We arrived at the Grand Canyon, or what could be seen of it, around lunchtime and picked a campsite that looked like it shouldn't flood if the rain kept up! The camping ground at Desert View is quite small and works on a first come first served basis, it's usually full by early afternoon, so we were glad to get a spot. Weren't quite so glad to be pitching the tent (which we'd only helped Yong to pitch once before) in the drizzle, but we got there.
Of course the plan then was to go see some canyon. And see some we did. Some. The view from Desert View and the Watchtower there was impressive, despite all the fog. It almost made it seem grander as you could only guess at the true scale of it. Further round at the Grand View lookout all we could see was white; not so aptly named that day. Headed on into the village for a late lunch and everything cleared up suddenly and beautifully. Walked around the rim track heading west until the sun was going down (which meant we missed dinner back at the Desert View end). Spectacular. It's impossible really even to describe. I can say that the canyon is sooooo much bigger than I had ever imagined, as well as more colourful, intricate and precarious - there is nothing anywhere to stop you just wandering off the edge should you choose to do so. People have; there's even a book about it (slash deaths in the Grand Canyon in general) available for purchase from the souvenir shop. On our walk we encountered a chipmunk! And on the bus back to the village some elk were happily grazing right alongside the route.
The following morning we woke early to the makings of a gorgeous day, packed up camp and chowed down on a breakfast burrito before descending into the canyon a ways. Took the Kaibab trail as far as Cedar Ridge lookout (further than we intended actually; we were aiming for "Ooh Aah Point" but overshot). Then it was back on the road, this time destination: Las Vegas.
Thursday, 2 September 2010
Tuesday, 17 August 2010
Dinosaurs, deer and deserts (plus desserts)
Looking online for things to do for free in Denver, I came across Dinosaur Ridge - a site where several of the first dinosaur fossils and footprints were found, and only about 20 minutes away nestled at the beginnings of the Rocky Mountains. We headed over there on Thursday to check it out. It was pretty cool, with lots of information along the way about the geological history of the region. At one point it started to rain so we took shelter under a rock shelf formed from the indent of a brontosaurus' footprint!
On the way home we stopped and had a look around a tiny historic town, Morrison, that was bustling, then carried on Red Rocks which was also very busy that evening. It is named, unsurprisingly, for the huge red coloured rock formations in the area. Here they form a natural outdoor amphitheatre that has seen some of the biggest musical acts play including The Beatles and Jimi Hendrix. That night Jackson Browne was playing and a lot of people were arriving.
We walked one of the trails and saw lots of deer, including a couple of fawns, a skunk (minus the smell, besides maybe the scent of decay) but no rattle snakes despite many warnings around the place. No pumas either. Didn't stick around to hear the show, but headed back to Denver for Señor Burritos and Sweet Action Ice Cream!
The following day brought more Sweet Action Ice Cream as a quick break from packing before we picked up the rental car. It was a total nana car but that came in super handy later as we ended up not leaving Denver until around 5pm which meant it was dark when we reached Pagosa Springs. We had planned to camp around there but didn't fancy pitching the tent in the dark only to have to wake up really really early to take it down again so drove on to Sleeping Ute Mountain rest area and set up camp in the back of the car, discovering that all four back seats folded down completely flat to make a reasonably comfortable "bed". The drive before it got dark had been gorgeous, some of it winding through the mountains, a lot of it driving across mountain plateaus. Any thunderstorms thankfully missed us but we could see a couple in the distance and the lightning was spectacular (and maybe somewhat distracting for the driver).
Woke up with the sun after a few hours kip and hit the road again, this time headed for the Grand Canyon. Were treated to a gorgeous sunrise over a crazy desert landscape, with ravens flying off to rock formations that shouldn't have been passed over for the role of Mount Doom. It wasn't long before we left Colorado, passed through the very corner of New Mexico and came out in Arizona. Stopped to try see the Four Corners Monument (at the point where these states and Utah all meet) but it said it was closed for repairs and in fact the gates to the park it is in weren't even open yet at that hour of the morning, though there were already half a dozen or so cars parked up and waiting.
After several hours of driving we finally found a town just big enough to get some breakfast (only just, there were actually horses roaming the streets). The girl at Speedy's gas station recommended Golden Sands cafe, which we finally found after a detour several miles out of town in the wrong direction. There we breakfasted like kings on a stack of blueberry pancakes smothered in syrup, omelette with hash brown potatoes, biscuit with gravy and hot chocolates. We were the only non native americans in the place, and the decor was matched to its clientele. With our bellies full we headed on through more amazing terrain, and less amazing weather, to the Grand Canyon National Park.
*Sweet Action flavours we sampled:
Ginger Lemon Cookie
Vegan Mint Chip
Cherry Chocolate Chip
Saigon Cinnamon
Pistachio
Baklava
On the way home we stopped and had a look around a tiny historic town, Morrison, that was bustling, then carried on Red Rocks which was also very busy that evening. It is named, unsurprisingly, for the huge red coloured rock formations in the area. Here they form a natural outdoor amphitheatre that has seen some of the biggest musical acts play including The Beatles and Jimi Hendrix. That night Jackson Browne was playing and a lot of people were arriving.
We walked one of the trails and saw lots of deer, including a couple of fawns, a skunk (minus the smell, besides maybe the scent of decay) but no rattle snakes despite many warnings around the place. No pumas either. Didn't stick around to hear the show, but headed back to Denver for Señor Burritos and Sweet Action Ice Cream!
The following day brought more Sweet Action Ice Cream as a quick break from packing before we picked up the rental car. It was a total nana car but that came in super handy later as we ended up not leaving Denver until around 5pm which meant it was dark when we reached Pagosa Springs. We had planned to camp around there but didn't fancy pitching the tent in the dark only to have to wake up really really early to take it down again so drove on to Sleeping Ute Mountain rest area and set up camp in the back of the car, discovering that all four back seats folded down completely flat to make a reasonably comfortable "bed". The drive before it got dark had been gorgeous, some of it winding through the mountains, a lot of it driving across mountain plateaus. Any thunderstorms thankfully missed us but we could see a couple in the distance and the lightning was spectacular (and maybe somewhat distracting for the driver).
Woke up with the sun after a few hours kip and hit the road again, this time headed for the Grand Canyon. Were treated to a gorgeous sunrise over a crazy desert landscape, with ravens flying off to rock formations that shouldn't have been passed over for the role of Mount Doom. It wasn't long before we left Colorado, passed through the very corner of New Mexico and came out in Arizona. Stopped to try see the Four Corners Monument (at the point where these states and Utah all meet) but it said it was closed for repairs and in fact the gates to the park it is in weren't even open yet at that hour of the morning, though there were already half a dozen or so cars parked up and waiting.
After several hours of driving we finally found a town just big enough to get some breakfast (only just, there were actually horses roaming the streets). The girl at Speedy's gas station recommended Golden Sands cafe, which we finally found after a detour several miles out of town in the wrong direction. There we breakfasted like kings on a stack of blueberry pancakes smothered in syrup, omelette with hash brown potatoes, biscuit with gravy and hot chocolates. We were the only non native americans in the place, and the decor was matched to its clientele. With our bellies full we headed on through more amazing terrain, and less amazing weather, to the Grand Canyon National Park.
*Sweet Action flavours we sampled:
Ginger Lemon Cookie
Vegan Mint Chip
Cherry Chocolate Chip
Saigon Cinnamon
Pistachio
Baklava
Denver Delights
Last week in Denver! On Monday we explored the neighbourhood in a little more detail. Checked out some more of the residential area (love the style of the houses around there, especially the colourful ones) but mostly it meant walking up and down Broadway between 3rd and Alameda and going into lots of the many very cool shops along the way. Also got a 7-eleven Slurpee (for the cup), a chili cheese dog and tried to get KFC cornbread but no luck.
Finished up at the supermarket for dinner ingredients (and hugs from a stranger) to cook chili bean falafel for Yong and Lindsey. After dinner Yong showed off what his keyboard setup is capable of (when you know how to use it). Jon and I had a play around with it too!
Tuesday was Yong and Lindsey's last day before they jetted off to Costa Rica. They took us out for breakfast at Lucile's Creole Cafe and boy was it good! I had the Eggs New Orleans (fried eggplant, poached eggs, creole sauce and hollandaise served with grits, potatoes and a "biscuit" - a bit like a scone), the tastiest fresh grapefruit juice and we all shared a stack of the pancake special: carrot cake pancakes with cream cheese sauce. Jon ordered their famous Bloody Mary with his breakfast which deserved a picture.
After that we were really full and it was way hot (still at 5pm when we ventured out to the post office) so just vegged for a while. Wrote a couple more postcards and the rest of the day disappeared. In the evening Yong's friend Andrew came by and we got a pizza from the Walnut Room Pizzeria down the road, accompanied by Hazed and Infused that Jon and I picked up from a little bottle shop with a ridiculous range of fine beer to choose from, before Yong and Lindsey had to leave to catch their flight. Andrew is starting up a chocolate shop and had brought some tasty samples that we enjoyed for the next couple of days.
On Wednesday we spent the day, on everyone's recommendation, at the Denver Botanic Gardens. These are a 23-acre plot jam packed full of many different styles and themes of gardens, including a japanese garden, cactus, herb, "monet", all american and south african gardens as well as Henry Moore sculptures dotted amongst it all. A highlight was seeing a hummingbird on the Birds and Bees Trail. In the conservatory with all the more tropical plants was a display of colourful poison dart frogs too, and on the roof an example of a Green Roof garden (just imagine if all the roofs in New York, or Auckland for that matter, had these).
Just as we had finished looking at the outdoor gardens and were heading to the conservatory it began to rain, which was great timing to begin with but not so great when it was still pouring when we had to leave to catch the next bus from several blocks away. It was quite a long bus ride to our next stop, JC Penney, so had mostly dried out when we got there. We had a voucher from Jon's aunt to spend there and spend it we did, very successfully. Then it was home for a dinner of Pizza Rolls!
Finished up at the supermarket for dinner ingredients (and hugs from a stranger) to cook chili bean falafel for Yong and Lindsey. After dinner Yong showed off what his keyboard setup is capable of (when you know how to use it). Jon and I had a play around with it too!
Tuesday was Yong and Lindsey's last day before they jetted off to Costa Rica. They took us out for breakfast at Lucile's Creole Cafe and boy was it good! I had the Eggs New Orleans (fried eggplant, poached eggs, creole sauce and hollandaise served with grits, potatoes and a "biscuit" - a bit like a scone), the tastiest fresh grapefruit juice and we all shared a stack of the pancake special: carrot cake pancakes with cream cheese sauce. Jon ordered their famous Bloody Mary with his breakfast which deserved a picture.
After that we were really full and it was way hot (still at 5pm when we ventured out to the post office) so just vegged for a while. Wrote a couple more postcards and the rest of the day disappeared. In the evening Yong's friend Andrew came by and we got a pizza from the Walnut Room Pizzeria down the road, accompanied by Hazed and Infused that Jon and I picked up from a little bottle shop with a ridiculous range of fine beer to choose from, before Yong and Lindsey had to leave to catch their flight. Andrew is starting up a chocolate shop and had brought some tasty samples that we enjoyed for the next couple of days.
