Mexico recap

Back in January, two of my girlfriends and I went to the Yucatan Peninsula (I'll have you know that it's driving me a little crazy not to put the accent over the a in Yucatan) for a quick vacation. My BFF and I bought this Groupon-like thing back in June 2010 while I was still in Ireland and we decided to plan it for after my graduation... mostly because I was convinced that I wouldn't be back in school that soon. Lo and behold I was so I missed a full week (read: 2 days) of nutrition but it was okay.

ANYWHO. Back to the good stuff. I had never been to the east coast of Mexico partly by choice and partly by chance.  To me most of the east coast of Mexico is extremely touristy and therefore undesirable for my own travel preferences. I don't mean to sound snobby or anything but I'd just rather experience the country that I'm in with the locals and not a bunch of people who have (probably) have no idea what they're doing or talking about. Also, what do tourists know about where to eat that's good besides from a travel book? I've said it before and I'll say it again, I think the best way to experience a culture is through their food! So of course most of my photos are of food but some are of actual sights too. We also when to Chichen Itza, which is one of the Seven Wonders of the World (I believe). Era TAN maravilloso!

And now for the select photos:

Our first stop after leaving the airport... doesn't it look like a postcard?!

Shrimp quesadillas at Los Pelicanos restaurant!

Kali's chicken fajitas that look sooo good!

Serina's arroz con camarones...YUM

Our first bar that was very close to our place. It's called La Buena Vida. Twas! Especially with the tropical rain

HORCHATA with tacos al pastor.... one of my favorite meals of all time. 

Serina's vegetarian dish. Those are mushrooms not meat! I forget what it was called but it's mushrooms, cheese, and tomatoes on a bed of peppers.

The view every morning from our place

Super cool tree that I saw 

Can you imagine having ruins by this beach? 

Tallest point of the ruins with the beautiful blues in the back

Fish tacos with mango salsa... SO FREAKING GOOD

I really wanted to try a "homelette" but I was too full

Ceviche... super noms!

Serina's pescado en la moda veracruzana

Kali's chile relleno

CHILAQUILES CON HUEVO FRITO! En Coba... 

"Lover's chairs" is what we dubbed these. Again in Coba

Kali and Serina being my models at Chichen Itza

Each column represents a story.... so amazing

I don't think you can get more "ruiny" than this. I really wanted to climb inside but you're definitely  not allowed to.

El Caracol. The only circular structure in all of Chichen Itza.

My last meal on the Yucatan Peninsula. It was some meal that was supposed to be authentic Mayan but for the life of me I cannot remember what it's called! It was very juicy and delicious though.

A year ago today...

(continue reading from the title... just to warn you I do that a lot) My first serious boyfriend broke up with me. Now he'll tell you that he just tried to "take a break" from our relationship but who wants to take a break 4 months in? That's just dumb. We're not in junior high anymore. So when he finished talking and crying (and saying things like, "I talked to my sister and... I met you so soon after my ex.... I really like you....") I looked him stone cold in the eye and said, "We're not 'taking a break,' we are breaking up." To this statement, he looked surprised and I just said, "I know I haven't been in a relationship before but I don't want to do that. I've seen too many people in my life overly hurt by 'breaks' and I think it's stupid." Okay maybe I didn't say the "stupid" part but I sure as heck feel that way (I believe I said something along the lines of "it just doesn't work..."). I was also thinking how out of the blue it was. I mean the week before we celebrated Valentine's Day on the 15th (because one of my best friends was visiting me as per a previous post) and then I left for Paris on the 16th for a conference (it was actually the first global concession of pediatric health which is exactly what I want to do so there was no way I was missing it. And it was in Paris... so it's pretty obvious why I went). We talked the whole way through my trip (4 days) and ... okay anywho.

It may seem that I am not over it. And maybe a little part of me isn't? I mean he was the first guy that I thought, "Hey, I could see myself with him for a long while..." but honestly, the more and more I think about it (and we all know that hindsight is 20/20), the more and more I am absolutely, completely okay that we broke up. He only told me twice how he felt about me and both were at questionable times. Everything seemed forced from him. He didn't really care if other guys checked me out (okay so I know that one sounds whiny and very "girl" like but there were a more than a few times where he saw a guy check me out and joked about it and told me to go get his number or hit on him for a drink. AND twice one of his friends tried to kiss me when we were all out together and he was not in the least bit upset. Guys, seriously, is that not weird?!) which didn't bother me at first but makes me wonder now.

