of which was definitely seeing the white-bearded manakin in display (manakins are one of my favorite birds, precisely because of their famous mating displays) as well as a tree porcupine. Before we left, we went to check out the waterfall on the grounds and Greg and Tom took a brief dip in the waterfall's cold waters.
Crested oropendola nests
Greg by the waterfall
The bride and groom to be smooch
Posted by Jennifer at 10:53 PM | Comments (0)
Trinidad: Day Two
Fortunately, there were no other incidences to follow (although poor Greg's brother ended up having surgery on his wrist owing largely to two earlier wrist fractures). While the beach house was not near a white sand beach as I had imagined, it was lovely nonetheless, boasting a large veranda overlooking the sea. I had trouble sleeping at night though due to the all the unfamiliar sounds at night (mostly tropical birds and insects) and the heat and humidity. The day after I flew in, Greg took us by power boat to the water by an island which formerly housed a leper colony and, on our way back, a school of dolphins rode alongside the power boat, seemingly wanting to show off as they leaped into the air, one even doing a flip and another slapping his tail so close to me, my face was splashed with water. It was definitely one of those experiences you can only dream about.
Swimming near one of the abandoned buildings that comprised the leper colony at Chacachacare
Posted by Jennifer at 10:42 PM | Comments (1)
Trinidad: First Night
I flew into Trinidad at night and, as my friend's mom drove me to Port of Spain from the airport, I felt like I was on Globe Trekker between the people walking on the streets, the shanty town, the proximity of disparate land uses (i.e. luxury hotel near a power plant), and the trenches alongside the local roads intended for drainage. We arrived at Karima's and her fiance's house and I had to pack quickly so we could head over to the beach house they had rented for the weekend. We drove down the coast to a marina, where we boarded a powerboat being manned by my friend's fiance, Greg, and his brother. As we approached the dock by the beach house, Greg's brother jumped off the bow of the boat, and fell halfway between the dock and water. Karima and I watched in shock as he struggled to pull himself on top and then lie down on the dock, holding his wrist. He indicated that his wrist was broken and Karima ran into the house to rouse Greg's friend from his sleep so he could help Greg bring his brother to the hospital. Not an auspicious first night..
Posted by Jennifer at 10:31 PM | Comments (0)