Italy Series

View of Roma from Giancolo

Me standing outside our apartment

Six years ago on this day, at this time, I was in Italy, more specifically, Arezzo which is a city in the Tuscany region of Central Italy. This was during 4 month stay in Italy during which I stayed in Roma while traveling and teaching. We travelled the Northern cities (Venice, Vicenza, Verona, Milan, Florence, Bologna, Mantua and more), Southern cities (Naples, Sorrento, Pompeii, Positano, Paestum and more) and Hilltowns (Urbino, Pienza, Siena, Montepulciano, Arezzo and more) of Italy starting from Roma and ending in the Amalfi coast. I intend to do a post for each city or couple of cities depending on the complexity of the place. The series will start tomorrow and go on for as long as it takes me to finish it.
I remember this time being extremely stressful, challenging and liberating, I grew up a lot very quickly without even realizing it. It was a good time but one that you only appreciate later on and from the outside. I yearn for  the type of discovery and optimism I had during this time and so I have decided to dig up some of the images and relive the time through research and writing. My camera was horrible so most of my images are extremely blurry but I will try to curate a nice set of images to go along with thoughts I have.
You ask, "what does this have to do with babies?", I plan to have another opportunity like this soon and am excited it will be with my two little ones in tow. Its a bit tougher now with my husbands job but I remain optimistic. I grew up traveling with my parents and at the time hated moving so much but now I feel strongly about my daughters getting some exposure to other cultures. I know they are young but its not bad to expose them to the idea of traveling even though they may not comprehend or retain the various cultures of world but since I take so many pictures they will have the graphic memories. There is so much to experience outside of the little town we live in. It feels so devoid of this kind of complexity. I think this is what makes me feel like moving all the time, I know it only gets harder as the kids get older and start to identify with a specific place to be as mobile so I would love to take them somewhere for a few months, a year, to live not just to visit.

Husband acting cool outside apartment (notice the motorini-vehicle of choice for all Romans)

Montepulciano

Temple of Madonna di San Biagio, 1518-1529, 1545-1564

Piazza dei Salimbeni in Siena

Abbazia di San Galgano

Nigerian Vegetable Soup (Efo)

I remember growing up and having my mother always cook dinner, we would all sit down at the table every night as a family to eat dinner. My father would always send my sister and I into the kitchen to "help" my mother so we could learn to cook, which wasn't such a great idea since we were no help at all (or at least I wasn't). At the time, I would burn eggs when I attempted to cook..come to think of it I still burn eggs but at least now its not the only thing I try to cook anymore. Since having a child and moving to my own place, I have made an effort to learn how to cook. I cook things I like to eat, I don't know about you but my family and I like to eat. I also miss Nigerian food so when I get it I enjoy it but its usually at holidays or if my mother cooks for me. Anyway, I attempted making this soup on my own the other night and it actually came out rather well so I decided to try to replicate it and write down the recipe so I don't forget it or at least have proof that I can cook some Nigeria food. Now, the recipe is adjusted for the ingredients I can get here in the U.S. so its a bit different than what you may call authentic but its pretty close. Also, it is usually served with a starch as the vehicle (to get it to your mouth I supposed) such as rice, pounded yam or garri.

Ingredients

1lb beef, cubed (Stew cubes or other beef of choice) 

1lb large shrimp (peeled and devained tail-on)
2 bags of chopped spinach (frozen or fresh)
2 tablespoons of olive oil
2 cups of water
1/4 cup Palm oil (essential for authentic taste)
2 tablespoons dried crayfish (essential for authentic taste)
1 teaspoon Nigerian pepper (substitute with cayenne)

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes 

1 teaspoon black pepper

1-2 Maggi cubes

Salt -to taste

Instructions

1. Marinate beef in a pinch of salt, pepper, oil, garlic powder and cumin for at least 4 hours but preferably overnight. (this can be eliminated but then the meat might be a bit one dimensional which is why I don't like to cook beef without a bit of marinading)
2. Heat olive oil in a skillet on high until hot and add meat, fry until outside is brown, about 2 minutes each side.
3. Add water to the meat (or enough to cover the meat) and turn down the heat to medium.
4. Cook for 20 minutes until beef is tender and the water is almost absorbed.
5. If using frozen spinach, thaw in advance and drain excess water. Set aside
6. If using fresh spinach, wash thoroughly and chop. Set aside
7. Add spinach, maggi, pepper, salt, crayfish and palm oil, mix well turn up heat to high.
8. Cook on high for 10 minutes, mixture should not have excess water.
9. Add shrimp and simmer until shrimp turn pink.
10. Cook for another few minutes and serve over hot rice or next to a mound of pounded yam.
11. you may need to take a nap!