On Wednesday we spent the day, on everyone's recommendation, at the Denver Botanic Gardens. These are a 23-acre plot jam packed full of many different styles and themes of gardens, including a japanese garden, cactus, herb, "monet", all american and south african gardens as well as Henry Moore sculptures dotted amongst it all. A highlight was seeing a hummingbird on the Birds and Bees Trail. In the conservatory with all the more tropical plants was a display of colourful poison dart frogs too, and on the roof an example of a Green Roof garden (just imagine if all the roofs in New York, or Auckland for that matter, had these).
Just as we had finished looking at the outdoor gardens and were heading to the conservatory it began to rain, which was great timing to begin with but not so great when it was still pouring when we had to leave to catch the next bus from several blocks away. It was quite a long bus ride to our next stop, JC Penney, so had mostly dried out when we got there. We had a voucher from Jon's aunt to spend there and spend it we did, very successfully. Then it was home for a dinner of Pizza Rolls!
A weekend in the Rockies
For the last weekend in July, Yong planned to take us camping. Initially we were to go to Rocky Mountain National Park but there was an arts festival on in Crested Butte so that became our new destination. Jon and I spent much of Friday waiting to leave, hanging out at Yong's out of the sweltering midday heat. Discovered The Creeps which kept us entertained. I managed to stub my toe really badly, pretty certain I broke it in fact. Perfect timing.
Early evening we headed for our campsite at Taylor Park Reservoir, just on the west side of the continental divide. Got there just as it was getting dark, set up camp and Yong heated up some Tamales over the campfire for dinner, accompanied by Pinot Noir in Solo cups (the keg party cups from the movies!). Was surprisingly cold up in the mountains given we were at an elevation of 9400 feet (2865m). Even needed woolly hats.
On Saturday we woke to a spectacular view across the reservoir to the mountains beyond! After an instant oatmeal breakfast we went down to the reservoir for a quick paddle (warmer than expected) then drove to Crested Butte, about an hour away following a river with plenty of rafting, fishing, climbing and horse trekking along its banks.
The festival in Crested Butte was pretty extensive, with artist stalls stretching for several blocks which I hobbled along. Stopped for a drink (Dale's Pale Ale, certainly flavoursome), a bite (including the most delicious cob of corn, brushed liberally with melted butter, amongst other things) and a listen of some blue grass. Hobbled the rest of the way through the stalls then it looked like rain so we made for the car. The rain came faster than my hobbling could keep up with and the first of it beat us back to the car, but thankfully we were already driving by the time the hail hit!
Back at camp it was drier but drizzling fairly persistently. Think it stopped enough for a while to contemplate the idea of finding a short walking track, not that my toe ever made that a real possibility as Jon wouldn't have coped walking that slowly for long. So instead we sheltered in the tent, Yong and Jon sleeping soundly and me dozing in and out. The rain didn't let up all evening but hunger eventually got the better of me so Jon and I heated up the next batch of tamales after dark over the gas stove next to the car while we huddled inside! (no carbon monoxide poisoning for us). They were deliciously messy. Yong woke up for a dance party - headlamp strobe, cellphone speakers and the last of the wine. Woo Saturday Night.
Sunday we breakfasted, packed up camp and headed back to civilisation. There we napped, booked rental cars for our upcoming departure and were fed a delicious saffron rice dinner.
Early evening we headed for our campsite at Taylor Park Reservoir, just on the west side of the continental divide. Got there just as it was getting dark, set up camp and Yong heated up some Tamales over the campfire for dinner, accompanied by Pinot Noir in Solo cups (the keg party cups from the movies!). Was surprisingly cold up in the mountains given we were at an elevation of 9400 feet (2865m). Even needed woolly hats.
On Saturday we woke to a spectacular view across the reservoir to the mountains beyond! After an instant oatmeal breakfast we went down to the reservoir for a quick paddle (warmer than expected) then drove to Crested Butte, about an hour away following a river with plenty of rafting, fishing, climbing and horse trekking along its banks.
The festival in Crested Butte was pretty extensive, with artist stalls stretching for several blocks which I hobbled along. Stopped for a drink (Dale's Pale Ale, certainly flavoursome), a bite (including the most delicious cob of corn, brushed liberally with melted butter, amongst other things) and a listen of some blue grass. Hobbled the rest of the way through the stalls then it looked like rain so we made for the car. The rain came faster than my hobbling could keep up with and the first of it beat us back to the car, but thankfully we were already driving by the time the hail hit!
Back at camp it was drier but drizzling fairly persistently. Think it stopped enough for a while to contemplate the idea of finding a short walking track, not that my toe ever made that a real possibility as Jon wouldn't have coped walking that slowly for long. So instead we sheltered in the tent, Yong and Jon sleeping soundly and me dozing in and out. The rain didn't let up all evening but hunger eventually got the better of me so Jon and I heated up the next batch of tamales after dark over the gas stove next to the car while we huddled inside! (no carbon monoxide poisoning for us). They were deliciously messy. Yong woke up for a dance party - headlamp strobe, cellphone speakers and the last of the wine. Woo Saturday Night.
Sunday we breakfasted, packed up camp and headed back to civilisation. There we napped, booked rental cars for our upcoming departure and were fed a delicious saffron rice dinner.
Thursday, 5 August 2010
Closer to the clouds
On Tuesday Yong was going to take us to see Boulder in the afternoon so we had the morning free to go lie in a park. Denver has something like more than 300 parks within its city limits. We walked to one about 15 minutes from here that was pretty sprawling, even had a lake you could fish at or go boating on. Found a shady spot (we needed it, I still managed to get sunburned, for the first time this 'summer' though) and wrote some postcards.
When we got hungry we walked back to Pearl St, a good place for eats around there, and found a little cafe "La Belle Rosette" with possibly the friendliest service ever. Five stars. The food was great too, especially the homemade fresh ginger lemonade.
Rendezvoused with Yong and off we went to Boulder, which is about half an hour north-west, nestled up against the mountains. He drove us right up to the Flagstaff summit where we climbed up on a rock for a great view of the town and the plains of Colorado. There is a cool little amphitheatre up there as well as a big picnic area. Probably lots of nice walks too and good rock climbing/bouldering (can see all the chalk marks on the popular climbs on the way up). Saw a chipmunk! And a fox on the drive back down.
Back in town we strolled through their lovely pedestrian mall, lined with more interesting shops than in Denver. Saw a guy with a curly moustache flick an entire pack of cards off his arm and catch the whole deck in one hand. Then Yong took us for dinner at a great, authentic Italian place in Boulder, Il Pastaio (hiding in a nondescript strip mall). I had the gnocchi with pesto and cream and it was rich!
On Wednesday we checked out the Denver Art Museum. It has an older building that looks a little like a castle and houses the more traditional art, and an attached contemporary building that is all angles. Went to the King Tut exhibition that was on at the time, lots of ancient Egyptian artifacts including things discovered in Tutankhamun's tomb, and the accompanying 3D film. Had the leftover gnocchi for lunch outside near a park, then had a look around the rest of the contemporary gallery, lots of interesting stuff. After that we only had time to go see the photography exhibit in the other half of the gallery. Tried to see the bamboo art on the way out but were too late. Great place and you could easily spend several days there to see it all. The public library building next door looked interesting too.
Had a look at the plaza/park across the road where a squirrel displayed its impressive acrobatic ability for us. From the plaza you can see the state capitol building, the 13th step of which is one mile above sea level. Didn't go stand there though. Instead went back to Yong's and got a tasty selection from Señor Burritos around the corner for tea. For the evening's entertainment Yong had tickets to an intimate Jazz concert at a music school nearby. It was incredible. The pianist was Kenny Werner, apparently the best pianist of that style performing in the U.S. at this time. You can wiki him. He was accompanied by local musicians on drums, double bass and trumpet and they performed some original pieces (of Kenny's and the trumpet player's) as well as a few familiar, but highly improvised, ones (Tears in Heaven, Blackbird and their take on Hedwig's Theme - yes, Harry Potter's Hedwig).
The next day we were to partake in America's National Passtime - going to a baseball game! My first ever. The Rockies were set to take on the Pittsburgh Pirates at Coors Field. I came downstairs ready to go and Jon told me I shouldn't wear yellow (Pirates colours). Oops. We went, it was great. Missed out on the really cheap bleacher tickets but we got some good seats for not too much more. Ate lots of junk food (peanuts, cracker jacks, a corn dog) and drank Coors Light. Applied and reapplied and reapplied sunscreen - started out ridiculously hot, but the cloud came over thankfully. The Rockies did awesomely. Broke their losing streak with a triumphant 9:3 win, including a couple of home runs! Fowler should definitely have been awarded player of the day if they do that kinda thing. And in just under 3 hours it was all over. My education was complete.
After the game, ignoring the fact it was threatening rain, we walked down to the park alongside the river on the far side of town (not that we took the most direct route to get there, walking along a freeway for much too long with lost grasshoppers for company) and followed it round to close to Market St, walked through the Union St train station to the bus stop and home.
When we got hungry we walked back to Pearl St, a good place for eats around there, and found a little cafe "La Belle Rosette" with possibly the friendliest service ever. Five stars. The food was great too, especially the homemade fresh ginger lemonade.
Rendezvoused with Yong and off we went to Boulder, which is about half an hour north-west, nestled up against the mountains. He drove us right up to the Flagstaff summit where we climbed up on a rock for a great view of the town and the plains of Colorado. There is a cool little amphitheatre up there as well as a big picnic area. Probably lots of nice walks too and good rock climbing/bouldering (can see all the chalk marks on the popular climbs on the way up). Saw a chipmunk! And a fox on the drive back down.
Back in town we strolled through their lovely pedestrian mall, lined with more interesting shops than in Denver. Saw a guy with a curly moustache flick an entire pack of cards off his arm and catch the whole deck in one hand. Then Yong took us for dinner at a great, authentic Italian place in Boulder, Il Pastaio (hiding in a nondescript strip mall). I had the gnocchi with pesto and cream and it was rich!
On Wednesday we checked out the Denver Art Museum. It has an older building that looks a little like a castle and houses the more traditional art, and an attached contemporary building that is all angles. Went to the King Tut exhibition that was on at the time, lots of ancient Egyptian artifacts including things discovered in Tutankhamun's tomb, and the accompanying 3D film. Had the leftover gnocchi for lunch outside near a park, then had a look around the rest of the contemporary gallery, lots of interesting stuff. After that we only had time to go see the photography exhibit in the other half of the gallery. Tried to see the bamboo art on the way out but were too late. Great place and you could easily spend several days there to see it all. The public library building next door looked interesting too.
Had a look at the plaza/park across the road where a squirrel displayed its impressive acrobatic ability for us. From the plaza you can see the state capitol building, the 13th step of which is one mile above sea level. Didn't go stand there though. Instead went back to Yong's and got a tasty selection from Señor Burritos around the corner for tea. For the evening's entertainment Yong had tickets to an intimate Jazz concert at a music school nearby. It was incredible. The pianist was Kenny Werner, apparently the best pianist of that style performing in the U.S. at this time. You can wiki him. He was accompanied by local musicians on drums, double bass and trumpet and they performed some original pieces (of Kenny's and the trumpet player's) as well as a few familiar, but highly improvised, ones (Tears in Heaven, Blackbird and their take on Hedwig's Theme - yes, Harry Potter's Hedwig).
