There are two games being played in Cape Town while we're here and we're seeing both. Today was Cameroon vs. Netherlands.
We were little sleeper-inners today. I LOVE hotel breakfasts for some reason. Any other time, I only eat cereal because I think breakfast is the WORST meal of the day and my taste buds are super sensitive when I wake up and I don't want to be over stimulated - but not when we're on vacation! The Townhouse hotel has a lovely buffet breakfast with homemade jams, yogurts, fruits, breads and then you order something hot from the menu. Delish!
So after all the stuffing our faces, we made it out and about by 11:15. The waterfront is probably a 15 minute walk from our hotel, but there are tons of markets and kiosks and things to see on the way there. Down by the water there is a HUGE open barn/warehouse kind of thing with tons of vendors and their homemade crafts - at least most look homemade. There are the coolest carved giraffes that I keep seeing, but I see no way to get them home easily or inexpensively should I buy them. The GBP to ZAR ratio is pretty favorable so things aren't overly expensive in general so that's been really nice.
But after poking in all the stores and markets, we decided to sign up for a sailing tour of Cape Town where we got to see they city from the water!! Skipper Andrew was super nice and friendly. We were the only two signed up for that particular departure so it was our own private tour!! Again, stupid me can't upload pictures but they are absolutely amazing!
Table mountain from the water is incredible. Andrew pointed out two separate profiles of men in the rock forms and told us the legends behind them. Apparently sailing into Cape Town can be a little tricky because he pointed out a stretch from where we were to the coast (which wasn't far at all) where there had been 37 shipwrecks alone. You could even see the smokestack from an old steam ship sticking out of the water where it crashed and sank many years ago!!
After about an hour of going 5 knots and the large swells around the coast, my motion sickness kicked in and I had to sit down for the ride back. There is a pedestrian bridge separating the two areas of the "fan area" in the waterfront that has to be swung to the side to let boats through. Since today was a game day, there were TONS of people staring as we left and returned since we were keeping them from crossing. Very cool experience!!
Then it was game time!! There were an insane amount of Netherlands fans out. I've never seen so much neon orange in my life. Andrew and I decided to deck out in USA gear regardless of who was playing. We found super cool USA arm warmers that I will be wearing the rest of the time no matter the outcome of saturday's game because I just love them! Spontaneous USA chanting erupts any time USA fans see and/or pass each other. We are a proud nation.
The stadium here is gorgeous. We were in the second level about halfway up. I'm pretty sure there isn't a bad seat in the stadium. There were just over 63,000 people in attendance. Not the most exciting game in the tourney, but I must say I thoroughly enjoyed myself :) Our next game is Tuesday night where we'll see the winner of Group H play the second place Group G team so I have very high hopes that that will be a good time!
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Follow the American Flag
Andrew and I arrived in Cape Town today. I think I slept MAYBE 2 hours of the 11 hour flight. I just couldn't do it! So I was exhausted and grumpy upon arrival BUT thought it would be best to get out and about for as long as possible and sleep later.
We're staying in the Townhouse Hotel which is literally a block from the Fan Fest area for the World Cup, Cape town. I could kick myself, I brought a USB/Camera cord to upload pics as we go, and of course, it does NOT fit my camera!! I have pics from our walk down to the harbour/Wharf area and from lunch and the sights down near where the Stadium is... it is so unique here!! So I will blog as I go, but check Facebook once we're back to see all the images!!
I didn't know what to think at first. The airport has clearly been recently redone. I feel the the horribly uneven distribution of wealth is easy to see. Our taxi driver from the airport to the hotel (20 minute drive) was adorable and super knowledgeable about his city's history. About 5 minutes in, we passed several square miles of straight slums - I'm talking slum dog millionaire type slums where it looks like a freight shipping container with a questionable roof laid on top and these "homes" and right on top of each other for miles and miles - and the good humoured, great personalitied- taxi driver tells us that's where his home is for him and his family. He has the most wonderful disposition, I seriously can't stop thinking about him and what his life must be like... It seriously took everything I had not to cry. I made sure Andrew tipped him generously before we said goodbye... it's a shocking reality to see first hand.
