Stella Dacuma Schour

20hour Layover in Taiwan: My First (and 2nd) Hostel Experience

2013-01-22T16:54:00.002-05:00

After deciding on the Taiwan layover, the decision to get a Taipei City hotel was easy - yet difficult. I never had the experience of staying in a hostel, and quite frankly I only hear about it from travel sites and the Globe Trekker (originally broadcast as Lonely Planet) series back in the 90's. Yay Ian Wright! Personal Tidbit: I was a short lived travel documentary writer.

I have to admit, I was a little scared, because the only thing I could book in my hostel of choice was a co-ed dormitory room for one night. In any case I didn't see any of my roommates.

Ni Hao Taipei is an EXCELLENT hostel. I think i paid a little bit more, but for the amenities, and the way it looked, and the location - IT WAS WORTH IT.

Know that if you are checking in late, you need to inform them - hostels don't operate 24 hour lobbies, as most small backpacker-type places.

Upon checking in, I was given a card key, and a small watch key. The card let me into my room, and the watch key opened my locker.

The beds are no ordinary bunk beds. They have custom built bunks for each person and it has a lamp, a socket and a curtain for privacy. It blocks out the light when others are there, and makes you feel you are in your own personal pod. Bonus points: If your top bunk bed faces the air conditioner, it blocks out the A/C and keeps you warm.

The mattress had the right firmness - not too soft and not too firm and the comforters are soft and fluffy! Just the way I like them.

My low bunk.

check out the "stairs" to go to the top bunk

The shower in this dorm, is absolutely AWESOME. With soap and shampoo dispensers for your convenience too.

On my layover going back to NY, I was in the girls' dorm, and I got a top bunk. See the curtain at the bottom? That's where I was the first time. This one had a ladder access because the room is smaller.

Hi!

This dorm had 2 shower and toilet combos. The shower, while not as complicated as the other one, is still awesome. It had the faucet option, the over the head option and a hand shower option. It also had body wash and shampoo dispensers on the side.

Electric Kettle, Washing board + laundry soap and hair dryer (in basket)
- provided at the girl's dorms.

NiHao Taipei does not own the entire floor of the building, but rather it rents various units within the building that it is housed. The lobby is on the 11th floor and I stayed at the dorm on the 12th floor and the 7th floor. It is housed in an office building, and has a 24 hour guard on duty at the building lobby. It felt safe and the location is prime. The building is 2 blocks away from the bus station to the airport (about 10 mins walk) and is on the next block from the Taiwan Main Station. This is close to the M7 exit of the Taipei Metro.

The door to my 7th floor dorm.

I've said it before, and I will say it again.
STAYING AT NIHAO TAIPEI IS EXCELLENT. I highly recommend it!

I am a happy customer taking a selfie at the elevator.

I booked my room via my favorite site to book budget accommodations - Booking.com.

For more pics and reviews - here's the link to NiHao Taipei on Booking.com.
Make sure you print out the booking confirmation - it will have the name and address of NiHao written in Chinese Characters - this will be your lifesaver. When you ask for directions, just give them your print out.

NiHao Taipei
11F-5 No. 41, Section 1
ZongXiao West Road
Zhongzhen District 10041 Taipei City, Taiwan

20 Hour Layover in Taiwan: How to get out of Taipei Taoyuan Airport and Eating at Ning Xia Night Market

2013-01-19T06:54:00.000-05:00

I finally paid Manila a visit after 10 years of living in New York City. Last summer, I went on a smorgasbord trip to Italy, Israel and France (and havent blogged most of it yet - soon, I will do it!)

I ended up in Taiwan because some flights to Manila involved 20 hour layovers. The choices were Japan and Taiwan. I picked Taiwan because I have never been there, and it was 20 hours both ways (as opposed to Japan having 20 hours only one way) and it was a cheaper place and the visa for Philippine passport holders with US/Schengen Visas/GreenCards were easy to obtain online. To me, the 20 hour layover is a "free trip"!

20 hours is good enough if you know how to get out of the airport like a pro. And i did it like a pro, thanks to this youtube video!

Note that there is the NT$90 and NT$125 fare. The difference is 30 mins faster. Kuo Kang bus lines will charge NT$125 but will be 30 minutes faster than CitiAirBus. It seems "a lot" but really, you are paying less than US$2 more. On my first try, I took the cheaper bus because I didn't know any better, and I was being a cheapskate. This proved to be lucky because the CitiAirBus takes you back to the bus terminal itself. The Kuo Kang bus let us out at a regular bus stop somewhere around the Taipei Main station, and it could be a little troublesome to find the bus terminal back to the airport. IF YOU GET LOST, JUST ASK!

Bus Ticket Counters

My Baggage Tag and Ticket. They stored my carry-on under the bus.

This was my bus, dont worry - the stands are numbered.
If you are still confused, just show your ticket to the drivers
and keep saying "Taipei Main Station."

The driver's cockpit. He has his own ticket machine.
My bus driver was doing some comedy while driving,
but I couldn't understand a thing and everyone was just laughing at the jokes.
After his comic stint, he started using the PA system
as a Karaoke and serenaded the passengers!

The bus will take you to TAIPEI MAIN STATION. If you are staying for the night, make sure that your hotel is walking distance from the bus station, because it's easier to deal with than finding a cab to take you there.

The bus ride is convenient, cheap and safe. I generally prefer taking public transportation out of any airport because it's I know it wont charge me extra, or do some touristy upsell. Take note, most airports are NOT IN the city itself, so it is cost effective to learn how to take the bus out of the airport and into the city.

One lesson to learn, HAVE YOUR HOTEL NAME WRITTEN IN CHINESE CHARACTERS SO DIRECTIONS ARE EASIER TO ASK. A lot of people in Taiwan speak English, however, the English spelling of the streets will be different from the street sign and different from the one you will get from Google maps.

As soon as I got off the bus, I didn't understand where I was, nor did I understand the orientation of the streets. First, I asked a bus driver where my hotel was, but he didn't understand my map. So I asked two twentysomething girls where my hotel was and they walked me to my hotel (it was about a 15 minute walk, and it was half past midnight!!!) They were mapping it out with their phones and such and didn't even think that my little hostel existed. I gave them both a hug and they thought I was brave enough to travel by myself.

After I dropped my stuff off at NiHao Taipei, I asked the building guard (the hostel is not the entire building, it just rents a couple of units in the building.) to find me a taxi to take me to the night market - mind you, the guard was apprehensive because it was already late. I thought I was going to Shilin Night Market - however the cab driver brought me to the Ning Xia Night Market.

And I ate my ass off.

The first stall I saw. OH MY! YUMMY!

IN. TEST. INES!!!! WOOHOO!!!

Get a basket, put your choices in a basket and they will grill it for you.

Mmm.

The night market was half empty and some stalls were closing.

I didn't eat these. I was too scared of deboning while walking.

I think this was the small intestine in large intestine. I didn't try it

Eggs beside mop and bucket.

Braised pork feet

I ate it on this table with steel chopsticks!

It is served with rice a side of tea egg and bamboo shoots.

Oh what an exciting time!

These in addition to fried chicken...

Plenty of yummy innards choose from!


IMHO, these had too much MSG, and i didnt even finish it.

