Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer

A Christmas classic.. the fact that there's a music video is amazing.

Brooklyn Museum: In Conversation

Last Thursday evening I attended an event at the Brooklyn Museum, In Conversation: Sanford Biggers with Marcus Samuelsson and Mos Def. Mos Def was my initial draw to the event. Not only is he a talented hip hop artist from Brooklyn, but he happens to be in one of my favorite movies (you know, the kind of favorite movie you can watch over and over and it brings comfort rather than annoyance), Brown Sugar, which is just one notch on his acting belt. To be honest, I didn't know much about the other two men beforehand, but was interested in the theme of the discussion, which was how culture and society has shaped their work.

Sanford Biggers is an artist who happens to currently have an exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum, Sweet Funk. Marcus Samuelsson is an award winning chef who most recently opened the restaurant Red Rooster in Harlem. The three men are well known in their fields for not only their talent, but for being a part of their communities on different levels.

Although Sanford was meant to facilitate the discussion, the conversation gradually fell into a relaxed one among friends, as the three men already know each other well. Each very different in their art form and personality, I found all to be inspiring, not without a sense of humor, and grounded. Discussion topics flowed from how their work is impacted by their roots and childhood as well as issues in society, challenges they face, particulary as black men, the message they hope to send through their work, lessons learned, and future goals. The audience was responsive and passionate. There was a high level of comfort between everyone in the room.

Cookies and peanuts were passed around throughout the evening and not until the end of the discussion did we find out that Marcus had made these specifically for this event. The peanuts, which were spiced with wasabi, were a nod to Sanford's work, where Japanese influences can often be found. The cookies were a mix of vanilla and chocolate, made to reflect how one of their goals as artists is to reach all types of people and, hopefully, bring them together over their music, art, and food.

peanut butter

This weekend I went to the Nutropolitan Museum of Art, the world's first PB&J exhibit! I love peanut butter and was promised a free jar, so my decision to visit this exhibit was a no-brainer.

Peanut Butter & Co, an amazing PB company that I don't know how I hadn't heard of before, presented the exhibit, along with the National Peanut Board. Peanut Butter & Co sells a variety of peanut butter products and has a sandwich shop in the village, which I'll obviously be checking out. Death by Peanut Butter Sundae? Yes, please!

The exhibit, which was only presented over this past weekend, consisted of delicious photographs of creative peanut butter sandwiches, creating your own peanut butter sandwich (which you then got to enjoy), information on how peanuts are healthy for you, and a free jar of Peanut Butter & Co peanut butter on the way out, along with a special knife for ideal peanut butter spreading. For every jar PB & Co handed out, they donated one to the Food Bank for NY. I received a jar of Cinnamon Raisin Swirl Peanut Butter, which I never knew existed, but it is delicious. When I created my own peanut butter sandwich, they used White Chocolate Peanut Butter, which was also tasty.

peanut butter banana split

with caviar and champagne.. fancy

starry night

the king - bacon, banana, honey

make your own sandwich...

don't forget the toppings!

Bagged peanut butter jars waiting to be handed out

the mexican suitcase

Currently, the International Center of Photography, in New York, is displaying The Mexican Suitcase exhibit. The exhibit contains photographs, with negatives included, of the Spanish Civil War, taken by three young photographers - Robert Capa, Gerda Taro, and Chim. After the war ended in 1939, the negatives had been passed on from person to person in order to keep them protected, but then went missing for almost 70 years before turning up in Mexico in 2007.
 


According to the exhibit, these three photographers "laid the foundation for modern war photography." The photographs include shots from the battle field, images of soldiers, citizens, and political figures, and insight into how the war affected various parts of the country. The images are really fantastic; you almost feel like you were there, especially since almost all of them are candid and many capture what was going on behind the scenes. Many of these photographs had been published in national and international magazines during the war, sometimes with credit given, but many times lacking a photographer's name. Now that these negatives have been discovered, photos are matched up and credit can now be given to one of these three photographers.

