New Orleans and Cozumel, Mexico

Fun times traveling with AB!

New Orleans:
It was fun getting to see old friends (DJ), and walk around the French Quarter. Walked around Royal Street with its art galleries, visited St. Louis Cathedral with its beautiful painted ceiling and reminisced about our times in St. Louis, and ate some delicious beignets at Cafe du Monde with Cafe au Lait to wash it down. Ended the day with some delicious chargrilled oysters and crawfish etouffee at Acme Oysters!

Cafe du Monde, post beignet and cafe au lait

St. Louis Cathedral

Acme chargrilled oysters...mmmmm

The next day we walked around the beautiful Garden District with its enormous houses on St. Charles and surrounding streets.  Saw famous author Ann Rice's home, where the first and last Confederate President lived, where Benjamin Button was filmed, learned about Victorian vs. Italian vs. Gothic architecture.   Then before getting on our cruise, ate some NOLA famous Muffaletta sandwiches at the Cochon Butcher.  Mmmm..nothing like fresh meat!

Where Benjamin Button was filmed; One of the many fancy St. Charles/Garden District houses

Cochon Butcher - watching pig decapitation and
eating delicious Muffuletta sandwiches (fresh pork, olive)!

Home of the one and only confederate president

Cruise was more fun than I expected!  A lot of entertainment, relaxation, and more food than I can imagine.  First night we thought we could only order one appetizer, one entree, and one dessert, and the next morning, was when we realized we could order unlimited amounts of food, so we went crazy with the appetizers.  One time, we accidentally ordered 4 entrees thinking half of them were appetizers.  Thankfully the waiter gave us an astonished look and asked us, "you do realize you ordered 4 entrees?"  That was kind of embarrassing.  Another night, I had asked to replaced the ice cream in one of my desserts with sugar-free ice cream, but the server mistakenly thought I asked for an additional order of ice cream - oh boy....

The dancing shows were really good too - it was so much at such a fast pace.  Really had new appreciation for these dancers after trying to learn the Thriller dance on the cruise. :D  Meanwhile, the adult comedy shows really were crass.  It was still pretty entertaining, but I think overall I liked the family friendly ones more.  One of the more entertaining game shows was probably the adult oriented scavenger hunt.  It was amusing to watch AB skip around holding another guy's hand...hahahaha....  I also really hope the bald guy I dragged into the show isn't too upset he got a whole bunch of kisses on his forehead by male and female strangers (long story).

We also went to an art auction, and half the time, we were guessing among ourselves what the the estimated price of the paintings were.  Learned a little about lithographs and gisees (spelling?), so we weren't too off for most of the paintings, but some we were off by 10x. O_o

Enjoying the view on the ship

Participating in a magic show!

Here's our ship! Arrived in Cozumel!

Here's our ship with pool, water slide, stage, and various other activities.
Favorites: mini golf and table tennis - although I still can't believe I lost to AB.  Sighs.

 Although we only had one day in Cozumel, it was jam packed with a lot of fun.  They had so many promotions of "excursions" we can go on, but thankfully we just went on our own to Chankanaab Park.  It was this beautiful beach with many water activities.  Although we didn't really take the time to relax - I'm bad at relaxing - we got to pet/kiss/hug dolphins and watch a sea lion show.  Even the massive downpour in the afternoon didn't bother us, we just went swimming and explored the underwater reefs and fish.

Chankanaab Park in Cozumel, Mexico

It's real!

Dancing with the dolphin

Beso!

Last day in New Orleans, we just spent the whole day in the National WWII Museum.  Didn't realize how big it was, and we ran out of time - didn't get to see the Pacific part of the museum.  But it was amazing, especially the new part where we heard individual stories about the war heroes. 

New Orleans Walking Tour

For one day on a budget:

http://www.neworleansonline.com/tools/itineraries/budgetitinerary.html

Mansions of St. Charles:

http://www.neworleansonline.com/tools/streets/saintcharles.html

Just one day Frommer's:

http://www.frommers.com/destinations/new-orleans/717276#sthash.HwLMbrAq.dpbs

New orleans day trip

http://www.neworleansonline.com/tools/itineraries/budgetitinerary.html

Ultimate chocolate chip cookie

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2014/09/04/345530660/the-science-behind-baking-your-ideal-chocolate-chip-cookie?sc=tw

Exerpt from website:

Ooey-gooey: Add 2 cups more flour.

