Virgin of Guadalupe 14th st NYC

click here for the slideshow

Virgin of Guadalupe
people spent the night in the church crowded over capacity
it was so rainy and humid that was hard to keep the lens clear

wish i was less busy and had more time -
did it in a rush

ate 3 tamales and had chocolate with corn
been swamped had to run to something from something

pix from HAITI to JAMAICA queens

View Album

Get your own

photos from the last day

came thru immigration last night at JFK.

the officer asked me where i went i said santo domingo and haiti
he asked me what i was doing in haiti with some sort of absent bored
expression in his face.

i told him i went to photograph the situation there
he asked what is there to photograph.
"they have some problems down there" I replied -
"problems? what problems do they have in haiti?" he asked me.

---

the policeman i knew in Jacmel - he would come over to the stoop we
would all drink Clairin and Rum. Half a bottle for a US dollar.

He would tell me about Simon Bolivar and gen Pétion, the history of the
independence Latin America.

---
4500 photos - just imported 7 hours of video footage.
I need to edit organize.
I wish I had some solar panel to charge my Macbook.
if only Apple wasn't so greedy and would license the power adapter to
3rd parties - I wonder how I could plug my Macbook to a solar panel.

---

I felt respected in Haiti. No one tried to grab my money, no one tried
to put their hands in my pocket, no one tried to grab my camera.
they would ask me money to take their photo because they have this idea
that i would make a million dollars with that.

I told this woman that was selling food in the square that a million
dollar was her imagination. so she told me it was not a million dollar
US but a million of haitian dollars.

I asked if she really believed that.

everyone was OK - my french got more fluent and made it easier.

the kids that the hurricane rendered homeless started calling me monsié
stefan instead of "hey blanc!".

you walk the streets and the kids tell me "hey blanc!" and they are
happy when i look at them.

if i take a photo and i show it on the camera display they get really
happy. many probably dont see often photos of themselves.

----

many people like soccer - I am sure if i came with some AC Milan bootleg
jerseys many would be happy

---
At the hotel in santo domingo the guy at the reception was wearing a
Inter of Milan jersey.
I told him I like Milan AC.

the next day i found out he was from Jacmel himself and had been in the
Dom rep 10 years

---
I left jacmel at 4 am with the Tap Tap bus 150 Gourdes for me and 150
for my bag because it had to be on a seat. 7 dollars US total for 2.5
hours trip thru the steep mountain roads

I arrived in Port au Prince -
lot of slums
i got into a cab to the Petion-Ville section on the hill
I was early and I asked some kids to take to the market to buy a straw
hat and bag.

we ran because it was 15 min away - got a street coffee -
the marked looked like somewhere out of Africa.
but they had a lot of great craft for cheap -
a lot more stuff than in Jacmel.
wished I could stay longer

----

the border between Haiti and Santo Domingo is surreal.

a swampy lake flooded the road which is also filled with rocks.

they are digging and cutting the mountains to get rocks -
I saw that in Italy in Carrara where they cut the mountain to get marble.

---
going thru the dominican immigration and customs is a lot slower than
going thru the Haitian.

you have to get off go to a small building and go thru passport control
you then go back to the bus and get all your bags go back to the same
building for customs.
there are lines of people that overlap and cross and an old man tries to
manage them.

all the bags are opened and throughly searched.
when i reach the table the dominican female officer smiles at me and
just tell me to go -
i was the only white person on the bus and i was the only one not searched -
I was unshaven and had a dirty t short it did not matter.
the elegant upper class haitian-american mom and daughter befor e me had
all their bags searched

---

in santo domingo it felt strange to see store / restaurant chains -
electricity and so on -

i saw tourists
but when i was there 2 weeks earlier i was in a hotel by the bus station -
it was not much different than haiti.

in santo domingo the tourist part is really nice and clean - could be
miami or a fancy habana

after all it is the oldest continuously inhabited city in the americas.

