Prendió la cerilla, llama fugaz que se debilita ante el aire. Cuidadosamente encendí, con su lumbre, el alma de la vela. Divino cuerpo de cera que se aferra, sin querer, a la tranquilidad envuelta de oscuridad, rompiendo la armonía con su leve luz.

Llené la copa de vino, dediqué unos segundos a rezarle al removerla y caté su dulce sabor como si de sangre se tratase. Respiré hondo, suspiré… Y volví a probar un poco más de su embriagadora fragancia. Cerré los ojos y aspiré, capté por un segundo los sueños encarcelados en su aroma, abrí los ojos y allí estaba ella: la vela.

La miré fijamente, la llama que levemente alumbra la oscuridad, las pequeñas chispas que surgen de su luz, las lágrimas de cera cayendo y tatuando los sueños en su cuerpo, las realidades de cera construidas a base de llanto y calor. Olfateé su silencio, bebí su olor a mecha quemada, contemple su rostro relejado en el aura del fuego, soñé con ser cuerpo de cera. Y lentamente lágrimas caen, llora la vela y la oscuridad oculta sus tormentos. Volví a beber un poco de vino, cerré los ojos y suspiré… Una voz fría concurría mi mente: “el fuego purifica el alma, el fuego purifica el alma, el fuego purifica el alma, el fuego purifica…”. Abrí los ojos de sopetón, era el momento de arder en silencio, era el momento de arder…

La vela continuaba consumiéndose, expirando a cada chispazo. Solamente yo podía contemplar aquel milagro, sólo yo podía entender aquella obra. Me convertí en humano, demasiado humano… Me convertí en lo más absurdo, en lo más animal, en el ser más irracional de cuantos la naturaleza contempla. Me convertí en lo que más odiaba y más amaba a su vez, en la belleza y el horror, en lo eterno y lo efímero, en la verdad y la mentira… Me miré las venas, volví a llenar de vino la copa.

Observé las lágrimas de cera, el dibujo de su caer… La arbitrariedad con la que marcaban su destino, la poca racionalidad de su vida. Me vi reflejado en su mirada, que no era más que la mía.  Me convertí en lágrima, en sueños me convertí por unos segundos en cera a la deriva cayendo sobre su desnudo cuerpo, dibujando corazones borrosos en sus pechos. Escribiendo versos en su vientre construidos con las palabras de un viejo y solitario borracho en la barra de un bar, observando a la muerte danzando a su acecho. Me observé reflejado en las lágrimas, me convertí en humano… demasiado humano.

Por unos segundos desperté de mi pesadilla en cilíndrica forma de cera. Lágrimas brotaron de mis ojos sin poder evitarlo, los sueños escapaban a cada año que pasaba, y ya no podía regresar atrás… Mis pesadillas tornaban, a cada segundo, realidad. Me convertía en una estrella fugaz de la cual nadie conoce ni nombre ni rostro, pasó con su luz y desapareció, vagando en la eternidad con el peso de jamás haber cumplido su cometido: alumbrar la noche, acompañar a la Luna. Mis pesadillas, como ves, se convertían en realidad…

Encendí un cigarrillo, sentí como mis venas le llenaban de humo y palabras, pensamientos en lo más profundo que viajaban por todo mi cuerpo: haciéndome temblar, haciéndome llorar, haciéndome… Por mucho que intentara luchar en contra, me convertía en humano, demasiado humano. Mis carnes tornaban putrefactas como mi mente, no lograba pronunciar más que estupideces, no lograba un pensamiento real… sin aire viciado en sus entrañas. Y entonces la vela me observaba, con sus ojos de fuego, y se compadecía de mí. Era un ser totalmente absurdo, totalmente humano… Me miré las venas y volví a sorber el vino, como si de mi sangre se tratase.

