As I near the end of 3 glorious months spent in what I thought was the farmland of USA, I realize that Ames wasn't half bad. I mean really. Maybe it was b'coz of Iowa State being here that there is so much life around the tiny town. But I am told that the hustle and bustle when school is in session unlike summer is unbeatable and adds a whole lot of charisma to the place.
So, here's my Top 10 @ Ames (not in order)1. My room. Its my sanctuary. And I couldn't have hoped for a better arrangement. Fully equipped and furnished at a really low cost, with cool house mates, its the best temporary live-in situation I could've hoped for.
2. My cube. Its not a tiny cubicle. Its one half of a whole room with a whole lot of privacy which allows me to blog like this (at work!)
3. My friend. Its really cool to have a Tamil-speaking friend here, whether its to see Sivaji together or randomly talk nonsense. And having Akil here, accomplished just that. It really made life much easier. At least there was one person whom I knew here for all those movies and all that time-pass. Thanks Akil.
4. The cats. Yeah, I was scared or I hated cats before I got here. But living in close proximity with two of them, I can vouch for the fact that cats have mild human traits. The girl cat gets bugged easily, she irritates easily and she has this cute "hitting with the paw" action that she uses to chide you. And she threatens to bite when she's pissed with you. The boy cat is typical of men.. as long as there is food, he isn't going to bother you much. Once he's hungry or needs to be cuddled, he finds you and purrs away to glory. Cuties..
5. The movies. Yeah... without the movies umpteen hours of my life here would've been uncharted for and there would be so many less blogs! I am so glad that a place like Ames has an up-to-date theatre. With students scattered all around, I wouldn't expect lesser. But its nice to have a reassurance anyways!
6. The restaurants. Of course there are eateries everywhere you go. But Ames has the highest density of them. Maybe because of the student settlement, Ames is scattered with a variety of eating joints and bars. Notably, I have really developed a taste for
a. Bali Satay House - Indonesian cuisine - Maybe because its Akil's favorite, we seem to go here a whole lot. Its pretty much like Chinese/Thai with a little more flavour to it. Low prices, large portions makes for a good restaurant with a bad decor and yesterday in particular, an awful waiter!
b. Thai Spice - Thai cuisine - This is one of the upscale Ames restaurants that you can find with a fantastic decor and even better tasting food. I've been here just once. But I can vouch for the taste which was on par with Lemon Grass, Cincinnati, if not better. Tastefully presented. high-priced, medium-sized portions of food, Thai Spice would make a good "date place".
c. Old Chicago - Italian - As the name indicates, it is a sort of pizza place. Great food and decent drinks.
d. Carlos'O'Kellys - Mexican- Though they weirdly use chicken broth to make their rice (which I avoid), they have some of the tastiest Mexican food I have had (I think they're on par with Don Pablos). Good food and very filling.
e. Pancheros - Mexican - A lot like Chipotle. They have this awesome cheese sauce called Queso or something and its the best I've had!
7. The Trails. Yes, Ames is very green and any deviation that you make from the road takes you to these interesting biking/walking trails which almost always ends around a stream, a bridge or something else scenic. It makes for a fun activity.
8. Cyride. Thats the bus here. Its probably called that because the IA State team is called Cyclones. Yes its slow and badly connected. But that means you get to kill more time day dreaming as you ride past familiar sights.
9. North Grand Mall. The only semblence of shopping apart from Hyvee (like Kroger Vons, etc_ based complexes. The mall houses a dollar theatre, is near a Walmart and has most of your famous stores. A full day of timepass I say!
10. Iowa State University. A vast campus with many many buildings. Very rustic and fantastic looking. It has a pond, a gazillion trails, 3-4 gyms, 3-4 greenhouses and everything else a good, solid University is made of. Good fun to walk around.
Finally.. another movie review.. Ofcourse it wasn't like I away from the movies or anything but its refreshing nevertheless. In short, this movie was sweet. There was nothing phenomenal.. nothing boring either. The movie was paced briskly and didn't feel like close ot 2 hours at all. Its a low budget movie with no major plot lines, no major sets, nothing too impressive at all. And as anyone who's seen the trailer must've, the plotline is barely anything to figure out. Catherine Zeta-Jones looks old but is as classy as ever. She's an ace-chef in NYC and is the queen of her kitchen. When she's away to tend to a personal tragedy. the owner hires a charming new sous chef, Aaron Eckhart. He's a roguishly charming, opera-loving, easy going cool dude, the exact opposite of Kate and this does'nt go unnoticed. While he is very talented, she notices him only when he succeeds in what she has not - opening up her grieving niece, Abigail Breslin who has just lost her mom to an accident. While Kate hasn't succeeded in making the kid eat anything over the week, Nick (Aaron) succeeds in no time. Abigail's cute and very lovable through the movie. And as it moves along, the three find their places to coexist and create the perfect recipe for life.
