April 7, 2011

Classical Music is food for my soul

I love watching the symphony play because every time I see classical music performed live, I feel soul-fed. It´s like some inexplicable therapy session that totally destresses me, and as I enjoy all that alone time to think and digest my day, my life, the future, I actually feel calm inside instead of pressured or worried. Its probably one of the few times where I´m actually not daydreaming about travel, and instead totally infatuated with the lead violinist or the piano soloist.

In the last few weeks I´ve had some good soul food servings, and nicely varied with 3 different symphonies and one church choir. In March I watched the San Francisco Symphony play at Davies Hall in downtown San Fran and just the venue itself already creates a reverent atmosphere preparing you for the meditative experience you´re about to have. The soloist was a Swedish mezzo-soprano, Anne Sofie von Otter, who sang a Brahms serenade and a selection of Scandinavian songs. Taking in the view from the 3rd floor balcony over Civic Center and Van Ness Avenue during intermission is an important part of the Davies Hall experience, as is being the one of the youngest people there by 40 years.

A few weeks later I watched the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra play a Russian-themed concert matinee at the Orpheum. This is an extraordinary venue only from the inside since there´s almost no way to know which building the performance hall is actually in from busy Granville street. Indie musicians, rock bands and jazz artists all share this stage, and besides the symphony I´ve seen Nina Simone,  David Gray and Sigur Ros all play the Orpheum, but still the symphony best suits the building decor. A classy afternoon with my family listening to Rachmaninoff symphony no. 2 and some Prokofiev had me daydreaming about Rachmaninoff´s piano concerto that was meant to be played but somehow got switched.

Since being back in Iceland, I took advantage of one of the last symphonies to be plaid by the Icelandic Symphony Orchestra at the University of Iceland since they are going to be housed at the brand-new, world renound Harpa Concert Hall opening next month in the Reykjavik downtown. Its located in the harbour literally ontop of the ocean with beautiful views and an unbelievable performance hall. But, for now, they play at the movie theatre with mediocre acoustics and uncomfortable seats, but tickets are only 1700kr for students and an all-Tchaikovsky program still impressed. It was conducted by a very flamboyant, 50-something year old Swedish guy, famous for being a trombone virtuoso, but will forever be remembered as the conductor in way-too-tight pants and a purple satin, bamboo print, made-in-China blouse that he managed to totally sweat through as he jumped and danced his whole way through the program with more energy than everyone else in the house combined. The program opened with Capriccio Italien, followed by Tchaikovsky´s violin concerto performed by the very young, Armenian Mikhail Simonyan who later joined the 5th violinists to sight-read through Symphony number 5.

the organ at Hallgrimskirkja

The most spiritual soul food I´ve had lately is definitely listening to the Hallgrims Church Choir sing a Bach program for passover/easter. Hallgrimskirkja is a typical protestant church with no decorations and a hollow, concrete interior that gives the choir an even more angelic sound. The natural acoustics, the epic organ, and the sun rays shining in through the windows giving each choir member its own halo make everything come together for the sweetest sound, and the experience of listening to all this with a live orchestra and a few soloists singing the story of Jesus´death are bound to bring you either to peace, to tears, or a little chat with God.

March 25, 2011

Freewaters Sandals and Water in Kenya

What do these two have in common? Freewaters is a footwear company that just launched in California, debuting 10 mens and 7 women’s sandals. Their shoes are innovative sandals and flipflops stylishly designed with ergonomic support, creating a very high-tech, comfy place for your feet. Why do I care? Because I’m one of their women’s product samples and have 4 shiny new pairs of freewaters flipflops that Im going to wear and tear in my upcoming travels.

women's sandals Sola, Vezpa, Capetown and Bossa Nova

I’m pretty excited about this after my recent trip to India, because when I was there I had the perpetual problem of my shoes breaking. The flipflops I wore there were only a few months old (Hawaianas), but since I walk so much when I travel, one broke after the first day on India’s less-than-navigable sidewalks. I then bought a pair of flipflops for 100 rupees ($2.25), which broke the following day on a hike around Hampi’s Hindi temple ruins, and I realized very quickly that Indian-made sandals are far from duarble; throughout the rest of my barefoot walk home, I probably saw 10 odd sided, broken shoes scattered along the trail. Luckily I managed to find one functional right-sided shoe, and a few meters later, the broken left sided one which I fixed and had another pair of sandals… which broke the next day.

