Marijaia is here. Welcome baby¡

                                               GORA MARIJAIA!!!!!!!!!

 


and HERE (in the basque country, i mean) is the fest, and there and everywhere.

  

That was the other day in Okland, with my favourite (it's funny because they spell here favorite in american English i mean) T-shirt SIN KUARTEL jajajaja.

And here is Rufus with his sister live in Oakland in the FOX theatre

He played this incredible song by Leonard Cohen the other day. Hallelujah



And there was even a wedding that day because Mari Jaia is in San Francisco too jajajaj

http://www.elpais.com/fotografia/espana/Comienza/Aste/Nagusia/elpdiaesp/20100821elpepunac_18/Ies/

WALLS TALK, You only have to listen carefully (For Josu, 1)

One image, one pic is even better than the Bible. So lets go crazy for the Bay Area walls (San Francisco, Berkeley and Oakland. This is for you, Josu. Enjoy it¡.

Step by step:

<><><><><><>

<>

<><><><><><>

This is San Francisco, between Chinatown and Little Italy.

This two pics are near one of the most famous booktores in SF. City Lights.

This (up) is Berkeley

Not only walls can talk here. Look at that.

There will be more, don´t worry Josu.

Food, Love, Spirits, Cuisines and Movies (For Santhi, 1)

That was only a week ago. In Downtown SF.

Well i can talk about food in this country a lot. You know one thing, Shanti (let me spell your name that way, please). If you think in the USA, perhaps the first image or  idea that will come to your head is Gigant Cheesburgers and KFC and Starbucks. And of course, here they are, all of them. Don´t forget that Starbucks began in Seattle and you can find burgers all over the world (not only in the USA)

Just to remind it here is a pic. I think you know it:

This is Oakland (everytime i go there i love it more and more, jajajaja)

But, i can tell you pal´ that San Francisco, Berkeley and the Bay area in general is and incredible place for eating. As i always sayt to everyone you can have a continental breakfast, have lunch in a Thai style and go for dinner in the latest in japanese cuisine. By the way the best japanese in Berkeley is this:

oopppp. This is not, but this is a really special place. As you can see in the pic is a misture of the Iranian and Italian Cuisine. And i can assure you that that idea works. That is one of the ideas that difine SF, its diversity, the idea of a huge melting pot all around. Awesome. This place is awesome (if you want to take a look at its web site here it is:

http://www.i2squared.com/.

I´ll give you just a few main courses.
-I remember taking one day a LAMB SHANK. Pure fusion. Braised for 6 hours, served with pearl pasta, topped with artichoke hearts, saffron yellow split peas, tarragon, tomatoes and red wine sauce. And it was only 15 bucks (dollars in slang. #The explanation is bellow). But you have other things. E.g. for vegys.
-VEGAN/VEGETARIAN CABBAGE WRAPS. Another example of fusion cuisine. Fresh dill, tarragon, parsley, cumin, rice, cinnamon, wrapped in cabbage leaves, with a house-made tomato chili pepper sauce.
o this is amazing too
-ROASTED FISH IN PARCHMENT PAPER. Pan seared fresh catch of the day with small red potatoes, sundried tomatoes, nicoise olives, artichoke heart and a light chili cream sauce.

I remember tasting two good glass of wines there. Well, wine is really, really, really, really expensive. Prohibited, forbiden NO TRESPASSING AREA, and i´m not kidding. Just a glass of wine -a very normal- one is about 7 bucks- and a normal bottle of wine could be 35-40 bucks. You all know what i´m saying, don´t you????
But i remember tasting two good wines there. Red wine. Montepulciano d´Abruzzo Umani Ronchi, Tuscany. 8 bucks/31 bottle. And the second one was incredible: Shirah, Francis Ford Coppola (i love that type of grapes). And that name send me to San Francisco. To this place:

This is Francis Ford Coppola´s restaurant, in SF.

