So, if I wanted to have two identities in the blogosphere, and use my same email and blogspot account, how do I keep them separate? It seems if I update about me in one, it adds it to the other. So does this mean the anonymity of one blog is obliterated if you'd like to have one full access blog?
Would love yer feedback, fellow bloggers!
Noelle Aguayo (perhaps!)
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Saturday, September 6, 2008
Villa LeDuk and Kaliandra
We spent our first week in Indonesia as the guests of Sietse and Li Tho (brother and now sister-n-law) at Li Tho's uncle's estate. Unlike all of the other estates I've frequented (ahem), Villa Leduk and the surrounding bungalows and lodges that comprise Kaliandra, deliver finery and culture Indonesian style.
At the main villa, this translates to two hosts who are highly accomplished and successful in business, culture and etiquette, yet who treat you with kindness and listen attentively to your conversations without outward scrutiny, a highly trained chef who prepares fresh, local and mainly organic meals and snacks approximately five times a day, and a dozen house servants dressed in white button down tops and colorful pants who walk barefoot across the marble floors to deliver your beverages or serve you multiple courses in one of the many dining areas or grand outdoor terraces. This is coupled with a sense of relaxation derived from the temperate climate, the casual elegance of the owners, and the genuine friendliness and openness of the Indonesian people, who, most importantly for us, absolutely love children. We stayed in the forest bungalows, or the Hastinapura complex, a 10 minutes walk uphill and into the forest.
As you climb lava stone steps and cross hand woven foot bridges surrounded by lush vegetation, you hear birds and other forest creatures. Ezra's 19 month old status, enabled us to have a bungalow to ourselves!
Afternoon tea with sweet rice or banana desserts on banana leaves were brought to us every afternoon in our bungalow, and a young man would come to our bungalow every morning to inform us breakfast was ready on the upper pavilion restaurant. I haven't even begun to explain the decadence.
The life of luxury we maintained for a week as guests of Sietse and Li Tho at Villa Leduk (see 8/23/08 post for more photos) might have led us to feel inconsiderate and self serving in light of the extreme poverty just an hour's drive from this isolated paradise. But, we were able to avoid most of these feelings due to two things: The philanthropic endeavors of our hosts, Atmadja and Bagoes, and their prized non-profit, Kaliandra.
Kaliandra deserves an entry all its own, so I will just say that it marries two ideas that should co-exist in every society--environmental education and stewardship paired with cultural education and preservation. In other words, At and Bagoes ROCK! They give back to the community through this non-profit, provide many learning opportunities to local villagers, and a whole lot more. To learn about Kaliandra, visit the following link.
http://kaliandrasejati.org/index.htm
good night!
At the main villa, this translates to two hosts who are highly accomplished and successful in business, culture and etiquette, yet who treat you with kindness and listen attentively to your conversations without outward scrutiny, a highly trained chef who prepares fresh, local and mainly organic meals and snacks approximately five times a day, and a dozen house servants dressed in white button down tops and colorful pants who walk barefoot across the marble floors to deliver your beverages or serve you multiple courses in one of the many dining areas or grand outdoor terraces. This is coupled with a sense of relaxation derived from the temperate climate, the casual elegance of the owners, and the genuine friendliness and openness of the Indonesian people, who, most importantly for us, absolutely love children. We stayed in the forest bungalows, or the Hastinapura complex, a 10 minutes walk uphill and into the forest.
As you climb lava stone steps and cross hand woven foot bridges surrounded by lush vegetation, you hear birds and other forest creatures. Ezra's 19 month old status, enabled us to have a bungalow to ourselves!
Afternoon tea with sweet rice or banana desserts on banana leaves were brought to us every afternoon in our bungalow, and a young man would come to our bungalow every morning to inform us breakfast was ready on the upper pavilion restaurant. I haven't even begun to explain the decadence.
The life of luxury we maintained for a week as guests of Sietse and Li Tho at Villa Leduk (see 8/23/08 post for more photos) might have led us to feel inconsiderate and self serving in light of the extreme poverty just an hour's drive from this isolated paradise. But, we were able to avoid most of these feelings due to two things: The philanthropic endeavors of our hosts, Atmadja and Bagoes, and their prized non-profit, Kaliandra.
Kaliandra deserves an entry all its own, so I will just say that it marries two ideas that should co-exist in every society--environmental education and stewardship paired with cultural education and preservation. In other words, At and Bagoes ROCK! They give back to the community through this non-profit, provide many learning opportunities to local villagers, and a whole lot more. To learn about Kaliandra, visit the following link.
http://kaliandrasejati.org/index.htm
good night!
A shot of construction in Hong Kong
Although Hong Kong only represented a few days of our trip, I have to share this one picture. I'll have to check my memory against that of Arie Jan's, but I believe I took this from a foot bridge, rather than from the window of the high speed tram. This picture of major construction in the midst of high rises somehow encapsulates a part of my expectations of Hong Kong as a rapidly expanding economy. We were afloat in people, yet it was not as crowded as I had imagined.
