I like this little tea house in Manila. The place is pretty neat and clean. The servings are generous .

The price ranges from 80 php to 250 php at the most.

This is a special dish my FIL orders. It’s made of fish balls and pork soup. It’s not on the menu, but it’s pretty damn good.

This is their Sate Beef Chami Php 120. Great tasting and filling.

This is Fried Taro with Shrimp. Php 160. Yum-yum.

The food is authentically chinese.

Fu Kui Tea House
486 San Fernando St. Binondo Manila
Tel: 2454725/2454726
Store Hours: 9 am to 10 pm

Am plecat de la Targul de dulciuri cu o invitatie la o noua ceainarie din Bucuresti. A fost asa…ca’n filmele cu “localuri selecte pentru domni si doamne”. Mi s-a dat ora si adresa. Si standul mi-a facut promisiuni pentru o seara deosebita.
Pe la 8.30 am plecat spre locul indicat, insa din cauza lucrarilor de pe str. Tunari mi-a fost foarte greu sa gasesc straduta ( Erou Ion Calin, nr. 25 – se ajunge de la benzinaria de pe Eminescu , prima la dreapta si apoi iarasi dreapta) si m-am invartit cam o ora prin jur, desi aveam si GPS la masina. Cand sa renunt, am reusit sa gasesc straduta, am intrat pe sens interzis (am aflat apoi ca nu se mai tine cont de semne acum din cauza strazilor in lucru) si mi-a atras atentia o casuta roz, pe stil vechi. In sfarsit am ajuns la Tea House.
M-au intampinat fetele pe care le-am cunoscut si la targ, foarte primitoare, dragute, si vesele. Parca tocmai intrasem in casa unor vechi si dragi prieteni, nici nu am simtit ca am ajuns intr-un local. Inauntru, lumina difuza, 3 saloane mari si un separeu de 2 persoane (pe culoare predominant rosu -mobilier si lumina) si un perete plin cu obiecte vechi. Peste tot erau pliculete de ceai, borcanase cu ceai pentru a putea mirosi aromele, prajiturele si fursecuri in boluri frumos acoperite, lumanarele si muzica deosebita. Am baut cel mai aromat si mai gustos ceai de pana acuma – roibos cu ciocolata, alaturi de prajiturele proaspete si delicioase. Am admirat saloanele (unul frantuzesc, unul traditional si cel marocan), am stat de vorba cu fetele si m-am simtit foarte bine.
Normal ca am facut si foarte multe poze…..
Deschiderea ceainariei are loc miercuri, 2 decembrie, incepand cu ora 20:00. Daca vreti sa veniti, fetele va asteapta cu mare drag, ceaiuri aromate, dulceata ca la bunica acasa, sandwichuri si fursecuri.
Chiar daca “oficial” nu a avut deschiderea, puteti merge de astazi. Programul este L-V: 15.00-23.30, S-D: 14.00- 23.30.

36 Weeks to 50

Wow!

Well for the past month,  I have been on the adventure of my life.   My husband Kevin and I travelled to Nepal to Trek to Everest and spend time with the girls we save from Contract Bonded labour.   And all I can say is Nepal was not what I was expecting.  After a 32 hour adventure of planes, trains and airports,  we arrived in Kathmandu at 11pm on a Thursday night.  Our good friend and NGO director Dinesh Sapkota picked us up at the airport and derived us to our hotel.  We were up by 6am to get ready to leave for Lukla (the small village where you begin your trek to Everest)

The landing strip in Lukla is one of the shortest and highest altitude in the world.  It is also the steepest, which helps because it’s the shortest.  We hook up with our porter (the Man who will be carrying our bags) Jelging and away we go.  Kevin, Dinesh, Wangchuk (our guide) and his brother Jelging (our porter).  The 5 of us become fast friends.

Day 1-4  We hike through a very lush, green and garden laden part of the trip.  It is beautiful and parts of it are very steep.  Our last 3 hour up to Namche is pretty much straight up and we get our first glimpse of Everest from 2 different spots on the trail.   We arrive at Namche about 3pm, ready for a beer or something. We are now at about 11,000 feet.  What I can’t seem to get used to is the bodily function noises most of the Nepalese men make.  Lots of snorting, and spitting.   And lots of smells…

After dinner, we play cards for a while and hit the hay by 8pm. 

