OK Cafe & The Chattahoochee River Trail

A dear friend, Monica B, took me to lunch at OK Cafe yesterday. Oh Southern cooking is the bomb! Here's my gigantic Country Steak. According to Monica, this steak is cooked Southern style --- so it's like Southern fried chicken but you have to swap chicken for juicy steak. This meal came with a free corn muffin (imagine our Kenny Rogers Roasters' muffin on steroids) and two sides. I chose Waldorf salad and black-eyed peas.

On the right side of the photo, you will see the killer southern pimento cheese spread served with crackers. My Filipino readers, it did not taste like Cheez Whiz pimento at all. At all!

While I was fighting the southern food coma, Monica asked me for any place in Atlanta that I'd like to visit. Now, I'm a simple, poor, girl, with simple dreams. So. Lakeside hike. Monica, the learned traveler, gracious host, and skilled tour guide, immediately knew where to go. Apparently, she frequently visits the Chattahoochee River Trail.

The nature park does not require visitors to pay entrance fees. They only ask for parking fees and dear Monica has some sort of annual membership card, so she did not need to pay.

I will not attempt to describe the beautiful place. Here are some photos from our very relaxed hike. I kept telling Monica that I will not mind doing office work in one of the viewing decks. Seriously, this is the best place to be one with everything and everyone else.

Why don't we have these views in Manila? :(

A Series Of Unfortunate Events

Naniniwala ba kayo sa mga pamahiin? Ayoko sana maniwala pero minsan parang totoo.

Noong Miyerkules, bumiyahe ako papuntang Atlanta. Business trip. Maaga ang flight ko kaya mga 4:30AM pa lang, palabas na ako ng bahay.

Kakaiba ang ingay ng maleta ko habang naglalakad ako sa corridor. Inisip ko na lang na siguro (mas) marami akong dala ngayon kumpara sa iba kong biyahe kaya mas maingay din ang tunog. Pagdating sa elevator, ayun nalaglag ang rubber lining ng isang gulong. Yun pala ang dahilan. So malas sighting #1.

Pagdating sa ground floor, naisip kong magyosi muna. Habang naglalakad papunta sa 7-11, nakasalubong ako ng itim na pusa. Dan dan dannnn... malas sighting #2.

Pagkakita ko ng black pussy, naisip ko talagang umuwi na lang at hindi na tumuloy sa biyahe. Kaso natakot ako sa karugtong na gastos 'nun para sa kumpanya. Baka katayin ako ng buhay at mamatay ako sa kahihiyan kaya tinuloy ko na lang din ang lakad. At saka walang multinational company na tatanggap sa dahilang... kasi po, mamalasin ako ayon sa mga signos. So ayun, tuloy ang biyahe.

Sa airport ay naisipan kong mag-kape habang naghihintay ng boarding time. Sa Bo's Coffee sa NAIA, ayaw gumana ng card ko. Little background... kapag business trip ay pinapagamit kami ng company credit card para mabilis magtuos ng gastos. Kaya nung hindi gumana ang PIN ko, kinarir ko talagang subukan nang subukan. Sa ikatlong subok, ayun gumana.

Pagkatapos ng transaksyon na ito, nag-comatose ang credit card. Hindi na gumana kaya napagamit ako ng personal card. At yan ang malas sighting #3. Paano kung wala akong dalang personal credit card? Baka nakulong ako sa Narita nung kumain ako ng pananghalian. Mas malas iyon, buti na lang ay mabait pa rin ang langit.

Nakahinga na ako nang maluwag nung nangyari itong malas sighting #3. Kasi diba, sabi comes in three's? Kaso hindi pa pala tapos.

Nangyari ang pinakamalungkot na kaganapan sa buong buhay ko na bumibiyahe para sa trabaho. Na-confine si TNLO sa ospital. Pneumonia.

Ito ako ngayon, lakas maka-OFW ng karanasan (mas marami pa silang pagdurusa, maliit na bagay ito sa kanila). Ang isip, puso, at kaluluwa ko ay kalahati lang ang nasa akin. Ang kalahati nasa Pilipinas. Pasalamat ako at mahusay na tatay si Sir_Ko, paano pa kaya yung mga OFW na tarantado ang asawa?

Yun lang naman ang gusto ko ikuwento ngayon. Bittersweet.

Sana gumaling na si TNLO. Sana hindi mahawa si Sir_Ko, si TLO, at ang mga Ate nila.

At sana malaos na ang malas.

I think of you.

Whenever I go somewhere pretty, I think of you.

Needless to say, I think of the children too. Our children. The beautiful creatures who copied your eyes and your comforting, magic, smile.

When I'm in an organized space that smells of citrus and expensive fabric softener, I think of our smelly room and many years-old clutter. I think of the used and unused clothes making love on the floor and in all the tiny corners of our little home.

When I am covered in intelligent ambient lights, I think of how there are tangled cobwebs in ours. And how the electric fans are broken, and the cabinet doors are falling apart.

I think of you. And I am comforted by the fact that none of these beautiful, fragrant, temporary, things are real.

I think of you and I am home. It does not always smell or look pretty, but I made a choice and I was chosen.

I think of you. And I am home.

Love them, really do

I loved so many things about my first US business trip but this evening has got to be one of the best.... spent some time with the "ladies" of the night at the hotel patio. They were asking for some change, I offered them soda, cigs and some aura reading... I just love them.

Dream Come True

(May17) For one of our evening team building activities, our boss took us to this place. We participated in some sort of Iron Chef competition (our teams split in two groups)... after my Cucumber Soup tasks, I made these garnishing pieces...Our team won, but that didn't matter. I had so much fun.

Our class facilitator, Ms. Gloria Smiley, asked if I've been in any
classes before because she loved the things I made...
I just said I love cooking and that I do it  everyday.  Teehee!

Yummylicious: Broadway Diner

(Sunday, 05/13/12) Brunch at Broadway Diner. This first meal, outside of the hotel, confirmed the following for this "virgin" visitor:

1. America = huge food servings
2. It's way better to be a customer outside of your own country (well, maybe we just got lucky)
3. American dollars go a loooong way when it comes to food... examine prices below... what will these amounts get us in pesos?

Bar... got overwhelmed with gastro-visio-economic bliss, I forgot

to take photos of the actual dining area.

But I made sure I got this... Her Royal Highness joined us for brunch.

Buffalo Wings (USD 8.99)

Porkchop (bigger than my phone) with customizable add-ons: two eggs,

toast and hash browns (USD 11.99)

Hamsteak, same add-ons (USD 9.99)

Jam all you want!

Publishing without V's permission (yet) to establish the "hugeness"

factor...

Did you collect the "coke" glasses from McDonald's? 

Theirs are bigger than my head. Would love to have this at home...

All the good stuff, great customer service and as we Filipinos say --- 

"bottomless" coffee and orange juice, for only USD 38.61

Yummylicious: 683 Midtown Bar and Bistro

(Saturday, 05/12/12) First dinner at Hotel Indigo, Atlanta Midtown, from 683 Midtown Bar & Bistro.

Thank you Hotel Indigo, thank you IHG! Yum!

Indigo inside out burger

From the menu: 6oz Angus burger stuffed with bacon & cheddar cheese

topped with savory bbq sauce, provolone cheese & fresh greens (USD 13.00)

Grilled Salmon

From the menu: 6oz fillet rubbed with our house made herbed butter

served with roasted peruvian potato fingerlings and seasonal

vegetables (USD 16.00)