viva!

Well, the so-called swine flu epidemic/panic seems to be happening in another universe. Soccer was cancelled this afternoon - not because of an ostensible flu pandemic, but because it's been raining all day, and so, to defy the rumours we heard that people are eating less Mexican, we went this afternoon to Sunset Park (kinda the suburb of Brooklyn south of Park Slope where we live), which is a very Mexican neighbourhood. We ate some delicious tacos and tamales at a place called Tacos Matamoros; particularly delightful were the tamales, which I suspect I am quite now addicted to - this wasn't my first encounter! I'm even pondering where I can get the dried corn husks and meal at home to make them-quite seriously. Never fear, the love of bagels, BBQ, burritos (and pizza) has not disappeared, but another food 'group' has been added to the repertoire.
Speaking of pizza, had some damn fine specimens at a newish place in Williamsburg called Motorino, which won TimeOutNY's 2009 Food Award for 'best new artisanal pie' (pie in their crazy lingo here being a pizza - as opposed to a slice!) . Boy were they good. (Surprisingly, being in NYC is learning me that I have a bad case of potty mouth, gosh and darn and BEEP... so am attempting to adapt to their clean-cut ways! Maybe all those beep-outs of swear words really do have an effect!?)
We also discovered a really great new cafe/bar this morning on an early walk (exercise and breakfast, what a perfect combination!), a place called Prime Meats, by the same people who do the great Cafe Pedlar, visited last weekend. It uses apparently the best coffee beans in NYC (Stumptown, roasted in Portland, OR), and is delightful because the inside is decorated much as it would have been quite a few decades prior. Great mags, no art on the walls, and delicious Olive Oil Cake and Stout Cake for breakfast - an all-round top notch cafe experience!
But it's not all about food. The spring continues to delight... this is a couple of blocks from our place:
And the tulips in this city really are spectacular. Here's some from the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, which is about 15 minute's walk from here.
Apparently the Dutch donated something like a million tulips to NYC after Sept 11. They certainly have a connection to this city (you see it so often in the names: Harlem [and Harlem Meer], Amsterdam Ave, Spuyten Duyvil, which is also a very nice bar in Williamsburg), and even nicknamed one of the tulips the Manhattan. The parks are full of them, and so many varieties. Spectacular.
This week has also seen the pivotal moment in the blossoming of the cherry trees. I went on Tuesday and read data under one in the Botanic Garden. Simply quite spectacular.
Unfortunately a million other people had had the same thought, but there you go. You're not allowed blankets/rugs/anything to sit on, because it kills the grass. I got told off - they have 'guards' walking around for just such rebels! In 1912, Japan donated 1000s of cherry trees to NYC. The botanic gardens this weekend celebrated Sakura Matsuri (the rite of spring) with a big festival we didn't get to. But we did get to the Brooklyn Museum, finally! Right by the botanic garden, we hadn't got there either. Last night we went to an 'First Saturdays' evening. Each month, they open on the first Saturday from 5-11pm and have music, talks, shows, movies, and a 'dance party' in this huge central atrium space, from 9-11. We didn't stay that long, but saw a great Brooklyn Latin-ish band, Pistolera, and wandered around the shows. One thing they have on permanent display is Judy Chicago's 'the dinner party'. A hugely influential (and not un-criticised) piece of feminist art that featured in both my PhD, and my teaching since, it was amazing to see it 'in the flesh'. The enormity of it as a piece of art/politics, as a piece of research, and as a piece of craft is quite outstanding. I wondered what other 100s of people viewing it thought! It's part of a feminist art collection the Museum has.
Other than that, we're planning a slight change to our trip home - a visit to Marfa, Texas, instead of LA, but will still be home at the same time (Sunday morning, in time to have a break and then enjoy Sunday afternoon soccer!)
That's enough for me - pesto to make, books to read, that sort of thing...
adios!