Michela illesa...

Singapore...

2010-03-23T02:03:00.005+01:00

Is so clean and pretty and efficient-- like Vienna, but nothing like Vienna. Said to be the only shopping mall with a seat at the UN, Singapore can now add Universal Studios Theme Park to its attractions. For us, a walk to the iconic Merlion was more attractive. Raph's dance group was truly honoured here, with the president of Singapore in attendence, they gave a feature-length performance in the beautiful Jubilee Hall Theatre, and gave all the money for the tickets to a local Hindu Temple. Between temple visits and performances, Raph and I managed to squeeze in a harp-accompanied High Tea at Raffles, famed to be one of the best in the world. Singapore directly following India is a pretty drastic, though common, juxtapostion;)

See http://picasaweb.google.com/raphandmichela for pictures

India

2010-03-21T05:41:00.004+01:00

I believe my friend said it best: "India is an assault on your senses". Your vision is taken with bright colors and bright sunlight, your nose consumed by offensive odours of defecation and enticing odours of spices and flowers, your lungs infiltrated with dirt and dust, your taste buds pillaged by hot and spicy flavours, your feelings lost in empathy and disgust and most of all, your ears are attacked by horns, bells, hammering and yelling. I get why people say Delhi is a little bit like New York. A little bit.

The contradictions bare themselves openly here. While is socially unacceptable for men and women to hold hands, the Kajaraho temples are covered in depictions I have not yet seen in the raciest German magazines. Though it may be considered one of the most unhygenic places on Earth, no one is interested in using silverware. Animals are worshiped and neglected (or exploited). The most stunning Islamic architecture rises out of absolute rubble and tent towns full of Hindus. Everyone wants to be your friend but few really trust you. I was stared at openly like an unbelievable museum piece, and yet the following still occurred: A man who had never seen me before of obvious low stature and little English was counting his money behind me, and I put out my hand and asked, "Oh, is that for me? Thank you!" And without missing a beat, he replied, "Yes, it's for you, here," and handed me his money without batting an eyelid. He was so attuned to my wave-length, so in on my personal joke, that he trusted completely the handing over his money to me, a complete stranger. I resisted the urge to take the money and run, just to see what he would do.

Of course, touring as part of Raph's dance company, I had my fair share of cultural performances, temple visits and crazy Western "I-will-never-find-these-prices-anywhere-else" shopping sprees. I did not experience an overhelmence from poverty and begging that perhaps I had been over prepared for.

See http://picasaweb.google.com/raphandmichela for pictures

All these Caribbean Mouths…

2010-02-25T03:15:00.005+01:00

Ok, Bocas del Toro gets its own entry. We want to move here. Seriously, Raph is checking out real estate as I write, and trying to convince me that buying an island is a good investment. The first night we flew into this small Hispanic Caribbean town, a group of local men were in full Carnival form, sporting Afro-Latino rhythms on various percussive objects while dancing to the beat—they were fantastic. Then we checked in to a gorgeous “budget” accommodation, complete with orthopedic beds, hardwood floors and ceilings, wireless, hammocks, and al a carte breakfast, and tasted the owner’s home-made pizza downstairs. We then headed to town to check out the local wares and took in the Caribbean sea while tasting the “killing me man” rum at Lili’s waterfront Cafe.

The following day we perplexed the locals by walking the 5 hrs across the Island of Colon to Bocas del Drago, instead of taking the $2.50 bus. On the other side, was the prettiest little stretch of abandoned, palm-dotted, ice-cream ad snorkeling beach you could ask for. I found a nice hammock to fall out of while Raph snorkeled up a storm. Finished up the evening with some brilliantly cheap Mediterranean food and Raph drank his Pina Colada out of an actual pineapple, and I became addicted to something called a Vanilla Avalanche (Baileys, Frangelico, Vanilla Ice Cream...you get the idea).

Day three we took a snorkeling boat tour to 2 of the better snorkeling spots, spotted some Dolphins and actual Sloths (did not know they existed until now…) and then frolicked upon Red Frog Beach on Bastimentos Island. Red Frog is quite similar to Australia’s Northern Beaches, except for these gorgeous tiny red frogs, which could pass for painted china , which the local kids collect in order to show you for tips. We then moved our digs to a retreat on Bluff Beach—“off the grid” on endless miles of (mostly unswimmable but) gorgeous beach. The owners gave us a bottle of Chilean champagne as Congratulations and we met this great and interesting family from the US/Canada who constantly insisted on inviting us to dinner, asking us a million questions and practicing their brilliant language skills on us.

Day four we biked back into town (45 mins one way) to luncheon on the waterfront again at Buena Vista, where the local organic chocolate farm docks its desserts. Then a leisurely bike to the second hand books store, whose owner gave me a Cajun dictionary for free, and when asked for directions, claimed that no one looking for the Bocas Butterfly Farm has ever returned…we gave up searching quickly and headed back to our lovely adopted family to share our bottle of champagne.

Day five Raph went kayaking, while I lucked out with the best and cheapest private yoga class ever, followed by a massage, and a facial. We both got a taste of the Valentine’s Day chocolate contest entries before running off to the airport (5 min walk from town) to catch our plane back to Panama City. Finally, the honey part of the moon!!!

Panamanian Girl

2010-02-20T09:26:00.007+01:00

Flushing toilets, running water, hot water, U.S. products, insane Carnivale costumes, and everyone's bodyshape looks like mine-- I must be in Panama! Am finally off antibiotics, and feeling fully recovered in the Panama heat! We our staying with my lovely Aunt Carmen, who has already seen to it that we visited The Panama Canal (at Miraflores locks), The Panama Canal Museum, Ft. Clayton (where my father was born), The Panama Viejo Ruins, Casco Viejo, Mis Pueblitos (a collection of re-enactment villages consisting of the Spanish, Jamaican and Indigenous villages around Panama), and a number of family reunions held everywhere from local pubs to top brunch clubs! It's nice to know you like your family...and we all look like each other-- freaky. Carmen also took us to "Pelyhe's Place", her sprawling beach home in Santa Clara, and I got to see where Margot Fonteyn lived with her Panamanian husband!!! On Wednesday we are heading to the the Carribbean archipelgo, Bocas del Toro, to see the most famous beaches, wildlife and jungle islands Panama has to offer. It is one of the few times Raph and I will be alone on this trip and it intersects with both Valentine's Day and main Carnivale days (South America's excuse to party 24/7)!

Good-bye Peru!

2010-02-08T22:11:00.008+01:00

For those who have not heard, the final two weeks in Peru were difficult to say the least. First, the floods started and our running water stopped. Then, a state of emergency was declared in Cuzco, with 2,500 some tourists trapped at Macchu Picchu (where we were headed on the Inca trail that weekend) and several dead, homes & crops throughout Cuzco destroyed, and so on. Needless to say, we were all disappointed that we would not be seeing Macchu Picchu, (as all has been closed down for 2 months), but extremely grateful we were not among the above-mentioned.

Then, due to the general disease frequency and lack of hygiene in Cuzco exacerbated by the floods, plus our contact in our volunteer work, I managed to contract a lung infection, a urinary tract infection, giardia and salmonella all at once! So instead of my first time viewing the ancient Inca mecca, I experienced my first "third world" hospitalization and IV drip. No, it was a really nice traveller's clinic, and the doctor spoke English and let Raph sleep in the room with me:)

Good-bye to Peru was very bitter-sweet: part of me couldn't wait to get out of there, but saying good-bye to the kids (oh yeah, and you guys Tom, Linds, Helena, Cindy & Virginia) and the thank-you ceremony they gave us (flowers, singing, every single one hugged us several times over) was touching to say the least.

Centre of the Incan Empire

2010-01-20T00:12:00.001+01:00

Our first two weeks in Cuzco have flown by. Within hours of landing I felt the effects of altitude sickness and after throwing up my beautiful welcome lunch they called the doctor in to confirm that it was my oxygen levels and not something else. Now washing and cooking everything in boiling water, our little electric teapot is now our new best friend. We are staying in a little known suburb (even by the taxi drivers) called La Rapa. Every morning, we take the van 30 mins upward to the community of Puma Marca, where some 100 filthy but gorgeous kids await us. So far, I have been teaching English, Computer classes and P.E. (mostly dancing).

We have also sanded and painted what will be a new classroom and a cafeteria, and worked on a self-sustaining vege garden for the school. Evenings we have Spanish classes, Peruvian cooking classes and home visits with the local social worker. On my last home visit, we helped dig a trench and put in pipes so a local woman and her son could access running water. Despite my best efforts (such as donning a plastic poncho), I return every evening covered in dirt and mud, but to the breathtaking surroundings of the Andes.

We squeezed in tours of the Sacred Valley, Sachsaywuman, Pusaq, and overwhelming markets and pan-pipe performances on the weekend as a warm-up for Macchu Piccu and the Inca Trail. Been too tired to go out and salsa in the evenings, but that is next on the list.

La, la, la Lima Beans...

2010-01-20T00:06:00.002+01:00

07-08.01.2010

Lima airport is a bit of a mess, but we were soon whisked away to a nice hotel on the water, aptly named “El Faro” (the lighthouse). After a sleep and receiving 2 bread rolls for breakfast, we walked along the parks overlooking the beach to Miraflores Shopping Centre, which is pretty indistinguishable from a Western shopping mall (and its prices). Bought some comfortable walking shoes, and had lunch over-looking the beach. The painted cows that have been traveling the world now dot the Lima parks, including the Parque D’Amor which also houses a mosaic wall reminiscent of Barcelona and a giant sculpture, “The Kiss”, not remotely reminiscent of Klimt.

Then a 4 hour city tour of Lima, which included an archeological adobe brick site, the main squares celebrating the Argentine and Venezualan generals who “liberated” Peru, Christopher Columbus, and the Franciscan and Dominican branches of the Catholic church (including the catacombs), a Pre-Columbian tribal artifact museum (some as old as 1000-200 B.C.), and the famous Lima wooden balconies. We are told the weather is in a permanent gray, cloudy, feels-like-its-going-to-rain-but-doesnt state, apparently due to the Andes, hence the wooden and bright coloured structures here. The architecture is stunning really, and reminds me of Brussels-- if it weren’t for the fact that I suddenly feel very tall, clearly afflicted with a skin pigmentation disorder and fully convinced of the need to buy “worry people”, I could very easily believe I was in Europe.

I wanna be a part of B.A.:

2010-01-08T12:36:00.007+01:00

Buenos Aires, Big Flower?

04.01.2010

It's also harbourside city, but that’s where any similarity to Sydney ends. For me, Buenos Aires is all New York: the extra layer of humidity and grime you carry home with you, the garbage on the streets, the people too busy to notice (except for the ones going through the garbage), and the atmosphere and soul that other cities so completely lack.

On the taxi drive from the airport, we passed tenement block after tenement block-- run down, dilapidated, free-standing lego towers interspersed with fields of unbridled horses. Our hotel was central and nice, though the staff were hardly bilingual as advertised! Hard to believe I am able to understand so much, especially when I keep thinking “oh shit, oh shit” while people are talking to me as I realize we are relying completely on my Spanish.

