My Fair Lady - Omaha, NE Part 1
I was up early to have breakfast and finish packing before the charter buses arrived.
I tried the hawthorn Oreos, since it's not like they'd be BAD. Not sure about you, but I've never had a bad Oreo in my life!
These are Oreo Thins, and this is a limited seasonal flavor.
Hawthorn berries are popular in Asia for their antioxidants, documented health benefits, and tart flavor (they taste very similar to cranberries.) I've had hawthorn in many forms, mostly as candies and sweets, most memorably in a freeze-dried form while suffering with Covid in Las Vegas.
These cookies were very good! Just like a regular Oreo Thin but with a fruity tart flavor, and little pieces of dried hawthorn in the cream too. Very lovely and nice; they didn't taste artificial at all (looking at you, Lemon Oreos!) I'd definitely get these again if I saw them in the store.
Anyway, the buses loaded up and left about 10 minutes late. Typical.
I dozed but couldn't sleep, and at some point we stopped for a bathroom break at a Pilot.
Onward for another two hours or so until we hit a Target, where we had an hour for lunch.
I had packed a lunch of Travel Bagel, cashews, tuna, and veggies, so used Target to get Christmas shopping ideas and stretch my legs.
Back on the bus, late again because it's a statistical requisite that at least one actor has to have terrible time management. Then on for another two or three hours, watching the flat Iowa landscape roll by, speckled with cows and farms, wind turbines looming above all.
I also saw a herd of bison, presumably farmed, but didn't have time to catch a picture.
Eventually we made it, 20 minutes late. I was annoyed but tried hard not to be. Mostly I was irritated that we got in after the sun had set and it was 24°F with windchill, so I was forced to get an Uber to the grocery instead of walking when I'd already been on my a$$ all day. Whatever, I got some nice food for the week and unpacked and had maintenance over to unclog my shower drain (gross), then slept.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Tuesday I got up at the usual time and had breakfast, and before lunch decided to hit an Asian grocery I'd discovered nearby. I don't need anything but love to look, and of course you always find a FEW things to try!
Beautiful produce, pastries and breads, whole fish, rows and rows of mysterious beverages!
Durian, frozen for freshness (and safety):
Soy milk pressed in-house. And a huge variety of sake and Asian liquors, I wanted these two SO BAD but they are expensive + how could I possibly get them home.
Some of the weirder things that I found today included canned silkworm larvae, cucumber potato chips, pig intestines, and an unagi (eel) soda! I think I'd eat the intestines before I'd drink that soda!
As always there was much that I wanted, and most of which I couldn't realistically have. But it's always a joy to look and discover new products, new flavors, and think about what it must be like to grow up with a palate accustomed to foods I've never even seen up until now. It's very cool, to think how big the world is in that way :)
Back at the hotel I unloaded my "haul", which was just a few items:
- Single-serve unpasteurized sake: This will probably travel to FL with me. They had three varieties: original "golden", "green" which is made from early-harvested rice, and an "aged red." It was hard to choose just one.
- Swallow's nest beverage: Actually made using the nests of real cave swallows! The nests are unique in that they are made from the bird's saliva (I know, eew) and proteins, rather than gathered materials. The nests are popular in Asian medicine due to the high levels of potassium, iron, magnesium, calcium, etc. They still get debris and such in them, so they are meticulously cleaned by hand, then boiled before being used as a food item. Now before you get TOO grossed out, think about all the birds that poop on the fruit and veggies that we eat. Or how if you don't boil fresh broccoli you WILL end up eating worms. Anyway, imo this is like that. The actual, whole nests are expensive because they are difficult to harvest and prepare, and can only be harvested at certain times of year to boot. However the nests used in these drinks are farmed, plus it's not a whole nest, just pieces, so it was much more affordable and sustainable. All of this is to say, I'm nervous to try this but had to at least once!
- Black bean almond & walnut soy milk: I've had this brand's black sesame milk before and it was awesome. In this case "black bean" refers to black soybeans, and there are actually several nuts in here including walnut, peanut, almond, and pine nut.
