On the subject of white.

Here's how that look works on the other side of the Pacific. Shot taken in June in Eagle Rock, Los Angeles, California. Sunglasses from Bangkok, T-shirt from H&M, shoes and shorts a mystery.

Missing.

Taking a moment to read posted signs, ads, and leaflets can be one of the quickest ways to connect with the soul of a city.

It gives you an instant tap into the triumphs and heartbreaks of its residents. We're having an art show. Our cat is missing. We're economizing-- come buy the stuff we can't afford to keep.

Abbot Kinney in Venice may be one of the few places I can imagine seeing a $350 chair being advertised on a hand-drawn flyer.


Come home, Whiskers. No questions asked.

Sunny in Silverlake.

Silverlake is one of the best Los Angeles neighborhoods for strolling around. There are cafes with amazing coffee, interesting independent shops and vintage outlets, and most importantly, lots and lots of beautiful people dressed amazingly well. It's a great area for people-watching and style spotting. We headed over yesterday for the Farmer's Market, where we picked up some delicious berries and heirloom vegetables, and kept an eye out for stylish locals.

Sometimes, I can't stand how much great style everyone has.

It does help, at least, that one of the best dressed gents out was my husband.

24th Street, Mission.

To close up my coverage of San Francisco, I'd like to share a few spots around my favorite neighborhood: the Mission. While there seemed to be great restaurants, cafes, and shops all over the neighborhood, 24th Street in particular stood out as a great all-around destination.

What makes the Mission's 24th Street so exciting is its curious mix of inhabitants; a Thai-Chinese grocery might sit next to a taqueria, and across the street from a hipster coffee shop. This mix is unfortunately endangered, as rising rents are forcing out the traditionally latino community, but for now the vibe persists, in freshly painted murals (1) and corner groceries (2) specializing in latin american ingredients. Mexican restaurants (3) still outnumber the hispter joints. Right at the head of the street Taquerias el Farolito (2779 Mission, at the corner of 24th) offers raved about tacos filled with a diverse selection of meats (chorizo, lengua, beef brain...). Also worth keeping an eye out for at the intersection are the 'tamale ladies', who peddle their delicacies just up the steps from the Bart Station.

Further down the street, Local Mission Eatery (3111 24th) offers a changing menu based on what's being grown seasonally in the SF area. On our visit, I ate an unbelievable sandwich (4) of asparagus and poached eggs on freshly baked brioche. Yum. The relaxed, dimly lit interior offers a calm break from the pace of the street outside.

After lunch, you'll be spoiled for options for dessert. My pick is to head down the street to Dynamo Donuts (6) (2760 24th), for a donut in maple bacon or lemon thyme. Also worth the wait in line is the ice cream at Humphry Slocombe (just off 24th, on 2790 Harrison), where scoops comes in a staggeringly diverse selection of ever-rotating flavors, like Thai Chili Lime, Peanut Butter Curry, or Blue Bottle Vietnamese Coffee. Or, cross the street from Local and pop into La Reyna (5) (3114 24th) for a tasty Mexican sweet bread.

If you're like me, and think that something sugary is best followed by a cup of coffee, then follow the sounds of typing to Haus (7) (3086 24th), where you'll be welcomed into the starkly minimalist coffee shop by the glowing lights of a dozen hipsters all on Macbooks. The menu is small, but the coffees are beautifully made. If it's a nice day, you can even sit out back in their bare-bones patio.

Editor's note: Want to know one of the weirdest things about this neighborhood? It reminded me a lot of Los Angeles. I could almost have been in Silverlake or Echo Park, though admittedly there were a lot more people walking around here. Which makes me think that as great as San Francisco was, if this was my favorite SF neighborhood, then I might actually still just be an LA kind of guy...

SF signs.

I'm always a fan of vintage typographies and design, so in San Francisco my eyes were often trained upwards-- to take in all of the funky signs. Even the dry cleaners seemed to have great signs! These were a few of the favorites I spotted.

Sweet City.