I soon gave up on trying to avoid meat, as this is the cattle capital of the world, and the best beef I have ever tasted I must say. We tasted some empanadas (carne picante, cheese tomato & parsley, ham and Roquefort) and promptly fell alseep. Then wandered to San Telmo, past the Casa Rosada and Plaza de 25 de Mayo. Dinner at a parrilla (grill), La Brigado, included Argentina’s style of smazeny syr or mozzarella sticks, truly excellent steak that lived up to its reputation every bit, Malbec wine, which Raph enjoyed (and which even smelled less distasteful than other wines to me), “deliciously antisocial” garlic fries and greens. Dessert at Nonna Bianca’s banana split with dulce de leche ice cream, yummmm...no wonder everyone here is so, ahem, robust.

05.01.2010

9am city tour included el Caminito, the “Charles Bridge” of Buenos Aires, with paintings, photographs, sculptures, and photos with tango dancers for sale. Apparently portenos (locals) have only 2 passions: football and tango. CD of tour, tango CD, with the famous Carlos Gardel (whom three women in 3 different countries tried to commit suicide over after hearing of the famous singer’s death), and superimposed photo of Raph and I as tango dancers. This time by day, 25 de Mayo Square where all the protests are held (and riot police were gearing up) and the Casa Rosada where Eva Peron delivered her famous "Don't Cry For Me Argentina".

Thank goodness this is a 24 hour city, as we seem to continually fall into an inescapable sleep around 1pm, and don’t wake up again until 9pm…

Dinner at La Bolsa with a professional tango singer and two professional dancers. Even though I avoided meat this time, the portions here are huge! Twice what they ought to be according to Raphael, and 4x what they ought to be according to me (think the Spanish Club portions). Dulce de leche chocolate stop at the “25-hour” mini-mart for dessert and off to a martes milonga at La Confiteria Ideal where all the real people come to tango socially in the ideal setting of a dance hall from another era.

06.01.2010

8am visit to Floralis Generica, a giant mechanical flower which opens with the sun, and closes at dusk, just like a real flower. Walked through the Cemetary Recoleta, an above ground burial labrynth, where Evita is buried with the Duarte family. Toured around Palermo Viejo guided by Diana, a beautiful lovely lady, dance therapist and friend of Sara & Jos, and final luncheon at Café Tortoni, where atmosphere is very New York old school celebrity (I think they were filming an interview while we were there) and the hot chocolate is literally melted chocolate.

Wedding & Celebration

2010-01-02T13:25:00.005+01:00

November 15 & 22, 2009

Port Stephens

2010-01-02T13:20:00.000+01:00

October 2009-- coming soon...

Goettingen & Prague

2010-01-02T13:17:00.002+01:00

July 2009-- Post coming soon...

Bali High?

2008-07-13T07:56:00.008+02:00

No, Lord Howe. Lord Who? An hour's plane ride off Australia's east coast, in the South Pacific, is an almost untouched, pristine, paradise island, which is unbelievably still part of New South Wales (the same state that Sydney is in). With no passport needed, no mobile phone networks, very limited internet and landlines, it is the perfect place to relax and take a break. Nana and I went for 10 days this April for our birthdays (we both turned 21 again...), and of course to do some much needed research on my latest AMS production, "South Pacific": it's the prettiest place I've ever seen. Nana had been several times already with grandpa, and it was a very special place for them, so she was very happy to go and reminisce, and I was very happy to see it for the first time! The view when you land is amazing-- the island is so small you can't miss the two towering mountains on the south end.

Lots of bushwalking trails with fantastic views at the end, not least of which the 3000ft Mt. Gower climb, which has to be done with a guide, and takes an entire day to walk to the summit and back. We left at 7 am, while nana waited anxiously at the bottom, and it involved a lot of climbing and walking along cliff edges, etc. These were all fine for me of course, and it wasn't until the way down when we reached a lake that I decided to fall in, and I have a lovely scar on my knee to prove I did the climb:) At the top of Mt. Gower, you can call the birds down by making any loud noise (in my case, I sang "Amazing Grace") and they will land at your feet. Once there, hey can't really get back up again without climbing a tree, so they don't mind being held and launched back into the air by humans! They were called "providence petrol" birds because they were such an easy lunch for hungry humans back in the day...In the pictures, Mt. Gower is the one on the right.

We also went out on a glass-bottomed boat and saw some sea turtles, and I took an around-the-island boat trip, and snorkeled around Ned's beach, where the fish are so tame they will eat from your hand. Lord Howe apparently has the southernmost reef in the world. The permanent population of the island is about 300 people, so it does get a bit inbred, with a limit of 400 tourists at a time, usually about 50 years old and up (it's an expensive place to be, as most food has to be flown in). The speed limit is 20 kph on the entire island, so you'll get around faster on a hired bike:) We saw the rare wood hen birds, brought back from the edge of distinction by the Lord Howe residents, and lots of other stupidly tame birds and marine wildlife.

The most exciting thing we did (thanks to nana) was go up in a small airplane for aerial views of the island. It's something you have to ask for because they don't offer it on brochures. It's just a stunning view, and much less scary than going in a commercial airplane! It afforded us amazing views of Ball's Pyramid, a triangular rock formation near the island, where only birds and a once-thought-to-be-extinct type of insect lives. Nana said our front-seat pilot was very good and the weather was perfect that day. Even though it was coming up on winter, and the weather could be very tempestuous and tropical-- it had its stunning moments and I got a tan:)

Definitely must go back.

Abu Dhabi & Dubai

2008-02-05T12:39:00.000+01:00

Wow, what can I say about the UAE? It is absolutely unreal. Imagine it, and they can make it happen: hotels made completely of gold, ski resorts in the desert, women in traditional Islamic dress running corporations, investing in real estate, and speaking English with perfect American accents. Thanks to my dear Zayed, my accomodation in Abu Dhabi was a palace known as the "Emirates Palace Hotel", which I got lost trying to find my way out of. Just to give you an idea of the caliber of hotels here, I had a jacuzzi, roses, chocolate with gold-leaf in it and tons of fruit in my room (suite?), a butler, laundry service, flat screen TV/DVD, and the view from my balcony was a palm-dotted clear-blue beach with white sand imported from Algeria.

I got to meet some really kind-hearted members of Zayed's family, and check out the poet section of one of the local bookstore's dedicated to Zayed's dad. We took an abra (small boat, like a gondola) down the river and enjoyed yummy Lebanese food, and of course, room service! The local dress is actually pretty similar for men and women here, just completely different colors, with men in white night-dress type clothing and red-checkered head-scarves, and women in black, often with designer diamonte, feathered or embroidered head-scarves (I got myself an embroidered one:).

Jetting in Zayed's 4-wheel drive Porsch to Dubai, we next checked into the beach resort, Madinat Jumeirah. Our butler there was absolutely burs ting to tell us that Tiger Woods currently occupied the upstairs section of our private villa. We left him alone, which I'm sure is why he won the Dubai Desert Classic while he was there. I loved this hotel though-- it mixed up its opulence with pretty colors, beach themes, and cool oragami towels, man-made canals, abras, pools, palm trees, restaurants, markets, and of course, the beach. We checked out the famous Talisse Spa, the Jumeirah Souqs (Markets), and the Jumeirah Mosque (the biggest Mosque in Dubai, which unfortunately does not admit non-believers outside of certain tour hours, so I only got to see the outside). The other mosques do not admit non-believers at all. Zayed took me to the Virgin Megastore and gave recommendations on the local music, had a beautiful sea-breeze quiet high-tea at the Ritz Carlton, an oasis among the taller than NYC's skyscrapers, and an all-you-can-imagine brunch at the GHP Hotel (yes, the theme here is hotels). But best of all was the desert safari. We "dune-bashed" in 4-wheel-drives (no whip-lash at all!), watched a desert sunset, rode camels (I made good friends with one), visited with a falcon, ate local food, danced with a belly dancer, smoked sheesha-- well, I held it while Zayed took pictures, anyway, got temporary henna tattoos and watched the stars of the desert sky. The weather was perfect when I arrived and I enjoyed a couple of lovely beach walks up to the Burj Al Arab, the tallest hotel in Dubai, shaped like a sailboat and set on a tiny man-made peninsula, so it looks like it's floating in the sea. It's hard to remember that outside your hotel or car, it's just desert:)

Goettingen, Germany

2008-02-05T11:44:00.000+01:00

Next we travelled via Mallorca (and wished we had a longer stop there!) to Dorthmund, from which we trained it to Goettingen, the HQ of the Speyer family, arriving just after midnight. As we dragged our luggage through the pretty university town I suddenly felt a a calming sense of familiarity wash over me; everything here was known to me in an almost unconscious way, even though I had only been to Goettingen once before, it was still the Germany I grew up with.

We got to spend time with Raph's youngest sister Noemi, and hear of her travels to Chile. Andrea and Ken made us feel at home (thank you!), and as per usual, we stayed up late on long talks and long walks with Ken. We also got to have a lovely dinner at Raph's brother Matthew's place, catching up with Anna and their son Nick as well. Despite all the lovely fresh, organic meals cooked at home, I managed to sneak in a real Bavarian Bratwurst when nobody was looking (unfortunately, no Black Forest cake this far north). And no visit to Goettingen would be complete without a gander at the Gaenseliesel, a statue in the centre of town dedicated to a rather feminist fairy-tale heroine, Liesel, who dressed up as a boy to get a job tending the King's geese, so that her family could have enough money (of course, the king finds out she's a girl, falls in love with her, and marries her-- hey, it is a fairy tale!).

London, Brussels & Barcelona

2008-01-26T10:46:00.000+01:00

Next, I flew on to London, where the famed weather did not disappoint, and I was very glad to have brought my rain boots with me from Australia (it seems short retro dresses, tights & rainboots are the combination to sport in London this winter). We stayed with my friend Christina (picture left), who was far too kind and gave us her bedroom for the week (Thank you Stina!), which I thoroughly slept in (recovering from NY food poisoning, which delayed my trip by a day). Raph worked with his company in London, while I skipped the tourist sites for a look at Hackney Life (the part of London where we were staying): I caught up with Stina and another high school friend, Esther at Gossip and Foyle's, had breakfast at Hackney Farm (with real live filthy and happy animals, in the middle of the city), went grocery shopping in markets large and small, and helped cook for the fabulous "Murder Mystery Party" Christina's roomates threw (role play and 'whodunit' combined with dinner, see Raph as the murderous French cook, right). In the evenings, I caved into some tourism and went to see "History Boys" (interesting if unrealistic) and "Stomp" (fun and creative) in the West End, and joined Raph in some pub crawls with his friends and workmates. Most importantly, we had a lovely visit with Raph's brother Johnny, and his two children in Notting Hill.

Early to rise for our flight to Brussels, with Raph's sister Sara, and her partner Jos waiting on the other end. I immediately immersed myself in the chocolate spirit of Belgium, and even went as decadent as a belgian waffle with powdered sugar and pommes frites with mayonnaise at one point. Jos made us wonderful, healthy, from-scratch-meals to make it up to my stomach, and Sarah ensured a luxurious, aesthetic, comfortable and calming environment (Thank you Sara & Jos!). Sara, Jos, Raph and I (left) caught up on the last 2 years, talked meaning of marriage and wedding schedules (with both couples having planned to get married in 2009), and listened to world music in the evenings, adding our own drumming and movement styles. Brussels also gave us the chance to catch up with Marie (who now lives in Luxembourg, picture right), Andre (who now lives in the Netherlands) and Jenny (who was on a business trip from Prague, both picture right), with the five of us up to no good in the Grand Place, the Mannequin Pis, a chocolate cafe, and (of course) a belgian beer bar, after an amazing brunch with Sara & Jos at an out of the way place called "Bla Bla".