We spend the next day doing a 600 meter day hike up and then back down to Namche to help with acclimatization. 

Day 4 we hiked to a famous small little village where there is a  large Monks Monastery. The first half of this hike was easy and the second half was again, pretty straight up.  I am now starting to get headaches.  And as we arrive, we find out they are preparing for a famous Monks festival.  So we get to see some of the ceremonies.  We stay in a VERY Modest (I’d say primitive)  tea house.  So I have to do lots of talking to myself to handle it.  I even have a moment when I realize I am not as tough as one should be for a trip like this one.  Ahhh,  the Linda ‘princess syndrome’ is showing it’s face.

Day 5 Up at 6am,  and off we go to climb another 500 meters to a small town called Dingbouche.  I am starting to get headaches again.  I take a short nap to try and get it to go away.  We have tea and dinner and once again hit the hay by 8pm. 

(here is where I feel we make our hiking mistake)  We should have stayed one more night to acclimatize a bit better.

Day 6 I slept really well here.  Kevin is still not sleeping.  He has not slept for 5 nights now.  They say you start to get crazy dreams when you are in high altitudes,  I dreamt last night that Al Pachino was the master mind behind the 9-11 disaster.  I think he needs to play a few more nice guy roles…

We hike up yet another 500 meters to  Labouche.  And once again the second half of the day was straight up.  When I reach the top of this hard ridge,  we are at the place where many memorials have been built to honour hikers and climbers who have died on these trails.  And there are many.  Kevin and I have a photo taken in front of Scott Fisher’s memorial.  He is the expedition leader of the Everest Summit team that experienced so much tragedy back in 1996.  The book “Into Thin Air” was written about that event.

Here is also when my “BAD” Altitude Sickness really kicks it up a notch.   I am not doing so well now.  As my head feels like it’s going to explode! And I mean literally.  It’s like the worst red wine hangover you many have ever had.   I guess that’s what they mean by swelling of the fluids on your brain. 

Day 7 Kevin has been up since 2am,  with diarrhea and vomiting.  These are also part of the “Altitude Sickness”  And to think we paid for this for  our holidays.  The temperature in our room is about -15 degrees Celsius.  And the entire place we are staying in smells like an outhouse.  It’s tough to say the least. 

Up at 8am,  and we decide to spend a few more hours seeing how we feel to try and make a decision on whether we should spend the day and try and acclimatize or go down.  I leave this decision up to Kevin as this is his dream.  So at around 10 am that morning, after Kevin reflected on helping a man into a helicopter the day before who was unconscious from Altitude Sickness, he decided we need to go down and try and get better.  That was a long, cold, windy, and very silent day let me tell you.

 More Everest and Nepal in my Next Instalment.

Linda

Cheers!

At the same place: the Tea House for the Chinese Exposition:

Products  
Decor      
Service     

Tehuset Java must be the biggest tea store I’ve seen to date. Usually tea stores tend to be small and packed with stuff, giving the impression of being little, cozy spaces. This one is indeed packed with stuff, but it’s by no means small. Java is located in the Northern part of Stockholm on Odengatan 29 and it’s a fairly new place. From the street it doesn’t look like much, but when you go in you can get blown away.

The store is divided into two rooms. The first room is smaller and holds teas from various brands – a very large selection of Kusmi teas, but also offerings from Fortnum & Mason, Dr. Stuart’s and Ahmad Tea. Here you will also find some english style tea ware. The second room, which is more like a hall, holds Java’s counter with house loose leaf teas, but also a selection of Kusmi loose leafs. There are about 170 house teas to choose from, including a basic Japanese, Chinese and Indian selection, flavored , herbal and ecological teas. Java also has their own house blend – Lundablandning. Moreover, there are countless tea products here, anything from contemporary tea ware, design tea ware, thermoses, cozies, electric kettles, cups, tea makers, pots, caddies – and the list could go on. There is an especially large amount of Bodum products. Anything needed for an afternoon tea can also be acquired here – various sweets, jams, cookies, biscuits and other grocery products.