There was something so charming about San Francisco-- the picturesque hills of Victorian houses, the toy-like cable cars, the dapper gents -- that it felt a little like being in a children's book. So somehow it seemed fitting that all over the city there were little shops specializing in treats, sweet shops selling delicious pastries, ice cream, pie, or donuts. Over our week in the city, we sought out some we'd heard of, stumbled on another, and enjoyed some of the best sweets the city has to offer.

Our first stop in San Francisco was at Tartine, which more than lived up to its reputation (and more than deserved the long line that snaked outside onto the Mission sidewalk). The cafe's interior looked like a cozy environment to sit and savor a creamy latte, but we got our pastries boxed. We opened them later on a picnic in Golden Gate Park, and shared the wide variety of pastries we'd selected. Two of the best (pictured top) were an almond lemon tea cake, and a creamy tres leches cake.

Back to the Mission on another day, we stopped at Bi-Rite Creamery, where we once again found long lines, and were once again rewarded for waiting. The strawberry balsamic soft serve was a little disappointing (not quite enough balsamic flavor), but the traditional ice creams, in flavors like brown sugar with ginger-caramel swirl, roasted banana, and toasted coconut, were rather tasty. The winner: honey lavender, which balanced not-too-sweet ice cream with an herby perfumed scent.

The only dessert in this entry that wasn't found in the Mission, and the only one that we stumbled upon by accident, was perhaps the most unique treat we tried. The Loving Cup, in Russian Hill, specializes in making a seriously undervalued dessert: rice pudding. I selected a cup of rum and raisin rice pudding, which tasted charmingly old-fashioned and incredibly delicious. The ingredients they use are local and organic, and they happily show nutritional information to tout their low calorie products.

But the sweetest highlight of the trip was a stop at Dynamo Donuts, which I'd been wanting to try since first reading about them in Readymade magazine over a year ago. Back then, I'd attempted to make their lemon pistachio donut, which had been a bit of a flop-- luckily that was one of the donuts on offer on our visit, so I could compare. We picked up a box of donuts for the family, and brought them back home to try out.

The flavors, in clockwise order from top-left: candied orange blossom, chocolate star anise, caramel del sel, mystery apple (we forgot to note the exact flavor), lemon thyme, vanilla bean, chocolate spice, maple glazed bacon, and the aforementioned lemon pistachio.

We sliced them up, sampled each of them, and debated on the best. The caramel del sel was fantastically rich, and the bacon donut was suprisingly satisfying, but the best may have been the simple lemon thyme (though no one else would agree with me, probably).

PS- And, in related news, I've had to go on a diet and start working out since I've been back. Even all the walking we did in San Francisco couldn't counteract the incredible sweets available everywhere. But it was totally worth it!

Around town in American Apparel.

After a year of living in South Africa, during which Bordeaux and I each added literally 1 item of clothing to our wardrobes (but wore out all of our older garments), we're both in the process of rebuilding our closets. The good side of this is that we can basically start from scratch, focusing on certain styles and colors. So while in San Francisco, we made a few trips to hit up local-California store American Apparel. Not only is it a fantastic place to stock up on locally and responsibly made style basics fairly inexpensively, but because they make each item in a variety of core colors it makes it really easy to co-ordinate. So re-outfitted, we took to the streets of San Francisco to put our best colors forward.

B in the Mission: Cotton pique tennis shirt in dark purple, Seersucker Robert Kennedy short in white and black.

X at the Golden Gate: Flex Fleece Zip Hoodie in mermaid green

B Downtown: Striped Fleece Zip Hoodie in purple and black (also seen in top photo).

Murals of the Mission.

Over our week in San Francisco, we seemed to find a daily excuse to head back toward the Mission. Sometimes it was to pick up pastries or donuts, other times in search of a delicious local lunch, but mainly it was just to enjoy the atmosphere of the neighborhood. The murals for which the mission are so well known seem to seem up the Mission's diverse nature, their edgy illustrative styles reflecting both hip pop imagery and the neighborhood's heavily Latino culture. Many of the best murals are hidden in discreet alleys, on garage doors and the backs of shops, making for a perfect stroll after grabbing a lemon thyme donut.

