February 13, 2012

Bigger and better things

It’s been a long while since I last posted.  I am back at Wesleyan, returning to the grind and leisure that is a student’s life.  It’s been a great transition, and I am so so happy to be back, though I often think about how much I miss life over there.  I have not gotten over my hopes to live there post-school, we’ll just have to see what happens.

Because its been so long, I can’t really expect that anyone is reading this, but if you are, I really appreciate you reading up and following me as I took this incredible journey.  I have so much appreciated any comments I have gotten on the blog, and it made me feel great to hear about so many people caring/enjoying enough to keep on reading.  It was really really fun for me to write, too.  However, though my life here at Wes is quite fun, I don’t really think there are enough new and interesting things happening to me to sustain a blog.  For that reason, I am pressing pause on the personal blog, and joining a different, more specialized category of the tumblr world.  Due to my travels, I have picked up a really strong love of clocks, and for this reason, I have moved by blogosphere over to a newly created, Clocks Are Cool, which you can find at http://reallycoolclocks.tumblr.com/.  Just started it tonight so if you are really really on top of things and are already checking it out, give me a chance to get running.  

Much love to the abyss.

December 12, 2011 • 2 notes

Wow oh wow, Italia, Italia, Italia.  This post is going to be long as hell (so no worries if you don’t make it through), and still will not come close to relaying how incredible of a time me and Kyle had, and just how great of a place Italy is.  Before going into my new favorite medium of internet communication, bullet points, I will start by stating the obvious that followed me all around, so I will not talk about specifics in every location:  

Italian food is incredible, beyond belief.  I’ve never eaten a full pizza to myself before this trip, now I’ve eaten like 7.  Their pasta is pretty tasty too.  Also, the mozzarella.  and the coffee.  Did I mention the pizza?  

(Also a quick explanation - due to being blessed with an Italian friend in the states, we were able to have guides everywhere we went.  Max and Borto are 2 people who came and visited our friend Daniele in SF this summer, so we got a chance to see them on their home turf, with them as the new locals.)

Ok, now for the trip broken down.

Milano

  • Got in late Sunday night, met up with Kyle and Massimiliano, who studies in Milan.
  • Stayed at Max’s really perfect apartment
  • Woke up the next day, and Kyle became a chef, cooking pasta for the first time.
  • ‘It’s not that I can’t cook, I just have never done it before.’
  • Due to a slight key miscommunication, I jumped out of Max’s window, to some slightly disapproving looks from the neighbors
  • Kyle had to write a paper and Max had class, so I set about exploring the city by my lonesome.
  • With a map and absolutely no knowledge of the language, I trekked around.
  • Saw some incredible buildings and ran into some incredible domed walkways
  • The castle is friggin incredible
  • Hearing Italian everywhere was so cool, and I must have looked like such a tourist with my map out and jaw dropped pretty much the entire day.
  • Somehow managed to figure out how to get back to the apartment, with help from various sources who did not speak a word of english or spanish, yup
  • Also, you never pay for public transportation in Italy which is incredible, and may be a contributing source to the current crash of the euro
  • That night Max and his roommate took us to a super sheik (a good word for all of Milan) restaurant with drinks and all you can eat finger food
  • It closed early because it was Monday, and apparently in Italy every city has a ‘day off’ -  Milan’s is Monday.
  • We then went to a wine bar which Max told us was ‘a very Italian thing to do.’  Drank incredible wine, and had lessons on tasting wine, pouring wine, and the history of Italian democracy
  • Went home to continue the night and play American drinking games with Italian drinkers.  Great combo.
  • Intense fifa before bed, Kyle:1, David:2

Woke up early the next day and got on a train to Venice.  Met some super cool Italians on the train, who spoke English, one of which saved me from paying a fatty fine by waking me up in a panic and telling me to get my feet off the seat.  Whew.  All in all, a really enjoyable and beautiful train ride, though long.