The next day we were to partake in America's National Passtime - going to a baseball game! My first ever. The Rockies were set to take on the Pittsburgh Pirates at Coors Field. I came downstairs ready to go and Jon told me I shouldn't wear yellow (Pirates colours). Oops. We went, it was great. Missed out on the really cheap bleacher tickets but we got some good seats for not too much more. Ate lots of junk food (peanuts, cracker jacks, a corn dog) and drank Coors Light. Applied and reapplied and reapplied sunscreen - started out ridiculously hot, but the cloud came over thankfully. The Rockies did awesomely. Broke their losing streak with a triumphant 9:3 win, including a couple of home runs! Fowler should definitely have been awarded player of the day if they do that kinda thing. And in just under 3 hours it was all over. My education was complete.
After the game, ignoring the fact it was threatening rain, we walked down to the park alongside the river on the far side of town (not that we took the most direct route to get there, walking along a freeway for much too long with lost grasshoppers for company) and followed it round to close to Market St, walked through the Union St train station to the bus stop and home.
Tuesday, 3 August 2010
Mile High
Colorado! Yong and Lindsey came to pick us up from the airport (which was great, were not excited to try navigate multiple buses with cumbersome luggage). Arrived at their lovely place where Jeremy and Hagino were staying too. They were off to have big, backcountry adventures in Yellowstone National Park the following morning but was very cool to see them for the evening.
The weekend we arrived there was the Underground Music Showcase happening in Yong's neighbourhood. It was a pretty big deal. Walked the couple of blocks to where it was all taking place (in every pub, restaurant, carpark and even a church in the area) but most of the bands were just finishing up for the evening (found out much later that there was a late show at the movie theatre just around the corner). Enjoyed wandering around to see what was going on though and got a soft taco which was a first for me.
Sunday was pretty much filled with UMS action, after a sleep in (finally!) and very lazy start. Saw a bunch of bands/artists across a whole range of styles and sounds, from folk to dance to melancholy musings interspersed with almost stand-up-comic banter. Saw: Bela Karoli, Tyler Potts aka Buddy Holiday, Nathaneal Rateliff (/+ The Wheel), Snake Rattle Rattle Snake, a little of Treeverb and the start of A Shoreline Dream before we started falling asleep and decided we'd best go home. Yong and Lindsey saw some of the bands too and in between we grabbed some pizza slices from Famous Pizza.
We got a sleep in again on Monday! Bliss! Then took the bus the 16 blocks to downtown. Walked through the 16th St pedestrian mall, which Dunedin should totally emulate with George St. The shopping was pretty standard but the atmosphere was great. Loads of buskers and pianos in the mall i think anyone could sit down and have a play on. The only traffic allowed, besides cross traffic, are the free, quiet (hybrid) mall buses.
The mall ends around the Market St station (central bus terminal, underground and unobtrusive) where you're now in LoDo - lower downtown, the historic district of Denver, which started out as a gold rush town. Got quite excited at my first view of the Rockies. Walked around LoDo a bit and stopped for a late lunch at The Market, Yong's wonderful suggestion.
Walked around some more, trying to stick to the shady spots, and found the Hyatt. On the 27th floor there is a bar with a panoramic view of the city, surrounding plains and mountains! Beautiful, though you need a strong stomach for their express elevators. Worse than any ride at Kings Island.
Caught the bus back to Yong's again and had a quiet evening. Got acquainted with an iPad. More specifically some pretty cool games on Yong's one. Totally addicting.
The weekend we arrived there was the Underground Music Showcase happening in Yong's neighbourhood. It was a pretty big deal. Walked the couple of blocks to where it was all taking place (in every pub, restaurant, carpark and even a church in the area) but most of the bands were just finishing up for the evening (found out much later that there was a late show at the movie theatre just around the corner). Enjoyed wandering around to see what was going on though and got a soft taco which was a first for me.
Sunday was pretty much filled with UMS action, after a sleep in (finally!) and very lazy start. Saw a bunch of bands/artists across a whole range of styles and sounds, from folk to dance to melancholy musings interspersed with almost stand-up-comic banter. Saw: Bela Karoli, Tyler Potts aka Buddy Holiday, Nathaneal Rateliff (/+ The Wheel), Snake Rattle Rattle Snake, a little of Treeverb and the start of A Shoreline Dream before we started falling asleep and decided we'd best go home. Yong and Lindsey saw some of the bands too and in between we grabbed some pizza slices from Famous Pizza.
We got a sleep in again on Monday! Bliss! Then took the bus the 16 blocks to downtown. Walked through the 16th St pedestrian mall, which Dunedin should totally emulate with George St. The shopping was pretty standard but the atmosphere was great. Loads of buskers and pianos in the mall i think anyone could sit down and have a play on. The only traffic allowed, besides cross traffic, are the free, quiet (hybrid) mall buses.
The mall ends around the Market St station (central bus terminal, underground and unobtrusive) where you're now in LoDo - lower downtown, the historic district of Denver, which started out as a gold rush town. Got quite excited at my first view of the Rockies. Walked around LoDo a bit and stopped for a late lunch at The Market, Yong's wonderful suggestion.
Walked around some more, trying to stick to the shady spots, and found the Hyatt. On the 27th floor there is a bar with a panoramic view of the city, surrounding plains and mountains! Beautiful, though you need a strong stomach for their express elevators. Worse than any ride at Kings Island.
Caught the bus back to Yong's again and had a quiet evening. Got acquainted with an iPad. More specifically some pretty cool games on Yong's one. Totally addicting.
Chicago: you light up my life
En route to Chicago we made a couple of stops in Indiana, one to get fireworks from this massive fireworks warehouse right on the border with Ohio, the other for a dinner picnic in West Lafayette. Got to Chicago with a night view of the downtown district, accentuated by frequent flashes of heat lightning in the clouds, and checked into our hotel out by the airport.
In the morning (after giant waffles) Kuem dropped us off close to town (around the Chicago versions of Little Italy and Chinatown) before heading on her way back to Ohio. We made our way to Michigan Ave and then followed it towards town, going pretty slowly as it was around 34C and humid as all get out. Got as far as Grant Park then collapsed on the grass near the planetarium and aquarium with Lake Michigan at our feet and our packed lunch plus a Chicago style hot dog (very messy, though not nearly so bad as a Chilean style one if you recall that debacle).
Stayed put for a good couple of hours before we could consider moving again and then only to find a little beach nestled in beside the planetarium where we paddled in the extremely refreshing (read: freezing cold as ice) waters of Lake Michigan. I honestly don't know how people were in any further than about ankle deep, though you did go numb pretty quick and it was ridiculously hot not in the water.
Walked through Grant Park proper (Lollapalooza will be held there soon, sigh) to downtown. Went briefly into the foyer of the Art Institute, came out and the air was even hotter and heavier for a moment and then came the rain! It poured. And thundered (the loudest, closest thunderclap either of us had ever heard - it literally hurt the ears) and lightning split the sky. So of course we decided to get as close to the Sears Tower as possible, the tallest building anywhere around, and the tallest office building in the USA. I feel like some life lesson I should have learned is not to seek out the tallest structure when there's that much electricity in the air, but i figured it would get hit not us if anything, and anyway nothing that dramatic happened.
Since the storm kind of ruled out any other outdoor activity ideas we decided it must be time for dinner so, trying to dodge the weather as much as possible (Chicago downtown does not provide much shelter e.g. in the form of shop awnings etc), we made our way several blocks to Lou Malnati's deep-dish pizza place that had been recommended to us by a friend of Jon's. It was super packed and we were told to expect an hour and a half wait, which was fine by us as it was dry, there was beer and it was earlier than we'd intended getting dinner anyway. As it turned out the wait was less than an hour until "The Lou". Delicious, and a perfect dish for drying out to.
Caught the train back to the airport/hotel and prepared for our sneaky fireworks mission. Thankfully it had stopped raining, but once again the lightning was putting on a spectacular show. We had half a dozen mortars and a box of buzzy bees to set off without drawing any unwanted attention to the illicit activity (although fireworks are perfectly legal to buy at any time, they're not necessarily legal to set off). Scoped out a quiet, relatively dark carpark around the corner from the hotel and let them fly! It was exhilarating. These were REAL fireworks.
On Saturday we hung around the Wicker Park area/neighbourhood. Wicker Park was pretty nice, a good spot to eat our pizza leftovers, before all the sunbathers came out in force. The area was recommended to us by the same friend as it has some cooler shopping, quite a few vintage places and great wee gift/knick knack shops etc. There was also a block party happening on a side street which was cool to stumble upon, as well as some big urban scavenger hunt so lots of people running around frantically in silly costumes, asking people to take pictures of them doing odd things! Got to see behind the scenes of one of their tasks at "The Boring Store" where they had to write a haiku then shoot targets with suction darts. Good old fashioned fun, but in that heat? no thanks.
After demolishing a scrumptious choc-chip cookie-pizza with vanilla bean ice cream from another Lou Malnati's on the train platform we had to leave to catch our (rather turbulent) flight to Denver. Wasn't cancelled like many flights that weekend and only delayed an hour. Before we left the whole sky turned purple. Thanks Chicago.
In the morning (after giant waffles) Kuem dropped us off close to town (around the Chicago versions of Little Italy and Chinatown) before heading on her way back to Ohio. We made our way to Michigan Ave and then followed it towards town, going pretty slowly as it was around 34C and humid as all get out. Got as far as Grant Park then collapsed on the grass near the planetarium and aquarium with Lake Michigan at our feet and our packed lunch plus a Chicago style hot dog (very messy, though not nearly so bad as a Chilean style one if you recall that debacle).
Stayed put for a good couple of hours before we could consider moving again and then only to find a little beach nestled in beside the planetarium where we paddled in the extremely refreshing (read: freezing cold as ice) waters of Lake Michigan. I honestly don't know how people were in any further than about ankle deep, though you did go numb pretty quick and it was ridiculously hot not in the water.
Walked through Grant Park proper (Lollapalooza will be held there soon, sigh) to downtown. Went briefly into the foyer of the Art Institute, came out and the air was even hotter and heavier for a moment and then came the rain! It poured. And thundered (the loudest, closest thunderclap either of us had ever heard - it literally hurt the ears) and lightning split the sky. So of course we decided to get as close to the Sears Tower as possible, the tallest building anywhere around, and the tallest office building in the USA. I feel like some life lesson I should have learned is not to seek out the tallest structure when there's that much electricity in the air, but i figured it would get hit not us if anything, and anyway nothing that dramatic happened.