¿Me estaba volviendo loco? ¿Estaba perdiendo hasta la última gota de cordura? Solamente me sentía, a cada milésima de segundo, más humano… Más despiadado, más cruel, más estúpido, más desbocado…

Cerré los ojos durante varios minutos, en silencio… Finalmente pasaron quizás un par de horas hasta que los volví a abrir. Necesitaba deshacerme de todo aquello que me habían enseñado, de todas aquellas mentiras. Dejé de creer en la humanidad, en su salvación, en sus cuentos con final feliz. Dejé de creer en todo aquello con lo que, desde mi infancia, me habían engañado. Necesitaba deshacerme de aquellos sueños entre rejas.

Vacié la copa de vino, apagué el cigarrillo y con mis dedos apagué la vela, asesiné sus sueños de cera e inicié mi camino de vuelta, dejando de ser humano… demasiado humano.

Víktor Valles

It really saddens me to say this, but my new neighborhood is a vast culinary wasteland.

Sure, I haven’t eaten out nearly as much as I used to. The economy and the fabled NYC cost of living increase has certainly taken their toll. However, the wife and I have tried several eateries in the past month and a half, and we were not impressed.

To wit:

Citrus (photo above)

This restaurant is only a few block from my apartment and boasts “Latin fare with Asian flair.” It’s a fun motto, which is matched by the almost clubby atmosphere of the interior. It’s a modern place, very glossy looking, with the patronage to match.

Unfortunately, the food’s not very good.

We started with a bland salmon tartare, which I followed with some bland sushi. Particularly troubling was the rice, which was not nearly sticky enough to cohese and fell apart in each piece of nagiri. My wife had the  Ancho Chile Glazed Salmon (wasabi infused cauliflower-potato mash & agave glazed carrots & zucchini), which was definitely the best thing we ingested that night. Still, it wasn’t nearly worth the price tag, and we left without dessert.

I’m not thinking we’ll ever go again, but if we do, we’ll probably stick with the Latin fare without the Asian flair.

La Vela

As was the case with Jersey, New York City is littered with Italian restaurants. And the Upper West Side is no exception.

We chose La Vela from among five or six others vying for the distinction of being not only the first Italian restaurant we went to in our new neighborhood, but also the one we would bring the parents-in-law. It fit the bill we were looking for: it was close and looked like it served basic Italian.

This is one of those Italian joints that drowns about 70% of its menu in red sauce. Which, honestly, can be good or bad, depending on the red sauce. I thought La Vela’s was actually decent, though my wife wasn’t so impressed.

The big winner of the night was the fresh pastas, including my spinach ravioli, my wife’s gnocchi, and my mother-in-law’s linguine. But there were some major problems. The mussels that my wife and her father shared were hit-and-miss. They both tossed a few aside because they didn’t taste “fresh.” That’s never good.

Also, the shrimp in my mother-in-law’s dish were overcooked. And then there was the aforementioned red sauce. Despite what we thought of it, there was simply too much.

Look, I like this type of ‘traditional’ Italian food. I grew up on the stuff. But there’s a big difference between restaurants that are still trying to make things good and those that are just resting on the fact that East Coasters gobble this stuff up, no matter what the quality. It’s the difference between a place like Ralph’s (in Philly) and a place like La Vela.

No offense, but people like me can tell the difference.

Cafe Con Leche

This place is weird.

The menu says that it serves Latin American, Cuban and Caribbean cuisine. And I guess it does. But it’s awfully suspicious that it’s adjacent to an Indian restaurant and the entire waitstaff was Indian. Somehow, the food just didn’t seem that authentic. And it wasn’t what you’d call good.

I can’t seem to find the menu to give you exact names, but we started out with some shrimp in garlic sauce housed in what I can only describe as a hive of molded plantains. The mini shrimp were decent, as was the garlic sauce, but the plantains were the most tasteless, bland things I’ve ever eaten. There was not a hint of sweet to them, and even the texture seemed off.

Because I wasn’t that hungry, I chose a salad for my entree. While it was nice and crispy, it also seemed suspiciously pre-made, or at least the lettuce, tomato and cucumber base did. To this they added a few scraps of avocado (presentation is not a strong suit) and some of the same mini shrimp that were in the appetizer. The dressing didn’t have the bite I was expecting and there was entirely too little of it.