But down by the Wharf was gorgeous and touristy. We had a lovely lunch at a bistro. Apparently one of the industries of South Africa is farming Ostrich, so i had a yummy steak for lunch. We made our way back towards the hotel and checked out the fan zone before making plans for the USA vs. Algeria game at 4 pm. Silly me only thought about the games I'd be attending in person so I didn't pack anything USA related. But I spliced together a white shirt, blue scarf and red ribbon in my hair and we were off to watch!
When we reached the Fan Zone for the second time, we saw all the Americans leaving! My brother Jesse was a real visionary in the World Cup '06 in Germany. He wore a large American flag as a cape in the middle of a city where finding ANYTHING American related was next to impossible and clearly there wasn't much love towards Americans in general... And he wore that flag cape with a charisma that only he can. Well, we saw about 50 people this time in Cape Town alone (the game was being played in jo'burg) wearing the flag-cape, but no one with the confidence and pride that he had... But anyway, we still went into the Fan Fest area and saw nothing but England fans. Andrew had on a very neutral Polo shirt that clearly supported England AND the US so we fit in with both crowds. The deal breaker was that the Fan Fest area only served beer and I was in the mood to get a little tipsy and rowdy so I suggested we walk a bit before committing to a location.
Earlier, we walked through a market/pedestrian area a block or two from the Fan area so we went and checked that out. There were a lot of little eateries that had a tiny TV facing their outdoor seating areas, but we didn't see any Americans!! Then, with kick off a mere 15 minutes away, I saw them. Four Americans with the USA flag capes going into a bar called the Purple Turtle. Once inside, we had found our sanctuary. It was nothing BUT Americans!! The whole place was JAMMED pack by the start and it was such an AMAZING experience!! Most people there were either college aged or recent grads, but it was STILL amazing to be with such enthusiastic supporters!! Being college aged separated Andrew and I out A) because the few girls that were there seriously made out with at least 3 boys each and B) showed a complete disregard for the establishment and social rules. It was also apparent as to why we get a bad rep in a lot of countries/places - people unscrewing lights, dancing on pool tables, and denting regular table legs... terrible. But I must saw, we are a BLAST to be around :)
And the GAMEEE!! I am hoarse from all the yelling i did!! We won 1 - 0 in the 4 minutes of injury time at the VERY end of the game and I can't wait to upload the videos and pictures I took of the celebrating!!! I must acknowledge that the first song played at half time during the break was Miley Cyrus's "Party in the USA" and people went absolutely NUTS for it!! And then when we FINALLY scored our goal, the celebratory song was "Sweet Home Alabama." I just find it really interesting how other countries perceive/placate us!!
So after a bite to eat post win, we are back in the room awaiting the Germany vs Ghana game to see who the US will play next! It's really exciting having the opportunity to back the US in something - to be so patriotic. I feel like opportunities to support the country as a whole are few and far between so it's a incredible feeling. And living in London, it was nice to be around Americans again - to feel at home.
We are here until Thursday evening, July 1st so there should be much more to come!!
We're staying in the Townhouse Hotel which is literally a block from the Fan Fest area for the World Cup, Cape town. I could kick myself, I brought a USB/Camera cord to upload pics as we go, and of course, it does NOT fit my camera!! I have pics from our walk down to the harbour/Wharf area and from lunch and the sights down near where the Stadium is... it is so unique here!! So I will blog as I go, but check Facebook once we're back to see all the images!!
I didn't know what to think at first. The airport has clearly been recently redone. I feel the the horribly uneven distribution of wealth is easy to see. Our taxi driver from the airport to the hotel (20 minute drive) was adorable and super knowledgeable about his city's history. About 5 minutes in, we passed several square miles of straight slums - I'm talking slum dog millionaire type slums where it looks like a freight shipping container with a questionable roof laid on top and these "homes" and right on top of each other for miles and miles - and the good humoured, great personalitied- taxi driver tells us that's where his home is for him and his family. He has the most wonderful disposition, I seriously can't stop thinking about him and what his life must be like... It seriously took everything I had not to cry. I made sure Andrew tipped him generously before we said goodbye... it's a shocking reality to see first hand.
