The Most Bizarre Sunday Ever

So, today was the New York Paella Parade! All-you-can-eat Paella samplings from the top Spanish restaurants throughout the city, and unlimited Spanish wine to wash it down. To help build up my appetite, I headed to the gym first thing in the morning for a nice workout and a run.


On the way to the gym, I noticed that they were setting up for some event on my street in Jackson Heights. I had no clue what was going on, but I figured it was just some street fair or something, or some small community parade.

Port-a-Potties-a-Plenty!

Setting up for a parade?

In other awesome news, the Jackson Heights Sunday Greenmarket started up again! I stopped by on my way back from the gym:

Strawberries are in season, but they don't taste nearly as good as the California ones. I bought some delicious sugar snow snap peas though.

And of course, the delicious Paella Parade! It took place downtown at South Street Seaport. There were ten restaurants featuring delicious Spanish bliss. The ingredients were fresh, the seafood well-seasoned, and the plastic wine glasses ubiquitous. Take a look:

This one was my favorite. It's from Xicala Wine and Tapas Bar in the Village. The woman pictured is the head chef. Her daughter told me that it was an old family recipe that her mother brought over from Spain. It was seasoned so well, and the seafood was soooo fresh. It had perfectly cooked mussels in it, too. One of my faves....

Sooooo good....

The delicious Spanish wines being served. The white was lame, the rose decent, and the reds were sublime. Maybe the best wine I've ever consumed from a small plastic cup.

Also plenty of cheese and bread to go along with it.

A beautiful day in New York, and a beautiful view across from the Brooklyn Bridge. Yay for fake beaches!

With a full stomach and Latin music stuck in my head, I returned home to Jackson Heights. As I stepped off of the subway, I noticed that the streets were packed. It seemed that there was some kind of event going on. It didn't take too long before I figured out what it was. Welcome to the 2009 Jackson Heights Pride Festival!

Yeah, uhhh....yeah....

Wow, what a day! Only in this city. Nothing beats Sundays in New York (when it's nice out). Check out my sample cards from each of the Spanish restaurants. They also gave me a keychain and Paella spoon! Que bueno!