3 Binh My in SF.

One of the most surprising details about San Francisco for me was the way in which binh my, Vietnamese baguette sandwiches, have practically been adopted as a bay area specialty. We saw them sold everywhere and eaten by everyone, from non-descript downtown kiosks catering to local office workers, to the menus of trendy cafes and restaurants, to hole-in-the-wall Tenderloin shops where the queues were startlingly diverse. I love binh my, and likely could have eaten one every day, had I not forced a little restraint upon myself. But as it was, I was able to sample three different binh my, from radically different sources and in quite different forms.

I hate to say it, but the binh my I ate from Saigon to Hanoi might have made me rather particular. While each of the ones I tried in SF were great, I never found a perfect one-- though they came close. Any suggestions on where to try next time?

1. Binh My Pate, from Saigon Sandwich (pictured at top)
We swung by Saigon Sandwich to pick up binh my awhile before lunch-time, but even so there was already a line out the door when we arrived. And after unwrapping my sandwich and taking a bite, I could see why. The sandwiches had a great mix of salty, savory and spicy, with big slices of chili and a generous handful of cilantro. The only problem was the pate flavor, which had too much of a liverwurst flavor, which overpowered a little toward the end. Perhaps I should have ordered the combination pate and cold meats, for a more balanced taste.

2. BBQ Brisket Binh My, at Wexler's

When I saw the BBQ Brisket Binh My listed among the items on the US South-inspired menu at Wexler's, I knew I had to try it. Unfortunately, the result was a little disappointing. I should point out that had I ordered the sandwich simply as a BBQ brisket, I would have had no complaints: the meat was incredibly delicious. But the sandwich was really lacking the binh my flavor it promised. The cilantro and chili were barely present, the pickled cabbage not a perfect substitute for fish-sauce marinated carrots. A great idea, but not terribly well executed.

3. Hoi An Meatball Binh My, from Out the Door

Our first meal in the city itself was a fantastic Vietnamese lunch at the Slanted Door. After leaving, I glanced at their take-away cafe Out the Door, and noticed that they had binh my on the menu. So on our last day, I asked that we swing by the Ferry Building so I could grab one as a final lunch in the city. Though both the Roast Pork and 5 Spice Chicken sounded good, I opted for the Hoi An Meatball sandwich just to be a little different. And once again, the team behind the Slanted Door delivered with a fantastic sandwich that burst with the taste of Vietnam. My only complaint with the sandwich was that, unlike the sandwiches in the city it references, it had no spice. The binh my I had in Hoi An were always doused with a fiery chili sauce, which would have been a nice addition. Perhaps its available upon request?

XO SF.

When I suggested San Francisco as a destination for our family holiday, I did so for a slightly odd (and somewhat selfish) reason. I didn't think I really liked San Francisco. I'd been a few times over my life, and never felt any particular connection to the city-- most recently I'd visited the city on a decidedly miserable college road-trip that made the city seem grimy, bland, and populated by washed out hippies and aging beatniks. And admittedly, my fondness for LA might have spurned a little Nor-Cal rivalry. But recently I'd spoken with quite a few interesting people who love the city, making me wonder if there was something I'd missed. And during the developing of my interest in food, my researches kept pointing back toward San Francisco as a great food center. So I decided to give the city another chance.

I planned the trip rather closely with my sister, and we were very particular in our plans. We avoided everything that seemed too touristy (no bread bowls on Pier 39), skipped the Haight completely (ew), and sought out a mix of local cafes, restaurants, and bakeries to sample from. I wanted to live as much like a local as I could during our short stay, to gain a new perspective on the city.

And as a result, I will happily admit that I was wrong; San Francisco truly is a rather fantastic city. Though the best thing about the city is its vibe and atmosphere, I've isolated a few of the particular things that I loved most about San Francisco. Are they enough to make me spurn LA completely? Well, if I could ever afford an apartment in the Mission...

1. Eating well, locally

The creamy latte and sultana-studded muesli above were enjoyed on a sidewalk table outside Farm:Table, a minuscule cafe with a changing daily menu of straight-from-the-farm produce. San Francisco is not only an easy city in which to eat well, it's also an incredibly easy city in which to eat responsibly, as there are lots of opportunities to eat foods that are grown or produced locally.