but outside the that area the roads are crappy - there are latrines -
some beaches are filled with bottles.

people try to take money from you - they have less boundaries than in haiti.
they triple the prices if you are a foreigner.
I became friends with an italian that lives there and own a pharmacy
after a life managing/ owning night clubs in spain. he helped me a lot
with prices and finding me a nice cheap hotel.

the taxi driver tells me 800 pesos to the airport -
seems fair - when we are almost there he tells me mil-800 pesos 1800 pesos
i tell him he told me 800 i can give him 1000 because he waited for me 5
min.

he asks me 50 pesos for the toll
and i tell him the sign says 30 pesos

at the airport i then give him 900 pesos and he is fine with it.

in santo domingo there are all these armed guards with shotguns and M16s
in front of large stores and hotels everywhere.
in Jacmel I never seen anything like that.

some people asked me money for food
or the rasta guy at the beach that watched my bag while i went swimming
just asked me to buy a couple of beers for a dollar each while he told
me stories.

I wish i made it more to the mountains and to the Baissin Bleu waterfalls.
I wish I ate another lobster bouillabaisse for 5 US$ at the Cyvadier
Plage hotel

maybe next time.

I gave 20 $ to a woman that lost her house in the river and now had nothing
I helped the family I stayed at buy a generator.

I swam half a mile from the beach a couple of times to go to the bathroom


i met intellectuals - the former mayor jailed and exiled by papa doc
duvalier
and formerly exiled professor that loves his adoptive city of montreal

i met analphabets that showed me their ravaged homes filled with hungry
yet joyful kids -

I have met 23 year olds running shelters - I met people that ran art
studios and galleries -
i met vodou priestess and atheist people.

i saw no journalists no gov't officials , little help

---
in Santo Domingo apart the people hustling for money - I ran in 2
journalists with a black ribbon on their mouths.

The press is not free there they told me.

I bought a couple of haitian paintings on the street for $20 -
one reminded me of california artist Thomas Campbell

my trip to HAITI. prints for support

MY TRIP TO HAITI

This Friday September 12 I will be flying to Santo Domingo and take a bus across the border to Jacmel, Haiti.

A month ago I booked a Jetblue award flight I needed to use.

In the past few weeks Haiti has been badly hit by 3 hurricanes that created damage and suffering.
I am thinking of photographing the efforts of an organization that is planting trees in the deforested country.
Document the realities of agriculture, education, reconstruction, arts and traditions.

Maybe teach students at a school and orphanage in Jacmel how to document the reality around them through photography, a tool that can create awareness; as a Haitian lawyer in Brooklyn suggested.

As I am self financing this trip [I am using a Jet Blue award ticket to the Dominican republic] I am trying to raise some funds for the extra expenses I will face. In Haiti I might face blackouts, possible food shortages, mosquitoes.

I posted 6 dyptich images on my website.
Photographs I shot in the past month or two that capture the essence of my summer in the North East.

The prints are available in
8x10 size for $23 each
and
11x14 size for $44 each
shipping and handling included.

here is the web page for this edition of prints

http://stefanogiovannini.com/triptohaiti/

There is a secure PayPal shopping cart that accepts credit cards.

The shipping will be handled directly by the lab - so I can just place the order with the buyer shipping address from anywhere I have internet access.

--
some of the expenses
I need to buy for instance malaria prevention pills [$90], bring with me lightweight emergency food like dried beef and power bars [$30], extra batteries and chargers, crank powered flashlight and radio, bus from DR to Haiti $ 60 each way and so on.

I may stay a few nights at this hotel [$45/night]

http://www.hotelcyvadier.com/page8.html>
> Our Hotel is also involved in social work in Jacmel in our School we have 300 Kids who benefit of free education.
> So yes if you want to share some of your shots we can always use the exposure.
>
When I come back around the 24th I may organize a slideshow somewhere.