My wife made out a little better with her mango chicken dish – flattened pieces of chicken, breaded and sauteed with a mango sauce. It still didn’t seem quite Latin enough, but it was the best thing we got.

Sorry Cafe Con Leche, you lost me at hello.

Next time: the good parts of Upper West Side food.  (It may be a small post.)

Hace poco vi en la TV, una presentación de la Vela  Puerca, una agrupación muy simbólica de Uruguay. Son un concepto combinado, del rock, el ska, el reggae, son muy interesantes. Yo he conseguido su ultimo compacto que se llama EL IMPULSO, un disco muy completo, en lo personal sus mejores canciones son Frágil  y Su Ración, estas canciones hablan un poco de la forma que contradecimos nuestras vidas, escúchenlos, les dejo unos videos acá abajo para que los vena, y si pueden consigan su disco, es un disco muy pero muy recomendable.

Arriva la bella stagione e arrivano gli inviti in barca a vela. Magnifico! Un’occasione fantastica per godere di sole e di mare lontano dalla folla. Ma voi, che in barca non ci siete mai andate, iniziate ad avere dei dubbi… Che faccio, accetto? Non so fare nulla, e poi cosa metto in valigia? E se mi viene il mal di mare?

ph Matalyn

Niente paura: il Little Blue Book della Vela risponde a tutte queste domande e molte di più, introducendovi soavemente nel meraviglioso mondo della vela. Che potrebbe essere il vostro, oppure no. Il test all’inizio del libro servirà per orientarvi, il resto del libro vi farà da GPS. Questo Little Blue Book scritto da un’esperta del settore, Maria Cristina Giordano, è dedicato a chi si avvicina per la prima volta alla barca a vela. Non è un manuale di navigazione, ma una piccola guida alla vita di bordo per apprenderne le regole di base: da come si convive con gli altri nello spazio ristretto della barca alla necessità di seguire sempre la guida dello skipper. In tempi di vacanze ecco un interessante piccola guida alla vita di bordo in barca e in crociera (via).

]]> http://jwarner3490.wordpress.com/2009/03/17/panama-city-beach-qa/ Tue, 17 Mar 2009 01:45:50 +0000 jwarner3490 http://jwarner3490.wordpress.com/2009/03/17/panama-city-beach-qa/

Thaxton, a Panama City Beach resident, became a very good friend and resource of ours while we were on vacation.

What is considered to be prime Spring Break time in Florida?

The best time is from the second week of march to the end of the first week in April. The first week is often the most outrageous as far as “crazy” spring breakers

How do locals feel about the Spring Break season?

For the most part everyone loves it when students come down because it is the time for them to make money. When retired people come down for the winter the clubs aren’t getting any income off of them. As you found out, however, the seasonal people are not fond of the Spring Break crowd.

What are some fun things to do, other than lay on the beach?

There are helicopter rides of the shoreline, surfing, renting waverunners, parasaling, mini putt, and Ripley’s Believe it or not 4-D adventure. By night you can go clubbing. The best clubs are Le Vela, Harpoon Harry’s, Spinnakers, or Spankies. Another alternative is hitting the Pier Park shopping strip.

What is the best way to get around is PCB?

It depends where exactly you are staying. However, if you are down by Calypso it is nice to have a car. Otherwise there are free shuttle services by churches, you can call a taxi or shuttle, which are relatively cheap.

How much do club cover’s cost?

There are different prices everywhere, every night, and every hour. You just have to go to the club or bar to find out. However, the general cost is between $20 and $35.

YOU WILL ALL BE SUPER EXCITED TO KNOW THAT MTVU HAS OFFICIALLY SET IT’S PEFRORMERS FOR THE MTV PANAMA CITY SPRING BREAK.

ASHER ROTH (NEVER HEARD OF THE DUDE

B.YONEST (I MEAN IT’S ABOUT TIME PANAMA CITY WELCOMES THIS GENIUS. HE’S DOPE!

LIL WAYNE (TYPICAL OBVIOUSLY. LETS SEE IF HE ACTUALLY SHOWS THIS TIME.)