There are fantastic cafes, like Farm:Table or the super-cool Local Mission Eatery, which feature menus that are not only fresh and creative, but also made up only of local, seasonal foods. One incredible resource for eating locally in the city is the Ferry Building, which houses enough San Francisco food artisans to put together an incredible picnic lunch. We took home camembert from Cowgirl Creamery, baguettes from Acme Bread Company, and several regional bottles from the Wine Merchant.

The Ferry Building also have a great farmer's market several times a week. One of the best meals we had on the trip was a fantastic breakfast tart Bordeaux made, using local salami, pancetta, eggs, asparagus, herbs, and heirloom tomatoes, all purchased from the farmer's market at the Ferry Building.

2. Asian culture

After having lived in Asia I've had to accept that I'll never be able to leave the continent behind completely; so a US city with a strong Asian culture might be ideal. San Francisco's location on the Pacific Rim was clearly obvious, in elements ranging from the iconic Japanese Gardens at Golden Gate Park (pictured above), to the simple every-day details, like announcements in Mandarin on city buses. It's also a great city for Asian food, with options ranging form rock-star restaurants like The Slanted Door and Burma Superstar!, to small hole-in-the-wall binh my shops.

3. Car-free living

I have really grown to love living without a car, and while I still see the use in having one for moving furniture or going on road-trips, I'd be rather pleased if my daily life was totally car-free. San Francisco must among of the very few cities in the American West where that's actually a possibility. We were lucky enough to rent a house in Nob Hill, from where we could almost everywhere; for longer distances, I loved the retro cable-cars that have been gathered from all over the country.

Not only was it personally enjoyable being able to get around on foot, but it created such a wonderful atmosphere in the city. The streets and sidewalks felt totally alive, because people weren't just ducking into their cars as soon as they got outside. People would pass us carrying groceries or bundles of flowers, walking french bulldogs, or going on their daily run. And all the people mingling on the sidewalks meant tons of opportunities for fashion-spotting among locals, who somehow all seemed incredibly beautiful and well-dressed. Maybe it's all the walking and jogging that makes them look so good...

4. Sweet City
Yet for a city that is so fit and healthy, there are an incredible diversity of places that make getting rather fat look quite tempting. There are bakeries, sweet-shops, and ice-cream parlors all over the city, most of them featuring artisinal desserts, creative flavors, and high-quality ingredients. Pictured above is an almond crossaint I wish I'd tried Tartine, where we splurged on a range of pastries to split over a picnic in Golden Gate park. I won't go on too much about the topic of San Francisco's sweet-shops now, because I have a lot more to say about it another entry...

eating culture/eaten: In-n-Out Burger and Shake.

Last week I got to spend an incredible seven days around San Francisco and the wine country with my family. Our holiday was planned mainly around eating some incredible food, starting with a much appreciated stop at In-n-Out on our way from the airport to Napa. It might seem like a humble beginning to a holiday in one of the world's greatest food centers, but the meal really summed up what we were after: simple, satisfying bites of local California flavor. And anyway, if you've had a burger and shake from In-n-Out, then you probably understand.

Sleep with the Stars.

Any trip I take around the world would ideally include a layover in my beloved Los Angeles. Thankfully I will have a place to crash when I make it back there, but that doesn't mean I can't imagine an escape to one of these retro lodges. In some ways, their diverse styles evoke different eras, different facets of Hollywood...

...from the aged and slightly worn hotels of the city's early years, where one can picture a struggling writer trying to polish a script...

...to the iconic and glamorous playgrounds of its golden age, where starlets sat poolside, and producers met over coffee in the Fountain Room...

...to the fantastically glitzy motor lodges of the space-age '50s, where sun-seekers ended their trip along Route 66.

National Restrooms.

