Travel Tales: Copenhagen Day 4 – And Like That…
So today I figure I try the last vegetarian place on the only list I made for my trip (the one that was closed yesterday). Allegedly they serve food there and also sell soy products. I felt extra extra today because it was the first real sunny day I have seen since landing. I trekked all the way to the magical veggie store around 11am (normal start time here) only to find out that there is no hot food served (“um, we have bread”) only a subpar grocery experience to be had. So curses to that and I go about my way to the Zoo, after stopping to buy Apple Juice – figured I play it safe after the liquid sugar incident – and some muffins for breakfast. I do my tourist stop off “um, how do I get to the zoo? and how much is it” then wrassle up some change for the bus.
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Travel Tales: Denmark Day 2 – Cruising in Copenhagen
(you are not crazy. i didn’t write a post for Day 1) So off I go to explore Copenhagen on a Sunday. One thing I learned from yesterday is that you will not find a dearth of options for open stores on Sunday aside from Church and eateries. The first stop was of course to get some breakfast. The list of vegetarian options is much much more limited than in Reykjavik – somewhat surprised since this is a larger area. My breakfast (pictured below) was okay as it lacked on taste and spices that I am used to tasting. The white substance to the bottom of the plate is scrambled tofu absent flavor as you may have guessed from the white color. All in all- the entire meal was satisfying (I didn’t touch the middle bread as it had a little too much healthy going on with seeds, nuts and such) as it had a smoothie and two of my favorite fruits – ruby red grapefruit and pineapple.
Next stop was to see some sites in town. The plan was to find a City bike to get around on as you can rent one for 20 kroner, which you get back when you return the bike. (more…)
Travel Tales: Iceland Day 4 – Reykjavik Round Up
So today was another shorter stint on the town. I figured I should do one more “only in Iceland” thing and that was Whale Watching. I made the reservation and she said “We will pick you up between 12 and 12:45.” What am I dealing with the cable company?!? Moving forth- First order of business is food. I figured I should try an classic of waffles with potatoes. The waitress looked very confused when I asked for this as she stated “together? I don’t think we have that combination? you want them on top or on a separate plate?” Eventually, I described it to her and got my request. When the plate came out, I realized they serve jam with a lot of things. After the first bite, the food was like the cereal box setup – it looks great on the box but taste doesn’t reflect it.
After breakfast, I made a quick run to the supermarket betting that the pickup would be closer to 1245 and sure enough I was correct. We headed out to for about one hour until we got to an area where the likelihood of seeing a whale was high. (more…)
Travel Tales: Iceland Day 3 – The Artsy Fartsy Tourist
So Thursday was my “time to be a tourist” day. What does that mean you ask? Well it is composed of “eat, sleep and see it” (like what i did right there dontcha) all day. I got up somewhere near 11am central time and got about 8 hours of sleep for the first time in my adult life. After taking care of some business, I figured it was time for some breakfast/brunch being that it was approaching 1pm. As I walked the streets of Reykjavik, I noticed how trendy and hip the main street is, almost like a condensed NY in the sense of the various eateries. There were Chinese food, Italian, Indian, Nepalese, Middle Eastern, American (Ruby Tuesdays omfg) and Icelandic food. I went Indian which was a great way to start the day.
After that I went on my see it mission and visited the Reykjavik Art Museum (more…)
Travel Tales: Iceland Day 2 – Mr. Solo Dolo
The first thing on my mind this morning was, “I am really in Iceland.” It is still settling in with every passing moment. Except the water, which smells and tastes funny. Today I was off to see the Golden Circle route. I got up at 630am – I know I know I’m supposed to be on vacation so I turned off my alarm and did the “I’ll rest my eyes for 5mins”. Sad mistake as I did a scramble at amto get ready and run to the supermarket. My bus pickup was for 830am and I figured I should pack some snacks for the 10 hour tour. This store was a 24 hour supermarket and I did my usual – I have a list but will go down every aisle (806am) after grabbing two smoothies, two muffins and a candy bar I figured I should get a croissant to eat now. Two choices – warm or cold. I went warm..wrong choice. I opened it to put some butter and what awaited me – a nice warm piece of ham. Straight to the trash with that after a short fit of swearing. (815am). Swallowed down a muffin and a smoothie then head outside to wait for the bus. [edit: i don't eat meat which is why i had my fit of cussing. i had to do with the muffin and smoothie. who puts ham in a croissant and doesn't even have the decency to label it!?!]
The first stop we made was the Reykjavik geothermal power plant. On the way astronauts spent some time in central Iceland before the moon trip because the terrain of that area is said to be similar of that of the moon. That is according to the monotone tour guide. On the way, the tour guide mentioned the fields of dried lava after the volcano eruption. The tour guide said the eruptions happen once every 5 years or so and the last one was in 2004.. so 5 years later would be..2009? oh dear.
