Wednesday, December 21, 2005

Building up expectations

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Looking aside


















All eyes on cameras and then this girl totally oblivious and so orange in a sea of white. As the party was themed winter white she really stood out. Posted by Picasa

Madrid Calling














I have a group of friends that are desperate to go down to Spain and have this years NYEP in Madrid with buddies from our grad school and their international non stop party gang. As I know Madrid the promise of wild party stands true. As I know the person inviting us I am actually getting afraid that wild party may be a euphemism. I am not yet convinced though since have also made arrangements with my sis and her boyfriend and I have only a few hours to decide. In the meanwhile I was browsing through my old Madrid photos and this capture of the famous Puerta del Sol Tio Pepe ad caught my attention. I like it more in B&W. Once on D200 I will try to see if the pleasure to shoot B&W depends on the equipment or the mid. I hate to shift picture to monochrome with software. Well I have to think about Madrid ... Posted by Picasa

Friture














This is possibly the most important Brussels landmark. This time in December is still busy and people wait long enough to get their fries fix.

The only issue is that the fries here are terrible, the oil is probably the original one used a quarter of century ago when this famous fries place opened. If you want to believe it there are busloads of Asian tourists that have this as a must see/taste on the list. And let me be clear European or North American ones do not shy away either. I only ate there once and never repeated the mistake. If I leave the car parked in the square for a few hours the stink stays for days! And do not get me wrong I love fries and Belgium IS the world capital for those. Just that this place is beyond any doubt not worthy of its reputation. The best I had were at Brasserie George on Chaussee de Waterloo just outside Bois de la Cambre. You may choose between at least five different types that can be served fried in as many different oils or fats. They are great as is the place in general. The oyster bar and the sea food are not bad there either and the duck is fantastic. On weekends and on holidays you HAVE to reserve a table well in advance.

As I get to know Brussels better I discovered that the cliché regarding the good dinning in the city actually stands true. Just in the last few weeks I have discovered a number of excellent places at both ends of the price/sophistication spectrum. One day I have to come up with my own preferred spots list. Posted by Picasa

Parallel Solitudes

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Woody Allen returns with a London story

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