It´s already been my birthday in Australia for some hours, in fact, it probably is over! Whoops, I slept in and missed chat dates, again! However, I am sure I will be up late tonight :)
I have lots more to update from the last couple of days, but all I have time for is...
Last night I met up with my dutch friend Joke (pron: Yoga) for a couple of drinks and a movie, Notes On A Scandal, then we went on for another drink and she needed to go home. It was only just after midnight and I wanted to see my birthday in properly so Joke encouraged me to head to San Telmo, where some night spots are. I jumped in a cab and arrived, chose a bar and walked in - what now, all of the tables are full and I don´t like imposing. Hmmm, female refuge - the bathroom. Looking in the mirror I heard some music coming from downstairs, it sounded like the ´Sex and the City´ theme song so, I went back downstairs, looked around and headed out the door to find another bar. After passing about 5 other bars, a lady gave me a flier so I went and asked her if anyone spoke English. She did - whoo hoo! She explained to me that the band was very popular and played famous Argentine music, and that there was a cover charge of 10 pesos. ¨What if it´s your birthday?¨ I asked. A man came past me and the lady said, ¨He is inviting you¨ so I followed him up the stairs and he asked if it was in fact my birthday. ¨Yes!¨ I said. I found myself a seat, ordered a beer and hoped for the best. The music was very good and the atmosphere was great, all of the people having a great time. The man, Adrian, joined me for a drink and we shared some great wine and chats, him professing that his English is ´horrible´ but in fact it was one of the better conversations I´d had - and so happy to have some company for my birthday! It was a great night!! Definately fueled by the sms messages (more welcome: +5411140373665) of birthday wishes from my friends :)
So, I have a little hangover today and am running behind schedule, surprise! But am looking forward to spending this evening with Lee and Flavia´s friends and family.
Friday, March 16, 2007
Argentina is the Place
Popular Argentine song. lyrics and music by Manrique
I found this in a book in the house where I stayed in Tigre…
If you want to know
the planet in one spot
there is a country in South America
where you can share
all the colour, all the flavour, all the love.
Autumn in Spring
and in Summer sun and snow
mountains, forests, rivers
and compliments in the voice;
America in history
Europe in the city
East and West:
Argentina is the place of different emotions
where you can behold
smiles of people who are able to dream
When you return home everybody will ask you:
- Where have you stopped in the sun,
and filled your Heart
with colour, flavour, love?
Simply you will say
among dreams and reality
that was living with imagination
in the centre of the planet:
Argentina
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Tuesday 13 March 2007
I´ve just checked out of my hotel so I can take a trip on the Tren de la Costa - a scenic train ride that runs north between Olivos and Tigre towards the mouth of the Rio Uruguay, but I´m here in the internet shop nursing a hangover and a bottle of coke because my brain is not working well enough to negotiate maps and transport options!!
Lee´s brother, Jason, and I hung out yesterday, had a (another) very successful shopping trip where I found a fantastic dress for the wedding AND shoes, and he found some shoes himself, gifts for his girlfriend and a gorgeous gift for his Mum´s birthday (today). We found a great little restaurant for lunch and had some awesome steaks for 14 paesos each - about AU$5.70 - and when we´d had enoiugh shopping headed to La Boca, a very colourful south-eastern ´barrio´(neighbourhood) where the locals paint their houses in the colours of their favourite football team. La Boca is also the home of the Boca Juniors football team and the La Bombonera football ground - I´m yet to see a game, but must before I leave. Jason and I wandered about taking in the sights along with some beers until we were told twice by locals to put my camera away, instead we jumped in a cab and headed back into the city where we felt much more comfortable and settled in to some Nachos and three bottles of red - hence the hangover! No musuem either.
With my blog up to date and the hangover subsiding, I think I´m ready to embark on the next adventure... ciao!Dining late
Even if you just order a salad your table is clothed set with a filled bread basket, butter, bread sticks, oil, balsamic, salt and pepper, napkins, sugar, toothpicks and cutlery - even if the waiter is rude, you really feel that you´re being waited on.
Sunday 11 March 2007
I figured another shopping trip would do the trick to soothe another hangover, and made a great accomplishment in my shopping career - I found the jeans!! Perfect fit too, and also some underwear (more comfy than Oz) - too too easy!
The evening passed while I tidied my belongings and watched movies on the cable TV, I wanted to avoid a hangover and actually visit a museum or something the next day. By midnight I was hungry so was happy to find an open restaurant just down the street where I ate before absconding safely back to my little room.
