08.05.08
Posted in wedding, personal at 11:48 pm by wingerz
The big weddings keep on coming; this weekend it was Grant and Feng’s turn. They were married outdoors on a beautiful summer afternoon, and the evening celebration flew by.
Many years ago, when we were about to move into 21r, AJ described Grant to me as a funny guy - not in the stand-up sense, but more in his mannerisms. It didn’t take long for me to understand what he meant. Grant exhibits great exuberance for the things he finds worthwhile, such as Trader Joe’s frozen mango pieces, oatmeal raisin cookies, Krispy Kreme Donuts (noticing a trend?), the New Tetris, basketball (playing, watching, video gaming), applying optimizations to all parts of his life, and, of course, Feng.
In addition to being a constant source of wacky amusement, Grant has been a great roommate and friend. He’s been incredibly supportive. After one exhausting weekend, I passed out on our couch and woke up to find that he had cooked me a tasty stir-fry dinner. This is especially touching coming from a guy who once hoped to live on Mac&Cheese because it was 5 for $1.
Feng is a go-getter, as evidenced by their courtship. She also introduced me to almond macaroons from Mike’s Pastry, my favorite cookies. Last summer we took an awesome road trip up to Montreal for Matt & Amy’s wedding.
Together, they make a fantastic couple that we’ve missed hanging out with over the past two years. It’s been fun watching their relationship grow, and I sort of miss their lighthearted bickering, when Feng feigns (?) embarrassment at something he’s done or said. In any case, she’s cleaned him up a bit from the good ol’ days of 21r, where shirts and good fashion sense were optional.
Unfortunately for Grant, no blog post of this sort would be complete without the best picture I’ve ever taken of him. This was back in the days when I shot 640×480 photos with my first digital camera.
Permalink
07.27.08
Posted in mediterranean 2008 at 9:25 pm by wingerz
cinque terre, italy
We are back from our whirlwind tour of the Mediterranean. Jen planned an incredible trip, starting off with an 8-day cruise and wrapping up with almost a week in Italy. Our destinations:
- Cruise, leaving from Venice, Italy
- Split, Croatia
- Crete, Greece
- Kusadasi, Turkey
- Santorini, Greece
- Corfu, Greece
- Italy
- Venice
- Florence
- Siena
- Cinque Terre
The number of destinations made the trip feel much longer than it actually was and a bit more tiring than we anticipated. We kept up the frenetic pace up to the very end, cramming in one last bit of sightseeing into our evening in Milan before spending the night at the airport to catch our 6am flight.
paleokastritsa, corfu, greece
I was enamored by all of the narrow pedestrian-only streets, lined with small shops and colorful buildings, accented by flowerbeds of geraniums and other brightly-colored blossoms. The local food was fantastic - fresh fish, olive oil, tomatoes, and olives made frequent appearances along the way. The clear, turquoise waters of the Mediterranean were always inviting (and photogenic). Along the way we were lucky to make new friends on our cruise and meet up with Jay and his brother in Florence.
Fortunately the summer heat and crowds were never too burdensome. I’ve become acclimated to heat and humidity of New England summers, and quiet alleyways were only steps away from the hub-bub of major pedestrian arteries. Rick Steves’ travel guides, lent to us by Jess and Cy, were invaluable in helping us to avoid long waits at attractions.
More photos to come, mixed in with additional tales from Africa. We’ve been very spoiled travel-wise this year.
Permalink
07.07.08
Posted in africa 2008, travel at 12:04 am by wingerz
Day 7: March 21, morning
This morning as one of the cars stopped to change a tire, I was approached by two young boys. One of them asked me to take his picture. After I took his picture, he asked for something in exchange. I gave him one of my pens, and Mark gave him some chocolate and cranberries, which he shared with his companion. I wish we had brought extra school supplies for sharing with the children that we encountered.
The boys were waiting for school to start; the simple schoolhouse was down the road a bit.
Permalink
06.19.08
Posted in africa 2008, travel, photos, personal at 11:37 pm by wingerz
Day 6
Our descent into the Ngorongoro Crater is down a very steep, rocky road. The views are absolutely breathtaking - the flat basin, occupying roughly a 10 mile x 12 mile area, is covered in green grass and teeming with wildlife. The main geographical features include a small hill which may have been the remains of a mountaintop that once stood higher than kilimanjaro, a saltwater lake, and a small forest. We stop at the bottom, a bit woozy from the bumpy ride. From the floor of the caldera, green hillsides slope up to the crater rim. Wildebeests and zebras coexist peacefully and are completely unafraid of people. Ngorongoro has been criticized for being a bit too Disneyland-like, but we’re all ready to see animals up close..
