My arrival was sweet and made me feel loved and welcomed. My mom met me at the airport armed with a down jacket and cashmere scarf for me. I don't know which I was happier to see, my mom or the warm goods, as I was freezing before even walking outside! We went immediately to Starbucks where my dad, fresh from a root canal, met us for coffee. After catching up and laughing for an hour, we decided to go pick up some DVDs from the library in preparation for the imminent snowstorm and then go see a matinee. "Avatar" was the choice, surprisingly, since my parents are usually into more high-brow films. In fact, I'm not sure if they (ok, just my mom--she's the naysayer) have ever seen a movie that's received a lot of press mostly because of its special effects. Though it was a bit on the long side, we all loved it and my folks especially got a kick out of the fact that it was 3D. And the special effect were amazing.
I arrived hours before the storm hit and, this morning, awoke to a winter wonderland.
I am relieved to not be too jet-lagged. I managed to sleep all night and only woke up at 8:30 when I heard my dad walking around outside my room. The morning was ideal with a run on the treadmill, looking out onto the snowy backyard, and coffee, matzos brie, and light conversation while reading the Sunday Times. Sunday mornings are what I miss most living so far away.
Later, we all met my sister, J, at King Sauna where we proceeded to have a delightfully lazy and relaxing afternoon, walking around naked with other women in the "wet room" (sounds gross, I know) where there were showers, hot tubs of various temperature, a steam room, and a few beds for getting scrubs and massages.
J and I got scrubs. Whoa! These beefy, bathing suit clad Korean ladies scoured every last inch of our bodies until little gray pearls of dead skin were covering us and the plastic-sheeted bed. Then, the ladies dumped bucks of hot water on us, spun us around and shampooed our hair. And I thought Thailand was good!
The next few hours, the four of us met up and ducked into various saunas (amethyst, carbon, ice, etc.) promising everything from healing toothaches, to stopping skin from itching, to curing depression. We worked up quite a hunger with all of the temperature changes and sweating, so we headed to the cafe and shared bibimbop and dumplings.
It was an excellent way to spend the afternoon.
The day was topped off with traditional Sunday night aperatifs (aka "Drinky-Winky Time"). Vodka martinis or "brown stuff" (whiskey or scotch) with a plate of cheese and crackers and pate, olives and nuts. I was in heaven.
The offerings at Drinky-Winky Time are usually so good that I often ruin my appetite for dinner. And so was the case tonight. Too bad since my mom had made a delicious vegetable soup (as usual on Sunday nights) and J made some cornbread.
A perfect day
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