More on Indonesia to follow
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Forgoing the Wheat, Dairy and Sugar
A few months ago, I went to Soho to see a local act, and while listening to Mike Dawson, the warm up act sing about an x-girlfriend who was a Milpas Street hooker, I chatted with my friend and local rocker Antara. A friend of Antara's came to the table who looked vaguely familiar. She was slight, fit, with a fabulous hair cut and well dressed. Well, ends up I DID know her--she had just changed everything about her outer look, which translated into a more confident, striking woman.
The last time I saw her, she was a pudgy, round cheeked chef, with pale skin and a air of weariness about her. Now she was thin, energetic even. Without wanting to sound inconsiderate, I tried to find out what had happened. She went on a diet. A diet, I asked? Which one?
After being diagnosed with candida (I believe), she read up on it, and found a book called "The Yeast Syndrome." The book explains how yeast can wreak absolute havoc on our bodies--on both men and women, and can be associated with skin problems, weight problems, low energy levels, etc. She put herself on the diet and several months later emerged as a leaner, and subsequently happier version of herself. My big question though, is, can you trust a thin chef? Yes!
Thank you oh chef for sharing your story with me! You look fabulous.
For the last two weeks, I've been trying the no wheat, no dairy and no sugar diet, and it is very very challenging. You can't eat fruit! And sugar is in everything it seems. Bread is a staple in so many meals, and dairy is the other half. So what do I eat?
Lots of vegetables, soy products, tempeh, rice, polenta, corn, beans and lots of veggie juice and water. Meat is fine in the diet, as is plain yogurt. But I'm not much of a meat eater. Besides an occasional slip of my spoon into Ezra's applesauce, so far so good!
Results? Almost down to my high school weight (a good thing) and more energetic and focused.
The last time I saw her, she was a pudgy, round cheeked chef, with pale skin and a air of weariness about her. Now she was thin, energetic even. Without wanting to sound inconsiderate, I tried to find out what had happened. She went on a diet. A diet, I asked? Which one?
After being diagnosed with candida (I believe), she read up on it, and found a book called "The Yeast Syndrome." The book explains how yeast can wreak absolute havoc on our bodies--on both men and women, and can be associated with skin problems, weight problems, low energy levels, etc. She put herself on the diet and several months later emerged as a leaner, and subsequently happier version of herself. My big question though, is, can you trust a thin chef? Yes!
Thank you oh chef for sharing your story with me! You look fabulous.
For the last two weeks, I've been trying the no wheat, no dairy and no sugar diet, and it is very very challenging. You can't eat fruit! And sugar is in everything it seems. Bread is a staple in so many meals, and dairy is the other half. So what do I eat?
Lots of vegetables, soy products, tempeh, rice, polenta, corn, beans and lots of veggie juice and water. Meat is fine in the diet, as is plain yogurt. But I'm not much of a meat eater. Besides an occasional slip of my spoon into Ezra's applesauce, so far so good!
Results? Almost down to my high school weight (a good thing) and more energetic and focused.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Two Diseases I wouldn't mind eliminating
Okay. I'm sure you're saying--wouldn't you want to eliminate ALL diseases? And I'd have to just sit and think about the current world population and what it would be like without any disease--if we could all live our lives as long as humanly possible, save natural disaster, accident or death by the hands of a human. So, I just think about that and I'm glad I'm not God or the universe or your omnipotent force of choice to make such decisions.
But, back to the two diseases I'd love to see eliminated as of this moment--Diabetes and Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. According to an artiles by Karen Kaplan in today's edition of the LA times, researches have genetically transformed cells, that previously functioned to create gut enzymes to digest food, to create insulin. Awesome! This was of course an exepriment with rodents, but I love our intelligence (I think it's intelligence) to figure out the inner workings of a cell and solve problems. The same technique could be used to generate motor neurons for ALS patients, and healthy cardiac muscle cells for heart disease, etc. Pretty cool. Let's see where it goes!
Okay, off to the grind.
Noelle Aguayo
But, back to the two diseases I'd love to see eliminated as of this moment--Diabetes and Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. According to an artiles by Karen Kaplan in today's edition of the LA times, researches have genetically transformed cells, that previously functioned to create gut enzymes to digest food, to create insulin. Awesome! This was of course an exepriment with rodents, but I love our intelligence (I think it's intelligence) to figure out the inner workings of a cell and solve problems. The same technique could be used to generate motor neurons for ALS patients, and healthy cardiac muscle cells for heart disease, etc. Pretty cool. Let's see where it goes!
Okay, off to the grind.
Noelle Aguayo
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Villas, Shanty Towns and Rice Fields
Ezra, at 19 months, has seen more of the world than I had at 18 years. He has been to Holland, China and the islands of Java and Bali in Indonesia, as well as Santa Barbara, Solvang and Lompoc, California. What a traveler!
The three of us left for Indonesia on August 23rd in the wee hours of the morning. A 14 hour flight brought us to Hong Kong, where we endured a nine hour layover by taking the high-speed rail from the airport to Hong Kong island. We walked through a maze of second story sky bridges around the island, visited Hong Kong park, and found an excellent restaurant off the touristy Times Square on our own. Another 4 and a half hour flight brought us to Surabaya, Java in the evening where we met up with Sietse, Arie Jan's brother and his fiance Li Tho--their wedding being the impetus for our journey to a third world country.