You (all of you) have to go there someday. If you love good wine, good italian food and of course his movies is completely mandatory. But if you are really hungry or you like to taste a good weird-busy-lively Chinese restaurant you only have to go to the opposite sidewalk and there is House of Nankin

I´ll continue this stories about food, movies, music, and love. Don´t worry, Shanti. This is only the beginning, my old chap (do you remember that old commercial on the TV? jajajajajaja.)



#. Buck. "As the preferred slang term for what Washington Irving called 'the almighty dollar,' buck in all likelihood sprang from buck skin or buck hide, a commodity of exchange, and metaphorically a loose measure of value, in Colonial trade with Native Americans. ('He has been robbed of the value of 300 Bucks, and you all know by whom', this 1748 quotation comes from the Ohio River Valley, and is cited in Mitford M. Mathews's A Dictionary of Americanisms.) The earliest undisputed example of buck in the precise sense of 'dollar' ('mulcted for the sum of twenty bucks') has a Sacramento provenance, and dates back only to Gold Rush times. Although the Forty-niners may well have popularized this new sense, traders at outposts east of the Continental Divide were probably already using {it;} the scanty written records of vernacular speech of the time preclude certainty. Unlisted in early slang dictionaries, buck seems not to have gained national popularity until the 1890s, a good example of the slow dissemination of slang in the days before radio, television, and the Internet.
Also from the mid nineteenth century comes sawbuck, a term synonymous with 'sawhorse,' whose connection with the meaning {'$10} bill' was provided by the Roman numeral X that used to appear on {$10} notes. The X apparently called to mind the crossed wooden supports of the sawyer's sawhorse, on which logs were cut with a bucksaw, no pun intended. These bills were sometimes also called just Xs before the Civil War, when a dollar was a dollar, a sawbuck had many times its 1990s purchasing power, and {$10} bills must have been a comparatively impressive sight."

PS. Of course the copyright is not mine, you can understand and forget my sin jajaja.

Four leafs clovers: Do they exist at all? (Good Vibrations)

I´m thinking about that idea (Molly posted on the blog). But i have to think more. I´ll tell you after afternoon classes.

But sun is all over the Bay Area so i left you with this tune, friends.

 

 Well. Here i go again.  I hope you have enjoyed The Beach Boys. Do you remember when i posted another song by this californian 60's group in the beginning of this adventure? They were doing surf in that videoclip, but you have to go to the South to make surf. Yes, the sea is freezing in the Bay Area. I was thinking of goin' to San Diego (southern cali.) to enjoy the sun, the beaches there but ...... you know Alaska is waiting there and of course i have to save money to go there.

Time flies my friends, time flies. WE ALL KNOW IT. And in this particularly moment i'm meeting a lot of interesting people here, good relationships, good dinners and Yeah Good Vibrations, too. Thanks to The Beach Boys. I really enjoy this old tune. In fact, i'm writing this as the same time i'm listen to that song. Live. Live music is great.

Have i told you the latest scores in my exams. Well i don't want to show off (new phrasal verb. It is always the same in English: prepositions, articles and a "new phrasal verb, surprise" as my morning teacher says everyday. I told you about Molly (english-acting-conversation business class jaj aja ja) but, by the way, have i told you about Steve (morning class) I have five cds to listen to. He is crazy about music (like me), i mean completely insane. Yesterday i was listening to one of the cds. Awesome. Pure Jazz.
Silver Horace. Ladies and Gentlemen, here it is:

Being a German in San Francisco, really dangerous, man.

Hi everybody. I have a story (two stories, to tell you the truth) about being a German in San Francisco. It's been really dangerous. But i told you later.

During this hours you can enjoy this video. You know i'm a antimilitarist but this (those mirages) are really incredible.



So here we go. There's been a break.