OK, Barcelona is so cool!! We were only there one day and two nights, and didn't see but a glimpse of it, but all the Gaudi buildings and influence gives it a character and color where other European cities have only gray. We stayed at a nice hostal called "Hostal Avinyo" which was literally across the street from where Raphael's sister, Tamar, lived (picture left). In the mornings, they would talk to each other from their balconies! Tamar's roommate cooked us authentic Spanish "tortilla patata" and luckily, we got along fine with Spanish, and no one made us speak in Catalan:) Although we had breakfasts and dinners in Barcelona, and even made a night visit to "Sagrada Familla" (sacred family gothic church), most of our one day in Barcelona was spent at Monserrat, a stunning natural wonder of unique rock formations and man-made cloisters about an hour away from Barcelona-- it was breathtaking, and we all wanted to become monks after that (pictures above and below).

New York (home;)

2008-01-13T00:58:00.000+01:00

Raph's workmate Paul (pictured with Raph, left) kindly lent us his beautiful flat in the West Village (on location in Greenwich!) while he was away in Calgary (thank you, Paul!)... and the short breaths continue: saw "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee" (fantastic) and "The Young Frankenstein" (awful) on Broadway, saw an amateur Burlesque contest in Brooklyn (Raph tried to photograph the emcee, who promptly dragged him onstage for a better photo, see picture right, whilst I was dragged onstage for an amateur air-guitar contest), went ice-skating in Central Park, flamencoed it up with my fabulous teacher Vittorio and his pink stage lights, feasted at Sardis (pictured left), Cosi, Cafe Lalo, Alice's Tea Cup, Tea & Sympathy (pictured right) & Magnolia Bakery, late nights at The Parlour, The Place, Benny's Burritos and The Blind Tiger, visited with my precious lovelies, Aditi, Anna, Daita, Dani, Joseph, Tania & Zayed (missed you Kaiti & Mor!) and even squeezed in a shopping trip to Macys and a spa visit-- how? Nothing ever closes-- I miss New York!!

Washington, DC

2008-01-04T09:29:00.000+01:00

and Happy New Year!!

2008-01-04T09:22:00.000+01:00

New Year's Eve was spent at Habana Village, a Cuban restaurant & Salsa Club in DC-- my legs are still sore!

Merry Christmas...

2008-01-04T08:47:00.000+01:00

After travelling for 24 hours, we finally arrived in Washington, DC, just after midnight on Boxing Day. Next morning, we open presents and cooked Christmas dinner, and Chris arrived from San Francisco (Kendra got here before us). Next, visit from Mike & Susanna, trip to the Kennedy Centre to see the West End Company in "My Fair Lady", and Mum and Dad's 31st anniversary (with some other Carattinis).

Melbourne-- Dec 07

2008-01-03T07:09:00.000+01:00

In one breath: Central City Shopping, Dandenongs, Grace, Greek Quarter Dinner, Brunch, Rain, Victoria Markets, Italian Quarter Dessert, Picnic, Australian Ballet School Graduation Performance of Coppelia at Meyer Music Bowl, Mornington Penninsula, Arthur's Seat, Strawberry Picking and Ashcombe Lavender Gardens & Maze-- in one weekend!! (Thank you, Grace!)

New Arrival!

2007-11-10T01:31:00.000+01:00

Little Pascha was abandoned with her 3 brothers on the doorstep of my work. They were 2 weeks old and tied up in a rice bag. I could tell immediately she had a beautiful sweet personality-- she was the only one who didn't hiss as me! The other three were adopted, so Pascha came home with me, and Raph had a surprise waiting for him... Raph wasn't "sure about this" at first, but now it's "R + Pascha, sitting on the lounge, K-I-S-S-I-N-G"... after the flea bath, of course. A friend of ours who's a vet checked her out last night, and she's very healthy and doing very well:)
Lots of action this month, with 7 Brides for 7 Brothers performances, exams/essays due, and mum, Kendra and Chris visiting from the US! More info and pictures of that stuff to come...Dad kept well in touch, and sent mum these gorgeous roses for her birthday.
Raph and I are just about to finish our degrees...any second now. Then off around the world-- mum and dad for christmas, new york, london, brussels, frankfurt, and dubai for me and hong kong for raph- phew! Raph starts the new job and the training in India not long after in March 2008.

September Catch-Up

2007-09-09T07:29:00.000+02:00

Now in Ashfield Musical Society's next production: "7 Brides for 7 Brothers". Finally got some pictures of "Forum" (see right and below).
Raph and I both graduate in a couple of months (BSC & MCrim)-yay! We're off to the US and Europe (with stop-overs in Dubai and Hong Kong) for Christmas, and Raph starts a new job at Thoughtworks next April.

Have found a flamenco class that works for me, and enjoying dancing again. Work is still full-on, and I still love it! Looking forward to mum & Kendra visiting next month:)

June Already!

2007-06-09T05:20:00.000+02:00

April brought new excitement with two firsts: the Whitsundays and scuba diving! Whitehaven's white sands are all they are rumoured to be, but you can only get there by boat. Our Reefjet picked us up from Arlie Beach, stopped on Hook Island, where we bushwalked to some fabulous views of the islands, then to Whitsunday Island for snorkelling and Whitehaven beach. Second trip with Cruise Whitsundays we went out to The Great Barrier Reef (Knuckle Reef lagoon) where a pontoon was set up for lots of fun, including scuba diving with a friendly Maori Wrasse swim-way model named "Bubba." We also rented a car and drove to cedar Creek Falls, Coyote Beach and Bowen's Giant Mango and King's Beach.

Marching On...

2007-03-13T09:18:00.000+01:00

What's News? Launched into the second half of my Masters Degree (still procrastinating on the TAFE Aboriginal culture essays though), 7 months on the job and still loving it, can do everything on the left side of the road except parallel park, joined the courtesan chorus of a community theatre production of "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum" (can't stay away from skimpy costumes, can I?), cancelled foreign film nights due to lack of interest, started voice lessons with a jazz singer, started and ended salsa and Spanish lessons, lost 10 lbs of weight, gained 3 shades of tan, kissed my Valentine on a Sydney Harbour Showboat, and am mid-plotting an Easter trip to the Whitsunday Islands...

Last weekend I went to visit Nana and we drove to Newcastle to see my great aunt Beryl (aged 95) who hadn't seen me since I was 16, and kept saying, "you can't be 26, can you?" Very sweet lady. But nearly 27, actually, hence the badly needed Easter-birthday break at the Whitsundays:) Speaking of alliteration, the poetry class I teach at The Shop is holding a reading at a cafe this Friday, and one of them is a talented visual artist who will paint live on canvas as well.

What else? Christmas and New Year's in DC and SF, spent some quality with mum, dad, Kendra, Mor and Kaiti, and had lots of fun too! Keeva and Mel threw a few big parties, Mel's birthday a "heroes and villains" costume party in which the totally unbiased birthday girl awarded Raph and I bestly costumed couple: The Goddess Demeter & Dracula. I don't want to hear about whether or not they're actually heroes or villians:P

Oh yeah: BIG SHOUT OUT FROM RAPHA TO THE ANDEL MASSIVE!!!
Love,
M

Merry Christmas 2006!!

2006-12-22T00:32:00.000+01:00

Got my Aussie driver's License, my Medicare card, and even a couple of Ashfield Recreational club cards-- oohh feeling a little permanent...
One semester accomplished with high grades, and loving my new job:)
Also made some headway in cleaning up what was formerly the bachelor den, see pictures from Mormor's birthday dinner below. Raph turned 26, and so finally caught up with me this year;) also getting high grades at uni! After all these birthdays, weddings and christmas parties, time to call in my trainer...I've arrived safetly in the US for Chrissy, and spent a marvelous 5 hours at the Auckland airport, getting a facial and massage, so even the flight wasn't bad!! Merry Xmas, Hannakah, Holidays to all my loved ones out there-- thinking of you and missing you very much!!

For Mike, Mor, Kendra, Patricia, Chelsea and Uncle Tony,

2006-10-04T06:43:00.000+02:00

who are the only ones who still read my blog :-) I'm doing very well-- it's nice to have some money. I've got a plane ticket back to the US for Christmas all taken care of, and so getting some much needed time with the family is no longer a worry either. I will leave Sydney for NZ, and then SF Dec 20th 2006, and return to NZ and then Sydney Jan 5th 2007. I'm extremely happy to be flying Air NZ instaed of United, even if it means I don't get mileage points... It's been hard finding the right flamenco level for me at a good time for me, but we'll see. My essays are all finished, so Raph and I went up to visit Nana on the long weekend. It was really nice, the weather and the beach were perfect, I beat Nana and Raph at Scrabble twice, and we had yummy chicken barbeque and chinese dinners. We visited with uncle tony, aunt meg and hana as well (you guys know this part), and had some really interesting conversations and Hana showed me the Pirateology book she got for her birthday-- VERY cool. AND work gave me the car for the weekend, so I did the 2-hour drive (one way) on the left side of the road all on my own:):) It would've been nice if I had some "foreigner driving" plates, but other than that, no hassles, and Raph stayed very calm:-) Nana gave us some paintings from India that we've put up in our dining room and go perfecly with all of Raph's dancing stuff, and some "ohm" jewlrey that grandpa made for yoga classes that I LOVE.

Now I have final exams coming up. Work is going well; I'm really happy there-- nothing too stressful going on at the moment, and I've talked my boss into leting me use a balance ball as a work chair. Mel (Raph's brother's girlfriend) and I have set a pampering day aside for this Saturday, and Ashfield is having a "Carnival of Cultures" on Sunday, with promises of free plants, African drumming and belly dancing lessons in the park. Raph is trying to get it all done, so I've let him go without shaving for a bit to try and be supportive;-) We saw "An Inconvenient Truth" with his step-dad Dennis last week (surprisingly good), and will go see "Jindabyne" next week, starring one of the aborignal girls from where I work!

Still trying to get logistics done, such as medicare, NSW Driver's License, getting the utilities in our name, etc...but I asked for a slower pace, so here it is. Kind of. :-)

Love,
Michela.

Gots a job (and picked a flamenco studio)!

2006-08-25T15:36:00.000+02:00

...now must figure out how to juggle...I will be working as a community case worker at The Shop Women and Girls' Centre in Redfern-- yay! Money worries are now over, and time management skills need to show their stuff...I will be sad not to be working for ASP as much, but I will still do what I can. Meanwhile, the new chapter continues...