One of the things I found most intriguing were the boxes of negatives themselves. Like a box of chocolates, the rolls of negatives are separated, each in their own little square, inside the box. On the inside of the lid, the photographers drew their own squares to match those holding the negatives, and hand wrote what each roll was of. The detail and time that goes into a project like that, compared to the way we quickly categorize our photographs today, is amazing. Not to mention the weight of lugging all those rolls around, rather than dumping them on your computer.

smokin' in the girls room

My first day in Spain was a long (but great) one. Most people like to get off an overnight international flight and wash off the plane smell before heading out for the day, exploring whatever foreign city they landed in. Not me. I like to drop my bags off without a shower, grab a quick cafe con leche, and go teach English. Which is exactly what I did when I landed in Madrid in December to visit Paul.

After an afternoon of speaking in slow English, stumbling over my Spanish, dancing as if there were ants in my pants or a bear on my head, coloring in and gluing Christmas ornaments to the paper tree, and meeting a ton of people (5 year olds and adults alike), I was already having a great time in Spain. After the school bell rang and we were all dismissed, the good times continued because a group of us went to happy hour and then bowling. Two of my favorite things. At this bowling alley, they even had men manually sending back the balls to you, like in Argentina. It's a dangerous job, but someone's gotta do it?

Before we knew it, it was 10pm and we were all bowled out and hungry. My body and mind were exhausted from the traveling and lack of sleep on the plane. Although I was having a great time, I couldn't wait to get some sleep. After grabbing dinner (which inspired one of these pizzas) we headed home, where I planned on passing out, as it was almost midnight, which is actually early on Madrid's watch. As I was organizing my things and pulling out my pajamas, Paul pointed out that it was my only Friday night in Spain, and maybe we should take advantage of it by going back out for a walk and seeing what was going on in the city? He was absolutely right, and I immediately agreed, putting my pajamas back down. Suddenly we both seemed to have a second wind as we walked out into the cold night air to see what was waiting in Madrid.

We walked and chatted for a long time, giving me a great opportunity to take in the city all lit up. I just followed Paul, as I clearly had no idea where I was going, and wouldn't have even known if he was lost and hiding it. After walking for at least 45 minutes we stopped into this super cute and cozy bar. Paul had been to the bar next door before and this one had caught his eye. We sat at a table in the window and ordered our drinks, but of course I had to go to the bathroom before I could get settled (me and my small bladder). I got up and asked one of the servers where the restrooms were, and he pointed to the door and explained to me that they were outside, to the right, and in the bar next door. Now, those who know me know how gullible I am, so although I was a bit skeptical, I thought it made a bit of sense because maybe the 2 bars were connected or owned by the same people or something along those lines.. plus, this kind of oddity would somehow be completely normal in Argentina. So I kindly thanked him and turned back to our table to tell Paul that the reason I'm walking back outside into the cold night is to use the bathroom at the bar next door, not because I was ditching him. And I would probably want to grab my jacket while I was at it.

"No no no!" the server laughed, before I had a chance to get back to the table. This bar actually had their own restrooms and they were right downstairs! Imagine that. Lesson learned: Spaniards have a sense of humor.

So I head downstairs to the women's restroom, without having to go outside first, and find one stall that is already occupied, so I wait. A couple minutes later, the woman emerges from the stall... with a lit cigarette in hand! My goodness, all I can think about is how did she possibly do all she had to do in there while smoking a cigarette. Plus the fact that it just seems extremely unhealthy.. even more so than smoking a cigarette in a "normal" setting.

I go back upstairs and obviously tell Paul both of these stories, who replies, "That's really funny. you should write a blog post about that."

cuba

For all us Americans who have been wanting to go to Cuba and haven't found the loophole yet, although some of you have, Cuba is coming to us this Spring. A taste of this Caribbean island will visit New York through a Cuban Arts Festival called ¡Si Cuba! Dancing, music, paintings, photography, film, and more, will give New Yorkers a taste of the lively culture of Cuba, while taking a step in the right direction of forming a positive relationship between the states and the island.

pizza pizza

I've made a couple of South American dishes in the past few weeks and meant to take pictures, but forgot. oops.

One night I made 2 different types of homemade empanadas - one with mushrooms and cheese, and one with ground turkey (in place of ground beef) complete with hard boiled egg and spices such as cumin. Good, but not as good as the place on the corner in San Telmo.

