27/01/2010
What if someone told you “Give me 5 bucks and you’ll eat more cupcakes than you can possibly manage!”? Would you not be all over that opportunity?
A good friend who knows how important cupcakes are to me, dropped me an email to inform me of a monthly event taking place this week, called “The Iron Cupcake Challenge”. The title itself was enough for me to open my eyes wide open.
Apparently, what the deal is, is that there is a cozy little tea shop, called Leland Tea, that organises a monthly cupcake face off. One can register as a baker and provide a batch of mini cupcakes to compete against others’ cupcakes. If you’re not a baker though, that's fine. You can be the consumer! You only need to pay 5 dollars and this way you register yourself as a “taster”. What does that mean? That means that you will sink your teeth in as many cupcakes as there are contestants.
This month’s specified ingredient was champagne. 17 bakers put their time and effort into creating a good batch of their cupcakes, for the tasters to eat and mark accordingly.
Do you see the number of cupcakes that are brought before me?!?!?!??!?!
That’s right. Each of us had 17 cupcakes during the half hour or so that we were supposed to consume them and mark them on the marking sheet. Some people could not handle 17, but I gave it my best shot.
I did well and I am very excited to have scoffed 17 cupcakes for the price of two (and a cup of tea on the side), but needless to say, my stomach was complaining for not taking care of it.
“Hush now, little thing. It was for a good cause. Look at the taste buds, look how happy they are!”
M.
26/01/2010
Before starting to read this post, hit play on the bar below (if you are reading this through your email and you cannot see the bar, click here to go straight to my blog):
Right... now...
How many of you are music lovers?
How many of you listen to rock music, and more specifically, rock & roll from the 60s and the 70s?
How many of you enjoy listening to the radio a lot?
How many of you would enjoy listening to the radio, if it wasn't filled with the same boring voices, the same boring programs, the same boring people, the same boring music and it just had some true passion instead of all this?
Personally, I relate to every single one of those questions. Every now and then, in whichever country I’d be living, I would find a radio station with some really good music and inspiring DJs. But those stations are becoming more and more scarse and especially since I moved to Argentina, where every radio station was worse than the other, I have not been listening to it at all. I miss the feeling of suddenly hearing a song that I really really like, but I wouldn’t have thought to look for it myself. Isn’t it a unique feeling, being in your car, stuck in traffic, listening to the DJs unique personality that makes you laugh or cringe and out of nowhere, one of your all-time favorite songs will come up and you’ll start singing and moving around in your seat, as much as your seat belt allows you?
Recently, I watched the Boat That Rocked (thanks to my lovely friend, S.).
Apart from the fact that it is a hilarious movie, with endless beautiful images and inspiring messages, it gives a beautiful insight on what the 1960’s were like in relation to music.
Those years were unique. A time when people would gather around a radio receiver and wait for the voice at the other end of the sound waves to stimulate their emotions. Friends lying on the floor, co-existing next to each other, doing nothing but listen to the radio and plunge into the pool of thoughts that every song would awaken in their heads. Young girls falling in love while listening to the voices of Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis and Jim Morrison.
We’re talking about the years that the radio DJ is more famous than the rock ‘n’ roll stars themselves! There aren’t television sets in every home and not everybody can afford a car to go wherever they want. The radio is everyone’s number one method of entertainment and news source. Forget about nightclubs, smokey bars and raves. Invite your friends over, place the radio in the middle of the carpet on the living room floor and start dancing and boogying to the rhythms instructed by the DJ. Whole lives and dreams and relationships and culturally shocking habits were formed through that little grey box with buttons and an antenna on it.
No, I obviously did not experience any of those years, nor am I one of those people who feel that they were born 20 years too late. But I’d give anything to be able to experience a month in that period of time! Where’s that damn time machine again??!
M.
24/01/2010
I have been taking it easy during these days in San Francisco. After 10 months on the road, I am feeling a bit tired and have been fully enjoying the luxury of having a room, a kitchen and a living room with 2 VERY comfortable couches.