The mood of the store is not exactly identifiable. To me, the larger room, looked rather sterile, where as the small room, which i liked much better, is slightly reminiscent of and English-style home in India. It feel more welcoming, but also exotic. My brief impression of the staff was good. This store is clearly richly stocked, and just that makes a big statement – I would call it a tea supermarket, although it’s certainly much more then that. Java is absolutely worth visiting, while in Stockholm.

Adress - Odengatan 29, Stockholm, Sweden

This zen tea house is one of the commissioned projects of SuttonBeresCuller, and its part of a mid-century modern home design in in Seatlle, WA. I don’t think anyone would say no to spending hours in this cute and charming house, enjoying countless tea cups.

This house features a pair of Shoji-inspired sliding doors which reveal a playful interior of cedar planks in different colors. On top of the V-shaped roof there are growing plants. Although small and toy-like, this tea house evokes a calm and peaceful atmosphere in the spirit of zen – almost like it floats above the ground in a dreamlike fashion.

Diane Durston of the Portland Japanese Garden invited me last week to visit the Nezu Museum, which recently reopened. The art collection of scrolls and screens representing nature from the fourteenth century are stunning, as is the new building designed by Kuma Kengo is a wonderful example of “wafu modern” (和風モダン),  a modernization of traditional Japanese design. But mostly I was drawn outside to the large garden.

The winding paths and unexpected size make you feel far from Aoyama. Although just outside the main exhibit hall, the garden is marred by the sight of the strangely tall and also squat Roppongi Hiills Tower, once inside the garden it is a fantasy of forest punctuated by old tea houses, streams and ponds. The garden has been revived yet retains a look of simplicity and wildness. Originally it formed part of the home of the museum founder Nezu Kaichiro, the Tobu Railway president and industrialist who was a collector of pre-modern Japanese and Asian art.

Perhaps even better than Kuma Kengo’s main exhibit hall is his modern take on the Japanese tea house. The new cafe is incredibly light and airy, opening out on to the garden and with an interesting ceiling light that looks like illuminated stone.

Since our visit last Friday, the weather has turned much cooler, especially at night. The next few weeks will have wonderful fall foliage in the garden.

Gavar, Lake Sevan

Credit: Celine Kaladjian

Go to Storybook Tea and Boutique, say Deanna and Elijah sent me and receive an additional 10% off all merchandise and/or receive 20% off a playdate or birthday party!!!
Check out my page on Storybook Tea and Boutique or go to www.storybooktea.com
Storybook Tea is located at
2015 Harkins St
Bremerton, WA 98310
360-479-3501

*Accomadations, respect, acceptance and patience especially for children with special needs.

Happy Friday!  Hope everyone is having a great fall.  It’s cooling down here in Athens… the rain and 60 degree weather is welcome!  Here are a few snapshots from our week.  Enjoy!

Kristin… 7 months along.

Sofia find fun in the kitchen

A short skit from our Thursday program

Faithful to the end – an Algerian man watches the Jesus film to the very end

Vineri, 23 octombrie,19:00h, librăria Cărtureşti va găzdui un recital de pian şi voce, susţinut de Ana Ștamp şi Alex Negriuc.

All cupcakes made by Laurie Robertson, please contact to order via alittlebirdytoldme@live.com
Minimum Order of 24 for $30.
or 48 for $55
or 100 for $100
(please enquire if you have a specific number for birthdays, orders of 48 cupcakes or more can be composed of  maximum three designs)
Available only to Brisbane, Australia residents.
Minimum 7 days notice required please.

Note: All cupcakes are chocolate or vanilla, please request upon ordering.

I Recommend….

http://www.nepaltourstravel.com/

Nepal Travel Tour Packages with Information.

Special Nepal Travel and Trekking Packages for 2010.

