Monday, July 29, 2013

NYC Summer Day 3 MOMA

Thrifted Skirt $2 / Knitted Tank Factory $5 / Converse $50 / Hat $2 Ken Done Bag $2








Hiiiii! Guys I'm so excited because I'm back and I officially have the internet at home now!!! Seriously we have spent the last year living on prepaid net that barely loaded a page. Now I have the net I'll be able to keep up to date with blogs and shows and all the important things.

So now that I'm back online I thought I'd get right back to posting up my New York trip. I'm hoping that now I have my net back on I will be more inclined to post and share with you guys. So this was day 3. We wanted to have a kick back day because we had the White Cruise that evening and we have the worst habit of going ALL DAY and leaving only about 20 minutes left to get ready.

So we decided to head off to the MOMA and soak up all the greatness that is within it's doors. I have been 2 years earlier but it was so nice to watch my cousin Sia walk around and see all the art she had studied in high school. She was like "I don't remember the names of the art but I remember the artwork and this is awesome."

I'm always excited to see Gauguin's works especially his art with strong Micronesian themes from his time spent in French Polynesia.



 





I miss this. 6 more months. 6 more months.







Big Love,

Falala Mele

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

NAIDOC Celebrations Nowra & Wreck Bay


This week I attended two different NAIDOC day events in the Nowra and Wreck Bay communities.

So you might be thinking What is NAIDOC Week? 
Well it's a week long celebration held to recognise the culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders in Australia. Many people (even those collectively held under the generalised term 'Australians') know little to nothing about the histories of the indigenous people of Australia.

It is a complex and delicate history and I've yet to find a textbook or school system that extensively and objectively explains and or recounts it. It's history has some similarities to other countries. Someone sets out with a purpose to find new and perhaps uninhabited land. They explore,  then claim the land and set upon changing the land and it's people to suit their needs. Indigenous Australians were misplaced, introduced to foreign diets and diseases. Some were taken from their families and put into homes, others were forbidden to speak in their language and or carry out traditional practices.

In 1965 a bus of Sydney University students travelled through NSW to expose the discrimination and living conditions of Aboriginal people. After this the"Assimilation policy is changed to that of Integration – Aboriginal people entering Australian society on their own terms and preserving as much of their culture as they choose".
It wasn't until 1967 that "91% of Australian voters vote YES in a Referendum to count Aboriginal 
people in the census and give the Commonwealth the power to make laws for Aboriginal people". This history and the fight for rights for Aboriginal people is still very fresh. To see a brief timeline of Indigenous rights and history click HERE.

It is a broad political issue in Australia and one that many choose to forget. The 'gap' between non-indigenous and indigenous Australians in education and health standards is a national shame. Yes, the government is trying to CLOSE THE GAP and while we are often bombarded with negative statistics, attitudes, comments and images about Aboriginal people, it's NAIDOC WEEK that reminds me how strong and vibrant they really are. They are an intricately unique, beautiful, honest and humble people. They are vast and varied. They deal with dual societies and cultures and generally live for moments rather than merchandise. They captivate me and I understand and identify with them because they became my culture when I was raised away from my own. They are not perfect nor without fault, because none of us are.

I wandered around both celebrations soaking up the beauty. I greeted all the Aunties and Uncles and people that I haven't seen in a while. I hugged my friends and were astounded by their growing tribe of beautiful babies. This place is alive and buzzing with life. Young people getting up and fearlessly telling stories through lyrics and music. Organisations reaching out and connecting. This is a proud and growing community of mine.

















Big Love,

Falala Mele

Saturday, July 6, 2013

Summer NYC 2 Night

Okay so we were supposed to stop off at Little Italy for cannoli that afternoon but we had arranged to have dinner with Jen from Seraphim Clothing at MOMOFUKU noodle bar. We waited outside for 30 minutes because it's really popular and full of locals. I knew that the food was going to be AWESOME and Jen raved about the pork buns and ramen. It also gave us a chance to chat and get to know each other as we only had a few online conversations previously.

Jen was such a good time. Conversation flowed easily and we spoke about our basic backgrounds and our love for good food. Even though we were tired she told me about what she had been attending for FFFW and about the other Aussies she had met. It was honestly and freaking brilliant first full day in New York and I was so glad to be sharing it with new friends and my sisters.

Worn: Colour Blocked Top Supre / Shorts Target / Necklace Sportsgirl / Shoes Target
Sia & Jen enjoying Momofuku's famous pork buns

Ladies looking fabulous with tummies full of ramen. Who can complain?