Sunday 11 March 2007
I figured another shopping trip would do the trick to soothe another hangover, and made a great accomplishment in my shopping career - I found the jeans!! Perfect fit too, and also some underwear (more comfy than Oz) - too too easy!
The evening passed while I tidied my belongings and watched movies on the cable TV, I wanted to avoid a hangover and actually visit a museum or something the next day. By midnight I was hungry so was happy to find an open restaurant just down the street where I ate before absconding safely back to my little room.
Walking and shopping
Saturday 10 March 2007
I decided that a good meal of steak and chips would cure my hangover (the first one of the trip) and it did help, the Argentines are famous for their bife (beef). So I took myself on a walking tour to see if I could find a museum or gallery to visit and my intuition took over and I found myself in a plaza filled with shops and restaurants. Realising that I´d not figured out the laundry situation yet and had few clean clothes, I decided to find myself a new pair of jeans - I had NO idea of the challenge that lay ahead. The sizes were inconsistent and different to Oz, and my Spanish not nearly good enough to ask for assistance, so after trying on about 12 pairs I settled on four new tops instead.
Later on, after leaving the internet shop at about 11pm, I realised that it was my only free Saturday night in Argentina and I had no plans or playmates, what was a girl to do?! Hungry, I found a table at a nearby restaurant, near to a couple of foreign looking boys hoping that I might just build up the courage to start up a conversation. Sitting there feeling sad and alone with my (amazing) pizza I enjoyed a couple of glasses of wine and tried to figure out what I might say. So as they walked out I asked for advice about where to go out and ended up scoring myself an invitation to join them for a drink.
After leaving the restaurant I set off in search of a bottle of wine and found a very cute policeman who helped point me in the right direction with a lot of flirting in broken Spanish and English. Rather chuffed at my success, I found the Irish boys in their guest house and we set off to go out after demolishing the wine. Funnily enough we went to an Irish bar named ´Shamrock´, but apart from the drinks they served there was not much Irish about it - great fun though! I discovered that the toilets I thought were unisex actually weren´t only after I´d been - that could account for the shocked look on the face of the man standing at the urinal! We headed downstairs to the club and partied the rest of the morning away, the sun peeping through the blinds as I finally closed my eyes.
I decided that a good meal of steak and chips would cure my hangover (the first one of the trip) and it did help, the Argentines are famous for their bife (beef). So I took myself on a walking tour to see if I could find a museum or gallery to visit and my intuition took over and I found myself in a plaza filled with shops and restaurants. Realising that I´d not figured out the laundry situation yet and had few clean clothes, I decided to find myself a new pair of jeans - I had NO idea of the challenge that lay ahead. The sizes were inconsistent and different to Oz, and my Spanish not nearly good enough to ask for assistance, so after trying on about 12 pairs I settled on four new tops instead.
Later on, after leaving the internet shop at about 11pm, I realised that it was my only free Saturday night in Argentina and I had no plans or playmates, what was a girl to do?! Hungry, I found a table at a nearby restaurant, near to a couple of foreign looking boys hoping that I might just build up the courage to start up a conversation. Sitting there feeling sad and alone with my (amazing) pizza I enjoyed a couple of glasses of wine and tried to figure out what I might say. So as they walked out I asked for advice about where to go out and ended up scoring myself an invitation to join them for a drink.
After leaving the restaurant I set off in search of a bottle of wine and found a very cute policeman who helped point me in the right direction with a lot of flirting in broken Spanish and English. Rather chuffed at my success, I found the Irish boys in their guest house and we set off to go out after demolishing the wine. Funnily enough we went to an Irish bar named ´Shamrock´, but apart from the drinks they served there was not much Irish about it - great fun though! I discovered that the toilets I thought were unisex actually weren´t only after I´d been - that could account for the shocked look on the face of the man standing at the urinal! We headed downstairs to the club and partied the rest of the morning away, the sun peeping through the blinds as I finally closed my eyes.
Sightseeing in Buenos Aires
Friday 9 March
After a decent sleep in I set off to do some sight seeing and headed for the Casa Rosada - the pink government house from which Evita, Maradona, Galteri and Peron would address the crowds in the Plaza De Mayo below. There would be no 4pm tour due to the renovations taking place, so I headed back through the plaza, taking care to avoid the anti-Bush demonstrations, into another plaza to find some breakfast and bumped into Tim who I´d met on the bus from the airport. We had some lunch and shared a bottle of wine, then wandered about and made plans to see a tango show in the evening.