- Chelsea "yogurt scotch" candies: these were at the checkout along with the usual cheap pocket candies (i.e. Hi-Chew, Botan rice candies, etc) but I'd never seen them before and was curious. These will probably also go home so Jameson can try them too.
- Pumpkin porridge with honey: apparently I'm on a porridge kick. Most of these microwavable porridges are savory (shrimp & veggie, mushroom & chicken, etc) and unfortunately have a LOT of salt. This one still has 570mg of salt, but that's a lot less than the others, plus a pumpkin porridge just sounded nice.
- Mixed fruit chips: self-explanatory, with pineapple, dragon fruit, banana, pumpkin, jackfruit, and taro. There were no added sugars, moderate fiber, and it just looked tasty.
I am stoked to try all of these things! For today, however, I focused on the Asian foods that I got in Madison.
The hot & sour chicken feet chips:
These were very good! Smelled like salt & vinegar chips, but the acidic taste was citrusy and the kick of spicy heat was just wonderful. And they had a really good chicken stock kind of flavor too. I enjoyed these a lot. A little bummed because they do contain whey powder so I'll have to remember a Lactaid to enjoy them.
And then for lunch, the purple potato and purple rice congee.
There are two servings in a can so I ate half. Love the little Super Potato mascot on the front :)
The potato is pretty much dissolved into the porridge, there were no chunks of it. But you could see lots of other good stuff like oats, sorghum, kidney beans, coconut pulp, and probably more stuff that's not listed on the oft-inaccurate English stick-on label. It was definitely more red/maroon than purple, and could have been mistaken for chili at first glance. These canned porridges are known for being very sweet, and this one was too, and sadly they used an artificial sweetener that I could taste. Still, it was hearty and full of enough good things to make me feel ok about eating it. A nice experience, not sure I'd buy this again but maybe in a pinch.
In the evening, off to the theatre for sound check.
This is an Orpheum, and like most 1920s "palaces" it is ornate and extravagant.
(photo courtesy Operaomaha.com)
The sound check went well, I ate a packed dinner and was glad for it because the sound check had been long and everyone else had to go running around in the cold to find food, or order delivery. No thanks!
The show went well. It is so interesting to play this show without in-ears, and have to adjust your hearing and how you play so drastically for each venue based on how things are sounding. That's probably a good skill but eh, you do what you gotta do!
--------------------------------------------
Wednesday was supposed to be the warmest day of the week, so I resolved to take myself to the Omaha Zoo!
But first, since I'd be doing a lot of walking, I wanted to have a good lunch.
So I went to Kinaara because they're the top-rated Indian restaurant in Omaha, and they offer a sampler platter on Wednesdays and Thursdays!
This is called Thali. It's a traditional sort of "sampler plate", and in this case it contains seven small dishes with three proteins, two vegetables, one dal, and one dessert.
Do I know what everything was? Nope.
Was it all flavorful, delicious, and fun to eat? Yes!
I recognized tandoori chicken, butter chicken, and naan and basmati rice of course. There was also what seemed to be fried okra (I found out later that it was probably bhindi masala) and a sweet yellow curried chicken (or duck?) of some sort, that were both my favorites of the day. There was a kidney bean dish that was good but I couldn't eat a lot of it because it was intensely spicy, and I DO have to play a show tonight lol. And the white stuff was dessert, a rice pudding that was super thin (I guess that's how it's done in India) but very good, I could definitely taste cardamom strongly and loved it very much.
The smaller dishes held a green relish that was tangy and refreshing, and a yogurt dip.
The crispy chips were good, I was surprised by the shell-shaped chip as it had a briny fishy taste!
Everything was incredible. I ate about half and packed the rest up for another day (YES awesome leftovers!!) then dropped it off at the hotel and headed to the Omaha Zoo!
TL;DR, here's a compilation of videos that doesn't include any of the photos that I took:
TikTok by @tromboneontour
The dome, which dominates the zoo landscape:
This is one of the top rated zoos in the country. Their exhibits are unlike anything I've ever seen!