In this trip, I realized that grilled is the way to go, and if you can point to a picture menu - you can order. People are happy to serve you food as long as you are not squeamish.

The stalls were about to close when I got here, so for the "full experience" in photos, you can go to My Kafkaesque Life.

Travel + Leisure Global Bazaar 2012 Kickoff Party

2012-09-29T01:27:00.001-04:00

Arresting to the senses. Words cannot explain how much fun the Travel + Leisure Global Bazaar 2012 Kickoff Party was. The drinks were overflowing, the booths were entertaining and the decor was very well done. Kudos to every one who made this event possible! It literally was like going into the pages of Travel + Leisure magazine.

It.
was.
this.
much.
FUUUUUN!

Belly dancers! Entertainment even before you enter the event!

Awesome costumed server... and they got someone who looked the part!

Barbados meets India

Yes, LOTS and LOTS of music!

Caviar!

Dessert by Johnny Iuzzini

Yes, that's him!

Scott Conant

Ravioli and Caramel Pot de Creme (Scott Conant)

Tim Love

Elk Sausage Sliders (Tim Love)

At the Patron booth, they let you muddle your own mojito!

and you get to get your own engraved muddler!

rawr!

Silly Tourist Photo

yes, THEY HAVE A ZIPLINE!

Spices in the Moroccan Tent


Thumbs up!

All in all it was EXTREMELY FUN, and I can't wait to go back and do it all over again!
TOMORROW!

**** Disclosure ****

Many thanks to Girl Gone Travel for the opportunity to attend this weekend long event! Girl Gone Travel is written by Carol Cain and she is a Travel + Leisure Global Bazaar Ambassador. These awesome tickets were given as a giveaway prize on her blog. And I WON THEM! woohoo!

I was not required to blog about this, nor was I compensated for this post. This is a blog that is written by me, and does not reflect the opinions of anyone else but me.

Italy – Daytrip to the Leaning Tower of Pisa from Florence for 9 Euros!

2012-09-15T02:17:00.000-04:00

One of Italy’s most known architectural structures is the Leaning Tower of Pisa. It is a freestanding bell tower that tilted to one side because the foundation on ground on one side was too soft to support its own weight.

This campanile is part of the Piazza dei Miracoli otherwise known as Piazza del Duomo where there are four great religious structures – the Duomo, the Baptistery, the Campanile (Leaning Tower) and the Camposanto Monumentale.

How to spend the least amount of money on this daytrip from Florence:

1. Find out these two train schedules:

a. Firenze Santa Maria Novella to Pisa Centrale

b. Pisa S. Rossore back to Firenze SMN.

Keep in mind that your one-way ticket is good for 4 hours after validation; so pick the ones that will fit this timeframe, so you only pay for a one-way ticket. A one-way ticket will set you back about 8,20€.

EDIT 6/12/2013 - The validity of regional trains have changed to 4 hours - when I did this trip, my ticket was valid for 6 hours - and it was enough time to tour Pisa from Florence and go back on a one-way ticket. Now, you should buy a round trip ticket. Read more about Trenitalia here.

Trenitalia Ticket to Pisa S Rossore

2. BUY A TICKET THAT IS GOING TO PISA S. ROSSORE

because this is a station that is farther than Pisa Centrale coming from Florence, but take whatever train that goes to Pisa Centrale on your way to Pisa.

3. Validate your ticket at the last possible moment.

2 minutes before the train leaves is just about right BUT NEVER GET ON THE TRAIN WITHOUT VALIDATION.

Train ticket validating machine.

4. Get off Pisa Centrale.

Click here for walking directions. It takes about 30-45mins walking at a leisurely pace. These are some of the things you will see on the way to the Piazza Dei Miracoli:

Vittorio Emanuele II Statue

That is NOT Ross Dress for Less.

The sad truth is, you pay a "cover charge" to sit in a lot of places.

5. You need tickets to get inside the buildings.

I only bought the 2-attraction ticket and just spent time taking pics.

6. Walk to Pisa S. Rossore Station.

Google maps can’t point the exact way, but here’s anapproximation of how I got there. When you get to Via Andrea Pisano, ask for directions on how to get to the stazioni, just to make sure.

Of course "not eating lunch there" does not mean that I can't stop for dessert! (uhm, snacks?)

Pastries from Salza, the oldest patisserie in Pisa

La Borsa Gelato (I eat gelato every chance I get.)

I didn't eat lunch there, BUT I SNACKED!!!!

I ate my breakfast in Firenze with the intention of having lunch in Firenze AFTER my visit to Pisa to avoid paying for my return ticket. However, there was a fire on the train tracks on my way back and we got stranded at a random stop. Along with the other passengers, we waited for a bus to take us to a different station and caught the train there to get back to Florence.

That's my mom in her hat, keeping her cool and trying to be not
annoyed at me while I grabbed lunch.

Doner Kebab! Yes. I was eating this shawarma-ish snack and I tell you,
it was pretty good!

Other passengers scrambling to get into the bus to get to a different
train station.

Let me say it again - in the event that something like that happens – follow everyone else, and DON’T GET HYSTERICAL. Every one is stranded just like you – so find out what the wait time is and immediately find a bathroom, get yourself something to eat or drink (if something is available nearby) and try to be friendly with another passenger who understands Italian and can translate what is going on for you.

You'll be fine - and it's a better story to tell when you get home.

Here are the tourist photos!

It is smaller than you think it is. See the scale?

The Baptistery is the building with the red brick roof,
Duomo in the middle and the Campanile (Leaning Tower) in the back.

Inside the Baptistery (that's how Wiki spells it.)

Camposanto Monumentale from the Baptistery

View of the Duomo from the Baptistery

Duomo

Leading to the main altar of the Duomo

Yes, that's the magnificent ceiling.

Pews of the Duomo

Urna di San Ranieri (Bones of St. Ranieri, the patron saint of Pisa)

Don't forget to buy presents for all your friends named David. ;)

*****

Other blogposts in this series:

Italy: Practical Travel Advice

Meatopia 2012 Survivor Tips

2012-09-09T10:30:00.000-04:00

Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these ~~couriers~~ eaters from the swift (and joyful) completion of their appointed rounds...

Meatopia 2012 was met with tornado warnings and scattered rainshowers - like the mailmen of yore, these happy meatopians survived the crazy weather paired with amazing cocktails and delicious food. Food Porn and Chef Pics of Meatopia 2012 is here.

1. Be prepared with your OTC medication of choice.

Queens-based food writer and food tour guide Joe DiStefano and his
digestion aid of choice.

2. Pack a raincoat (and rainpants).

That's my friend Albert in the yellow suit.

3. Carry a fashionable umbrella.

I want this umbrella!

An umbrella so yellow, it's like sunshine.

4. Cuddle in the rain, under your fashionable umbrella.

MTA subway lines umbrella, represent!

4. Patiently wait for your turn, rain or shine.

5. If you dont have an umbrella, just run for cover...

6. ... and join the party!

7. Dancing on picnic tables under a picnic umbrella is good too!

8. And take silly photos!

Welcome! (Photo Credit: Desmond Chow)

Meat love. aaaaahhhhh. (Photo Credit: Desmond Chow)

muah!

Nice to Meat you, piggy piggy. (Photo Credit: Desmond Chow)

Thank you, Josh Ozersky.

