Bright Lights, Big City

With much anticipation on my end, I give you some snapshots of my experience in New York City.  It was my first time visiting the Big Apple, Concrete Jungle, The Empire City, The City That Never Sleeps-- you get it.  I was not disappointed, as it lived up to the hype.  As soon as we landed in Newark, I was excited to experience the many things that I have seen on television and heard in music.  To be truly corny, my little town blues indeed melted away, and I wanted to be a part of it, New York, New York.  Frank knew what he was talking about. 

We were in NYC to witness and celebrate the wedding of our friends in Central Park.  We went a few days early to ensure we had enough time to visit friends and family and to sightsee. Thank you very much to those friends and family that carved out time to hang out with us.  We stayed in a studio apartment in Chinatown that we rented through AirBNB.  By going this route, we were able to focus more on the food than were we rested our head.  At a later date, I will blog about my week of gastronomy. Hold me to it.

To spare you the minute details of our trip, my favorite non-food experiences of my trip were:

1) Walking across the Brooklyn Bridge at sunset. This is a must-do. The mile plus walk is definitely worth the views.

2) Visiting the 9/11 Memorial. There are no words for what they have done here. It's remarkable.

3) Eating a cookie from Levain Bakery on the Great Lawn at Central Park. Hands down, the best chocolate chip cookie ever. Everyone at the park was jealous of this cookie. Is cookie a food? Does it belong on this list?

4) Walking through the DUMBO Arts Festival. DUMBO = Down Under Manhattan Bridge Overpass.  A lot of areas you hear about in NYC are just acronyms. (Soho, TriBeCa, NoLiTa to name a few)

5) Walking along the High Line (an abandoned rail station that was converted to a walking park)

6) Subway Hopping. We refused to ride a taxi-- if you want to do NYC, you gotta do it right. (plus I had the fortune of having my girlfriend navigate us, as she was an intern in the city before moving back to Kentucky).

7) Visiting the Flatiron District

8) and Eating....sorry, I lied, but the food was amazing.  It was a great melting pot of cultures, which was reflected with its culinary cuisines. 

9) Going to Hoboken to see the New York skyline across the Hudson River and to eat the biggest pizza slice in Jersey.

10) Making a friend drive us through Brooklyn (Williamsburg, Crown Heights, and Bed-Stuy).

I'm told that snowflakes, fingerprints, and visits to NYC are all unique-- there's not one that's the same at any given time.  I'm looking forward to experiencing more sights, sounds, tastes, and yes, even smells, for the next time I visit this great city. It won't be until next June, but I hope the anticipation and waiting goes by like a New York minute.

Little Italy

DUMBO

Manhattan Bridge (from Dumbo)

Chess Players at Union Square

Chinatown

Empire State Building from Hoboken, NJ

The Mall at Central Park

Bethesda Terrace

9/11 Memorial

Times Square

Brooklyn Bridge

Manhattan Bridge

Gansevoort (Meatpacking District) 

MTA Subway

Flatiron District

Hot Fun in the Summertime

Tonight, I wanted to highlight some pictures that I have taken over the summer that have not yet made it to the blog site.  As fall approaches, I can't help to reflect upon the summer of 2013 thus far.  Between Chicago, my birthday, nice morning runs, spending time with family and friends, and enjoying the nice summer weather, I honestly cannot complain.  A big highlight for me was receiving Honorable Mention at the Kentucky State Fair for the final picture on this post tonight.  It was the first time that I have ever received any award/recognition for any of my pictures.  A big thank you to all of those that have believed in me and continue to keep pushing me with my photography.  

Chicago - Legends of the Summer

Some trips are memorable; others can be forgettable.  Then you have the trips that are simply legendary.  This trip to Chicago was every bit of that.  It was not our first trip to Chicago, so we did not feel compelled to visit all the touristy spots in a limited amount of time.  This time around, we took more of a leisurely pace around the city and really, truly enjoyed Chicago.  

We began with trip with taking the red-eye MegaBus from Louisville.  The double decker bus left at 4am and made a boarding stop in Indianapolis and a rest stop in Nowheresville, Indiana. I fell fast asleep as the bus pulled away from 5th and Liberty of downtown Louisville and awoke six hours later as the bus eased up the Chicago Skyway and pulled into Union Station.

My girlfriend made arrangements for us to stay with her close relatives in the north-central part of Chicago, and we were in walking distance of Wrigley Field.  I felt like a little kid again walking around Clark, Addison, and Sheffield Avenues-- all the streets I remember Harry Carry talking about when any of the Cubbies would hit home runs onto those streets.  

The first place her cousin took us to was the Salt & Pepper Diner where I had a very tasty corn beef hash and a milkshake. Live a little, right?

Later that day, we took the L to Millennium Park, our favorite spot in the city-- the people, the skyline, and most importantly the Cloud Gate. It's a challenge each time to find different ways to capture "The Bean", and it's one I delightfully accept.