Assorted sightings:
- Hyenas walk into the road and settle in a muddy puddle. We spot another hyena eating a wildebeest skull; they are exceedingly good at extracting nutrients from every last bit of animal.
- Lone male wildebeests space themselves out, staking out territory for the upcoming mating season
- Young zebras are fluffy, brown and white; their stripes darken as they age. One playfully rolls around in the dust.
- We get sick of seeing zebras - they are everywhere, including up ahead of us, blocking the road.
- A huge, old elephant hangs out in the distance. It can’t afford to damage its tusks.
- We’re also able to spot a black rhino - there are only about 13 left in the world, all here in the crater. Apparently there is also a baby rhino, but we miss seeing it.
- One of the lakes is full of flamingos. Even with binoculars it can be hard to discern individuals.
- On our way out of the park, we see two lions lounging in the grass near the highway. Apparently there is one lion for every square mile of the Ngorongoro region. They don’t even get up for us.
- Other sightings: jackal, Thompson and Grant gazelles, elan, lots of birds, warthogs.
The crowding is not terrible - at our lunch spot there may have been about 20 jeeps, parked near a freshwater pond (with hippos). Most of the time we see other jeeps scooting around the park but they are, for the most part, confined to the dirt roads. The day passes quickly and before we know it we are driving through the forest, then up and on our way out of the crater. Not only is Ngorongoro fun to say, it’s also one of the most amazing places I’ve ever seen. It’s a great place to end our safari experience.
Permalink
06.04.08
Posted in wedding, personal at 11:29 pm by wingerz
May was an absurdly busy month for me. Took four plane trips, the last of which was to North Carolina for Kerry and Jon’s wedding. It was a very short trip (about 26 hours in NC), but we spent all of it hanging out with close friends. The wedding was at the beautiful, lush Duke Gardens. A thunderstorm threatened to pour on us during the ceremony (outdoors), interjecting with loud, booming rumbles, but not a drop of rain fell from the sky. We had a great time, and of course Jon and Kerry could not have been any happier.
Jen and I have seen two of our best friends get married within a single month. Now if only we could see them on a more regular basis. I miss Kerry’s visits to Boston; she’d always bring good cheer and her humongous green backpack. One of my first (maybe the first) memory I have of her is taking a short break from a CS project to eat cookies with her and Jen. Her blocking group slowly adopted me towards the end of college, and I think any of the Jen-advice she gave me must have been good given where we are today.
(For those who can access my personal photo gallery, I’ve posted wedding photos from both May weddings.)
Permalink
05.26.08
Posted in africa 2008, travel, personal at 12:43 am by wingerz
Day 5: March 19, evening
This camp is much nicer - it’s an actual campground with fantastic amenities like hot running water and electricity (the generator is turned on in the evening). The shower is amazing, the first running water we’ve had in three nights. It feels luxurious, even though we need to bring our headlamps in to provide light and have to hang everything from two hooks on the back of the door. There’s an outlet with a surge protector, soon there is a long line of camera batteries waiting to be charged. Dinner is the usual starches and stews; the open gathering area is quite nice. The sound of large rain drops hitting our tent wakes us up in the middle of the night.
Karatu is a nice-looking place town - not as well-developed as Dar, but it certainly has a more welcoming feel. It’s the gateway to Ngorongoro Crater, tomorrow’s destination; the Serengeti and the Crater are to the northwest. Built on the tourism industry, internet cafes are plentiful and some of the people are dressed in a more western style. The main highway is busy with safari vehicles, bikes, and pedestrians, with the latter two always coming precariously close to being hit.
(The next day we take up an offer to do a few articles of laundry, and arrive back to find it drying on some bushes. A few of the bushes are thorny, making extrication a tricky process.)
Permalink
05.17.08
Posted in africa 2008, travel, photos, personal at 2:53 pm by wingerz
Day 5: March 19
We thank the Maasai and leave camp early in the morning. This is our day to ride atop the luggage jeep - it’s got a bench that seats four situated behind the main cabin. Dodging prickly branches is more of a problem because you can’t duck back inside like you can in the other vehicles. Eventually we come to a large grassy clearing; our guides get out to investigate whether we’ll be able to get across the mud. When they come back they have decided to give it a shot with one jeep, probably figuring that there are about 15 young men to extricate the jeep should anything happen. The jeep charges ahead forcefully, kicking up mud chunks before getting stuck about halfway through.
After rescuing the jeep, we alter our plan of going to Tarangire Park and head instead to Lake Manyara. We pass through several villages. The terrain is quite dry. We get caught in a drenching downpour - by the time we get ourselves into the cabin, we’re already soaking wet. The sun comes back out soon and we dry quickly. The seven hour drive flies by.
