I tried a couple new taco spots, swam with Teddy off Coronado Island, enjoyed watching basketball the only way I know how (via food), spent time with Eaman’s family who visited San Diego, played around for a half day in NYC and traveled to Philly for my cousin’s wedding, where you’ll see a glimpse of our cousin-filled Bollywood dance. Here’s a look at June set to my new favorite song. Watch the last few seconds for a glamorous shot of me. Just tryin’ to keep it real, people.
Music: “I Follow Rivers” (The Magician Remix) by Lykke Li
Monday was all about my blip of a trip to New York, and today is all about my cousin’s Indian-Jewish wedding in Philadelphia. For those that don’t know, Indian weddings are epic events that stretch over days. They have a tendency to go overboard, but my cousin, Akhila, and her now-husband, Will, – both doctors – managed to keep it intimate with a wedding that so perfectly captured their personalities. All of the events stayed true to what they’re passionate about: nature, healthy living and the arts.
We kicked things off with a girls’ manicure at Mi Cumbia, a super-cool Colombian-themed nail salon with organic nail polishes, and coffee and dark chocolate on tap before heading over to a mehndi party where Akhila had her hands and feet decked out in henna. The rest of us got a bit of our own, and I’m happy to report that mine is holding up nicely. (It usually doesn’t.)
Saturday was a joint family picnic in Philly followed by a song-and-dance night known as the sangeet held at an industrial-style space with a backyard garden. My cousins and I performed a Bollywood dance that I had choreographed and taught via YouTube, and despite our distances – me in San Diego, one in Hawaii, others in New Jersey and one who practiced at the airport en route to the wedding (!) – it was a hit. Though I must say, the groom’s surprise ukelele rendition of a famous Bollywood song was my favorite act.
And then came the ceremony at an arts center on Sunday. I’m always fascinated to see how people bring together two cultures at a wedding, and this one — mostly Jewish traditions mixed with a few Hindu rituals — was further evidence that there are so many similarities between cultures, a lesson I learned from my 13 months of backpacking. There’s the common act of a cloth separating the bride and groom until the first moment they see each other that day; the bride walks around her groom seven times in the Jewish tradition just as the couple walks around a fire seven times in the Hindu tradition; the ceremonial Jewish cloth the groom wraps around the bride is much like the Hindu ritual of tying the groom’s outfit to the bride’s. It was fun to see how seamlessly these two religions could work together.
We danced, we photo booth-ed, we ate flourless chocolate cake. Take a look:
I’m currently writing to you from New Jersey, after four days of family wedding festivities. There was a mehndi party, song/dance night, and blend of Jewish and Indian traditions — but I’ll get to all that on Wednesday. Today I wanted to share a peek of the half day I spent in New York City before the wedding events began.
I flew in late last Tuesday night, seriously regretting this 8 am bus to Manhattan, but I didn’t know if I’d be back East again this year and figured I’d make the most out of this trip. It was also a good way to tackle the awful 3-hour time difference head-on. In my measly eight hours, I got to see one of my best friends for lunch/ice cream, walked around the West Village on my own and met up with old co-workers, who continue to be the nicest, most caring bunch.
So what was it like to go to my old stomping grounds?
I used to read Design*Sponge mostly for its Sneak Peeks, that is, until I stumbled upon Stephanie Todaro’s D*S column,Human/House/Harvey, in which the L.A. blogger and creative director selects three items under one theme: for herself, her home and her adorable Sharperrier (Sharpei + terrier). Such a cute idea, no? Even more charming, I soon discovered, was her dog-focused blog, House of Harvey. It’s a blend of great design, crisp photos, and sweet stories about the beautiful and symbiotic relationship between dog and owner. Today Stephanie tells us about starting each morning with The Help and the power of Popsicle sticks.
During my junior year at college, while I heated up frozen Boca Burgers and cooked frozen veggies in tabasco sauce nearly every day — don’t ask — my then-roommate was making Indian food, crepes and homemade yogurt in our meager kitchen. I was always blown away by what she’d whip up, but nothing lured me quite like the granola she made. Oh, that granola. I could eat it by the bowlfuls — with milk, without milk, when hungry, when not hungry.
Seeing as how I’m not a big drinker, I’m not one to get excited about a pub crawl. But a food crawl — where you hop from restaurant to restaurant with a group of strangers-turned-friends — that’s something I could get excited about. So when Dishcrawl invited me to participate in one of their events, which takes diners to four different restaurants in one night, I said, “Yes, please!”
The restaurants are kept secret until the first location is revealed 48 hours before the event; the rest of the food spots are revealed as the night goes on. In the meantime, meals are eaten, connections are made and friendships are formed. I believe wholeheartedly that food is what brings people together best and during Dishcrawl, Eaman and I made some great connections and new friends. Seeing as how we’re still new to the city, it was a wonderful way to meet locals.
Today we meet Vanessa Gonzales, a pastry chef-turned-graphic designer, who spends her days creating beautiful work for a media agency in downtown San Diego and her nights maintaining her own freelance business and a beautiful blog.
Let’s break bread, yes?
Age: 24 Hometown: Reno, NV Current City: San Diego, CA Professional Title: Visual Designer
Somewhere between a freelance writing career, social media position, this blog, puppy-rearing, friends-making, relationship-nurturing and home decorating, I gave up on me time and the things outside of the home that make me happy. But with summer upon us and a 6-month San Diego-versy looming, I thought, what better time than a new season to get back on track?
I very much thrive on lists, so I thought I’d share the 15 things on my summer checklist. They’re not ground-breaking activities, but they are the things that make me happiest. When life gets in the way, you sometimes have to put the fun stuff on a to-do list.
