A three-day long weekend with very cold temperatures outside with snow on the hills at a 1,000 feet. Made for an interesting picture with palm trees against a snow laden backdrop. That also meant a couple of indoor activities that are my favorite.
No brainer action movies with loud explosions and some taste bud titillating food every couple hours. So with that in mind we started the evening festivity with the latest installment of the superhero girl from Sweden. Originally imagined by now dead author Stieg Larsson the famous trilogy was continued in the form of other titles from another author. Directed by an Uruguayan director this fourth installment is at times cliched but nonetheless mind bending stunt machine till the end.
Starring a British actor called Claire Foy who by virtue of her goth like lifestyle does not say much but just hacks and attacks, is a force in the film. The movie was accompanied by some warm Indian Samosa (flaky stuffed savory pastry) and a French Sauterne to go with. Great combination if you haven't tried it.
Later the next morning we prepared a street snack from India made of boiled eggs, garam masala (a proprietary mix of spices) and cilantro and tomato all mashed together in a skillet with warm croissants and Indian masala chai (a black tea in milk preparation).
This was immediately followed by a Walnut enriched Neapolitan pastry as a sweet tooth beckoned. The pastry was sourced at a local Asian owned grocery chain but is oddly similar to the southern Italian delicacy to which it refers to. Thin sheets of filo dough separated by caramel and cream along with crunch from walnut chunks in between. Perfect.
The next afternoon was spent indulging in a well crafted roll named the Crunchy Rainbow at a Japanese restaurant in the area. As the name suggests it was a cornucopia of flavors and colors and boasted a multitude of fish slices and roe.
We ended the meal with a visit to the Taiwanese owned bakery chain now popular in the western US called 85 degrees. Apparently the founder believed that to be the best temperature in degrees celcius to serve coffee. Amazing pastries and the salt infused coffee are their signature items. We tried the name sake coffee for the first time and had mixed reviews. I had the hot version which could have used some sweetening but the kid enjoyed the cold version with salted creamy milk.
Then back to Redbox - the ATM like movie disc dispensers scattered in the burbs for another action flick, this time with an odd cast of Liam Neeson and Viola Davis and smattering of other actors shooting at each other because the underbelly of Chicago is a dirty place to be.
We wrapped up with a Chile Relleno at a local Mexican place this evening where the poblano made it work. So physical activity was limited to entering and exiting places that served food or movies with a small detour to see a local waterfall with all the rain that came down in between our wanderings.
No brainer action movies with loud explosions and some taste bud titillating food every couple hours. So with that in mind we started the evening festivity with the latest installment of the superhero girl from Sweden. Originally imagined by now dead author Stieg Larsson the famous trilogy was continued in the form of other titles from another author. Directed by an Uruguayan director this fourth installment is at times cliched but nonetheless mind bending stunt machine till the end.
Starring a British actor called Claire Foy who by virtue of her goth like lifestyle does not say much but just hacks and attacks, is a force in the film. The movie was accompanied by some warm Indian Samosa (flaky stuffed savory pastry) and a French Sauterne to go with. Great combination if you haven't tried it.
Later the next morning we prepared a street snack from India made of boiled eggs, garam masala (a proprietary mix of spices) and cilantro and tomato all mashed together in a skillet with warm croissants and Indian masala chai (a black tea in milk preparation).
This was immediately followed by a Walnut enriched Neapolitan pastry as a sweet tooth beckoned. The pastry was sourced at a local Asian owned grocery chain but is oddly similar to the southern Italian delicacy to which it refers to. Thin sheets of filo dough separated by caramel and cream along with crunch from walnut chunks in between. Perfect.
The next afternoon was spent indulging in a well crafted roll named the Crunchy Rainbow at a Japanese restaurant in the area. As the name suggests it was a cornucopia of flavors and colors and boasted a multitude of fish slices and roe.
We ended the meal with a visit to the Taiwanese owned bakery chain now popular in the western US called 85 degrees. Apparently the founder believed that to be the best temperature in degrees celcius to serve coffee. Amazing pastries and the salt infused coffee are their signature items. We tried the name sake coffee for the first time and had mixed reviews. I had the hot version which could have used some sweetening but the kid enjoyed the cold version with salted creamy milk.
Then back to Redbox - the ATM like movie disc dispensers scattered in the burbs for another action flick, this time with an odd cast of Liam Neeson and Viola Davis and smattering of other actors shooting at each other because the underbelly of Chicago is a dirty place to be.
We wrapped up with a Chile Relleno at a local Mexican place this evening where the poblano made it work. So physical activity was limited to entering and exiting places that served food or movies with a small detour to see a local waterfall with all the rain that came down in between our wanderings.
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