Sep 122010
Sep 122010
The final part of my summer brought me back full circle to New York City. Wanting a bit of a touristy experience in the City, I decided to get a hotel in the midtown area instead of troubling friends to stay with them. Also, I was still wanting to mentally refresh, so it was a good way to go.
Sadly, most of my friends from the City have moved away, but I was still able to visit with a few friends while I was there. Also, I finally made it up to The Cloisters – a part of the Metropolitan Museum. It was absolutely beautiful and it’s a shame I never made it up there before. The old building and the artwork was lovely to see. Mostly the grounds and view of the river made the visit more peaceful.
Most of my days were spent in Central Park hanging out. However, I did spend a couple of boring periods in the Teachers College library trying to do some research for my dissertation proposal. I had to take advantage of the opportunity, after all! Plus, it was a nice reminder of what it feels like to be in an academic environment and just how much I truly loved my TC experience. So, it served to motivate me again to get to studying. π
Also, as I always try to do when I’m in the City, I went to see a show. This time, I went to see “In the Heights”, which was absolutely wonderful. It made me laugh and cry. Though I would have liked to have seen a proper play, there was nothing I wanted to spend money on, and I’m really glad I got to see the musical instead. It’s going on tour and will be in Portland in October, so everyone should go see it (I think)!
So, my summer holidays are now at an end as are my updates on the traveling. Coming up will be some book reviews as I was a busy reading machine this summer – not the academic readings I should have been doing, but OH WELL! π
Pics next.
More to come,
-T
Sep 122010
Sep 122010
With just about a week left of summer holiday in the States, I wanted some time on my own to mentally prepare to return to work, study and life in Abu Dhabi. So, I went to visit a friend whom I had met in AD before he got transferred back to work in LA.
He was kind enough to let me stay at his place, conveniently located a block away from Venice Beach, for a few days. However, due to his busy work schedule, I didn’t get to see him much. This was actually perfect for me as I had time to finish up some research work, write a bit and just relax on my own.
We did go out one night to a bar nearby where they had a live jazz band and a dj who mixed along with the band offering an interesting fusion of music styles. I also got to enjoy another cart-food special of Korean/Mexican mix. This time I had a kimchi quesadilla. Yum!
Also, I went out my last night with a friend I met in Peru the second time I visited. We hadn’t met up since then, but had a nice dinner and he drove me up the coast to Malibu and a nice quiet lounge bar along the coast.
It was a really nice visit and fit the term – a vacation after vacation! (Thanks guys for the lovely time!)
Only a few pics of Venice Beach here…
More to come,
-T
Sep 122010
Sep 122010
My Oregon visit was divided by a visit by R and our cruise to Alaska.
It was the first time for R to visit the Pacific Northwest and he was greatly spoiled by the fantastic weather we had during his time there. We visited downtown Portland, went rafting down the Deschutes and ate at his favorite restaurant in Clackamas – Elmer’s. π
We drove up to Seattle and stayed with a college friend for one night. We also met up with another colleague from AD who showed us around downtown Seattle for a few hours before we headed off on our cruise.
Not knowing what to expect after our last cruise experience, we were pleasantly surprised right away at the much calmer atmosphere of the Sapphire Princess. Most of the people were older and fewer children were present. Also, there was less hype onboard, which allowed us to relax and enjoy the ship without chaos or chagrin. Although the weather wasn’t great after the first day, the sights were beautiful. Our stops were at Ketchikan, Juneau, Skagway and then Victoria, BC. It was better to stop more frequently throughout the cruise and we had a good time overall. It’d be nice to go again to the more northern areas and when the weather is better. Still, I’m glad I got to see Alaska and the glaciers before they melt away….
Pics on the way!
More to come,
-T
Sep 122010
Sep 122010
In recent years I’ve not spent much more than a week or 10 days at home. Last year, it was a mere 5 days before I headed elsewhere. This year with such a long break and my focus on being State-side, I was able to spend much more time at home. In total, I was there for about 4 weeks.
It was awesome to have so much time with my family and to see a few friends, though I kept quiet with seeing friends this time around. I was content to hang out a lot with my family. We saw “South Pacific” as a family and had a vacation at the Oregon Coast for a few days. I floated down the river with my dad and his BFF, met up with a few friends including seeing my friend perform with his new band and relaxed a ton! It was the first time in a number of years that I felt like it was home sweet home.
Pics coming…
More to come,
-T
Sep 122010
Sep 122010
From Chicago, I continued my US tour by visiting R’s home for a few days. It was lovely to meet his mom, who is very sweet and friendly. We had a good time eating, talking and using the pool. It’s a quiet little world in South Jersey, but it was much greener and spread out than I had expected. I guess it’s true that North Jersey gives Jersey it’s bad name, because it was really nice in the south part.
After a few days, we headed to Florida a few days before our Western Caribbean cruise. Since neither of us had been to the Florida Keys, we decided to rent a car and check it out. We stayed in Key Largo and then drove down to Key West. It was a really beautiful drive in our red Mustang. We also enjoyed some good eats there – we love our food! π
Thankfully, the pre-cruise trip put us in a good mood to carry us through the shocking experience of the cruise. It was our first cruise and though we had looked into it a great deal, we were not prepared for what we faced. Carnival was said to be more of a party-boat company, but it should be described as a floating-Disneyland! Too much happiness, too much over the top, too much EVERYTHING! Also, unfortunately, after our first stop in Cozumel, I got terribly sick and say the Grand Caymans from the room and barely took in what little there was to see of Ocho Rios, Jamaica. We questioned whether there would be any further cruising after this summer, but kept up hopes for the upcoming Alaska cruise to be better….
All-in-all, the end of the mostly East Coast visit of the States was pleasant and I began looking forward to some time at home.
Pics are up next!
More to come…
-T