***************

www.meatopia.org

@Meatopia

@OzerskyTV

Take a tour of Queens with Joe Distefano here: https://www.facebook.com/worldsfare

Find Albert on Meetup: http://www.meetup.com/Awesome-Adventures/

My other blog: CookingWithStellaaa.wordpress.com

Where Roxwriting Fries: http://spamisbetterfried.blogspot.com

Meatopia 2012

2012-09-09T03:34:00.000-04:00

It's the most wonderful time of the year! Meatopia 2012 has come and gone and while it was a crazy weather day, it was full of fantastic food, delicious cocktails and rain! Rain?! New Yorkers love their meat (and booze) and it wont stop them from getting the full experience that is Meatopia. Tornado warnings notwithstanding, we partied on.

And we ate well. Mmm hmm.

See how we managed to go through it all! Meatopia 2012 Survivor Tips

He sees a lot of bacon.

Armed Forces Foundation grillmasters

All this, wrapped in bacon from the Armed Forces Foundation!
Grilled Venison Steaks and Marinated Tenderloin

Crown Royal Black Op Cocktail

Grilling some duck!

Gabriele Corcos and Debi Mazar
Pizza al Carpaccio with Certified Piedmontese Eye Round beef

Gabriele Corcos

Portable woodburning pizza oven!!!

Gabriele shooting a segment

Harold Moore of Commerce

Harold Moore
Duo of Squab Rillete and Roasted Breast Ancienne

Jeni Britton Bauer

Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams
Rainbow Frozen Yogurt

Jonathon Sawyer

Jonathon Sawyer
Brains and Bread

Bill Dorrier of Osteria Morini
(Any man who looks like this, can cook like he does and holding
pork cheeks? So Hawt! Yes, quote me on that.)

Michael White
Grilled Hampshire Pork Cheeks with Late Summer Mostarda

Shane McBride and Josh Ozersky

Add caption

Shane McBride
Smoked Duck Neck Gumbo with Wild Rice

Long lines to one spot!

Aaron Franklin

Aaron Franklin
Texas Beef Brisket

Adam Perry Lang
Charred and Scruffed Beef Short Ribs

Adam Sappington

Adam Sappington
Friday Morning Turkey Trio
Confited Wings, Pope's Nose and Turkey Scrapple

Alex Guarnaschelli
and her Meatopia Team

Alex Guarnaschelli
Carnard A la Presse with Sauce Chasseur

Noah Bermanoff
Sizzling Smoked Veal Brisket with Hot Pickled Tomatoes

Follow the boney bone road.

Paul Denamiel

Paul Denamiel
Beef Shank Bourguignon

Beef Shanks a-stewing!

Butcher Competition

Craig Koketsu
Peking Chicken Sausage

Eduard Frauneder
Grilled Veal Breast Roulade with Arugula,
Peach and Rye Bread Mustard Vinaigrette

Mike Toscano
Grilled Quail Alla Diavola
with Charred Schallions and Buttermilk Crema

Fatback Collective

The Fatback Collective's Freebie

Franklin Decker
Danish Meatballs with Creamy Dill Sauce

George Dickel Handmade Bar

Hemant Mathur
Tandoori Chicken

Honeydrop Teas!
I love their Blueberry.

Siggi Hall for Icelandic Lamb
Icelandic Free Range Gras Fed Boneless Butterflied Leg of Lamb

Philippe Massoud
Lebanese Smores!

Philippe Massoud
Pulled Aleppo and Sumac Rubbed Lamb Sandwich

Jon Adams
Grilled Vegas Strip with Carrot Salad

Creekstone Farms Booth / Jon Adams

Kahlua Iced Coffee: Delicioso To-Go!
(this is breakfast at my desk legal, right? ;)

Marc Forgione

Marc Forgione
Grilled Rib Steak with Bone Marrow Maitre' D Butter,
Pierre Poivre and Smoked Onion Chimichurri

Mmm. Yes, Marc Forgione lets you have the bone.

Pat Lafreida
Whole Thousand-Pound Marinated Creekhouse Steer

That's what a thousand-pound steer looks like on a grill.

April Bloomfield had this head of hog as her table centerpiece.
It's so beautiful!

Plainville Farms

Grilling corn on the cob

San Benedetto Water was all over the place for you to grab one.
Genius!

Scotty Smith
Skin-On Barbecued Jamaican Jerk Pork Belly
with Allspice Pickles

Tim Bynes

Tim Bynes
Best Butcher's Steak with Pickled Celery,
Mustard Caviar and Buttermilk

This? It didnt stop us from partying.

Whole Foods
The World's Largest Sausage Toppings Bar

They have redefined "sliced mushrooms" and I love it!!!

Taken when it just started...

And this is how it all ended.

Meatopia 2012 is always something i look forward to each year. Of course - a girl could only eat so much (hah! but that is good!). I look forward to doing it all over again. There are some booths that I didn't get to visit, and my friend @Roxwriting was happy to chomp on the others I didn't get a chance to do so. Find her at Spam is Better Fried.

Well done, Josh and the entire team of Meatopia! And no, I'm not ordering steak. ;)

I look forward to MEATing you, next year. *aaaaw*

Rosemary and Garlic Roast Beef

2012-09-03T17:16:00.000-04:00

Find the Rosemary and Garlic Roast Beef recipe at Cooking With Stellaaa

Turbo Chicken

2012-09-03T17:14:00.003-04:00

Find the Turbo Chicken recipe at Cooking With Stellaaa.

Reminiscing Meatopia 2011

2012-08-27T23:04:00.000-04:00

Me me me me me meeee toooopiaaaah!

In excited anticipation of Meatopia 2012, let me show you what I ate at last year's event. Please note that this is not a complete roundup as a girl can only eat so much.

Adam Sappington
The Country Cat Dinnerhouse & Bar
Crispy Pig Head

Adam Sappington
The Country Cat Dinnerhouse & Bar
Crispy Pig Head Stuffed with Scrapple on a Buttermilk Biscuit
with Oregon Chow Chow

Akhtar Nawab
La Esquina
Guisado of Veal Breast, Pistachio Mole,
Fresno Chile Escabeche and Cotija Crema

Bobby Hellen
resto
Veal Belly Gyro with Charred Radish

Inside the Crispy Mangalitsa Pig's Head Torchon
Edi and the Wolf

Eduard Frauneder & Wolfgang Ban
Edi & the Wolf
Crispy Mangalitsa Pig's Head Torchon with Horseradish

Eric Johnson
Mr. Bobo's Traveling BBQ Allstars
Barbecue Braised Beef Ribs with Bourbon-Infused Sweet Potatoes
and Cabbage

Daniel Holzman
The Meatball Shop
Spicy Lamb Sloppy Joes

Erica Wades & Beej Flamholz
Creekstone Farms
Creekstone Farms Flank Steak Roulade

Floyd Cardoz
North End Grill
Roast Baby Goat with Arugula and Sweet Onion Salad

Michael White and Bill Dorrier's
Porchetta Spit

Michael White & Bill Dorrier
Osteria Morini
Spit-Roasted Hampshire Porchetta with Sage, Rosemary and Lemon

Noah Bernamoff
Mile End
Bahn Juif (Jewish Bahn Mi)

Pat Lafreida's Whole Steer Chopper.
I want that apron.