The print sale will help me a long way - I have a Paypal Mastercard debit card I will use in Haiti - so each sale will help face unexpected expenses. The sooner the easier will be for me to get organized and deliver.
Anyway thanks everyone for the support.

Video: Friendly Border at Derby Line Vt. [rough edit]

watch it full screen here
[by clicking the 4 arrow symbol that looks like an "X"]
or
on my Vimeo page
http://www.vimeo.com/1536602


Friendly Border at Derby Line Vt. [rough edit] from stefano giovannini on Vimeo.

The border between Canada and the USA separates Derby Line, Vermont from Stanstead, Québec.

On My way back to New York I stopped a couple of hours.

The border line separates 2 communities and sometimes runs across homes, libraries, stores.

In the past few years the border controls have became stricter and somehow creates a surreal situation for people that just live one street away from each other.

the border might just seem a painted line easy to cross, but there are cameras and sensors everywhere, You can't cross without reporting even if you have been living there for 80 years.

Boïs Cayman - Haitian slave revolt anniversary - Prospect Park

22 images slideshow

http://picasaweb.google.com/stefpix/ProspectParkBoisCaManVodouCelebration120820081723/photo#s5233745261889961554

This Sunday August 10th some members of the Haitian diaspora in Flatbush
set a tent and a table with offering
by the pond near the Parkside and Ocean Aves entrance.
They were celebrating the anniversary of the Haitian revolution
that started between August 14/16 1791.

This festivity has been happening in prospect Park since 1990 with the
exception of last year.

Different people, priests and intellectuals
were talking in French and Creole about freedom and equality.

3 bands played at different times vodou and rara music.

home made food was sold

a french guy asked me for my email address so he could get some pictures.

the earlier rain made the event a bit smaller -
but everything went on until midnight or so.

from wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boukman

> Dutty Boukman was a houngan, or vodoun priest whose death was considered a catalyst to the slave uprising that marked the beginning of the Haïtian Revolution. Boukman was born in Jamaica.
> In late August of 1791, Boukman conducted a ceremony at the Bois Caïman and prophesied that the slaves Jean François, Biassou, and Jeannot would be leaders of a slave revolt that would free the slaves of Saint-Domingue.
> Soon after the uprising began, French authorities captured Boukman and executed him by beheading. The French then publicly displayed Boukman's head in an attempt to dispel the aura of invincibility that Boukman had cultivated. The attempt failed.
> Haitians honored Boukman by admitting him into the pantheon of loa (Vodou spirits).

prospect park bike race - helmet-less spill

click here 19 image slideshow
http://picasaweb.google.com/stefpix/BikeRaceHelmetLessSpill120820081507/photo#s5233710900030431042

I was cutting thru prospect park -
every other Monday this group of kids from Mexico and Guatemala do a 5 loop bike race.

when i was a bike messenger i always liked the style of the central
American riders -
they usually had nice bikes - modern but not the latest and fanciest -

i know the short Mexican riders were the ones that would always outrace
me uphill on the bridge.

so i was happy to see a group of them at the park -
they had stop watches and a couple of camcorders.
they looked like an old school race.
I felt inspired and in awe.
they had many specialized allez and some trek - $1k road bikes - a few
with older frames.
after one loop i could not believe how fast they were racing -


to see these short guys pushing so hard reminded me of marco pantani on
the mont ventoux.

never seen at the park other riders sprinting like this for entire loops

one guy had to give up -
he had been doing music this year and he could not train 3 / 4 times a
week like the others -

he looked tired.

another one stopped and said one of them crashed on the other side of
the park.

i raced -
and it was the kid i took photos of at the beginning -

his face and arm were bloody - he was in shock but he was awake and aware -
the ambulances took a while.

i took some snaps wondering if it was the right thing to do -

some girl at the scene came to me and said it was disrespectful - but
his friends did not seem to care.