I doubt these Freewaters sandals will give me any trouble, and in fact, I may have a hard time even wearing them out since they’re so well made. But, the best part about these shoes isn’t that they look great or are super comfy to wear, but the mission behind the product: Freewaters is trying to design the best sandals while finding solutions to the global drinking water pandemic. Their first humanitarian initiative is a project in Dago, Kenya, where they are digging a series of freshwater wells to provide safe and reliable drinking water in an area of the world where water-borne disease is a serious problem. For every pair of Freewaters sandals one buys, it allows them to provide clean drinking water for one person for one year. Since March 22nd is World Water Day, perhaps now is a good time to get involved.

For more information, to see how you can help, or to buy your own pair of sandals, check out www. freewaters.com.

For more information on the grassroots organization implementing the Freewaters direct cause initiative, go to http://www.ProjectFreewaters.org.

March 22, 2011

Photo Highlight: Iceland in the heart of Berkeley

a slightly confusing sign locating Iceland in the middle of Berkeley, California

this ice-skating rink closed a few years ago, but back in its good old days (circa 40's to 60's) was a popular place no-one would have predicted to become abandoned to graffiti artists

March 4, 2011

An accidental, secretive vacation to the Dominican Republic

I just had the annoying but strangely flattering problem that two of my old blogs had to be deleted, and a few others censored, because of some unnamed security issues. Now, I feel comparatively bound when trying to write a blog post on my vacation in the Dominican Republic, due to 3 reasons. 1.) I have almost no stories or photos that are not incredibly incriminating for the amount of partying, dancing, and drinking we did there 2.) All our beaching and evening attire, though modest by local standards, caused an upheaval of overbearing and slightly unwelcomed attention, all of which I’ll blame on Ursula’s fair complexion and golden locks, and 3.) Our last three days (subsequently the highlight of our trip) were spent in the clutches of 8 or 9 Very Important American’s whose names or jobs I cannot disclose.

Me and the blondie, sporting her new bikini compliments of AA

But, I’ll try to divulge what I can. First, let me begin by berating American Airlines. We arrived on Saturday morning for our flight from JFK to Port-Au-Prince, Haiti, with confirmed reservations and assigned seats; 5 mins before boarding commenced, a distasteful Russian attendant called our names over the PA, and when we walked up to the counter, took both our boarding passes, ripped them into 4 pieces, and with the most devilish smile exclaimed “You’re NOT going to Haiti.” Our first response was that she must be joking, with that shit-eating grin on her face. But, she insisted she wasn’t. Our second response was it must be our fault, something we did, some bomb someone snuck into our one checked bag. But, that wasn’t it either.

we did NOT have this rifle in our luggage

American Air had taken advantage of aviation laws which allow them to oversell flights by 25%, and when noone volunteered to fly later, kicked people off arbitrarily. Well, they had a method which made no sense, basically that the last people to check in would be the first to go. But since we were confirmed passengers, Ursula’s backpack had already been loaded on the plane and Basia, the abhorrent airline representative, explained it would not come off so we would have to meet the bag in Haiti the following day when the next flight departed. Although we had a flight to Haiti and a couple days of plans in the capital, our final destination was Santo Domingo, DR, where we had our return flight home. When Basia learned this, she promised she would isntead fly us out 2 hrs later on a direct flight to Santo Domingo, forcing us to abandon all our plans for Haiti. Then she learned she wasn’t allowed to do so, conveniently right after the Haiti plane departed, and started trying to offer us a cab back to NYC.

After a $600 travel voucher, $10 for breakfast, yelling at 2 employees and the some obnoxious supervisor named Treadwell, we finally had confirmed seats to DR within the hour (also overbooked, so I wonder who they kicked off for our sake – sorry!), but remained bagless and planless in Santo Domingo. We were promised 3 different delivery times and locations but only got the bag back 3 days later after it was flown back to Miami and possibly New York before returning to Hispaniola, even though there’s a daily flight direct between Port-au-Prince and Santo Domingo. Airline inefficiency at its best. We took appropriate action to buy ourselves new wardrobes and bikini’s, on American’s tab, and forgot all about the hassle after the bag was finally found since we started to wonder if it’d ever turn up.