But down by the Wharf was gorgeous and touristy. We had a lovely lunch at a bistro. Apparently one of the industries of South Africa is farming Ostrich, so i had a yummy steak for lunch. We made our way back towards the hotel and checked out the fan zone before making plans for the USA vs. Algeria game at 4 pm. Silly me only thought about the games I'd be attending in person so I didn't pack anything USA related. But I spliced together a white shirt, blue scarf and red ribbon in my hair and we were off to watch!
When we reached the Fan Zone for the second time, we saw all the Americans leaving! My brother Jesse was a real visionary in the World Cup '06 in Germany. He wore a large American flag as a cape in the middle of a city where finding ANYTHING American related was next to impossible and clearly there wasn't much love towards Americans in general... And he wore that flag cape with a charisma that only he can. Well, we saw about 50 people this time in Cape Town alone (the game was being played in jo'burg) wearing the flag-cape, but no one with the confidence and pride that he had... But anyway, we still went into the Fan Fest area and saw nothing but England fans. Andrew had on a very neutral Polo shirt that clearly supported England AND the US so we fit in with both crowds. The deal breaker was that the Fan Fest area only served beer and I was in the mood to get a little tipsy and rowdy so I suggested we walk a bit before committing to a location.
Earlier, we walked through a market/pedestrian area a block or two from the Fan area so we went and checked that out. There were a lot of little eateries that had a tiny TV facing their outdoor seating areas, but we didn't see any Americans!! Then, with kick off a mere 15 minutes away, I saw them. Four Americans with the USA flag capes going into a bar called the Purple Turtle. Once inside, we had found our sanctuary. It was nothing BUT Americans!! The whole place was JAMMED pack by the start and it was such an AMAZING experience!! Most people there were either college aged or recent grads, but it was STILL amazing to be with such enthusiastic supporters!! Being college aged separated Andrew and I out A) because the few girls that were there seriously made out with at least 3 boys each and B) showed a complete disregard for the establishment and social rules. It was also apparent as to why we get a bad rep in a lot of countries/places - people unscrewing lights, dancing on pool tables, and denting regular table legs... terrible. But I must saw, we are a BLAST to be around :)
And the GAMEEE!! I am hoarse from all the yelling i did!! We won 1 - 0 in the 4 minutes of injury time at the VERY end of the game and I can't wait to upload the videos and pictures I took of the celebrating!!! I must acknowledge that the first song played at half time during the break was Miley Cyrus's "Party in the USA" and people went absolutely NUTS for it!! And then when we FINALLY scored our goal, the celebratory song was "Sweet Home Alabama." I just find it really interesting how other countries perceive/placate us!!
So after a bite to eat post win, we are back in the room awaiting the Germany vs Ghana game to see who the US will play next! It's really exciting having the opportunity to back the US in something - to be so patriotic. I feel like opportunities to support the country as a whole are few and far between so it's a incredible feeling. And living in London, it was nice to be around Americans again - to feel at home.
We are here until Thursday evening, July 1st so there should be much more to come!!
Sunday, June 13, 2010
New Look, New Experiences!
First off, I've updated the look of my blog! Blogger has gotten a little more sophisticated so yay for my blog looking more London-y!! Having web experience, I should really just make my own Blog template, but they just make it so darn easy to look pretty!!
Anyway, Friday I went to Silver Jewelry making class!! There is this really cool area in London between the Chancery Lane tube stop and the Farrington stop called Hatton Garden. I would think it's the equivalent to the diamond district in NYC. There is one main street where there are nothing but jewelry stores for several blocks. It makes quite fun window shopping :) But a street over from Hatton Garden is Leather Lane where there is a cute little market every Monday thru Friday. Right smack in the middle of this market is the London Jewellry School (well, in one of the buildings lining the street where the market is).