We provides you Special Nepal Travel and Trekking Packages for 2010 including Nepal  Travel ,Trekking Tour Information  With Tips and Package . Nepal is a unique destination for travel, trekking and tours because of its unbeatable combination of natural beauty and cultural riches. Trek and Tour around Nepal, you will directly experience our culture and way of life of different ethnic people, religion and festivals. Trekking and Tour  in Nepal is a big part to the Welcome Nepal Treks and Tours P.Ltd., and the majority of tourists include trekking and Tour in Nepal as a part of their itinerary. Trekking and Tour in Nepal is an unforgettable life experience for everyone.

We Are offering details of tours, leisure holiday, special honeymoon package tours, Himalaya  trekking, adventure vacation and mountaineering, eco tours , India, Bhutan, Tibet Tour , local city sightseeing, air ticketing, accommodation and adventure activities. Online booking are always available. Welcome to Nepal Travels! It is our Mission to provide you superior service at an affordable price. We can accommodate any travel plans and can custom fit any itinerary. At Nepal Travels, we are here to serve you! Our motto is “Where there is greenery, there is peace and happiness”.

Annapurna Base Camp Trekking.

Annapurna base camp trek is famous for trekkers. The principal peaks of the western portion of the great Annapurna Himal, including Hiunchuli, Annapurna South, Fang, Annapurna, Ganagapurna, Annapurna 3 and Machhapuchhare, are arranged almost precisely in a circle about 10 miles in diameter with a deep glacier-covered amphitheater at the center. From this glacier basin, known as the Annapurna Sanctuary, the Modi Khola knifes its way south in a narrow gorge fully 12,000 ft. deep. Further south, the gorge opens up into a wide and fertile valley, the domain of the Gurungs. The middle and upper portions of Modi Khola offer some of the best short trekking routes in Nepal, and the valley is located so that these treks can be easily combined with treks into the Kali Gandaki region to the west. In spite of the great heights of the surrounding peaks and ice walls, the valley floor between 12,000 and 14,000 ft. can provide comfortable camping spots in good weather.

Trip Facts of Annapurna Base Camp Trekking

Itineraries of Annapurna Base Camp Trekking

Price Includes:

• Airport Pick up and drop off service by Private Coach.
• 2 nights accommodation with breakfast at Hotel Vaishali (4 star deluxe hotel in Kathmandu).
• Sightseeing in Kathmandu (Including guide and entrance fees)
• Three time food in a day (breakfast, lunch and dinner) with Tea & coffee during the trek.
• Accommodation during the trek.
• An experience Guide (trained by Ministry of tourism), porters (generally 1 porter for 2 pax), their
• Food, accommodation, salary, insurance, equipments. Surface Transfer to destination from Kathmandu.
• Flight Fare as listed in trip Schedule.
• Annapurna conservation permit.
• 1 night accommodation in Pokhara.
• Tourist service charge, Vat.
• Office Service charge.
• One map of Annapurna Trek for the group.

Price Excludes:

• Meals whilst in Kathmandu & Pokhara.
• Nepal Travel insurance.
• Nepal entry visa fee US$ 30 (duration 60 days from date of issue)
• you may easily issue the visa upon your arrival at Tribhuwan International Airport Kathmandu.
• Disembarkation Airport Tax in Nepal approx. US$ 24.
• Items of a personal nature such as alcoholic drinks, cold drinks, laundry, Tips.
• Expenses occurred due to unavoidable Events i.e. road wrecks, flight delays etc

Note: Above 10 person group complementary for a group leader.

Welcome Nepal Treks and tours Pvt. Ltd.
P.O.BOX:19760
Thamel, Kathmandu, Nepal
Phone: +977-1-4253677
Mobile: +977-9841767236 (Hari khadka)
Web: www.newnepaltrekking.com
www.nepaltourstravel.com
Email: welcometour@wlink.com.np
info@newnepaltrekking.com

* Source :  – http://www.nepaltourstravel.com/

** Previous story : – Trekking

** zapraszam na relacje z wypraw polskich himalaistów.

zapraszam do subskrypcji mego bloga

Earlier this week, the lovely Sheena Appadoo from Aramis invited me for afternoon tea at Yauatcha.  Sheena keeps me in delightful scents and replaced my summer daily staple of DKNY Be Delicious Fresh Blossom with the richer, Autumnal DKNY Women limited edition scent in gold and bright purple – I’m addicted already!