The big dome is a desert habitat on top, with a nocturnal habitat and full-on swamp on the bottom levels.
Some desert animals:
On the lower level, here are the cave and swamp habitats. Incredible, and huge.
There were LOTS of bats! So cool to see! So awful to smell! Lol (see video above cut)
I kind of zipped through the swamp portion because it was mostly alligators and turtles, which I can see just about any time in Florida :p Next was the African area, and I didn't expect much because even 50° is cold for African mammals, but to my surprise you could still view most of the animals indoors too! So I popped in and out to catch as many as I could! (See video above the cut for the elephants and rhino)
It was incredibly empty, so I enjoyed not having to mask and watching the animals go about their business in peace, without kids banging on the glass or shrieking. This time of year must be a pleasant break for the zoo. And for me it just felt...special.
All of the walkways were decorated for Christmas, and I could tell that at night it must be a lot of fun to see everything all lit up! I didn't take a lot of pics of the decor, but here's a news segment on the "Zoolightful" event (new this year.)
Please see the compilation video to see flying fox bats, elephants, and some REALLY great gorilla footage!
I didn't get to see the big cats (they likely weren't out anyway) or the insect building (because there WERE school groups in there) but covered a lot of ground and definitely had a very fun day of animal-watching!
Back at the hotel I rested a bit and worked out some kinks with my sub trombonist's hotel room, then got dressed and went to the theatre for work. The show went just fine.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
On Thursday I will likely mostly rest, do a little holiday planning and shopping, and go for a walk at some point if the weather is nice. Friday I'll have to do laundry, and will explore more as I can and as energy allows.
Once my sub gets here, things will be a bit stressful for me until I'm sure he'll be all right and everyone's happy with him.
A last thought to throw in: as my 40th birthday approaches, I kind of look back on all of the crazy, beautiful, stressful, expensive things that I get to do, and am amazed. Who gets to have a day, like I had today? And then look forward to MORE?
Honestly. Sometimes...it makes me feel both smaller and larger at the same time.
I tried the hawthorn Oreos, since it's not like they'd be BAD. Not sure about you, but I've never had a bad Oreo in my life!
These are Oreo Thins, and this is a limited seasonal flavor.
Hawthorn berries are popular in Asia for their antioxidants, documented health benefits, and tart flavor (they taste very similar to cranberries.) I've had hawthorn in many forms, mostly as candies and sweets, most memorably in a freeze-dried form while suffering with Covid in Las Vegas.
These cookies were very good! Just like a regular Oreo Thin but with a fruity tart flavor, and little pieces of dried hawthorn in the cream too. Very lovely and nice; they didn't taste artificial at all (looking at you, Lemon Oreos!) I'd definitely get these again if I saw them in the store.
Anyway, the buses loaded up and left about 10 minutes late. Typical.
I dozed but couldn't sleep, and at some point we stopped for a bathroom break at a Pilot.
Onward for another two hours or so until we hit a Target, where we had an hour for lunch.
I had packed a lunch of Travel Bagel, cashews, tuna, and veggies, so used Target to get Christmas shopping ideas and stretch my legs.
Back on the bus, late again because it's a statistical requisite that at least one actor has to have terrible time management. Then on for another two or three hours, watching the flat Iowa landscape roll by, speckled with cows and farms, wind turbines looming above all.
I also saw a herd of bison, presumably farmed, but didn't have time to catch a picture.
Eventually we made it, 20 minutes late. I was annoyed but tried hard not to be. Mostly I was irritated that we got in after the sun had set and it was 24°F with windchill, so I was forced to get an Uber to the grocery instead of walking when I'd already been on my a$$ all day. Whatever, I got some nice food for the week and unpacked and had maintenance over to unclog my shower drain (gross), then slept.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Tuesday I got up at the usual time and had breakfast, and before lunch decided to hit an Asian grocery I'd discovered nearby. I don't need anything but love to look, and of course you always find a FEW things to try!
