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Tucson, Spring 2020 ~ Travel
With limited time, we only explored the Saguaro National Park – West. The sheer amount of these tall cacti blows your mind, once you start driving through the protected land of the national park, where they grow every few feet for as far as the eyes can see. There are multiple points of interest and hikes, including some ancient rock carvings, and some awesome viewpoints overlooking the valleys surrounding the park. All the travel guides recommend this park over its eastern counterpart because of the density of the cacti. We visited the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, but were not as impressed. This is a small zoo and landscape/flora display mostly appropriate…
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Tucson, Spring 2020 ~ Create
In all honesty, I have had this kit sitting half-finished for a few years, since our big multi-canyon RVing trip to the Southwest. It was purchased as a souvenir craft for my oldest, but judging from how beat up my fingers were when stitching it together, I don’t blame her for quickly abandoning it… These baskets are made using two types of natural materials, one – a thicker reed to create the structure, and second – a more pliable material that is used to stitch the cording together with overlapping stitches. These are often decorated with contrasting fibers to create traditional patterns that symbolize natural spirits and elements. The grassy…
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New York City, Holidays 2019 ~ Read
There are thousands of worthy books about New York City, I am sure. I have been lucky to read some of the best ones, I think. The three books below truly incorporate NYC’s architecture within their storylines, and with all of them set in the first half of the 20th century, they give the reader an indelible flavor of the city’s unmistakable skyline’s emergent years. The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand is set in the early 20th century and tells a story of a young architect ready to revolutionize New York with an unapologetically radical take on shape, form and purpose. Visiting the Rockefeller Center had particularly made me think of…
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New York City, Holidays 2019 ~ Travel
Holidays in NYC are on the bucket list for many people, and there are certainly BIG reasons to experience it at least once. We squeezed in our trip right between Christmas and New Years Eve, and we certainly made the most of it. We stayed in Harlem, in a very spacious (by NY standards) studio apartment on 125th St, very close the subway, and a walking distance from the historic part of Harlem, the Apollo theater, and many churches. Our welcome dinner was at the famous Red Rooster restaurant, and we even managed a subway ride that night to the Times Square to see the famous walls of lit up…
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New York City, Holidays 2019 ~ Create
It’s been a dream to visit NYC during the holidays to see all the decorations, fancy department store window displays, see the Rockettes, a Broadway show, and whatever else symbolizes New York during the holidays. With our girls growing up, we simply couldn’t wait any longer and took a 3-day trip to NYC between Christmas and New Years in late 2019. I wanted this trip to be super special, since we have talked about it for so long, so I made it a centerpiece of our girls’ Christmas presents. We often divert our resources to travel in place of gifts, and they were absolutely delighted. To make it quite official…
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St. Petersburg, Fall 2019 ~ Read
This novel by Feodor Dostoevsky is often cited as one of the “supreme achievements in the world literature” for its intricate portrayal of the mental state of its protagonist before and after he commits a grisly and unnecessary murder. St. Petersburg emerges in this story as intricately connected to the main character’s troubles and anguish, depicting poverty, crowded squares and streets, noise and smells, against the backdrop of a hot summer day in a city carved from granite and washed by the Baltic Sea. This is not a love letter to Saint Petersburg, but you will still want to visit the narrow streets and busy corners near Sennaya Square, look…
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St. Petersburg, Fall 2019 ~ Travel
Oh my! How can I devote just one page to this beautiful city, where I was born, and where I return to religiously as much as I possibly can, after over two decades of living abroad? I went on this trip in September of 2019 all by myself, and it was quite indulgent. I saw many of my high school friends, visited my favorite places in the city, explored new areas, enjoyed/persevered through miles and miles of walking and traveling by public transit, and never felt more alive and satisfied. St. Petersburg is a maritime city, affected by the sea and the Neva River throughout its history, weather, culture, traditions…
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St. Petersburg, Fall 2019 ~ Create
Picking the “Olivier” salad to represent Russia is a no-brainer, as it is Russia’s most favorite way to eat our ubiquitous potato, but I was actually enticed to do so after spotting an ode to the Olivier in none other than The New York Times this past winter. And this dish deserves such a treatment, because its flavors and colors reminds nearly every Russian expat of family holidays, reliable restaurant side dishes, and long arguments over fresh cucumbers vs. pickles. Here are the secrets NYT deems critical to the perfect preparation: “It was so refined and fresh in the mouth. The peas popped. The egg was tender, not rubbery. For…
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Istanbul, Fall 2019 ~ Read
The Architect’s Apprentice by Elif Shafak was recommended by my Fodor’s travel guide to Istanbul, so I figured I’d read it to see if it’s a good preview for the city that survived millennia, different faiths, earthquakes and fires. It is an entertaining read, detailing adventures of a young Indian boy, who ends up in Istanbul by accident, and grows into a figure of influence at the Sultan’s court. The reader gets some insight into the processes surrounding construction some of Turkey’s most celebrated mosques, while catching a glimpse into imagined lives of 14th century residents of Istanbul, as well as courtiers, merchants and various transplants from all over the…
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Istanbul, Fall 2019 ~ Travel
When looking for cheap tickets for myself to visit Russia in the Fall of 2019, I came across flights via Turkish Airlines with 20+ hour layovers in Istanbul each way. Yes, please! Accommodations via AirBnB in the historic part of the city were $50 per night, so overall the airfare was a steal compared to some other, quicker alternatives. Having done one of these long layovers in Frankfurt, Germany a few years back, I knew I would pack in as much as possible. Both of the layovers were early evening to mid-morning, so of course I had to sleep, especially contending with a 9-hour jet lag. But I managed to…