Back to Yauatcha, I’d already tried the macaroons from their patisserie and my favourite is the champagne flavour embellished with goldleaf, but I was excited to sample ‘the full works’ in the tea room. 

The michelin starred dim sum restaurant and tea house, created by Alan Yau (he who launched Wagamama and Hakkasan) looks more like a boutique from the outside and is an oasis of calm with low seating, blossom-embroidered banquettes and blue-tinted facades half concealing the kitchen.

There are three types of afternoon tea available and we ordered the Oriental Afternoon Tea for one (£24.50) to share, which comes with a selection of dim sum instead of sandwiches.  I chose a pot of Darjeeling First Flush from a huge range of teas including blue, green, black and white tea.

 The dim sum selection included a baked venison puff, char sui bun and scallop siu mai – the former two were tasty but unusually sweet. I’m always more excited about the cakes and they didn’t disappoint!  There was a layer of sweet sandwiches – a bright pink rasberry and lychee jelly filling packed between layers of fine sponge and one with vanilla sponge and bitter chocolate ganache.

The top layer resembled a mini version of the patisserie counter and included a rich chocolate macaroon, a lemon and cola tartlet, chocolate chip marshmallow, chocolate financier, a piece of shortbread and a shot of apple and kiwi mousse.

Just as I had worked my way through the sugary layers, then came two mountainous scones (one Matcha green tea flavoured and one plain) with a tray full of oriental jams and mascarpone cream – I was defeated!  From other reviews, I’ve discovered that had we managed to wolf these down too, there were still flavoured marshmallows, mini chocolate slabs and truffles to come!

The service was unobtrusive and we were served at a steady pace, although this should be the case, as we went on a quiet weekday afternoon.

The only criticism is that they won’t box up the left items to take away, due to ‘health and safety’.   At many afternoon tea establishments like Pret-a-Portea at The Berkeley, they package up what you can’t eat for you to munch on at home. It’s no biggie though, just take a paper napkin with you and drop a scone or two into your handbag, in case you get peckish on the bus.

You can of course go to Yauatcha for a simple pot of tea and a cake from the patisserie, but the Oriental Afternoon Tea is perfect for sampling a little bit of everything in exquisite surroundings and believe me, it’s more than worth it!

Yauatcha, 15-17 Broadwick Street, Soho, London W1F 0DL

セントポール寺院のすぐ横、 St Paul’s Churchyardにあるティーハウス「tea」。イギリスは世界に名だたる紅茶消費国だが、その割には、ロンドンでは、意外と紅茶専門のティーハウス、特にteaのようなカジュアルなティーハウスはあまり見かけない。レースのカーテンや花柄のテーブルクロス等、イギリスの伝統的なティーハウスのイメージを覆すモダンな店内は、ダークグレーの天井とグリーンのタイル張りの壁、そして冷たい印象にならないよう、使い古された感じの木のテーブルや椅子でバランスが取られている。また、窓際や外のテーブルから、セントポール寺院がよく見える。

teaでは、Black Tea（紅茶）、Oolong Tea（ウーロン茶）、Green Tea（緑茶）、White Tea（白茶）、Infusion Tea（フルーツティー、ハーブティー）、Super Tea（健康茶）の6種・40以上の厳選されたお茶の中から、好みのお茶を選べる。teaのお茶はティーバッグではなくLoose Leaf（茶葉）でいれる。また水も、濾過し、酵素添加したものを使用、お湯の温度も最適になるよう注意深く管理しており、周辺で働く忙しいビジネスマン、ビジネスウーマンのために、90秒内で美味しいお茶がいれられるよう、茶葉を多めに使う。またパッケージは出来るだけ生物分解性であるものを使い、紅茶やコーヒーを始め、取り扱うフード・ドリンク類は出来る限り環境に優しく、倫理にかなったものを選んでいるというこだわりようだ。紅茶の気分じゃない時は、コーヒーやホットチョコレートも頂ける。