Big Love,


Falala Mele

Wednesday, July 3, 2013

Summer NYC 2 Day

Blouse Thrifted / Double Coloured Top Supre / Shorts Kmart / Shoes Converse

So after getting to bed at 4am in the morning, we woke up at 8am ready to hit the pavement and take Sia out for her first full day in New York. After getting dressed and taking our outfit shots we headed off to Ess-a-bagel to get some bagels for breakfast. This place was around the corner from our Pod hotel and it was a late discovery last year. We lined up and kept up with the ordering pace this year. Damn! People know what they want and it's so busy in there....you need to have it all ready to roll off your tongue when it's your turn to order. They don't play....luckily it wasn't as busy this year.

photo courtesy of @sikilou

Next we bought our unlimited subway tickets at 53rd and Lexington for the next 7 days. We may have fist pumped the air when we made it to our destination with little trouble at all (okay so we were so excited to find our line that we got on without checking which train  it was that we got on BUT we got off at the next stop and corrected our route). Then we made our way down to Battery Park and jumped on the free Staten Island Ferry to see Lady Liberty. We met this nice guy (yeah his green eyes, big arms and cute accent were an added bonus) named Carlos who was just as intrigued with Australia as we are with New York. After we got off in Staten Island we chatted for like 40 minutes talking about Australia and the Bronx and places to eat Puerto Rican & Dominican Republic food. I was like "So are you gonna show us around the Bronx?" I have no shame.

After meeting my friends Deja and Gabby and Candice I've confirmed two things. It's like a gazillion times better to be shown around by a local because you get a real feel of the place. I know you're probably thinking "STRANGER DANGER ALERT" but if you get the sense that people are good then 99.9% of the time you are right. Don't underestimate your gut feeling. Just think about how amazing your brain is. It's stored all of your life's experiences and memories and we humans learn from experience and routine so if for some reason something in your head is sending out warning signals than you should follow your instinct. I just don't want y'all to think I foolishly bash about with anybody. We met and talked and teased and shared jokes so before I asked for a tour I was thinking 'yeah he seems legit and cool". ANYWAYS back to the story..... He said he would show us around and we swapped numbers, social networks and email addresses but we ran out of time to make our way out to the Bronx during our stay. I'll keep in touch with good old Carlos so it's definitely sorted for next time.

After that we walked over to the Native American National Museum and wandered through the museum. It was full of beautiful artefacts, delicate carvings, spears and traditional dress attire. Next we ran through the rain and caught our subway (successfully) back to the hotel. More on our first night out in New York on the next post. Stay tuned.






Big Love,


Falala Mele

Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Joan and Karl's pre-wedding party

My lovely ladies Sia, Dasa, Arlene, myself & Angela


So I basically have the worst habit ever. I take photos, I edit them and they're ready to upload on the blog and then I forget or just become preoccupied with work and life and the photos never see the light of day.

To be fair though, this is the first time since the start of the year that I have had any real time so sit on my computer, read blogs and update my own. I've been busy with work and travel amongst it all. I made the right choice in only spending 2 weeks in New York. I was getting ready to book 3 weeks with multiple stops to try and squeeze every ounce of freedom out of my holidays (like I usually do) but I decided to come back early and save money. 

This is my second day at home and the cold weather and jetlag (and lack of winter clothes in my summer suitcase) has left me uninspired and happy to stay in bed. I'm going to give myself one more day of this. After today it will be back to the usual routine. Up early, exercise, eat and get to visiting all my friends around home. I will try to be a good blogger and keep you all posted. I am also keen to share the New York trip with you guys and make my photo book. 

Last night my sisters Pulu, Sia and Niva  and I met up with Dasa, Moala & Joan. We talked about our holiday, our Boracay trip and Joan's post wedding life. It was really nice just to catch up even though I was struggling to stay awake. The chocolate pancakes at Pancakes on the Rocks were a nice way to help soften the jetlag ;) anyways it got me to thinking "Shit I still haven't uploaded the pre-wedding pics!!!!" so I thought I'd do it now while I remember. Joan's family booked out a little beachside bar for the evening. We enjoyed drinks, food (oh the sisig rice HOLLLA) and we were able to meet all of Joan's family (some had just arrived on international flights). It was a nice way to relax before the big day. See my post on the wedding day HERE.


Theresa, Nela & Dasa clowning around
My sisters Sia, Dasa and Pulu looking all pretty 

The instruction was "Gimmie your happiest face ever" Lol look at Joan and Karl.....sah cute <3
I met Karl's sister Paua and she is so sweet and kind always looking out for the workers and others on the trip.
Joan's gorgeous family.
These photos have given me another chance to remember how wonderful this trip was. EVERYONE got along, the weather was perfect and the wedding was soooo full of love. Thank you to everyone who made this one of my most memorable holidays ever.


Big Love,

Falala Mele.

ps. Don't worry my NY posts are coming soon.