Since the storm kind of ruled out any other outdoor activity ideas we decided it must be time for dinner so, trying to dodge the weather as much as possible (Chicago downtown does not provide much shelter e.g. in the form of shop awnings etc), we made our way several blocks to Lou Malnati's deep-dish pizza place that had been recommended to us by a friend of Jon's. It was super packed and we were told to expect an hour and a half wait, which was fine by us as it was dry, there was beer and it was earlier than we'd intended getting dinner anyway. As it turned out the wait was less than an hour until "The Lou". Delicious, and a perfect dish for drying out to.
Caught the train back to the airport/hotel and prepared for our sneaky fireworks mission. Thankfully it had stopped raining, but once again the lightning was putting on a spectacular show. We had half a dozen mortars and a box of buzzy bees to set off without drawing any unwanted attention to the illicit activity (although fireworks are perfectly legal to buy at any time, they're not necessarily legal to set off). Scoped out a quiet, relatively dark carpark around the corner from the hotel and let them fly! It was exhilarating. These were REAL fireworks.
On Saturday we hung around the Wicker Park area/neighbourhood. Wicker Park was pretty nice, a good spot to eat our pizza leftovers, before all the sunbathers came out in force. The area was recommended to us by the same friend as it has some cooler shopping, quite a few vintage places and great wee gift/knick knack shops etc. There was also a block party happening on a side street which was cool to stumble upon, as well as some big urban scavenger hunt so lots of people running around frantically in silly costumes, asking people to take pictures of them doing odd things! Got to see behind the scenes of one of their tasks at "The Boring Store" where they had to write a haiku then shoot targets with suction darts. Good old fashioned fun, but in that heat? no thanks.
After demolishing a scrumptious choc-chip cookie-pizza with vanilla bean ice cream from another Lou Malnati's on the train platform we had to leave to catch our (rather turbulent) flight to Denver. Wasn't cancelled like many flights that weekend and only delayed an hour. Before we left the whole sky turned purple. Thanks Chicago.
Monday, 2 August 2010
Back to Beavercreek
On June 20th we made the trip back across the midwest to Ohio, taking roughly the same route as we had come except for one major detour to Philadelphia! And also accidentally as far south as Delaware (the first state) before I woke up to discover the GPS had not told Jon to take the turn off that would have led straight to Pennsylvania/Philly.
There we admired the beautiful, old buildings in the town centre, walked briskly to the Liberty Bell (photo op) and ate a Famous Philly Cheesesteak at the diner in the corner of the Reading Terminal Market (thanks to the Mancunian from Detroit who once lived in Philadelphia for pointing us in that direction!)
On our way out we stopped at a park out front of the huge art gallery with an impressive statue and ate the sweet treats we'd gotten from another stall at the market - tiramisu cheesecake and chocolate covered banana-with-strawberry-and-custard-on-biscuit-base! Philadelphia was surprisingly beautiful, the small bit we saw anyway. Even the industrial area we came in through had its charm. I really just wanted to see the slums Bill Bryson talked about.
The following day was Kings Island Day! Finally! The weather was threatening scattered thunderstorms in the Mason, OH area but we were not put off (weren't able to be really as this was our only chance to go). It was a blast! The thunderstorms never eventuated and Jon rode almost all of the big roller coasters with me (after dosing himself up on 2 kinds of motion sickness meds). We rode pretty much everything the park had to offer (except the kiddie ones, and the log ride which I will have to go back for one day!) including The Beast - the longest wooden roller coaster in the world! The attached Boomerang Bay had some great water slides too, good variety, as long as you could bear the bad, probably fake, aussie accents on the recordings while you waited in line for the Sydney Sidewinder or the Tazmanian Typhoon (yes, with a Z). The best ride of the day had to be Flight Of Fear, mostly for the surprise factor as you couldn't see the ride at all until you were hurtling along it!
Thursday we were leaving Beavercreek again, but not before a quick trip to Yellow Springs for a slice of Ha Ha Pizza and a look around town (great arty and eco shops, even a shop devoted to everything tie-dye!), back to Xenia (still no postcards, or railway bridge. Did see a great sign for a tornado shelter though, but didn't get a photo sadly) and a photo by the Beavercreek sign.
Finished packing, said goodbye to 2452 North Knoll Drive, and the three of us hit the rode again.
There we admired the beautiful, old buildings in the town centre, walked briskly to the Liberty Bell (photo op) and ate a Famous Philly Cheesesteak at the diner in the corner of the Reading Terminal Market (thanks to the Mancunian from Detroit who once lived in Philadelphia for pointing us in that direction!)
On our way out we stopped at a park out front of the huge art gallery with an impressive statue and ate the sweet treats we'd gotten from another stall at the market - tiramisu cheesecake and chocolate covered banana-with-strawberry-and-custard-on-biscuit-base! Philadelphia was surprisingly beautiful, the small bit we saw anyway. Even the industrial area we came in through had its charm. I really just wanted to see the slums Bill Bryson talked about.
The following day was Kings Island Day! Finally! The weather was threatening scattered thunderstorms in the Mason, OH area but we were not put off (weren't able to be really as this was our only chance to go). It was a blast! The thunderstorms never eventuated and Jon rode almost all of the big roller coasters with me (after dosing himself up on 2 kinds of motion sickness meds). We rode pretty much everything the park had to offer (except the kiddie ones, and the log ride which I will have to go back for one day!) including The Beast - the longest wooden roller coaster in the world! The attached Boomerang Bay had some great water slides too, good variety, as long as you could bear the bad, probably fake, aussie accents on the recordings while you waited in line for the Sydney Sidewinder or the Tazmanian Typhoon (yes, with a Z). The best ride of the day had to be Flight Of Fear, mostly for the surprise factor as you couldn't see the ride at all until you were hurtling along it!
Thursday we were leaving Beavercreek again, but not before a quick trip to Yellow Springs for a slice of Ha Ha Pizza and a look around town (great arty and eco shops, even a shop devoted to everything tie-dye!), back to Xenia (still no postcards, or railway bridge. Did see a great sign for a tornado shelter though, but didn't get a photo sadly) and a photo by the Beavercreek sign.
Finished packing, said goodbye to 2452 North Knoll Drive, and the three of us hit the rode again.
Monday, 26 July 2010
Raccoons in Central Park test positive for RABIES
New York In A Nutshell (albeit a shell for a really big nut)
The plan was to wake up awfully early on monday morning to start our 11 or so hour drive from Ohio to New York. The waking up early part went to plan but there was a thunderstorm raging outside with warnings of flash floods etc so we went back to sleep for a bit. Got on the road at about 9am when things had dried out.
Drove and drove and drove through, and stopped briefly in, several states - West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey - watching the landscape (and weather and traffic) change before we crossed the quite beautiful Verrazano-Narrows bridge and made it at last to New York aka The Concrete Jungle bka The Big Apple. Or more specifically one of the five boroughs - Brooklyn. There we were met by Kuem's sister-in-law and a veritable feast of korean food before we crashed.
Tuesday
It was looking like rain so where best to go but the beach! Top of Kuem's NY to-do list was Coney Island so the four of us caught the train down there, got wet, took a couple of photos and got back on the train. Was a shame really as it would've been lovely in less inclement weather and to see the fairground there going. Was kinda cool seeing it completely empty and ghostly though.
Stayed on the train/subway all the way to Manhattan, getting off right opposite the giant Macy's store. Raced across the road in the now full-on downpour and into the biggest shop in the world (or so Macy's says). Shopped for a bit, Kuem bought me a gorgeous dress lucky me, then walked the half a dozen blocks to her sister's shop/laundromat (thankfully the rain had all but stopped by then). She took us for lunch at a Chipotle round the corner, a chain that does good burritos, then Jon and I headed off on our own and spent the rest of the afternoon making our way up 5th avenue as far as Central Park.
Stopped in at various places as we felt the need for some AC mainly, including the Trump Tower lobby, Saks Fifth Avenue and the Apple store which was quite an experience. I'm sure it was actually less chaotic than it seemed. Got a street food snack (a hotdog, a knish and a snapple) then caught the subway back to Brooklyn.
Wednesday
During the day we mostly hung out around the southern end of Manhattan. Walked around the Wall St area then over to where the twin towers once were. Currently it's a huge building site, the first memorial tower (tower one i think is the very original name for it) is making progress. There were some banners with artistic renderings of what it might look like in the future.
Found some bagels with plenty of cream cheese to devour sitting on the waterfront with a view of Lady Liberty and New Jersey. Not long after that it started to rain so we headed indoors to Century 21 - a giant, outlet style store that sells designer goods for really, unbelievably cheap prices. You may have heard about it on Queer Eye! Mostly it was mayhem. But we scored a couple of good bargains (more about that in tomorrow's edition) and headed back to brooklyn for a feed of Israeli falafel heros (basically a sub, not quite what we expected).
Drove over to Hoboken, NJ to see Electric Six (!!!) play in the back room of Maxwell's bar & grill. The entrance stamps used invisible ink that glowed under UV light. It was awesome (the whole thing, not just the stamps). Gay Bar was an obvious highlight. The lead guy was a star, actually they all were. The set list was divided into trilogies - the KILL trilogy, the gay trilogy, the dance trilogy etc. Yep.
On our way home we decided to stop by Times Square and I'm so glad we did. To see it for the first time lit up in all its glory was the best. Daylight just doesn't do the place justice at all.
Thursday
We headed to Battery Park at the very south of Manhattan for a better view of Liberty Island. Had briefly considered getting the ferry over there but heard someone say to the people already waiting that they were looking at about a 2 hour wait, hour and 3/4 at best, in the scorching heat no less, which didn't quite seem worth it. So we watched some street performers for a bit and made a rough count of the suckers waiting (about 1000) then had to head back to Century 21 as for some strange reason they only have womens fitting rooms so Jon had some things to return once he'd tried them on at home.
Went and ate a late lunch sitting in Central Park, watching community league softball and a very cute squirrel. Walked around in Central Park a little bit, eating ice-cream as we went.
In the evening we drove over to Queens to visit Jon's cousin Scott's Dad's fruit and vege shop before going for dinner at his sister's korean restaurant, where the food just kept coming. Stopped by the two grocery stores in Brooklyn as well on the way back.
Friday
We'd arranged at dinner to meet up with Scott's sister Hyun Hee (aka Hunny) but that got postponed an hour or so, so we used that time to go to the outskirts of Little Italy where Rainbow Sandals can be found and both got some, yay! (although the impending blisters were not so yay). Then we went back to Union Square, found Hunny and she took us to a thai place nearby for a delicious lunch accompanied by a pitcher of black cherry caipirinha. The place was big but was still packed for the lunch rush. The artwork tried to make noodles look sexy, and sort of succeeded.
After lunch it was way too hot to try to do anything so we hung out in a shady spot in Union Square for a fair chunk of the afternoon before we had to go our separate ways. Our way was to go line up for over an hour for the ferry to Governer's Island and the free concert there with Caribou! They were fantastic (and had gorgeous visuals to accompany the music), as were the band before them, Phantagram. It was held at "The (man-made) Beach" complete with sand, lined with colourful plastic palm trees and the best view of downtown Manhattan which just got better as night fell after a fiery sunset. I wouldn't have wanted to be anywhere else.
