Looking back: Go Cherry Blossoms!

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March is a somewhat of a "nobody" month. I mean really January is when you set resolutions for the year, Feb you fret over them and then comes March. And everything seems to vaporize. Including the month. No holidays either. Ok, we got Women's Day there. But what else. Anyone?

And then today, March reminds me of the impromptu trip I made to Brooklyn Botanical Gardens on one such dull day. Those days I was quite the early riser - 6 am on a Saturday. No joke. Rising early felt like I had so much time at hand! So yeah, got into my jeans and a light t-shirt and trotted from one subway train to another to reach the beautiful gardens.

Let me forewarn you - I am not even remotely a "flower" person. Yes I know what you are thinking. What a thing to brag about huh? I had nothing much to do that day so I thought "Well let's check out this hype about cherry blossoms. They are pink and white. So what? Meh." And so I was there, waiting even before the gates to the esplanades opened - 9 am was opening time.

Boy was I wrong, and how wrong! Let me just say - Brooklyn Botanical Gardens was GORGEOUS! If you have never seen or smelled or walked down a Cherry Blossom esplanade, you couldn't imagine the joy. And that coming from me is ahem, a huge thing. So you got to take my word on it.They apparently have some sort of popular Rose show/display too.

And what better than the cool spring air to break the New York winter season. Felt right out of a Hollywood rom-com.

Apparently Cherry Blossom festivals go by the name Sakura Matsuri (Japanese), so I bumped into several ladies in cute kimonos and umbrellas.

They had a cool lounge and all for family and kids at the entrance. Yeah lot of emoticons!

And before I could enter the esplanade something interesting caught my eye. You see the tree wrapping round that wooden roof? That is a type of Weeping Willow Tree that naturally bends over. I just thought it added so much charm to that roof.

And now...

*Blows Trumpets*

The Cherry Blossom Esplanade. What a sight!

Umm, although not sure what this was about...perhaps a suggestive restroom sign? Pardon my ignorance if this signifies something more important.

But of course, there were fashion models and photo shoots happening at random places. This is New York after all!  She looked kinda angelic. I took this one stealthily ;-)

And then there were some genuine candid shots :-)

And of course, the gardens had their fair share of tulips too. Poor man's Seattle?

And one of those pools where you toss coins for luck. They seem to be everywhere I go in NYC, makes me think it is either some kind of scam or just a feel-good thing for tensed New Yorkers.

Next stop: The Japanese Gardens! 

Just walking through this landscape felt so zen-like. Just makes me want to take the next flight to Kyoto

More Blossoms (white) and red ferns!

Of course, for those who wanted some activities, there were plenty happening - too many to pick.

A guy on a hot spring day demonstrating Origami to an equally inquisitive audience. Loved it. Made a duck. Almost. *Smiles sheepishly*

Then attended a traditional Japanese tea ceremony. It was done with, umm, so much precision. Almost meditative and relaxing to watch it. I had to climb over a hill top to see this (damn NY crowd!). 

And lots of serious board games and Sudoku challenges happened.

 Although, I wonder what these guys were up to? Specially the girl who is giving me the menacing look.

And then there were more artists! And more color!

Hmm. I could go on. I hopefully captured all the awesomeness of the gardens and the vibe of the festival. Never in my life I saw so much color at one place (ok maybe Holi :-)). So finally I did come out feeling bright and cheery. Not another dull March day after all :-)

PS: If you are ever in New York City this time of the year, this is a must do. Brooklyn Botanical Gardens is like a mini Disneyland. Lots of trees, flowers, gardens, rock structures, conservatories, art installations etc. I covered ~30% of it. I wish I hadn't been so skeptical in the first place. Too bad I moved out of the city and made no time for repeat visits :(

Lesson learnt: When in doubt, just go for it!

Looking back: All things Chinatown

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When the Lunar (Chinese) new year happened this year, I felt nostalgic. I miss just doing the rounds of Chinatown in any city. And tasting a lot of Chinese delicacies. There is something exotic about their food. Of course, I am not too daring to go overboard with their exotic stuff (eels, frogs and the like). But I love some of their seafood variety, fruits and exotic flavored ice creams. And the dragon masks and decorations :-) And I love dumplings. And their herb teas are great for the palate. You know where this is going - I am such a big foodie. Gosh.

I think a fair share of affinity to street style Chinese food comes from my love for Indian dhaba style food. Give me a plate of greasy chowmein, stir fries and lots of sauce and I am good to go. So I was mildly surprised when I saw the real Chinese food taste so different from the Indo-Chinese fast food that's served in India (sort of like Panda Express). A lot of actual Chinese food is broth baised/steamed/lightly cooked.

I am huge fan of dumplings so I made a trip to Prosperity Dumplings in New York's Chinatown. Of course I went alone ;-) I venture out on my own on explore-as-you-go type of food crawls. Because it requires an appetite for patience and handling stomach upsets. And I am not sure how far my company can push. Hence alone.

They are a hole in the wall. But I wasn't too surprised by the long waiting line (and this was on a weekday late noon). They have about a 1000+ reviews on yelp. I have been to some elite Dim Sum places, but they pale in comparison with the dumplings at Prosperity. They are famous for their pork chive fried dumplings - too bad I don't eat pork. So I just went for their steamed veggie dumplings, duck and carrot stuffed sesame pancake (greasiest!) and a noodle soup. Washed it down with a bottle of cold water. All for a total under 10$. Now who could beat that?!

After that I got two scoops of lychee and black sesame ice cream from Chinatown Ice Cream Factory - their asian flavors are the real deal! I then made my way through a whole alley of souvenir shops (btw   this is where you should buy those "I love NY" shirts. A lot of tourist end up buying them from Times Square. Not done :-)) And then reached the open markets to buy fruits and seafood. Btw, you can't bargain with the Chinese - not only because you don't understand their language but also because they are very relentless. You are better off trying but wouldn't guarantee a discount. Haha. So I didn't push the lady in the picture too much and got a bountiful of dragon fruits, cherries and plums.

Then I headed to the seafood stores. Oh what heaven! Picked up some fresh shrimp and snapper (their seafood deals are a steal!). But careful not to get cheated. They mix in some stale fish with the fresh ones. I also always walk up and down few stores to compare prices.

A word of caution to the vegetarians, some of the sights and smells at a Chinatown can be really hard to take in. Because there will be, invariably gregarious window displays of slaughtered animals for purchase. Yeah, the Chinese are all out about displaying meat and not shy in this case. I have seen the ballsiest of my non-vegetarian friends go dizzy in their stomachs, on such sights.

As for me, I was born to walk around Chinatowns in every city :-)