Advance Australia

2006-08-01T08:23:00.000+02:00

It's August 1st, and I've arrived safetly in Sydney, moved in, cleaned and rearranged the house where Raph, Nick, Margot and I are staying, and started classes for my Masters of Criminology. Today I have particularly happy news because I finally found an anti-trafficking NGO in Sydney! Of course, they can't pay anyone, so I'm still looking for a job, but I suppose those things take time, and I am quite bogged down with reading and setting up house anyway. Raph's grandparents have had us over a few times already, and have been really kind to me. I look forward to visiting Nana (my grandmother) this weekend, though-- and running on the beach! Foreign Film night, the disaster I instigated in an attempt to stay connected with the International Artistic community, is in its 3rd week now, changed to Sunday evenings, and still ironing out the wrinkles, but have watched two good Italian films "Pane e Tulipane" and "Malena" already. I had a too-short reunion with Davina before she flew off to Boston for her semester abroad, and more reunions are coming up. Raph has (of course) settled in more quickly, already has a job, and is unendingly supportive-- if a bit nervous that I might actually want to stay in Australia... Some things are still a bit harder to adjust to for both of us. Meanwhile, I met two wonderful girls at my Australian Law Bridging course: Yifat, from Israel, and Helena, from Poland, and they're helping make up for my cultural faux pas:-)

Forgot to Mention...

2006-07-13T23:29:00.000+02:00

Raph and I performed in Prague on June 10th, with our flamenco school at Svandovo Divadlo...it sold out quickly, so none of our friends got to see it, but here is a picture of us doing "Sevillanas" at that performance:-)

Also, my family and I had a great 4th of July at the farm with Mike and Susannah...I'm sure I can dig up a picture of one of his cute cows somewhere...(and for that New Zealander who told me awful things about bull mating habits, you have been authoritatively rebuked!). I picked three kinds of berries with Mike on his gator tractor, and then the whole family went for a modern day "hay ride." We only saw the tops of most fireworks, but the glow bugs and Mike's painful puns provided ample entertainment;)

My musical theatre camp is going well; we're performing from "Once on this Island", "West Side Story" & "Camelot," and then Saturday I'm off to Sydney...

If I made it There...

2006-07-05T18:35:00.000+02:00

It was time to say good-bye to my beloved New York, my home of eight years...and it threw its best and worst at me, just to make sure I'd never forget it:-)

Sitting on the subway on my way to Zayed's, my brain didn't blink-- it submerged. In some blurry recesses, it absent-mindedly erased the past 6 months, and it was as though I never left. But little things, such as my disgust at the dirtiness, my fascination with the non-white-looking people, and the confident, sometimes superficial smirks, smiles, and stature of all around me, gave hints I'd been away. I knew where everything was, I knew how everything worked, it was all terribly, terribly familiar; but it was no longer home. And that was good to know.

I was able to refill the Michela hug-meter for Zayed, Mor, Amy, Kaiti, Aditi, Tania, Chelsea, Lindsay, the CUTTA gang (Daita, Claire, Radu, Quique, Antonio, Kira), Josh-- and even make it to an old flamenco class (though Vittorio had a substitute that day, my friend Ricky was there)!! And NYC is CRAZY: I went to a Broadway show, "Sweeney Todd", starring Patti LuPone and 6 other dark characters who could both sing AND play SONDHEIM on their various instruments (alla Robby Marshall's "Cabaret"). Very well done. I went to see Lindsay's band "Stutter" at Arlene's Grocery in the village as potential label signers looked on (they rocked), and a friend of hers who is a composer, asked me if I would record a demo for him for one of his songs. Well, that didn't work out with the time allocated, but the potential in this city is so full its steaming out of the sewers. Speaking of steaming, Amy managed to get into a fight with this horrible woman on an overcrowded subway, who actually grabbed Amy by the hair. I grabbed the woman by the arm, and told her "You do NOT act like that!" and she backed off. That's something I've never had to do in my eight years in NYC... I visited my old haunts, Tea & Sympathy, Serendipity, Cosi-Cosi, Columbia's Campus, Amir's (twice), Amsterdam Cafe, Max Cafe, and even made it to an all-night diner. Cafe Lalo will have to wait for next time. I saw "The Devil Wears Prada" twice, because Meryl Streep is amazing, and it is so New York...and on the way to see it the second time, I ran into Angel Corella (yes, the world-famous ABT dancer), who looked more than a little surprised at my "Oh my god, you're Angel Corella- I love you." I quickly regained some dignity, took his halfway extended hand and said "Thank you for being a dancer." He said, "Thank you for watching!" as I ran off to let him continue his conversation.

Ah, New York. It won't be the same without you. I'll be healthy;-) And I'll have to stir up some excitement on my own. And I'll be back.

Aack! I'm Back!

2006-06-16T16:28:00.000+02:00

Just wanted to let everyone know that I arrived safetly back in the U.S. I am in Virginia (Washington, DC area) now, and will head to San Francisco tomorrow for Kendra's graduation (Masters of Computer Science) ceremony Sunday. Then back to VA, and it looks like I'll be in NYC from June 27th until July 2nd-- so book me now;P
I arrive in Sydney July 17th.

As for everyone in Prague-- I miss you already!! I even miss my potted Basil plant! Everyone gave me presents (dinner, garnet necklace, shell necklace from Africa, chocolate, red roses, trafficking video, tea cup with warmer, coconut cake, blue-beaded bracelet and Prague magnet) and said such nice things...made it much harder to leave...next time you guys should just slap me. Actually, don't.
A reunion is already being planned for an Australian road trip in about 6 months, for those of us in that neighbourhood (i.e., China), and I would also really like to visit India-- more to look forward to!

Krakow

2006-06-06T11:39:00.000+02:00

One last weekend hurrah was in order to get a Polish stamp in my passport, so 12 hours one-way later, Raph and I were in Krakow, an infamous city indeed... We went from Prague's main station to a town divided by the Czech and Polish border, "Czesien/Tsesien." We stopped at "Cesky Czcesien", had a bite to eat, and walked across the border (about 20 mins). I think we were the first non-Euro citizens the foot border guards had seen all week: they made a big fuss changing the dates on their stamps and showing our passports to every guard they could find...
Then we picked up a train in "Polsky Tsesien" and headed on our merry way to Krakow-- through Oswiecen (Auschwitz), among other stops. Although it was a rare opportunity, I didn't have the heart to visit the concentration camp and its museums: the stations themselves were enough for me.
One thing you really notice about the Polish countryside as you are sitting on a rickety old train that conjures images of the 1940s-- it is much shabbier than the Czech countryside. Wild, in a someone started to build something, and then just left it there-- 50 years ago-- kind of way. The exceptions were the churches, which obviously received all the reconstruction Zloty and Groschen. The train stations don't have clocks or directions or signs on the platforms (just numbers), and often are simple rotting wooden shelters that you feel must have looked like this during WWII. Perhaps that, and the gloomy weather and garbage dumps, is why it was so easy for my mind to drift into imagining the deportations of the Holocaust, perhaps even on the very trains I was riding on. That, and the Synagogue we visited in the Jewish Quarter only had Holocaust literature. For all the rich Jewish-American tourists who come there I imagine. For me, it was very hard to escape the Holocaust in Poland. Memories of it are everywhere.
We did spend a wonderful evening in the Jewish Quarter however, listening to live Klezmer music at a restaurant called "Ariel." Absolutely rich, seductive mixture of oboe, base and accordian (sometimes violin), Arabic and Western all at once, sardonic, mournful and celebratory...Raph claims Krakow has the best nightlife in Europe.
Krakow itself was beautiful, if still under construction. It sports the largest medieval square in Europe, a gorgeous castle (not to mention the dragon!) and cathedral that contains the coffins of several popes and kings. Another unique aspect of Krakow is the defense system the castle had in place-- a tiered system of moats and a defense fortress unlike any other; very effective.
Oh yeah, and then there was the searching for Piotrek's (Raph's friend's) apartment in the pouring rain as Raph had insisted he remembered the way...luckily some stranger took pity on us and lent us her mobile phone...Polish is not Czech, but it helped! There was more trauma on the trip home, but you'll have to ask me for that story in person. All's well that ends well.

Miss K and Miss Mum Livin' It Up With the Australian Animals...

2006-05-26T14:44:00.000+02:00

Need I say more?

The Bızaare and the Beautıful

2006-05-22T14:50:00.000+02:00

OK, so let´s set the scene: fırst thıng you notıce ın Istanbul are the horns, ınterlocked ın a nonstop abusıve dialogue, no matter the tıme of day or nıght. Secondly, sıx tımes a day, bull horns blare quotıdian prayers from the mosques-- ıf you are standıng ın the rıght place, you can hear several at once. As you walk through the crowded streets (much more crowded than NYC), an ıce cream truck is churnıng out Für Elıse, and you are overpowerd by savoury waft after wınsome smell. And ıt´s hot. Very hot.

Now imagıne ıt is Saturday, at the world-famous Istanbul Bazaar and Egptıan Market. The crowds swell-- very few of them tourısts-- and you have to push to stand stıll and duck the vendors: "Hello lady." "My store ıs the best store, my store ıs the nıcest store, my store ıs the cleanest store-- but not the cheapest." Row upon row of colourful spıces and candy fill your fıeld of vısıon. $5 watches and scarves that would cost $30 anywhere else trip you up the hıll. "Hello. How can I take your money today?"

A swimwear store sportıng bıkınıs and a full-body ıslamıc swimmıng costume (bathıng suıt) catch your eye, and you glance nervously at the women ın black covered to the brıdges of theır noses, and then at the ones who just have theır hair covered, and then at the ones ın short skırts and heels-- all of them glancıng back at you. Some dust from the broken road flıes ın your face, and you´re grateful you wore glasses. And you haven´t even reached the Bazaar yet.

Insıde the protectıve shade of the offıcıal startıng poınt of the bazaar, mosaıc lanterns of the Moroccan sort, and sılver jewelry are shınıng from most stalls. Musıcal ınstruments, antıques, belly dancing costumes, swords, pottery, tea sets, carvıngs, luggage, paıntıngs, evıl eyes, varıous materıal and beads fıll the others. Never take the fırst prıce you´re offered, dress down, go wıth young people, go wıth locals, tell them someone else gave you a better price, look lıke you,re about to leave-- anythıng that makes ıt look lıke you don´t have money wıll help drıve the price down. Flirtıng helps too. "Mıss, you dropped somethıng!" No I dıdn´t. "My heart." When you agree to a prıce, look paıned. "I haven't done thıs ın my 25 years as a salesman. Here's my card. $10 for the card. Just kıddıng." The guy sellıng honeycomb offers you a chaır and another joke-- about kıllıng your boyfrıend...You need the chaır.

We left laden and lovıng ıt! And fınıshed the exhaustıng day at another restaurant by the Brıtısh embassy.

Sunday we slept late and went to the Ottoman Army Mılıtary Museum wıth Engın. It was the Natıonal Day, so parades had passed by our wındow that mornıng, and the museum was free. The museum held a short concert of the mılıtary band ın traditional costume, complete wıth a vıdeo explaınıng the dıfferent types of ınstruments, rythms, notatıon, etc. After the vıdeo, the projectıon screen and wall peeled away to reveal an outdoor fountaın and garden, through whıch the mılıtary band came marchıng. Thıs spectacular entrance receıved much applause.

Engın had to leave for Ankara after that. Elıf took us to see the sufıs perform a Sema ceremony (also known as "Whırlıng Dervıshes"). It was a very long ceremony, consıstıng of 2 ınstrumental sections, greetıngs and prayers, 4 sectıons of whırlıng, and endıng agaın wıth prayers. The Sema ceremony should represent a mystıcal journey of man's spırıtual ascent through mınd and love to Perfectıon (Kemal). The hats represent the ego's gravestone, the whıte cloaks, ıt's shroud. It felt a bıt odd to me that I should be payıng to watch another's ascent to Love\Perfectıon\God, but the whırlıng was defınately beautıful, and both Elıf and Raph found ıt very spirıtual. Raph even saıd he could see hımself performıng Sema, as a break from lıfe once a week. I can very much relate ıt to the feelıng of beıng freed and completly relaxed ın a very concentrated dıffıcult form of dancıng, lıke ballet or baharata natyam.