i felt if he had a helmet probably he would have had less injuries -
if you dont see sometimes you dont really worry.
from what i understood he used teh front brake when ended up on the drain cover - the bike skidded and he flipped over.

he had injuries on his arm that hopefully absorbed the impact on his head.

his bike looked just like had scratches on the handlebar tape -

i think probably they might have been going between 25 to 30 MPH in thet flat / slightly downhill spot.

when i crashed in 2005 i was in semi shock for 30 or 60 minutes - my
face was covered in blood and i felt my eyebrow was gone -
i would have not minded someone taking a photo of me
actually after a while i took some to see the damage - before i could
stand up on my own and walk home.

i helped the friends of the injured rider by giving directions to the
hospital -
the paramedics spoke no Spanish and the riders spoke little English.
they kept asking his name in a loud voice - as raising the tone would break the language barriers.
the injured rider could move his arms and legs and nod.

I remember when lance Armstrong's teammate and friend Casartelli died at
the Tour de France in the 90s

back then looked like no one was wearing helmets at the Tour -
Laurent Fignon with the ponytail in the wind.
after that it all changed.

pix crime scene

slideshow 20 images
http://picasaweb.google.com/stefanog/Crimescene/photo#s5229252064356135458


a long day
i had to shoot a homicide crime scene at prospectpark.
maybe homeless fight - possibly gay sex and drugs or something like that.
there are some remote spots in prospect part with all sort of illegal
exchanges
-
rushed to the park then had to shoot a clinic and some dj s etc...
some neighborhood kids by the projects wanted me to take their picture -
mostly puertoricans and so young - they spoke gang lingo and they would
call me serial killah.

so weird i feel almost that som ehispanic kids are those that get less
education and less parent supervision,
they are too young to be in the street and wear no shirt and talk like
that -

the have no fear n a group and no sense of boundaries -

manhattan ave @ broadway.
one said some of them dont go to school

and after reading about all these gang related homicides in williamsburg
in the past few weeks

social services? social workers?

pix - awesome color | cop car crash | block parties | rara marching band |

50 image slideshow

http://picasaweb.google.com/stefanog/AwesomecolorFlatbush/photo#s5228466328361282050

sometimes I shoot for local brooklyn papers for quick cash and bike exercise.
politicians / get togethers / news stuff.
-
during the summer block parties are the thing happening in brooklyn on sunny weekends -

i once attended a lecture by this photographer Bill Owens that made an amazing book called "suburbia"
from his newspaper work in the 70s
http://www.billowens.com/#a=0&at=0&mi=2&pt=1&pi=10000&s=0&p=4

these assignments remind me of that book.
-----
this saturday my itinerary included ft greene , prospect heights, canarsie, flatbush.

the more you get closer to the ocean the nicer the streets look.
green blocks - neatly trimmed hedges, yards with flowers and plants.

middle class gatherings that are more about sharing food, sitting in the yards, letting the kids play in the street.

the parties closer to the heart of flatbush
where people live in apartment buildings on narrower blocks
the music is louder - people drink beer -
the street basketball is intense
and i can see some of these kids eventually playing in a pro team in a few years.

- it is a good training for me sometimes to try to make something look exciting even if it is bland -
but i need always to get some shots for myself - the papers have not so much use for close ups / details or pictures where people don't look happy / smiling/ having a good time.
but i am always drawn to the details of the faces -
something that would look good full page maybe.
--
an undercover police car was speeding and crashed into a red car driven by an older man.
red and green gas spilled on the street -
no one was really hurt -
it could have been worse.
a cop had a taser gun on his belt -
and a regular gun too.
quietly the NYPD started carrying these yellow plastic electric shock stun gun
meant to disable people but sometimes produced lethal consequence.

