Flâneur

From Wikipedia

There is no English equivalent for the French word flâneur. Cassell's dictionary defines flâneur as a stroller, saunterer, drifter but none of these terms seems quite accurate. There is no English equivalent for the term, just as there is no Anglo-Saxon counterpart of that essentially Gallic individual, the deliberately aimless pedestrian, unencumbered by any obligation or sense of urgency, who, being French and therefore frugal, wastes nothing, including his time which he spends with the leisurely discrimination of a gourmet, savoring the multiple flavors of his city. (Cornelia Otis Skinner Elegant Wits and Grand Horizontals, 1962, Houghton Mifflin, New York)

Puerto Rico Part II

On our last day, Mina and I went in to Old San Juan. The city sits on an island, at the tip of which is a fort from the 16th century:


This is looking back towards the city of old San Juan


The town of Old San Juan is very charming. Pastel colored houses line the cobblestone streets. It's all very picturesque and "Girls of Rochefort" if Old San Juan were in France, and Mina and I had matching pastel minidresses, and if Gene Kelly was tap dancing down the street to us. Nevermind, here are the pictures:

I decided this would be the building to buy if I had to live in Old San Juan.



And a little street art. This little boy and ghost were just a few feet away from each other. It's too bad they both look so forlorn. Next time the artists should put them closer together so they could be friends!

Puerto Rico Part I

Recently, Mina and I decided to escape the cold cold New York winter for a little vacay in sunny Puerto Rico! We took a little little plane from the main island to the island just off the eastern coast, Vieques.



This is the view from the Malècon - the boardwalk, basically - right outside our guesthouse.
How many pictures of the beach do you need?
Here's the panoramic:





There were horses everywhere

We even saw a couple of them getting it on. Ah, nature!

Sadly, I couldn't take pictures of the bioluminescent bay without getting my camera all wet.
On our last day, I took a ride on horseback around the island.





This is me and Estal. Just look at how happy I am, with my very own pony! According to this, a man kept a pony in his apartment in Sweden. Hmmm...


Pics of San Juan to come!

Midtown potluck feast

Cara had the gang over for a potluck dinner at her house last night. It felt opulent in a way, something about being seated around a proper dining table (with placemats and a tablecloth!) that fits so many people—very civilized!

A lot of the usual suspects were on hand:









Plus some fresh blood!

Cassidy & Eve

Chandra

Photo grab bag

Ai on the waterfront in Red Hook (that's Fairway in the background):


The most mutant tall bike contraption I've ever seen:


A very healthy birthday brunch. Alles gute, Julian!


Bich Thu's catatonic cat Sesame:


Foliage purchases on a recent trip to Home Depot:


A classy new bike for Bich Thu!