This weekend definitely warmed me up to the idea of spending a few years in New York post marriage...despite the high cost of living, the dirty subways and the enormous number of people (and tourists) swarming the streets....there's definitely something about New York. Everyday there's something new to try out in the city, be it a culinary experiment or attending a music or arts festival or well, watching the US Open...This was a memorable long weekend...
Friday
Our weekend began chocolate tasting, as Akshay previously alluded to on his blog. We went to this quaint little spot in SOHO called Mariebelle. We got an extremely personalized instruction on how chocolate is made, the conditions needed for good chocolate, the difference between chocolates from South America and Africa (70% of the world's cacao comes from Africa but it is the poorest quality) and the difference between bar chocolate and ganaches, in addition to a host of other information. We got to sample five different types of milk and dark chocolate and five different ganaches, with teas, coffees and cognac. Our favorite was definitely the cardamom ganache - it was deliciously chocolate-y and subtly spicey...an aromatic combination that touched the senses and melted in our mouth....we even learnt how to eat chocolate (just like how to taste wine!) so that you can determine the flavors (cherry, nutiness, burnt/toasty smell, spices) and really relish the cacao....I'd highly recommend this class..despite my initial hesitation (about the amount of chocolate we'd be eating!!!), this class is well worth the time, effort and money spent!
The chocolate tasting din't exactly leave us hungry, but we definitely weren't full..so we decided to walk around Soho - a very artsy, frou-frou neighborhood of Manhattan...I, of course, stopped at every street vendor selling chunky jewelry and window shopped through rows of boutiques. Finally, when we'd worked up quite an appetite, I insisted on visiting my favorite eatery - Kathi Roll and Co..this place makes the best Kathi Rolls - my favorite is the aloo masala and the chicken tikka...we gorged on some of those delicious treats and headed for chai to the Tea Spot...our night ended watching Ratatouille...the cutest film I've seen in a long time..a perfect end to a fun-filled evening in New York.
Saturday
A lot was accomplished Saturday morning when we cleaned the "pig stye" and transformed it into a "home". A question that perplexes me daily is how men can treat their apartments like garbage dumps and claim to never have the time to clean it? Explanations anyone?
The evening was spent at Dean and Deluca's enjoying coffee and good conversation with my two close buddies. We then chanced upon a huge screen set up outside Rockerfeller Center for the junta to watch the US Open live, in the open (d'oh!), on a nicely manicured lawn...a hot cuppa and a cosy blanket would make that the perfect evening...in New York!
Sunday
Sunday was D-day. We had tickets to the evening games at the Arthur Ashe stadium for the US Open, so we had decided to take it easy and garner all our energy for the evening matches. But, on a whim, I read about this brunch place called Annie's that served 15 different types of pancakes, and decided we must try it out, foodie that I am :-). The brunch was great...especially as it was this cute little place, where we sat at the bar, read the morning paper, and chomped on delicious belgian waffles and Choc chip and banana pancakes...we left only two hours later, almost in a food coma!
The evening was the much awaited event - the US Open. This is the first time I've been there and the 3-4 time Akshay has visited. The energy in the stadium is just electrifying...its definitely something everyone should experience atleast once..we were able to watch men's and women's 4th rounds: Justine Henin Vs. Safina and Del Patro vs. Djakovic. In the first match (women's singles), I felt like screaming out to Safina to "give us a game", but held back for fear of being carried out of the stadium ...Justine is the #1 seed and she literally wacked Safina out of the court..(6-0, 6-2).
The second match, however, was far more entertaining and we stayed and watched a third match at the Louis Armstrong stadium...by midnight, the energy still hadn't died down (even though the players were all gone), there were plenty tennis enthusiasts milling round the arena, shopping and nibbling the last bit of popcorn...again, the perfect end to a day in New York...
Monday
Monday was good Ol' Labor Day...and we headed out for some shopping...the sales weren't that great, but I got the Axeman to become a little more frou-frou through a Banana Republic shopping spree...and he treated me to a couple stylish work shirts...then we ate some delicious "ragda pattice" (yummm..I am really craving it right now)!!!!
And that evening, I had to bid goodbye to New York..a perfect weekend spent in the city that never sleeps....ahh! New York!
5 comments:
did'nt know you had an interest in tennis or was it just for the company?!!
she doesn't have tennis interest. believe me ;-)
it's only an interest in the boy she was with hehehe
ask the friendly neughbourhood axeman to tell you all about tourists, Times square, and tourists in Timesquare.
She doesn't have to ... she hates it as much as I do ... she's my soul-mate, doncherknow?
Why does the phrase "Autumn in New York" pop into mind? :oD
And Axe...she is certainly the better half of your soul! ;o)
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