Saturday
Did possibly the most touristy thing yet and went up the Empire State Building for a view of the concrete jungle. We even looked at a couple of things through the big binoculars (super zoom!). Heard some Finnish being spoken for the first time - must have heard just about every other language besides that on the subway, and everywhere you go in New York for that matter. Overheard a guy the night before saying that something like 800 languages are spoken in the five boroughs, which is easy to believe.
For lunch we went to Little Italy proper (and Chinatown as it seems to be swallowing Little Italy up from every side) where there are a couple of blocks lined with restaurants that are pedestrian only. Got pizza by the slice from a couple of different places as we wandered around.
Had planned to catch the subway straight to Central Park but as we were going past Grand Central we decided to get off there to check it out. Incredible. It is so vast and the ceiling with representations of the different signs of the zodiac racing across it makes it seem almost as big as the sky. Something was being filmed at the time too, no idea what though.
From Grand Central Station we did a little walking tour first to the Library and Bryant Park (even the rubbish bins look fashionable) then on to Rockefeller Center with Radio City, the GE building and the place that would be an ice rink in winter. Caught the subway onto Central Park, getting off further towards the north end of the park where we met a friendly policeman come tour guide with a true New Yorker accent (love it!). Walked around the reservoir (jogger central, just like in Dunedin) and enjoyed sunset lying on the Great Lawn (Grandad wishes he could ever get his grass in that perfect a condition). Saw the Belvedere Castle, with a backstage view into the Delacorte Theatre below where someone was dying very loudly in a shakespearean manner, the Bethesda Fountain, where beautiful music was emanating from beneath the terrace, and Strawberry Fields on our way out. Caught a yellow NYC Taxi back to Columbus Circle and were about to head home but I was craving a giant pretzel. Couldn't find any street vendors that late at night but instead wound up at the Brooklyn Diner where we sat in seats that the likes of Gwyneth Paltrow, Susan Sarandon and Bill Paxton had once occupied (along with many others whose names we didn't recognise) and dined on gourmet onion rings and potato chips with melted gorgonzola, an ice cream float and a Vanilla 16 oz Brooklyn Egg Creme before making our way back to Brooklyn.
Sunday
We had planned on going to see the Yankees play at Yankee Stadium this afternoon, but when we tried to get tickets the cheapest seats left were $300 a pop! So instead we met up with Kuem's sister again and her daughter Lydia and had lunch in Koreatown then Jon, Lydia and I headed to Times Square and decided on impulse to visit Madame Tussaud's which was a lot of fun, especially the 4D Wizard of Oz movie (very much abbreviated). Emerged some time and many many photo op's later (so many the batteries nearly died) and returned Lydia to her mum's shop.
Went to check out the kind of sparse Hell's Kitchen flea market just before they packed up (lots of cool antique and vintage stuff as well as the more run of the mill stalls) then explored a bit of Chelsea, walking along the High Line - an old elevated freight train track that is being turned into a park, around the Chelsea Piers which are where the Titanic would have docked, had it ever made it that far, and is now a recreation area with a driving range on one pier and parks on others that provided a perfect sunset spot. Then through the lovely neighbourhoods of Greenwich village with their leafy, narrow, cobblestone streets and out at Washington Park and the Washington Arch.
Monday
Was supposed to be the day we drove back to Ohio but our trip got extended a day so we could go to a museum finally. Too many to choose from but decided on the Guggenheim. Kuem came too and we spent several hours making our way up the ramp. The main exhibition on was Haunted, which began with Andy Warhol's Orange Disaster and finished up the top of the spiral with a whole "floor" devoted to life size projections of a performance of John Cage's 4'33".
Kuem got us lunch (including a tuna melt - had to be done) which we ate in Central Park near the Metropolitan then she headed off exploring and we went and lay on the lawn again until it cooled off a little. Made a quick visit to the foyer of the Natural History Museum just before they closed (big dinosaur skeletons, but not a T-Rex) before walking out through the south of Central Park (tried to find Jimmy Choo on 5th Avenue but it wasn't at the address google said to go to) and getting the subway to Bryant Park to find a spot for the outdoor movie that was showing at sunset, The China Syndrome. It was pretty packed already when we got there, a good hour or so before it was even due to begin, but there was room enough for two more and we had a great view of Jane Fonda and Michael Douglas fighting to expose nuclear power for the menace it is! It started pouring part way through which cleared a lot of the crowd out, but we huddled under our umbrella (which actually started leaking!) and waited it out, for all the 5 minutes that it lasted, to finish the film. Stopped to get a giant pretzel, which turned out to be too salty to eat sadly, before our last New York Subway Ride.
Misc:
Subway love
Taxis everywhere (new style though, not reminiscent of the movies at all)
Languags all around, changing every moment, spanish, yiddish, chinese, portuguese... even Kuem and her sister-in-law chatting away like school girls in Korean
Hot hot heat - though thankfully not as hot as the week before
Sooo much walking
Top toilets: Bryant Park, by far and away. Install some A/C and they'd be hard to beat anywhere
(Not-even-fit-for-a-)Bottom toilets: next to Delacorte Theater in Central Park, although the building from the outside gets an A.
The plan was to wake up awfully early on monday morning to start our 11 or so hour drive from Ohio to New York. The waking up early part went to plan but there was a thunderstorm raging outside with warnings of flash floods etc so we went back to sleep for a bit. Got on the road at about 9am when things had dried out.
Drove and drove and drove through, and stopped briefly in, several states - West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey - watching the landscape (and weather and traffic) change before we crossed the quite beautiful Verrazano-Narrows bridge and made it at last to New York aka The Concrete Jungle bka The Big Apple. Or more specifically one of the five boroughs - Brooklyn. There we were met by Kuem's sister-in-law and a veritable feast of korean food before we crashed.
Tuesday
It was looking like rain so where best to go but the beach! Top of Kuem's NY to-do list was Coney Island so the four of us caught the train down there, got wet, took a couple of photos and got back on the train. Was a shame really as it would've been lovely in less inclement weather and to see the fairground there going. Was kinda cool seeing it completely empty and ghostly though.
Stayed on the train/subway all the way to Manhattan, getting off right opposite the giant Macy's store. Raced across the road in the now full-on downpour and into the biggest shop in the world (or so Macy's says). Shopped for a bit, Kuem bought me a gorgeous dress lucky me, then walked the half a dozen blocks to her sister's shop/laundromat (thankfully the rain had all but stopped by then). She took us for lunch at a Chipotle round the corner, a chain that does good burritos, then Jon and I headed off on our own and spent the rest of the afternoon making our way up 5th avenue as far as Central Park.
Stopped in at various places as we felt the need for some AC mainly, including the Trump Tower lobby, Saks Fifth Avenue and the Apple store which was quite an experience. I'm sure it was actually less chaotic than it seemed. Got a street food snack (a hotdog, a knish and a snapple) then caught the subway back to Brooklyn.
Wednesday
During the day we mostly hung out around the southern end of Manhattan. Walked around the Wall St area then over to where the twin towers once were. Currently it's a huge building site, the first memorial tower (tower one i think is the very original name for it) is making progress. There were some banners with artistic renderings of what it might look like in the future.
Found some bagels with plenty of cream cheese to devour sitting on the waterfront with a view of Lady Liberty and New Jersey. Not long after that it started to rain so we headed indoors to Century 21 - a giant, outlet style store that sells designer goods for really, unbelievably cheap prices. You may have heard about it on Queer Eye! Mostly it was mayhem. But we scored a couple of good bargains (more about that in tomorrow's edition) and headed back to brooklyn for a feed of Israeli falafel heros (basically a sub, not quite what we expected).
Drove over to Hoboken, NJ to see Electric Six (!!!) play in the back room of Maxwell's bar & grill. The entrance stamps used invisible ink that glowed under UV light. It was awesome (the whole thing, not just the stamps). Gay Bar was an obvious highlight. The lead guy was a star, actually they all were. The set list was divided into trilogies - the KILL trilogy, the gay trilogy, the dance trilogy etc. Yep.
On our way home we decided to stop by Times Square and I'm so glad we did. To see it for the first time lit up in all its glory was the best. Daylight just doesn't do the place justice at all.
Thursday
We headed to Battery Park at the very south of Manhattan for a better view of Liberty Island. Had briefly considered getting the ferry over there but heard someone say to the people already waiting that they were looking at about a 2 hour wait, hour and 3/4 at best, in the scorching heat no less, which didn't quite seem worth it. So we watched some street performers for a bit and made a rough count of the suckers waiting (about 1000) then had to head back to Century 21 as for some strange reason they only have womens fitting rooms so Jon had some things to return once he'd tried them on at home.
Went and ate a late lunch sitting in Central Park, watching community league softball and a very cute squirrel. Walked around in Central Park a little bit, eating ice-cream as we went.
In the evening we drove over to Queens to visit Jon's cousin Scott's Dad's fruit and vege shop before going for dinner at his sister's korean restaurant, where the food just kept coming. Stopped by the two grocery stores in Brooklyn as well on the way back.
Friday
We'd arranged at dinner to meet up with Scott's sister Hyun Hee (aka Hunny) but that got postponed an hour or so, so we used that time to go to the outskirts of Little Italy where Rainbow Sandals can be found and both got some, yay! (although the impending blisters were not so yay). Then we went back to Union Square, found Hunny and she took us to a thai place nearby for a delicious lunch accompanied by a pitcher of black cherry caipirinha. The place was big but was still packed for the lunch rush. The artwork tried to make noodles look sexy, and sort of succeeded.
After lunch it was way too hot to try to do anything so we hung out in a shady spot in Union Square for a fair chunk of the afternoon before we had to go our separate ways. Our way was to go line up for over an hour for the ferry to Governer's Island and the free concert there with Caribou! They were fantastic (and had gorgeous visuals to accompany the music), as were the band before them, Phantagram. It was held at "The (man-made) Beach" complete with sand, lined with colourful plastic palm trees and the best view of downtown Manhattan which just got better as night fell after a fiery sunset. I wouldn't have wanted to be anywhere else.
Saturday
Did possibly the most touristy thing yet and went up the Empire State Building for a view of the concrete jungle. We even looked at a couple of things through the big binoculars (super zoom!). Heard some Finnish being spoken for the first time - must have heard just about every other language besides that on the subway, and everywhere you go in New York for that matter. Overheard a guy the night before saying that something like 800 languages are spoken in the five boroughs, which is easy to believe.
For lunch we went to Little Italy proper (and Chinatown as it seems to be swallowing Little Italy up from every side) where there are a couple of blocks lined with restaurants that are pedestrian only. Got pizza by the slice from a couple of different places as we wandered around.
Had planned to catch the subway straight to Central Park but as we were going past Grand Central we decided to get off there to check it out. Incredible. It is so vast and the ceiling with representations of the different signs of the zodiac racing across it makes it seem almost as big as the sky. Something was being filmed at the time too, no idea what though.