Thıs mornıng we paid a vısıt to Europe's bıggest Mall, before Elıf left for Ankara. Another sad goodbye. We wıll head for the aırport around mıdnıght tonıght-- back to Prague and back to work.

Turkish Delight vs. Turkısh Viagra

2006-05-19T21:23:00.000+02:00

Early early Tuesday mornıng we arrıved at Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen Aırport on the Asian sıde of Istanbul, and took the bus to Taksim on the European side of Istanbul, where my dearest Elıf met us wıth her husband Engın! That was about 5am, so after hugs and ıntroductıons, we fell fast asleep...
We are all stayıng wıth Elıf´s younger sıster, Ece, who works ın Istanbul as an ınterıor archıtect. After much dıscussıon, we decıded to spend the whole week ın Istanbul, ınstead of contınuıng on to Ankara ın a few days, as there ıs just too much to see ın Istanbul, and only tenuous return connectıons back from Ankara.

Later that morning we got to know the neıghbourhood we were stayıng ın, Nışantaşı, and walked through Maçka Park to the Beşıktaş seafront. We passed by the Teşvıkıye Mosque, and were ınvıted ınsıde. It was a pretty lıttle Mosque, the fırst one Raph had ever been in, and we learned about the dıfference between the Turkısh, Arabic and Ottoman languages. We had lunch on the ocean at Ortaköy, by the Boğaziçi brıdge, and then walked through Taksım, the bıggest shoppıng street ın Istanbul, fılled wıth all the candy, chocolate, pastries and delıghts you can ımagıne-- ıncludıng Turkısh Delıght, whıch Raph trıed, and "Turkısh Vıagra," a pastry fılled wıth candied pıstachıos (I thınk ıt´s really called "bird´s nest, but ıt got more attentıon thıs way...), whıch I trıed. McDonalds and Burger Kıng are also available, but are no competitıon to the food of thıs country, even to the locals. We fınıshed up at Galatasaroy Hıgh School, and headed home for dınner.

Wednesday, Elıf made us a typıcal Turkısh breakfast of cucumber, tomatoes, olıves, feta cheese amd tea. We also had simıt pretzels, covered ın sesame seeds. Yum!!!!!! Then we vısıted Dolmabahçe Palace, the second largest palace ın Istanbul, a gorgeous mıx of European and Asıan architecture, buılt on the Marmara sea. We had some authentıc Döner Kebap for lunch and then took a one and a half hour ferryboat out to the Anadolukavağı dıstrict of Istanbul on the Black sea. We walked up to the Cıtadel to take ın the vıew and ıt was sooooooooo beautıful, lıke a Greek Island (well, they´re just on the other sıde of the sea...). We took the ferryboat back and walked home through old Istanbul and Taksım agaın, pıckıng up some more souvenıers and chocolate on the way.

Thursday, we vısıted Topkapı Palace, the largest Palace ın Istanbul, that houses varıous museums of clothıng, weaponary, chına and jewels of the sultans (ıncludıng the skull of John the Baptıst!). Thıs palace was much more typıcal of Mıddle-Eastern and Asıan palaces, and we vısıted the Harem ın thıs one too, whıch we were starkly ınformed was the Sultan´s prıvate lıvıng quarters, not just where he kept hıs 4 wıves, 8-10 favourıtes, usually black eunichs and 300-500 concubınes (who, we were also ınformed, had to learn musıcal ınstruments, could retire at 30, and were not sexual partners)... Next we vısıted Hagıa Sophıa Mosque, a gorgeous buıldıng that was once a basılıca church, turned ınto a mosque, and then ınto a museum when Atatürk formed the Republıc. It sported an amazıng ınterıor wıth unusual juxtaposıtıons of the vırgın Mary and verses of the Koran, etc. Fınally, we walked home through Taksım, and ate at a lovely restaurant called "Vıktor Levi", across from the Brıtısh embassy, whıch was bombed a couple of years ago.

Today we vısıted the Prıncess Islands, agaın reached by ferryboat, and wandered on foot, although there were horse-drawn carrıages to take your money, should you choose on thıs trıp-- no cars allowed. It was a lazy sort of day, though we accomplıshed much walkıng, seafood, baklava, and a dıfferent kınd of Kebap, as ıs the routıne for us here. And ooooooooooh, have we got tans to prove ıt! Out come the sunglasses ın the next set of pıctures...

The Gırl Who Wıll Change the World...

2006-05-18T22:29:00.000+02:00

On our traın rıde from Prague to Berlın, a lovely lıttle four-year old named Hana decıded to grace us wıth her brıllıance by cleanıng our compartment wındows. She was such an astonıshıng talent, that ıt soon became very clear that she deserved her own blog entry...
Tıssue ın hand, she scrubbed vıgorously at spots that were ınvısable to the eyes of mere mortals. After a few mınutes, she dısappeared and then returned agaın wıth a bottle of apple juıce. She astounded us wıth the dılıgence wıth whıch she measured and poured and measured agaın the apple juıce onto her tıssue and contınued to wıpe away at our wındow. A runny nose was no obstacle to a gırl of such determınatıon: she sımply used the same tıssue to attack the snot and contınued cleanıng. Thıs one, although young, clearly held a work ethıc beyond any several tımes her age, and her quırky dıregard of what others thought combıned wıth thınkıng outsıde of the box amused us beyond expectatıon. Raph couldn´t resıst takıng pıctures. She wıll clearly grow up and change the world, he saıd.

Meltıng Pots and Memories

2006-05-18T00:07:00.000+02:00

OK, last Thursday Erık, hıs frıend Jeff (Canada), Raph and I went to the National Opera and saw Carmen-- the ınterior of the opera house ıs a 3-D archıtectural gem, and we voted on the Toreador`s, Mıcaela´s and the chıldren`s voıces as the "best" aspects of the show, and the fıght scenes and Carmen´s dancıng as the "worst" aspects. All ın all, ıt was more enjoyable than Pygmalıan, whıch we saw ın Czech at the Estates Theatre the prevıous week.

Frıday, Raph´s bıg sıster Sarah (Bruxelles\London) came to vısıt us, along wıth her boyfrıend Joss and frıends Helen and Geert. They stayed at a beautıful hotel near the US Embassy called the Alchemıst, and Frıday nıght Joss got us box seats at the Natıonal Theatre to see La Travıata, whıch we lıked even better than Carmen! Afterwards, Sarah took us to my favourıte restaurant, Le Patıo, where we stayed chattıng about famıly untıl closıng tıme.

Saturday, we walked up to Prague Castle and across Charles Brıdge to the Old Town Square. Sarah, Joss and Raph got trapped ın a church sıngıng hymns ın Czech, but we´ll have to tell you that story ın person...That evenıng we saw Don Gıovannı performed entırely by Marıonettes (see left)! The puppets were wonderful and very comıc, shakıng themselves sılly on the approprıate vıbrato.

Sunday, we called Keeva to wısh hım a happy bırthday, and mormor and grandpa (Raph´s grandparents) to wısh them a happy mother´s day (my mum and nana called earlıer that mornıng, and are havıng a great tıme wıth my sıster ın Australıa). We all enjoyed lunch on the Vltava and enjoyed many hugs and sad good-byes and future plans before Raph and I had to run to catch our traın to Berlın. We really has a wonderful tıme wıth Sarah´s bunch:-)

The traın rıde to Berlın was a luscıous lunch of greenery, pretty Czech vıllages and even the odd castle or two. Marıe met us at the statıon (Zoologıscher Garten) and took us to her cute lıttle apartment ın "Lıttle Istanbul." Dınner and chattıng, and hard sleepıng for the power-tourısm-Berlın-ın-a-day ahead.

Monday we got up late and met Marıe at the Freıe Unıversıtaet for lunch. Then we headed to Potsdamer Platz, and began what I thınk of as my walk searchıng for memorıes of pre-unıfıed Germany...we started at the Holocaust Memorıal, an unıdentıfıed fıeld of stone blocks whıch look lıke gravestones when vıewed en masse. As you walk through the memorıal (see above), whıch essentıally provıdes a space to contemplate the subject at hand, the stones become overpowerıng untıl you feel lost and very small ın a maze of blocks. People appear and dısappear between dıstant blocks, and ıt seems to make a statement about the fleetıngness of lıfe. Voıces that you can,t see the sources of, seem to echo lıke memorıes untıl the uneven blocks get shorter, and some gravestones seem to be mıssıng-- lıke survıvors-- and you fınd yourself agaın on the outsıde of the fıeld. I´m sure at nıght ıt´s very spooky...

The Brandenburg Tor was next, and I could´t resıst buyıng a piece of the Wall that seemed to frame the frınges of much of my young lıfe. There are brıcks laıd ınto the road where the Berlın Wall used to be, what now just looks lıke a busy ıntersectıon of a bıg cıty. Along a fence a former polıtıcal prısoner of the former DDR plants flowers and antı-sovıet paraphanalıa under the names and pıctures of those tryıng to escape from east Berlın, some as late as 1989...We walked past the Reıchstagebauede to the Spree rıver, whıch holds the souls of so many who trıed to escape and were shot mıd-swım. I become more suspıcıous of some ın Prague who say lıfe was better before the fall of Communısm...

We took bus number 100, a normal cıty bus, whıch happens to be a double decker that passes all the maın sıghts of Berlın. We passed the Opera House, and contınued down Unter den Lınden to Alexander Platz. From there, we hurrıed to Checkpoınt Charlıe (below rıght), the last thıng I remember about my tıme ın Berlın ın 1988. It wasn´t scary, ıt was small, and covered wıth tourısts takıng pıctures wıth the Amerıcan soldıers who were obvıously there for show. It stıll found ıt dıffıcult to approach, and saw someone sellıng checkpoınt charlıe stamps for your passport........I wondered about my real stamp ın an old passport somewhere...I rushed through the museum, whıch I had been ın before ın 1988, and ın whıch they had added a new Reunıfıcatıon sectıon. Fınally, we met Marıe at Nollendorfplatz (maın settıng of the musıcal, Cabaret), and headed to the aırport.

It was a very sad good-bye, wıth the knowledge that I am movıng to Australıa, but I have no doubt that Marıe and I wıll contınue full speed ahead ın the un-ınterrupted contact and close frıendshıp we´ve had sınce I was 10 years old, and she was 11.

And now we´re ın Istanbul wıth another dear frıend and memory-- but that has to be a new entry...

Wonders Never Cease Peeing

2006-05-10T11:30:00.000+02:00

It being an absolutely stunningly beautiful day, I decided to walk to work. Door to door, this took me an hour. On the way, I passed through the edge of a park, where a woman carrying what I assumed was a baby wrapped in a blanket was walking in front of me. Not a very maternal-looking mother, but hey, she was taking it to the park. And besides, I saw the head of a stuffed animal hanging out the side of the blanket. The stuffed animal turned and blinked at me, and licked its lips. Hm, I thought, this is what it must be like to hallucinate; obviously, too much walking. Then the woman proceeded to stop in front of me and lay a 3 and a half month old (I asked) TIGER on the park grass. Maybe it was just a really big, tiger-looking cat...No, it was just a baby, but it was definately one of the three that inspired an "oh my!" in the Wizard of Oz. I stopped and stared. It lay there and peed. I hope it was being treated well...

