May 2010

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Things here in Phoenix have been heating up lately, and not just because it’s May and the temperatures are steadily, inevitably climbing towards the 100’s. There’s this little thing called SB-1070 that has been in the news recently, and now this is the hotspot for politics as well as border crossing traffic. It’s the perfect summer to be in the newsroom looking at border issues – and having a bit of a travel budget is the icing on the cake.

Let’s take a quick rundown of last week, for example. On Monday, we rose early to be downtown in Phoenix by 4am to see Telemundo broadcast a live immigration special and the audience’s reaction. (they covered the issue in-depth again two days later)

Next, my teammates and I made a run to Tucson, Arizona to interview several contacts there and sit in on Operation Streamline hearings. Operation Streamline started in Del Rio, Texas, but is now operational all along the border and making news and encouraging debate again along with SB-1070.

Finally, while my team headed back to cover Saturday’s protest events, I spent one more day in Tucson to ride along on a Samaritan patrol. My classmates and I have been in talks to do a Border Patrol ride along too, as both are great ways to get out and see the landscape and understand what people are literally going through.

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On Tuesday, we drove north to Sedona. Finals ended last Friday, and I start a fellowship next Monday, so this was our opportunity to hit the road. It was large part break and small part assignment, to scope the city and the scenery for my mother who’s always been interested in going.

We saw beautiful scenery.

We met a group of interesting little birds.

On the way back, we discovered what difference light can make – the two sets photos below were taken in the same place, from slightly different angles and a little shutter speed tinkering on my part.

Overall, a great afternoon…

From Sedona, Arizona (May 2010)

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saffron spice

Sometimes traveling isn’t possible – time, money and finals can all get in the way. But, to flip a famous saying, if you can’t go to the mountain, maybe you can bring part of the mountain to you. Photos, souvenirs and maps are all great ways to relive or predict get trips.

Another way is recreating a dish from somewhere else that tastes fantastic. While in Dubai over winter break, I made sure to pick up saffron in Dubai’s colorful spice markets – a lot of saffron. Now that we’re back, Steven’s putting it to good use.

Part of cooking with saffron is knowing how much to use. It really only takes a tiny, tiny pinch to turn a whole pot of rice yellow, and our 20 dirham stash will probably last us years if used judiciously. Steven said he marinated the chicken breasts normally – in this case using Italian dressing – and then sprinkled the saffron on top while it cooked in a broiler pan.

The saffron chicken here is served over white rice, also cooked with saffron, and with sauteed onions, mushrooms and chives – and it was amazing! Steven’s also made hummus and lebnah, and they’re delicious too – I can imagine I’m sitting in a cafe nearly anywhere on the Mediterranean. But the saffron – that brings back the sights, sounds, and most importantly the smells of Dubai’s spice souks.

At times like these when work restrictions make my movements limited, it takes a bit of effort to ignore spring weather and the travel advertisements that suddenly seem to be everywhere. But I enjoy knowing that I’m far from cut off from the world – it’s just a few steps and a few minutes away in a plastic compact on the spice rack. And the saffron will last a lot longer than the Arabic labeled chocolate bars did!

saffron chicken

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