フードメニューは典型的なブリティッシュスタイル。トーストやイングリッシュ・マフィン等の朝食、11時からランチタイムまではcrampet（クランペット／パンケーキのようなもの）やtea cake（焼いてバターをつけてをつけて食べる平たい小さな菓子）等の軽食、ランチタイムはサンドイッチ、スープ、サラダ、また２段重ねのティートレイにのったフィンガー・サンドイッチ、スコーンと紅茶のセット、イギリス伝統のアフタヌーンティーが、お得な£7.50でいただける。近くにあるスターバックスや、時に行列も見かけるフレンチ・ベーカリー「Paul」と比べると、さほど混んでいないので、穴場です。

‘tea‘ is a casual tea house in the St. Paul’s Churchyard, just next to St. Paul cathedral. UK is the No.1 country of tea consumption per capita in the world (2002), but for some reasons, I don’t see many tea houses, especially casual one like ‘tea.’ Opposite to my image of traditional English tea house with lace curtain and flower printed table cloth, the interior of ‘tea’ is pretty modern with light gray ceiling and the wall covered with green tiles, and the rusty wooden tables and chairs add warm atmosphere to the place. You can see St. Paul cathedral well from the tables next to the windows and outside.

In the ‘tea,’ you can choose your favorite tea from 40+ teas in 6 kinds – Black Tea, Oolong Tea, Green Tea, White Tea, Infusion Tea, and Super Tea. All the teas at ‘tea’ are loose leaf teas, not tea bags. They only use filtered, oxygenated water and we carefully control the temperature and timing to achieve the best results. They use more tea leaves to reduce the time to infuse the leaves, so that their teas are perfectly brewed in only 90 seconds, to accommodate hard-working business men & women in the area. Not only their passion for tea is admirable, but ‘tea’ is also eco-friendly as well – they use biodegradable packaging whenever possible and source the food ingredients from suppliers which passes their ethical standard.

The food menus are pretty British – hot buttered toast and English muffins for breakfast; crampet and tea cakes between breakfast and lunch; and sandwiches, soups and salads for lunch. You can also have traditional Afternoon Tea; finger sandwiches and scones on the two-tier cake stands with their English loose leaf teas for bargain price £7.50. ‘tea’ is not as crowded as near-by French bakery Paul and Starbucks – so it is a great place if you don’t want to be hustled out from the table and enjoy a good pot of tea.

Yesterday hubby and I spent an afternoon with some friends in the Japanese Tea Garden in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. What a beautiful place!

The little building you see serves tea and snacks as you look out over the finely manicured garden.

Interesting fact: Although there is much debate over the origen of fortune cookies, they are officially credited as being created here, in San Francisco’s Japanese Tea Garden by Makoto Hagiwara, a Japanese-American immigrant who also created the gardens and maintained them until 1925.

Walking through this garden reminded me so much of my own visits to Japanese, especially Kyoto…ahhhh, how I’d love to visit again… 

boa nova | casa de cha | alvaro siza

Well I feel poo… Got in at about 4am after work last night, and had the worst coughing fits I think I have ever had. Nothing seemed to help and I think in total I had about an hours sleep until 11 when I got up for work. I couldn’t go into work as I feel dreadful and now I am in my pink fluffy dressing gown on the sofa coughing my guts up while looking though the Christmas edition of the Next directory, tagging everything I like with mini-post-its, knowing full well I will never wear or buy any of it. This double page spread caught my attention the most:

As you can see I like pretty much everything on these pages! These include a cute planter set, the most adorable birdhouse, Russian doll style mugs, a cupcake calendar and diary, and a cat doorstop. On the other page there was also a huge cupcake shaped teapot and mug, a cake stand, and a tea house storage box!!!

So yes…. I want them all please!