Any way, a year later I am single and loving it.

I tried dating around a bit (okcupid.com it was super fun and I recommend it! If you're willing to sift through creepy people and find the genuine folks) and it was helpful in that I found that there are decent people out there but now that I'm back in school and working part-time at my old clinic, I just won't have the energy. Which is fine. Honestly. I have plenty of people that I need/want to keep in touch with and this is a good time to restart my relationship with God too (I always feel like I can hear people groaning at that statement but it's true! So meh on you.)

To my friends who are married, in serious relationships, or are actively in the dating world, more power to you and I will pray for your success and ... things? Haha obviously I'm not too well versed in this but in any case, good juju is being sent out into the world for you by me (only if, of course, you want to receive it and make your relationship last).

To my fellow singletons, let us eat, drink, and be merry (I mean not that we have to be exclusive to those who aren't in our *coughexclusivecough* club but ya know we are responsible to only ourselves for the most part). Seriously. I'm taking a butt load of classes and will need some people to chill and relax with when the time comes. And it's coming. Soon. To a theatre near you. Okay maybe not the last part but you know what I mean.

DOUBLE RAIIINNNBOOOOWWW!

Yes I am fully aware that the "DOUBLE RAINBOW??!!??!??! TRIPLE RAINNNBOOWWWW??!??!?!" this is so 2011 or whatever year it was but I couldn't resist. Not only did seeing the double rainbow at school on Monday spark a grin because it looked amazing (I have never seen a brighter one in my life, honest to God) but also because I was thinking about that ridiculous video.

So what did it look like? I'll show you.

So I know it doesn't necessarily look that bright but in person it was. The second craziest part? As I drove home that evening, I got closer and closer to the edge of the rainbow. It literally seemed as if I were chasing it, trying to find the leprechaun at the end with his pot of gold. But I wasn't! THE craziest part? I REACHED IT. For the first time in my life, I can honestly say that I found the end of the rainbow! As I was driving south on the freeway to get home, I noticed that not only was the rainbow getting brighter, but bigger. What I thought was super interesting was that as I neared the end, it started to fade. And then of course I thought of all the folklore around how hard it is to chase a rainbow (and I also started belting at the top of my lungs "Somewhere Over the Rainbow), I realized why. Because when you get closer to the end, you can barely, if at all, see it anymore! Also of course, being the nerd that I am, I thought about light, how it refracts, and the properties of wavelength and crap. I was so instantly happy and could not help but say, "Dang God... that's pretty cool."

So that pillar thing shows that I was on campus when I took this photo. Here's what my Monday and Wednesday evening looks like almost every time:

Reason #5 bajillion why I love my school

If only all schools had this view...

Happy Valentine's Day!

Last night while studying for my first real test of my first semester at Cañada, I decided to bake red velvet cupcakes for my old clinic that hired me back because they desperately missed me (okay the last part may be a tad exaggerated). I made cream cheese frosting for the first time ever in my life too! But this definitely wasn't the first time I made red velvet cupcakes. The first time I baked them was also for Valentine's Day but I dusted powdered sugar hearts on them instead! Kind of a fun, less fatty thing to do I guess? Anywho, the cream cheese frosting, though, was super easy to make and definitely was a nice contrast to the red velvet.


The REAL baking came in right when I came home from work. I decided to try my hand at this recipe: Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Nutella whipped cream. SO much respect for this person because they developed the recipe themselves! That's my huge hurdle for ever truly pursuing baking. I am waayyyy too far from being creative enough. But in any case, they were a hit! I'm so so happy. I really liked how the mixture was light and airy. I didn't think it was going to make for moist enough cupcakes but they were really good! And of course the Nutella whipped cream was freaking great.

This is the finished product. Some were hearts others were circles. 

I am so definitely making these again. To make them taste "darker" I actually only used 1 cup + about 1/8 cup of sugar. I mean there's so much sweetness in the Nutella you really don't miss it.