They offer ALL kinds of classes! I took the beginner silver jewelry class and you can see my creations here! There is also an intermediate and advanced class, a Soldering Masterclass, stone setting in silver, metal clay (three levels) and a TON more. It's really nice because they only let 6 students in each class max and the day classes are from 10 AM to 5 PM so you REALLY learn a lot of skills :)
The smaller banded ring was the project we spent the most time on. It started as a straight. smooth piece of silver. We used a saw to cut the silver to be a size right for whatever finger we planned to wear it on and the we got to use the torches! Long story short, I got to solder and heat and bend and shape and smooth and polish and to make the textures on it, I hit it with a hammer!! I even learned how to stretch it to make it bigger if needed!
The swirly ring was also made from a straight piece of silver but it was thinner and I heated it more and then picked out these metal textures, ran it through a press and then shaped it. It was a great class and i really liked being around other girls!! I definitely want to take another class!!
The best part of the day (other than making jewelry) was lunch time when Andrew came to meet me! His office is only two tube stops from this area and so we went and explored the market. There was a mobile looking Chipotle that had a super long queue and so we assumed that meant it was good. It wasn't really Chipotle, but it was called Daddy Donkey. It was phenomenal!! So good, in fact, that Andrew and I were in that area today and were hoping it was open so we could have it for lunch! It wasn't... but we got crepes instead :)
Last night was also the England vs. USA game. A girl in the jewelry class told me I shouldn't speak too loudly on Saturday because I sounded very American and the radio stations where talking about how Americans were showing up in Leicester Square to watch the game wearing USA gear and how very brave they were. Kind of crazy.
But Andrew and I were invited to watch the game at the couple's flat that Ryan, Andrew's boss, had introduced us to awhile back!! Andrew made a fabulous coconut cake (probably the best I've ever had!!) and I decorated it for the occasion :) It was GREAT!! They are a really great couple and so easy to be around. It was definitely nice to feel like we had friends for the evening :) Hopefully the will turn into actual friends! We still have a week and a half or so before we head off to the world cup so perhaps we can have them over for a game before then.
As for the game, I'm VERY happy for the draw (and not to mention Bocanegra is even PRETTIER this world cup!!) but I felt so so bad for England's keeper, Green. Horrible way to let in a goal, but yay for the USA!! Poor Green was SLAUGHTERED in the papers here today...
Well, off to make dinner! I plan to actually start some kind of routine this week to keep me from being an ultra waste of life so maybe something exciting will come out of it!!
They offer ALL kinds of classes! I took the beginner silver jewelry class and you can see my creations here! There is also an intermediate and advanced class, a Soldering Masterclass, stone setting in silver, metal clay (three levels) and a TON more. It's really nice because they only let 6 students in each class max and the day classes are from 10 AM to 5 PM so you REALLY learn a lot of skills :)
The smaller banded ring was the project we spent the most time on. It started as a straight. smooth piece of silver. We used a saw to cut the silver to be a size right for whatever finger we planned to wear it on and the we got to use the torches! Long story short, I got to solder and heat and bend and shape and smooth and polish and to make the textures on it, I hit it with a hammer!! I even learned how to stretch it to make it bigger if needed!
The swirly ring was also made from a straight piece of silver but it was thinner and I heated it more and then picked out these metal textures, ran it through a press and then shaped it. It was a great class and i really liked being around other girls!! I definitely want to take another class!!