Lake Manyara rests on the western edge of the Great Rift Valley. The lake occupies 89 square miles, and the surrounding area is home to many animals. We drive along well-marked paths, and we see other people out on safari, finding ourselves behind three other cars at some point. Many of the animals seem accustomed to being watched. Highlights include lots of baboons in the forest, giraffes in the plains, an elephant family (including a baby), and a pool full of hippos.
Permalink
05.07.08
Posted in wedding, personal at 10:51 pm by wingerz
Had an incredible time at Brian and Tina’s wedding in Philadelphia this past weekend. The ceremony was at the magnificent Cathedral Basilica of St. Peter and St. Paul, and the reception was held on the 33rd floor of the Loews. At the Sunday brunch Brian and Tina, dressed in traditional Korean clothing, performed a bowing ceremony. Really enjoyed meeting and catching up with their families and friends, and, of course, seeing Brian and Tina so happy starting their new life together.
I find it pretty hard to believe that nearly 11 years have passed since we met. We were placed next door to each other freshman year and quickly became good friends. Over the years we’ve shared countless stories, feelings, thoughts, ramblings, and lots of very silly videos. It’s been quite a ride, with lots of Noch’s steak and cheese sandwiches and Charlie’s waffle fries to keep us going. Brian’s got a warm and lighthearted personality, and he’s also got knack for good conversation; keeping in touch has been quite easy since he left Cambridge.
I dug up this picture from almost exactly ten years ago (5/19/1998). Our hair’s gotten shorter, and our faces a bit older, but we’re still the same goofy guys. Somehow we’ve both managed to find great girls willing to marry us.
Permalink
04.18.08
Posted in africa 2008, travel, personal at 11:48 pm by wingerz
Day 4: March 18, before bedtime
after-dark frisbee
(ishan)
It starts with a silly after-dark game of tossing around Saadiq’s tiny glow-in-the-dark frisbee. Before long just about all of us have arranged ourselves in a rough circle in the open dirt area between the tents. Liz goes to see if the Maasai want to play with us. They are intrigued by the frisbee. One of them, expecting the glowing red frisbee to be hot to the touch, flinches a bit when it is handed to him. The frisbee whizzes back and forth through the darkness; its tiny size and high speed make it quite difficult to grab so we cheer whenever one of the Maasai is able to catch it.
the aggressor
(ishan)
We’re told that the Maasai want to perform a dance for us. They line up together and begin guttural chants. They plod towards us, keeping their arms at their sides. We don’t really understand what’s going on at first. Their song is completely foreign to us - it’s a mixture of sounds rather than melodies. All of us form a circle, with the women on one side and the men on the other. The Maasai, one by one, enter the circle, hop towards the center, face the women, leap as high as they can, and retreat back to the outside of the circle. The higher the jump, in theory, the more it impresses the ladies. They hand off their spears to us and we each take a turn in the middle - guys first, then girls. When it gets to be the girls’ turn, Jen picks an unfortunate quiet moment to declare, “I like being the aggressor”, making her the butt of jokes for the rest of the trip (and beyond).
After we all have our turn, the Maasai show us another patten. A man and woman enter the circle from opposite sides, face each other in the middle, then conclude with one final twisting jump to the side.
It’s quite an amazing experience, and we get the feeling that they are grateful to have been our hosts. Meanwhile each of us is touched by our inclusion in this world that is so far away and so different from ours. One of the things that Mark Thornton Safaris prides itself on is supplementing the typical safari experience of viewing animals from atop a jeep with activities that help visitors forge a stronger connection with the land and its people. In this respect the safari is a brilliant success.
The nighttime activities attract the lions’ attention, so they come to visit after we’ve all gone to sleep. The jeeps are turned on so that their sounds and bright headlamps will scare the animals away.
(Thanks to Ishan for all of the pictures shown here.)
Permalink
04.13.08
Posted in africa 2008, travel, photos, food, personal at 11:01 pm by wingerz
Day 4, March 18, Campsite
gary: before
When we first saw you we asked, “Who does that pet goat belong to?” Then we realized we were going to eat you. Some of us were distraught. Jen tried to garner support for your freedom. Saadiq wanted to name you to make the omnivores feel guilty, so we named you Gary. The first night, you were quite terrified as you tried to sleep in the back of a truck because the hyenas were harassing you. This morning you probably knew something was wrong because you started bleating at 6am and continued for most of the morning, waking us all up. To be completely honest you were pretty annoying.
gary: after
Two of the Maasai suffocated you so that your blood would not attract wild animals to the camp. They ate your kidneys raw and roasted your meat over the campfire for several hours. You were delicious. Jen refused to let you die in vain, so she ate three of your ribs for dinner and more of you for lunch the following day.
Permalink
« Previous entries