From Grand Central Station we did a little walking tour first to the Library and Bryant Park (even the rubbish bins look fashionable) then on to Rockefeller Center with Radio City, the GE building and the place that would be an ice rink in winter. Caught the subway onto Central Park, getting off further towards the north end of the park where we met a friendly policeman come tour guide with a true New Yorker accent (love it!). Walked around the reservoir (jogger central, just like in Dunedin) and enjoyed sunset lying on the Great Lawn (Grandad wishes he could ever get his grass in that perfect a condition). Saw the Belvedere Castle, with a backstage view into the Delacorte Theatre below where someone was dying very loudly in a shakespearean manner, the Bethesda Fountain, where beautiful music was emanating from beneath the terrace, and Strawberry Fields on our way out. Caught a yellow NYC Taxi back to Columbus Circle and were about to head home but I was craving a giant pretzel. Couldn't find any street vendors that late at night but instead wound up at the Brooklyn Diner where we sat in seats that the likes of Gwyneth Paltrow, Susan Sarandon and Bill Paxton had once occupied (along with many others whose names we didn't recognise) and dined on gourmet onion rings and potato chips with melted gorgonzola, an ice cream float and a Vanilla 16 oz Brooklyn Egg Creme before making our way back to Brooklyn.
Sunday
We had planned on going to see the Yankees play at Yankee Stadium this afternoon, but when we tried to get tickets the cheapest seats left were $300 a pop! So instead we met up with Kuem's sister again and her daughter Lydia and had lunch in Koreatown then Jon, Lydia and I headed to Times Square and decided on impulse to visit Madame Tussaud's which was a lot of fun, especially the 4D Wizard of Oz movie (very much abbreviated). Emerged some time and many many photo op's later (so many the batteries nearly died) and returned Lydia to her mum's shop.
Went to check out the kind of sparse Hell's Kitchen flea market just before they packed up (lots of cool antique and vintage stuff as well as the more run of the mill stalls) then explored a bit of Chelsea, walking along the High Line - an old elevated freight train track that is being turned into a park, around the Chelsea Piers which are where the Titanic would have docked, had it ever made it that far, and is now a recreation area with a driving range on one pier and parks on others that provided a perfect sunset spot. Then through the lovely neighbourhoods of Greenwich village with their leafy, narrow, cobblestone streets and out at Washington Park and the Washington Arch.
Monday
Was supposed to be the day we drove back to Ohio but our trip got extended a day so we could go to a museum finally. Too many to choose from but decided on the Guggenheim. Kuem came too and we spent several hours making our way up the ramp. The main exhibition on was Haunted, which began with Andy Warhol's Orange Disaster and finished up the top of the spiral with a whole "floor" devoted to life size projections of a performance of John Cage's 4'33".
Kuem got us lunch (including a tuna melt - had to be done) which we ate in Central Park near the Metropolitan then she headed off exploring and we went and lay on the lawn again until it cooled off a little. Made a quick visit to the foyer of the Natural History Museum just before they closed (big dinosaur skeletons, but not a T-Rex) before walking out through the south of Central Park (tried to find Jimmy Choo on 5th Avenue but it wasn't at the address google said to go to) and getting the subway to Bryant Park to find a spot for the outdoor movie that was showing at sunset, The China Syndrome. It was pretty packed already when we got there, a good hour or so before it was even due to begin, but there was room enough for two more and we had a great view of Jane Fonda and Michael Douglas fighting to expose nuclear power for the menace it is! It started pouring part way through which cleared a lot of the crowd out, but we huddled under our umbrella (which actually started leaking!) and waited it out, for all the 5 minutes that it lasted, to finish the film. Stopped to get a giant pretzel, which turned out to be too salty to eat sadly, before our last New York Subway Ride.
Misc:
Subway love
Taxis everywhere (new style though, not reminiscent of the movies at all)
Languags all around, changing every moment, spanish, yiddish, chinese, portuguese... even Kuem and her sister-in-law chatting away like school girls in Korean
Hot hot heat - though thankfully not as hot as the week before
Sooo much walking
Top toilets: Bryant Park, by far and away. Install some A/C and they'd be hard to beat anywhere
(Not-even-fit-for-a-)Bottom toilets: next to Delacorte Theater in Central Park, although the building from the outside gets an A.
Sunday, 11 July 2010
Beaver, the Creek. And surrounds.
Hello again Blogi
Last time we talked there was a possibility of caverning (ie not caving) and thunderstorms. The caverns got postponed but the thunderstorm was right on schedule.
We left it a bit late to make it to the Ohio Caverns (or the OC as one sign said - is this the real one perhaps?) so instead took our picnic lunch to Young's Dairy Farm. There you can feed goats, get licked by calves, make a fool of yourself in the batting cages, play mini golf and eat reeeally gooood ice cream in an attempt to cool off. Jon had Smores flavour and I had Peanut Butter Cup.
Drove through Yellow Springs on the way, home of Dave Chappelle. There used to be a college there that shut down kind of recently so it still has a studenty vibe to it.
Stopped in Xenia on the way back, home of Gummo! Took a few photos, checked out the Towne Square (which turned out to be a giant carpark with generic shops around it) and made an attempt to find the footbridge over the railroad tracks but the thunder we'd been hearing since Young's turned into full blown storm so that cut our visit short and we headed back to Beavercreek. Traffic was creeping along as the rain was so heavy you could barely see a thing.
On friday we drove to nowhere and descended into the "most colourful caverns in all the U.S." Saw lots of stalagmites and stalactites and learned how incredibly long they take to form. Didn't see any bats though.
Got back and ate Papa John's pizza in the park. Jon had been craving it and it lived up to expectations. They still give you the garlic butter dipping sauce to dip your crusts in. Then in the evening we wandered round The Greene, an outdoor mall that was a pseudo-downtown area - a few different streets lined with shops, restaurants, salons, the ubiquitous "olde english pub" and a central park area with a fountain and a bad covers band. A pleasant experience nonetheless.
I took Jon to a part of Beavercreek he had never been to before - Beaver Creek. I'd seen in on the map, surrounded by the wetlands and wanted to investigate. Investigate we did and we found a walkway that lead to a bridge over the creek itself and what could only have been a beaver scurrying along beneath it! (Although i must admit its tail did perhaps look a little too furry even in the gloom under the steps, but it vanished before i got a closer look so beaver it is and will forever be). Also saw a couple of frogs bouncing about and the fireflies were particularly entrancing in the bushes along the creek. The mozzies weren't quite so appealing.
On Saturday we were off to the state capital, Columbus, for the day. Columbus, I am told, has one of the two biggest schools (i.e. universities) in the country. So it's a pretty vibrant place. Everyone we talked to that lives there seems to really love it. There were a few things happening that day. First stop was the North Market Food and Ohio Wine Festival where we sampled some tasty local concoctions. The Market itself is a regular fixture and was pretty incredible - a permanent, indoor farmers market, bustling and with enthusiastic vendors giving samples of everything from wine jelly to waffles. Tried a Bison Slider too for the hell of it.
From the market it was a short but slow, due to the overwhelming heat, walk to a park complete with a squirrel and dragonflies by a pond covered in lily pads. We sat for a bit to regain some energy then headed down to the annual Parking Lot Blowout - a mini music festival in the parking lot of saloon. I really liked the band playing when we got there (Fat Girls by the Snack Table i think they were called!). After that it got pretty punk, with a few older chicago bands playing that apparently hadn't played in quite some time and gave extremely high energy performances, that were especially admirable given the ridiculous heat.
Pretty much next door to that was Basil, a restaurant where one of Jon's school friends, Lydia, works. She was hostessing so got the chance to come sit with us and chat at the bar for a bit too. After a drink and a nibble (of tofu with the most delicious house-made sweet and sour sauce, i may never be able to eat that gluggy, oddly pink stuff again) it was time to head to Skully's Music Diner, conveniently right across the road. Another good school friend of Jon's band, Tin Armor, was set to open for Ted Leo and the Pharmacists (aka TL+Rx). They were fantastic and the best band of the night (in my very humble opinion) despite the sound guy have some issues including putting a strange delay on Matt's vocals for much of the set. Ted Leo was a bit of a veteran with a cult following and this may have been one of his last shows ever. Everything was just too loud to be that enjoyable though which was a shame.
After the show we got the chance to check out The Tone Shoppe, the newly established studio where Tin Armor were recording their album and living there whilst doing so. That's dedication. Drank a High Life - the champagne of beers. Or so it says on the can. Very handy to that was a Waffle House which we frequented at 3am to satisfy our choc-chip waffle and hash brown cravings; it was a popular place at that hour of a sunday morning. Fueled for the drive we headed back to Beavercreek, arriving just in time for a dawn chorus lullaby.
The following day was, unsurprisingly, pretty low key. Woke up late. Watched the world cup final. Went for a wander by some shops (saw the very empty Circuit City building Jon used to work in). Saw an incredible sun event and wandered some more to the water tower and Jon's elementary school playground. Went with Jon's mom to the cemetery where her mother and brother are buried - the coolest bit was seeing the fireflies appearing over the grass of the graves, like spirits. Then packed for NEW YORK!!
Last time we talked there was a possibility of caverning (ie not caving) and thunderstorms. The caverns got postponed but the thunderstorm was right on schedule.
We left it a bit late to make it to the Ohio Caverns (or the OC as one sign said - is this the real one perhaps?) so instead took our picnic lunch to Young's Dairy Farm. There you can feed goats, get licked by calves, make a fool of yourself in the batting cages, play mini golf and eat reeeally gooood ice cream in an attempt to cool off. Jon had Smores flavour and I had Peanut Butter Cup.
Drove through Yellow Springs on the way, home of Dave Chappelle. There used to be a college there that shut down kind of recently so it still has a studenty vibe to it.
Stopped in Xenia on the way back, home of Gummo! Took a few photos, checked out the Towne Square (which turned out to be a giant carpark with generic shops around it) and made an attempt to find the footbridge over the railroad tracks but the thunder we'd been hearing since Young's turned into full blown storm so that cut our visit short and we headed back to Beavercreek. Traffic was creeping along as the rain was so heavy you could barely see a thing.
On friday we drove to nowhere and descended into the "most colourful caverns in all the U.S." Saw lots of stalagmites and stalactites and learned how incredibly long they take to form. Didn't see any bats though.
Got back and ate Papa John's pizza in the park. Jon had been craving it and it lived up to expectations. They still give you the garlic butter dipping sauce to dip your crusts in. Then in the evening we wandered round The Greene, an outdoor mall that was a pseudo-downtown area - a few different streets lined with shops, restaurants, salons, the ubiquitous "olde english pub" and a central park area with a fountain and a bad covers band. A pleasant experience nonetheless.
I took Jon to a part of Beavercreek he had never been to before - Beaver Creek. I'd seen in on the map, surrounded by the wetlands and wanted to investigate. Investigate we did and we found a walkway that lead to a bridge over the creek itself and what could only have been a beaver scurrying along beneath it! (Although i must admit its tail did perhaps look a little too furry even in the gloom under the steps, but it vanished before i got a closer look so beaver it is and will forever be). Also saw a couple of frogs bouncing about and the fireflies were particularly entrancing in the bushes along the creek. The mozzies weren't quite so appealing.