---
there is an old dutch cemetery and victorian houses off east 21st st / church ave / flatbush ave -
looks like somewhere in northern europe - somewhere a few centuries old

--

i quickly rode to the knitting factory to catch awesome color -
was tired -
had to drink a late night coffee
and the show was tight and loud
a pixieish girl backstage was wearing some home made earplugs that looked like some fashion accessory
--
stopped by prospect park
the rara bands playing as usual -
now it is easier to take photos
people are not so suspicious of me anymore -
so i can focus on getting new shots - just find different ways - perspectives - approaches.

--
[here is a clip i shot]
http://www.vimeo.com/1418684



--
bye
stefano

Lil Rich RIP - victim of gang violence. Prospect Park Rara - Coney Island

click here for a slideshow. 36-something images

report related to photos
http://www.brooklynpaper.com/stories/31/28/31_28_bm_blotter_breakout.html
aftermath
http://www.pixxiestails.com/archives/2008/07/shooting_in_williamsburg_brooklyn_7122008.html

-----
unexpected -
biking to Manhattan
i make a different turn on

south 3rd street @ Havemeyer -

artist Kat is finishing a mural -
a few nights earlier Lil-Rich age 22 was shot in the face
for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

a fight between 2 groups started at the Giglio fest and the commotion
moved south.
Lil Rich walked to see what was happening
and got hit by a bullet shot by a 15 / 16 year old kid.
when he was on the ground they also tried to stab him.

His grieving neighbors said he was a good kid. not a gang kid - not a
drug dealer.

Ernesto a long time resident of South 3rd st told me there is still some
gang activity.

But nothing like 20 years ago when the whole neighborhood was divided
into Puerto Rican, Dominican , Black gangs and you could not go on the
wrong block.

Now there is tension between the kids of South 3rd and those of South 9th.

---

Prospect Park

I am tired after having rode all day in the heat to coney island -
Manhattan and so on and having shot the Siren festival for the Voice -

3 Rara bands are playing

The trumpet are made with sheet metal -
each trumped has only one note -
so some musicians old 3 or 4 in different length.

they have some sort of formation when they march.

a lady with a white headbands lights candles and incense
while a band is playing a Petro vodou tune.


---
coney island -

siren festival -
it took me longer than expected the stop at the canal street post office.

i have 50 minutes to get to coney island -
it is maybe 95 degrees -
and i get to the siren festival 5 minutes early
i rode as fast as i could in the scorching heat
sometimes i had to look down to let more air flow into my helmet.

i drink half a bottle of water and i pour half of it on my head and neck -
and i am up on stage shooting
the L-Carnitine has been a wonder -
i recuperate fast
i just wish i was wearing swim trunks rather than jeans
and i keep alternating Gatorades and beer
the music
it is better than last year
but Stephen Malkmus is so loud that i cant hear the music.

-
after the show -
wish someone could watch my stuff - and swim in the ocean -
but after all
coney island
the beach
looks like a dump
people leave all sort of trash.
i wonder how can they leave the beach like that.

4th of july - sonic youth / rara band

click here for 99 photo slideshow on picasa

http://picasaweb.google.com/stefanog/July4thSonicYouthRara/photo?authkey=bKTqlQMLtxo#s5219743772306463042
4th of july 2008
between prospect park brooklyn
and battery park in lower manhattan

the radio predicted rain
and possibly storms

in prospect park
i was invited by the haitian rara band people for a barbecue -
it is early
i see trays with marinated chicken -
take a few shots

at 2 45 i start riding to manhattan to catch the feelies the opening band -

riding over the brooklyn bridge is insane with all the distracted
pedestrian tourists invading the bike lane

I get a crew pass from sonic youth's tour manager -
there are some issues with the passes -

the "artists" can't go to the VIP / guest section that has slight;y
better free food -
pulled pork and mac and cheese -
and with the crew pass I can go just everywhere!

the feelies look aged after all these years but they sound just the same.
after all they disappeared for 20 years or so.

sonic youth sound great
i like these summer open air loose and fun shows -
like a picnic in the park with old friends -
hanging out outside rather than in a cramped windowless room backstage
with too much bread and cold cuts.

at 8 I ride back to brooklyn hoping i can make it across the bridge
before they close it for the fireworks / safety.