Venezia

  • Luckily one of the people we met on the train was a student right in Venice so she lead us where we needed to go
  • Got to Max’s (who was still in Milan) house, and his mom let us in to probably one of the 5 houses in Milan with a garden and front yard.
  • It was great, and his mom was soooooo nice, not just for letting us stay there but also just for being such a mom to us
  • Due to Kyle’s essay, I went into solo explore mode with my map once again.
  • Though I liked Milan, it doesn’t even come close to Venice.
  • Just walking over the bridges and through the incredibly old architecture is an unprecedented experience in my life.
  • Literally every single building is different, and behind every corner, a surprise.
  • The canals are unlike anything I have ever seen, a society on water, ‘even the mailman drives a boat’ - Kyle
  • When Max and Borto got there, Venice really started to get awesome, so it warrants its own section

The (Foreigner’s) Local’s Venice

  • When Max got to the house he started out by giving us some of his mom’s delicious cooking.  I know I said I wouldn’t go into it, but giant balls of Napolese Mozzarella and sausages was a great little start.
  • Then Max and Borto showed us the local’s way around the city
  • We started the night by going to a bar we would never ever have found and drank spritz (the drink famous in Venice) on a pier out to the grand canal overlooking Ponte di Rialto - absolutely beautiful
  • We then went on a type of bar crawl (or paddle, since its a city on water - thanks Ray) through the city, stopping at their favorite bars and cafeterias, with them showing us all different types of experiencing drinking and eating in Milan
  • At one bar, they taught and made me order, and the people in the bar started yelling at me in Italian, Max and Borto later informed me that they were telling me I looked like youth Brazillian futbol sensation Philippe Coutinho. Chyeah boy.
  • Then met up with others of their friends and after 5 minutes of drunk basketball we continued the adventures
  • We may have added a little bit of depth to the canals of Venice, ifyaknowwhatimsayin
  • Next day was more of the same, though with more sight seeing
  • Took one of their busses, which is basically like the best sight seeing tour in any city ever, because it takes you all around the gran canal of Venice, and is so beautiful
  • Also went to the different must see spots like fish market and giant awesome clock, I abandoned my ‘if it’s from the sea its not for me’ mantra and feasted on some delicious fried fish
  • Learned about the ‘crude’ Venician dialect, and Max and Borto pointed out the waiters trying, and failing, to be polite to the other tourists, but then turning around and shaking from annoyance, it was hilarious
  • Cool cafe’s too.
  • Finally at the end of the day we said our goodbye’s with a promise to the city on the water that we would be back
  • Goddamn it was friggin incredible, there are no words to describe how great of a time we had.

I feel a little bad because now I am worn out from writing, and you all from reading, so I will not do the next part of the trip justice, but I’ll try to be swift

Bologna/Firenze

  • We met up with are Vassar/Wesleyan (+Wellesley) counterparts in Bologna for some great fun
  • Bologna too has incredible eats, and beautiful sites
  • But this part of the trip was definitely dominated by the chilling factor, with us getting to hang out/meet some people from home
  • Basically for us, Bologna = Brologna
  • The first night we went to an awesome club with some DJ’s even Ethan Young would approve of
  • En route, using my knowledge of only one Italian tune - an old, communist rally song - we successfully turned the bus into a communal sing-fest.  I must say, it was pretty awesome. (Once again thanks to Daniele, for giving me the connectors to these drunken Italians)
  • Club was great, we got onstage, and next to the dj, and stole their redbull.  I don’t really understand how that all happened
  • Next day was great, woke up early to go to Florence but due to Europeans loving their Thursday holidays, all of the trains were sold out so we had the whole day to explore Bologna
  • We got showed lots of beautiful spots, and of course, ate lots of great food
  • That night it was apartment chilling with a bunch of people from their program, which was so much fun, and was drinking games galore, this time with Americans.
  • Though I still have a lot of anger towards Wellesley and the similar, yet more famous name of their school, they still have some cool people
  • West coast went on a tear, winning the last 5 in a row against our east coast counterparts, as you can tell, we were proud.
  • The next day, we woke up early, and this time successfully made the trek to Florence, though sadly down one member of the team, as Kyle took his train back to Milan to catch a flight
  • Florence is absolutely beautiful, and is pretty much all its cracked out to be
  • We were greeted immediately by all kinds of signs and stores that said David, so I felt extra welcome, though I am sure that one or two may have been for some other David character
  • Basically it was easy to feel the history and beauty of the city, with every new street having a new wow moment
  • The duomo brought back memories of the Sagrada Familia with its absolute awe and amazement, though the 2 are completely different
  • Alexia met us later in the day and we took the time left to go to an international food market and then into the depths of the academia
  • Dylan told me that the other David was amazing, but I had no idea
  • I stood in awe for so long, and despite the onslaught of douchey American tourists, the trip in there was absolutely incredible
  • That night, back in Bologna, was one to remember
  • We headed to a favorite restaurant of the local students, which is set up so that you are sitting at a table with others who you don’t know
  • Some extra-friendly slightly older Italians ended up sitting next to us, and after offering us some of their wine, we were best friends
  • 4 hours later we were rowdier and closer, and headed to a super cool mustache bar
  • The next part of the story may scare anyone (like my parents) who may worry about 20 year olds being responsible while traveling in Europe so they won’t go on the blogski, direct contact/questioningobviously welcomed
  • Then I was in Milan! heading home to Madrid!