Beautiful produce, pastries and breads, whole fish, rows and rows of mysterious beverages!
Durian, frozen for freshness (and safety):
Soy milk pressed in-house. And a huge variety of sake and Asian liquors, I wanted these two SO BAD but they are expensive + how could I possibly get them home.
Some of the weirder things that I found today included canned silkworm larvae, cucumber potato chips, pig intestines, and an unagi (eel) soda! I think I'd eat the intestines before I'd drink that soda!
As always there was much that I wanted, and most of which I couldn't realistically have. But it's always a joy to look and discover new products, new flavors, and think about what it must be like to grow up with a palate accustomed to foods I've never even seen up until now. It's very cool, to think how big the world is in that way :)
Back at the hotel I unloaded my "haul", which was just a few items:
- Single-serve unpasteurized sake: This will probably travel to FL with me. They had three varieties: original "golden", "green" which is made from early-harvested rice, and an "aged red." It was hard to choose just one.
- Swallow's nest beverage: Actually made using the nests of real cave swallows! The nests are unique in that they are made from the bird's saliva (I know, eew) and proteins, rather than gathered materials. The nests are popular in Asian medicine due to the high levels of potassium, iron, magnesium, calcium, etc. They still get debris and such in them, so they are meticulously cleaned by hand, then boiled before being used as a food item. Now before you get TOO grossed out, think about all the birds that poop on the fruit and veggies that we eat. Or how if you don't boil fresh broccoli you WILL end up eating worms. Anyway, imo this is like that. The actual, whole nests are expensive because they are difficult to harvest and prepare, and can only be harvested at certain times of year to boot. However the nests used in these drinks are farmed, plus it's not a whole nest, just pieces, so it was much more affordable and sustainable. All of this is to say, I'm nervous to try this but had to at least once!
- Black bean almond & walnut soy milk: I've had this brand's black sesame milk before and it was awesome. In this case "black bean" refers to black soybeans, and there are actually several nuts in here including walnut, peanut, almond, and pine nut.
- Chelsea "yogurt scotch" candies: these were at the checkout along with the usual cheap pocket candies (i.e. Hi-Chew, Botan rice candies, etc) but I'd never seen them before and was curious. These will probably also go home so Jameson can try them too.
- Pumpkin porridge with honey: apparently I'm on a porridge kick. Most of these microwavable porridges are savory (shrimp & veggie, mushroom & chicken, etc) and unfortunately have a LOT of salt. This one still has 570mg of salt, but that's a lot less than the others, plus a pumpkin porridge just sounded nice.
- Mixed fruit chips: self-explanatory, with pineapple, dragon fruit, banana, pumpkin, jackfruit, and taro. There were no added sugars, moderate fiber, and it just looked tasty.
I am stoked to try all of these things! For today, however, I focused on the Asian foods that I got in Madison.
The hot & sour chicken feet chips:
These were very good! Smelled like salt & vinegar chips, but the acidic taste was citrusy and the kick of spicy heat was just wonderful. And they had a really good chicken stock kind of flavor too. I enjoyed these a lot. A little bummed because they do contain whey powder so I'll have to remember a Lactaid to enjoy them.
And then for lunch, the purple potato and purple rice congee.
There are two servings in a can so I ate half. Love the little Super Potato mascot on the front :)
The potato is pretty much dissolved into the porridge, there were no chunks of it. But you could see lots of other good stuff like oats, sorghum, kidney beans, coconut pulp, and probably more stuff that's not listed on the oft-inaccurate English stick-on label. It was definitely more red/maroon than purple, and could have been mistaken for chili at first glance. These canned porridges are known for being very sweet, and this one was too, and sadly they used an artificial sweetener that I could taste. Still, it was hearty and full of enough good things to make me feel ok about eating it. A nice experience, not sure I'd buy this again but maybe in a pinch.
In the evening, off to the theatre for sound check.
This is an Orpheum, and like most 1920s "palaces" it is ornate and extravagant.