The tango show at 3 Billares was great, 4 very good dancers, sexy dresses and 2 extraordinary singers. Somehow, Tim thought we were on a date so he didn´t hang around for very long once I´d made it quite clear that it wasn´t. I was rather confused by this, I´d definately not flirted with him - I spent more time eyeing off the waiters than anything else! On the walk home I got some nice pictures of the city, the architecture and street scapes are lovely, and I felt very safe as there was a policeman on most corners.
After a decent sleep in I set off to do some sight seeing and headed for the Casa Rosada - the pink government house from which Evita, Maradona, Galteri and Peron would address the crowds in the Plaza De Mayo below. There would be no 4pm tour due to the renovations taking place, so I headed back through the plaza, taking care to avoid the anti-Bush demonstrations, into another plaza to find some breakfast and bumped into Tim who I´d met on the bus from the airport. We had some lunch and shared a bottle of wine, then wandered about and made plans to see a tango show in the evening.
The tango show at 3 Billares was great, 4 very good dancers, sexy dresses and 2 extraordinary singers. Somehow, Tim thought we were on a date so he didn´t hang around for very long once I´d made it quite clear that it wasn´t. I was rather confused by this, I´d definately not flirted with him - I spent more time eyeing off the waiters than anything else! On the walk home I got some nice pictures of the city, the architecture and street scapes are lovely, and I felt very safe as there was a policeman on most corners.
Buenos Aires
Thursday 8 March 2007
On the flight from Miami to Buenos Aires I was even more excited than on the way to New York, fuelled by great conversation with my lovely Argentine travel mate, Carlidos who told me lots about the places to go.
Lee, Flavia and Jason (Lee´s brother) met me at the airport, Lee´s parents had arrived a few hours earlier and unfortunately Lee´s mother was in the airport hospital suffering problems with high blood pressure. She emerged after a little while and was taken home by her family to rest and recover. I jumped on the bus and headed into the city and found a hotel.
The hotel I´d selected from the guidebook was full, as were the next three on the block, but I found the Hotel Madrid and was able to escape the pouring rain. Almost immediately I fell asleep with the TV on and woke a few hours later to discover Argentina´s version of the Big Brother reality show. The only currency I had was US so I headed out to find a money changer, no luck, but I did find a plaza and wandered about looking at the stores and admiring the sights - stunned at how good looking all of the men were, hel-lo Argentina!! :D
Later in the evening I headed to Flavia´s parents house to join the celebrations for Flavia´s birthday. Greeted with kisses as I was introduced to each member of the family, we sat chatting and drinking wine, whilst posing for photos being taken by Flavia´s great uncle Lalo. I tried some empanadas - small pastries filled with beef or vegetables (ones I tried a few days later were filled with blue cheese and mozzarella: a-ma-zing!), then there was birthday cake - an apple flan and a meringue cake, the perfect desert - like a pavalova but much better with a layer of dulce de leche (a caramel type substance that the Argentines like to put on everything) - absolutely delicious. Afterwards we browsed through many many wonderful photos that Lalo and Lee had taken on a recent trip and a selection of pictures of Flavia as she grew up, Lalo is an incredible photographer.
On the flight from Miami to Buenos Aires I was even more excited than on the way to New York, fuelled by great conversation with my lovely Argentine travel mate, Carlidos who told me lots about the places to go.
Lee, Flavia and Jason (Lee´s brother) met me at the airport, Lee´s parents had arrived a few hours earlier and unfortunately Lee´s mother was in the airport hospital suffering problems with high blood pressure. She emerged after a little while and was taken home by her family to rest and recover. I jumped on the bus and headed into the city and found a hotel.
The hotel I´d selected from the guidebook was full, as were the next three on the block, but I found the Hotel Madrid and was able to escape the pouring rain. Almost immediately I fell asleep with the TV on and woke a few hours later to discover Argentina´s version of the Big Brother reality show. The only currency I had was US so I headed out to find a money changer, no luck, but I did find a plaza and wandered about looking at the stores and admiring the sights - stunned at how good looking all of the men were, hel-lo Argentina!! :D
Later in the evening I headed to Flavia´s parents house to join the celebrations for Flavia´s birthday. Greeted with kisses as I was introduced to each member of the family, we sat chatting and drinking wine, whilst posing for photos being taken by Flavia´s great uncle Lalo. I tried some empanadas - small pastries filled with beef or vegetables (ones I tried a few days later were filled with blue cheese and mozzarella: a-ma-zing!), then there was birthday cake - an apple flan and a meringue cake, the perfect desert - like a pavalova but much better with a layer of dulce de leche (a caramel type substance that the Argentines like to put on everything) - absolutely delicious. Afterwards we browsed through many many wonderful photos that Lalo and Lee had taken on a recent trip and a selection of pictures of Flavia as she grew up, Lalo is an incredible photographer.
