The Silent "I"

Book Review: The Ultimate Tea Diet

I got a free copy of The Ultimate Tea Diet by Mark "Dr. Tea" Ukra from Parent Bloggers Network to review.  I was interested because I need to lose weight, and thought this might be the push I needed to get going.  I'm not exactly sure how it got to be the end of January without me actually starting a diet, but eventually, I'll get around to it. 

I did read the book, and followed some of the advice, but not whole-heartedly.  I think it would probably work, not because tea is some miracle drug, but because it advocates sensible eating, exercise, and a reduction of caffeine.

He starts out by recommending weaning yourself off of coffee by replacing it with tea that you like--any tea will do.  I did this part, and found that I really enjoyed the tea.  I didn't get the normal caffeine-withdrawal headache I normally get when I stop drinking coffee cold-turkey. 

Ukra explains the different types of teas, and has some recipes for cooking with tea that went from things that sounded good to bizarre.  I have not been cooking much lately, so I didn't get to try the recipes yet.  I haven't followed the diet carefully, but it seems as thought what he is recommending is not terribly radical.  It couldn't hurt, and seems much more enjoyable than South Beach or some of the other popular diets out there. 

I enjoyed reading the final section of the book, which is a history of tea throughout the world.  It's interesting to me that so many different cultures enjoy tea in different ways, and in some, it's an almost religious experience.  It reminded me of our travels around the world, and how tea time in England is a completely different cultural experience than the tea house I visited in Beijing, that came complete with sipping lessons. We had the chance to participate in a Japanese tea ceremony some years ago, and it struck me then that ritual was somehow as nourishing and warm as the tea itself.

I liked the folksy no-nonsense tone of the book.  He isn't offering any miracle solutions, just some dietary instruction, recipes, and a great enthusiasm for tea.  He didn't recommend any particular tea for optimal results, just a general switch from coffee/soda to tea.

He claims that tea contains much less caffeine than coffee, but I have to say the biggest caffeine buzz I ever got was drinking green tea in Japan.  I don't know what was in it, but I felt like I was vibrating at one point.  It's not the same thing we have here, and the taste was quite different. 

So, if you're looking to lose a few pounds in a not-terribly-stressful way, check out The Ultimate Tea Diet.  Whether or not you lose weight, it just might soothe your soul.

Cross-posted at The Silent I Speaks, my review blog where I occasionally review stuff when people ask me to.

Whale Waiting On the Sea of Cortez

Sea of Cortez Cruise, Day 3
January 4, 2008

On the third day of our cruise to Baja, I got up early to see the sunrise.  The cruise expedition leader, Larry, announced it over the ship's intercom. By the time I got up, there was already a small crowd gathered on the upper deck, staring intently into the eastern sky.  Some were wearing bathrobes and holding steaming cups of coffee, and others had thrown coats over t-shirts and sweats. 

The sky was yellow-gold, with streaks of pale blue, and it reminded me of Edna St. Vincent Millay's poem Recuerdo:

    We were very tired, we were very merry—
       We had gone back and forth all night on the ferry;
       And you ate an apple, and I ate a pear,
       From a dozen of each we had bought somewhere;
       And the sky went wan, and the wind came cold,
       And the sun rose dripping, a bucketful of gold.

Looking away from the rising sun, the misty sea was a pale pink, baby blue, and lavendar color, a Monet sunrise.  Larry explained this was called "the vermillion sea" by sailors.  It was all very beautiful, poetic, and profound.

Isla de San Francisco

Sea of Cortez Cruise:  Day 2
January 3, 2008

After the first evening in Mexico, the wind was fairly high, so we didn’t actually leave the dock until Thursday morning, January 3.  I woke up when the boat started rolling, probably around 5 am.  It was a pretty gentle roll at first, and Frank and Alex didn’t even wake up. Around 6:30, the rolling became much more volatile, and it was hard to make even one step into the tiny bathroom without having to grab for something to hang onto.  I thought it was a little odd to be on a cruise that didn't leave the dock, but after that early morning experience, I was glad we stayed in the shelter of the harbor.

Alex slept through all of it, but Frank got up to catch the sunrise colors and go to breakfast.  Alex and I went down to breakfast late, which looked like it had been an assortment of scrambled eggs, French toast and bacon.  We were both fairly cranky for some unknown reason, but that soon changed.

After breakfast, there were more briefings and a fire drill for the Lindblad crew and an abandon ship drill for all the passengers.  We had to wear our uncomfortable, boxy life jackets, which felt a lot like what I imagine the old-fashioned punishment of being placed in wooden stocks must have been like.  It was over soon enough, and Larry, the Expedition Leader, explained the itinerary for the afternoon.

In the afternoon, the groups got ready to head to the beach at Isla de San Francisco for snorkeling.  Frank and Alex suited up in their wetsuits and joined the snorkeling party.  They set off in one of the black rubber zodiac boats with about a dozen people on board, and stayed onboard. 

