very simple

My brother started making fun of me the other day because I still hadn’t finished organizing my photos from our trip through southern India. Well, now he can stop making jokes (when he started telling me that 4 months was waaay too long to sit on these, I did have to point out that we were only halfway through the trip two months ago).

There were so many of them that I didn’t have the energy to caption each one, so I broke them up by day.

[Update 2015] In an effort to reduce the number of holdover pages on the blog, I am slowly (very slowly) integrating albums into the appropriate historical posts on the blog itself. Photos from this trip are now below.

Days 1 and 2: Covelong, Kanchipuram and Mammallapuram

Day 3: Madurai

Day 4: Periyar

Days 5 and 6: Kumarakom and the Kerala backwaters

Day 7: Cochin

Day8: Mumbai

Photos from last Sunday’s ING New York City Marathon are now up.

[Update 2015] In an effort to reduce the number of holdover pages on the blog, I am slowly (very slowly) integrating these albums into the appropriate historical posts on the blog itself. As such, this album now appears below.

I was still at the gym (just about to leave and head over to Central Park) when Paula Radcliffe won – everyone was gathered around the TV to watch – It took me a few minutes to get to the race route, where I managed to get a spot at the “200 yards to go” spot – These were the first female and male runners that I got to see in the marathon:

Bib number F23: Victoria Ganushina of New York (yeah!). Placed 18th among the women.

Bib No F22: Heather Killeen-Frisone of California. Placed 19th among the women.

and

From the official ING NYC Marathon page:
Aleksandr Kuzin [bib No. 10]
Ukraine
Age: 33
Residence: Ukraine
Kuzin amazed the running world by winning the Linz Marathon on April 15 in 2:07:33, the fastest time by a European (and second-fastest by anyone) this year and nearly a three-minute personal record. He has set two Ukrainian marathon records (the last beaten recently by Dmytro Baranovsky’s 2:07:15), and he has run on Ukrainian teams at several major events, including a respectable 18th at the 2001 IAAF World Championships. Kuzin must now be considered a serious podium threat at the ING New York City Marathon 2007.
***
He came in 9th place overall.
I’ll try to get an actual album up (with lots of photos of the not-so-professional runners) in the next few days.

the NYC marathon is today, and this is the first time, since I moved into my Upper West Side apartment, that I’ll actually be in town for it (last year I was living in Milan and the year before I was holed up at the offices of a financial printer in London.  Before that, I lived downtown, far away, in city terms, from the marathon route).

I’m not sure how much I’ll actually get to see, because you have to reserve seats on the bleachers to get a really good view, and I’ve got to meet my trainer from 11 to 12, but I’m going to drag my camera with me, and hopefully catch some finishers when I get out of the gym, which is conveniently located on 67th and Columbus, only one block away from the marathon end-point at Tavern on the Green.  They’ve also blocked off my street, even though I’m a few blocks north.  My doorman said that most people have to "exit" via my street, because it’s the first major cross street north of the finish.  So I should be able to get some good people shots at the very least.&nbsp

They’re actually expecting the first finishers (competitive men) to finish right after noon, so the timing (crowds permitting) is pretty perfect.  I imagine I’ll be able to see people hobbling around for most of the afternoon.

Aside from being sick, labor day weekend was my first opportunity to really get to test out my new Nikon D80. The entire album of decent photos is located [at the bottom of this post – see update], but some highlights (in other words, my favorites), below:

Oliver, the most hyperactive Jack Russell ever (and that’s saying something):

The first time I’ve ever chased a bee around the yard (forgetting all natural instincts to run and hide, because I wanted a cool photo):

And some other cool flower photos (my parents have a very nice garden, 99% of which I’m apparently allergic to):

[Update 2015] In an effort to reduce the number of holdover pages on the blog, I am slowly (very slowly) integrating these albums into the appropriate historical posts on the blog itself. As a result, the entire album is now located directly below.

So I’ve finally gotten around to posting some of the photos I took in Milan during my last few days there (and on the return trip over Easter), and Here they are. They’re mostly from the top of the Duomo, which I climbed with a friend on my last day of work (talk about a long lunch break), but there are a few thrown in of the Castello (which looks cool but was completely rebuilt, so it’s kind of fake), and some other random stuff.

[Update 2015] In an effort to reduce the number of holdover pages on the blog, I am slowly (very slowly) integrating these albums into the appropriate historical posts on the blog itself. As such, photos are now directly below.

in going through my sitemeter referral logs, I noticed that there were quite a few people looking for things on this site who didn’t appear to be finding them, thanks to the move from iblog to wordpress.  While I’ve changed all of my internal links, I can’t change old references on other people’s websites, so here’s a short list of the most common things people appear to have been looking for and not finding.

If you’re looking for info on hardwood floors, tiny kitchens, or anything else apartment related, check out the home improvement or real estate categories, where I blogged my whole apartment buying and renovating experience.

If you’re looking for stuff on Italy, check out the milan category – I lived there for six months.  There are probably also a few posts on Rome, where I spent some time, in the more general travel category.  Also, pictures from Rome can be found here.

Pictures are sometimes inside blog posts, but are more often contained in my photo albums, listed on the photo album page, or here.  If you’re looking for pictures of the Dakota, check out the album titled NYC snow day 2006.

And don’t forget that if you’re looking for something in the blog, there’s a search box at the top of the page.

Although I admit that it would probably be more pleasant to actually visit in the spring.

Pictures are being uploaded now.

Here’s a breakdown of my weekend.