Saturday, March 10, 2007
New york, new york!
Reading my NYC guidebook on the train from philadelphia back to NY I was so excited that I was actually trembling! I wrote a long list of things that i wanted to see and do, of course, in order of priority ;) tired after my epic session of accommodation hunting on the net last night (at 1am eventually choosing the hotel i'd settled on at 11pm - mental note to go with first good, fitting option) , I wished i'd spent my time more effectively watching the Sex and the City episodes on dvd i'd found in my bag...
Mum & Dad phoned yesterday, it was 7am Monday morning back home - so strange that it was only 3.30pm Sunday here, behind the times. like a kid I told them how "everywhere I go I hear New York accents - everywhere! It feels like i'm in a movie!".
After checking in, admiring the view of the brick wall outside my window (though the falling snow was nice as was Snow Patrol's 'Chasing Cars' playing on the radio), taking photos of the room from every angle, sorting out a few housekeeping issues and doing my excited dance of joy, I set off with my camera into the city in the direction of Central Park. I happily snapped my way east along 59th street, north up 5th avenue which faces the park and eventually found myself on the famous madison avenue - Oscar de la renta, Donna Karen New York, Ralph
Lauren, the list goes on. Flashbacks of one of my favorite childhood films - Splash. In hope of finding a bathroom I entered a corner deli and chose a take-away salmon salad and cranberry juice. the closest toilet I was directed to a museum up the block. Closed.
So I stop at a diner, Lennox's grill on the corner of 77th and Lexington, where I keep ordering drinks and food until I feel comfortable that i've passed the minimum order, also being extremely polite and friendly enough so the waiters would understand i'm a tourist. As always I misjudged so Billy the waiter flirted with me and suggested he join me for drinks later!
An hour later i'm sitting in a bar named 'Republic' waiting for my friend Diana to finish her yoga class, so i have a juice and chat to the man sitting next to me for a while, said he´d hang around and keep me company but i was waiting for someone. not feeling so well i gave
up on Diana, walked outside and there she was! Greeted me with a hug and ´where´d you get that jacket, the 80s?´ so funny - Andrea´s purple ski jacket she loaned me for the trip.
As Diana is not yet 21 we grabbed a bottle of wine and went back to the hotel to play scrabble, watch TV and eat pizza - a good fun girls night in. Diana headed off and I stayed awake until 5.30am when i decided to go and find a doctor - really not well. When I got out of the cab at
the other end I took off my gloves (the beautiful ones Shelley loaned me) to pay the driver and didn´t realise I didn´t have them until the cab had gone! Sorry Shelley, I will replace them :(
I came back at 9am with a perscription and some supplies and crashed, not waking until 6pm! I missed my only full day in New York!! So I got dressed (incl. long johns, very cold!) and grabbed a cab down to Macy´s, a department store ´so big it has it´s own visitor´s centre´! Not too much interesting, just like David Jones, so I headed off wandering down broadway and found some souvineers and a make up store - then back to the hotel for a hot choc and even more TV (this trip I´ve watched more TV than in 6 months at home in Aus!).
The next day I managed to actually see one major attraction, the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Huge, amazing, you could spend days and days there! I focused on the art of South East Asia and felt more at ease and calm after I´d spent some time with Bhudda - lots of Khmer art, from the pre- and Angkor periods, as well as from Vietnam, Burma, Thailand. The only dissapointing thing was that all of the other countries were recognised separately, except Cambodia - I think I´ll write a polite email and let someone know... The other main exhibition I spent time at was a spanish exhibition displaying works from the likes of Picasso and Dali - great seeing those famous works for real.
That afternoon I wandered back to the hotel in the snow, bought another camera lens (macro & fish eye), a filter and some batteries, then set off for the airport for the next leg of the journey... Argentina!!
Mum & Dad phoned yesterday, it was 7am Monday morning back home - so strange that it was only 3.30pm Sunday here, behind the times. like a kid I told them how "everywhere I go I hear New York accents - everywhere! It feels like i'm in a movie!".
