Living the Questions

Living the Questions

Daniela VP  //  

 
Sep 30 / 11:36am

The Year of Travel - Updated

I don't want to neglect this blog as much as I have been, but the challenge is always the same... The updates pile on and since I haven't had time to write about each update individually, the prospect of sitting down and collecting all of them into one post is daunting. So I won't attempt to be thorough or chronological...
 
As far as travel goes, it certainly has been a great year! We did go to Jamaica and Switzerland, and we even went to Canada (Niagara Falls) on a spontaneous roadtrip - ok, not 100% spontaneous, but less than a week in planning counts as spontaneous on my book! We will be going to Wisconsin for Rob's best friend's wedding this month, although we won't really have time for sightseeing. The only thing that didn't go according to the plans that I posted back in February (man, has it really been that long??) was the trip to Bahia. Unfortunately traveling within Brazil is still very expensive. Instead, we will be celebrating the holidays (along with my sister's birthday and my parents' anniversary) in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.
 
So about our trip to Canada... For our anniversary, we took off Friday so we could have a 3 day weekend and visit Niagara Falls. We left on Thursday night, drove until about midnight and stopped in Syracuse to sleep, then drove the rest of the way on Friday morning. Once in Niagara, we did the Maid of the Mist tour, the Journey Behind the Falls, and walked around the edge of the falls. It was a very hot September day, so we had to make a shopping pitstop so I could buy a short sleeve shirt to wear the next day :) At night we drank wine and ate appetizers in our room while watching the weekly fireworks show, and then had a proper dinner at the (very nice) hotel restaurant. It took us quite a while to decide where we were going to go to see the fireworks - I'm so glad we chose our room! Our view was unbelievable, and it was much more romantic than being in a crowd.
 
On our second day in Canada (our actual anniversary), I persuaded Rob to take a drive to Niagara-on-the-Lake (NOTL), a beautiful town full of vineyards just north of Niagara Falls. We did a couple of wine tastings, tried the typically Canadian icewine. At one of the vineyards, we got a great lunch recommendation - it turns out that the NOTL golf club, located about 5 minutes from the main tourist area, boasts a waterside restaurant with outdoor dining. We couldn't have asked for a better place for an anniversary lunch, and we couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day to visit NOTL - AMAZING! After that we drove to the Niagara Falls Butterfly Conservatory, then headed back to the hotel to open the champagne and eat our 1-year old wedding cake! Yes, my Brazilian friends, this is an American tradition. We kept the cake frozen for 1 year (luckily we didn't lose power during Hurricane Irene), and yes the cake was safe to eat - I can say so now because I'm here to tell the story! It didn't taste bad, but of course not as great as on the wedding day. We each had 1 slice than gave the rest to the hotel staff. We finished our day at the restaurant that tripadvisor.com rates as #1 in Niagara Falls, AG at the Sterling. The food was superb, the atmosphere was great, service was pleasant but a bit slow. Then again I'm told that my standards of slow may be a bit skewed by living in New York for so long.
 
On Sunday, we braced for a 7 hour drive back, which ended up being 9 hours!!! Surprisingly, this wasn't due to traffic - there were a lot of floodings in upstate NY and northern Pennsylvannia, which resulted in many long, winding detours. Some of them were very scenic, but with low speed limits, many traffic lights, etc. But we made it, and it was totally worth it!

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Feb 4 / 6:56am

The Year of Travel

Travel

2011 begins... And as the new year settles in, we have been planning
our travels near and far... I'm getting excited for them!

In March, we booked a 5 day getaway to Jamaica. The intention there is
to have a second honeymoon, one that's very relaxing... Yes, because
on our actual honeymoon we saw 10 cities in 5 countries in 16 days. It
was amazing, and also relaxing in its own way, but very busy.

In June, we are going to Switzerland for my good friend Sarah's
wedding. The tickets are booked, and now we're figuring out the
itinerary, hotels, etc.

In October, we are going to Wisconsin for Rob's best friend Mike's
wedding. We probably won't have much time to sightseeing, but that
just means we'll have to visit Mike again another time.

Finally, in December, we are hoping to spend the holidays with my
family somewhere in the northeast of Brazil. My family is from Rio de
Janeiro, and for years I have been wanting to visit other parts of the
country, but year after year we end up back in Rio and nowhere else.
The only place I've been to in the Northeast is Fortaleza (in 1995, I
believe). The only difficult part now is finding reasonably priced
tickets with no more than 1 stop, and preferably not stopping in São
Paulo. Any tips?

