monterey bay aquarium

i know it's petty, but i'm jealous. s got a comment on his blog from the PR manager at the monterey bay aquarium, and i want one, too. or at least a kind comment from you, dear reader. (see, this is why i don't have stats enabled on my blog. i don't want to know who reads - or doesn't read - my blog. it's healthier that way. hmph.)


the monterey bay aquarium really is one of my favorite places in california, and i'm not just saying that. i always thought that if i were more scientifically inclined, i would love to be a marine biologist. as it is, i have my advanced open water SCUBA diving certificate, which is the next best thing. i once went on an ill-fated diving trip in monterey with my best friend's brother - our goal being to swim among the otters. unfortunately, forces conspired against me and i couldn't sink, so i ended up bobbing along the top of a kelp bed until we gave up and went home. if you can't swim with the otters, the aquarium is a great alternative for viewing them without getting wet.


anyhow, as ken peterson noted on s's blog, it is not easy to photograph the sealife at the aquarium, but i think i managed to get a few decent shots. (so did s, for that matter. much better jellyfish in general.)



upside-down jellyfish, with one right-side-up in the foreground















a penguin pic for m. i know she'll leave a nice comment, even if you can see reflections in the window!



an unusual photo op of the octopus on the move


stepping outside the aquarium for a moment, we came upon another rare sight. before we went to the aquarium, i had read about the new baby otters and was a bit disappointed that our visit was just a few weeks too early to see them. imagine, then, our excitement at seeing a real live baby otter feeding with its mom!


what you can't hear in these photos was the "meep meep!" noises they made to stay in contact with each other. too cute!












a seagull got in on the feeding action















extreme close-up! thanks to s for helping me photoshop them

















if you can't get to the aquarium, check out youtube. not quite as good as the real thing, but some of the videos are surprisingly well done!

birthday bonanza

s and i took a quick trip to california and managed to pack a lot into a few days. go check out s's blog for the pretty landscape and animal pix, and then come back here. he also has better commentary. i'm using jet lag as an excuse to post some people pix instead. enjoy!



valentine's holdover






there is a story behind s's "mmmm, pi" t-shirt, but i'll save that for a different blog






family photo in point lobos, another in a long series of family photos taken there, but the first with d & s

one hot american

it's a far cry from last year when s made italian steak and tiramisu for valentine's day. this is the ready-made quick-o, cheap-o version that i picked up on my way home from work. i'm a domestic diva and romance queen all wrapped up in one, n'est pas?

vertigo

last night we watched alfred hitchcock's classic film, vertigo, in preparation for our california trip next week. i hadn't seen it in a while and had forgotten how much of the film is driven by the soundtrack, scenery, colors, (over)acting, and film angles. the dialogue is almost secondary. the film still packs a psychological punch, and i found it hard to summarize it for a colleague at work today without giving away the twist ending.

as for the scenery, i enjoyed seeing how much san francisco has changed...and how much is still the same.



we're looking forward to spending a weekend in monterey/carmel, where we'll add another california mission to our list of places visited. also planning a trip to the monterey bay aquarium to say hello to the otters.

february

for many people, february is the longest month. it's dreary and cold and seemingly endless.

february has always been my favorite month. it's lively and lovely and, yes, seemingly endless.

in the san francisco bay area where i grew up, february is when the flowers start blooming - it's hard to call it "spring" because there's usually not much of a "winter." seasons have very little meaning in the bay area, if you ask me.

it's also the month of birthdays. my mom. my best friend's mom. me. my sister.

extend back to the end of january and there's my best friend's dad.

fast forward into march and there's my sister's husband and my best friend. there's also my husband's sister. that's a lot of aquarians and pisceans.

of course, there's also valentine's day, or as i like to call it, schmalentine's. schmalentine's is definitely better when there's someone special to share it with, but i have always preferred to think of it more as a prelude to my birthday - surely a more worthwhile occasion.

so, to celebrate february, s and i are going to california for a quick trip to see my family next week. i can't wait! more pix soon...

snow!

the wasabi jumper

this is my new project which i have renamed the wasabi jumper. * **



i realize these are crummy photos, but i assure you that the finished garment will be gorgeous. how could it not be when it's made of kidsilk haze and scottish tweed?!



i am knitting in the round, which means that i committed myself to an entire sweater in stockinette - but worse yet, i don't even get to purl every other row! on the plus side, however, it is super easy to pick up and put down again since i am still at the stage where i don't have to think beyond, "K [K] K until body measures 14 inches from turning ridge." i still have a good 10 inches or so before my brain needs to start working in conjunction with my fingers.


* wasabi: japanese horseradish, often colored bright green. it forms a significant part of my work, believe it or not. since i am knitting the bulk of this jumper during my lunch breaks, wasabi seemed appropriate in more ways than one.