While I'm on the subject, Miss Marie (high school best friend from Ireland) came to visit us from Berlin a couple of weeks ago, and she and I got to do some touristy stuff I hadn't done yet, like visit the Kafka Museum, and the fountain in front, consisting of two naked men peeing into a Czech Republic-shaped basin. Supposedly, you can text message the number written on the side of the fountain, and the men will pee the word you messaged. Well, I sent Marie's name, twice, and it didn't work, so maybe they need to watch the local tigers more closely. We also happened upon the Wallenstein Palace and Garden, which only opens in April, so I had never seen it before. It features a man-made grotto-like wall, and Italian renaissance frescos on either side of the gardens; the fountains in this garden had no trouble peeing.

Cesky Krumlov and 2nd Anniversary

2006-05-09T21:37:00.000+02:00

OK, this story will be all pictures (more coming), to make up for the lack thereof in recent posts...

The Verdict is In!

2006-05-04T13:23:00.000+02:00

And she's going to Law School. In Sydney. I'm accepting the University of Sydney's admissions offer for a JC MCrim (Masters of Criminology). I'm very excited about the program, and I already know I love the University of Sydney. Easy on the relationship, tough on the friends in NYC...ALL of you HAVE to come visit me in Australia!!! There's still a good chance I will apply for a PhD in NY after this degree, so don't consider me gone, as I may come back!!! OK, here's to the future...

Also, big welcome to Judith from Vienna, Andel's newest club member (and excerciser of my German)!

Quiet Easter and Karlovy Vary

2006-04-19T12:20:00.000+02:00

Let me take this moment to say, today is SO beautiful. I have my window open at work, and the sun is shining through and the birds are singing...

Yesterday, Kendra and I took a day tour to Karlovy Vary -- the city of peace and calm, the spa town, the glass factory-- also known as Karlsbad. Only 2 hours from Prague, and 15 km from the German border, Karlovy Vary ("Charles' Spa") is a beautiful little luxury location literally built on the river and amongst rolling hills. Kendra and I tried the famous healing mineral water (which tasted like salt and sulphur) straight from the springs, and then again in the form of "Becherovka"-- mixed with a sweet alchohol (which altogether tasted like sugared Listerine), and then immediately bought some "platky" (flavoured spa wafers they eat to get rid of the taste of the water). They gather and drink this water (which doctors here prescribe) out of these special porcelain cups whose handle acts as a straw, which we of course had to get as souveniers. We walked through the springs, geysers and collonades, snapping away at the beautiful architecture with all our might (pictures coming soon!). We visited the Moser Glass factory, where they showed the process of making the handmade "symbols of wealth, propriety, class, etc" (blech). We went swimming in Elizabeth spa, and relaxed in the sauna before running back to town to get more souveniers. Our guide was a nice old man, who spoke fluent English and Russian, but decided I was "fluent in Czech" (cough, choke) and so spoke to me in Czech for the rest of the tour...He gave me his card and I think he offered me free tickets...or maybe he just told me not to lose mine...I really don't know:)

Anyway, Kendra leaves tomorrow and is taking Raph and I out to my favourite restaurant tonight before our flamenco class. I hope she had a good time! And while I have a feeling I am going to be addicted to Karlovy Vary, I have the same feeling she will be addicted to Budapest;)

Birthday, Brno & Budapest

2006-04-12T10:49:00.000+02:00

Right, well-- a lot to catch up on! My birthday party went really well: Claire arrived early to help decorate, and Kendra and I watched "50 First Dates" while we hung up streamers, balloons, lit candles, and filled plates and bowls. Adam said no one had ever made Andel Apartments look so nice. Kendra had me unwrap my presents before guests arrived, which included a clock modelled after Prague's astronomical clock, a stained glass fairy figurine, a Johnny Depp poster, the "Rent" DVD, and Reeses Peanut Buttercups...as a result, I am still on chocolate overload, with more waiting in the cupboard...

The next morning Raph, Jenny, Erik, Kendra and I went to Brno, dropped off our bags at a friend of a friend's (very nice people), and visited the Mendel museum with Aruna (from Canada) and company. Mendel is credited as being the father of genetics, messing with cross-strains of peas and bees in his monastary in Brno. Then we walked up to the castle, met up with Gaby and Efrain (still has stitches, but is healing well), and had some Czech cuisine (well, Kendra had Weiner Schnitzel, but she tried a smazeny syr earlier!). Kendra, Raph and I passed out after that while the others went on drinking until 5am the next day!!

So now we're on Sunday, and we took a trip to the nearby university town of Olomouc, which also boasts an astronomical clock, but this time, the prolitariats hammer their horshoes or whatever on the hour. Ice cream and broccoli rounded out this quick trip, before we headed back to Brno (this was a much more complicated procedure than I'll go into here, but the others very kindly let Kendra and I have the last 2 seats on the bus back so we could make it back to catch our train to Budapest on time).

We made the train to Budapest, but with only one ticket (the new girl at the counter was incredibly slow and had to keep asking others what to do...). While I was told that buying your ticket on the train meant you would pay 20 czk extra, and could not get the youth discount, at least we were on the train. It turns out, I had to buy a new ticket in each country we entered (Brno to the end of the Czech Republic, Slovak Republic, beginning of Hungary to Budapest) in different currencies!! The Czech conductor took my payment in Czech crowns, the Slovak conducter told me the cost in Slovak and then Czech crowns (590 czk), and then said (a bit drunkedly, with the other conductor staring at him), "Just give me 200 czk---shhhhhh. You'll be fine until the Hungarian border, but shhhh." I assume he pocketed it because I got no ticket. Heck, fine with me. In Hungary, the conductor told me the price in Forints, but I had luckily switched some crowns into Euro before we went to Olomouc. He told me it was 16 Euro something, and I gave him two tens. He looked at it a minute, took one ten, and walked away with a wave of his hand. I also got no ticket from him. All in all, my lack of a ticket cost much less than Kendra's ticket.

Budapest was amazing. We arrived at midnight and took a taxi to our youth hostile (which I had made reservations at from an internet cafe in Olomouc), Marco Polo. We got a double room, breakfast included, and it was the nicest hostile I've ever stayed in (bathroom IN the room!).
Monday turned out to be a gorgeous day, and we went on a City Circle (hop on, hop off) bus tour of "Buda" and "Pest." We got off at Heroes' Square, walked through the park, past the famous Gundel restuarant, a castle, zoo and theme park, to the famous Szechenyi baths, where we bathing costumed it up in both the outdoor (very much like 28-55 degree swimming pools-- in a castle courtyard) and indoor medicinal (smelly) baths. Then we had lunch on the lake at a restuarant called "Robinson"-- best food I've had (salmon and veggies), but Kendra was not so impressed with hers (Steak, mushrooms, and giant croques). We then got back on the tour bus, and got off at the Castle district. We mostly only saw the walls surrounding the castle because there were political rallies going on, but we visited the underground labrynth caves underneath the castle-- SCAARY. Each section had a different theme: one had a coffin with wine ("blood") pouring out of it, another had "fossils" of tennis shoe prints, cel phones, lap tops and Coke bottles found in the cave from "millions of years ago." The final one, called "The labrynth of courage" was in complete darkness, and you could only hold onto a rope to get through it-- as it did not advise this labrynth for claustrophobics and pregnant women, and as I live by the "if pregnant women can't do it, it's bad for you" rule, I did not want to go. Plus, I was already freaked out by the Steven Spielberg/John Williams type scary music, and the fact I had gotten lost in the lit caves, but Kendra didn't want to go alone, so, by the time I came out, my hands were red from clutching the rope so hard...

Back on the bus, quick stop at the Citadella viewpoint and Hungary's statue of Liberty, and then walked to the foot of the Elizabeth ("Sissi" from Vienna) bridge to catch our evening boat tour. The "narrator" of the tour spoke as though he were the Danube, which irked me a bit, but Kendra liked it. She sipped champagne (free), while I had to tell them I was 26 when they offere me apple juice, and then asked for apple juice anyway. The boat attendents spoke an impressive number of languages, and while you saw a building by night, a screen in front of you showed you the inside rooms of the building, etc. Very cool. Utilising my new map, walked home, tried Gulash (well, K had Wiener Schnitzel...well, I had half...), went to sleep.

Tuesday: checked out, walked to the train station (which had been on our tour the previous day), got tickets for the 1430 train back to Prague, took the metro to "The House of Terror," a museum that was once the very building of both Nazi and Communist torture, interrogation, prison, etc. (Then called "house of loyalty," 1944-1956). Well, as Hungary sent off (killed) 500,000 of its 600,000 Jews, as well as thousands of revolutionists, you can imagine how depressing this museum was, but very interesting to hear about communism from the POV of a former communist country...We stopped by "Sir Lancelot" for drinks, a medieval themed restaurant that I (of course) LOVED, and ran and got souveniers and postcards before running back to the train station. 7 hours later, we arrived in Prague, exhausted, but we watched "Rent" and ate the rest of my cake anyway. The roses Raph gave me were still alive and the streamers and balloons still up (and Raph and Erik had done all the dishes:):)!

Budapest is as grand as Vienna, but still riddled with bullet holes, and needs reconstruction and cleaning-- after which it may become my favourite city in Europe...On that note, welcome to Club Andel's newest member, Veronika, from Hungary.

Ebb-Flow

2006-04-05T11:58:00.000+02:00

It's move-out day for Gianni, Christian and Will, who have opted to leave club Andel for an apartment down the street. Meanwhie, preparations for my party continue, as two other AIESECers who have their birthdays around the same time, Claire (England) and Ozgur (Turkey), have decided to combine their celebrations with mine:-)

We apparently had a burglar in the house on Monday, as Jenny's Laptop, Camera and i-pod were gone (while everyone else's things went untouched!). We think someone must have come through her window, but the police seem to think that would be "too hard" (see Andel blog). I hear a rumour that Raph's done it when they locked themselves out of the house once, but maybe Raph's just a superior athlete next to your average burglar...at any rate windows are now tied down and all extra locks locked.

Kendra arrived safe and sound, and is even out roaming Prague by herself today! She dropped by my work and we had lunch, and we'll hopefully get to do some touristy stuff together tomorrow. Friday I'm working at a Tour Agency and the evening brings my PAR-TAY...so much to prepare still!!

Then Saturday we go to Brno and then on to Budapest!

I feel important, oh so important, I feel important and worthy

2006-03-29T20:28:00.000+02:00

and unpaid!! But I can live with that right now.