After checking in, admiring the view of the brick wall outside my window (though the falling snow was nice as was Snow Patrol's 'Chasing Cars' playing on the radio), taking photos of the room from every angle, sorting out a few housekeeping issues and doing my excited dance of joy, I set off with my camera into the city in the direction of Central Park. I happily snapped my way east along 59th street, north up 5th avenue which faces the park and eventually found myself on the famous madison avenue - Oscar de la renta, Donna Karen New York, Ralph
Lauren, the list goes on. Flashbacks of one of my favorite childhood films - Splash. In hope of finding a bathroom I entered a corner deli and chose a take-away salmon salad and cranberry juice. the closest toilet I was directed to a museum up the block. Closed.
So I stop at a diner, Lennox's grill on the corner of 77th and Lexington, where I keep ordering drinks and food until I feel comfortable that i've passed the minimum order, also being extremely polite and friendly enough so the waiters would understand i'm a tourist. As always I misjudged so Billy the waiter flirted with me and suggested he join me for drinks later!
An hour later i'm sitting in a bar named 'Republic' waiting for my friend Diana to finish her yoga class, so i have a juice and chat to the man sitting next to me for a while, said he´d hang around and keep me company but i was waiting for someone. not feeling so well i gave
up on Diana, walked outside and there she was! Greeted me with a hug and ´where´d you get that jacket, the 80s?´ so funny - Andrea´s purple ski jacket she loaned me for the trip.
As Diana is not yet 21 we grabbed a bottle of wine and went back to the hotel to play scrabble, watch TV and eat pizza - a good fun girls night in. Diana headed off and I stayed awake until 5.30am when i decided to go and find a doctor - really not well. When I got out of the cab at
the other end I took off my gloves (the beautiful ones Shelley loaned me) to pay the driver and didn´t realise I didn´t have them until the cab had gone! Sorry Shelley, I will replace them :(
I came back at 9am with a perscription and some supplies and crashed, not waking until 6pm! I missed my only full day in New York!! So I got dressed (incl. long johns, very cold!) and grabbed a cab down to Macy´s, a department store ´so big it has it´s own visitor´s centre´! Not too much interesting, just like David Jones, so I headed off wandering down broadway and found some souvineers and a make up store - then back to the hotel for a hot choc and even more TV (this trip I´ve watched more TV than in 6 months at home in Aus!).
The next day I managed to actually see one major attraction, the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Huge, amazing, you could spend days and days there! I focused on the art of South East Asia and felt more at ease and calm after I´d spent some time with Bhudda - lots of Khmer art, from the pre- and Angkor periods, as well as from Vietnam, Burma, Thailand. The only dissapointing thing was that all of the other countries were recognised separately, except Cambodia - I think I´ll write a polite email and let someone know... The other main exhibition I spent time at was a spanish exhibition displaying works from the likes of Picasso and Dali - great seeing those famous works for real.
That afternoon I wandered back to the hotel in the snow, bought another camera lens (macro & fish eye), a filter and some batteries, then set off for the airport for the next leg of the journey... Argentina!!
Sunday, March 4, 2007
Quiet Sunday
Grace knocked on my door this morning to say goodbye before she headed off to Colorado for a conference she will be speaking at for Comcast (the largest cable TV company in the US with a subscription base large than Australia's populuation) on Tuesday - addressing 500 delegates from the Cable TV and related industries in the US, on emerging technologies. Never fails to impress does Grace, what an incredible human being! Her husband Daniel equally impressive - a link to his blog to be provided soon :)
Unfortunately, after a few ups and downs with his moods, Laurence kept his caring parents up most of the night so they took him to the ER this morning before Grace left for her flight. The poor boy was very upset. Daniel arrived home a few hours later with a much happier son, the prognosis was an infection and a very sore throat - at least Daniel had been able to feed some fluids to him with a syringe. Hopefully he'll be much better soon.
This morning I ate the most amazing choc chip bagel for breakfast and surfed the menus of the Commcast TV - On Demand movies, programs, news etc. The lists go on and on, what a haven for TV watchers! I could certainly kill a few days working on straightening the sides of my eyes in front of this thing. But, no time for that! I'm off to New York tomorrow morning for some sightseeing and maybe a little bit of painting the town red at some stage with my friend Diana...
Unfortunately, after a few ups and downs with his moods, Laurence kept his caring parents up most of the night so they took him to the ER this morning before Grace left for her flight. The poor boy was very upset. Daniel arrived home a few hours later with a much happier son, the prognosis was an infection and a very sore throat - at least Daniel had been able to feed some fluids to him with a syringe. Hopefully he'll be much better soon.