A nice tan: Set the oven higher than 350 degrees Fahrenheit (maybe 360). Caramelization, which gives cookies their nice brown tops, occurs above 356 degrees, says the TEDEd video.

Crispy with a soft center: Use 1/4 teaspoon baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon baking soda.

Chewy: Substitute bread flour for all-purpose flour.

Just like store-bought: Trade the butter for shortening. Arias notes that this ups the texture but reduces some flavor; her suggestion is to use half butter and half shortening.

Thick (and less crispy): Freeze the batter for 30 to 60 minutes before baking. This solidifies the butter, which will spread less while baking.

Cakey: Use more baking soda because, according to Nyberg, it "releases carbon dioxide when heated, which makes cookies puff up."

Butterscotch flavored: Use 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar (instead of the same amount of combined granulated sugar and light brown sugar).

Uniformity: If looks count, add one ounce corn syrup and one ounce granulated sugar.

More flavor: Chilling the dough for at least 24 hours before baking deepens all the flavors, Arias found.

30 Things to Stop Doing to Yourself. #10 Is An Absolute Must.

Good reminder.  Including not to worry about everything "will it matter in one year?"
http://www.lifebuzz.com/just-stop/

Myers Briggs: INTJ

INTJ

Introvert(22%)  iNtuitive(25%)  Thinking(12%)  Judging(33%)
http://www.humanmetrics.com/hr/JTypesResult.aspx?EI=-22&SN=-25&TF=12&JP=33

Wikipedia:

"Hallmarks of the INTJ include independence of thought and a desire for efficiency. They work best when given autonomy and creative freedom. They harbor an innate desire to express themselves by conceptualizing their own intellectual designs. They have a talent for analyzing and formulating complex theories. INTJs are generally well-suited for occupations within academia, research, consulting, management, science, engineering, and law. They are often acutely aware of their own knowledge and abilities—as well as their limitations and what they don't know (a quality that tends to distinguish them from INTPs). INTJs thus develop a strong confidence in their ability and talents, making them natural leaders."


But then, when I took another test the next day, I got ENFJ....what??? I guess my percentages for I and T are pretty low, so I could probably waver either way.

Extroverted 3%, Intuitive 35%, Feeling 8 %, Judging 11%

Apparently I'm assertive 28%, which I totally don't agree with, because I don't feel assertive at all. Hm, maybe I passively aggressively am assertive?

"ENFJs are natural-born leaders, full of passion and charisma. Forming around two percent of the population, they are oftentimes our politicians, our coaches and our teachers, reaching out and inspiring others to achieve and to do good in the world. With a natural confidence that begets influence, ENFJs take a great deal of pride and joy in guiding others to work together to improve themselves and their community."

Overall, I agree with INTJ more, except for maybe the altruism, tolerant, reliable, belief that everyone is good-natured, being indecisive, and secretly vulnerable to criticism (the strengths and weaknesses of ENFJ).  I dont' feel like I'm a natural leader, but it does say they ENFJ doesn't seek to dominate or direct people but attract by charisma.  I don't think I'm particularly charismatic, but maybe I do get along with people easily - although not to the extent of the description of an ENFJ.  The "skilled imitator" strength of an ENFJ is very interesting, but I'm not sure if I fit that description.

http://www.16personalities.com/enfj-personality 

How I Met Your Mother

It's funny this is what I get: Robin Scherbatsky (I can't even spell her name)

34 Clever Things Parents Can Do

http://distractify.com/fun/parenting-hacks-to-make-life-with-kids-easier/

Clever indeed, thanks ML

Romans challenge

"If you preach, just preach God's Message, nothing else; if you help, just help, don't take over; if you teach, stick to your teaching; if you give encouraging guidance, be careful that you don't get bossy; if you're put in charge, don't manipulate; if you're called to give aid to people in distress, keep your eyes open and be quick to respond; if you work with the disadvantaged, don't let yourself get irritated with them or depressed by them. Keep a smile on your face. Love from the center of who you are; don't fake it. Run for dear life from evil; hold on for dear life to good. Be good friends who love deeply; practice playing second fiddle. Don't burn out; keep yourselves fueled and aflame. Be alert servants of the Master, cheerfully expectant. Don't quit in hard times; pray all the harder. Help needy Christians; be inventive in hospitality" (Romans 12:6-13, MSG).