eating fresh fish street food and paperbagged Bohemian beer

Night after night we indulged in Presidente or Bohemian 1L Beer, and the local favourite rum option, Ron Brugal. We got our latin dance on, mostly bachata and meringue, and continuously resisted the fabulously forward, flirtatious men. (NB: Ladies, if you ever have any self-esteem issues, all you need is a week in the DR and you’ll never feel more beautiful!) The trip was very inexpensive, and locals were very hospitable; we stayed in cheap hotels or “pensions,” could not get the chance to pay for a single drink, and were offered boyfriends or “I love you’s” by a few guys every day.

Our real highlight was the last 3 days, spent on the southwest coast at a non-descript, 9 bedroom mansion and a resort-hotel penthouse. My birthday fell in the middle of those 3 days, and I certainly had one of my most memorable birthday celebrations – top three gifts included a bottle of greygoose, 4 bouquets of red roses, and about 20 bullet casings from an M4 I got to shoot off. One of the men from our entourage had a birthday the day before mine, so he generously shared his birthday bottle of Johnny Walker Black, a few birthday dances, and a midnight plunge, fully clothed, into the sea with all his friends throwing me and Urusla around like ragdolls as we failed to fightback. All the American guys and Ursula together made me feel so special that I didn’t even get a chance to wish I was anywhere else for my birthday.We got set up, fed, and driven around the whole time together, all the way to the airport on our last morning, and I can’t imagine a more perfect ending to our vacation. It just goes to show that the less planning we did, the more open we were for accidental miracles falling in our laps and having our vacation unfold like a fairytale.

our luxurious residence

March 2, 2011

Photo Highlight: Dominican Paradise

I was traveling for 8 days along the south coast of the Dominican Republic with an old friend of mine, Ursula, who was once my roommate on Semester at Sea 5 years ago. We found it comforting to stay near the ocean since we once floated around the world together for 4 months.

Our favourite beach, Juan Dolio

This resort in Salina’s was quite an upgrade from room 4083 on the MV Explorer, the tiny inside berth me and Ursula once shared. The fact that it was complimentary and included personal caretakers/bodyguards was even more luxurious, thanks to some very generous Americans we met there.

Salina's Hotel & Restaurant, one of the more secluded and personal resorts I've ever visited. Jorge, the owner, welcomes you there as if its his own house, and you're part of the family right away.

February 23, 2011

My Favourite things to do in NYC

In the last few years Ive probably been to New York a dozen times, but with only one destination trip as the exception, I always end up in New York city as a layover. JFK is one of the easiest airports to have a stopover on my way from Iceland to anywhere in North or South America, and with a handful of really great friends and some relatives, I always take the opportunity to visit.

Besides catching up with the people I know there, I’ve exhausted most of the touristy things to do in the city, but some things never get old to me. Here’s a list of 4 things I’ll always look forward to doing while in the Big Apple, and next time you’re in Manhattan make sure to try all 4.

  1. Visit Times Square
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Times Square

I love going to the center of Times Square and spining around while looking up at all the shiny lights, dazzling advertisements and 5 storey large television screens… especially in the middle of the night when the masses have dispersed and the lights make it as bright as day. There are even a few Mini Cooper cars stuck to the sides of buildings now, and yahoo offers free wi-fi.

2. Walking around Central Park

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Wintery Central Park

Even its midwinter or high summer, Central Park always is always full of joggers, dog walkers, bicyclists, and horse-drawn carriages. Central park covered in a blanket of white snow and reflective frozen lakes is just as beautiful as it is when luscious green. I’m a big sucker for the horses and this time around got offered a free carriage ride with an Irish man in a top hat, slightly resembling a leprechaun.

3. People Watching on the subway

In New York City, you’re not just one in a million, you’re one in 8 million. There are so many people in New York, SO many. From all different places, speaking all sorts of tongues, with totally individual styles and fashion senses. You can literally take a tour around the world as you walk through Manhattan’s different neighbourhoods, and riding the subways and local buses is my favourite place to sneakily stare at and eavesdrop on all the interesting people I meet. I’m most inspired by the craziest, weirdest people, like the naked cowboy who I’ve ran into twice now or a group of Japanese women paying homage to Lady Gaga by dressing like her.