I am pretty much lowering gear now and figuring out what I’ll be doing next. I’ve been in San Francisco for two weeks now and the times I actually left the house are easy to count. In fact, I have only gone out 3-4 times during the night. I’m turning into a couch potato. IT’S GREAT!!! :D
Today, we went with some friends for brunch to a place called “The Three Papayas".
It’s a pretty relaxed and interesting place, with a very underground feel to it. Funny thing was, as soon as we sat down, they brought us these little magazines.
I opened it and was flicking through it. It seemed to be a over-18s mexican comic book. I smiled at the fact that they had brought this for us to read, although it didn’t make much sense.
But then, I got to the last page and I noticed a little sticker on the inside of the back cover.
That was the menu!!! They literally stick their limited menu in between of the XXX phone numbers. You can't get more original than that!!
Just another typical brunch in San Francisco....
M.
10/01/2010
No, I didn’t do something inappropriate again. Or at least this was not my own initiative...
ImprovEverywhere is a group of people in New York that for many years now has been organising random events in the street, the participants of which usually do something out of the ordinary. The No Pants subway ride is one of those events and it has been taking place annually for many years now. The past few years it has also been happening in other cities around the world.
The idea of the event is for everyone who wishes to participate to show up at a predetermined location without wearing pants. The rest of the details are up to each one’s discretion and imagination.
This year, it was also organised in San Francisco and since I’m here, there was no way I would not take part.
We gathered with a group of friends and went to the subway at 2pm. Although we were not really that surprised, it was still immensely entertaining to see hundreds of people, flocking into the subway, having left their pants at home. 
Before you know it, it was a huge number of pantless people, taking the subway until one predefined station 
and then hitting the streets.
We ended up going to a couple of bars, taking more buses later and staying pantless until sundown. As time was passing, the crowds were becoming smaller and smaller, so the shock effect to people passing by was becoming even funnier. It’s one thing seeing hundreds of people in the streets without pants on, and another seeing only 3 people in the bus, acting like normal but being in their underwear.
It was a laughter-filled day, with many wonderful new connections and could not have worked out any better. Thank you San Francisco. :)
M.
09/01/2010
We could have taken the main highway to get to San Francisco, but we decided to follow the scenic route instead. The 101 is the coastal highway and everyone keeps raving about it, so it was our turn to see what it’s all about.
It is indeed quite an amazing drive. Lots of turns through lots of alternating scenery, but we started to wonder whether this is the right time of year for this kind of trip...
It was cold and rainy and windy and sticky and grey and blergh.... And the beaches under the dark grey sky were far from impressive or tempting.
We saw a number of picturesque little towns, but the weather was not what one would call ideal. We were convinced that this route would be much more appreciated during the sunny summer months.
After having spent our first night in a motel along the way, the following morning we reached our next intended destination, the Redwoods national forrest. The Redwoods are big, tall trees and there is a big forrest full of them right on the coast, near the Oregon/California state line.
As soon as we reached them and laid eyes on them, our jaws dropped!
Never in my life had I seen before such tall, wide trees. 
We’re talking taller than probably most buildings in Greece! As we were driving through the path, we were constantly surrounded by these enormous trees. We could barely see the sky through them.
This scenery went on for about seven miles, before we got out of the heart of the forrest and drove along a beautiful river. There were very few houses built around it and we spotted a couple of fishermen with their tiny boats, roaming the river.
This was by far the most spectacular natural asset I have seen during my whole trip in the US.
After going through the forrest, we drove down to Chico, where we made a stop at my friend D.’s to spend the night. A fun filled evening was to be had, with great people and yummy food, before we’d set off straight to San Francisco the following morning.
And here we are now, in San Francisco, the last official stop of my journey. J. is taking a flight back to New York and I am ready to see what this city has to offer.
M.
07/01/2010
Upon leaving Seattle, our first stop was Mt. Rainier national park. I knew nothing about it, but J. suggested we should go and go is what we did. :)
Mt. Rainier is located in the state of Washington, south of Seattle and it’s exactly what the name gives away: a mountain!
A very snowy mountain I might add...
Seriously snowy!!