Well, there’s my trip to Italy for ya.  Anyone whos still with me, god bless ya, and you must be having a rough finals week if you feel the need to procrastinate this long just to get away from studying.  

Shors/Cagan/Feinstein do Europe in less than a week!  Too excited!

December 2, 2011

As December begins

First I want to post a nice little response to a friendly Novembeard status that I am very proud of:

Remember, remember the grizz of november,
With mustaches, bristle, and knots.
I see no good reason, why in this cold winter season,
The grizz should be forgot.

In other, more Spainly news, I finished my last CEH final yesterday, which means I am virtually done with the school aspect of this semester.  Now I only have one direct enroll class left and that class is not very time-consuming so my next two weeks can be spent just enjoying life here (oh, and in Italy, which is where I will be all of next week).  

Though I am really, really happy to be done with the workload, the end of this semester came way too fast.  It’s strange to have something like this just finish, when it doesn’t even feel like we’ve been here that long.  Instead of the regular hasta luego that is so utilized here, a more proper phrase would be hasta nunca to all the students who are returning home now that their classes are done.  Well, at least I still have a bunch more time here though…

Now for recent happenings of note, for which I will use bullet points:

  • Thanksgiving was rough, being away from my entire family, but the people in the program/Michael (our director) made it as good as possible by all sharing a thanksgiving feast on el dia de la acción de gracias.  
  • Zoologico, or as I like to call it, The Zoo, has become a Saturday night favorite for us VWMers, and thanks to Michael and our awesome get in everywhere cards, its even free.
  • Sam, Kyle and I went to our first Spanish apartment fiesta a couple of weeks back and it was so awesome, though their drinking game skills are sub-par
  • I finally got burnt out on kebab.  We had a good run though.
  • Became a squash and tennis fiend, and looking forward to continuing racket traditions with Dylan when we get back to Wes.
  • Am probably taking intro dance next semester - with inspiration from Kara and Ericia telling me I have skills.  Pretty much made my semester.
  • Due to awesome Tuesday and Thursday holidays in Spain, me and Kyle are heading to Italia for all of next week.  Current plan is Milan->Venice->Bologna->Florence.  So excited, and though we won’t be seeing our good friend the San Fransican Venician, we will probably be seeing his friends and they will be touring us around the great boot.
  • Starting to get real excited about being home, despite my apprehension about leaving
  • Still living the Madrileño life and getting more and more comfy in it.  Love it here, and now that I have a family here, I feel like I can always come back.
  • Gahh, less than a month left in Madrid. ¡Que triste!
November 22, 2011 • 2 notes

It used to be…

that when I messed up on spanish, my family corrected me.  Now they just laugh at me.  At least I’m glad that we’ve gotten this close.

November 21, 2011 • 1,149 notes • College Humor

(via collegehumor)

November 14, 2011

O Valencia!

This weekend we made the 4 and a half hour bus trek east to the coastal city of Valencia.  In an email leading up to the trip, our director described it as a magical city.  Wow, was he right.  Even as we bussed into the city I could tell how in love with it I was.

 

The first day we mostly just explored some of the city and ate delicious food, both Paella (native to Valencia) and Italian cuisine (there seemed to be a lot of our friendly neighbors in this city, probably since its so close).  