Landing in La Paz

Sea of Cortez Cruise
January 2, 2008

After a fairly uneventful flight, we landed at La Paz, Mexico, the capital of Baja.  It’s a quiet beach town, with storefronts facing the beach where the National Geographic Sea Bird was docked.  We arrived after a  fairly uneventful flight from Los Angeles, where the biggest problem at both ends were long security lines.  We were eager to get our Lindblad expedition underway.  In 2005, we traveled on the Polaris with Lindblad to the Galapagos, and knew what to expect. 

When our shuttlebus arrived, they were not quite ready to receive us, so we left our belongings with the boat crew and walked along the lovely beachfront. 

Alex made a beeline for a nearby Burger King, which featured a huge playscape.  I was able to order in Spanish, which means that "Yo Hablo Fast Food" fairly fluently.   “Chicken Tenders” is evidently a universal term, so I did not have to dazzle the gal at the counter with my knowledge of the word “pollo”.   

Alex and I bought necklaces carved from coconut from a street vendor, and then we headed back to the boat to check into our cabin, a comfortable 3-person room with a tiny bathroom at the aft of the ship, right near the service stairs.

Dinner was served after some briefings and introductions of the crew and staff of naturalists on board.  There were margaritas and snacks served in the lounge, and we got the first chance to check out our fellow travelers, all 50 or so of them. 

The boat remained anchored at the dock overnight, due to some high winds, so we went to bed in our floating hotel in La Paz, Mexico.

I plan to post pictures from this trip, but the wifi on board the boat won't let me.  They may have to wait until we get home.  I suppose I should be happy that we have an internet connection at all on this boat. 

Hooray for Hollywood

We spent a leisurely morning in the hotel, watching the Rose Parade on TV, like the rest of the country.  Unlike the rest of the country, we were within driving distance from the parade, and thought about going for about 10 seconds and decided that we didn't need the headache of traffic, parking, and hanging out for hours to see some marching bands and horse brigades in between the elaborate floats.  The hotel was overrun with Illinois fans, all wearing bright orange t-shirts and sweatshirts, most of whom were over the age of 70 and being herded around on gigantic tour busses.  Before we saw them swarming the lobby, we had no idea who was even playing in the Rose Bowl this year.

We finally made it out and decided to go see a movie in Hollywood.  We hoped to see something at the legendary Grauman's Chinese Theatre, but the only thing playing there was "I am Legend" which features Will Smith and flesh-eating zombies.  Not exactly child-friendly fare, so we opted for the Arclight Theatre, which boasts a restaurant, assigned seating, and very comfortable chairs.  We got tickets for "National Treasure: Book of Secrets" which at the only thing with less than a PG-13 rating that we could find. 

After having lunch and buying tickets, we walked down Hollywood Boulevard a bit and checked out some of the Walk of Fame stars in the sidewalk, en route to the subway station at Hollywood and Vine.  Most of the names of the stars were not names we recognized, except for some actors we knew from childhood, like John Wayne.  For some reason, Pat Boone has not one but two stars along this stretch.  Frank pointed out that one had the "movie" symbol and another had the "recording artist" symbol.  I had no idea that a person could get more than one star on the walk of fame.  It somehow seems a little unfair, especially when we're talking about Pat Boone.

Legoland Revisited

Happy New Year!  After a week spent at home cleaning, eating, and enjoying a post-holiday food coma, we hit the road again.  This time, we traveled to Southern California, home of movie stars, sunshine, and 10 billion Legos.  This is the first stop of a week-long trip to Legoland, Los Angeles, and La Paz, Mexico.  In La Paz, we board a small cruise ship and set sail on a 4 day adventure on the Sea of Cortez to see humpback whales in their winter home.

We visited Legoland about 3 years ago, and Alex has never let us forget it.  We planned the cruise six months ago, and figured this would be a good time to see Legoland again, since Alex has been asking to go back.  As it turned out, Legoland had a big New Year's Eve for kids celebration, complete with fireworks, all ending by 7 pm.  A good time was had by all, but we missed the New Year celebration at midnight, since we were all so exhausted after the Legoland excursion, we promptly conked out on arriving back at the hotel.

We checked into the Marriott near LAX at noon, had lunch, and then hit the 405 south to Legoland.  In case you're not from California, Legoland is in Carlsbad, and that is about an hour and a half south of LA.  The last time we went there, we were in San Diego, which is a shorter drive. 

We pre-purchased our tickets at Safeway before we left home, saving about $12 off the normal admission price, which is a hefty $59 for adults and $47 for kids.  There is also a discount of some sort for AAA members, so if you don't have a coupon or pre-purchase ticket, be sure to ask for that if you are a AAA member.

I wasn't sure how Alex would react to Legoland at age 7, since I remember the rides and attractions being geared more for the pre-school set.  He loved the dinosaur kiddie roller-coaster the last time around, but I thought it might seem tame to a mature, thrill-seeking seven year old.  I didn't realize that we hadn't seen about half the park the last time, and that there are attractions for kids of all ages, including a larger, more exciting  Dragon Coaster.  He passed on many of the big kid rides, since he feared that they would make him throw up.  Smart boy.