Entering the park involved driving through winding, icy roads, surrounded by gorgeous, white sceneries. When I got to Seattle, I knew I had gotten out of the winter areas. Being in Mt. Rainier brought me back to that atmosphere.
We drove all the way up to a small location called “Paradise”, where people park their cars, wear their snowshoes and start hiking through the snow-covered paths. The views all around were truly spectacular.
They don’t call it Paradise for nothing!
Did I mention there were SERIOUSLY large amounts of snow?
After leaving the park, we stopped for lunch at a restaurant that had caught our attention on our way up. 
It was an old train wagon, converted into a fully functioning restaurant. The decoration felt very traditional, the people were very friendly and my elk burger was juicy and delicious! Just what we needed to continue our journey.
M.
07/01/2010
Seattle was generally good to me. There were a lot of things to see and I had my fun, but for some reason, my interest was gradually decreasing and it started feeling like 15 days was a bit too long for me.
The first day I got very excited about the city. Walking around Capitol Hill and checking out all its little, unique shops, it was giving me the impression that this would be my kind of city.
Christmas eve and day were awesome. Either with E.’s family, or with a bunch of burners, the days were filled with interesting people, stimulating conversations, lots of laughter and ridiculous amounts of delicious food! I don’t know what others say, but to me, that’s what Christmas is all about. :)
The following days I did the touristy thing as much as I could. I started getting lost all around the city, taking photos, checking places out, talking to random people. I can’t say that I went out exploring as much as usual, but I definitely tried to figure some places out. I don’t have the same energy and excitement I had 6-7 months ago. I tried forcing myself one day to meet people, see places, take photos and it all went horribly wrong. Things need to flow naturally and just happen as they are meant to happen. Forcing myself to want something could never work out.
I did feel though, after a few days, that the things to see and experience are fairly limited. I can almost make a list of them.
Sunset at discovery park and the beach below it...
Exploring the houseboats and admiring the Seattle skyline from the water...
Walking through its steep roads...
Paying a visit to the troll under the bridge...
The public market where you can buy just about anything...
Almost diving in the nearby waterfalls...
And then that was it.... I must be honest, the last few days that my friend T. was back in town, I discovered more places and cool spots, but those experiences were people oriented, rather than including natural beauty or sights of the city. It may have also been the weather that did not help, as it was rainy and cloudy most of the days. It doesn't really bother me that much, and it does create some wonderful effects for photography, but it's not what I was after those days.
Either way, had it not been for my waiting for T. to come back, I would have probably left earlier.
A couple of days before leaving, my friend J. from New York flew in and we were gonna travel together down to San Francisco. So, one lovely thursday morning, we set off for the long way south.
M.
01/01/2010
Yeah yeah, I know that by now, we’re over and done with the wishes, but I only just now got round to updating these pages, so humor me.
I was thinking about how some years ago everyone would go crazy and stress out like hell, while preparing for the new year’s party. Nowadays, most of us don’t really care that much and leave things to just “happen” at the last minute.
Time was 11.30pm and we were still getting ready. Space themed party, E. said. Gotta dress up and paint your face, E. said. It was me, E. and two other couchsurfers at E.’s house, getting dressed up and mucking about. 
11.50pm and E. is still putting face paint on. I wasn’t really bothered how the night would evolve, so I was going with the flow.
E. finally got ready and at 11.56 we ran out the door. Walked a couple of blocks down to the bridge, where a bunch of other people had gathered to watch the fireworks. And as soon as we got there, the colorful show kicked off, all around the space needle.
WEHEEEEY!!! HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! Hugs and drinks and smiles and kisses all around.
Ok, we’re done now. Off to the parties. We proceeded to honor a couple of different parties with our presence, which, conveniently enough, they were both “space” themed. As you can imagine, it didn’t take me long to pick some random garments from Charlie and come up with a weird combination that would meet the needs of the parties.
Please say hello to...
The SpaceOddBall and it’s stupid little buddies.
With this and that and the other, I got back home at around 7pm the following evening.
We’re in 2010 guys! We’re in the future!!!
M.
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