I see cops and yellow tape at the entrance of the brooklyn bridge.
"i have to ride to brooklyn" i tell a cop -
he asks me for ID to prove i live there and
i am free to go.

the bridge is deserted and i see the macy's fireworks barge being pushed
by a tugboat.

I ask 3 cops if i can take their photo at the roadblock
but the captain tells me photography is not allowed on the brooklyn
bridge "because of 9/11].
he looks around for a sign to confirm what he is saying
but I can only see one that states "NYPD video surveillance on the bridge".
I tell him that probably every year the tourists that visit the bridge
take millions of photos and if i were a terrorist i would probably use a
concealed video camera instead.

I see a girl walking up on the bridge pushing a stroller with her kid to
see the fireworks.

I ask her how did she get thru
"my boyfriend is a cop!"
she replies with a smile.

prospect park
there are 2 big rara bands playing near parkside and flatbush avenue -
by the pond -

this vodou lady introduces me to some musicologist that is studying
haitian drumming -

there is a guy playing melodies on a regular trumpet -
sounds like a vocal part.
it gives some sort of jazz flavor -

--
i go to rehab - the new old club on avenue b and
3rd st

thurston moore is playing with 3 kids from northhampton mass -
2 guitars
2 drum kits

symmetric on the stage -
sometimes furious

feels like 2 channels of a stereo
competing and blending in

--
have to weed thru 12 GB of stuff 1300 images
down to 450 now -

been taking L-Carnitine supplement for a month
helps me focus -
helps me ride miles and miles with less fatigue
makes it all easier -
and i feel i dont need coffee as much anymore
energy without the nervousness and the crash of starbucks cups

I95/I75 STEFANO GIOVANNINI exhibition at MAX FISH

more details on facebook


STEFANO GIOVANNINI -> I95/I75
PHOTOGRAPHS
@
MAX FISH
178 LUDLOW ST
NY NY 10002
APRIL 10 2008 | 7PM TO 9PM

RECENT PHOTOS
that capture what I saw and lived in the past few months.
photos that can draw some attention in a buy setting.
on tour - in the waves - grilled fish in a portuguese restaurant in montreal - vodou drums - kids - teeth - eyes.

STATEMENT
In the summer of 2007 I purchased an old Toyota from Craigslist.
I found myself traveling outside New York City. Mostly down on the I95 and I75 freeways to southern Florida.
I felt a sense of freedom by finally having a car and a green card.

Photos were taken over the past few months
On tour with Cat Power documenting life on the road. Riding the bike in the streets of New York from Jackson Heights to Rockaway Beach, from Park Avenue to Flatbush. In the southern part of this country I saw a lot of Veterans some showing pride some showing demons in their eyes. Young cadets with innocent faces seem to carry on the tradition. I wonder about what their gaze will be like in 30 or 40 years. In Miami I stumbled upon the murals in Little Haiti. An artist that goes by the name of $erge seems to have painted hundreds of places. The music of the Vodou drumming from the yards in the courts, the smell of spiced BBQ. I rediscovered the love for the Ocean.

At Max Fish I can not show it all. Just some glimpses before a larger installation. Photos you can see at a busy location when the sun comes thru the windows or at night when the lighting is darker and colorful.

OPENING RECEPTION thursday APRIL 10
Come for reasonably priced drinks and special priced photos.
I would like to raise funds with the sale of these 16x20 in prints for a trip and documentary project to Haiti and a book.


