Tennis

I was a little girl looking at a big poster of Björn Borg on my neighbors wall. That was my first introduction to Tennis. From there I progressed onto the steel prowess of Ivan Lendl and the anger of John McEnroe. I remember pining for the ‘cute as a button’ Stephan Edberg during my teen years, and who can forget Pete Sampras’ hanging tongue. Then there were the Agassi years - I recently read his book “Open” which took me back to the days when I used to stay up late at night watching the US Open in India - he was such a rebel one couldn't help but love him! After Agassi I sort of lost track of tennis; I think it was because I lived in places where it was not front and center and I did not seek it out. I moved to NYC in 2004 and ever since then I have been fortunate enough to go to the Open every year. There really is something special about Tennis at Arthur Ashe Stadium. It happens during the time of year when summer is just about turning into fall, there is a cool breeze blowing; the lights come on and there is an energy that cannot be put into words. Everyone gasps and cheers together at the hits and misses. As the game of tennis has progressed -> with fitter players, faster games, better rackets and bigger sponsors. I too have progressed from a girl infatuated with the game to a woman who enjoys the sport and maybe still is a little infatuated. Click here for some shots from the 2010 US Open.   

Rainy Sundays

Some Sundays I love that it rains. It forces me to stay home and relax. I am not very good at down time unless I am forced to take some – which means, either I have to fall sick or go on a beach vacation. I wonder if this is true of all New Yorkers – the constant need to live life to its fullest. You don’t really have to try that hard since you live in a city that thrives on constant “doing”.

Today I decided to indulge in cooking breakfast fit for a King (and Queen). I whipped up 2 types of whole-wheat (healthy) pancakes. One with berries & nutmeg and the other with Mango & Pistachio’s. The pancakes were drizzled with Adirondack Pure Maple Syrup that had been sitting in my fridge forever! The egg cooked over-easy was the perfect accompaniment to balance out the sweetness of the pancakes. To wash it down we had some mimosas. Great rainy Sunday morning – now for some quality time with my book as Monday looms over my head.

August is for Open Roads

I was very excited when I discovered that this Saturday was the first of three Summer Streets 2010 days. I was up at 7:30 am to attack Park Avenue with my bike. It was a fun ride and I even got to check out the pool on 40th & Park. Some things to note if you are planning to avail of this wonderful open street opportunity. If you are on a bike don't expect a rigorous 7 mile ride. There are many stops and a lot of people; so tread carefully. I used to be part of Team in Training and now after my Triathlon is over I understand how this group can just take over the road; and how annoying this is for other people they share the street with - but its for a good cause so GO TEAM ! Other cool things - there is valet  parking (ha ha) for your bike on 40th and Park. You can rent bikes for free on various spots along the way; also on the house is free NYC water, bike tune ups and cool Reebok swag. The Pool - another aspect I was thrilled about is actually just a PR tool. There were more camera's and by-standers than people actually in the pool. The unique thing about this is the fact that you are swimming (almost) under Grand Central Terminal. All in all a very cool thing to do in NYC for the next three Saturdays. So I definitely recommend that you check it out. Along the way I stopped to click a few shots.   

New Orleans: A Little Nibble

I was in New Orleans this July for Tales of the Cocktails. It is always difficult to fit photography into a work-trip; but this was my first time in New Orleans and I wanted to at the very least explore the French Quarter. I got just a little flavor of the food, drink and the people. I can't help but want to go back for a real taste of this great city that has been through so much.  Below are some pictures that I captured. Click here for the full set.   

 

Peru Diaries 5 - Cuzco Chilling & Floating Fun

 After our hike and Machu Picchu we needed a day to just chill. We did this in Cuzco with no real agenda in mind. Meandering around town we discovered the local San Pedro market. This market had entire sections designated to just flowers or just meats or cheese or corn. I have never seen so many varieties of things in one place. After the market we moseyed on to an area called San Blas. This is a part of Cuzco that is very quaint with winding streets, art stores and lovely cafe's; we spent 2 hours at Jack's cafe where we had the most amazing coffee and food. I highly recomend you take a day to just relax in Cuzco you won't regret it !
The next stop on our trip was Puno. The town is very shabby but we were visiting the nearby Floating Islands which are a treat. We spent a day on the island of Uros and then visited Tequile Island. The Floating islands are man made; woven together with mud and reeds that grow in the shallow lakes. Walking on these islands feels like your walking on sponge. The local people are friendly and were very gracious. We ate a most scrumptious lunch of fresh trout, potato and rice. We had a spectacular view of blue skies and sea. The Floating islands were our last stop and it was time to head back to New York. One thing I am sure of - we are definitely going back to Peru; feels like we just scratched the surface of this beautiful country.

Peru Diaries 4 - The Old Mountain a.k.a. Machu Picchu

Aguas Caliente is a town that was built to accommodate tourists who visit Machu Picchu. We got there by 7 pm the day before our awaited visit to the "Old Mountain". On arrival, we wandered to a bar for a much needed beer. As we were sitting enjoying our beverage we heard a song by Nazia Hassan being played "Aap Jaise Koi mere zindagi mein aye  - toh baat ban jaye". In the foothills of Machu Pichu we hear music by a Pakistani singer that was popular in the late 70's - how bizarre is that ! Our wake-up call was at 4 am the next morning and an hour later we were put on a bus and off we went to Machu Picchu. We hiked up to the Guardhouse - from this spot you can see all of the city. We were the first ones there; but it started raining heavily and all we could see were clouds. There was much disspointment - but as they say good things come to those who wait; and slowly but surely the clouds cleared and we saw the Magnificence that is Machu Picchu. Ruben (our guide) gave us a great tour - I am not going to go into the details of each spot that we saw but it truly is a wonder of the world and it took our breath away. 

