A fine summer day in my favourite city.

Scenic beauty, cultural gems, diverse communities and gastronomic delights, sampled them all in a day!

The food:
Sugar beckons after the first couple of miles, hence a stop at Cream for ice-cream sandwiches.Too big, too sweet, should've ordered one to share instead of the rum n raisin AND salted caramel. Nothing great, given all the great reviews, was expecting something better.
Next time will try Bi Rite creamery.

Rum n raisin and Salted caramel. 

Deep Dish Pizza - Classic and Little Star.

Deep dish style pizza for lunch at Little Star Pizza- full of flavor and oozing with mozarella and fresh tomato sauce.

The Sights:

Today's mission was to explore SF's Mission District.

Mission Dolores

Old Mission

Perfect day for the SF skyline. 

Mission Dolores Park

Entrance to Mission Dolores Park

Iconic SF streets and their inclines from the top of 20th st. near Dolores Park

 excellent workout! 

Palms lining Dolores street.

And finally the arts:

https://www.creativityexplored.org/. Gallery houses works by handicapped artists.Happened upon this gem while walking down 16th, what a find! Some works from there presented here, enjoy! 

All in all - a perfectly satisfying day!

"It is a good thing the early settlers landed on the east coast... if they'd landed in San Francisco, the rest of the country would still be uninhabited." - Herbert Mye

From the talented nieces corner .....

Here's what an afternoon of doodling produces, masterpieces to marvel and reflect on.
Kudos dear niece!

The principles of true art is not to portray, but to evoke.
Jerzy Kosinski

Name these Bollywood stars?

A stunner from Zaarga....

So I finally got around to giving this piece of art its space, and what a transformation! The sheets are luxurious and soft, the colors pop out and the design elegant! Check it out at
http://www.zaarga.com/productDetails&productId=135&

Black Necked Cranes

Here's another one from The Artful House creator capturing the timeless grace of the black necked crane onto her line of table settings- its a classic! Can't wait to see the rest of it...

Black Necked Cranes Dinner Plates designed by Padmaja @ Artful House.

Rooms with a view...

When 2 people with 'Kala-bodham' (someone who appreciates art and creates beautiful spaces) get together, here's what you get!

 

Padmaja, my dearest friend from college, set up a home in Singapore that oozes old world charm. Along with her hubby, Pramod ( the sweetest man!), they've created a home that I can't quite find words to describe other than say it’s out of the world charming with plenty of character, drawing you in with warm colors, a blend of old and new furniture and paintings that beckon....

From the koi pond in the dining room to the blue, red and white master bedroom, one living space flows into the next with the most inviting corners to curl up with a book or just stare at the paintings and knickknacks around you and dream.....

Check out her own line of furniture at...Artful House....coming soon.

Come to think of it- 2 of my ex-roomies from the good (?) 'ole college days are into art and home decor- switching fields completely, discovering hidden talents and charting out new adventures- you go girls!! Check out www.Zaarga.com - and look out for a blog soon with pictures of a stunning bedspread in my guest room from Zaarga.

 

Packing a school lunch: make it an art!

And put an end to the endless "Whats for lunch?", "Sandwiches! Again!" "Can I have hot lunch please?"
I am seriously considering changing my Blog title to "How to pack a "I can't wait to eat my lunch!" lunch "
Problem:
3 boys with very specific tastes plus 1 mom who can't think straight in the mornings.
Solution:
Blog about it!! Or we could use this.
http://wocview.wordpress.com/2010/04/14/chinese-cooking-robot-cooks-over-600-dishes/

Like anything else, this is a problem that can be tackled IF you put your mind(heart and soul) into it.(That's me speaking out loud)
Lets start with the easy stuff:
What should the lunch box contain;
- one main dish with some veggies and carbs
- a serving of fruit/nut
- a drink of water.

Its that "main dish" component that invariably causes the headaches and groans and guilts. So lets leave that for the very end- I have faith in the Chinese, there will be a "Packing School Lunches" kitchen robot.
In the meantime, here is what went into lunch boxes today alongwith the fruits and drink.
A 5 minute Couscous Medley
-Half cup whole wheat couscous(My favs are the Traders Joes ones)
-half cup of any kind of broth.
Cook the couscous in the broth as per package directions.
Saute a small onion, some sliced french beans and carrots with a lil bit of chopped ginger(a 1/2 tsp). Throw in some green chillies and chipotle sauce for a kick and add the cooked couscous to the medley. A couple of minutes later of stirring on medium heat, some chopped cilantro, a handful of spiced nuts and a dash of lemon-voila!