Traveller

Ganesha! A dear friend gave me this small statue recently of Ganesha, the Lord of Success. She had her sister bring him all the way from India for me. Maybe she knew that I would appreciate his help. Manali and I met for lunch and she told me all him and his importance. As a non-Hindu, I found his story fascinating and intriguing. As a storyteller, I found his significance mesmerizing and compelling. The story of how he got his elephant head goes something like this: Once goddess Parvati, while bathing, created a boy out of the dirt of her body and assigned him the task of guarding the entrance to her bathroom. When Shiva, her husband returned, he was surprised to find a stranger denying him access, and struck off the boy's head in rage. Parvati broke down in utter grief and to soothe her, Shiva sent out his squad (gana) to fetch the head of any sleeping being who was facing the north. The company found a sleeping elephant and brought back its severed head, which was then atta...

Iberian Ham by Sharon Castellanos

My mother is finally getting her passport and going to Europe! She has lived on the west coast her whole life and has traveled as far as Hawaii to the east, to Victoria Island in Canada and across the border to Mexico in a small plane back in the 1950s. None of these adventures required a passport at the time. Getting her passport was an adventure by itself. She had only one original birth certificate, all hand written and on a huge piece of paper. She said it came from the hospital itself back in the day and before they made certified copies. I think she had to guess on her father's place of birth because he wasn't in her life much past the age of five. Then the question of passport photos, and whether you had your glasses on or off became a big question mark. She had people telling her different stories but in the end it didn't matter because none of the photos were her favorite. This trip is very exciting because for her first overseas excursion, my oldest brother...

The Amazing Race 16 - Premiere Sneak Peek is here! I'm so excited to see this new season. This television show is such a fun way to see the world and get a sense of new places, and of how you might travel in new environments and with your closest companion. Sundays on CBS starting Feb 14 at 8:00 pm PST

San Francisco Chinatown by Sharon Castellanos There is nothing more exciting in San Francisco this time of year, except perhaps for the Cherry Blossoms, than the big celebrations around the lunar New Year. All the populations that follow the Asian Zodiac have wonderful ways to highlight the changing year, and this year is no exception with our own Chinatown throwing the largest parties and parade around! Cookies by Sharon Castellanos This is the time to gather with family, honor ancestors and celebrate with a big banquet that symbolizes prosperity in the New Year. So far I have only experienced the parties vicariously, through my friends telling me stories of their family gatherings. From their stories however, it sounds like every culture including Asian families, has that drunk uncle, wild cousin and unpredictable in-law. All the ingredients for great childhood memories and good times! I love eating dim sum and all sorts of other dishes year round, but this time of year is spe...

Cherry Blossoms by Sharon Castellanos

Stop Sign by Sharon Castellanos