I have been chatting to Lauren all day, and ended up on the subject of baby names… very girly chat I know! She quite likes the names Willow, Alice, Sophie, Emma, and Grace for girls, and Edward, Robert, Jake and Harry for boys. Mostly down the traditional names route it seems. I prefer names such as Scarlett, Yuna, Nami, and Natsumi for girls, and Dylan, Damien, James, and… erm…. I cant think of another boys name right now. I have always like so many names, these are just a few I can remember off the top of my head; not so traditional some of them.

I found another image on my phone of my huge hot chocolate the other day and it made me giggle…

I JUST SAW THE DAMN MOUSE IN MY HOUSE AGAIN!!! I’m not impressed… I thought I had got rid of them…

I have just uploaded a video of James eating an onion with his mate Joe, at the squat this week, but I still haven’t worked out the easiest way to add videos onto here yet, so here is the link for the moment:

Is it in?… James munches an Onion

If anyone knows how to change an AVI video file to either an mp3 or an m4a file without loosing quality or sound please let me know!

After reading through the Next directory, it has made me worried about my plans for Christmas. I dont know whether I am catering for people here in our new house, or if we will be on our own, or whether we will join family elsewhere…. something to think about (and presents of course!).

I am going to go eat and rest up now, try and get rid of this ridiculous cough… Monday tomorrow, yet another fresh start, one of 52 a year.

Summer is Petoskey stones, friendship bracelets, and inter-camp mail. Tea time, devos by candlelight, care packages, watch tans, and hooded sweatshirts. Blobbing, Chacos, Crazy Creeks, sunscreen, and bug spray. Pontoon swims, tree climbing, jungle peeing, endless games of knockout, and not showering.

Summer is IBC root beer, foil dinners, too many smores, and Outback water. Sea glass, Euchre, cold waves, swims at sunset, dune jumping, and sunburns. Sleeping on the basketball courts, food fights, goodie wagon, and peeing your pants. The pine forest, Mona’s, stairway, Earl’s Marsh, and the top of the tower.

Summer is late night texts, fireworks in Jackson, ice cream on T.O., and weekends at Mary. Blue sheets, headlamps, knives, chap stick, and iPod speakers. Guitar on the beach, attempting sleep on the short bus, Trudy, Jumanji, Hook, The Nightmare Before Christmas, and five dollars at McDonalds. Ship island, the spelling bee, Mad Libs, greasy watermelon, and hoedowns. Snakes, spiders, air horns, deep dives, and boating emergencies.

Summer is Lacey, T-Rescues, sweatpants, and mosquitoes. Thunderstorms, sunsets in the bowl, and shooting stars. Greasy hair, fear burning, visits from old counselors, the question game, and dock lunches. Pink eye, crutches, hospital visits, and fears. Dance parties, one pieces, Frisbees, lover not a fighter, and late night talks outside Frontier.

Pathfinders is Vega, Deneb, Altair, Sirus, and Polaris. The pump, the moon room, the spit pit, and the Garden of Love. Phenomenal women, bravery, wisdom, and old traditions.  Teaching, patience, fatigue, happiness, homesickness, and tears. Song lyrics, poetry, secret sisters, and letters to self. Sweat, smiles, vomit, laughter, farts, and trust.

Camp is learning, loving, breathing, living, wishing, missing, hoping, growing, and sharing. Little Stony, Miami Beach, and the artesian well. Goals, listening, sisters, role models, and true friendship.

Love is north dock at night. Warm summer evenings. Letters from campers. Every single campfire. The sound of rain on the roof of your cabin. The campers you will never forget. The pictures. The memories.

This was written by Karen Wilkinson. She was a Pathfinder camper, counselor and was the director this past summer. She wrote this the summer after her first pathfinder summer as a staff member. She has written many things about camp (including college application essays).

Enjoy.

Simply Pathfinder,

Kati/Karen.

I stumbled upon this sensitive piece of Japanese design whilst sheltering from the rain in Syracuse, Sicily. Nested in a courtyard at the centre of Ortygia it contrasts dramatically with the baroque surroundings. Originally created by Kengo Kuma in the Mino ceramics Park in Tajimi, Japan in honour of the ceramics artist and master of the tea ceremony, Furuta Oribe (1544-1615).