All the walking and adrenaline worked up an appetite for us again, so we met up with a long time family friend who took us to an amazing Thai restaurant in the South Loop District called Opart Thai House.  To date, this was some of the best Thai food that I have ever had.  Their "medium spicy" had more of a kick to it than all other "medium spicy" that I've had but the food was amazing so I didn't mind having to wipe my runny nose in between bites. Between the three of us, we had great conversation, lots of catching up, and sampling of each others dishes.  We started with Yum Nua-- a Thai beef salad with onions, cilantro, and lime dressing. For our main entrees, we ordered Peanut Sauce Lovers with shrimp, Pad Thai with shrimp, and Red Curry with chicken.  

When we said our goodbyes, I convinced my girlfriend to go to Millennium Park again to take night pictures of the Cloud Gate.  We happened along a free symphony concert in Grant Park.  It was great to see multitudes of people on the giant lawn enjoying the stylings of an orchestra and the company of their loved ones on a pleasant summer night under the stars. 

The next day, we celebrated my girlfriend's great-aunt's birthday.  For the special occasion, we feasted at Little Quiapo Restaurant-- a Filipino buffet complete with a whole, roasted pig (lechon) and a Jeepney in the middle of the restaurant. They served so much food, and I ate all the pancit and lumpia to my hearts desire, and even made room for some halo-halo for dessert. Her great-aunt had the right idea; when I'm an octogenarian, this would be the way I would spend every birthday.

Afterwards, her cousin drove us to the Shedd aquarium where we got to view the jellyfish exhibit. It's a small exhibit but a main attraction. Everyone walking through was entranced; my girlfriend said jellyfish were like the ocean's lava lamps. One really could spend hours watching them swim. Another cool part of Shedd was the coral reef exhibit on the lower level. The exhibit featured the Philippine people and how the fishermen there coexist with the coral reef, and my girlfriend was excited that part of her culture was on display for all aquarium patrons to see. 

After Shedd, we had plans to walk the lake shore to Navy Pier, but it looked like a storm was approaching.  We detoured to Buckingham Fountain and then to Garrett's popcorn before even a drop of rain fell. Pretty good alternative for Navy Pier, if you ask me. I love popcorn.

We then met up with my girlfriend's cousin again because she knew of a place in Little Italy where we could get some good, authentic Chicago Italian Beef sandwich. Al's Beef came highly recommended but was closed on Sundays, so we jumped to dessert quickly by going across the street to Mario's Italian Lemonade stand where we got Mango, Watermelon, and Cantaloupe Italian Lemonade.  It was a great neighborhood stand, and it was a prime location for people watching. You could really tell that this is where locals go for a summer treat. After those sweet refreshments, we went to a restaurant called 90 miles Cuban Cafe, which was featured on Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives. The ambiance was great, and the food was even better. Both places were such a hit that we left forgetting the fact that we wanted to try an Italian Beef sandwich.

On our third day in Chicago, we went to Chinatown to eat dim sum. After we ate all the dumplings we could, we treated ourselves to fresh fruit smoothies and bubble tea at Joy Yee. 

Later that evening was the highlight of our trip- the Jay-Z's and Justin Timberlake's Legends of the Summer Tour at Soldier Field.  My girlfriend had been a fan of both artists for years and years, and so have I, and the concert was epic to say the least. There were over 50,000 people enjoying the show. Once they were on stage, it was over two hours of nothing but singing and dancing. It was an awesome experience witnessing the collaboration of two established musicians giving solid performances. It was the best way to spend our last night in the city.

Before we caught a plane back home, we had brunch at Uncle Mike's Place. They serve a savory breakfast with Filipino chorizo called longanisa and cured meat called tocino. I ordered a combo breakfast that also included a marinated skirt steak with pico de gallo and Filipino-style garlic fried rice. The chef in the back also gave us complimentary food to sample, which I couldn't turn down. This place had charm, as well as a fascinating display of Spam and its variety of flavors. So many locals eat here, and I'd definitely go back. 

It was a great conclusion to a wonderful trip that was absolutely legendary. Many thanks to Carina! Chicago was a great way to punctuate the end of summer. We can't wait to visit again. 

Chicago City Scape

Cloud Gate

Chicago City Scape from Ping Tom Memorial Park

Mural at 90 Miles Cuban Cafe 

Chicago Skyline 

Shedd Aquarium

Jellyfish Exhibit at Shedd Aquarium

Jellyfish Exhibit at Shedd Aquarium

Concert at Grant Park

Mario's Italian Lemonade

Mango Italian Lemonade from Mario's Italian Lemonade

Alaskan Cruise, Part II

Two months ago, I posted a blog entry about my Alaskan cruise in May (http://solomonjparker.blogspot.com/2013/06/juneau-what-i-mean.html).  That post was about our time in Juneau, the capital of Alaska.  The pictures below are from the remainder of our Alaskan cruise.

After leaving Juneau, the next stop on the cruise ship was Glacier Bay National Park.  A park ranger boarded the ship and provided information about the park, history of glaciers, wildlife, and names of glaciers.  We went onto the deck of the ship to view the glaciers.  Glacier Bay was a wonderful site.  We were able to see pieces of the glaciers breaking off into the water.