Another night I made a Colombian chicken, corn, and potato stew following this recipe. It is known as Ajiaco in Colombia, and although the stew I made was delicious (if I may say so myself) it did not live up to the Ajiaco my Colombian roommate in Buenos Aires made. She recently sent me her recipe, so that will have to wait for another cooking adventure.

Tonight, I didn't completely follow the South American theme, but I did remember to take pictures! Well, I guess they do eat a lot of pizza in Argentina, but that doesn't make it Argentine. Anyway, Trader Joe's $0.99 pizza dough was the foundation for the 3 different pies I made. I used garlic and herb dough for the plain pie, and whole wheat for the other two. They were all delicious, especially washed down with some Malbec ;) The brie and green apple pizza was inspired by a dinner eaten at a random Italian restaurant in Madrid, and I think it was my favorite one that came out of the oven tonight.

ready for the oven

half plain, half pepperoni

pesto, mushrooms, goat cheese

 

caramelized onion, green apple, brie

argentina in spain

A little Argentine ♥ in Madrid...



mate



cooking Argentine meat with love

   

alfajores



map, futbol, obelisk

Feliz Navidad

Decorating a paper Christmas tree with ornaments
created by the kindergarten class of an elementary school in Madrid...
not something I thought I'd be doing this holiday season, but happy I got to :)

HOW TO play dudo

Dudo, which translates as "I doubt," is a Latin version of America's Liar's Dice, and has similarities to the popular card game Bullsh*t.

It has been known to keep my friends and I up for hours in Argentina, as we each continued to try and earn the informal title of "Dudo Master."

"Ok, just one more game," was commonly heard as the time got later and later.

Fun, competitive, and addicting are three words that I associate with dudo. A game played with sets of 5 dice, and at minimum 3 players, the rules are rather simple. It's keeping your head in the game and learning the best strategies that are key.

I'm going to dudo you!

Each player starts with 5 dice, rolling one to see who has the highest and therefore goes first. Different colored sets make it easier to differentiate between each players' hand. Plus, they look pretty :)

1. Shake up your dice and bring them down to the table, concealing them with your hands so other players can't see.

2. Based on what dice you rolled, start by verbalizing your guess of how many dice of one number are on the table, at a minimum. For example: There are 6 players X 5 dice each = 30 dice on the table. If you rolled 3 fives, chances are there are more than 3 fives on the table total, so you may guess that there are at least 4 fives showing, between your hand and the other players'. You don't want to start too low (because you risk it coming back around to you when things are too high) or too high (because people will call dudo on you). 

3. The next player can guess the same or higher amount, but must go higher in the dice number. They make this guess based on what other people have called and what they rolled in their own hand. For example: If you guessed 5 fives, the player after you can guess 5 sixes, 5 aces (ones), or 6 of anything, 7 of anything, 8 of anything, etc.

Dudo!

4. If at any point you believe that someone has made an incorrect guess, you call "dudo!" At this point, everyone must lift their hands and show their dice. If there are at least the number on the table that the other player called, you lose a dice. If there are less than they called, they lose a dice. Lost dice go in the middle of the table, so players can glance down and calculate the odds based on how many dice are left under people's hands.

5. The last person with any dice is the winner AKA Dudo Master. 

Smack talking, lying, and laughing are highly encouraged.

spanish is intriguing

"We speak Spanish.. mainly because it's the language that we speak."

Jaja.. great commercial for Kahlua, using Spanish, an "intriguing language..."

¡futbol!

Argentines eat, sleep, and breath futbol. Next to meat, which is a staple in the Argentine diet, it's safe to say that futbol is a top passion throughout the country. So, you can imagine how amazing it was to be in Argentina when the 2010 World Cup came around, especially with the national team being a participant again.

Argentina VS Spain through the window

Going to a game during the regular futbol season is excitement enough. Stadiums and the surrounding businesses don't even serve alcohol before, during, or after the match because fans are drunk enough on their love for the game. Even little kids are yelling obscenities at the other team's fans, everyone knows all of the chants, and no one stays seated. Fans are dedicated to their team from the time they are born. Futbol in Argentina is like a religion.