ABOUT THE ARTIST
Stefano Giovannini is a self-taught photographer from Milan, Italy who relocated to New York City in the year 2000. He began taking photos as a teenager. Before pursuing his passion for photography, Stefano studied medicine for some years, but felt he would be happier elsewhere, doing something else. He has since worked for major and independent magazine publications in Europe and the U.S., including Nylon, Soma, Jane, Entertainment Weekly, as well as the Timeout NY guide, and many more, but he is probably better known in the U.S. (well, at least in New York) for his photographs of musicians, including Sonic Youth, Cat Power, DJ Olive, Luna, Beck, Blonde Redhead and many others. He is also increasingly well known for his web journals where his photographs of New York City are characterized by an impulsive, semi-anthropological approach.

--
Posted By stefanogiovannini to stefpix texts at 4/03/2008 12:35:00 AM

http://stefanogiovannini.com
http://stefpix.com
http://stefpix.blogspot.com

little haiti BBQ/The Yard

40 images slideshow
click here for related slideshow


the BBQ on 2nd ave NE
finally the stylish looking woman that grills the chicken and the ribs
lets me take her photos -
she liked the couple of 4x6s prints of her storefront i gave her.

her son sells CDs and DVDs inside -
for 3 dollar i get a small plate of chicken spicy rice and beans and
spicy pickles.

haitians like italians like chicken legs more than the white meat.

i am surprised to see chinese green tea with low sugar for sale -
15 calories vs `150/180 calories of
sodas sweetened with corn syrup.

-- a cuban woman asks me if i am from argentina - she tells me i look
like i am from there -
she has a tattoo on the neck and a chihuahua in her arms -
i ask her what is she doing in the haitian neighborhood -
she says it is the only place where landlords let her keep her pets
without charging extra fees and deposit.
she pays 350 a month for a 1 BR apt.
---
a guy on probation asks me to make a call to the probation office -
it closed hours earlier - he seems not on top of it - i suggest him to call his lawyer and go the next day in person -
he has no money for the bus -
i give him a couple of bucks he did not ask for -
a soda and a RIDE.
he has the expression of someone with good intentions that made wrong choices in life.

---

at the yard hangout - that is how the place where people play dominos is
called
the chicken is getting marinated and kids are playing.

there are some free rooster -
african kind of chickens that are never eaten just kept as pets.

i drink a guinness and a couple of shots of these herbal haitian liquors
bois coshon [literally "wood pig"].

there is a 8 year old kid -
i met his 25 year old mother

he wants me to take pictures of him an d see them on the LCD of my camera -
i ask about his dad.
he tells me he passed years ago - he went to Haiti they chopped his head
off and never gave the body back.

--
riding back to south beach 8 miles away
it is very windy as usual
my legs spin a bit faster just a little tipsy and
still hungry
for pizza

temperature drop/surf waves

40 images slideshow
click here for related slideshow

---

"aren't you cold?"

a bunch of different surfers kept asking me as i was swimming with my
camera at 4 30 / 5 pm today jan 2nd.

the waves were nice -
the outside temperature was probably below 55 - the strong wind was a
bit chilly
25 degrees F less than yesterday.
in the water i felt fine - it was certainly warmer than outside -
and swimming against the current - fighting the waves constantly keeps
you warmer than standing on a table.
i wish i got in the water earlier as the sun was getting too low on the
horizon -
and those 3 towers they built in recent years block large portions of
the sun in the last hour of daylight

the spots in the shade felt cold and i wished that south pointe tower
would just be demolished as an insult to the skyline - an insult to
tasteful architecture - an insult to the right of people to enjoy the
beach at sunset.

--
my underwater 240 dollar camera
i wish i got the pentax optio W30 instead of the olympus stylus 790 SW.

some reviewer from a scuba website wrote me that the camera I got looks
sexier -
but i'd rather have an uglier camera that does not have movie limits in
movie lenght and that is waterproof for 2 hours instead of 1.
what you do with it, substance, features feel more sexy to me than just
looks-
and i feel strange when people refer to some gadget as "sexy" -
or to a friend as a "buddy".
--
the colors are not bad - but i need to watch for droplets on the lens -
actually the pentax has a special coating that prevents water drops to
stick on it-

usually i to research what i buy -
i read an articke about smart shoppers that was really interesting

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/22/business/yourmoney/22money.html?_r=2&pagewanted=all&oref=slogin

well I just got reminded that impulse buy is not smart.

with a little research i should have found out earlier that the pentax
optio x30 is the fave camera among whitewater kayakers and paddlers that
post on related websites.

anyway my DSLR is way better shoots faster and has so much more tonal depth - a richer histogram.