Also I wanted to say that a year ago today one of my best friends (who actually just got married last week) was visiting me last year in Ireland and we had an amazing Valentine's Day dinner which my then boyfriend was nice enough to let me have with just her. But I didn't know what was coming.. apparently. Haha. That's another story for another time. 

So all in all, I hope everyone had a fantastic Valentine's Day, Red Day (if you're Korean) or dia de San Valentin if you espeak espanish! Those are the only cultures I know well so I swear I'm not leaving others out on purpose!

A dream is a wish your heart makes... and mine came true!

Yes. Yes. It's true. I just quoted Cinderella. Why? Well first of all because it's a freaking great movie (notice how I did not qualify it as a good cartoon movie. It's a good movie period) but also because I have remembered that lyric since I first saw it on VHS when I was a wee lass. A small part of me has always wanted to be famous. Doesn't matter how (okay well for something good not for being an eejit nor evil) but yeah. There was a period of time where I wanted to be an actress then that quickly faded because I have a terrible memory and get really nervous around good looking people, male or female. Then I wanted to be a musician, but that quickly faded because I suck at making music. Then I wanted to produce music, but that faded because my conscious got a better hold of me and said, "Really? You're going to waste your God given talents and do that?" Which isn't entirely true but yeah.

As you can see, music is a huge part of my life. I've grown up around music, thanks to my father, and have a firm base in the oldies (50's and 60's music) as well as funk (thanks to my sister), started taking piano lessons at age 5 and then violin at 9 or 10 (I can't remember when I made the switch because my brain has blocked out the painful memories), and was in choir in high school. I worked for Capitol Records in undergrad (starting out as a street teamer and also I cheated on them and street teamed for Epitaph as well) and loved every second of it.

Another weird fact about me? (And I actually don't know the reasoning behind this) I love award shows. (I promise this is going somewhere.) I don't have as much time to watch them now. But before, man, I used to plan my weekends around them! Or I would record them and watch later. Something about people being raw I guess? Again, no idea why but that is the case. Put this fact and the paragraph before this together and you get the fact that the Grammy Awards are basically my favorite awards show.

So why these random tidbits about me now? Well yesterday I received a phone call during chemistry lecture but I wasn't able to pick up (for obvious reasons). They left a number but I saw the number calling so I googled it. It was Capitol Records! Immediately I assumed they wanted me to do something in San Francisco (or somewhere else in the Bay Area... some really awesome shows are coming up) so I didn't think much about it. Until I remembered that they left a voice message. I listened to it and what was it? A congratulatory call about me and a friend GOING TO THE GRAMMY AWARDS! (yes that required all caps).

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I knew I had chemistry lab in a couple hours but SCREW IT. I called my sister, then my mom (to see if she'd freak out and forbid me to go which she didn't to my surprise), then my best friend Serina. The talk with Serina was pretty hilarious. It was almost as if she was angry. Oh I should clarify, that Serina is my most musically inclined friend. Not just a fan like me, but a true to the word, in every sense of the word, musician. She plays multiple instruments, has a phenomenal voice, has perfect pitch, and beat boxes (haha yes I had to throw that in there).  The conversation went something like this:

Me: Hey dood guess what my big news is. (I had left a message earlier telling her to call ASAP and that I had big news).
Her: I honestly have no idea.
Me: I just won tickets to the Grammy Awards.
Her: What the fu.....?
Me: YEAH DOOD.
Her: Wait, explain.
Me: (I told her the whole story)
Her: What the fuck?
Me: I KNOW BUDDY! So.... wanna come with?
Her: FUCK YEAH.

Okay. So usually I wouldn't post expletives on but it was just TOO funny. I was laughing pretty hard. Also, I haven't really heard her drop the F-bomb that many times in a span of like 2 minutes so it was pretty funny. But you can see why this news is of great magnitude for the both of us. Both of the dreams that our hearts wished (completely independently of each other) came true.

I have another blogspot entitled "Yeah, I win stuff" at the address http://iwinstuff.blogspot.com/ which will more than likely be the primary recap of this night. So I encourage you, all 2 of you who read this, to go there after the Grammy's (probably Wednesday-ish) to see what my experience was like. Only if you really want to though. Haha.