World Cup in Plaza San Martin

During the World Cup, futbol was everywhere everyday. Argentina made it to the quarter finals in the last World Cup, 2006, and with Diego Maradona, the controversial yet arguably best futbol player of all time, in the coaching position for 2010, expectations and excitement were high. Every TV you passed had a game on, evident by the unavoidable sound of vuvuzelas, and many bars set up big screens to show all the matches. A big screen was set up in Plaza San Martin to enjoy the tournament outside. Bars, restaurants, and cafes were packed with fans, locals and foreigners alike, to catch all 64 games of the tournament. Fans, including my friends and I, staked out spots throughout the city early, as to get good seats. Bosses gave their employees a break in the middle of the day so as not to miss any of the action. The buzz of futbol filled the air for the month of the World Cup and I was swept up right along with it.

Futbol & Meat

Unfortunately, Argentina didn't make it past the quarter finals this year, but their love of the game has never been more apparent... and there's always 2014. ¡Vamos Argentina!

catching up

Enjoying my last few months in Argentina, and readjusting and taking in everything I missed while away from the states, I have obviously slacked on One Way to BA.

Since my last post I spent about 3 more amazing months in Buenos Aires, complete with more steak, Malbec, cafes, asados, San Telmo market, teaching ESL, alfajores, helado, dudo, and trips to Brazil and Bariloche. Clearly I was too busy to write :)

Since I returned to the states in June, I have been based in New Jersey, reconnecting with friends and family, job searching, volunteering, enjoying American culture while at the same time missing Argentina, and traveling up and down the East Coast as well as to Bermuda, California, and Spain.

Falling back into the routines of home has been very easy and comforting, and I love living close to family and old friends again. However, even 6 months after leaving, I still find myself thinking about life and culture in Argentina, missing the feel of it all. When you have been fortunate enough to live in such an amazing place, creating unique memories that will last a lifetime, it is hard not to think about that time. Argentina will always hold a special place in my heart :)

helena

Yet another cute cafe in Buenos Aires. Surprising, right? Delicious food, refreshing mint lemonade, and an undeniably cute and quaint atmosphere make up Helena, one of my favorite places to spend the afternoon doing work.

Helena is located in Palermo Soho at Nicaragua 4816. Open Tuesday - Saturday from 9am - 9pm, Sunday from 10:30am - 7:30pm.

housewarming gift

Friends who recently purchased an apartment in BA received this delicious meat from a friend and cooked it up for dinner. Only in Argentina would a big hunk of meat be a housewarming gift.

good news concerning health care and expats

How does the new health care overhaul affect us expats living abroad?

Thanks for the link, amigo.

what to do if you run out of monedas

MALBA exhibit - attempting to catch the bus

mother nature, give us a break por favor

Twice in one week Buenos Aires was underwater due to torrential downpour. The first night, Monday the 15th, my friends and I were unfortunate enough to be out to dinner during the storm and had to walk home in the flood, which included wading through the streets of Palermo in water up to our thighs, barefoot, garbage floating by, power outages, a rope to help cross Santa Fe Av., ruined shoes, and firemen holding my hand. A 30 minute walk took 1.5 hours. Thank goodness the restaurant had given us that free champagne to go ;)

Last night a storm hit again, but luckily we were all at home this time. Santa Fe & Humboldt, a couple blocks from me, got hit bad enough to have a boat helping people through the flood. Other residents were literally swimming home, and stores and homes were flooded with water pouring in from the street. Two people unfortunately died during the storm after being electrocuted in the subway.

Although Monday night we all made it home safe and it turned into a fun and ridiculous experience that we'll never forget, getting caught in that once is enough... and having the city flooded twice in one week is more than enough... it will probably be awhile before the residents of BA will be able to make it through a storm without fearing another flood.

All pictures from Buenos Aires Herald.

ñoquis del 29

Coming from an Italian family, some sort of pasta is almost always present at family get togethers. This includes gnocchis, little pasta pillows made from potatoes and flour. Every Christmas, my Grandpa made gnocchis from scratch for our family of 40. So, you can imagine my excitement when I learned of Gnocchi Day, a tradition here in Argentina.

