Monday, March 31, 2008

Go Fly a Kite

I had a rare day off. The community center where I work closed today to observe Cesar Chavez Day.

I stopped by a Vietnamese sandwich shop on Broadway where I bought their "special" sandwich on the menu. If you haven't had Vietnamese sandwich before, you're in for a real treat. They start out with a warmly toasted French roll. They fill it with your choice of chicken, turkey, or slices of pork. Then they top it off with julienne carrots, pickled cucumber and radish, and cilantro. Would you believe it that all the sandwiches are only 2 bucks each? Add another 2 bucks for a cold drink and you got yourself a meal. If you haven't had Vietnamese coffee, I can tell you that they are the best! Instead of adding cream, they use condensed milk, which is a thick syrup. They also use condensed milk in making a well-known Mexican cake called "Tres Leches", which translates to "three (kinds of) milk".



After eating my snack, I decided to take a walk in the newly developed state park in the industrial section of Chinatown. There I met Jerry who was flying his dragon kite on the grass field. He was spending the sunny afternoon relaxing at the park with his wife, children, and dog. He told me that one of his favorite places to fly a kite is at Redondo Beach where the wind is strong. Watching him having so much fun reminded me of when I was a kid. We neighborhood children used to have kite fights with each other. First, we would take glass bottles and break them until they turned into powered glass. Next, we would apply glue onto the string. Then we dipped the string onto the powdered glass. The fun begins when we fly our kites in the air and try to cut the other person's string until one of our kites falls to the ground.




Jerry introduced me to this son, Juan, who is attending a magnet school. According to him, his school is teaching him how to speak Chinese.


Flowers blooming at the park.




For some reason, there were huge, empty wooden boxes around the bend of the trail. My best guess is that they had once contained seeds that had since been planted. You can see the downtown Los Angeles skyline in the backdrop.


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Sunday, March 30, 2008

Chi' town

Images from Chinatown this morning...

Red alarm bell. Man holder child in background.


The newspaper man opens shop.




A hot bowl of fish porridge and Chinese donuts hits the spot.


Front entrance of newly constructed apartment in Chinatown.








Sincere.

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Sunday, March 23, 2008

Easter Sunday



I took my camera out on Easter Sunday. Here are a few images I captured.


Various buckles are on display for sale at a stall inside Grand Central Market.















Freshly cut watermelons remind us that summer is just around the corner.









RCA dog wishes hottie would take him home.















Homeless man shines the shoes of a police officer guarding a film set.

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