 
Jan 16 / 12:05pm

Stress & Reflux

This is the "other blogpost"  I mentioned a couple of days ago. Before I forget to tell you, Memphis was amazing, a very energetic show, and definitely worth seeing. I found it refreshing to see a brand new show. Also the comedy show I was going to try to "sneak in", was yesterday. I couldn't say much more because it was a surprise to my friend Daniella from her boyfriend. We went to StandUp NY and saw some great comedians, including Caroline Rhea (the aunt from "Sabrina, the Teenage Witch").

Now to the subject of the post.... For a few months, probably since shortly before the wedding, I have been having pretty much a constant sore throat. Every day I would feel pain in my throat at least once, and most days it was pretty much a constant thing from when I woke up to when I went to bed. I went through countless family-sized bags of cough drops just to make it bearable. I didn't think much of it, for some reason. In late October, I mentioned it to my primary doctor during my physical. She said it was probably due to allergies and told me to take an over-the-counter anti-allergenic for about a week. I did, and it brought some relief, but not 100%. The sore throat continued, and I decided to see and ENT (Ear, Nose, and Throat) specialist. The ENT doctor put a camera through my nose to look into my throat (uncomfortable, but not as awful as you may think), and declared it confidently: "you have reflux". I was surprised: "acid reflux?" He nodded, and handed me a list of foods to avoid. No spicy food, no tomato, no alcohol, no carbonated drinks, no caffeinated drinks, nothing citric - very restrictive.

Yes, I had been eating a lot of spicy foods and drinking wine on a regular basis, but I have a strong feeling that real culprit is stress. First the wedding stress, then the stress of my workload on top of it, which is intensified by dealing with a very difficult co-worker that sits right next to me. I have tried to control the stress by simply brushing some things off and not getting worked up, but it's not enough. To deal with this stress, I have decided to seek a meditation course. I am fortunate to have a friend who is deeply involved with that world, and according to her - the breathing technique they teach in their 5 day course (3 weekday nights + Saturday and Sunday) is like a cake recipe: if you follow the steps correctly, it WILL relax it. I can't afford to be skeptical, I want to believe it and I hope it can do just that... We'll see!
 
Jan 14 / 8:48am

TGIF

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I'm definitely looking forward to the long weekend ahead (Monday is Martin Luther King Day in the US). Despite the cold and the snow that's still on the ground, we have a pretty exciting weekend ahead!

Tonight we will see Memphis the Musical. The tickets were a Christmas gift to Rob and I from my brother. We are also going out for Turkish food, and I'm taking a slight break from my stomach-friendly diet for it (that's the subject of another blogpost). Looking forward to lamb and baklava!

Monday is the last day of the King Tut exhibit in NY, and we decided to go! Better late than never right? It should be interesting...

Besides that, we may sneak in a little comedy show at some point, and thanks to MLK (amongst his many other contributions to society) I will still have plenty of time to catch up on sleep and some house chores. In Rob's case, he still has time to play volleyball :)

Posted from New York, NY

 
Dec 29 / 1:13pm

Baby it's cold outside...

When I first moved to the US, I hated jackets. My parents bought me a ski jacket that I absolutely despised, and I would only wear the plain black shell all winter long... Well, you can pull that off in Connecticut, where I lived at the time. There, you only have to be outside long enough to get to your car and back. But in Massachusetts and later on in NY, I discovered that I hate the cold more than I hate jackets. In Massachusetts because it's REALLY cold, and in NY because you inevitably spend a lot of time outside.
 
So I thought I'd share a few of the strategies I've learned to cope with the cold. For most Americans, this may seem like yeah-duh's, but for Brazilians who think 60ºF ( 15.5ºC) is freezing, these tricks may not be so intuitive:
 
1) Cover your head!!!! Hats are essential, especially if you have thin hair. In my case (I have VERY thick hair), I recently discovered that simply keeping my ears warm is incredibly effective for keeping my entire body warm. But, when it's really really cold, I am not afraid to pull out all the stops and wear both ear warmers and a hat, like I did today.
 
2) Think layers! I haven't had to do it this winter yet, but when the temperatures get really low, I will wear a thin quilted jacket under my peacoat. This is the same jacket I wear by itself during the spring or fall. Mine is black and similar to this: http://www.overstock.com/Clothing-Shoes/Regent-Womens-Faux-Silk-Quilted-Jacket/3892412/product.html
 
3) Keep your feet warm! My grandma used to say that the cold seeps in through your feet back when the biggest worry of such sort were cold hardwood floors in Rio de Janeiro. I went out in the snow this week wearing rainboots, totally inappropriate for the weather, and my toes turned into icicles! I did get a pair of very warm UGG boots for Christmas but I didn't want to ruin their suede exterior in the snow, so I just bought the waterproof boots shown in the picture below...
  