I've spent the last 2 days at a UN conference for border police on identifying trafficking victims-- it was so cool! I so didn't belong in that room full of balding, powerful men, and a few powerful women, but the people at the Czech Interior Ministry like me, and are fabulous, so they assigned me to be a second La Strada representative and official conference notetaker;) And they all had to listen to what I had to say-- I love it-- and they did!! Only weeks ago I was complaining to Raphael about the border treatment when we went to Austria, like every other whining activist, and all of a sudden, I had the ear and the respect of the people who could do something about it! I got my own name plate and was simultaneously translated into 3 languages this time (oh yeah). I have never been to a 2-day conference like this and I had a ball, and got to use lots of German. I also learned so much about the trafficking situation, I actually feel trained and that I know something of what I'm talking about these days...it was such an honour to be there, and everyone was so nice to me...I became a little networking bee, and quickly filled up my complimentry card holder :-) :-)

Also, in my intense business, I have forgotten to welcome Lucasz, from Poland: our newest (and final) arrival at Andel...we are truly a full house now-- all visitors will have to sleep on the floor until someone goes on vacation--eek!!

One final note: our dear friend from Mexico, Efrain, who lives in Brno, got hit by a car last week. He is doing OK and recovering in hospital, and minus a few stiches, will be fine. He very sweetly sent us a message about how much he appreciated our friendship, and our wishes for a fast and furious recovery go out to him-- we're so glad you're OK, Efrain!!!

An Australian in Prague

2006-03-27T14:25:00.000+02:00

Wow...today is absolutely beautiful-- 17 C, according to the boy. Today is the first day since I have come to Prague that I do not want to shrivel up inside my 6 layers of clothing and sleep/eat as much chocolate as possible, but run, dance, jump for joy!!

We've had visits from two AIESEC Aussie friends of Raph's, and it was great to hear their accents, stories, and have them representing at conferences all the way over here!

Work is still too busy, I taught more than 12 hours of English last week, on top of life getting busier at La Strada...I think I will have to cut down on the English lessons, although I was able to buy a lovely piece of Bohemian Crystal because of them:-)

Kendra is coming to visit next week, and I am planning a birthday party for April 7th, a trip to Brno/Budapest for the following weekend, Kendra wants to go to Greece and Germany (eek) [hind note: didn't happen], and my birthday (Easter) weekend will be spent in the Moravian mountains with Ales and Lucka and their family and friends [hind note: didn't happen], where we will have a cultural food exchange (I will make Shepard's Pie, Raph will make Lamingtons-- all about sheep, us Aussies!), and the guys will supposedly braid (platt) fine pieces of wood to "whip" the girls with. Do the Czechs know I hit back?? We'll find out. Should be good fun;)

Melting Ice

2006-03-19T16:37:00.000+01:00

After 3 months of quiet, life has all of a sudden gotten really busy! I have two English students now, who want multiple hours a week, and I occasionally teach two-day intensive English sessions (with two other teachers) through the Ulrich Language Institute.
Also, La Strada has me attending important meetings at the US embassy (because they're in English), and I am working with my first client!
Kendra is coming to visit April 4th-20th, and we are plotting a party and a fun trip for my birthday. Mum made it through another round of RAD exams, and is enjoying the beginnings of spring on that side of the world. Dad reads my blog now which makes me very happy:):) Hey dad, everyone at Andel is reading the book you gave Raph, "Germs, Guns and Steel," so you are passing on the wisdom!!
As for the future, I am still waiting to hear from CUNY/John Jay, and am meanwhile putting in applications to USYD and UNSW's MCrim and MForensicPsch programs. One starts July 2006 and the other Feb 2007, so even if I'm moving to Australia, there's a possibility I will work in NY for another half a year first:-)
My Czech is slowly getting better, and except for our Polish house members, I think I hold the prize for best Czech at the moment. Yesterday we attended an excellent documentary on Gallipoli, and also agreed to start some Turkish lessons with our friend (and AISECer) Ozgur, so that we wouldn't be completely helpless on our May trip.
It's still snowing, and still freezing, but the end is in sight, and soon I will be able to stop drinking/eating hot chocolate to make it through (my alternative to the Czech staple of beer and cigarettes-- makes one less grumpy).

First Student, but Still Waiting for Spring...

2006-03-06T13:28:00.000+01:00

Welcome new Andel arrival Christian, from Germany! Lucky guy gets to live in the "girls'" section, because we are running out of room... Lucky for the other (2) girls that I am willing to shack up with a guy;) Raph's pretty good about doing his laundry, though-- can't complain.

I recently put up an ad to teach English, and now have my first student here in Prague. Everyone here is interested in learning "business English," and although he is German, my student is no exception, so I've been brushing up on words and phrases like"Bull market" and "outsourcing." He's a nice guy, and extra income is good, so should be fun:)

I've made a new good friend here (you guys know how picky I am) from work: Hana, a Prague native who got her Masters Degree (and feminist streak) from Georgetown University in D.C., and was a presidential attache for the EU. She is fabulous, my age, and I'm excited to see all the good places her life will go! On a fun side note, her boyfriend of about eight years is an American film editor who recently worked on the "Narnia" film in NZ!

The internet cafe and infamous expat hangout across the street, "Kava-Kava," has started holding open-mikes on Friday and Saturday nights, so last Saturday, I sang. Just two verses from"Can't Help Loving that Man..."-- and I didn't tell anyone!! Even Raph came running in from the next room, saying "I know that voice..." It was good for me. I signed up for a real spot next Saturday.

The "Jeden Svet" ("One World") film festival has been going on this past week, and Raph, Jenny, Erik and I have been trying to see as many films as possible. A lot of them are human rights documentaries, and very provoking. A few examples: "Brother Gordon" documented a Vietnam vet and Harlem native who has spent the last 35 years living as a monk at a rehab monostary in Thailand, "giving lives for lives taken." "Vierka" documented the story of a Roma (gypsy) girl in the CR, with such an incredible singing voice, that a talent scout took her and her entire family in to try and start her career and give them a better life. They disappeared one day without a trace. In "Winter's Children," the grandson of a Third Reich Nazi turns the camera on his own family to try and represent and deal with the repressed and painful denial of the past, to try and reconcile the beloved parent with the murderer. Some of these films aren't in English or German, and only have Czech subtitles, so it can be a challenge! "Sex Slaves" (called "white meat" in Czech)-- which I didn't even have to force everyone to come see-- is on Wednesday, luckily, in English. These films have also got me thinking about the aboriginal situation in Australia. The research I've been reading in this area has been heartbreaking, and Raph and I really want to do something about it...hopefully, we will get the opportunity to.

I finally went to an Irish Pub here, and due to their yummy Shepard's Pie, I'll have to add it to my favourite (non-Czech) restaurant list. And I'm still waiting for Spring. I've been waiting since I got here, as I hear Prague is a completely different (happy?) city come turn of the season. No matter what, we have secured the sun some May, by way of a visit to Turkey, to see my dear friend Elif, who I haven't seen in eight years...

Month of the Woman: Unpredictable (according to Bulgarian Myth)

2006-03-01T13:29:00.000+01:00

I'm having a quarter-life crisis. But I won't bore you (and myself) with twenty-something existential dribble (Kafka). My options are: work/graduate school in NYC, or work/graduate school in Oz. I have secured none of the above, as I cannot decide which I want. So, secure first, decide later, says the Greek chorus. Why can't I just enjoy my vacation, and stop worrying about my father? says Electra. Pirates, be warned: this is your brain (hold up an egg); this is your brain on vacation for too long (drop egg on floor).

As for the Czech chorus calling you a gypsy Aruna, you just roll your eyes with patronizing exasperation, and tell them you're not a gypsy, MICHELA'S a gypsy. You're Pocahontas. Then sing "Colors of the Wind" while I bite them. :-)

Full House

2006-02-23T12:26:00.000+01:00

Welcome new Anděl arrivals Gianni (Giovanni) from Italy and Felix from (the French part of) Canada!! Now I have someone to practice my Italian with, and Erik has someone to root for Canada with him at the Olympic hockey games:)

Life without a television has been wonderful, until this moment, when I realised I was missing all the Olympic ice-skating-- someone please, tape it, or fill me in!!!

Picture above, is Shinta (visitor from Brussels/Indonesia), Erik, Jenny, Me, Raph and Felix in front of the Vltava river, Charles Bridge and Prague Castle.

Many thanks to all who crossed their fingers, as my dad is now saftely home from the hospital, and reportedly feeling better. Also, my interview went very well, and professor Kucharski gave my application kudos ("someone of your caliber, with your scores," etc), but also warned that they only have 8 places available this year, and they might very well go to those with Masters degrees. So, it seems my best bet might be to go for a CUNY (or Australian??) Masters degree first...

Happy Birthday Kendra!

2006-02-17T11:11:00.000+01:00

Today is my baby sister's birthday, and she is all of 24 years since I decided she was MY baby:) I hope she is having a beautiful day, and doesn't worry too much about moving, graduating, and starting a new job at Google in the next few months! Life is all good swings (see above with her swing group "Decadance") and changes with her, I think .

In other happy news, my CUNY telephone interview date has been set for next Tuesday, February 21st-- so everyone cross fingers for me!!

Please also cross your fingers for my dad, who's not doing too well at the moment, and is back in hospital while they try and figure out what's going on inside of him...
I'm thinking of you, and love you and miss you, dad!!!

Happy Vienna-tine's Day!

2006-02-15T12:07:00.000+01:00

OK, I've said this before to many a misguided soul singing the praises of Paris, but personally,-- I LOVE Vienna.

Raph and I spent an amazing Valentine's weekend there, visiting Katja, my childhood friend, and former ballet student of my mother's. She is still a ballerina, and also a Shiatsu masseur, and lives a happy life in district 9, with her roomate and two cats (Cosmo and Sputnik). We arrived Saturday evening by bus, at the gorgeous Burgtheater and Rathouse (right), which had a huge ice-skating disco rink built in front of it, in the center of the city. After dropping our bags at Katja's, I drank real chocolate and we ate to a cool international remix at World Cafe. When we got home, to our surprise, Katja's roommate's boyfriend (who's name is also Raphael), (unbelievably generously) handed us the key to his upstairs apartment for the entirety of our stay!

Early (early) Sunday morning, we walked to the Burgskapelle, through a number of impressive architectural feats (even just the city library, left, is devastating) to hear the Vienna Boys Choir at mass. Standing room was free, and much farther from the incense:) They were beautiful to listen to, although shockingly young (some looked six!) for sailor-suited superstars, to whom tourists flocked to have their picture taken afterward.
Next, we stopped at a Viennese cafe to warm up. This cafe came complete with a tuxedo-clad waiter, no menu, and free (get that, Czech Republic?) water, without having to ask for it:) After hours of deep psychoanalytic discussion, bratwurst and warm chestnuts, we headed to the Hudertwasser museum (below right), where the famed modern artist refused to leave even the floors, windows, or toilets out of his masterpiece. Across the street, we visited the museum of fakes, where many of the great counterfeits and their histories and secrets are on view. Here, you can order a counterfeit copy of any work you like for between 1,000-3,000 Euro. We made a quick stop for some Wiener Schnitzel and some kind of white root, and then off to Haus der Music, which is a great example of the fun one can have with the technological advances of our age.

You could honestly spend an entire day at that museum, so good thing it's open til 10pm! Among the music-ed gimmicks and fun activities are a movie theatre that plays Strauss concerts from the Vienna Konzertsaal, a dice game that lets you create your own personal waltz, a sound board that allows you to remix the Magic Flute or Moonlight Senata with your own voice or the sounds of the ocean, etc., and take it home on CD (mine wasn't very good, so I saved the 7 Euro)! You can also conduct the Vienna orchestra with a life-size screen and movement detected wand, that makes the orchestra move at your whim. However, if you get too wild, the head violinist stops playing and says " We can't play like this! Have you ever even HEARD this piece before?" Last stop for the evening was the famed international jazz club, Porgy and Bess. My reaction to the American Jazz group playing there, was "It's just noise-- they're not even listening to each other." To which Raphael responded, "It's an assault on the ears darling, but it's much more than noise."