Pat Lafreida
800lb Steer

Nice to meat you, steer.

Philippe Massoud
Ilili Restaurant
Sumac and Zataar-Spiced Grilled Lamb Ribs with Lebanese Salad

Sam Barbieri
Waterfront Ale House
Maple-Cured and Smoked Wild Boar Ham and Belly
with Homemade Mustard and Pickles

Shane McBride
Balthazar
Smoked Hampshire Hog

John Rivers
4 Rivers Smokehouse
Smoked Angus Brisket and Southern Pulled Pork Shooters
with Head Cheese Grits and Creamy Southern Slaw

Amanda Freitag
Jamaican Jerk Chicken Thighs with
Grilled Green Onion and New York Cornbread

Yuri Fujinaga
Bar Basque
Bacon Ice Cream, Crispy Skin Cone and Bacon Sprinkles

Yuri Fujinaga
Bar Basque
Crispy Pork Belly Slow Braised in Txacoli
Baby Clams, Salsa Verde
(here piggy, piggy)

Yuri Fujinaga
Bar Basque
Grilled Baby Back Ribs with Vizcaina Sauce

Yuri Fujinaga
Bar Basque
Head Cheese Terrine with McClure's Spicy Pickle Relish

Yuri Fujinaga
Bar Basque
Slow Roasted Pork Buns
Kewpie Kosho, Shiso Leaves

Yuri Fujinaga
Bar Basque
Pig Trotter Croquettas with Sriracha Mayo

Harold Moore
Commerce
Roasted Chicken with Foie Gras Croutons, Potato Puree &
Super Jus

Julia Jaksic
Employees Only
Grilled Cevapi (Croatian Sausage) with Pita, Kajmak, Onions & Tomatoes

Fossil Farms
Fermin Iberico de Bellota Costillas
(Spare Ribs)

Fossil Farms
Smoked Duck and & Apricot Sausge
with Scallion Spread

Chris Hastings
Hot and Hot Fish Club
Elk Shoulder Crepinettes with Olives, Clementines
Almonds and Frisee Salad with Anchovy Vinaigrette

Sean Brock of Husk & Rodney Scott of Scott's BBQ
Carolina whole Ossabaw Hog BBQ with Field Pea and
Ramp Chow Chow
Cooked Over Wood Embers and Pig-Bone Charcoal

David Shuttenberg of Dickson's Farmstand Meats and
Robbie Richter of Big Island BBQ
MEATOPIA SAUSAGE

Seamus Mullen
Tertulia
Spit-Roasted Whole Sheep

Nice to meat you too, roasted sheep heads! Baa! Baa!
(Seamus Mullen, Tertulia)

John Shook and Vinny Dotolo
Animal
Grilled Chicken Hearts with Burnt Eggplant Puree

Let's just say that I needed some dessert to "aid my digestion"

Kitty Lee Thomas
Cookies and Cream Marshmallows

Kitty Lee Thomas
Coconut Lime Marshmallows

Robicelli's
The Ebinger and Banana Cream Pie Cupcakes

Robicelli's
Classic Sea Salt Brownie

Chris's Cookies
Peanut Butter Dessert Bar

Chris's Cookies
Key Lime & Coconut Dessert Bars

Capogiro Gelato
(it was so hot, i must have consumed three cups...)

Let's just say, I CAN'T WAIT TO DO IT ALL OVER AGAIN THIS YEAR! Woohoo!

Meatopia

Tickets to this year's event on Eventbrite

Sept 8 2012, 5pm, Randall's Island, New York City

Stuffed Bell Peppers

2012-08-22T22:05:00.000-04:00

Here's the recipe I used:
Dad's Stuffed Bell Peppers

Stefan Sagmeister: The Happy Show

2012-08-12T15:41:00.002-04:00

I've been a big fan of Stefan Sagmeister since the early 2000's - right after I read his book Sagmeister:Made You Look.

The Happy Show at the Institute of Contemporary Art, University of Pennsylvania goes into the mind of Sagmeister - his thought process and his design. At the exhibit, I mostly found myself laughing in agreement at the things he said. His work constantly inspires me both in my design sense and to just put out good work.

I wish i had $2500 to pledge to his (fully funded) kickstarter campaign. I presume that it would be an interesting lunch.

Notice that you have to drop your quarters one at a time.

I posed in it for scale.

My symbols of happiness.
Beard Bunny is a representation of my husband/marriage.

Check out the reflection!

I didnt do it. But i was tempted to sing
"Call Me Maybe"

You stick your head in here, and smile.

The Sculpture says "Step Up To It"
When you smile to the camera, the colors change into this.

Why you should step up to it...

I rode this bike. And I kept biking
until this message flashed.

I'd say this applies to people who work in kitchens as well.

I wonder why it is all gone? ;)

Why the lion has no balls.

I am hoping that the Negativity Blaster
is at its experimental stage already.

Maslow's hierarchy of needs.

I put 50cents into 9. No gum for me.

The exhibit continues into the bathroom

I can only wonder what the men's bathroom said.

Your 25 cent donation goes here.

Did everyone who come in donate?
How many people donated?
How much was collected?
How many cups of coffee was bought?

Some of the videos at the exhibit can be found at these links:

Stefan Sagmeister: The Power of Time Off

Stefan Sagmeister: Happiness by Design

More videos here: Stefan Sagmeister on TED

Stefan Sagmeister: The Happy Show

April 4 - Aug 12 2012

Institute of Contemporary Art

University of Pennsylvania

118 S 36th Street

Philadelphia PA

A Voce - Restaurant Week Lunch, Summer 2012

2012-08-10T17:02:00.000-04:00

Antipasti
Passato di Zucchine
Zucchini Soup, Pesto, Almonds, Pecorino

Antipasti
Mozzarella
Marinated Prosciutto, Stone Fruit

Antipasti
Pesce Crudo
Fluke, Marinated Cucumbers, Chilies, Lemon

Secondi
Arista di Maiale
Roasted Pork, Pickled Cherries, Coriander, Mustard Greens

Mandilli
Pasta Handkerchiefs, Braised Merluzzo, Toasted Fennel,
Capers, Olives

Dolci
Semifreddo
Semi-Frozen Lemon Mousse, Blueberries,
Candied Lemon

Dolci
Crema di Cioccolato
Chocolate Crema, Espresso, Almonds

Coffee, Marshmallows

A Voce

41 Madison Ave (at 26th St)

New York NY

212 545 8555

Dovetail - Restaurant Week Lunch, Summer 2012

2012-08-10T16:16:00.001-04:00

Bread Service
White Cheddar Cornbread, White Truffle Parmesan Arancini

Appetizer

Cucumber Vichyssoise

Pickled Onion, Smoked Trout, Dill

Appetizer
Squid a la Plancha
Snow Peas, Ginger, Strawberry-Rhubarb Jam

Entree
Pork Loin
Barley Risotto, Bacon, Peaches

Entree
Roasted Chicken
English Peas, Mushrooms, Basil

Dessert
Devil's Food Cake
Chocolate Chantilly, Toasted Marshmallows, Peanut Butter Pudding

Dessert
Passion Fruit Mousse
Coconut Dacquoise, Blueberry Sorbet, Basil

Dovetail
103 West 77th St
New York NY 10024
212 362 3800

Italy - Practical Travel Advice

2012-08-09T00:10:00.000-04:00

Like most international airports, getting out of Rome-Fiumicino Airport and into Rome has a myriad of options. There is a bus that goes straight to Roma Termini from the airport. Look for the Terravision Bus / Atral Bus signs.