(photo courtesy Operaomaha.com)
The sound check went well, I ate a packed dinner and was glad for it because the sound check had been long and everyone else had to go running around in the cold to find food, or order delivery. No thanks!
The show went well. It is so interesting to play this show without in-ears, and have to adjust your hearing and how you play so drastically for each venue based on how things are sounding. That's probably a good skill but eh, you do what you gotta do!
--------------------------------------------
Wednesday was supposed to be the warmest day of the week, so I resolved to take myself to the Omaha Zoo!
But first, since I'd be doing a lot of walking, I wanted to have a good lunch.
So I went to Kinaara because they're the top-rated Indian restaurant in Omaha, and they offer a sampler platter on Wednesdays and Thursdays!
This is called Thali. It's a traditional sort of "sampler plate", and in this case it contains seven small dishes with three proteins, two vegetables, one dal, and one dessert.
Do I know what everything was? Nope.
Was it all flavorful, delicious, and fun to eat? Yes!
I recognized tandoori chicken, butter chicken, and naan and basmati rice of course. There was also what seemed to be fried okra (I found out later that it was probably bhindi masala) and a sweet yellow curried chicken (or duck?) of some sort, that were both my favorites of the day. There was a kidney bean dish that was good but I couldn't eat a lot of it because it was intensely spicy, and I DO have to play a show tonight lol. And the white stuff was dessert, a rice pudding that was super thin (I guess that's how it's done in India) but very good, I could definitely taste cardamom strongly and loved it very much.
The smaller dishes held a green relish that was tangy and refreshing, and a yogurt dip.
The crispy chips were good, I was surprised by the shell-shaped chip as it had a briny fishy taste!
Everything was incredible. I ate about half and packed the rest up for another day (YES awesome leftovers!!) then dropped it off at the hotel and headed to the Omaha Zoo!
TL;DR, here's a compilation of videos that doesn't include any of the photos that I took:
TikTok by @tromboneontour
The dome, which dominates the zoo landscape:
This is one of the top rated zoos in the country. Their exhibits are unlike anything I've ever seen!
The big dome is a desert habitat on top, with a nocturnal habitat and full-on swamp on the bottom levels.
Some desert animals:
On the lower level, here are the cave and swamp habitats. Incredible, and huge.
There were LOTS of bats! So cool to see! So awful to smell! Lol (see video above cut)
I kind of zipped through the swamp portion because it was mostly alligators and turtles, which I can see just about any time in Florida :p Next was the African area, and I didn't expect much because even 50° is cold for African mammals, but to my surprise you could still view most of the animals indoors too! So I popped in and out to catch as many as I could! (See video above the cut for the elephants and rhino)
It was incredibly empty, so I enjoyed not having to mask and watching the animals go about their business in peace, without kids banging on the glass or shrieking. This time of year must be a pleasant break for the zoo. And for me it just felt...special.
All of the walkways were decorated for Christmas, and I could tell that at night it must be a lot of fun to see everything all lit up! I didn't take a lot of pics of the decor, but here's a news segment on the "Zoolightful" event (new this year.)
Please see the compilation video to see flying fox bats, elephants, and some REALLY great gorilla footage!
I didn't get to see the big cats (they likely weren't out anyway) or the insect building (because there WERE school groups in there) but covered a lot of ground and definitely had a very fun day of animal-watching!
Back at the hotel I rested a bit and worked out some kinks with my sub trombonist's hotel room, then got dressed and went to the theatre for work. The show went just fine.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
On Thursday I will likely mostly rest, do a little holiday planning and shopping, and go for a walk at some point if the weather is nice. Friday I'll have to do laundry, and will explore more as I can and as energy allows.
Once my sub gets here, things will be a bit stressful for me until I'm sure he'll be all right and everyone's happy with him.
A last thought to throw in: as my 40th birthday approaches, I kind of look back on all of the crazy, beautiful, stressful, expensive things that I get to do, and am amazed. Who gets to have a day, like I had today? And then look forward to MORE?
Honestly. Sometimes...it makes me feel both smaller and larger at the same time.