 

3 Months Old

Dear Evalie,

I love you so much. By now most working mothers return to work, I can't even sustain the thought for more than a second without my heart breaking. Your presence makes me want to do better for my girls, I want to be present and am desperately trying to hold on to every minute I have with you. I know I am lucky, not only because I am able to stay home a bit longer but because I was blessed with you. It makes me believe there must be a higher plan for us, I cannot always control what happens as much as I'd like to but I know I was meant to be your mother. I knew it before you were born, I remember feeling a calm I hadn't felt in a while in between all the ups and downs of pregnancy, I had moments where I felt connected to you as if I already knew you. I was a mother before you came but you are redefining that for me; in your own way, you are showing me myself as a second child, the second daughter.

You continue to defy all my anxieties. At three months old, you are a doll, you are still very friendly and smile at anyone who talks nicely to you. You are developing very well all on your own, its  no wonder they say your brain grows the most in the first few years of life. Without much effort from me, you are doing very well holding your head up while on your tummy, and trying very hard to SIT UP, sometimes I forget you are only 3 months old. Your sister sat up for the first time at 4 months. You now LAUGH at things I say and you aren't as scared or easily startled anymore. It doesn't seem that you've had any growth spurts this month, in fact I feel like you are eating (and pooping) a bit less. You have outgrown almost all 0-3month old clothing and are fitting nicely in the 3-6 month clothing. The big news is that this week, you decided you needed your beauty sleep and started SLEEPING through the night, so bedtime is at 10:30 and you sleep right on until 7:30-8:00am! Its great. You may be teething which is why you are almost always covered in drool but you seem to be handling it well. Because you are so calm, I have finally been able to return to the gym this week and the caretaker in the gym already loves you. She says you're a breeze! Our only challenge is the feeding, I am a bit anxious about you not taking a bottle but I partially responsible for it, I feel comfortable with our current schedule so I barely force the bottle on you but since we have at least 3 months left together, we will work on it. Maybe it'll be easier next month when you start on solids. 

Your sister adores you and you adore her as well, you gaze up at her in amazement watching her flip and jump on the bed ( she's an energetic little one!). I know everyone says this about their children but I truly feel like you were the perfect addition to this family. 

Vito Acconci \\ Sculptural subway entrance

New York City is a unique city for architecture,  within its fabric there is a place for everything from iconic structures to what some refer to as progressive, contemporary or experimental architectural ideas. Its fun to walk or drive around and see things you've only seen in books or didn't realize was even there.  Here's an  example of that, I noticed this train stop at Coney island a few weeks back and took some quick shots of it before we left. 

subway entrance for the elevated F/Q trains at Coney Island

West 8th Street-New York Aquarium

VITO ACCONCI (ACCONCI STUDIO)

Wavewall, 2005

Steel, ceramic tile, granite, fiberglass

The inspiration for the station's design was local sites - the historic Coney Island boardwalk and Cyclone roller coaster, the aquarium next to the station, and area beaches. The station is on the approximate site of a former roller coaster ride. The architect, wanted to transform the exterior station walls in a unique way. Working with the architects, artist Vito Acconci developed an architectural treatment for the station façade that is full of life. As in successful collaborations, there is no clear delineation between the architecture and the art.

Before rehabilitation, the windscreens blocked ocean views; the new windscreens open up the platform view of the Atlantic Ocean. In the artist's words, "The normally horizontal and vertical steel windscreen tubes and panels have been transformed into a more sinuous form that evokes the notion of a wave, or that of motion as in the Cyclone or the subway itself." The result is a striking and unique subway station that fits into its special surroundings. (via...)