A Night at the Opera

I've been a little lazy with the blog recently, but now these posts are coming fast and furious because I just realized that this is my only diary, and without this blog, I can't remember what happened last month. It's so nice to scroll back and see what we were doing months, and years back...(and see the kids grow...I'm getting a little emotional here).

I believe in exposing my children to high culture and arts from early on. It has been a little painful at times, but last spring, I finally was vindicated when my oldest daughter totally loved the opera "La Boheme". We had such a wonderful night at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City (with my lovely cousin Maija (ikävä!)). Somewhere on this blog there is a post on that night!

A couple of weeks ago we went to see another tragic opera, Romeo and Juliet. I love going to the opera, and not only because of the music and performance that transports you to a different world, and feelings, but the environment and atmosphere at the Metropolitan Opera. I especially love the iconic starburst chandeliers that look so beautiful from every angle. Romeo and Juliet was really good, and not least because there seemed to be some real sparks between the Italian opera singer Vittorio Grigolo, and the german soprano Diana Damrau. It was a cold winter's night with snow and sleet and icy rain, but that did not dim the magic of the Metropolitan Opera. #lovedit

Red Rooster

Last weekend we went to the Red Rooster restaurant in Harlem with a few friends. It is celebrity chef Marcus Samuelsson's place and I had wanted to try it for a while. We had a great time but unfortunately hardly any pictures to show for it.. The menu is quite eclectic, and the appetizers were the best fare. The gravlax was delicious, as were the spicy chicken wings. I had Swedish meatballs, which were ok (a bit too salty for my taste). Hubby shared a pile of dinosaur bones, i.e., ribs, with another gent, and they seemed very happy with the amount of meat they were served, although it was quite the overload. And as a fun surprise, there is a little club downstairs, perfect to burn a few calories dancing after dinner...and no, we did not stay until 4 a.m... next day was jam packed with yoga, softball, etc, etc...

Gansevoort Market Lunch

Yesterday was a Finnish School day, and afterwards we hung out in the Meatpacking District, had a late lunch at the Gansevoort Market, then had a little stroll and went over to the Chelsea Market.

I hadn't been to the Gansevoort Market before, didn't even know it existed, so it was a VERY NICE surprise to find it. We were actually going to eat at Sugar Factory, but the wait was two hours for a table...and it's not worth that long of a wait... 

But like I said, Gansevoort Market was great. A little bit like "Kauppahalli" gone hipster. 

There's a ton of food stalls - something for every taste and craving. 

I had tacos from the Tacombi truck. 

The tacos were yummy. 

This one wanted sushi! 

My other little one wanted pizza. And my other lovely lunch companions had Thai food and a pulled pork sandwich. 

I almost had some food envy on this pulled pork sandwich. 

It was amazingly delicious. 

For dessert the kiddies had gelato. 

The new Whitney Museum is the next corner - I need to go back and visit Whitney. Might as well pop back into Gansevoort Market too :-)