Roma Termini is the main train station of Rome and it connects to all major Italian cities and other European cities such as Paris, Munich, Geneva, Basel and Vienna. It also has bus and Roma Metro connections to get you to your hotel in Rome.

The bus is comfy, and costs €4 per person (one way) and it takes an hour to get to Roma Termini. If you aren’t in a rush, this is simply the most cost effective way to get to the center. There are trains that go from the airport to Roma Termini, but that is about €14 and takes half an hour.

When travelling to anywhere in general, keep these things in mind:

Not everything is going to be in English – be sure to know the following words in their native tongue:
Ticketing/Ticket Office
Entry/Exit
Restrooms
Danger
The names of the cities/places you are going to in their native tongue. Ex: Firenze for Florence, Venezia for Venice. Extremely important especially when you are catching public transportation.

Currency – If possible, bring the local currency with you. Do it at your home bank/money exchange weeks before you leave. The Money Changers in Europe have VERY UNDESIREABLE exchange rates; bring very little US Dollars with you.

Credit and Debit cards – Call your banks to let them know that you are travelling and ask if they have partners in the country you are visiting to. (ex: Bank of America's partner in Italy is BNP Paribas. I didn't get charged anything by withrawing euros from their ATM) This allows you to withdraw money at the best rates from an ATM and you don’t have to carry much cash with you. Remember, the best exchange rates are transacted via plastic in Europe.

Learn how to read a map, and always carry one with you -If you are lost and the person you are asking for directions don’t speak your language, just show them the map and point. Locals are very friendly (for the most part) and will point you to the bus stop/train station even if they don’t know how to speak your language.

Learn how to take public transportation! – There are no ifs and buts on this one because when you are on public transportation it won’t go anywhere that isn’t on its route. It will show you the way the locals live and allows you to be part of the landscape. If you don’t know how, it is always good to practice on the New York City Subway and Bus System because if you can take the NYC subway like a pro – getting on public transit in any part of the world will be a cinch.

DON’T BE STUPID, AND DON’T ACT PRIVILEGED -The comforts you are used to back home may not exist in the country you are visiting or may not exist in the same manner you are used to. Take everything around you with a grain of salt and enjoy your surroundings. This is why you are travelling! Don't call any attention to yourself and be very careful of petty crimes such as pickpockets.

Public service announcement found
in Florence buses. IN ENGLISH!!
(they also have it in Italian, fyi)

Italy-specific travel advice

If you are riding Trenitalia (there are many train lines in Italy), remember to validate your ticket before getting on the train. If the inspector comes into your train and your ticket isn't validated, you will pay a fine. Rail Europe charges more money, so your best bet is to come up to the train station and just buy it from the machine or from the ticket window. The fares are the same price regardless of buying them in advance or 5 minutes before the train leaves.

Trenitalia train tickets are valid 6 hours after validation (not after buying). If you are travelling between Firenze Rifredi and Firenze Santa Maria Novella, you can still go back to Firenze Rifredi using the same ticket if the train you are taking is within the 6 hour window from validation.

Trenitalia serves a lot of destinations, however this is the slower train. This is the "Trains for Local Transport" in the Trenitalia website. The express trains are here. All trains are comfy regardless of speed; however the express trains are definitely much more comfier, it has its own bathrooms, a bar car and a table for your eating pleasure. They are also equipped with "free wifi" but it only accomodates passengers who have Italian mobile service. It didn't allow me to use their wifi without an account.

Sometimes the express trains are the only option you have - BUT MAKE SURE YOU KNOW WHICH TRAIN YOU ARE TAKING BACK before you wander off on your daytrip. This is especially true if you are taking a daytrip to Venice (Venezia), the only option I had going back to Florence was the Frecciarossa.

When getting on a long train trip, try to eat before you get on the train - or pack a picnic to eat on the train. Sometimes, you get lucky and a vendor will come up to the train and sell prosciutto and cheese sandwiches (luxury! prosciutto!) and drinks. This is the only time I saw them and I took a lot of intercity trains.

If you didn't pack - don't despair. They have vending machines right by the tracks. But it is always good to have food with you.

Water is EVERYWHERE and is potable and FREE! Reuse your drink container and drink from any fountain in Italy! And you can even wash your face with it!

The bus system in Florence and Rome are very good, it is just a matter of learning how to use them. There are clearly marked bus stops and they say where they go, so just read them. Be sure to get your bus tickets from the Tabacci and validate them once inside the bus. They have different kinds of validating machines, one of them is this yellow one. If the bus is packed, and you cant get to the machine, you can ask a fellow passenger to validate it for you. I've seen this happen a couple of times.

Bus Ticket Validating Machine

The Rome Metro is just a big X on the city and you can transfer from one diagonal to the other at Roma Termini. It really is a no-brainer, especially if you are used to a public transit.

You will be walking a LOT wear comfy shoes. If you go in the summer months, keep your cool with Gelato. Preferably 3 times a day.

Don't worry about getting lost - the Italians are very nice people and they will give you directions gladly. If they don't know the answer to your question, they will ask another person for you and then point you where to go.

Ciao!

*******

Other blogposts in this series:

Daytrip to the Leaning Tower of Pisa from Florence for 9 Euros!

Airline Food: Delta Airlines (NY to Rome)

2012-07-30T01:23:00.000-04:00

Once upon a time, I loved flying. That was before I had to take my shoes off, get a patdown and buy my own snacks.

I still love travelling, I just hate going through airport security and making sure I have a "cheeseburger insurance" in my purse. (I always fly with a cheeseburger or some heavy sandwich with me when I fly domestic.)

This time around, I had actual meals!

Dinner:
Salad, Bread, Crackers, Cheese, Chicken with Rice and White Wine!

Chicken and Rice, up close
This was very flavorful, and props for the chicken for not being rubbery.
Sauce is a bit on the sour side and the rice was also good.

I also love that my blondie is by this company called
Love and Quiches!

By sheer stroke of luck, my seatmate found out that the couple ahead of us were upgraded and she asked for their seat (thank you, Doriane!) and we ended up in this section...

and we had LEGROOOOOOMMMMMM!!!

Somehow, it wasn't as lucky as you would think it is as devil child was sitting behind us and kept screaming to the top of her lungs and kicking both our seats. I seriously wanted to unleash my inner tiger mother on that child but I stopped myself. Instead I went for the next best thing. I went to the galley and asked for more wine. If you are under 21, and you fly Delta - you still CAN'T drink on the plane because you are technically on US soil, so the age rule applies. Yes, the flight attendant asked me if I was over 21. (victory!)

The wine helped a tiny bit as the sleep i got was little to none with the stupid kicking. Im not sure if im happy to get all that legroom... but all bad things must come to an end with sunrise over the clouds and breakfast!

Coffee, Egg Muffin, Banana and OJ.

