Sunday, February 28, 2010

Trip up to Killington

Last weekend I went with my cluster (cluster E) to Killington, Vermont, for a weekend of skiing.
For those of you who remember, we also went there last year, and it was a memorable weekend.

This time, although the expectations were high, we also had a blast.
Nothing better than 30 people in a chalet for a weekend, eating, drinking, singing, hot tubbing, and of course skiing.
I don't have pictures from the weekend (forgot my camera), so this event will have no image memories.

On the way up to Killington (its a 5 hour drive from NY) I went with Jeff, Gal, Ross and Susan. Jeff did all the driving up to Killington. The last time we planned to stop, we used the restroom of the gas station, bought some snacks and Jeff filled up the tank. However, when returning from the shop, Jeff had the car keys in his jacket and put the jacket in the trunk, while the car was still locked, and closed the trunk.
Yes, it sounds ridiculous, but we got locked out of the car!! For one hour.

It took one hour to get assistance from AAA and get us inside the car again. And I have to say that the process of opening a locked car is not easy and requires a lot of skill. The funny thing was that the assistance was actually an old couple who managed to do the task quite well.

During the hour we were waiting, we were going in and out of the shop, and Ross, who was wearing a very think jacket, managed to knock a 6-pack of Smirnoff Ice and break the bottles. For those of you who have seen the episode, it was very much like when George Constanza bought his Gore-Tex jacket.

Before the old couple hired by AAA arrived, a passing driver tried to open the car with a wire coat hanger...it didn't work

Jeff also tried to help him (he's trying to widen the opening with a knife)


The saviors didn't arrive in a white horse, but in a black pick-up.

The old couple, with a lot of patience, saving our night

Sunday, February 14, 2010

Chinese New Year

Today is a new year for the Chinese and other Asian nations that follow the lunar calendar. For the Chinese the year of the Tiger just started, and it is believed to bring with it heroic and mythical powers.

Jeff and Steff invited some of us over yesterday to their place to celebrate New Year's eve and eat a lot of Chinese delicacies.
Tradition says that you should wear red (Jane obviously decided to ignore tradition)

The hosts (Jeff and Steph)



PA night out

After a successful week of Orientation in January, the PA group went out on Friday for a fun night out.

It started with a nice dinner at Sol y Sombra, a Mexican restaurant on Amsterdam Avenue and 82nd street.






Dinner was followed by karaoke in Korea Town.



Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Snowstorm

"A powerful snowstorm, the second to sweep across the Northeast in less than a week, arrived in the New York area on Wednesday morning, closing schools, courts and the United Nations and threatening to play havoc with the rhythms and routines of those who did not simply stay home."
NY Times

It was supposed to have come last Saturday, but it didn't reach Manhattan. However today it was for real. This was the view from my window this morning:




Times Square this morning:


Around noon the University announced that they would close for the rest of the afternoon due to the snowstorm. At 3pm some of us gathered outside for a snowfight:


My street at night:


Columbia University Campus at night:


Monday, February 8, 2010

Superbowl 2010

Last night was Superbowl night.
The Superbowl is the championship final game for American Football (NFL).

This year the finalists were the New Orleans Saints and the Indianapolis Colts, and the Saints ended up winning.

One of the most interesting things about the Superbowl is that every American gets together with friends (not matter if you support, or not, the teams that are playing) to watch the game. It is a really important American tradition.
Mike Krafft was kind enough to host us at his apartment for this year's game.
Here are some pictures.

Mike Krafft, the host

Brett doing a pose a la Mike Krafft

Everyone doing a pose a la Mike Krafft

The only serious football watchers in the house

Ross, what is that wet stuff on your pants?

The actual game on TV

Jeff and Susan decided to dress to match