I landed on Saturday afternoon, and immediately upgraded my room to one with a view of the Eiffel Tower. Unfortunately, the fog was pretty thick and it made actually seeing the Tower a bit of a challenge (it shows up less well in photos than it did in real life). and took a quick walk around the Saint Germain neighborhood, down to Les Deux Magots. It’s a spot I remember from my trip ten years ago, and back in my scrapbook buried somewhere in NY (back in the dark ages before websites and digital cameras), I’ve got a photo of myself, backpack and all, standing out front. All in all, a good way to orient myself for the first day (and confirmation that my decision to stay in the same neighborhood was a good one).

Sunday morning I woke up with my grand plan to go to the Musee D’Orsay. I’ve mentioned in previous entries the trials and tribulations I’ve experienced in the past with this museum, but this time? success! The Orsay was open, and I probably took more pictures than I really needed to. Here’s the entrance, and here’s some highlights…the building itself is a work of art, having formerly been a railway station…scale models of the Opera Garnier…Degas…Monet…Van Gogh…Cezanne…Toulous-Lautrec…and Gauguin. Just for a few.

After I was done with the Orsay (and I’m pretty sure I missed stuff, but that just gives me an excuse to go back again, right?), I walked all the way over to the Eiffel Tower (starting here), passing the National Assembly, a whole bunch of bridges, Les Invalides (where Napoleon is entombed), the Tsar Alexander III Bridge and finally hitting the Tower. Once there, I picked up one of the NY Times recommended boats run by Bateaus Parisiens, and took a whole bunch more pictures, starting here, and which took me past the Louvre, Ile de la Cite, Notre Dame, and the smallest house in Paris. Exhausted, I hit dry land back at the Eiffel tower, and took a cab back to the hotel in time to actually see the light show at sunset from my balcony.

Monday was Christmas, and, not surprisingly, everything was closed. So I took another walk, this time to the Louvre grounds, and wandered through the Jardin des Tulieres, where I ate a crepe and got stalked by some seriously aggressive birds, who finally won. At the other end of the Jardin des Tulieres, is the Place de la Concorde, where they used to behead people and now there’s a ferris wheel. I’m not sure this is progress. From there, I trekked up the Champs-Elysees to the Arc d’Triomphe.

Tuesday was my departure day, but I thought I could squeeze in actually going inside the Louvre before I left. Unfortunately, the Louvre is closed on Tuesdays (I am happy to say that I did get in 10 years ago, so I’ve already seen the Mona Lisa), so I resigned myself to wandering around Saint-Germain some more (and admiring how Paris makes even the subway seem pretty). Compare the hotel I stayed in 10 years ago with the one I stayed in now!

So that’s it. I didn’t take pictures of things like the hotel bar, even though i managed to have at least one drink there every day, or the craziness that is flying EasyJet (unassigned seating by group doesn’t work so well when you all have to take the same damn bus to the airplane way out on the tarmac, yet people still all push to the front of the "line").

All in all, I admit to only seeing a fraction of the city, but it was a good fraction. I enjoyed myself, drank some champagne, saw some pretty things, and managed to make that first trip (oh so many years ago) a bit of nostalgia rather than the city-souring experience it had previously been in my head. I’d definitely go back. But next time I’d go in the spring, when the trees and gardens are blooming. That would only make it better.

[Update 2015] In an effort to reduce the number of holdover pages on the blog, I am slowly (very slowly) integrating these albums into the appropriate historical posts on the blog itself. As such, all photos now appear directly below.

We had a four-day weekend last weekend, thanks to it being Milan’s patron saint’s day (Saint Ambrose, for those of you who were wondering). I, however, did manage to go to work for three out of four of those days. Of course, just coming off of a two-week vacation back in the US, I couldn’t really complain. I also realized that if I had planned a bit better, I could have gotten my work done in about a day, but rolling out of bed at 11 or noon, then going to lunch, and only then going to the office certainly shortens the available work hours!

BUT!

I did actually manage to remember to bring my camera with me when I left my apartment. Since my office is in the center of town, it’s a pretty easy walk to see some of the more photo-worthy sights in Milan. Compared to the rest of Italy, Milan is probably a bit less…photogenic (I’m sure you all want to see tons of photos of banks).

So on Thursday, when I went to the office, I took the bus to the Duomo instead, figuring I’d walk through. (Fun fact: next to the Duomo is the entrance to the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II. Now, VEII was the guy who unified all of the disparate nation-states on the Italian peninsula into what we currently think of as “Italy”. He’s basically the Italian George Washington. In Rome, this rather officious looking structure, planted smack in the middle of the forum, is the monument to VEII. In Milan? Well, in Milan, they built a mall…). Of course, it was raining the first day (as it does on many days), so things are a bit grey…

I promise to have more exciting stuff soon. I’m thinking about booking a last-minute trip to Paris for the four-day christmas weekend, so I’ll be sure to take some photos there!

Saw Sleater-Kinney last night at Webster Hall (with the same group of folks from work who went last year), and it was, again, pretty awesome.

This is, as they’ve announced, their final tour ever, as they are breaking up after the conclusion. The final concert is tomorrow night (although there are some rumors that they’re going to do one more “final” final sendoff in portland). I will say though, that concert venues originally constructed in 1886 are not the ideal place to be when it’s been well over 100 degrees without the humidity all day for at least two days. It was hot. and stanky. and I thought, at more than one point in the evening, that I was literally going to melt in a puddle onto the floor. Still, I’m glad I went (my head may have not been so happy this morning when I woke up, but, eh, what the hell).

Anyway, here’s what photos looked like when I took them:

Here’s what photos looked like when my friend Steve, who’s approximately an entire foot taller than me took them:

And for those of you who are interested in hearing what it sounded like…