Culture Espresso

It felt good that I didn’t have to see ‘something’ in the city. Wandering was enough this time, and sitting at Culture Espresso was more than enough. I started liking the city.

IMG_8767Culture Espresso was located at the corner of 72 West 38th St.
Manhattan with a line of people who wanted to get an afternoon coffee. And I become excited to enjoy a time of doing nothing with a fine latte.

IMG_8735The inside was simple and clean and smaller than I anticipated (I should be thankful to find a nice cafe like this with seats in this expensive city, though).

IMG_8744Many people came and went with their choice of coffee, many of which were espressos, while some enjoyed their afternoon hours in the cafe.

IMG_8748Fortunately, I took a seat without a wait. The iced latte was strong and soft. Good enough to fill my leisure afternoon with a sense of self-satisfaction.

IMG_8765In Manhattan, I often see people who write on a notebook (not a computer) like a writer’s old notebook. Then I am always curious what they dream about. Of course, a lot of Apple notebook users are seen.

IMG_8762I know I won’t be a dweller in the city but at least will be a daily traveler to it. I must be getting used happily to share a table with strangers.

Halcyon

Driving up and down the downtown Austin, this cafe caught my eyes. It felt very relaxed and free to the eyes of a passerby. Coffee, Bar, and Lounge. An interesting combination.

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For coffee.

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For drink and smoke.

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For a couple for a sweet and fun mood.

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The place reminded me of an exotic bar seen in a movie. Located at 218 W 4th Street, Austin, TX. It didn’t create an atmosphere for studying or reading, but was quite nice to hang with friends.

Bayou City Art Festival (Houston) 2013

On a very spring afternoon, Memorial Park was visited by many art lovers including wanderers like us who enjoyed the perfect crispy weather. I noticed the annual art festival on the first spring I moved to Houston during a run at the park, and I would have missed the festival forever if I didn’t notice the sign (‘Art Festival Shuttle available…’) on I-10.

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It was very difficult to find a parking spot so we had to walk 30 minutes to the entrance. But it was more than worth the walk. I must confess I have no eye for art but I enjoyed the festival very much partly due to the spring weather and being outdoor.

Now I am reading “Sparks of Genius”, which I believe brillant and says every genius in any fields such as art, literature, mathematics, and science gets a spark that is preverbal and must be translated into a form – writing, painting, a mathematic formular, and such-that others would also understand. The spark is ‘felt’ by the genius during reading a book, taking an afternoon walk, and of course observing art pieces like those at the Houston Festival.

Walking through the art pieces was a great pleasure. Here are some for you.

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Mike’s Pastry

I was curious what people were carrying around, a simple white box wrapped around with white thread and with blue letters on it.

IMG_8143The long line in front of the shop looked it would take way too long to see what’s inside the box. I contemplated whether to join the line or not but gave it a try.

IMG_8078IMG_8108The inside was smaller than I thought and more of a chaos. The colorful decoration made me discouraged and doubt about its pastries. But there should be a reason for so many customers.

IMG_8087Whereas the outside line formed in an orderly fashion, the line disappeared as I stepped in. Several wrapper-cashiers called and helped whoever is next, and I wasn’t sure if a wrapper-cashier called me or if I cut in.

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That’s the box and thread, which was tempting (I had to have one in my hand!). A customer picked his/her choices and the wrapper-cashier placed them in a box and used the thread from the ceiling.

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I picked my choices without knowing exactly what they are. To be frank, I just wanted to see my patries being wrapped and feel it dangling at the tip of my fingers. :)

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It took about 30 ~ 40 minutes to complete a transaction from lining up.

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The inside of the box. Are you curious how good they were? The two from the right were okay for me. But the yellow thing (the name forgotten) was unforgettable. I should have bought three of it. It was very soft, juicy and perfectly sweet! If you are around, you should try it (300 Hanover St, Boston).

Some cupcakes.

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Crema Cafe

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At a corner of one of the worldly popular attractions for tourists, Harvard Square, Crema Cafe quietly stood with a humble exterior. In mid-March, Boston was still very COLD. We had to dig through a cold-weather clearance section of Macy and buy each of us a faux fur hat that could be worn by dog sellers from cold Manchuria (The waitress from a popular pho restaurant in downtown Boston asked if we are North Koreans. Haha). And my feeling towards the academic city was totally different.

IMG_7903Inside the cafe was cozy and warm and inside me still a bit uneasy due to the cafe being in the Harvard area (No offense or anything, but just my personal thing). It was a small narrow cafe so its upstairs was a cute idea.

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It was a short stop only for 10~15 minutes from a long walk in the cold weather. I’d have had more to write about the cute cafe if I were to stay longer to read or study. One thing I can’t fail to write about is its latte. The latte was pricy (close to $5) but the best ever I had. The milk was extremely soft with a rich aroma. Anyone around Harvard Square should try it!