---

NYrs Evei was tired - rode 120 miles the 4 days before -
with my camera on my neck -
it is not so much of a distance -
but also had been swimming a lot
and i had heartburn for days from the energy drinks i drank to drive
down here - the indian food - and some stress in my mind -

now back on smoothies - oats and grains - some cuban sandwiches -
i love publix - half a gallon of organic vanilla soymilk is just 2.79
and they sell frozen ruhbarb that i love blended with bananas peaches
apples OJ ginger and soy milk.

i don't iunderstand how florida orange juice is more expensive in
florida than in new york city.
doesnt long distance shipping cost a lot?
isn't real estate more expensive in manhattan?

anyway i love publix and wild oats is good too- although not as good as
food bazaar in brooklyn and wholefoods on houston street -

i wonder if there is some cuban market that sells great exotic fruit
like the chinatown market on rutgers and henry streets

---
so i just rested -
i went to swim at dusk on new years day -
the water was calm as a lake -
there was a dark rainy cloud..

---
a surfer was asking about my camera -
he told me miami is no good for surfing - you gotta go to south america -
he was italian as well i could not hear it in his accent and he could
not hear it in mine -
he works at this place la locanda

which means "the inn"
in italian

little haiti markets -> jimbos

63 images slideshow
click here for related slideshow

map/route
http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=1521471


swam in the waves and in the early afternoon
rode my bike over the venetian way to downtown miami.

feels great having my own 2 wheels -
i see things in a different way and get to places faster.


and such a more accurate ride than a beach cruiser - the road bike goes
where i want to
and handlebar brakes feel a lot safer than pedal brakes.

--

downtown fancy hotels and fancy high rise condos -
with passed out homeless and crackheads just one block away.

so many here just drive to these gated dwellings.
just drop off their cars to the valet parking guys for a 15 dollar.
hard to see the poverty just around the corner.
--
On North Miami Ave there is a yard sale -
an older hatian guy and a younger Bahamian.
I ask him if I should go there with my free jetblue bonus ticket, but
mexico seems a more convenient option.
--
$erge, the artist, is painting a martin Luther King Mural on Martin
Luther King Boulevard which is 62nd st NW by the I95.


---

In the houses nearby some people just chill out drink beers and smoke
blunts on their porches

--

There is a market a few blocks down
some women sell vegetables out of their pickup trucks or tables.
pumpkins, turnips, macaroni is what they sell.
no fruit at all.

I switch to french when I kid asks me if i speak the language.
he lets me take his picture -
when i show some prints of the vodou ladies I took a few nights before
his mother and her friends let me photograph them.
it is always good to carry with me some 20 cent walgreens prints.

---
I love the architecture of downtown miami -
old buildings and new high rises blend and match
upscale and desolate -
empty lots
and sleek towers -

adjacent worlds apart.

---

on the causeway to key biscayne
it is already dark -
on Virginia key on my way to the dive bar Jimbo's
there are no street light but
the moon is bright and I can see the road ahead of me.

people are playing bocce on the most uneven field [?]

a south beach girl is getting drunk with her apparently german fling.

some latino photographer is shooting a semi naked latina girl wearing a
furcoat in the backseat of a convertible car.

---

my odometer says 28 miles - i get some 2 dollar bud lite can and 2
dollar smoked fish.
8pm ride back to south beach
36 miles total
my feet and my butt are sore -
my legs are ok.
need better cycling shoes and maybe padded shorts rather than swim trunks