Peru Diaries 3 - Hiking in the Andes

If you are visiting Peru you MUST hike the Andes. Yes it is tough and the altitude will get to you but it is all worth it. The food that you devour as you lick the last morsel off your plate, the scenery that you see on your way up the mountains and the locals you will mingle with; will all be worth it. It is a truly unique experience.
We were picked up by Ruben our tour guide at 5:30 am in the morning; along with him were 2 ever eager helpers - the porter and the cook with their horses. We trekked from 6 am till 7 pm that night. In those 13 hours we crossed 10 mountains, saw the most beautiful valley that was covered with purple flowers and tested our limits as far as altitude sickness goes; but it was all worth it.
It was just us, nature and of-course ever eager Ruben prodding us along when we felt we could not go any further. We camped in Huchuy Cuzco which was where the Inca's first settled. We slept like babies that night. The next morning we woke up to see the sun rising over the beautiful mountains - it was magnificent. We continued to a small town called Lamay from where we would make our way to Aguas Caliente - which is the town that rests in the foothills of Machu Pichu.

Peru Diaries 2 - Cusco & the Sacred Valley

Cusco is a beautiful city. It is small, quaint and has a lot of charm. The charm comes from the city and the people who live there. We arrived in the morning and made our way to Hotel Picoaga; which is an absolutely adorable spot. The first thing yu see when you get to Picoaga is the gorgeous stone courtyard and water fountain that just took our breath away. Our first day was spent pottering around the city and eating. We tried all kinds of things including Peru's delicacy Cuy. There are over 55 varieties of corn and 350 varieties of potatoes in Peru - both of which are included in almost every dish. In Cusco the highlight was the beautiful square and the narrow cobble stone streets that take you to all kinds of places. We loved the architecture of the monuments and spent the first day exploring the various churches and temples. On Day 2 we did a tour of the Sacred Valley. Pisac was our first stop. This is a small city where we saw our first Inca ruins. It was a  peek into things to come a few days later in Machu Pichu. Next stop was Ollantaytambo; residing in this town is an old Inca fort from where the views are spectacular. My favorite though was Chinchero. Here we explored a church that was built in 1607; the white washed structure against the lush green valley and brown stone walls looked magnificent. After Chinchero we headed back for a good nights rest. The next 2 days were going to be spent hiking in the Andes mountains. We had quite an adventure ahead of us.
Recommended Restaurants in Cusco: Paititi, Andes Grill and Jacks Cafe

Peru Diaries 1 – Lost Luggage and Lovely Lima

Saturday morning April 24th, we were all set to make our way into Lima with a short stop in Atlanta – bags:check, passport:check, airplane ticket: check. En-route to Atlanta we hear “this is your captain speaking, I am sorry folks, but due to thunder storms in Atlanta and low fuel levels we will have to re-route to Charlotte”. Great will we or wont we make our connection to Lima? Well, 2 hours later we were running through Atlanta’s Hartsfield airport and have made our connection with 5 minutes to spare. Neither R nor I have ever run so fast! Of-course we made the flight, but 6 hours later, after staring at the conveyor belt for 30 minutes we realized that our bags did not – oh well. It would have to be sans bags in Lima on Day 1 of our trip. We had Raphael (old man full of advice for tourists) take us to Hotel Antigua Miraflores; which was the sweetest little place I have seen – it had beautiful art on all the walls and the most amazing coffee I have ever tasted. It was like a large bed and breakfast. After a good nights rest we set out to explore. I won’t bore you with all the details but just give the highlights. First stop El Centro; this is where all the monuments are. There was a vibrant parade in the main square (Plaza de Armas). We strolled about took a lot of pictures. The highlight for me were the Catacombs in the San Francisco Cathedral. It was eerie to walk underground and see human bones piled up from the 17th Century. In the afternoon we headed to Barranco and ate some amazing food. I cannot write enough about the food in Peru – It is Fantastic. The fish, the meat, the corn, the potatoes -  all of it is fresh and cooked with so much flavor. Barranco is an area in Lima that over-looks the sea – we whiled away our time enjoying Ceviche, Lomo Saltado and many Piscos. In the evening we chilled out in Miraflores where we bought a beautiful painting for our home and chatted with the locals. I had to stop R from eating street food that he was salivating over. Did not want a sick husband at the beginning of my trip. We got our bags at 4 am in the morning – and were all set to travel to our next destination Cuzco and the Sacred Valley ! Below are some pictures from Lima that you can peruse through.

Pretty Flowers

Flowers are so pretty. Whenever I buy or get flowers it immediately brightens up my day; I love having flowers in my home. I don't like typical flowers like Roses and Carnations - I find them too predictable. I love Calla Lilies and find Tulips so simple and sweet.  I woke up this morning and saw these beautiful purple Tulips that R had placed on the window sill. It was a perfectly composed shot that I wanted to capture, but the light was too bright and the vibrancy of the flowers were not coming through. In the afternoon as we were leaving the house the sun began to shine perfectly on the bunch and I knew I had my shot !