The best part of the day (other than making jewelry) was lunch time when Andrew came to meet me! His office is only two tube stops from this area and so we went and explored the market. There was a mobile looking Chipotle that had a super long queue and so we assumed that meant it was good. It wasn't really Chipotle, but it was called Daddy Donkey. It was phenomenal!! So good, in fact, that Andrew and I were in that area today and were hoping it was open so we could have it for lunch! It wasn't... but we got crepes instead :)
Last night was also the England vs. USA game. A girl in the jewelry class told me I shouldn't speak too loudly on Saturday because I sounded very American and the radio stations where talking about how Americans were showing up in Leicester Square to watch the game wearing USA gear and how very brave they were. Kind of crazy. But Andrew and I were invited to watch the game at the couple's flat that Ryan, Andrew's boss, had introduced us to awhile back!! Andrew made a fabulous coconut cake (probably the best I've ever had!!) and I decorated it for the occasion :) It was GREAT!! They are a really great couple and so easy to be around. It was definitely nice to feel like we had friends for the evening :) Hopefully the will turn into actual friends! We still have a week and a half or so before we head off to the world cup so perhaps we can have them over for a game before then.
As for the game, I'm VERY happy for the draw (and not to mention Bocanegra is even PRETTIER this world cup!!) but I felt so so bad for England's keeper, Green. Horrible way to let in a goal, but yay for the USA!! Poor Green was SLAUGHTERED in the papers here today...
Well, off to make dinner! I plan to actually start some kind of routine this week to keep me from being an ultra waste of life so maybe something exciting will come out of it!!
Monday, June 7, 2010
Food Focused Weekend of Wonderfulness :)
Friday Andrew and I decided to explore a new neighborhood - Notting Hill!! We'd been to Portabello Road with Andrew's parents awhile back, but it was nice to see it when it wasn't jam-packed with tourists!! I have been craving good Mexican food since we got to London but Friday we found it!
The place was called Taqueria. It was like a little Mexican Diner where Mexican meet tapas! It was glorious. We ordered plantains (tasted just like how my mom makes them!), refried beans (which were black beans with crumbled cheese!), and then I got tacos Tinga which was shredded chicken in this spicy salsa with avocado. It was served in three mini corn tortillas, I've never seen them so small! Andrew also ordered a chicken taco dish that was delish, but the BEST thing we got was a chicken tostada - fried corn tortilla with some of the best guac I've ever had, lettuce, cheese salsa and chicken. Amazing! I'd go back just for that. And for the pork and pineapple version of what I ordered that I saw the guy at the table next to us get as we were leaving. Looked incredible. I was all for going again Saturday or Sunday, but I forget that not everyone likes to eat the same thing over and over again... consecutively. Seriously, I can't stop thinking about it today and how I could re-create it myself...
Saturday was a gorgeous day. I love my hubby for many reasons, but mostly because he blindly enables me. I got it in my head that Saturday I wanted crepes for breakfast and all Andrew said was "sure!" So we made yummy crepes with egg whites, low fat cheddar, and Spinach. The final touch - Frank's wing sauce. It was glorious! In my Nando's sauce craze, I forgot my ultimate love of buffalo! And crepes are surprisingly easy to make! 
Andrew got us some lounge chairs, which are extremely hard to find - I'm assuming due to the lack of sun in the UK. So we packed up some books, towels and the chairs and spent some time in the sun in the garden. I don't know if I've mentioned it before, but there are two sides to the garden - kid side and adult side. We set up shop on the adult side and unfortunately could not be in the sun AND avoid the couple basically having sex through their clothes on a blanket in the middle of the grass or the group of fat old guys with no shirts. We sacrificed our eyes and the mental images that are now burned into our minds forever for direct sunlight. I've never seen the park so packed!!The weather looked a little iffy so we took a break and took care of some stuff in the house, then got some cheese and wine and grapes and went back out for pre-dinner drinks and apps!! As I decided USA favorites was my food theme for the weekend, I made BBQ pulled pork for dinner with pineapple and blue cheese. It was glorious!! A mango avocado onion and pepper salsa rounded out the meal. Andrew peer pressured me into partaking in some Champagne with him, so it was definitely an early night for me!! It was such a lovely day :)
Sunday was uneventful, BUT we did make yummy Thai for dinner. I had a bit of a down day... I did start making a website for my graphic design portfolio. I also signed up for a 7 hour jewelry making class on Friday as well. It's nice having things to look forward to!!
Tonight is BBQ Burgers and salad... Maybe I should add cooking classes to my "Things to Do" list :)
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