“The Oribe tea pavilion is one of the most poetic and significant works of Kengo Kuma and demonstrates his special approach to architecture. The pavilion emphasizes the aesthetic yet functional properties of polycarbonate in a special way and shows that multi wall sheets can be used in a radically new manner. Here they have been used by Kengo Kuma to create a space for contemplation in harmony with Zen aesthetics. The intention of this famous architect was to establish a relationship between material and light, creating a feeling of intimacy and seclusion in contrast to the transparency of the shell”.

This is it… same information, slightly more pleasing to the eye:

…& for anyone wondering where to find the tea house, it’s just a short walk from Newcastle train station. We’re on the corner of Hunter and Morgan Streets, in the Hunter Street Mall.

I’m working on our program of events for TINA next weekend and having a lot of trouble trying to fit it all onto a flyer. We’re hosting some NYWF roundtable discussions as well as the world’s first ‘Disco Lecture’, and a 140th birthday party for the postcard! Well, here it is… flyer is coming soon:

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Friday, October 2^nd

5.00 – 8.00pm: Opening Night Party!!

5.30 – 6.30pm: You Can’t Stop The Musing – The philosophy of disco with Craig Schuftan

White pants, mirroballs, dancing while pointing at the floor – everybody knows Disco is fun. But is it good for you? For many, in the seventies, Disco represented the last word in mass-produced trash – moronic music made by robots for robots. For others, it was a solitary ray of humanist hope in a world that was rapidly going to the dogs. Now that Disco is back (trust us, it is), the time has come to determine, once and for all, whether it’s part of the problem or part of the solution. Triple j’s Craig Schuftan – author of The Culture Club and Hey! Nietzsche! Leave them Kids Alone – presents the case for and against in You Can’t Stop the Musing – the world’s first Disco-lecture. Expect to hear from The Silver convention, The Chic Organisation and the Frankfurt School, and don’t be surprised if you start doing that which both Theodor Adorno and the adherents of the Disco Sucks movement considered an impossibility – thinking and dancing.

6.45 – 7.15pm: Maddy Phelan plays Indie-Breaky Heart

7.30 – 8.00pm: Bicarb & Vinegar

Also…

Wonder Chamber: a collection of the curious, wondrous, and whimsical, featuring: 7U?, Textaqueen, Emily Hasselhoof, Leigh Rigozzi, Helen Nehill, Neil Tomkins, Ace Wagstaff, Chris Tamm, Kake Geck, and Licky the Cream… (until Nov 6^th)

zine launch: ‘This is the [second] stupidest tea party I’ve ever been to in all my life’

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Saturday, October 3^rd

11.00 – 12.30pm: Space Invaders: DIY and Artist-Run Festivals and Spaces (NYWF Roundtable discussion)

No budget is the way of the future. DIY spaces bring people together, creating an explosion of ideas and action: real social networking, people. Hear true stories and get valuable advice on setting up spaces and running whole festivals with just enough money to buy a shoestring. Featuring: Ianto Ware, Guy Sterling, Danielle Bentley, Susy Pow, Maddy Phelan, and Natalie Aylward.

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Sunday, October 4^th

4.30 – 5.30pm: Curatorial How-To (NYWF Roundtable discussion)

Wranglers, hoarders, dropouts, show-offs, very talented circle of friends! Wanna figure out how to get all gallery on that shit? CURATORIAL is part of NYWF’s new series of informal, abnormal, but very, very practical roundtable how-tos. Featuring: Ianto Ware, Anthony WP O’Sullivan, Lev Diatschenko, Nimble Fox Trappings, Emily McCulloch Childs, Maddy Phelan, and Natalie Aylward.

6.00 –  7.00pm: The One Hundred and Fortieth Birthday of the Postcard

Participate in the collective penning and posting of 140 postcards plus eating cake and other regular birthday party activities. The event will double as a book launch for ‘from sometimes love beth’ a postcard compendium by Beth Sometimes.

Presented by Beth Sometimes: misssometimes@gmail.com

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Monday, October 5^th

Come rest your weary head as we serve up some hot brews and cool tunes.

Let’s just take it easy today.

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