The two germans i'm talkin' about are dead. One was shooted and the only reason is for being int the wrong place at the wrong time. He was is San Francisco and there was a shooting and a bullet killed him. The other one just was overtaken by a car in San Francisco too. Of course, Police is investigating the first shooting, but, you know, is too late for the german guy. This things remind me of the casualities in this life. Today you are here and tomorrow perhaps you have just passed away. But that is life my friends. Next time i'll try to bring all of you another story. But this two stories have been on the newspaper this weeks.

PS. I have posted Therteen Senses's song Into the fire with those images of the mirages just to remember Henrick. He was in SF improving his English, with his brother Leo. They are now in Tokyo. He is a german guy and he wants to be a pilot. I'm pretty sure he is gonna make his dream comes true. So there it is.

Good luck for you, man.

Rasputina is alive (and the BBK-LIve in San Francisco)

Just a touch. I have to go back to class. Outstanding.



Well, i don´t know how to start this because sometimes a special situation happens and you dont know how. That happened the other day when i went alone to the Outlands Festival in San Francisco. Yeah¡¡¡¡¡ i went alone because some friends of mine that were suppose to come with me in the the end decided not to go. But i decided to go there because, you know, this is an unique opportunity to see a macrofestival like that in San Francisco. And do you want to know how i came to my house in Berkeley? You can not guess or imagine. Sure.

I came back in a convertible car (new word for me yes when you have a car with a roof that can be folded back o removed) shouting and stand up inside the car all along the super Bay Bridge. Yes, like that scene of Priscilla, Queen of the desert with the opera music goin´ on. That was me the other day.

CAN YOU DIG IT?

That´s life, bro´. That day (saturday, sunday in deed, because we went home really late) started Semana Grande for me jajajajaj.
The concert was great (of course), but the people i met on the bus -two girls from Catalunya, one guy from Madrid and later another boy from the Basque Country (Las Arenas, to tell you exactly the place where he was born), i mean that guys were incredible. Everything was outstanding. Of course we drank, we smoked (ohhhhh what a lovely smell again, man) and the best of all we danced and danced in an ending night. I´m going to post some pics. but not too many. I don´t want you to get bored (jajajajjajajaja) Envy is what i don´t want you to get because of that (jajajaja). Well, in any case, here they are.

Taking oxygen with different flavors. Not kidding.A different view of the one of the four stages.

New groups: Wild Beasts. And the other one i can not remember exactly the name but has the word Tokio (and it´s not Tokio Hotel jajajajajaj)

Here is the leader of Cat Power.

And later on we went to a night jazz club in Fillmore Street. The Boom Boom room or something like that.

Here is the place, near the famous venue The Fillmore:

And the night continued and we danced, and we smoked, and we danced, and we drank, and we smoked (have i told you by now the smell of that ganja) Ja ja ja ja ja I´m still s........ jajajajajajaj.

Well, anyway, perfect and unexpected night. I love how the things are workin´ here. So sometimes is the music, but others is that kinds of things that put this city on the summit of the World. I love it. And it´s not only rock and roll.

And on sunday, too many things to do: prepare Alaska´s journey, e.g. Rasputina´s gig, but that is another story. I´ll tell you tomorrow.

Sun is shining, sun is shining (as Bob Marley used to sing) since Sunday and that´s a good news.

It´s Martini time¡¡¡ Thanks to the Reverend

It´s funny because during the last weeks we´ve been learning a lot of vocabulary about religions, holy bibles, the Amish (i´ll tell you later about this weird people), tombstones, steeples, hearses, coffins, vows, incense, i can go on but tranquil i stop right now. For me, it´s is really funny as i told you before because all of you know that i don´t believe in God -As John Lennon used to sing "God is a concept by which we measure our pain, yeah¡ i say it again."- but, in any case, is always interesting to learn something knew. Not only vocabulary but new stories. i knew about the Amish because of a famous film of Harrison Ford (Witness). Dont´t you remember that scene on the movie with a galant Harrison Ford dancing with a happy and little bit scary amish girl near the pieces of hen and around a car? You don´t? OMF****G.
Here it is:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1jn5uCzWwQ

I upload it just to invite all of you to dance. You can try again, jaj ja jajajaj. Harrison could be a good (the best) teacher girls, jajajajaj. I know you love that man. I like his style, of course i do.

