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Archive for the month “June, 2010”

22 Jun 2010
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Week #2 Cambridge – Christina’s Spice & Specialty Foods

This week I WAS a good wife! Last night I made gazpacho and it’s in the fridge ready to be had for dinner tonight. So, that leaves my evening free to explore!

It’s officially summer and it’s farmer’s market season among other things. So I was going to write about the Harvard Farmer’s Market today, except it sucked 😦 Hey, I didn’t say that everything I explore is going to work out. 12 tents with baked goods, honey, cheese and glass jewelry is not my idea of a farmer’s market. And I walked half hour for this! So you can imagine how disappointed I was. Apparently I forgot that we’re in New England, where fresh produce isn’t ready until July/Aug.
market

So as I was going back home (I took the bus this time), I spotted one of my favorite stores in Cambridge and requested to be dropped off at Inman Square.
Christina's

If you love to cook with spices, you are going to be in heaven! I have never ever seen a collection of that many spices in a single place. I pride myself on knowledge of spices but I felt quite ignorant when I entered here. There were some of the things I had never even heard of!
spices

And if you’re ever in need of Tabasco, well is this the place for you or what! Lifetime supply!
tabasco

Not only can you find spices here, there are a variety of grains and seeds also. Eating healthy just got even more fun!
wheatflakes

All the ingredients for a yummy granola are right here. Check out the variety of dried fruit.
dried fruit

For the bakers, they also have excellent quality cocoa and chocolate. And if you fancy making your own beer, they even have Hops!

The prices here aren’t cheap but if for the price of the spice you can make a gourmet meal at home and save yourself hours of work making your own spices, it’s worth it. Christina’s spice is also one of the locally owned independent businesses and I like to support them.

As for me, I got what I came here for. Berbere spice to make Ethiopian lentil stew. And as I type this, the lovely aroma of the lentils fills my little apartment. I did good!

Christina’s Spice
1255 Cambridge St
Cambridge, MA 02139
(617) 576-2090

P.S. In the mood for some homemade ice cream? It’s right next door.
icrecream

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16 Jun 2010

Food or Art?

Emily and I went out for dinner last night and this post is to certify that I have officially become one of those annoying people who walk around taking photos of each and everything they find interesting. Yes, I have become a tourist in my own TOWN!

The photo in question?

Sweet Potato Fries or Sweet Potato Jenga

We ordered some sweet potato fries and this is what arrived on our table. Now, c’mon this is too pretty to eat. But wait, Emily pointed out, not only is this a treat for the eyes, it serves a very important function. It allows the air to circulate and keeps the fries crispy. Yep, every single one of them. Oh yeah, I am a Foodie and proud of it.

Dying to know the name of the restaurant? It’s Cast Iron Kitchen in Maynard, MA.  It’s a hidden gem! They had 4 vegetarian choices which made me very very happy! Or was it the wine. Oh well… we’ll never know.

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13 Jun 2010

Week #1 – Cambridge – Poor Little Rich Girl

Vintage inspired consignment clothing and accessories

Sunday afternoon. Gagan is at MIT with his study group slogging away. A good wife would take this time to clean the apartment, and have dinner cooking on the stove and welcome him with a smile on her face with a glass of water at the door.

You have got to be kidding! No offense to the “good wife” but I’d rather be out exploring this lovely city while I’ve got the chance. But, before I left, I did stock the fridge with some frozen veggies and milk. There is always cereal too you know 🙂 Don’t get me wrong, I do love to cook but right now I don’t even have a can opener in the house! I need my gadgets. So I suppressed the guilt, donned my wind breaker and after 3 flight of stairs down, was on my way to Francesca’s at the Cambridge Side Galleria when I spotted this cool store and I decided this is going to be my first entry.

Cambridge boasts more than 250+ local businesses and PLRG is one of them. I am not much of a thrift store shopper but this store was CUTE! Definitely vintage inspired, you could tell a lot of love went into arranging the items, which is not an easy job. The shoes were my favorite spot. I even tried on a few. And because I am on the lookout for cute flats these days, I fell in love with a pair of maroon Earth shoes. But I have enough shoes. So I resisted 🙂

Even though I wasn’t interested in the clothes, I did look at them. They were awfully cute! I am a little uncomfortable buying used clothes and shoes but today for the first time I did feel like buying them. It’s all in the presentation. They all looked very clean and neatly arranged and the staff was super helpful. It’s obvious they take pride in their business and I would be proud to take a friend in there.

However, if you are a serious thrift shopper, the prices are a bit on the higher side. Most of the skirts and pants I li

ked were around $30. They had a good selection of skirts and dresses were really cute. I am pretty sure I’ll go back in there to explore a bit more. I think there were some new items in there but I was sort of in a hurry so I didn’t ask.

If you are in the area, and like vintage inspired clothes and accessories, this is a store worth checking out!

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11 Jun 2010
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Trying it out

Okay, so I have moved my blog to my own server. And it works! I know, I am easily amused these days 🙂  You know the craziest of things? Installing it took like 15 minutes but trying to figure out what to call this blog was another matter. I gave up after spending more than an hour on it. I am not feeling too creative today I guess.

Blogging is hard! So this will be the new home for my thoughts and travel experiences.

Still not sure about this theme, but that’s the point, I am trying new things and it’s kinda fun 🙂

document.getElementById(“url”).style.display=”none”

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08 Jun 2010
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Another home, another city, a lot to explore

I am sitting here facing a beautiful bay window on the 4th floor of a cute little apartment in Cambridge and writing as the cool breeze gently blows a few wisps of hair away from my face. What am I doing here? Let me backtrack…

Ok so where have I been the last month? Well after my first week in India I decided to really take it easy and not worry about anything but spending time with family and be with myself. I needed that! And I guess I am glad I took the time to do it because my life right now is crazyyyyy. But in a good way. Let me explain.

While I was in India, we got some good news. Gagan got accepted into M.I.T.’s sloan program. For those not familiar with the sloan’s program, It’s a one year full time MBA program for individuals with 10+ industry experience. Earlier this year he had applied for it so when he got accepted it was really cool! Now since commuting from the suburbs to Cambridge every day is not an option for him, we have rented a small apartment in Cambridge which is where he will be for the next year. And me? Well, I am going to go back and forth between Acton and Cambridge, although from spending just a few days here in Cambridge, I have a feeling that it’ll be more of a home for me over the next year. Atleast in the summer when its so gorgeous here!

And while Gagan gets busy with school, I’ve decided to make the most of my time here in the city. In the last few days I’ve walked more than I ever have in a whole month but I feel so good, so energized. And can I just say? When we walked to M.I.T. yesterday from our apartment, I felt my I.Q. going up already 🙂 It’s funny, I feel smart already.

So as I was walking to the apartment this afternoon carrying a heavy backpack containing my laptop, a few basic supplies, a grocery bag containing some fruit and veggies I picked up from the nearby grocery store, and a fruit tart, to celebrate the beginning of our wonderful year here in Cambridge, I felt nothing but happiness and contentment and the next thing I know, I am smiling… at random strangers 🙂 And it feels good.

But… first things first. I need some good flats and I need to charge my camera so I can share my experiences here with you. Here’s the challenge… 52 weeks. Each week I explore something new in the city. And I take you with me. Whether you like it or not. Are you with me?

Garment District! – Not so fast… It’s an old thrift store where you find clothing by the pound! I am almost afraid to go in here… but one of these days.

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