ALL AMERICAN REJECTS (PRETTY GOOD CHOICE.)

JIM JONES (LIKE DIP SET DIP SET, JIM JONES?)

FLO RIDA (WHO SAW THIS ONE COMING. HE’S ONLY FLO RIDA OR FLORIDA.)

I DONT HAVE MUCH OF AN OPINION ABOUT THE LIST OF INDIVIDUALS PICKED TO PERFORM AT THIS YEARS MTV’z PANAMA CITY SPRING BREAK. I WISH I COULD SAY I WAS EXCITED ABOUT IT, BUTTTTTTTT I’D RATHER DRIVE AROUND PERFORMING OFF MY TRUCK INSTEAD OF WATCHING A LIL WAYNE SHOW FEATURING THE DUDE WHO AUTO TONE’S EVERYTHING NOW..

I WISH T-PAIN, T.I., FOO FIGHTERS, AND SUCH AND SUCH WERE COMING.

ANONYMOUZ

A great alternative to Studentcity, studentcity.com, or student city is http://www.springbreakpackages.com.

Spring Break Packages.com offers fun spring break travel packages to Panama City Beach that are very comparable to StudentCity.

Spring Break Packages.com Panama City Spring Break vacations include:
*5 or 7 night condo stay
*12 dine around restaurant meals per person
*All taxes & fees
*Optional VIP Party Package with both the Panamaniac Card AND the Club La Vela Party cards for just $69 per person extra.

College students can book a fully loaded spring break trip to PCB for about $300 or so per person any week of spring break in February or March.

It’s a great idea to shop options when booking your spring break 2009 – you owe it to you & your friends to compare prices & package inclusions after all.

You can email Spring Break Packages.com for a custom price quote – include your name, email address, your spring break week of travel, the number of people you have, and your approximate per person budget so we can really dial in the perfect road trip for you – info@springbreakpackages.com or call toll free 877.633.2386 – always friendly, almost always open!

The Basic Spring Break FAQ on PCB Florida

You can also visit http://www.inertiatours.com for more information on Spring Break to Panama City

We are not wasting our time pretending to ask a question and then answering it ourselves – we’ll simply answer the most common questions with bullet points:

• The bars close at 4 a.m. generally

• The condos have kitchens (Summit) some suites have wet bars (Paradise Found) and normal hotel rooms do NOT (Sunspree, Boardwalk Beach)

• Damage deposits required at check in are $100 to $300 in cash PLUS some even require a major credit card on top of that. Be Aware – damage deposits are required regardless of age Mom & Dad (if you are coming)

• PCB has tons of fast food restaurants. Our meal plan that’s included free of charge on our trips utilizes some of the “higher end” LOL fast food like Quiznos & Waffle House

• The shopping in Panama City Beach blows on the strip – mostly junkie t shirts, etc. If you go back over Hathaway Bridge (15 minutes to an hour) there is the Panama City Mall.

• Panama City Beach is located in Northern Florida in the “panhandle” – not in Panama the Country, and yes, 99% of people drive in for this as a road trip adventure

• The legal drinking age (like ALL OF THE USA) is 21 years of age. The clubs are 18+ to get into. Your fake might work, but it might also get taken away or even get you arrested.

• If you need to get around and are wasted take a taxi. There is some sort of “free” public transportation system that you won’t ever use nor figure out how to use.

• Bring for your trip not less than $60/day in spending money. If you wanna pimp, bring $100 minimum.

• The weather can be chilly depending on your week – remember you are fairly north, actually. 50’s at night and 70’s during the day is the hope at least

• Should you buy the Panamaniac card? Yes. Will it get you everything free or discounted – hell no, but it will a.) save you money and b. ) put you in the same place that 10,000 other people will be going. Should you buy the Club La Vela Card? Yes. Will it get you into La Vela Free all the time? Nope – but before 9 pm it will. Should you buy any other card in PCB or party package? Absolutely not, the fact that they exist is sorta shady.

Spring Break Bars in Panama City Beach - Club La Vela

• What’s the cover charge each night? $5 for smallish places, $40 for super clubs like La Vela.