Science of cookies

How awesome is this? Science and cookies combined! Shows how tweaking different ingredients changes the common chocolate chip cookie:
http://www.handletheheat.com/2013/07/the-ultimate-guide-to-chocolate-chip-cookies.html

PATB #5

Parents are the Best #5:

Dad's first email:
Guess what is 795 for your brother?

Me:

How many push ups he can do!

His SAT score! 

How many pizzas he ate in one day!

How many inches he jumped!

His credit score!

how many books he read in his life time!

Dad's reply:

Sounds like Jeopardy.  Actually #795 is Alex’s locker number in his middle school.  Today is his first day in middle school officially!  He needs to get up early, cook and take bus by himself.  Mom and I thought he will eat microwaveable food, surprisingly he made fried eggs this morning!

He had a tennis try-out today also.  He told us about his first day in the school and was very proud of himself for out-playing his teammate-to-be (you know his confidence face) and 120% sure that he will be no 1 in his team.

Love

Dad

Roger Fed the Man

Wow, a friend shared this - didn't realize how awesome Roger Federer is!

http://mashable.com/2013/08/01/roger-federer-fan-wish/

Thanks LC!

Funny Intern Moment #1

Funny intern moment #1 (from MNZ):

I'm checking up on a patient last night around 2am, and I find her sitting in her wheelchair in the dark.  We chat, and I ask her how she's doing.  Fine she replies.  Ok well are you sleeping ok?  Yes, I'm sleeping real good, doc.  Ok so then why are you sitting up in the middle of the night rather than lying in your bed?  Because I'm going to the bathroom doc.  I look down and realize her wheelchair is actually a commode.  Ooops, haha.  Good times.

Bruges food

Traditional beef stew in beer...yuuuuum

Yi

Tiwai Island

Tiwai means "Big Island," and it's the largest inland island in Sierra Leone.  It's a natural forest reserve, so it's meant for white people, so it's super expensive (relatively - $20/night).  There are these platforms with a roof where they set up tents for you with mattresses in side and there are solar lights at night with running water/bucket showers, so it's pretty cush camping.  

The island itself is surrounded by the Mao River. Here's a funny convo about it:

Guide: "Do you know what Mao means?"

Us: "No..."

Guide: "It means women"

Us: "Why?"

Guide: "Because it is dangerous"

Haha, anyways, the main activities include guided hikes in the forest to look at animals, canoeing/boating, and hanging out on the beach.  Since it's the dry season, the water was super low, and it was really nice to be able to swim from one bank to another or relax on the sand.  I think I have a hard time relaxing because while others were laying down, reading a book, or doing something that requires zero energy, I was jumping from rock to rock and swimming from bank to bank.  

The guided hike was pretty cool.  We saw red colobus monkeys, black and white colobus monkeys, diana monkeys, tracks of duikers and chimpanzees, saw hornbill birds who have the weirdes calls (like a low rumble) heard some kind of hog, and saw glimpses of chimpanzees.  The chimpanzee tracking was a lot of fun - we went off the trail deep into the forest and had to be super quite, although I'm pretty sure any chimp would have heard us from miles away.  It was pretty amazing to be standing there and hear them yell at each other.  It seemed like they were so close, but by the time we moved 100 ft closer, they've already gone 1 km away.  I'm not even sure if I saw any chimpanzees because they were so far away and I just saw some black blobs.  

They served us breakfast and dinner too, so it was a major relaxation trip. 

Dinner - Le15,000

Breakfast - Le10,000 (totally overpriced for what we got).  

Guided tour $4 (Le20,000/person)

Canoe Le10,000/person