Though the first day was really nice and we had a good night, the second day was really what took the cake in terms of blowing us all out of the water.  We woke up to a surprisingly comprehensive and delicious buffet breakfast which included a coffee machine complete with nesquik.  Two parts café, one part hot chocolate and I was set for the day (I also got many compliments and wows at my bebida de genio).  We then made our way to the Ciudad de artes y ciencias, a museum for which Valencia is famous .  This complex can only be described as friggin incredible (The Wesleyan history of architecture class even covered it).  Although I took no pictures to do it justice, I seriously recommend you find some of its awesomeness by searching it online.  You know that bridge-like white thing you see when you think of Sydney, Australia?  Well this is like that but cooler.  And giant.  And the inside is really cool too.  At first we took a tour of the fun sciences part, with tons of exhibits and interactive science (80% of which we could touch!) and was basically like an SF academy of sciences (which I love) x 10 and with way more stuff you can experiment.  There was even a mind control game, of which after an extremely long battle of wits, I eventually lost to my intellectual superior, Nicole.  The one issue I had was I came across with a timeline in which it pretty drastically mischaracterized the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fiasco as over a hundred women who locked themselves inside a factory to protest bad working conditions that then caught on fire. 

Then we made our way over to the Oceanografic, which is complete with various sea animals and an aquarium.  I love aquariums.  And this one had this crazy sea-resident:

I felt like a little kid, with surprises and wow-moments around every corner.  I was super into the dolphins and wasn’t even upset when Ericia and I got sprayed by their airborne blowhole juices.  After listening to some Michael Jackson’s ‘Will You Be There’ to assuage our guilt at enjoying these encaged swimming creatures we ate lunch and headed to our next part of the day.  Although we were all sad to leave this incredible museum (of which I now dream of coming back and working for) we made our way over to the rice country of Valencia for an incredible next step.  We took an incredible sunset boat ride around the wetlands with a tour that included birds and fishermen and just absolute beauty.   

He then taught us a super interesting lesson about the different types of rice and why Valencia, Spain was the best place to grow rice in Europe.  I later found out that I was not the only one contemplating the life of a Spanish rice-grower and how incredible it could be.  

When we got back to the hotel, room 320 (Sam and me) had a nice little film festival complete with the end of Kids are Alright and more importantly, my first viewing of Silence of the Lambs, a movie I cannot believe I have missed for all this time.  We then had a nice Latin American dinner, in which I ate an interesting curry burrito with literally the spiciest sauce I have ever eaten.  Then back to the hotel for some nice chilling and conversating and classy drinking with 320 + Kyle and with a short taste of the Big Lebowski our incredible day had come to a close.  

Sunday was nice and included a trip to a crazy modern art museum and then off to the beautiful port/beach of Valencia.  During the busride home I finally finished the 4th HP book, crazy, and now we’re home.  Such a fun weekend, and I think Valencia may be challenging Madrid for mi ciudad favorita in Spain, though I am only excited for this last month and a bit left here in Madrid.  

Also, just as it has become tradition, I need to once again talk about how happy I am made by the winning ways of my niners.  Beating the Giants in another heart racer only added the cherry on the top of this incredible weekend.

November 9, 2011

Republican Debate

is still just as scary when being watched across the pond, in fact maybe moreso.  

Rick Perry would like to eliminate three federal agencies: “Education, commerce and uhhh…The EPA? No…Hmm…I can’t recall”

—Not even the worst part of a terrible, sad night for the American people, though not without its fair share of cheers and claps from the crowd who are embarrassingly normal and powerful in lots of parts of our great USA.  

(God I wish I could stay in Madrid.) Not that I’m not excited to see people. (But the tea party is a complete joke here, like they really cannot believe it is real, I wish that was true for me too.)

November 8, 2011 • 525 notes • nwf.org

5 Delicious Foods Threatened By Climate Change

  1. Chocolate: A report out last month from the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) found that just a 2 degree Celsius increase in temperature could significantly reduce land suitable for growing cocoa in the regions of Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire where about half of the world’s cocoa is produced. The impacts could be devastating for local farmers and the $9 billion chocolate industry. Peter Gleick wrote an elegant appeal to climate skeptics on behalf of chocolate lovers. Definitely worth a read.
  2. Peanut butter: The drought and heat that the South experienced this summer have contributed to a 13 percent decline in the peanut harvest. Price jumps of 20-30 percent are expected for peanut butter in the coming weeks! Thanks to my colleague Miles Grant for flagging the climate-change-extreme-weather-peanut-butter connection.
  3. Bread: During the last 18 months, we saw the consequences of bread shortages play out on the world stage. Christian Parenti shows how the record-setting heat, drought, and wildfires in Russia and the record-setting floods in Australia conspired to cause wheat shortages, that in turn led to the unrest in the Middle East.
  4. Wine: Grapes require specific climate conditions to ripen in ways best suitable for fine wine. As these microclimates shift, places that known for excellent grapes may no longer have the right conditions. This issue is of such importance to the wine industry that they hold entire conferences on it!
  5. Coffee: Like chocolate, coffee plants prefer a narrow range of climate conditions. Starbucks and the Union for Concerned Scientists have been raising the alarm bells that climate change is threatening coffee crops. Extremely heavy rainfall events and warming conditions have already affected coffee yields in several nations.