This morning I ate the most amazing choc chip bagel for breakfast and surfed the menus of the Commcast TV - On Demand movies, programs, news etc. The lists go on and on, what a haven for TV watchers! I could certainly kill a few days working on straightening the sides of my eyes in front of this thing. But, no time for that! I'm off to New York tomorrow morning for some sightseeing and maybe a little bit of painting the town red at some stage with my friend Diana...
Cherry Hill & Philadelphia with Grace, Daniel & Laurence
Friday 2 March 2007
After a warm welcome from Daniel, Grace and Laurence we headed to their home in Cherry Hill, New Jersey - across the Delaware river on the Benjamin Franklin bridge from Philadephia. This part of the suburb is actually a forest, so the area is heavily wooded - from the study window I can see at least 20 trees, starkers- not a leaf in sight! We had a lovely catch up over a few bottles of red, some magnificent cheeses and an amazing barbequed steak.
Saturday 3 March 2007
Lucky event #1
Yesterday morning we took a walk around the neighbourhood, and while chatting with the lovely neighbours, Lisa and Mike, across the road (by all accounts, everyone is amazingly friendly, welcoming and generous) a mob of about 6 deer ran along the front yards on the other side of the street, just as though they were in the woods, jumping over side fences and around the corner - this has happened once in the time that Grace & Daniel have lived in this house, and for Lisa it was the first time that she had seen this happen in the 9 years that she has lived here! The neighbourhood is lovely, lots of northern american style homes on large blocks - many with the USA flag flying from the fronts along with letterboxes with the little red flag to signal new mail, puddles of water which once were snow and dogs contained by 'invisible' fences.
Off into the city of Phili we went, driving around looking at the landmarks with me madly snapping away from the front (right) passenger seat. Once I figure out how to get a photo gallery on this blog or link to one I'll add relevant links...
Lucky event #2
In the middle of the city we decided to head for some lunch before Daniel began to dine on the upholstery so we hunted down a parking garage. After driving into one garage and beginning to extract ourselves and pram etc from the car it was decided to change to a more reasonably-priced car park, we hopped back in, reversed and continued driving down the street - cars honking behind us. One extra-large range rover that had been tooting pulled up beside us and motioned to the car and we realised that the boot hadn't been closed, so we figured that it could wait until we got to the next garage just down the block. I said how nice it was that the man was so intent on letting us know that the boot was still open. The tooting continued well into the next garage until we stopped so I could close the boot - something might be hanging out after all. I closed the boot, turned and waved thank you to the cars behind us and a lady rolled down her window and said (in a great NY accent) "Ma'am, there's a wallet on the top of your car". OOOPS!!
We found a great Italian restaurant for lunch where we ordered pizzas - one a margarita and another with proscuitto and mushrooms, delicious!! (have photos) Laurence and I had some bonding time whilst I whizzed him around and hung him upside down, which he managed considerably well for a 9 month old baby who had just consumed a tub of yoghurt! We took a walk through the park where some young people with a microphone were having a discussion monologue on the bible, a pile of snow was melting, children were playing on statues and three ladies sat on a bench knitting. On to Urban Outfitters to buy Daniel some new hats, the Pharmacy for some supplies (more than just a pharmacy, some great stuff available) and then to Borders for some travel guides where we bumped into a lovely lady who'd been to Argentina last year and gave me lots of tips on where to go, what to see etc. Walking back to the car a trumpet player tunes were bursting out almost a block away, as we passed by the man changed his tune to a very lively "When the saint go marching in" as he saw Laurence and, genuinely very pleased, he pronounced that the little boy has "music in his eyes".
Lucky event #3
On the way back to Cherry Hill in the car, with Grace tending to Laurence (unwell since day care the previous day) in the back seat, the first un-prompted words from the little tacker "Ma Ma"!! Definately, without a doubt and clear as day - the three of us agreed!!
Some things disturbing
After reluctantly leaving Laurence with the baby-sitter for a few hours, the three of us headed back into the city that evening for dinner at a Cuban restaurant Alma de Cuba. Delightful - very nice to be in a very good restaurant! We nibbled on sweet fresh rolls smaller than golf balls with a light moist texture and a very pleasant flavour, sipped on cocktails - I ordered a mango mojito (delish!), shared a ceviche tasting plate and devoured our entrees (main meal in Cuba). My entree was the Lechon Asado which I selected almost purely because of one particular thing in the description "Crisp roasted pork with traditional sour orange mojo served with congri and sweet plantains". Now I do love good pork, but mojo - I knew you could have it, feel it or lose it (I'm particularly familiar with the latter), BUT I did not know you could eat it! I was not at all dissapointed, the meal was just divine, and I later found out that mojo is a marinade and is pronounced "moho".