Gnocchis (ñoquis in Spanish) are Italian, but made their way to Argentina with the Italian immigrants and their heavy influence on Argentina. The 29th of every month, restaurants serve gnocchi specials, pasta shops advertise their gnocchis, and families make them at home for dinner. This tradition comes from when payday was the 30th or the 31st so by the end of the month you had little food left in your pantry, and little money left in your wallet. Gnocchis were the obvious soluton, since the main ingredients are potato and flour, both which are very inexpensive. Seasoned grandmothers can easily and quickly throw this dish together for their family. They are made by mashing boiled potatoes, mixing them with flour, maybe a little egg and salt, rolling them out into long snakes and cutting them into little pieces. They're cooked in boiling water like other pastas. Here, variations of the recipe are popular, such as pumpkin or spinach.

As the 29th grew closer this month, I decided to have friends over to celebrate Gnocchi day. Having never made these before (does making the fork imprint after my grandpa has already done all the hard work count?) and promising a dozen friends gnocchis, I was taking a big risk. With my grandpa's recipe in hand, I began the long process.

On the 27th I boiled 1.5 kilos (a little over 3 pounds) of potatoes, peeled them, and mashed them with a fork. I covered them and put them in the fridge overnight.

The next morning I took out the potatoes, flour, an egg, and some salt. I had been dreading this next step ever since I decided to go on this cooking adventure. Today I had to mix the flour and potatoes. Too much flour and the gnocchis would be too heavy. Too little and they would fall apart in the water. I had no scale (the recipe calls for 45% of the weight of the potatoes) so had to do it by feel. I threw in some flour, an egg, and some salt, and started kneading it all together by hand. A common mistake is to keep adding and keep adding flour. But I kept adding and I kept adding. The dough was really sticky and I didn't think that felt right, but finally it seemed to reach the "right" consistency.. not that I really knew what that was supposed to be! Next, I took a handful of dough at a time and rolled it out on a floured surface, made some fork imprints, and cut it into little pieces. I transferred the fragile pieces to a floured baking sheet, and stuck them in the freezer. Between making such a big batch and it being my first time, this whole process took me a few hours. My back began aching and my wrist hurt for the rest of the day, but finally I rolled out the last bit of dough.

With all the gnoccis in the freezer until dinner time the next night, I had no idea if they were going to come out right. Would there be too much flour, causing them to sink in my guest's stomach? Or too little flour and they would fall apart in the water? The next night, with hungry guests standing by, and with my sauce and meatballs bubbling away, I boiled salted water and dropped the first batch of gnocchis in. As the recipe said, when they float they are done. I drained them, poured homemade sauce over them, called my guests in, and waited for the first bite.

Success! Everyone loved them. Or I just have really nice friends! Either way, I was proud of my cooking endeavor, although next month when the 29th rolls around I'll be going to a restaurant to celebrate!

tigre

A quick and cheap train ride away lies Tigre, a small town on the delta and an easy escape from the hustle and bustle of the city. Opt for the Tren de La Costa on the way there for a more scenic route, at AR$12 one way. On the way back take the Mitre Line, which ends in Retiro, for AR$0.80 one way.

Once in Tigre enjoy a walk along the river, browse the market, and stop for lunch. Definitely take a tour of the Delta (one of the little stands along the river offering tours for about AR$22 per person is perfectly safe, and a better deal than the tourist agencies which charge almost double that) where in a 1hr boat ride you will learn about the history of the town and see how people live on the water, with boats being used for supermarkets and school buses.

If there's time, spend a few hours in Parque de la Costa, the amusement park of Buenos Aires. South America doesn't really "do" amusement parks, so don't expect 6 Flags, Busch Gardens, or any of the other usual suspects we have in the states. Ticket prices vary depending on the day and what is included, but range from AR$25 - AR$80 per person. Once inside everything is fairly close together, despite the deceiving map, making the park look much bigger than it is. For such a small park, there are some good rides, including 2 upside down rollercoasters, a log flume, a wooden rollercoaster, swings, and some extreme sports you pay extra for. Food options don't go much further than burgers, hot dogs, fries, and ice cream. Overall it's clean, fun, and a good value.

Parque de la Costa is open Tuesday - Sunday from 11am - 9pm. Tren de La Costa station is located on Av. Maipu 2300, in Olivos.