Something that I didn't get to talk about in my last blog that was definitely a part of the experience here was the bboy battle that Des took me to. The dance scene is basically the same anywhere you go, but this crowd was very tight and the venue was small but slightly adequate. Upstairs was the Bboy and popping area (not going on simultaneously though cause this venue was tight) and downstairs (in a hallway of sorts) was locking and i think freestyle. I watched as Des entered in the amateur competition and recorded or took snapshots of some really awesome dancers. Des did pretty well i think for having his partner drop out on him last minute and I must say that it wasvery interesting to watch. What I didn't enjoy though was that there was clearly some bad attitude in the air, I think the moves have very little issue translating overseas but I don't think the proper dance community vibe has transferred over. I don't think some people here understand that hiphop dance is meant to unite the people who dance it(however they may fit into the category) and keep them strong against those who dont understand the culture...it's not about saying theres only one true style of this orthat and you're whack or stupid if you're not into it...i really did not like the vibe some people at that competition left hanging around and it made me feel extremely grateful forthe dance community that i'vebeen "raised" in. I think it was kinda interesting to see different styles of locking and popping though, some ofthe popping was definitely amateur, not that im saying im a great popper but ive seen teh greats and uh yeah...it was a good show of potential thats FORSURE. i think i had the most interesting time when someone started tutting, it was reallybasic compared to what I'veseen people doand one of theguys didn't really givea shit about angles (which made me super sad) but thats ok, the spirit and heart was definitely there in that little hallway and that made me smile. =) Des ended up being beat in a threeway battle byakid and then this crew which consisted of a guy he beat lasttime he competed. I didn't mind theother crew beating him, but I think the kid was getting too manynovelty points, I love seeing young people learning and striving to dance, but uh...i think i prefer making sure they know to keep working hard cause their nowhere near someone with more experience yet rather than patting them on the head all the time and saying "no it was good" but i guess thats me and my toughlove.
ok so now that i'm caught up with that mess, letsmove on to more stuff thats happened.
OOOOO interesting thing I FINALLY FOUND A PAIR OF BLACK WEAR WHENEVER BOOTS at an affordable price and yes they actually are comfortable and they dont slip and slide around. ahhhh soooo happy!! hahahaha =D i think I got these the same day babe got Call of Duty World at War and his kitchen blowtorch. We've officially beat Gears of War II together and Call of Duty World at War woot woot!! it was actually really fun, since then I've progressed to beating his but at Soul Caliber IV but whatever he can still beat me in racing games...I SUCK at racing games, but thatsok too, cause I got to play Fable II again and even though I've beaten that already I get to do things differently the second time around hahaha.
I think this was the week we went on a bit of a cooking spree. We had two food adventures this week I think. Sadly neither of them was making ice cream (as Des' icecream churner mysteriously decided to stop working right before I got here.) but we did manage to make Creme Brulee and Beef + Pork curry! =D Two of my FAVORITE dishes hahaha!
The creme brulee was probably the most intriguing of the two, it was also more stressful/hilarious because halfway into making the custard ofthe creme brulee I asked Des if he had enough eggs and then helooked and realizedhe didn't. Luckily hismom was feeling nice and drove to go get him eggs, after waiting for her to getback we got back to mixing the custard (which is a very delicate process) and figuring out how we were gonna get them into the dishes then into theoven then out of the oven and how we were going to cool them. It wasprobaly most challenging getting them out of the oven because Des' oven has very irregular heating and so wehad to constantly monitor the custards and maneuver them around in their waterbath (you cook these by putting the dishes with custardin them into a huge pot with water in it then putting the whole thing in the oven) so taht we could (with some randomly assorted tools) get them out of the oven when they were done. We had to let them cool for a while so we didn't actually eat them until the day after. Which was when we got to break out the blow torch. Can I just say, i LOVE that little blowtorch...it's tiny but it's soooooooooo cool!! =D I had to show Des how to handle it properly (go figure right?) and how to get the gas in safely. Then we spent a little time figuring out how much sugar we needed to put on top and then the fun part, lighting that sucker up and burning the sugar. I have some awesome pics which I'll be putting up of the whole process but watching the flame attack the sugar is just so cool. We were definitely pleased with the results, and I think Des' parents were too.
The curry that we made was sooooo hearty and delicious, it totally reinforced my love for Japanese curry. This was the recipe that was easiest to learn from Des so I think I can make a pretty good curry now and when we actually got to sit down and eat it with a nice big bowl of healthier-than-white brown rice I was scarfing it down. I think Des had two or three helpings and I eventually polished off the leftovers sometime later but taht curry was just tooooo good to betrue.
On another food note, Des (who is an ice cream coinnesoeur) took me to his favorite ice cream/gelati store and I wasnothing short of blown away. The flavors they had were simple but exquisite. I had a taste of Green Tea, Tiramisu, and Rocher. Let me take a minute to explain that last one cause it's Des all time favorite and my new favorite. Imagine a smooth and creamy hazelnut + chocolate ice cream then imagine you've taken a ferrer rocher chocolate broken it into a few pieces and mixed it in to the ice cream. Imagine taking a bite of that ice cream andfeeling like you've eaten a piece of ferrer rocher because the crunch is perfect and the smoothness of the whole thing goes down like the soft center of the famous bonbon. It was exquisite and I have never really had an experience like it. The green tea was nice and sweet and the tiramisu was so creamy and delectable I thought my tastebuds were in heaven. I think the best part about this ice cream parlorthough is thatthey offer to take away ice cream in styrofoam containers (i know its not enviro friendly but omg itstoo good) and we brought back a HUGE container of rocher and green tea ice creams.
OOOOOO also Des took me to his and his Dad's favoriteplace to get wafflesand can I just say that in the US we have not even begun to understand how cool waffles can be. THis place sold simple waffles made rihgt in front of you butmy goodness they were good. Webought a six pack (the family version) andbrought them back to Des place to munch on them. I think I only gotone and a half cause Des' dad LOOOOVEs them and we think he enjoyed that wehad brought some back. The waffles went really good with some Godiva chocolate fudge that Des had and they were fluffy and sweet and crunchy and just all out delicious. Lip smacking delicious. The area that they were in was also really awesome, full of cafes and jam packed with culture.
Ok so that was lengthy and I need to get started on the post to follow this one cause that ones something I've been WAAAITING to tell you all about. Here are todays pictures!!=) Again I'll be posting the entire collection on facebook so take a peek over there for more action shots!=)
babe double checking the ingredients and measurements. its interesting how they measure things differently than we do but i find it to be more accurate in most cases.
the custard cooking right before we realized we didnt have enough eggs...hahaha
the custards baking in their water bath. kinda cool eh?
babe using the blowtorch to put the finishing touches on one of the creme brulees
see i have it and nothing burned down...therefore i should be allowed to play with fire every now and then
our curry post-production and pre-consumption.
on top: Rocher bottom: Tiramisu
best place to get waffles is riiigiht there on the left. talk about urban yeah?
the epicly cafe-d out alley where the waffle shop was.i love the feel of this place. =)stay tuned for the next post i promise its a good one!!
<3bam
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