Did curiousity really kill the cat??
After a warm welcome from Daniel, Grace and Laurence we headed to their home in Cherry Hill, New Jersey - across the Delaware river on the Benjamin Franklin bridge from Philadephia. This part of the suburb is actually a forest, so the area is heavily wooded - from the study window I can see at least 20 trees, starkers- not a leaf in sight! We had a lovely catch up over a few bottles of red, some magnificent cheeses and an amazing barbequed steak.
Saturday 3 March 2007
Lucky event #1
Yesterday morning we took a walk around the neighbourhood, and while chatting with the lovely neighbours, Lisa and Mike, across the road (by all accounts, everyone is amazingly friendly, welcoming and generous) a mob of about 6 deer ran along the front yards on the other side of the street, just as though they were in the woods, jumping over side fences and around the corner - this has happened once in the time that Grace & Daniel have lived in this house, and for Lisa it was the first time that she had seen this happen in the 9 years that she has lived here! The neighbourhood is lovely, lots of northern american style homes on large blocks - many with the USA flag flying from the fronts along with letterboxes with the little red flag to signal new mail, puddles of water which once were snow and dogs contained by 'invisible' fences.
Off into the city of Phili we went, driving around looking at the landmarks with me madly snapping away from the front (right) passenger seat. Once I figure out how to get a photo gallery on this blog or link to one I'll add relevant links...
Lucky event #2
In the middle of the city we decided to head for some lunch before Daniel began to dine on the upholstery so we hunted down a parking garage. After driving into one garage and beginning to extract ourselves and pram etc from the car it was decided to change to a more reasonably-priced car park, we hopped back in, reversed and continued driving down the street - cars honking behind us. One extra-large range rover that had been tooting pulled up beside us and motioned to the car and we realised that the boot hadn't been closed, so we figured that it could wait until we got to the next garage just down the block. I said how nice it was that the man was so intent on letting us know that the boot was still open. The tooting continued well into the next garage until we stopped so I could close the boot - something might be hanging out after all. I closed the boot, turned and waved thank you to the cars behind us and a lady rolled down her window and said (in a great NY accent) "Ma'am, there's a wallet on the top of your car". OOOPS!!
We found a great Italian restaurant for lunch where we ordered pizzas - one a margarita and another with proscuitto and mushrooms, delicious!! (have photos) Laurence and I had some bonding time whilst I whizzed him around and hung him upside down, which he managed considerably well for a 9 month old baby who had just consumed a tub of yoghurt! We took a walk through the park where some young people with a microphone were having a discussion monologue on the bible, a pile of snow was melting, children were playing on statues and three ladies sat on a bench knitting. On to Urban Outfitters to buy Daniel some new hats, the Pharmacy for some supplies (more than just a pharmacy, some great stuff available) and then to Borders for some travel guides where we bumped into a lovely lady who'd been to Argentina last year and gave me lots of tips on where to go, what to see etc. Walking back to the car a trumpet player tunes were bursting out almost a block away, as we passed by the man changed his tune to a very lively "When the saint go marching in" as he saw Laurence and, genuinely very pleased, he pronounced that the little boy has "music in his eyes".
Lucky event #3
On the way back to Cherry Hill in the car, with Grace tending to Laurence (unwell since day care the previous day) in the back seat, the first un-prompted words from the little tacker "Ma Ma"!! Definately, without a doubt and clear as day - the three of us agreed!!
Some things disturbing
- people at traffic lights with cardboard signs explaining their plight - the only way to communicate with people in their cars with the windows wound up in the cold weather
- small doorway-wide alcoves stacked with cardboard and a sleeping bag, where two people sleep
- vents in the sidewalk from where the heat escapes the tunnels below which people sleep next to for warmth as others walk by on their way to a heated restaurant for dinner
After reluctantly leaving Laurence with the baby-sitter for a few hours, the three of us headed back into the city that evening for dinner at a Cuban restaurant Alma de Cuba. Delightful - very nice to be in a very good restaurant! We nibbled on sweet fresh rolls smaller than golf balls with a light moist texture and a very pleasant flavour, sipped on cocktails - I ordered a mango mojito (delish!), shared a ceviche tasting plate and devoured our entrees (main meal in Cuba). My entree was the Lechon Asado which I selected almost purely because of one particular thing in the description "Crisp roasted pork with traditional sour orange mojo served with congri and sweet plantains". Now I do love good pork, but mojo - I knew you could have it, feel it or lose it (I'm particularly familiar with the latter), BUT I did not know you could eat it! I was not at all dissapointed, the meal was just divine, and I later found out that mojo is a marinade and is pronounced "moho".