Egg muffin up close. It really held up to the bad reputation of
airline food. LOL

They say it's not the journey but the destination. With a devil child kicking your seat? It's about the destination. With the free wine to soothe you? It's the journey.

In any case - Hello, Rome!

Veritas Tasting Menu

2012-06-03T02:16:00.000-04:00

"The only way to do it (run a restaurant) is to be in the kitchen all the time."
- Sam Hazen, Executive Chef

True to his personal philosophy of running restaurants, my hubby and I had a wonderful second wedding anniversary celebration at Veritas. I barely had the chance to peruse the menu when Chef Sam Hazen came to our table and introduced himself. He was quite the jolly person and he has this way of making his diners feel special.*

The Chef's Tasting Menu is a line on the menu. If you weren't looking for it, you won't find it. If you want to know what's in it, YOU WON'T. According to our friend Ryan**, who was our server for the meal, the tasting menu is never the same for any table. It really goes for whatever the chef feels like serving you.

They are very cautious though, the chef personally asked us three times if we had any food allergies.

One by one, I indulged in Sam Hazen's emotions. My god, his emotions are delicious!

Here's the progression of our meal:

Bread Service

Home Made Biscuit with Shallot Braised in Mangalitsa Pork (front)
Stratchi Bread (Back)

Seared Prime Sirloin with Quail Egg and Garlic Crostini,
Crispy Risotto Ball, Charred Pepper, Tomatillo, Shaved Feta

Sashimi of Montauk Fluke, Lime Ponzu, Cilantro & Jalapeno

Oyster with House Bloody Mary Cocktail Sauce &
Vodka infused Horseradish

Oyster Escabeche - Marinated in Sherry Vinegar,
Candied Lemon Tomato Confit (part of oyster 2 ways)

Crab Salad - Boston Jonah & Venezuela Blue Cram with Peppadews,
Olive Oil, Arugula, Shallots, Phyllo Ring w/Black Olive Salt,
Meyer Lemon Jam & Olive Tapenade

Seared Diver Scallop & Seared Foie Gras
with Wild Mushroom and Veal Reduction

Loin of Lamb, Braised Short Rib Ravioli, Veal Jus,
Braised Wild Mushroom & Watercress Shallot Salad

Pan-Roasted Slicked Veal Chop, Cognac Mustard Potato Cake,
Warm Frisee Bacon Salad

Lemon Thyme Sorbet

Petit Fours - Chocolate Cookie, Rhubarb Hibiscus Macaron,
Apricot Pate de Fruit

From Bottom Left, Clockwise:
Veritas Candy Bar - Peanut Butter, Hazelnut, Devil's Food Cake
Pistachio Pudding, Rhubarb Compote, Buttermilk Whipped Cream
Market Berry Tart - Mascarpone Custard, Macerated Strawberries &
Apricot Vanilla Jam
Root Beer Vacherin, Vanilla Ice Cream, Root Beer Sorbet,
Root Beer Caramel & Sassafras Foam

Chef Sam Hazen and Me
(The best way to my heart is through my stomach. No kidding.)

Banana Bread - This was a parting gift.

My definite winners are the Fluke Sashimi and the Scallop and Foie Gras. The Scallop and Foie Gras is such a homerun because I'm a seafood and liver lover. The lamb dish is also very commendable - I hate lamb, but this dish is really, really good. It wasn't gamey and I ate it all.

I look forward to the rest of our wedding anniversaries, for the rest of our lives. Thank you, Veritas - Our meal was amazing!

Tasting Menu Price Varies, and starts at $130/person. Please ask your server before ordering.

__________________________

*Chef Sam Hazen made his rounds of the restaurant and paid attention to each table. I was observing. Very rarely do chefs come out of the kitchen to meet us, and if they do it is AFTER the meal. He came as soon as we sat.
**Ryan is a very good friend of Dave and they met when they were still both working at Dylan Prime. Ryan was our dapper dining companion at Eleven Madison Park.
***My husband was very annoyed to take my fangirl photo. (I cannot wait to take a photo with his boss!)

DISCLAIMER:
This post was NOT sponsored in any way, shape or form. All the photos are opinions are mine. All rights reserved.
__________________________

Veritas
43 East 20th St
New York NY
212-353-3700

Keeping at It

2012-05-27T23:15:00.000-04:00

Say hello to my American Education!

I have to say, I am overwhelmed. My inner nerd-overachiever is on hyperdrive. I go to work, I go to school (I still do for some fun courses plus I'm in the process of applying to an MBA program) and I have a full on social life whenever the homework takes a back seat. Oh, yeah. I'm also married.

In this economy, there is a bunch of naysayers to higher education. I dont blame them - going to a private school is not cheap. Im so glad that FIT is part of the State University of New York (FYI. I paid $2500/semester in-state tuition.)

So what overwhelms me? Everything. The never ending job applications that I fill out on the listings I see on the internet, getting my portfolio together, GRE test prep, grad school applications, next semester... it has come to a point that I dont plan anything far in advance because there's. just. too. much. to. do.

I'm not complaining. Just trying to inspire anyone who reads this that IT CAN BE DONE.

See? I graduated with the highest honors. It can be done!

******

This was my 5 minute Stream of Consciousness Sunday post. It’s five minutes of your time and a brain dump. Want to try it? Here are the rules…

Set a timer and write for 5 minutes only.
Write an intro to the post if you want but don’t edit the post. No proofreading or spellchecking. This is writing in the raw.
Publish it somewhere. Anywhere. The back door to your blog if you want. But make it accessible.
Add the Stream of Consciousness Sunday badge to your post. Get it from allthingsfadra.com
Visit your fellow bloggers and show some love.

Eleven Madison Park Lunch Tasting Menu

2012-04-25T22:24:00.000-04:00

I went back again to Eleven Madison Park. The meal I had there last year was so good that I asked my husband to celebrate my birthday there. We had the four-course lunch menu then - this time we opted for the Lunch Tasting Menu.

Lunching at Eleven Madison Park is pure bliss because the amazing food and service paired with the amazing ambience makes you feel you are on a short vacation. They pulled all the stops and made my birthday a wonderful, wonderful experience.

There has been news of EMP changing its menu & pricing sometime late 2012. Please note that the prices and the dishes in this meal are the ones that I paid for and had at the time of this post.

This was on our table when we got to it.

They even gave me a letter opener!

A sweet hand calligraphy birthday card! Woohoo!

Four course tasting menu

Our very excited party of three!

This box came first.

It is a savory one. Dont Be fooled.

Apple Tea

Quail Egg and Bacon

Cocktails!

A lady who lunches!

Dapper gentleman and his cocktail!

Yogurt Lollipops with Curry and Chickpea Panisse with Yogurt

Smoked Sturgeon Sabayon with Chive Oil

Clambake!

Lobster Fritter

Manila clams with Chorizo and Potato

Manila Clams with Apple

Lobster Madelines

New England Clam Chowder

Inside the kitchen

Special cocktail treat! Woot!

Liquid nitrogen

Pomegranate foam turning into domes in a liquid nitrogen bath

Mmm.