Well the Amish are really interesting, they are hooked on the 18th century, stuck on the mud of their ancestors. Crazy but interesting. And you can learn a lot about them, believe me, i´m talking seriously.
Here is a link if you are interested.

http://www.800padutch.com/amish.shtml

But the hip hop is hook with the Amish. Take a look at this, really funny. It´s a Biro´s recommendation.
Amish Paradise, by Werid Al Yankovic

It´s Martini time

But the craziest thing of this week took place last thursday when i went to the Fillmore to see.... The Reverend Horton Heat. Again God talkin´, in this case from a texas rock and roll, rockabilly and physcobilly priest (i prefer this guy from Texas and not Bush e.g. jajajajaj) 25th years on the road and for me was a surprise because they were making (filming) a DVD in The Fillmore. You see the limousine over there, The Reverend and his group were inside that pinky car and they came to The Fillmore like that.
Well, of course i´m kidding but it coul had happened that way, dont´t you think so?

If you have never seen The Reverend on stage take a look at this video and enjoy it.






PS. Well thank you Scott for your writings and supporting. Yes i´m trying to do my best here (fun and improving english too, no doubt about it. I repent for all my errors in the blog, but well, you know, this is not easy and most of the times i try to write without the dictionary.)

Santhy, i knew from the start that you are always with the latest news. So that is not a good txakoli¡¡¡¡ I take note of that. Well here, generally speaking, wine is really, really, really expensive, but sometimes i drink a glass of good wine from Napa or Sonoma and their grapes. Good  winneries there, in North California. And sometimes is amazing, you know the taste and all that stuff. I´ll tell you more soon.

I put another pic for all of you. Have fun and please write about Maria Jaia when she cames. I have here my T-shirt from Sin Kuartel prepared. But i´m thinking about buyin´ this suits for our next show.

What do you think??????

I think Jerry Garcia doesn´t aproove the idea (jajajajaj)

BUT MARILYN MONROE DOES.

And she is In, my friends, she is In. And Garcia is hight and stoned.

KSSSSS FOR EVERYBODY. HAVE A NICE

Txakolina in the New York Times¡¡¡

I´m not kidding.

Take a look.
It´s today newspaper and in The New York Times

http://californiaaitor.blogspot.com/2010/08/where-streets-have-no-name-i-love-rock.html

Here is the Basque Country all over the world

I´m goin´ to study, again.

See you later.

Where the streets have no name (I love rock and roll)

I LOVE R´N´R COS........... ROCK AND ROLL STOPS THE TRAFFIC





Rock and Roll and no the monkeys. Ja ja ja ja

http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/06/how-many-monkeys-do-it-take-to-stop-the-show/

I´m reading now one book and two magazines. It´s all about music, folks. Always music. One of them is by Ben Fong-Torres. Not too difficult but, you know, there always new words, new vocabulary to look up in the dictionary. It´s called Becoming Almost Famous. Don´t you remember the movie, guys? Cameron Crowe, yeah¡ All about that lovely era with the groupies everywhere in the gigs, concerts, the music journalism -OMFG -that´s i new: Oh My Fuckin´ God, i have just learned reading a interview with Courtney Love -yes, the fucking postgrunge widow- in Uncut (which of course is my second reading nowadays).

And all that stuff remind me of the good rock and roll, the 60´s, and it has come to my mind an old tune: i love rock and roll (by Joan Jett). I heard it when i was flying to San Francisco in the movie The Runnaways. Old rock and roll.