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Travel Tales: Iceland Day 1 from Brownsville to Reykjavik
After having a shitastic last week that was accompanied by flirts of happiness, I finally landed in Reykjavik [re-kee-ya-vik], Iceland. The flight had a very interesting set of events as my neighbor was asked to switch seats so two people could squeeze into the emergency exit together only to move again within minutes of take-off. That is all I remember from the flight as I was asleep very quickly for the duration of the trip. The process of from airport to hotel was one of the smoothest I have ever been a part of in my life. After finally getting my phone setup and checking with my family, my eyes told me to go to sleep. When I woke up I decided it was time to hit the town and boy what an experience! First, I got lost and then proceeded to wander around aimlessly. After getting over feeling like I was in 28 Days due to my isolation (no zombies), I realized that this is the best way to see the town because every turn is new and exciting vs following a set path to reach a site.
After a quick loop around downtown, I needed to eat and luckily being a vegetarian in Iceland isn’t that hard as there are several places that cater to the veganish diet. I stopped off at A Naestu Grosum to get my meal.
I needed to walk that off, so it was back on the road again. This time I was lost in my reminiscing of my final days in the states and the gray skies were a metaphor for what was going on with me. I sat talking to myself and thinking about everything and trying to find out what the best solution was and just like that a rainbow appeared (see above)! This truly turned my day around and I just started walking and thinking. The rainbow brought me to think that the treasure map is not lost at all, just needed to be tested. The rest of my day was spent walking (saw another sign – “it’s ok…” written on a bench) and snacking (carrot cake pictured below) as I just wanted to see the town. There is a certain quiet that blankets the entire town as you walk the narrow main streets. There is an abundance of eateries ranging from Indian to Thai to Mexican and standard pub fares. The weather is slightly chilly with a constant sea breeze. I assume that since the it isn’t high-summer time and school is in session, the streets will generally be quiet. I was supposed to go on a Northern Lights trip but it got canceled due to the likelihood of not seeing them tonight.
This trip is just beginning but I feel happy that I decided to go through with my big random adventure for the year. Very few people understand why I would go to Iceland. Here I am born on the tiny island of St. Vincent in the West Indies; grew up in Brownsville, Brooklyn then college in Ann Arbor, Michigan; back to Crown Heights in Brooklyn now standing in the middle of Reykjavik on vacation (random road trips and such have been left out for various reasons).
Thank you.
Trevor Traynor I Shoot People Opening – Recap
Trevor Traynor‘s opening at powerHouse Arena for the Brooklyn-stop of his “I Shoot People” five-city tour was great! The powerHouse space is dope and attendees had a chance to peruse their treasure trove of books as the venture to the cul de sac-ish enclosure for the exhibit. Trevor featured over 100 photos over artists in various settings from Tupac getting his mustache touched up to Dave Chappelle during a performance with a haloesque glow. At the opening, you could feel the familiarity that he had with everyone as he laughed; joked and hugged it out with almost everyone. Aside from the man of the hour, you also had people discussing the photos and picking people out of the crowd. There were free flowing libations for the parched attendees to consume which always helps. DJ UNO provided a range of tunes to serve as the backdrop for the event.
I had a grand old time hanging out and connecting with the folks at the opening. Shout out to Darren Cole who flew in from Milwaukee for the event- looking forward to your videos from the event. Also, Trevor has one of the dopest logos I have seen yet. So do yourself a favor and head down to powerHouse before the exhibit is over and done on October 4.
Travel Tales: Copenhagen Day 3 – Rolling Down The Streets…
Another good day in Copenhagen. I realized that I can start most of my days around 10am since nothing opens before 11am for the most part. I did decide to leave a little early though with the hopes that my wheels would be tucked in the stash spot and sure enough it was! So clean after the rain fall earlier in the day. Since I had my bike still, it only made sense that the first stop be the farthest point I had to go- The Little Mermaid statue. Word is that she is the most photographed individual in the world. The bike started to suck as I think it was slightly broken because it was three times the work of any other bike and people where flying past me like I was cruising in Prospect Park with the Saturday bikers pack.
I made it to the statue in about 10 minutes and sure enough as soon as I pulled up the rain stared falling…correction pouring down on me (that is the dot and marks you see in the photo in the gallery). Thankfully the rain scared away the group of tourists (who were hogging all the good spots) like if they were the Wicked Witch. It is a wonderful site to see the statue set in the water gifted to the city by Carl Jacobsen (same one from yesterday) after seeing the ballet based on Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale. Next was back on the bike and off to see the a couple other sites as I headed to the changing of the Royal guard.
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September 28, 2009 | Categories: Art + Design, Audio + Video, Commentary, People + Places | Tags: Changing of the Guards, Copenhagen, Denmark, food, Photography, Travel Tales, Video | Leave A Comment »