** jumper: britishism for sweater. i'm planning an entire blog soon about the differences in names for clothing items in the US/UK. stay tuned!

auld lang syne

somehow it seems an appropriate beginning to the new year to have spent the last two days with long-lost friends.

ok, i exaggerate slightly for effect, but it has been a while since we were all together.


c, on the left, moved to beijing in october 2005 after we finished our master's degrees. k, on the right, put off her new year's painting plans to come join us for a drink and mini-SOAS reunion.



m is in london visiting from san francisco, where we used to work together. those in the know will be eating at blue mirror this summer.


it was great to catch up with my amigas. we keep in touch with email and skype, but it's still best to see each other in person.


in case you're wondering, i haven't really made any new year's resolutions, but i have a few personal and professional goals, including getting a UK driver's licence. stay tuned for more in 2007!

happy new year!

see you again in 2007!

xo, b

xmas in iceland

hallo!

s and i spent our first xmas together in the winter wonderland of iceland. well, it could have been more wintery, actually. we were prepared for cold, dark days; we hadn't counted on temperatures hovering just above the freezing point which turned all the snow into rain. more on that below.


saturday, 23 december

reykjavik is located at 64ºN. london is 51ºN. san francisco is 37ºN. i could keep going on, but i'll leave it to you to google the latitude where you live. the point is that it makes a big impact on the number of daylight hours in winter. in london, the sun is out when i leave the flat for work at 8:15 AM and sets around 4 PM. in reykjavik, the sun rose around 11 AM and started setting by 3:30 PM.

this photo was taken from our hotel room at 10:30 AM.


just an excuse for sleeping in, really...!


we walked around reykjavik on our first day. the downtown area is quite compact and the two main streets lead up to hallgrímskirkja, the lutheran church that can be seen from almost anywhere in town. we went inside in time to hear the organist rehearsing for service later in the day - impressive pipes!









icelandic design sense is very modern and simple, so it seemed appropriate that the most outstanding building in reykjavik was far less ornate than the cathedrals in say, paris or rome.

they do, however, decorate everything with lights in celebration of winter solstice and christmas. you'll notice that some of the photos below are out of focus, but don't blame me. it's hard taking pictures in low light. in fact, i took two versions of most of them: one with flash on (auto mode) and one where i remembered to turn the flash off.

flash off:







by the afternoon, the sun was shining bright and the harbor looked strangely peaceful considering all the heavy industry and possible whaling activity that goes on there.

we weren't sure, but we thought this might be the entire armada of the icelandic navy, ducks included.





while walking through downtown to find a restaurant for dinner, we came upon this candlelight parade.



this santa was taking his responsibilities very seriously.


the restaurants were full of festive families enjoying their last night out before several days at home. we enjoyed having more than three options for dinner, too - but more on that below!


sunday, 24 december

knowing that icelanders celebrate xmas starting on the 24th, and knowing further that most of the shops and restaurants would be closed, we booked ourselves on a day tour. our guide was cheerful and knowledgeable. for the first few hours, he kept saying helpful things like, "on the left hand side of the coach, you'll see - well, nothing - but you would see a mountain in the distance if it weren't so dark..."

we stopped at geysir to watch hot water shoot out of the ground while the rain pounded on us from above.

flash on: soggy s


flash off: you can see the steam rising from the geothermal water below


look deep inside the parka... we're smiling!





next on the tour was gulfoss, the "golden waterfall." many years ago, i visited niagara falls in the middle of a downpour. at the time, i thought it was the most water i had ever seen. gullfoss in the rain was definitely a close second!






finally, we went through the national park of thingvellir. read s's blog for more information about it.



(my personal favorite of all the pics i took)


volcanic lava

as our tour guide kept saying, iceland was "formed by vulcan eruption under ice."


back in reykjavik, we left our wet clothes on the radiator and warmed up over dinner at the hotel saga, one of only three places (including our hotel) serving dinner on the 24th and 25th. as hotel buffets go, it was perfectly fine - even with more herring than we could shake a breadstick at. hurrah for turkey and potatoes!






monday, 25 december

white xmas! we woke up to a light dusting of snow that dazzled once the sun came out. perfect! we spent the day at the blue lagoon geothermal spa.



the snow on the lava rocks looked like icing sugar on a chocolate cake.



















we had xmas dinner at the hotel.








tuesday, 26 december



we spent a calm boxing day walking off our xmas meal in reykjavik.

s was patient while i dragged him to every shop, not once (on the 23rd, when i wasn't prepared to buy anything the first time around), not twice (on the 26th when everything was still shut), but thrice (on the 27th, when i finally bought an icelandic wool jacket and lava rock necklace).





















we didn't expect to see palm trees in iceland


or bicycles hanging above the street



we went up to öskjuhlíd, home of the perlan restaurant. naturally, it was closed for the holiday.


there were lovely views of the city


requisite art shot


beneath all that fleece and gore-tex is s, still smiling



wednesday, 27 december

for our last full day, we decided to strike out on our own instead of signing up for another coach tour. we found out that we could take the local bus about an hour north of reykjavik to akranes for only 500 krone each (just under five pounds - bargain!) all we knew about akranes was that it was a charming town with a nice beach front and a nearby mountain.

our first impression was slightly more desolate than charming...


we started questioning the wisdom of our decision when we saw the tractor coming down the road


and fearing that we would end up like the last tourist in akranes, suddenly 500 ISK seemed like a lot to pay!


the mountain was beautiful, however.


and the beach front had a certain je ne sais quoi




but we still didn't really know what we were supposed to be looking at, or where to go


this sign didn't help much


just then, a lovely couple pulled up in a warm mercedes SUV and asked in perfect english if we were tourists. they welcomed us into their car and drove us around akranes, showing us all the sights along the way: new building developments, the museums (which were closed, it turns out), a lighthouse.





then they took us into their warm home and gave us coffee and cake. they had lived in england and have traveled around the world. s helped fix their computer, and we had a nice chat. what sweet people! they are celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary on new year's day. i hope s and i make it that far together, and that we have the chance to repay their generosity somewhere, somehow. i'm looking forward to our next adventure!