On Saturday we were off to the state capital, Columbus, for the day. Columbus, I am told, has one of the two biggest schools (i.e. universities) in the country. So it's a pretty vibrant place. Everyone we talked to that lives there seems to really love it. There were a few things happening that day. First stop was the North Market Food and Ohio Wine Festival where we sampled some tasty local concoctions. The Market itself is a regular fixture and was pretty incredible - a permanent, indoor farmers market, bustling and with enthusiastic vendors giving samples of everything from wine jelly to waffles. Tried a Bison Slider too for the hell of it.
From the market it was a short but slow, due to the overwhelming heat, walk to a park complete with a squirrel and dragonflies by a pond covered in lily pads. We sat for a bit to regain some energy then headed down to the annual Parking Lot Blowout - a mini music festival in the parking lot of saloon. I really liked the band playing when we got there (Fat Girls by the Snack Table i think they were called!). After that it got pretty punk, with a few older chicago bands playing that apparently hadn't played in quite some time and gave extremely high energy performances, that were especially admirable given the ridiculous heat.
Pretty much next door to that was Basil, a restaurant where one of Jon's school friends, Lydia, works. She was hostessing so got the chance to come sit with us and chat at the bar for a bit too. After a drink and a nibble (of tofu with the most delicious house-made sweet and sour sauce, i may never be able to eat that gluggy, oddly pink stuff again) it was time to head to Skully's Music Diner, conveniently right across the road. Another good school friend of Jon's band, Tin Armor, was set to open for Ted Leo and the Pharmacists (aka TL+Rx). They were fantastic and the best band of the night (in my very humble opinion) despite the sound guy have some issues including putting a strange delay on Matt's vocals for much of the set. Ted Leo was a bit of a veteran with a cult following and this may have been one of his last shows ever. Everything was just too loud to be that enjoyable though which was a shame.
After the show we got the chance to check out The Tone Shoppe, the newly established studio where Tin Armor were recording their album and living there whilst doing so. That's dedication. Drank a High Life - the champagne of beers. Or so it says on the can. Very handy to that was a Waffle House which we frequented at 3am to satisfy our choc-chip waffle and hash brown cravings; it was a popular place at that hour of a sunday morning. Fueled for the drive we headed back to Beavercreek, arriving just in time for a dawn chorus lullaby.
The following day was, unsurprisingly, pretty low key. Woke up late. Watched the world cup final. Went for a wander by some shops (saw the very empty Circuit City building Jon used to work in). Saw an incredible sun event and wandered some more to the water tower and Jon's elementary school playground. Went with Jon's mom to the cemetery where her mother and brother are buried - the coolest bit was seeing the fireflies appearing over the grass of the graves, like spirits. Then packed for NEW YORK!!
Wednesday, 7 July 2010
Jon, Jon and John
Had the chance to meet up with a couple of Jon's school friends again over the last couple of days (both called Jon/John).
With the first Jon on Monday we went for lunch at Marion's pizza accompanied by giant, sweeter than sweet root beer. Another high school friend, Alanna, joined us briefly too. Afterward we got ice cream (Ritter's "frozen custard" with smashed up Reese's cups and Heath toffee bar, tasted a lot like Daim or Pixie Caramel maybe) and walked through a neighbourhood by the "Land Lab" and came out at Jon's high school which unfortunately was locked up for summer.
In the afternoon Jon (JB) and I checked out the local mall and it's lovely air-conditioning (it was definitely over 30 degrees outside). The mall was nice as malls go - two open stories with lots of natural light and not many people.
Fourth of July had officially passed but the celebrations weren't over yet. That evening we went to the very impressive fireworks display at nearby Centerville (which also has a very cute, somewhat quaint town centre). It went for at least 20 mins and was loud enough to keep setting of nearby car alarms. We kept thinking "this will probably be the finale" no. "this must be the finale" no. still going. "ok this has to be it" wrong again. They just kept coming. Even after what had to be the actual finale there were a few more bangs. The music had stopped and the floodlights had literally come back on before the final few were let off.
Apparently Centerville and Beavercreek have a bit of a rivalry (especially in high school terms i guess). Centerville definitely won the fireworks battle. Also the cute downtown competition.
The following day we went into downtown dayton (Jon had to go to the sheriff's office) and I sat under a tree outside Sinclair Community College. Found out later that they take the temperature from there and at around the time I was sitting there it registered as being 94 F which is close to 35 degrees C. So hot.
Went to the U.S. Air Force museum, probably the biggest attraction of the Dayton area. Watched a great documentary at the IMAX there about the Hubble telescope. Ate some tater tots. That's worth mentioning, right?!
Had a look round the many planes on display, from small to the very big, new to the oldest of the old as far as planes go. The reason plane stuff is big here is because the Wright brothers were from around here. Drove past their original bicycle shop in Dayton in fact. Their original Flyer isn't here but there was a replica that was possibly made with the help of a Wright himself. Most of the museum was war related though (a given since it is an Air Force museum) which I'm not big on.
In the evening we headed back into Dayton again to meet up with the next John and go see a film (Harry Brown - recommend it, though it's pretty full on) at the NEON theatre which shows more festival style films for maybe half the price! I liked it a lot. It's in the Oregon district which is sort of the "trendy" bit of Dayton I think. Went for a drink and nachos after the movie at a place down the street with a courtyard out back, which was less seedy looking than indoors. I got to drive back to Beavercreek afterwards! That was a first, pretty bizarre but we made it home safely.
Today we've had a pretty low key day. Went back to the mall after a late start (which included bagels and donuts) for Jon to do some shoe and jean shopping. Tried to find Beavercreek postcards but as yet have been unsuccessful. It's not exactly a tourist hotspot. Then this evening Kuem and I went swimming at the YMCA. Felt good to be in the water - I don't remember the last time I swum lengths. There was even a spa, sauna and steam room to relax in after.
Tomorrow I think we're going to look at some caverns. Maybe we'll get a thunderstorm soon.
With the first Jon on Monday we went for lunch at Marion's pizza accompanied by giant, sweeter than sweet root beer. Another high school friend, Alanna, joined us briefly too. Afterward we got ice cream (Ritter's "frozen custard" with smashed up Reese's cups and Heath toffee bar, tasted a lot like Daim or Pixie Caramel maybe) and walked through a neighbourhood by the "Land Lab" and came out at Jon's high school which unfortunately was locked up for summer.
In the afternoon Jon (JB) and I checked out the local mall and it's lovely air-conditioning (it was definitely over 30 degrees outside). The mall was nice as malls go - two open stories with lots of natural light and not many people.
Fourth of July had officially passed but the celebrations weren't over yet. That evening we went to the very impressive fireworks display at nearby Centerville (which also has a very cute, somewhat quaint town centre). It went for at least 20 mins and was loud enough to keep setting of nearby car alarms. We kept thinking "this will probably be the finale" no. "this must be the finale" no. still going. "ok this has to be it" wrong again. They just kept coming. Even after what had to be the actual finale there were a few more bangs. The music had stopped and the floodlights had literally come back on before the final few were let off.
Apparently Centerville and Beavercreek have a bit of a rivalry (especially in high school terms i guess). Centerville definitely won the fireworks battle. Also the cute downtown competition.
The following day we went into downtown dayton (Jon had to go to the sheriff's office) and I sat under a tree outside Sinclair Community College. Found out later that they take the temperature from there and at around the time I was sitting there it registered as being 94 F which is close to 35 degrees C. So hot.
Went to the U.S. Air Force museum, probably the biggest attraction of the Dayton area. Watched a great documentary at the IMAX there about the Hubble telescope. Ate some tater tots. That's worth mentioning, right?!
Had a look round the many planes on display, from small to the very big, new to the oldest of the old as far as planes go. The reason plane stuff is big here is because the Wright brothers were from around here. Drove past their original bicycle shop in Dayton in fact. Their original Flyer isn't here but there was a replica that was possibly made with the help of a Wright himself. Most of the museum was war related though (a given since it is an Air Force museum) which I'm not big on.
In the evening we headed back into Dayton again to meet up with the next John and go see a film (Harry Brown - recommend it, though it's pretty full on) at the NEON theatre which shows more festival style films for maybe half the price! I liked it a lot. It's in the Oregon district which is sort of the "trendy" bit of Dayton I think. Went for a drink and nachos after the movie at a place down the street with a courtyard out back, which was less seedy looking than indoors. I got to drive back to Beavercreek afterwards! That was a first, pretty bizarre but we made it home safely.
Today we've had a pretty low key day. Went back to the mall after a late start (which included bagels and donuts) for Jon to do some shoe and jean shopping. Tried to find Beavercreek postcards but as yet have been unsuccessful. It's not exactly a tourist hotspot. Then this evening Kuem and I went swimming at the YMCA. Felt good to be in the water - I don't remember the last time I swum lengths. There was even a spa, sauna and steam room to relax in after.
Tomorrow I think we're going to look at some caverns. Maybe we'll get a thunderstorm soon.
Sunday, 4 July 2010
Fireworks and Fireflies
Yeah fireflies! Lots of them. Might try catch some in a jar some time.
So first impressions of Beavercreek. It's really hot firstly. Not quite overwhelmingly, intolerably hot but close. Everything is very open and green. It's not very built up at all of what I've seen. The houses remind me a little of Finland, probably mostly because there are few to no fences or hedges separating the properties.
We were super tired when we arrived (not surprisingly given that we'd each slept no more, and likely less, than around 2-3 interrupted hours the night before) so had a tour of the house, some lunch and pretty much crashed.
Before dinner we decided to go for a short walk to stretch our legs. Headed to the park around the corner and immediately someone calls out to Jon from the other side of the park "Bakos! Get over here!" So we got over there to find a 4th of July BBQ going on with a whole bunch of Jon's good high school friends there! Beavercreek aye!? So that was fun and we stayed there quite a while, sweating it out in the sun before someone noticed a nice shade-giving tree nearby. Walked back as the sun was getting low and the temperature was about perfect, had some dinner then went to Rotary Park to watch some fireworks, of course! And eat a giant pretzel with cheese dipping sauce.
So first impressions of Beavercreek. It's really hot firstly. Not quite overwhelmingly, intolerably hot but close. Everything is very open and green. It's not very built up at all of what I've seen. The houses remind me a little of Finland, probably mostly because there are few to no fences or hedges separating the properties.
We were super tired when we arrived (not surprisingly given that we'd each slept no more, and likely less, than around 2-3 interrupted hours the night before) so had a tour of the house, some lunch and pretty much crashed.
Before dinner we decided to go for a short walk to stretch our legs. Headed to the park around the corner and immediately someone calls out to Jon from the other side of the park "Bakos! Get over here!" So we got over there to find a 4th of July BBQ going on with a whole bunch of Jon's good high school friends there! Beavercreek aye!? So that was fun and we stayed there quite a while, sweating it out in the sun before someone noticed a nice shade-giving tree nearby. Walked back as the sun was getting low and the temperature was about perfect, had some dinner then went to Rotary Park to watch some fireworks, of course! And eat a giant pretzel with cheese dipping sauce.
The Real O.C.
On our last day in LA for now Hea Sun took us to THE as-seen-on-tv Laguna Beach! Before that though we had a superb breakfast spread at Hea Sun's: Fresh tropical fruit salad and bagels - raisin and cinnamon, everything and jalapeno varieties!