The next stop was Sitka.  Sitka was the original capital of Alaska.  Located on Baranov Island, there are no roads that lead to other parts of Alaska.  We found out by talking with locals that people get to Sitka via plane or boat.  From cruise ship,  we tethered a small vessel to the town.  We did not spend very long in Sitka, but it was very evident that this town has a rich history of culture (Russian influence) and religion (Orthodox Christianity) as evidence with St. Michael's Cathedral.  This church was the first Orthodox Church in the Western Hemisphere and built prior to Alaska's statehood.  A fire consumed the church in 1966 and much of the original structure, reliefs, books, etc were lost.  While we were touring the church, one of the patrons was present with his wife.  I overheard him talking with a tourist about being a child and running inside the burning the church trying to save various artifacts.

From Sitka, we went to Ketchikan.  Ketchikan was one of my favorite places of the cruise other than Victoria, Canada.  We did not take any of the tours at Ketchikan, but walked around the town.  Ketchikan was absolutely beautiful with the various totem poles, snow capped mountains, and buildings.  I only wish that we were able to see the salmon swimming up the creeks (the season had not started yet).  I can say that my life was forever changed in Ketchikan.  I finally tried crab legs.

Creek Street, Ketchikan, AK 

Sitka, AK 

Sitka, AK

Sunset over the Pacific

Volcano at Sitka, AK

Sitka, AK 

Glacier Bay

Glacier Bay 

Ketchikan, AK  

Snow Crab at Alaskan Fish House, Ketchikan, AK

Justice for Trayvon

There is probably nothing more that I can say that no one else has already said about the decision in the Trayvon Martin case.  On Saturday night, like most people, I became enraged with emotions, and I hit the social media networks to express my feelings.

"I'm stunned. Are we in 1913? How can there be no retribution for a life lost, esp when innocent people get time for less. #TrayvonMartin"

This decision is very close to home, especially being a young African-American male.  I can't think of the number of times that I walked through a predominantly "white" neighborhood when I was around Trayvon's age.  Like him, I had no intent of causing harm to anyone but merely was navigating through the neighborhood to make it to home or to football practice or to school.  I am just blessed that I was never caught in any wrong-place-wrong-time situation; it is scary to think that could have been a possibility at any given point and time then.

The not guilty verdict also brings race relations back to the forefront of conversation.  We should be reminded that 1965 was not that long ago.  Ironically, the Supreme Court voted down the Voted Rights Act because it was determined that society has moved beyond the times of yesteryear when it comes to race relations and segregation.

Discussing race relations is only the start for reconciliation of the wounds reopened by the Trayvon Martin decision.  A few of my friends posted their comments on social media networks over the past week. One of them is http://huestonlifechronicles.blogspot.com/2013/07/a-mothers-tears.html.  Their comments and remarks facilitated an hour-long conversation with my girlfriend talking about discrimination, my experiences with racism, my approach to racism, and America in general.  It was great talking with my girlfriend about those topics; both of us minorities of different ethnicities and varying experiences of blatant racism but similar sentiments allowing us to relate to one another.

At the end of the day, there is still the life of a child, the brevity of, that is mourned.  A family has lost their son, brother, nephew, cousin, and friend.  

Yesterday, my girlfriend and I attended a memorial for Trayvon Martin at Waterfront Park in Louisville, KY organized by community activist Christopher 2X. The event was also a peaceful protest begging for justice for this life lost.  Participants were asked to bring black balloons in memory of Trayvon.  To me, the black balloons symbolized the darkness, mourning, anger, and bitterness for what is perceived as the injustice in this case, and this was apparent on the faces of those tightly gripping their balloons.  Christopher 2X said some poignant words asking that anger be turned into something productive for the children and for the future before coordinating the release of the balloons. As soon as everyone loosened their grips and watched their emotions float up the the heavens, there was the united feeling of hope and an audible, resounding sigh the crowd let out-- a community's first step of working towards healing. 

Ashley and Matthew - Lovers and Friends

It's funny how people meet. They say that the degree of separation between you and your soulmate is most often a mutual friend. While I don't know who "they" are specifically , I do think their bold statement holds some credibility. Me-- for example, I'm in a great relationship with someone I met through a college friend [thanks, Sean!]. In saying this, I don't suggest for you to scour through the friends list of everyone in your social network and start poking or following in search of love.  But I digress.

My truly favorite example of a chance meeting is Ashley and Matthew.  In 2008, she lived in southeastern Kentucky and he in west central Ohio.  Call it fate, kismet, destiny, or AOL Instant Messenger, but they discovered that they not only shared a mutual friend but a penchant for watching college sports and B-rated horror movies. They fell in love with each other regardless of the distance and time between them, and I'm very honored to have had the opportunity to take their photos last month in celebration of their recent engagement. 

Ashley and Matthew drove nearly two and a half hours for this photoshoot with us, and despite the torrential rains on this June evening, we were able to make the most of it through Central Park, the Waterfront, and even inside our home in Old Louisville.

Congratulations to our dear friends, Ashley and Matthew! We can't wait to wobble at your wedding!