(Read more….)

(via mohandasgandhi)

November 2, 2011

Our trip Pt. 1 (Amsterdam)

Here’s an attempt at describing this awesome half of a trip, in a fun little rough copy of my journal entry on the subject.

  • First get through security at Madrid airport with the wrong ticket, a little more lax than the states.
  • After flight lands, our group gets kicked off of plane by pilot for taking too long to get our bags: ‘You do realize that people are waiting for you, right?’  
  • Meet beautiful Amsterdamer woman on bus into town, learn that confused American visitor also works in English.
  • First sighting of I AMSTERDAM sign.  ¡Qué guay! 
  • Head to Van Gogh hostel, which conveniently lies right behind Van Gogh museum
  • Find out that October is the 10th month of the year, not the 11th, and that we are 1 month early for our stay - they have exactly 5 beds left for that night, 0 for the next - ‘Let’s sleep tonight, hope tomorrow.’
  • Go to the friendly neighborhood coffee shop to clear minds and gain better judgment 
  • Oh, and the unit consisted of me, “Reeshy-baby”, “Kylie”, “Tay-tay”, and “Kara”
  • Too solid of a group, though with less of an interest in the greener side of life than I would have previously dreamed my Amsterdam excursion to include, ended up working out perfectly.
  • Trip really turned into one that was not heavily dominated in any one way, which ended up giving us opportunities to see all sorts of things
  • Mexican food restaurant came next, we needed to feel at home, we had to speak spanish.
  • Me and Kara made the half-block trek to the Van Gogh museum.  So cool, even got to see Bedroom in Arles! (a painting with a permanent residence on my childhood wall).  Hope you’re proud mama/g-ma.
  • Went to the Red Light District
  • Pasteles de espacio are so awesome
  • Women in windows for money? Quite strange.  Not sure if I enjoyed it, but the crew made it fun.  Especially slightly tipsy Tay.
  • Also had the forethought of trying the flying pig, our original desired hostel, for the next night, they had the last beds in Amsterdam. 
  • That place is so cool, if you’re headed to Amsterdam, definitely stay there.
  • Art everywhere and signs giving you #s of steps left in your climb.  Oh, and a bunch of cats, or one that was everywhere.
  • Woke up the next morning to the promise of a new hostel
  • En route to hostel, stopped by another FNCS to start off our day right
  • Met up with some weskids studying in Amsterdam, Paris, and with us in Madrid
  • Got to hang out on the water, it had turned into a beautiful day
  • Also we had rented bikes, which was so much fun
  • Learning the ins and outs of riding a bike in a biker-dominated city, is so much fun
  • They carry babies on bikes, and they merge.
  • When stupid tourists get into your way just ring your bell and they’ll jump away
  • Also came close to getting hit by multiple trams
  • Got bikes back after closing, “guess we’re keeping them for the night!”
  • BIKE PARTY AMSTERDAM - though not organized, or musical, but definitely drunk.  
  • Ericia is the coolest!
  • The others ain’t too shabby either
  • Amsterdam is expensive
  • But so, so worth it

Books are never written about the time when everything went flawlessly.  Open yourself up to errors and you will find yourself facing adventure.

November 2, 2011 • 345 notes • inothernews

How the Right counters Occupy Wall Street:

Amsterdam and London coming soon.  First, this.

inothernews:

OWS: We’re mad as heck, and we’re not going to take this anymore!

RIGHT: What are you so mad about?

OWS: Banks getting bailed out while we get nickel-and-dimed through fees and are crushed under credit card debt… big business and the wealthy getting tax break after tax break under the “job…