This week i´m going to SF again to another concert (Reverend Horton Heat in the Fillmore) and we are going to see a collection of Pixar´s movies. It sounds really good. You know, films like Up and much more. And we are thinking of going to a kind of BBK Live but in the Bay Area. Good groups, good ambient, funny people (sure). But everybody here is runing out of money. Some of them because they are travelling a lot (you know LA, Las Vegas, Yosemite Park, Sacramento....) and others because they are having too much fun. I have to save money because Alaska is waiting for me so....
In any case, that´s the way God planned it, so that´s the way is gona be, bro´.

The other magazine i´m reading is about the famous U2 tour all over the States in the 80´s. Rattle and Hum. I´m sorry for you if you belong to the young (new?) generation and don´t know what a hell i´m talkin about. This is before, laptops, cell phones, Lady Gaga and Miley Cyrus-Hanna Montana jajajajajja.

 In a certain way, they (U2) were discovering America in that period of their life, in the same way i´m doing it now. Well it is not the same, sure, i know, but that idea of the pioneers looking for something, looking for a better future during the Goldrush...... Perhaps it sounds a little bit exagerated, but you all know what i mean.

My adventure is not as big as that but........ it´s my dream goin on so i try to enjoy every step here, there and everywhere.

Another pic. from last weekend and a song from U2. Enjoy it.

And Bono and Cia. too.



PS. Be honest, be cute, be underground and againts the current (sometimes is better) and read the newspaper too.

http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/08/09/allman-brothers-to-return-to-the-stage/?ref=music

Ksss for ALL OF YOU

Aloha, Aloha, Elvis is alive in Kawai

You are right, my friend Igor (you have to pronounce it Aigor, jajajajajaj) Elvis is alive and I have seen him in San Francisco. It was last sunday in the Aloha Fest (Hawaian free style)

You must think i´ve drive (me) myself crazy, but don´t worry. Nothing to do with goin´ insane at all. Everything is perfect. Just talkin´ about casualities in life. Welcome to Kawai:

But where is Elvis?, you can say rigth now

Yeah¡ The answer is that he was playing the ukele in San Francisco, last sunday. And lots of people with him enjoying the hawaian style. Give me a puff¡

Me too.

And my tiny, little, new friend too.

It could be strange for you but i didn´t buy any T-Shirt yesterday, and i can assure you that there were nice T-Shirts there but, you know, how to say that, Alaska is real expensive (that´s what they tell me here and must be real), so .... i have to save my money for the las two weeks in Seattle and Alaska.
Yesterday was a great day in SF. Not only because of the super hawain style fest, but for the new concert we saw in Cafe du Nord (in Market street, near Castro area). The incredible Jim Messina (he was playing in the 60´s with Buffalo Springfield and in the 70´s with Poco). And he is still alive, like Elvis Presley (better, i have to say).

Sorry, that was my little girl on stage.

Here is Jim Messina.

You can call me old, crap, jerk o whatever you want but, OMG, this guy is is is ....gettin higher and higher. Not only he, but the rest of the group (a quintet) were up up up yesterday. They were having fun and the rest of the people in the Cafe du Nord too. You don´t believe me. That´s what i have to tell you:

It is not what you r´ thinking but it works perfectly. JAJAJAJAJAJAJAJJAAJ F**** idiots.
"There are wrinkles in my face and i can see in the mirror my hair is getting grey but who cares? Meanwhile i´m growing up, i´m everyday on the Moon, on the summit of the Everest. Do you want me to do it, don´t ask me twice, you don´t need to repeat it".
This quotation is perfect and i want to underline it again. Does anybody who the author is?
The answer is in your soul. Thanks Barret. "The lunatics are in my head" (thanks R. Waters).

Let me see (the girl is just a pic). I have left the best for the end. Tooooo muchhh Traffic, too much Soderbergh. And then, 2000, September 11th didn´t happen yet. The world was dreamin´with freedom then. Now my friends, the world is just an oyster, nobody knows anybody (and Osama is just a shape inside a touch of your nigthmare of this reality). No more joints, please (just crystal meth).




GOOD NIGHT, GOOD LUCK¡ ENJOY THE RIDE¡¡¡¡