• If you plan on getting laid on spring break and you are a girl, you will. If you are a guy and plan on getting laid on spring break, follow this advice: 1.) Workout for 90 days before the trip, every single day do something at the gym. 2.) have a hot girl between 19 years old and 22 years old go & buy $500 in clothes for you before the trip, including board shorts & sunglasses. Yes you will pay for them and probably have to pay her. Makes sense a hot girls KNOWS what she wants a potential mate to wear, AND has way better taste than you do. 3.) Go tanning 3 weeks before the trip every other day with good quality lotion. 4.) Get a condo with multiple bedrooms 5.) go to a quality salon 3 days before the trip for haircut & style – get a tad wild with it. 6.) bring sufficient spending money for booze, meals, etc. Sorority girls aren’t poor & if you are, it might be tough. Will all of this cost you money? F Yes. Lots of it, and if you’re a dork, it still won’t help – but this much we can tell you – it certainly won’t hurt

One more thing – girls, just because the bitches on the Hills can wear any size sunglasses she wants, it doesn’t mean that sunglasses the size of bar coasters on your moon face look good. Bear this advice in mind. Buy a purse to impress other girls.

Girls - avoid big sunglasses like the broads on The Hills

Call us toll free 800.821.2176 if you have more questions or need some friendly advice. We are also always available by email: tripinfo@inertiatours.com to assist you.

We always get tons of questions here at Inertia Tours / http://www.InertiaTours.com about “where is MTV going to be this spring break.”

Well, the answer is out…Panama City Spring Break in Florida is where.

Why go to Panama City Beach:

* you live on the east coast & want to stay in the USA – it’s a close drive from many cities

*you really need a cheap spring break trip this year – Panama City Beach is amongst the lowest cost along with South Padre Island Spring Break

*super warm weather isn’t the factor in your trip as much as the parties at huge clubs like Club La Vela, Spinnakers, or Harpoon Harry’s

*it’s the vibe on your campus – PCB Spring Break is what everyone else is doing so you want to join the crowd

*your parents say N-O to a Mexico Spring Break Trip

At Inertia Tours, we can book this trip for you easily, with 5 different condo or hotel options for you to choose from, and all trips are $499 per person & less with accommodations, 12 restaurant meals per person, and both the Panamaniac Gold Card AND the Club La Vela Card included for FREE!

Call us toll free 800 821 2176 for a quick trip quote, or email us: tripinfo@inertiatours.com & we’d be more than happy to help!

En los últimos años la península de Paraguaná se ha convertido en el lugar más visitado por los turistas que vienen a Falcón para disfrutar de temporadas de asueto.

Así lo sostuvo este lunes de Carnaval el presidente de la Corporación Falconiana de Turismo (Corfaltur), José Luis Naranjo, quien señaló que ello se debe, además de sus hermosas playas, a la consolidación del régimen especial de zona libre.

“Si bien la costa oriental es muy visitada por los turistas gracias al Parque Nacional Morrocoy, por su impacto visual, Paraguaná es más grande y se ha venido posicionado del gusto de los temporadistas”.

Afirmó Naranjo que en Paraguaná también se han consolidado los servicios públicos, ha mejorado el alojamiento, hay mayores prestadores de servicios en las playas Villa Marina, El Supí, Adícora, Tiraya, Buchuaco, entre otras, que ofrecen calidad a la orilla del mar con precios muy competitivos con tierra firme”.

Naranjo señaló que el temporadista este Carnaval puede venir confiado a Falcón porque va disfrutar de buen ambiente y puede encontrar información en cualquiera de los 47 puntos diseminados en las cinco zonas turísticas más importantes de la entidad: costa oriental, centro norte, Coro-La Vela, la Sierra y Paraguaná.

Dijo además que Corfaltur está levantando un informe estadístico para medir la cantidad de turistas que vienen a Falcón, su perfil, en qué gasta y qué lugares visita, todo con el fin de proporcionarle mejores servicios.

Fuente:El Nacional