What it looks inside after all the smoke is gone

Bread with Cow's Milk Butter and Goat's Milk Butter

Presenting the beautiful ribeye

Cauliflower Tabbouleh Salad with Olives and Orange

Foie Gras Cured with Buckwheat, Buttermilk and Lemon

Whey tea poured over the dish

Whey, Fresh Curds, Caraway Gnocchi and Spring Herbs

Lobster Poached with Meyer Lemon, Burnt Leek and Shellfish Bisque

Beef Roasted with Wood Sorrel and Marble Potatoes
This is what became of that beautiful slab that was presented to us.

Cheuflada Cheese with Pickled Mustard Seeds and Pearl Onions

Tissue Coaster, Future Home of Egg Cream, Prepared Tableside

Egg Cream - Orange, Cocoa Nib and Seltzer

Goat Cheese Cheesecake with Cara Cara Orange and Vanilla

Chocolate Sorbet with Caramelized Cocoa Pastry,
Meyer Lemon and Olive Oil (with Birthday Candle!)

Inside.

Siphon Coffee Tableside Service
Water is boiled at the bottom of the machine.

When it reaches a certain temperature, the vacuum is sealed and
the water goes up to the top part.

Now all the water from the bottom has come up.

He stirs the water for it to get to a lower temperature which is optimum
for brewing coffee.

Upon reaching desired temperature, he puts in the ground coffee and steeps.

Lowering the temperature so the brewed coffee goes back down to be
served and filtered.

Coffee is almost served.

Real Black and White Cookies. (This time, they are sweet.)

2 sugars in my cup, melting away...

Petit Fours

A small surprise for the birthday girl...

I pull it out and there it was...

Mmm. Chocolate!

Our tasting menu for the day.

But mine had a special happy birthday message!

I am so happy to have spent my birthday here, and I am very thankful to everyone who made my birthday celebration (one of many) very special. Thank you, Maya, for getting this all set up in such short notice.

I look forward to coming back, again. It was a VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY, indeed!

Eleven Madison Park
11 Madison Avenue at 24th Street
New York NY

My Blog In Print

2012-03-24T10:42:00.013-04:00

Newsletter Spread Fornat

Please note that pages 2&3 are set as a spread and that Scribd adjusted its size to fit the width. See below for readability. Note that the "Papri Chaat Assembly" will lose its continuity. Ethnic Eats is not a real publication - all photos are taken by me and all articles are taken from this blog with revisions.

Newsletter Layout

Stream of Consciousness Sunday: Fate and Faith

2012-02-19T14:24:00.003-05:00

Faith, as in "I have faith that God will provide" is something that is definitely ingrained in my Roman Catholic upbringing - but this does not come into play into my beliefs until fate, as in destiny has taken its initial course.

See the photo above? That's fate. I met my husband in that same park bench before we got married. Scratch that, it's not even in a park. It's on a cobblestoned street in Tribeca in New York City. Click this and scroll to the bottom. That's my "Only in NYC" story. Truth is, if we didn't have faith in each other, this love story wouldn't have a happy ending.

In the course of my crazy life, I have come to the conclusion that fate is the gateway to opportunity - only if you see it as one and grab it once it is there. I even think that the bad things that come to me are fateful until the better stuff comes along - its like job application rejections. You get rejected for the "best jobs ever" until you get a gig that is actually SO MUCH better than the one you initially thought was "the one".

Fate and Faith, in my head is an intertwined complex. I can't believe in one without the other. I take the fate and have the faith to believe that everything will work out fine.

Steve Jobs said it best at his commencement address at Stanford University:
"You can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something - your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life."

**********

This was my 5 minute Stream of Consciousness Sunday post. It’s five minutes of your time and a brain dump. Want to try it? Here are the rules…

Set a timer and write for 5 minutes only.
Write an intro to the post if you want but don’t edit the post. No proofreading or spellchecking. This is writing in the raw.
Publish it somewhere. Anywhere. The back door to your blog if you want. But make it accessible.
Add the Stream of Consciousness Sunday badge to your post.
Visit your fellow bloggers and show some love.

Chicken and Rice Porridge: How to Make Arroz Caldo in Pictures

2012-02-05T10:38:00.088-05:00

Arroz caldo is actually a Chinese congee that was adapted to the tastes of the Spanish colonial settlers who patronised Chinese restaurants in the Philippines.

-Wikipedia

Funny enough, I had to check out Wikipedia how this dish comes about. In its plain basic form, Lugaw - it is just a rice porridge with no meat. There are other versions: tripe topping (Goto), Tofu and Pork Ears on the side (Tokwa't Baboy) topping or with a Hard Boiled Egg. This is all about the version with chicken in it - Arroz Caldo.

Ingredients:

2 pieces of shallots, Ginger (about 2 segments) and One Whole Garlic

5-6 pieces of Chicken Thighs

2 cups of Uncooked Long Grain White Rice
Salt and pepper to taste (not in photo.)

Procedure:

Chop ginger into strips - so you can easily take it out while eating.
Mince Garlic and Shallots

In a pan on medium high heat,
fry all your minced garlic until it is golden brown.

Drain and Set Aside

In the same pan, render out the chicken fat.
When you get a good amount of rendered fat and the chicken starts bleeding,
turn off stove and take chicken out of the pan.

Drain out all the chicken fat and throw it away. Trust me, there will be more.

Peel off the chicken skin with tongs.

Put the skinless thighs back in the pan to render out more fat.

As the thighs cook, lay out the skins on a tray with a pan at the bottom.

Toast the chicken skin to a crisp!

You know it's done when it turns into this lovely golden brown color.

Take your chicken out again, check how much rendered fat
is at the bottom of the pan. If there is too much, take some out.
There should be enough because you already took out a lot of it earlier.

Add shallots and ginger at the same time.

Keep Stirring until the shallots turn transparent.

Add your chicken and rice. Don't worry if it still a little bloody and raw. It will all cook off.

Add water and a bit of salt. Keep Stirring. Dont Let it Dry up.

Add Water, LOTS OF WATER. Rice absorbs water as it cooks.
Your goal is to make it absorb more water than it can take so it splits up.

This is what you are aiming for.

After the rice splits up, add all the fried garlic in the pot.
Season with a bit of Salt and Pepper to taste.

Put in a bowl and serve with the chicken skin, some soy sauce and lemon.

This is one of my favorite winter blues cures. The dish is relatively simple and familiar. Ingredients are relatively available in American supermarkets.

If you made this dish, send me a photo!

SOCSunday: My Funny Valentine

2012-01-29T00:49:00.006-05:00

Pin It
I was running errands at Target and I ran into the seasonal section - VALENTINES! All pink, red and a lot of heart shaped things, I couldn't resist. $5 for 5 heart shaped boxes of chocolates with messages? Why not? Maybe I could get away with a box of chocolate hearts for my Bunny Valentine (husband.)

Here are my finds - and possibly some suggestions for that special someone in your life!

I think this is a "nice way" of saying "im breaking up with you"
on valentine's day...

High Maintenance Valentine.

Affirmation or Denial? You pick.

For the "HIGH PERFORMANCE" Cassanova -
This reminds me of cheaters!!!

This one's for my hubby - because this looks like the spastic body
movements that i pass off as dancing to annoy him while he watches TV.

Is the world really this jaded? HAH! I salute the creative director who gave a go signal on this dramatic line of products. Clearly I was alternating between laughter and shaking my head in disbelief, and back to laughing again at Target.