The day started out pretty bleak but the sun soon came out in full force and we took advantage, sun bathing on the beach and going for a dip/playing in the waves. Strolled around a little bit of the town which was very cute and beachy in an upmarket kind of way. It was also very artsy with lots of little galleries and art on the street banners instead of the usual advertising which was a welcome relief.
Stopped for a scrumptious late lunch at 230 forest avenue then headed back on the 405 past the multitudes of homogeneous spanish style villas covering the hillsides and over to beverly hills again. This time we walked around instead of just driving past. Mostly walked around Rodeo Drive where all the very upmarket shops are. Touched a $7000 Michael Kors creation (that's around $10,000 NZD). Peered through the window of Jimmy Choo as we got there after they'd closed.
Then we took a drive through the leafy residential areas of Beverly Hills and Bel Air. Wow. And that's only the places you can see; drove past lots of sprawling properties with large hedges so you can't see the house/mansion from the road. Still didn't see any celebrities and didn't really know where to look for them (we weren't quite lame/desperate enough to purchase a Map of the Stars brochure :p)
And that was pretty much it for LA. A city where great opulence and beauty sits seemingly all too easily alongside shabby storefronts and the many homeless queueing for thin looking soup.
Caught the "red-eye" departing at 11:59pm to Chicago and then (delayed) on to Dayton, Ohio where Kuem met us and I am currently at number 2452 North Knoll Drive, Beavercreek, Ohio. How about that.
The day started out pretty bleak but the sun soon came out in full force and we took advantage, sun bathing on the beach and going for a dip/playing in the waves. Strolled around a little bit of the town which was very cute and beachy in an upmarket kind of way. It was also very artsy with lots of little galleries and art on the street banners instead of the usual advertising which was a welcome relief.
Stopped for a scrumptious late lunch at 230 forest avenue then headed back on the 405 past the multitudes of homogeneous spanish style villas covering the hillsides and over to beverly hills again. This time we walked around instead of just driving past. Mostly walked around Rodeo Drive where all the very upmarket shops are. Touched a $7000 Michael Kors creation (that's around $10,000 NZD). Peered through the window of Jimmy Choo as we got there after they'd closed.
Then we took a drive through the leafy residential areas of Beverly Hills and Bel Air. Wow. And that's only the places you can see; drove past lots of sprawling properties with large hedges so you can't see the house/mansion from the road. Still didn't see any celebrities and didn't really know where to look for them (we weren't quite lame/desperate enough to purchase a Map of the Stars brochure :p)
And that was pretty much it for LA. A city where great opulence and beauty sits seemingly all too easily alongside shabby storefronts and the many homeless queueing for thin looking soup.
Caught the "red-eye" departing at 11:59pm to Chicago and then (delayed) on to Dayton, Ohio where Kuem met us and I am currently at number 2452 North Knoll Drive, Beavercreek, Ohio. How about that.
Friday, 2 July 2010
Gettyn jiggy with it
We have had a smashing couple of days in Los Angeles, California. The weather really came to the party too.
Been figuring out the buses and yesterday went to the Getty Centre (after a quick foray into an American Supermarket which was surprisingly pleasant). I mean Center. It was, in a word, amazing. The building was gorgeous, the views were spectacular and the art was incredible. We only had a few hours to spend there but spent a while at the current changing exhibits: The art of Gerome; and Engaged Observers (documentary photography exhibitions since 1960). Really beautiful/engaging/inspiring stuff. Other highlights were the room full of Monet, Van Gogh, Cezanne and Degas originals, the garden (which is considered an art installation in itself) and the gallery of French decorative arts (i.e. really ornate furniture).
Got to see UCLA campus on the bus on the way past which is a very attractive campus from what i saw. Navigated the bus home again and cooked dinner for Hea Sun (stuffed eggplant and cous cous salad - yum)
Today Jon went to get a hair cut at a place just around the corner. I mention this because the place was really cool! took a few photos so might insert them here at some point (not that i ever succeeded at that before so don't hold your breath). The place was called Floyd's barbershop and the walls were plastered with band posters or had murals painted across them. All the hairdressers "tool-kits" were covered in different stickers and whatever else they wanted.
Next thing on the list was to get some sunnies (jon left his in NZ and had been suffering without them) so headed back to the 3rd st promenade to urban outfitters where he found a sweet pair for $10 and I got a dress that i thought was going to be $30 on sale but when i went to pay for it it was only $9.99! bonus! plus tax of course, such a nuisance that.
Stopped and got Pinkberry frozen yoghurt (pomegranate flavour with LOTS of toppings) then headed along Main St and back down to the beach. There were at least 10 times as many people there today compared with wednesday when the weather wasn't so flash. Paddled along the other edge of the Pacific (got a little wetter than intended thanks to a surprise wave).
Caught the bus back to Hea Sun's as the plan was to head over by beverly hills, hollywood etc. Drove past several iconic places (the viper room, Wilshire(?) hotel from pretty woman, along rodeo drive...) and headed up to the Griffith Observatory from where there was a view of the Hollywood sign as well as most of the rest of the city along with some interesting astronomy themed displays. Could easily spend a few hours there, but it had taken us an hour to get there due to traffic plus we hadn't got back from Santa Monica as early as planned and had dinner reservations in West Hollywood. Passed Paramount Pictures on the way to the restaurant, where we met up with Hea Sun's brother George and had a delicious dinner. I have now eaten barramundi. And yellow/gold beetroot (or "beets"). And tasty tasty Chocolate Brioche Bread Pudding with creamy vanilla bean gelato. Mm-mmm.
And now for a quiet rest of the friday night in in LA.
Been figuring out the buses and yesterday went to the Getty Centre (after a quick foray into an American Supermarket which was surprisingly pleasant). I mean Center. It was, in a word, amazing. The building was gorgeous, the views were spectacular and the art was incredible. We only had a few hours to spend there but spent a while at the current changing exhibits: The art of Gerome; and Engaged Observers (documentary photography exhibitions since 1960). Really beautiful/engaging/inspiring stuff. Other highlights were the room full of Monet, Van Gogh, Cezanne and Degas originals, the garden (which is considered an art installation in itself) and the gallery of French decorative arts (i.e. really ornate furniture).
Got to see UCLA campus on the bus on the way past which is a very attractive campus from what i saw. Navigated the bus home again and cooked dinner for Hea Sun (stuffed eggplant and cous cous salad - yum)
Today Jon went to get a hair cut at a place just around the corner. I mention this because the place was really cool! took a few photos so might insert them here at some point (not that i ever succeeded at that before so don't hold your breath). The place was called Floyd's barbershop and the walls were plastered with band posters or had murals painted across them. All the hairdressers "tool-kits" were covered in different stickers and whatever else they wanted.
Next thing on the list was to get some sunnies (jon left his in NZ and had been suffering without them) so headed back to the 3rd st promenade to urban outfitters where he found a sweet pair for $10 and I got a dress that i thought was going to be $30 on sale but when i went to pay for it it was only $9.99! bonus! plus tax of course, such a nuisance that.
Stopped and got Pinkberry frozen yoghurt (pomegranate flavour with LOTS of toppings) then headed along Main St and back down to the beach. There were at least 10 times as many people there today compared with wednesday when the weather wasn't so flash. Paddled along the other edge of the Pacific (got a little wetter than intended thanks to a surprise wave).
Caught the bus back to Hea Sun's as the plan was to head over by beverly hills, hollywood etc. Drove past several iconic places (the viper room, Wilshire(?) hotel from pretty woman, along rodeo drive...) and headed up to the Griffith Observatory from where there was a view of the Hollywood sign as well as most of the rest of the city along with some interesting astronomy themed displays. Could easily spend a few hours there, but it had taken us an hour to get there due to traffic plus we hadn't got back from Santa Monica as early as planned and had dinner reservations in West Hollywood. Passed Paramount Pictures on the way to the restaurant, where we met up with Hea Sun's brother George and had a delicious dinner. I have now eaten barramundi. And yellow/gold beetroot (or "beets"). And tasty tasty Chocolate Brioche Bread Pudding with creamy vanilla bean gelato. Mm-mmm.
And now for a quiet rest of the friday night in in LA.
Wednesday, 30 June 2010
Pier to Pier
Hi Blogi! Long time no speak. Guess where I am now?
We arrived in LA yesterday afternoon after an alright Air NZ flight (watched some reasonable movies, slept hardly at all). Jon's cousin Hea Sun picked us up and took us to her place in Santa Monica where we're staying. Rested a bit then in the evening Hea Sun took us for dinner at a "new american" place called Houston for tasty burgers. The vegie pattie was really delicious and beany, though not much of it stayed in the burger.
Today we took the bus to Venice Beach (after a few attempts at leaving the house, kept coming back to change as we weren't prepared for the warmth) and strolled around. Was actually a bit too cool and breezy by the coast to go for a dip. Got something to eat at a Mexican place off the beach (with 2 for 1 happy hour margaritas :p) then walked out along the pier before heading back along by all the venice beach shops/stalls towards the Santa Monica pier.
The pier has a small amusement park on it (very iconic ferris wheel, all lit up) which we wandered around. There was an arcade with lots of cool old school games. The rollercoaster didn't look overly exhilarating.
Around dusk we got to the Santa Monica 3rd St promenade which was very appealing with all the trees lit up with fairy lights and buskers and dinosaur shaped tree-fountains. There were lots of familiar shop names - GAP, urban outfitters, american apparel, armani exchange, old navy... Went into Victoria's Secret :p Victoria doesn't have anything on Elle. Although she does have some ridiculously padded push-up bras (which i may have tried on - added like 2 or 3 cup sizes. Really quite weird)
Came home for tasty grilled cheese sandwiches. And that was day one!
We arrived in LA yesterday afternoon after an alright Air NZ flight (watched some reasonable movies, slept hardly at all). Jon's cousin Hea Sun picked us up and took us to her place in Santa Monica where we're staying. Rested a bit then in the evening Hea Sun took us for dinner at a "new american" place called Houston for tasty burgers. The vegie pattie was really delicious and beany, though not much of it stayed in the burger.
Today we took the bus to Venice Beach (after a few attempts at leaving the house, kept coming back to change as we weren't prepared for the warmth) and strolled around. Was actually a bit too cool and breezy by the coast to go for a dip. Got something to eat at a Mexican place off the beach (with 2 for 1 happy hour margaritas :p) then walked out along the pier before heading back along by all the venice beach shops/stalls towards the Santa Monica pier.
The pier has a small amusement park on it (very iconic ferris wheel, all lit up) which we wandered around. There was an arcade with lots of cool old school games. The rollercoaster didn't look overly exhilarating.
Around dusk we got to the Santa Monica 3rd St promenade which was very appealing with all the trees lit up with fairy lights and buskers and dinosaur shaped tree-fountains. There were lots of familiar shop names - GAP, urban outfitters, american apparel, armani exchange, old navy... Went into Victoria's Secret :p Victoria doesn't have anything on Elle. Although she does have some ridiculously padded push-up bras (which i may have tried on - added like 2 or 3 cup sizes. Really quite weird)
Came home for tasty grilled cheese sandwiches. And that was day one!
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