Monday I slept in and Katja gave me a Shiatsu massage (which was FABULOUS-- everyone, go to her!), while Raph went to Bratislava to finally get his paper work (from entry "Andel Bound") in. We met Raph at the train station and went to the Gulasch Museum, which is a restaurant that serves "every kind of goulash imaginable," but I could imagine a lot more. I had "Mozart Goulasch" which was chicken goulash in capers, and Raph had "Fisch Goulasch" and we finished with "Chocolate Goulasch", which Raph says is not really goulash. We souvenier-shop hopped for various kinds of Mozart Kugeln, Klemt Prints, and T-shirts that read "No Kangaroos in Austria", and just made it to the Stadtsoper to get standing room tickets (2 Euro!) to Beethoven's (only?) opera "Fidelio." What can I say, the Austrian's love their opera, and the musicians are unmatched anywhere. Check out Austria's less stuffy side by examining the statue (above) closely.

Tuesday, we had some home-made Katja breakfast, and went to visit Schoenbrunn castle (left). It was beautiful and sunny, and I'm so glad we went that day. It was really wonderful for me to go back and learn and see the life of the Habsburgs, after having taken ReActing to the Past (a uni course) at Columbia, and having had to really delve into the life of King Louis XVI. And the Habsburgs really had money-- their creations rival Versailles and their 700-year legacy is untouchable. I don't know what was wrong with that Elizabeth princess ("Sissi") they go on about, I would LOVE to be a Habsburg princess-- or at least play one in a movie;)

After the Schoenbrunn tour, we went to the big fruit, veg, spice and cheese market, called "Naschmarkt" (~ Temptation market; see right). Raph gave me a pretty flower made out of dried fruit for Valentine's Day, and the lady promised it could last for 2 years (as long as our relationship), but I'm already eating it...The trip from Prague is only 4ish hours, and our student round-trips cost US$35 each. Amazing.

Little Things I Left Out...

2006-01-25T12:58:00.000+01:00

I've gone back to my old posts and added "hind notes" where appropriate, but here are a few little things I left out completely:
Miss Anna the lovely of Moscow came to visit Prague on her way back to NYC, and we walked up Petřin in the ice and snow, and found a magical little gallery in the middle of Petřin full of paintings by an artist named Reon (www.reon.cz -- surrealist in a good way). He had created an environment, not a gallery-- filled with cavernous nooks and crannies, painted fantastic colours, and in-stereo celtic music to match his fairies and mythical creatured paintings and sculptures-- way cool. Then we we walked up to the mirror-maze (none of us brave or young enough to go for that), and Prague's "eiffel tower," which offers a freezing cold view of the entire city, and no elevator, unless the former communist gate maid deems you unable to walk. But then, hey, we got to slide down the mountain (complete ice) gripping each other by the arm, so I got my satisfaction of Anna hugs:) We then went a a restaurant at the bottom of Petřin (where stairs leading nowhere sport metal statues of disappearing men), which I loved called "Le Bastille." I also love "Le Patio" and "Pizza Coloseum." I'm starting to see a pattern with my taste for all restaurants not Czech...

Also, I've been told I'm officially a Prague citizen, now that I've bought a Metrocard that lets me ride all the city's buses, trams, and subways-- and disappoints the conducters, whose eyes glow in the hope they've found another tourist to fine, when they hear me butchering their language. I don't like the picture.

A good friend of Raph's, Andre of Portugal, has left for a new job in Amsterdam, and I shall miss the early morning barging into our room, one of our pieces of fruit in hand, and "so what are we doing today?" moments. Never fear, Andre and Raph are already planning a road-trip from Berlin to Brussels...
A new housmate, Will, from Kansas has arrived, so that adds to the already english-speaking Andel clubhouse of me and Raph, Erik from Vancouver, Jenny from China, Adam from Poland, and Geri from Bulgaria.

This coming Thursday is Australia Day, so Raph and I stayed up making Lamingtons-- that's right-- BY HAND last night, so they would ripen to the traditional Australian staleness by tomorrow. Meanwhile, Chinese New Year was celebrated by the whole house, managed by Jenny, in a Chinese food pot-luck mixed with a viewing of "The Corporation." Questionable combination, but good for discussion.

Published!!!

2006-01-20T15:42:00.000+01:00

OK, pictures are going to take a bit longer, as my computer is new, I didn't bring the software CD for my camera, and the obscure company which made it doesn't seem to have any download links in cyberspace.

Sorry guys-- but look at it this way: you're imagination probably makes me look thinner:) And if not, well then, you're never allowed to paint me!

What HAS been published, is Aditi's and my poem "Naan Onnumey Pannelay" (see www.columbia.edu/~mc2069 for more poetry by me). Spanking wet copies of "The Tablet" came out at Columbia University a couple days ago, so those of you within reach-- pick me up a copy!!!

Also, I've started work at La Strada (www.strada.cz), and I love it there. All seven women who run this organization are incredibly inspiring. They're also very interested in me, and have a lot of great work for me to do, so I feel very useful:) It's a nice change from the finance/IT home environment too (not that I don't love you guys!).

Flamenco classes are great. Our teacher, Jana, seems very professional (proper warm-ups and stretching, mum!) and teaches our class in Czech, English and Spanish! Truly though, we need to get Raph some flamenco shoes...I don't know how he manages...

I joined a gorgeous, beautiful, amazing gym in the mall next door, which was pretty cheap by US standards...Honestly, I didn't feel truly recovered from jet-lag, being sick, etc., until I sat in that steam sauna for a good 20 minutes. I only have a 24 entry card, though, so I'm looking forward to the weather warming up so I can run outside!!

Oh yeah-- and more great news: I got a telephone interview with CUNY (my #1 PhD choice)!! That should take place early Feb.

OK, all for now. Those trying to give me jury duty need to send me a free roundtrip ticket:)

An American in Prague

2006-01-11T18:34:00.000+01:00

Hey, someone was nice to me today! I'll have to take back all those things I said about unfriendly Czechs! I've done a lot of walking in the past few days, and found my way around the old town and the new town with a map, and just wandered around my neighbourhood without a map;)
Raph and I met up with (my former Czech teacher and friend) Krystof and a couple of his lovely friends before he ran back to the University of New Orleans, and it seems a generation of Club Andelers (housemates) are leaving, and a new one coming in.
Raph and I have a Czech-English language exchange tonight--at KFC of all places-- with a very sweet and intelligent couple named Ales and Lucka (i.e., Alex and Lucy).
Friday is our first flamenco class, and I start work tomorrow, but as you can see, I have been busy enough nonetheless!
Pictures promised soon.

Anděl bound

2006-01-03T18:38:00.000+01:00

Ok, caught my mandatory cold and spent all day (hindnote: a week) in bed and feel a bit better now. Hopefully, we can head off for a trip to Budapest tomorrow (hindnote: didn't happen), and see Krystof in Brno on the way (hindnote: saw him in Prague instead), and take care of Raph's visa paperwork in Bratislava too (hindnote: this we did do, and stayed at a nice hostile, Le Patio, after Raph vetoed the Hilton-- but-- it was a Slovakian "bank holiday" and everything was closed, including restaurants, and most importantly, the Czech emabassy. This, combined with the pouring rain and how sick I was, meant we went directly home the next day, with a stop at a lovely chocolate cafe-- with a chocolate fountain--Maxime's, in Bratislava's main square) . I haven't started work or seen much of the city yet, but all the rest and sleep is (hindnote: desperately needed) worth it!!

Hezky Novy Rok!! (Happy New Year!)

2006-01-01T16:56:00.000+01:00

I have arrived saftely in Prague. Albeit 8 hours later than expected, I was nonetheless in time to sleep some and see the city's competitive New Year's fireworks from Petřin, a large snowy hill near Prague Castle. It was absolutely beautiful. My camera's flash wasn't working, but it's burnt into my memory.
Raphael is still amazing-- i'm not disappointed at all;)
Thus far, I find the Czechs themselves...less than friendly, but perhaps my constant smiling is scaring them off;)

On a Brighter Note...

2005-10-28T20:13:00.000+02:00

Raphael has agreed to be my country! My citizenship proceedings have been going well, and with any luck, I will be sworn in sometime next year;-)
In other news...Hi Kara! Ja vim že, neznameneš potřebuju omlouvat. I was just implying that those of us with my personality might need that knowledge even without the help of swear words-- but your English ones are very good-- who taught you those??? :-P

Afterglow...

2005-10-25T02:31:00.000+02:00

No- not that kind, silly! Not with my Raph 4,000 miles away (Hey- that's 6,000 miles better than last year!). I mean the kind of afterglow you get when your midterms-- good and bad-- are OVER. All that's left now is working off the Halloween candy I'm going to eat, taking the Psych GRE, turning in grad school applications, finals and moving. It's difficult to imagine that I'll be finished with my degree in 7 weeks, and living somewhere other than NYC in just 9 weeks...perhaps never to return (sniff). Unlikely. But there are times when I feel I don't fit in even here, that I'm still misunderstood by... everyone, or that I somehow come across as too aggressive or over-ambitious (even to Americans!)...I tend to stick my neck out a lot (or it just sticks out naturally), so Kara's right-- I need to start learning to apologize in Czech.

Little Paragraphs...The New Short-Short Art Form

2005-10-19T23:50:00.000+02:00

Since Miss Kara is the only one reading my blog, I will compose her a little paragraph:-)
Ahoj, Karo! Jak se maš? My Czech teacher is getting very frusterated-- not with us, but with the Czech language...he says it's a ridiculously difficult and useless language, and he's only just realizing it now that he has to teach it (as opposed to 26 years of speaking it). But I find it fabulously useful for cursing...you guys leave the conversation group so early you miss out on learning wonderful phrases like, "Maš kramy" and "kurve" when everybody gets drunk...

Wicken Wayes

2005-10-15T02:39:00.000+02:00

Am gathering the remnants of wicken wayes to wash away the raynie dais...because I have a Renn Faire to go to tomorrow, dagnabit!

Relativism in strange places...

2005-10-11T02:15:00.000+02:00

Know what I learned in Czech class today? If a masculine (active) noun, ending in a consonant, is used as the "object" of a sentence (accusative), the ending changes to an (otherwise feminine) "a." So if I want to say "I love Raphael" (I love you, baby), it would be "Miluji Raphaela." I find that hilarious....proof that being female can be as simple as being put in the objectified position! Ha!

Mission Control, do you read me?

2005-10-09T01:43:00.000+02:00

The time has come for those of us less willing, to go into that dark night of cyberspace. And so, here I am. It's not as pretty or personal as my former journals, but frighteningly more accessible and editable: Anne Frank would be proud.
For those of you whose Italian is rusting, my blog title ("Michela illesa") is best translated as "Michela Intact," although this really doesn't do it justice. The word "translate" actually used to mean "transform," and I find this gives me a more accurate understanding of what exactly is lost in translation.
So, intact, or as Sondheim would put it: "still here," here's to making staying "in contact" easier...