Happy Valentine's Day! (in advance)
********

This was my 5 minute Stream of Consciousness Sunday post. It’s five minutes of your time and a brain dump. Want to try it? Here are the rules…

Set a timer and write for 5 minutes only.
Write an intro to the post if you want but don’t edit the post. No proofreading or spellchecking. This is writing in the raw.
Publish it somewhere. Anywhere. The back door to your blog if you want. But make it accessible.
Add the Stream of Consciousness Sunday badge to your post.
Visit your fellow bloggers and show some love.

SOC Sunday: Kids at the FIRST Lego League Brooklyn Qualifying Tournament

2012-01-22T12:40:00.005-05:00

I had the pleasure of taking event photos for the FIRST Lego League Tournament Brooklyn Qualifier 2012 last Saturday. This is an inter-school competition for the schools in the Borough of Brooklyn. The top 20 teams in this competition move on to the bigger competition where they compete with the top schools from the other boroughs of New York City.

The competition even baffles me because I cannot program a Lego Mindstorm NXT but these 4th graders can! To be surrounded by bright young minds is a humbling experience indeed.

Here are some of the photos from the event:

They program the robots to go though missions on this mat.
See this girl use two laptops to fine tune her robot.

Teamwork
They were asked to line up in alphabetical order of first names, blindfolded.
Observation judges watch each team in action and also interview them
to discuss how they functioned as a team. They identify teams that best
demonstrate enthusiasm, spirit, partnership, respect to their teammates
and others, and gracious professionalism.

Project Presentation
The teams complete a research project related to the topic of the year.
This is followed up by a presentation, and a timed question and answer
period. Teams can use props in their presentation like this muscle suit.

One team even made a website!

Technical Interview
Each team has a timed interview with a team of judges to discuss the
design and operation of their robot. Judges look for teams whose
work stands oud because of innovation and navigational consistency.

This is what they build and program. Lego Mindstorm NXT.

Robotics? Not just for boys.

Their banners say it all.

Pep talk to soothe frustrations. Kid in the middle was awesome.

Too short to reach over the table? Resourcefulness at its best.

It's not child's play. Really.

Stress levels run high for these kids.

YAY!

Woohoo!

YEAAAH!

I know it is disheartening to know that some of the teams did not make it to the citywide competition, however all of them walk out of the competition as winners.

Thumb's up!

More competition photos here:
FIRST Lego League Brooklyn Qualifier 2012
FIRST Lego League Brooklyn Qualifier 2012 - Participant Portraits
FIRST Lego League Brooklyn Qualifier 2012 - Volunteer Portraits

********

This was my 5 minute Stream of Consciousness Sunday post. It’s five minutes of your time and a brain dump. Want to try it? Here are the rules…

Set a timer and write for 5 minutes only.
Write an intro to the post if you want but don’t edit the post. No proofreading or spellchecking. This is writing in the raw.
Publish it somewhere. Anywhere. The back door to your blog if you want. But make it accessible.
Add the Stream of Consciousness Sunday badge to your post.
Visit your fellow bloggers and show some love.

Cheap Makeup Organizers

2012-01-06T10:38:00.003-05:00

After moving to this present apartment, I was happy to have three huge medicine cabinets with "moviestar" lighting. I know it is a dream come true to most women but the storage is less than 4" deep. I scoured through stores and I couldnt find anything that would fit, or was cheap. So for a while, I my stuff was always in danger of falling into the toilet bowl by sheer force of gravity.

Using my bathroom mirrors make me feel like a moviestar!

This is what some of my makeup looks like inside the medicine cabinets:

The solution came to me when I was cleaning up. My husband loves Crystal Light, and as I was arranging the recyclables, the thought hit me!

So here are the steps:

Buy Crystal Light.

Peel off the entire label

Tada! You have your translucent container!

Here it is back in my medicine cabinet.

The reason why I have two different heights of containers still baffle me, because the three other containers on the left are also from Crystal Light. I guess they changed their packaging to a taller one. I love the fact that my organizers come "free with purchase" and that even if i put something short in it, like a lipstick, I find it right away.

These containers are practically weightless and they are very thin - they dont take much space and they go straight up and no wasted space at the bottom.

Lunch at Eleven Madison Park

2012-01-04T21:37:00.002-05:00

Lunching at Eleven Madison Park is a true joy. Here's is the progression of our meal, which we had on August 23, 2011.

There has been news of EMP changing its menu & pricing sometime late 2012. Please note that the prices and the dishes in this meal are the ones that I paid for and had at the time of this post.

While waiting, we munched on these "cheese profiteroles"

(in quotes, because I forgot what they are called)

This is what the menu looks like.

All they ask is you pick one ingredient per column.

Dave and I strategically picked the two best things per column-

to get a taste of everything we wanted!

Parmesan Lavosh

Tomato Tea w/ Thyme and Lemon Verbena

Goat Cheese Lollipop with Beet Powder,

Goat Cheese Croquettes and Goat Cheese Dipping Sauce

Cross Section of the Goat Cheese Lollipop

Smoked Sturgeon Sabayon with Chives and Smoked Sturgeon (its all inside.)

After this Course, we were whisked into the kitchen, for this special treat. This right here is one of the perks of dining with my husband. He made friends with one of the FOH staff of Eleven Madison Park. She had the day off that day, but she arranged this for us.

We stood right in front of him as he made us a wonderful concoction.

This is what the inside of the kitchen looks like.

I love that they have that sign at the back wall. MAKE IT NICE!

Oooh, just like a science experiment

Here's the finished greatness of a cocktail.

With Liquid Nitrogen, we can freeze alcohol.

(No, it is not a giant macaron-it looks like half of one.)

or at least the parts that get in direct contact with it. OH SO AMAZING!

Bottom's up!

We went back to our seats and the meal continued on with...

This is the amazing bread that just crumbled to heavenliness.

I still regret not finishing it.

Cow's Milk Butter, Fleur de Sel and Goat's Milk Butter to go with the Fresh Bread

Rabbit Rillete with Pistachio Toast and Candied Pistachio

Octopus braised with Chorizo, Purple Potato

Loup de Mer (Branzino)

Lobster Lasagna

The Beef Course

The Pork Course

As a palate cleanser to end our lunch and get on with the dessert, we had these nice paper coasters on a saucer as a signal for us to await for something special.

True enough a mixologist pushed a bar on wheels and started making us a vanilla malted egg cream, tableside.

Tada! Vanilla Malted Egg Cream

With our palates primed for dessert, we eagerly awaited for the wonderful decadence to end our meal.

The Apricot Dessert

The Chocolate Course, Mmmm.

To finally end our meal, we had Sesame Brittle, Macarons and Pate de Fruits

Spending $80 per person (+tax and tip, Aug 20Eleven price) for a lunch sounds like a bit much, but for a meal that looks like this, I honestly think that it is a steal. I would really love to go back.

Thank you, Eleven Madison Park. It was one of the best meals I have had in my life!

Eleven Madison Park

Eleven Madison Ave

New York NY

212 889 0905

*****

Disclaimer:

The extra cocktail we had in the kitchen we had is an extended courtesy of Eleven Madison Park. This is extended to us because Dave is friends with one of the staff. THAT COURSE IS NOT PART OF THE REGULAR LUNCH TASTING MENU.