Saturday, March 31, 2012

08 March 12

backlit
"can I take your picture?"
"do I have to stop playing Civilizations?"

07 March 12

Didn't take a photo on the sixth, so here are two from the seventh, which was cookoff day!
concentration

plating
As always, check out the blog to see all the entries and the winner.

Friday, March 30, 2012

05 March 12

double
Lots of self-portraits this month, not sure why.

04 March 12

dark

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

02 March 12

stump jump
I didn't go to work because I was too tired. Jeff went with Malloreigh to the Wine Festival in the afternoon, and they called me around 5, completely toasted, asking if I wanted to come meet them for dinner. We then went to Jade Dynasty in Chinatown and ate all kinds of foods that shouldn't be vegan but somehow are, and spilled things all over the tablecloth.

01 March 12

morning rainbow
There was a rainbow the morning we left! Unfortunately that was pretty much the high point of the day; air travel is only ever fun on the way there. Decent pizza at a bistro in JFK, but of the six beers they had on tap, the only one that wasn't lager was Guinness. Arrived in Seattle about 8:30, home by 11:30ish, but with the time change it felt like 3:30am and so by the time I got into bed an hour later I was thoroughly exhausted (though I managed to unpack with the second wind I got after falling asleep in the car).

Sunday, March 25, 2012

29 February 12

empty beach
Morning at the beach, afternoon shopping, evening drinks, and French dinner.

Saturday, March 24, 2012

28 February 12

swimmers
I promise, I will get caught up.

We went on a rainforest hike in El Yunque National Park; it was beautiful and amazing. Certainly like nothing I'd ever seen before. At the end of the trail was this waterfall, La Mina Falls. Lots of people were swimming out of the sheer novelty, but I mean, I grew up swimming in rivers and waterfalls so I wasn't about to put my body in that cold water and then hike back in a wet bathing suit.
After the hike we drove (we were with a tour) down to Fajardo and had some traditional Puerto Rican food and a beer on a beachfront patio before our bioluminescence kayaking tour, which was one of the most magical, awe-inspiring experiences I've ever had. Unfortunately I couldn't bring my camera because a) if the boat overturned then it could be ruined, and b) it was really too dark to take photos.

Sunday, March 18, 2012

27 February 12

calle Norzagaray
We went to the two historical forts in Old San Juan, San Cristóbal and del Morro. It was really interesting to learn all the history of the Spanish Armada and how they built the wall around the city and all the political stuff that went on over the years. A lot of the architecture has had to be restored, of course, but still, some of the original stuff is still there from the 1600s, which is pretty amazing to think about. We walked from one to the other, and the old buildings in between were just as interesting as the forts... to me, at least.
You can view some more pictures from this day here.

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

26 February 12

lemon-chamomile sorbet
We spent the morning at the beach, and in the afternoon went back to the sports bar to see if they could get the Canucks game (alas, it was not meant to be... though there was plenty of basketball). In the early part of the evening we happened upon a salon offering pedicures for $25 plus a free drink, which we obviously indulged in. Walked around for a bit, got caught in a torrential rainstorm, and then went to Marmalade for our dinner reservation.

I have to say it was one of the most beautiful restaurant experiences I have ever had. I noticed they had a lot of items on their vegetarian menu that were either vegan or could easily be made so, and I asked Malloreigh about reviewing it for Vegan Mischief. Our waiter was very accommodating and receptive when I mentioned this, telling me that most of the dishes and even got the chef to give me a full copy of the menu. The chef himself, Peter Schintler, had studied under Gordon Ramsay and he came over to talk to us about the food and my review. Apparently his wife is vegetarian so he doesn't find it at all difficult to cook without meat or dairy, and often does at home. He also has no problem adjusting his menu items to fit dietary restrictions or allergies, which many chefs seem to think is akin to ruining the dish. We left extremely full and moderately tipsy, and thankfully happened upon a cab within moments of stepping out the door.

Monday, March 12, 2012

25 February 12

running in the waves
Mom and I spent most of the afternoon on the beach, after spending almost the whole morning sleeping. We both got patchy, awkward sunburns from spots we missed with the sunscreen. In the evening we had dinner at Toro Salao, a tapas place in Old San Juan. Afterwards we walked up to this bar called Pizza e Birra (you guessed it, Pizza & Beer) and had a few drinks on their patio before taking the sketchiest cab ride ever back to the hotel. We went back to the bar almost every night (the host recognized us and kept giving us the same table) because the drinks were cheap and the patio was lovely, and it was a nice mixture of tourists and locals.

Sunday, March 11, 2012

24 February 12

business class
We upgraded to business class on our flight from New York to San Juan, and it was the greatest thing. Free booze, seats that turn into lounge chairs you can sleep in, a tv that has numerous movies & shows & video games, hot nuts, hot towels, delicious tortellini dinner. No wonder people pay outrageous amounts of money for it.
We got to our hotel in Isla Verde around 12:30am (Atlantic time) and had a drink on the rooftop bar before retiring. Traveling is always so exhausting that nothing could have been more wonderfully peaceful than clean, crisp hotel sheets and the sound of the surf.

23 February 12

classy hotel toiletries
Jimm drove my mom and me down to Seattle to stay overnight at Doubletree near the airport, since our flight to New York the next morning was at 7:30. It was difficult to resist taking these classy toiletries with me, even though I always take them and then just end up throwing them out months later on a cleaning rampage.

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

22 February 12

tortilla soup
Cookoff day! It was Mexican themed and I made tortilla soup.

Sunday, March 4, 2012

21 February 12

rooftop & mountaintop
I was mildly freaking out about all the stuff I had to do this day, but I managed.

20 February 12

elephant teapot
I had a mad craving for Thai curry, so Jeff and I went up to Thai Cafe in the Heights for dinner. I also ordered a jasmine tea and it came in this delightful elephant teapot! Then we picked up a roll of slide film at London Drugs and came home and had more jasmine tea while we looked through them.

Saturday, March 3, 2012

19 February 12

quinoa-vegetable stew
Grocery shopping, stew-making. This dinner is entirely vegan and gluten free, mostly by happy accident.

18 February 12

breakfast sandwich
Jeff made me breakfast: bacon, avocado, cheese, tomato, and pea shoot sandwich. I forget what I did after that. Maybe nothing.

17 February 12

early evening port

Friday, March 2, 2012

16 February 12

trainyard
After work Liang and I met up for drinks at the Alibi Room, and once we'd gotten a couple of beers in we walked up to Goldie's for a delicious mushroom pizza and another beer. Then we, uh, went to her place for awhile.

15 February 12

floral arrangement