Did curiousity really kill the cat??
Arrival in the US
Friday 2 March 2007
Sometime between 2 and 3pm Friday afternoon I arrived at JFK. It took almost no time to disembark, proceed through security, collect my bags and proceed through customs. The arrivals terminal was much quieter than I expected, I was only asked twice by one man if I needed a taxi - quite a different airport to Singapore, Bangkok and Phnom Penh! So I changed my Aussie dollars for some mighty US currency, including some quarters and phoned Grace and Daniel to let them know I had arrived and would make my way to Philadelphia.
Negotiating the train systems, I made my way from JFK to my final destination, 30th Street Station. Out the front window of the first train I could see signs to the Bronx, Manhattan, Boston and the Van Wyck, rows and rows of similar houses with two front doors, delis, mechanics, HUGE cars, freeways and traffic lined up as far as one could see.
The major station on the way was Penn Station, which I found out later, is underneath the famous Madison Square gardens. When I first emerged from the platform in the bowels of the station, lugging my enormous suitcase up the stairs into the main station area, my nostrills were filled with the aromas of freshly popped and buttered corn, and my ears with great music from a band playing lively trumpets and bass - good enough to attact the attention of commuters who all seemed intent on their path to the next destination. This was a train station of proportions and action like I'd never seen it, not huge or enormous, bigger and busier with only a few folk that stood or sat still, even the musicians were energetic. I purchased my $68 ticket for my 1.5 hour journey and when I enquired as to which platform I should wait on I was kindly told to watch the board and wait for the call for my train number 658. Before the customer service desk was an open area with a downward escalator and a departures board being constantly updated with train number, destination and time, only the trains with a status of BOARDING would display the platform number. Just as the trains were about due to arrive across the PA an announcement would come - the train number, destination time and platform, the departures board would be updated with the platorm and the waiting passengers would simaltaneously turn on their heel and head in the direction of the platform. Once on the train, I settled back in my extra wide seat and watched the landscape passing by - incredible, I'm in America!!
The moon followed me as the colours of the sky change from pale blue to orange to dark blue and we pulled in to 30th street station, I was relieved to see an escalator to carry my suitcase and I up into the sizeable, art-deco station where I was to meet my friends under the big clock.
Sometime between 2 and 3pm Friday afternoon I arrived at JFK. It took almost no time to disembark, proceed through security, collect my bags and proceed through customs. The arrivals terminal was much quieter than I expected, I was only asked twice by one man if I needed a taxi - quite a different airport to Singapore, Bangkok and Phnom Penh! So I changed my Aussie dollars for some mighty US currency, including some quarters and phoned Grace and Daniel to let them know I had arrived and would make my way to Philadelphia.
Negotiating the train systems, I made my way from JFK to my final destination, 30th Street Station. Out the front window of the first train I could see signs to the Bronx, Manhattan, Boston and the Van Wyck, rows and rows of similar houses with two front doors, delis, mechanics, HUGE cars, freeways and traffic lined up as far as one could see.
The major station on the way was Penn Station, which I found out later, is underneath the famous Madison Square gardens. When I first emerged from the platform in the bowels of the station, lugging my enormous suitcase up the stairs into the main station area, my nostrills were filled with the aromas of freshly popped and buttered corn, and my ears with great music from a band playing lively trumpets and bass - good enough to attact the attention of commuters who all seemed intent on their path to the next destination. This was a train station of proportions and action like I'd never seen it, not huge or enormous, bigger and busier with only a few folk that stood or sat still, even the musicians were energetic. I purchased my $68 ticket for my 1.5 hour journey and when I enquired as to which platform I should wait on I was kindly told to watch the board and wait for the call for my train number 658. Before the customer service desk was an open area with a downward escalator and a departures board being constantly updated with train number, destination and time, only the trains with a status of BOARDING would display the platform number. Just as the trains were about due to arrive across the PA an announcement would come - the train number, destination time and platform, the departures board would be updated with the platorm and the waiting passengers would simaltaneously turn on their heel and head in the direction of the platform. Once on the train, I settled back in my extra wide seat and watched the landscape passing by - incredible, I'm in America!!
The moon followed me as the colours of the sky change from pale blue to orange to dark blue and we pulled in to 30th street station, I was relieved to see an escalator to carry my suitcase and I up into the sizeable, art-deco station where I was to meet my friends under the big clock.
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