Baby it's cold outside

By the way, if the picture above looks like it lacks color, there are several reasons for that...
1) New Yorkers are known for wearing a lot of black. See reasons 2-4
2) Apartments in NY are small and have little storage space. Besides, unlike Brazilians, New Yorkers have at least 3-4 wardrobes: 1 for summer, 1 for winter, and 1 or 2 for spring/fall.
3) Winter accessories are worn several times a week, if not every day, for months. You need a basic color that you won't get sick of looking at. Of course, once you start building a more complete wardrobe, you can introduce some more color.
4) By having accessories that are easy to match, you can coordinate your outfit according to your needs for warmth, not on whether or not it matches well with what you're wearing.

Items in this set

MICHAEL Michael Kors Zip Pocket Peacoat
MICHAEL Michael Kors Zip Pocket Peacoat
$238 $140
nordstrom.com
BURBERRY AW10/3201298 2500C SABBIA CASHMERE SCIARPA
BURBERRY AW10/3201298 2500C SABBIA CASHMERE SCIARPA
$395
farfetch.com
Echo 'Driver Touch' Wool Blend Gloves
Echo 'Driver Touch' Wool Blend Gloves
$35
nordstrom.com
cap it off in wool blend black
cap it off in wool blend black
$29
shopruche.com
Sperry Top-Sider Snug Harbor at 6pm.com
Sperry Top-Sider Snug Harbor at 6pm.com
$96
6pm.com
Amazon.com: 180s Women's Tahoe Ear Warmer: Clothing
Amazon.com: 180s Women's Tahoe Ear Warmer: Clothing
$30
amazon.com
 
Dec 20 / 8:24am

Bate o Sino, Pequenino

Jingle_bells

This may be an unlikely follow-up to a Louis Vuitton post... So let me first address that. I do like nice things. I have never owned a real Louis Vuitton before so when my parents seemed to be extra generous this Christmas, it seemed like a good opportunity to get it. My parents are always saying that I don't "treat myself" enough, that I'm too frugal, etc. My closest friends know the truth in this. My mom was nagging me to choose something for them to give me for a while, and she dismissed some of the ideas I had because she wanted to give something very high quality, that I would use for years to come... Yes the Swarovski pendant I liked was beautiful, but I knew she had a point since my last piece of Swarovski jewelry had to be replaced 2 times - It was a ring, and the crystals kept falling out... The store replaced it free of charge the first 2 times but the 3rd time they said they didn't carry it anymore so I just stopped wearing it. That is why my mom was more than happy when I mentioned that I saw a Louis Vuitton bag I would like to have. Also because I never ask for anything, in contrast to my sister who always asks for everything, she felt that I deserved the splurge.
 
Back to the subject of the post... I still have a somewhat old-fashioned view of Christmas. I was brought up catholic, but I now go by the overused yet accurate description of "spiritual but not religious". But I do see the value of Christmas. As I say to Rob, I'm a fan of Christ, just not of his followers (by that I mean the Catholic church). Yes, there may be other Christian churches out there that better fit my views, but I prefer to search within for my own truths, however flawed they may be, rather subscribe to someone else's flawed interpretations. I admire and respect those who practice organized religion, but it's not for me.
 
However, I feel compelled to join the die-hard Christians when they say that say we should keep Christ in Christ-mas. Afterall it is the celebration of the birth of this wonderful man, the son of God and as such our brother, however much more enlightened than any of us. It is hard to imagine what our world would have been if Christ had not been born. So many of the events that shaped our world, for better and for worse, have been in His name. I am saddened when I think of how many wars were fought in His name. But then again, acts of kindness big and small, and many heroic events were also performed in His name. It is simply impossible to picture our world without Him, whether or hot one believes in Him.
 
We should also keep love in Christmas. I think it's important to note (and here I am about to lose the Christan vote if I haven't already) that Christmas was actually made to (almost) coincide with the Winter Solstice. Yes, because although historians and theologists argue about when Christ was actually born, almost all of them agree that it was not December 25th. Now that I live in a temperate climate, I can see why this celebration of winter is necessary. It is cold, dark, and often times lonely as people tend to retreat to their homes and "hibernate". The solstice celebration creates the reason and the motivation for people to congregate with their loved ones during the cold, dark, and lonely days of winter. Most of the celebrations offset the darkness of winter with a lot of light- Christmas, Hanukkah, and Diwali all have strong light elements. And warmth too, of course.
 