As I type 3rd world country, I have to say the wedding held on a private estate reflected nothing of the poverty and chaos we witnessed in other areas. The wedding was held at a beautiful and exotic Italian Villa called Villa Leduk in Java--a mountainous rural area a few hours from the bustle of Surabaya.
For once I can write palatial and truly know the meaning of the word. Villa Leduk is modeled after Palladio's villas in Vicenzia (sp?) Italy. It has three wings. The main entry leads to a central hall with a large chandelier suspended in its dome. This entry corridor acts as an axis for the main wing, with a grand parlor to the left (as you face the home) with two grand pianos, a fireplace and three clusters of sitting areas in which to gather for tea, listen to performances, etc. Tapestries and artwork, some original and some replicas, spanning many centuries surround you.It is regal in every sense, and yet the gracious hosts and owners, Atmadja Tjip To Biantoro and Bagoes, exude casual elegance, that enables you to relax and sink into the beautiful chairs and couches with acceptance.
The right wing is an elegant dining room which can easily seat 80. Here is a picture of just the main wing from the back of the villa gardens.
Ezra is awake. To be continued . . .
Barack Obama Speaks my Language
I'm up early and the toddler and man are still asleep so I walked down the driveway, retrieved the LA times (what's left of it with all the layoffs!) and read that Barack selected Joe Biden as his running mate. I didn't do a "yippee" or a "darn" as I don't know enough about the man, but I was excited to read it first.
When I say "read it first", you are probably feeling sorry for me, as the whole world probably knows by now. What I mean is that no one else TOLD me. I know this is old news to most, but I am in this sphere where we don't have TV, I don't check my emails at work (I did sign up to be the "first to know" on Barack's mailing list), and I only go online to read the news when I get home--and last night we had double social events, which means I went straight to bed when we finally arrived home.So this morning, I was the one who "discovered" the news. But then the news started spinning.
As I concluded the front page article, I flipped to page A14, where a parallel article on Obama entitled "Political stagecraft is a high-wire act" spinned in a different direction: speculation and criticism of Obama's whole approach as "theatrical" and risky. The reporter criticized Obama's approach of keeping his 2nd a mystery. I personally loved it.
Obama's campaign strategy takes ordinary, predictable political events that are traditionally dreary, business as usual steps in a campaign and transforms them, infuses them with excitement and peaks the interest of the public. Okay, that may be theatrical, but I've got to say, it works! Obama is speaking my language when he pulls me in, tactics or not! Why the hell should it all be mundane? We're sick of that! If anything, he is staying true to his promise of "change" on every level, including how he strategizes in his campaign.
I think Obama is pulling upon his years as a law professor, where he actively engaged his students so their minds were receptive and open. I never took a class from him, but if he was a talented professor, then he must have engaged his students to teach a topic as old as our country--constitutional law. In his book "The Audacity of Hope" he does speak about making the class relevant and stimulating. Thank GOD he's using these tactics in his campaign.
WE ALL KNOW Obama is campaigning for president. We ALL KNOW that means strategizing to engage people, get their attention, get them involved. If he is a master of media attention grabbing, then that's a GOOD sign, as long as it's being used in a way that is good for the country--and so far, he is a stunning success.
When I say "read it first", you are probably feeling sorry for me, as the whole world probably knows by now. What I mean is that no one else TOLD me. I know this is old news to most, but I am in this sphere where we don't have TV, I don't check my emails at work (I did sign up to be the "first to know" on Barack's mailing list), and I only go online to read the news when I get home--and last night we had double social events, which means I went straight to bed when we finally arrived home.So this morning, I was the one who "discovered" the news. But then the news started spinning.
As I concluded the front page article, I flipped to page A14, where a parallel article on Obama entitled "Political stagecraft is a high-wire act" spinned in a different direction: speculation and criticism of Obama's whole approach as "theatrical" and risky. The reporter criticized Obama's approach of keeping his 2nd a mystery. I personally loved it.
Obama's campaign strategy takes ordinary, predictable political events that are traditionally dreary, business as usual steps in a campaign and transforms them, infuses them with excitement and peaks the interest of the public. Okay, that may be theatrical, but I've got to say, it works! Obama is speaking my language when he pulls me in, tactics or not! Why the hell should it all be mundane? We're sick of that! If anything, he is staying true to his promise of "change" on every level, including how he strategizes in his campaign.
I think Obama is pulling upon his years as a law professor, where he actively engaged his students so their minds were receptive and open. I never took a class from him, but if he was a talented professor, then he must have engaged his students to teach a topic as old as our country--constitutional law. In his book "The Audacity of Hope" he does speak about making the class relevant and stimulating. Thank GOD he's using these tactics in his campaign.
WE ALL KNOW Obama is campaigning for president. We ALL KNOW that means strategizing to engage people, get their attention, get them involved. If he is a master of media attention grabbing, then that's a GOOD sign, as long as it's being used in a way that is good for the country--and so far, he is a stunning success.
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