From noon till seven at night, some of the ladies were busy at work cooking up a storm for Thanksgiving dinner. Thanks to modern science time-saving, much of it was NOT as difficult as we anticipated (though the turkey, named Jerome, was a bit more work than the instructions promised).

Pumpkin muffins:

Pumpkin pie in the oven…

…voila!

I LOVE green bean casserole, especially the crispy onions.

Roll-out dough for the win – though, opening the tubes was a LOT trickier than any of us expected. Apparently you have to smack it a couple times against the side of the table? Surprisingly violent for carbohydrates…

Not pictured: the turkey (Jerome is camera shy), the stuffing, and the two chocolate fudge pies Melissa made. Or the burritos we made ourselves for lunch.

It was a tiring Saturday afternoon/evening, but a cozy communal venture into Thanksgiving tradition and general girl bonding! A great kick-off to a season of reflecting especially on all the things for which I give thanks.

How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth! (Psalm 119:103)

I never would have thought that ginger and pear would taste any good in a cupcake, but this Cupcakes Actually creation was refreshingly light and just sweet enough.

Death of a lemon cupcake, below:

Chocolate and a huge pillar of buttercream frosting.

A pumpkin cupcake and four milk shots (25 cent each!):

The classic red velvet cupcake, can’t go wrong…

My verdict: Decent variety, good buttercream frosting (though I prefer cream cheese) – but too large a dollop in my opinion, good cake  density. Some were filled on the inside, which was a treat.

The past weekend was practically perfect in every way, the sort that invites you to take a stroll, to read Nabokov in outdoor cafes, to sit still and CONTEMPLATE (with an exclamation, as Dr. C would have said) – by far the best pastime for a humble Saturday afternoon.

Stopping and smelling the proverbial flowers.

Mixing inordinate amounts of wasabi into my soy sauce because I crave the sensation of heat shooting up my nose, clearing my sinus, into the front then back of my brain.

Letting the acidity, strange gingery sweetness, and then the effects of carbonation linger a while.

Wandering through the aisles of hand-crafted honey, bottles of wine, rows of perfect dark chocolates.

Began my weekend of near-constant indulgence simply enough – had a late meal at Le Pain Quotidien, ordered the red vert quinoa, with butternut squash and some kind of mushroom I couldn’t identify.

This colorful plate is Daniel’s chicken and mozzarella tartine, complete with pesto and assorted vegetables enough to ward off the scurvy for a good long while.

For dessert (besides my Belgian hot chocolate, which I sipped on throughout), found this hilarious gem at Barnes & Noble. Excellent!

All downhill (in terms of healthiness…) from Friday on…you shall see the parade of cupcakes and sparkles and food by the ton, very soon.

You start with a cup of steamed milk and then pour in the most decadent dark Belgian chocolate in liquid form, not more than a few tablespoons. I was surprised that such a little went a long way, but such is the nature of good chocolate.

Sometimes I think I woudn’t mind being Vianne from Chocolat, guessing people’s favorite chocolates and wearing perfect pastel cardigans and red shoes and bringing joy into people’s lives with the power of cacao and kindness.

I have always loved bakeries, standing and breathing in the perfume of fresh bread, admiring the gems in glass cases, playing “which cake would you rather” with my brother…

While waiting for the yogurt bingsoo we ordered at Shilla on Tuesday, I admired all the little dessert items on display in the refrigerated glass. I’ve only ever had Shilla bread (Eh. Not that fantastic, I have to say) and never any of their desserts, but they certainly look lovely!

Yogurt bingsoo arrives:

So good to have tart froyo again, not the soft-serve ice cream Leo’s trys to pass off as yogurt.

It is an unfortunate fact that one must drive out all the way into Northern Virginia to enjoy good Asian food. When the opportunity was offered, one ought not pass it up!

Dinner at a Korean-Japanese fusion place consisted of our table being gradually laden with more dishes than its capacity could contain, and our stomachs slowly expanding till absolutely full. The main entree (the sashimi) was wonderful in and of itself but the endless “side dishes” helped fill us up before and afterward…

The sashimi – flounder, SUPER fresh.

As stuffed as we claimed we were, we managed to stumble to the car and STILL had room for yogurt bingsoo at Shilla…

We stand here in this place, on a late Sunday afternoon, and I am thinking how surreal and how right it is for my worlds to collide — to be surrounded by friends from ‘home’ in a place I have come to see very much as ‘home’ as well.

This weekend overflowed with walking, good food, better company, and many occasions to take copious photos.

After a missed bus mishap, very little sleep, and my fifth (?) tour of Georgetown University proper and the surrounding neighborhood, Frank and I took our little crowd of visitors – Julia, Ryan, Dave, and Gabby! – to Pizzeria Paradiso for a late lunch.

Foccocia bread with roasted elephant garlic and drizzled with excellent olive oil. When I came here last year with my mom’s cousin, she tried to find out who the restaurant’s supplier was, to no avail.

Giant roasted cloves of garlic necessitate chewing gum afterwards.

Pizza #1, the Di Mare – topped with mussels. Pescadarians for the win!

Talk to me.

Gorgonzola and some other cheeses. I really liked this one too.

The namesake pizza.

YUMMMMM.