This year Rob and I went farther than past years as far as decorations go. We made our own star tree topper (pictures to come), and we put a little more effort into our Christmas tree in general. It won't win any beauty contests, but the ritual of it felt special to us. I tried looking for a few ornaments that said beautiful words, like "Joy" and "Love". Instead, I only found ornaments that said "HoHoHo", "Santa", and other words that have come to overshadow the meaning of Christmas. Today I caught myself humming the tune of "Jingle Bells", but the words in my head were to the Brazilian version. Then it dawned on my how different the two versions are in meaning. I guess it reflects the strong religiosity of Brazil. I like it much better... Anyway, I thought I'd share the words here... Some lines may sound awkward when translated, but if you think them through they make sense.
 
Hoje a noite é bela - This is a beautiful night
Juntos, eu e ela -  Together, she and I
Vamos a capela -  Go to the chapel,
Felizes a rezar. - Happily to pray.

Ao soar o sino - As the bell tolls
Sino pequenino - the tiny bell
Vem o Deus-Menino - Comes the boy-God
Nos abençoar. - To bless us.

Bate o sino pequenino - Jingle tiny bell
Sino de Belém - Bell of Bethlehem
Já nasceu o Deus menino - The boy-God was born
Para o nosso bem! - For our good!

É Natal, é Natal - It's Christmas, it's Christmas
Sininhos de luz! - Little bells of light
Replicai, badalai - Reply, chime
Que nasceu Jesus! - That Jesus is born!

Paz na Terra pede - Peace on earth, asks
O sino alegre a cantar! - The happily singing bell
Abençoe, Deus Menino - Bless, boy-God
Sempre o nosso lar! - Always our home!

 
 
Dec 17 / 1:26pm

Santa, Baby..

I'm in love with this bag, the Louis Vuitton Monogram Idylle in Sepia... Rob and I decided not to spend a lot of money on each other this year because we would rather save up for a few interesting trips in 2011...

BUT, since my parents asked me to find something nice that I would want for Christmas, I gave it some thought... And here is what I came up with :)

Photo

 
Dec 8 / 6:10am

Aquarela

This is the song to which I danced with my father on my wedding day. He used to sing it to me as a lullaby when I was little and I loved the imagery because painting was one of my favorite pastimes as a child.
 
Over the years, several lines within this song have held meaning to me, and I even wrote my college admissions essay based on it. I also painted 2 ceramic plates for my father based on this song. The first had several elements of the song drawn on a royal blue background, but a cleaning lady accidentally broke it one day. So I painted a second one, with a thick brick-red border and a big watercolor palette in the middle, and the words "Numa folha qualquer..." around it. My dad was happy to receive the second plate, but he still has the broken pieces of the first one stored in a box.
 
Today my iPhone alarm chose to wake me up to this song. Coincidentally, I received an e-mail from my dear friend Sarah from Switzerland where she mentioned "traveling in her thoughts", which completely resonates with this song. This inspired me to look for a version that I could share with my English-speaking friends and family, and I found it! Enjoy:
 
 
Nov 3 / 8:26am

Halloween

This is becoming a pattern for us... We don't get in "Halloween mode" until a couple of days before the actual day and then have to rush to get last-minute costumes. Last year I had to scramble to become an impromptu Tinkerbell, and Rob became an injured baseball player. This year we decided to reuse the costumes from 2 years ago, Fred and Wilma Flintstone. Unfortunately this picture was taken after I had already gotten tired of the itchy orange wig...

Photo

We went to a party in Manhattan where we only knew the host, but we had a great time and met some cool people!

On October 31st we went trick or treating with Rob's nephew Parker dressed as batman and our dog Bauer disguised as a shark. Those pics shall come at a later time :)

 
Oct 26 / 2:15pm

Oktoberfest

This weekend Rob and I went to an Oktoberfest in Bear Mountain, NY. That area is known for its beautiful scenery during the Fall season, and it really did have gorgeous foliage. Rob was very disappointed to have forgotten his new camera in the backseat of our car, which was left quite a few miles behind since we carpooled with our friends Alex and Tiffany. Luckily, Tiff was kind enough to take a few shots before her camera ran out of battery!
 
The weather was amazing, we didn't even need our jackets for most of the day. We did what people go to Oktoberfest to do, of course - drank beer and eat German food. I even partook in the beer-drinking, which is not a common occurrence for me (I'm much more of a wine drinker).
 
Besides the camera, we also regretted not bringing Bauer. There were a lot of dogs, as well as children, enjoying the day at Bear Mountain. So I promise that next year we will have more photos, and that some of them will include our adorable cockapoo!

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