4. Window Shopping

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shopping near the World’s largest store, Macy’s

Anything and everything you’d ever wish for is available for sale somewhere in the city. I’d say most of it is still either unnecessary or unattainable, since the prices of things can get pretty expensive, but strolling along Broadway or Fifth Ave and dreaming about owning all the pretty things in the window displays is still super fun. Trying it on too, doesn’t hurt, but staying outside the window keeps me from buying it all up.

February 16, 2011

An Indian Wedding

I was in Bangalore for a Hindu wedding between Yathin and Wendy, a friend from Berkeley. The bride was born and raised on a sheep farm in Wyoming, and Yeti was raised on farm 2 hrs outside of Bangalore. The grooms family all still follow the tradition of arranged marriages, so Yeti is the first from his village to marry outside of this days-old custom. While Wendy wasn’t ‘the chosen one,’ they seemed proud to have their son marry another farmer, and a doctor (she holds a Phd already), with the floral-written wedding banner reading “Yathin weds Dr. Wendy”. Seemingly worlds apart, it turns out they’re not so different, and it was inspiring to see love overcome all the cultural and societal differences each had.

Sindhoor Hall set up for the Wedding show

They had their first wedding in Wyoming, a typical Christian-like ceremony, and in India they were modest in only holding a 2 day wedding ceremony – many Indian weddings last 3 or more days. The first day involved a 1000 guest reception, where the bride wore traditional Indian wear and the groom dressed in a western suit – ironic, I thought. They stood on stage for almost 6 hrs greeting a procession line of important ministers, friends of his father, the few westerners that came from Berkeley, distant family, and some people they admitted they weren’t quite sure who they were. The wedding was in a lavishly decorated event hall, complete with photographers, camera men, a lights and sound tech guy, a few flat screen tv screens fading between camera shots, and a large, camera crane sweeping over the crowd for aerial shots. It was quite the production, to say the least, and I only wished it had subtitles so I could understand a bit better what was going on.

The morning of that day, the groom and bride, one at a time, were totally covered in turmeric by members of the family (only married women or men, I believe), and explained this was something about washing all the evil away. I got to slab a face full of soggy turmeric powder on both her cheeks, feet, and hands, and it was fun. Many of the women got their hands fully covered, inside their palms and on top, with beautiful, intricate henna tattoos.

the bride's mom getting tattooed

For lunch that afternoon, we were fed a delicious, typical southern-Indian Thali meal on banana leaves. The servers came by with buckets, serving us one by one in order to eventually plate a 10 course meal in the matter of a minute or two. It was extremely efficient, as was the clean up that just involved them rolling the paper laid under the banana leaves into a small pile of organic waste.

the procession of servers and their food buckets

For dinner, the buffet included a selection of Northern and Southern Indian cuisine, a fruit stand, a snack stand, and an icecream booth. It was extremely crowded, everyone standing, eating and chatting. By this point I had to master eating only with my right hand since the left is considered unclean, so standing and eating became a bit easier since I had to use my left hand to hold the plate of food.

Yeti being covered in tumeric

The actual wedding ceremony was a quieter event, with only close family and friends attending. This time, they were covered in coconut milk, rice grains covered in turmeric, and again in tumerc, a LOT of turmeric. All the members of the family are somehow involved, partaking in different parts of the ceremony. There was a lot of stuff going on, all ‘in-the-know’ by the Indian family, but I couldn’t really figure out the meanings or importance of one practice from the next. When I asked questions about their Indian wedding traditions, they groom said they’ve gone on for so long that the significance of certain ceremonial procedures has become completely unexplicable, one just knows you have to do it. One thing he did explain was the strange wedding gift of a coconut, 2 green leaves and crushed beetle nuts – the coconut represents God (which one, I don’t know), and the leaves and nuts are some sort of offering of respect to him. Every guest from the reception and the wedding got one, so some 1200-1500 coconut gift bags were prepared.

the bride and groom during their wedding ceremony

While a clout of confusion covered my experience, it was all very charming, and watching the bride take it all in stride even though she probably also had no idea what was going on half the time was perhaps the most entertaining. After being covered in turmeric and hennah, jewels and jewelry, she actually started to fit in just fine, and becamse the mediator between her now Indian family and our oblivious western ignorance.