In looking through the archives of photos I’ve taken, I often see recurring themes develop. Often I’m conscious of these trends; I like to take photographs of certain colours, say, or of modernist architecture in unusual places. Sometimes, however, strange themes occur within my work without my having been aware. Like, for instance, these images of National Park toilets. Looking over them individually, I can recall why I took each individual photo: I liked the offbeat composition of the outhouse and boulders in Joshua Tree; I was caught by the pattern of light inside men’s room at My Son; I was amused by the way the ablutions at Great Zimbabwe were made to mirror the historic architecture of the ruins—but looked at as a recurring theme, it comes off a little strange. This isn’t exactly a regularly recurring subject of mine (there are, after all, only five such photos between a period from 2003 to 2008)—yet still frequent enough to warrant notice. The best explanation I can provide is that one of the larger themes I explore in my photography is the more mundane aspects of travel and tourism—and thus these images of themed National Park restrooms have found their way into my collection. Does that make it seem any less odd?

Pictured (from top): Voortrekker Monument, Pretoria, South Africa; Joshua Tree NP, California, US; My Son, Vietnam; Tikal, Guatemala; Great Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe.

Eating American in Los Angeles.

The above photos are not documentation of a bizarre three-course meal, but rather some samples of my first weekend eating again in the United States. Though I obviously had regrets about the food I'd be leaving in Southeast Asia, I was pretty excited about the food I'd be returning to in the US. And luckily the port of entry for my return was Los Angeles, the ideal place to get started eating.

We only had a weekend in LA, which was way too short to get in everything we wanted-- but we managed to do pretty well for ourselves. Highlights (most of which are illustrated above) included a greasy diner-style patty melt, an excellently prepared homemade Thanksgiving dinner, almond and cherry scones with a latte at Peet's Coffee on Larchmont, and a decadent pumpkin-spice cupcake at Swinger's Diner.

And though it doesn't exactly fit with the theme, I will also single out one of our best meals-- a delicious (and long awaited) Ethiopian dinner on Fairfax.

Sadly missed? Zankou Chicken, and even a single Taco Truck. Next time...

LAndscapes: The Silverlake Reservoir.

In thinking about my next move and potential future homes (thanks for all of the suggestions- Istanbul and Nepal would be awesome, and Vietnam is actually right at the top of my list), my mind drifted to all the things I love and miss about my previous place of residence.

When I last lived in Los Angeles, my apartment was right at the border between Mid-Wilshire and Korea Town. Though I was a little skeptical of the location at first, I came to really like being centered there. It put me within easy driving distance of both East and West LA, was practically next door to the Farmer's Market, and was near great diners and shopping. But one of my favorite things was that it put me just around the corner from the Silverlake Reservoir.

The neighborhood around the Silverlake Reservoir has a relaxed, almost rustic feel, with wood houses peeking out among the tree-shrouded hillsides. There were several independent cafes and design boutiques in the area, so it was a great setting for spending a relaxed Sunday drinking lattes and window-shopping. Even while running mundane errands to Trader Joe's or the video store, it was always a treat to drive under the shadows of pine-trees as I curved around the placid emerald-green waters.

LAndscapes: The Beverly Catalina Car Wash.

One of the most distinctive features of the Los Angeles landscape is the stately carwash. Its sweeping block-long form sums up so much about Southern California- from the glamour of its oversized Spanish Mission style lanterns, to the angular Googie signage that seems so evocative of a post-war enthusiasm for the freedom of owning a private vehicle.

Photographed between Midtown and Korea-town, on Beverly and Catalina.

The city you lived in is ugly: L.A.ndscapes.

When I tell people that I lived in LA, they frequently show no hesitation in informng me how much they hate the city. Perhaps they expect that I'll feel the same because it isn't my place of origin or because I chose to leave, or maybe they don't care what I think about it, but it always seems a little tacky to me. I love LA, so I have to admit I do feel a little offended when I hear that. I certainly don't expect everyone to like Los Angeles: I know of course that tastes and preferences vary, and that people have legitimate reasons for disliking LA. But it often seems that people simply repeat the sentiment without good reason, as if to dislike 'Hollywood' is a rejection of the qualities associated with it. And those qualities attached to LA, that it's vacuous, unintellectual, and shallow, strike me as a hollow cliche.

I find LA to be a vibrant, exciting city; it's a centre for progressive art and design, and a cosmopolitan mingling of diverse cultures. Beyond that- and this is where many disagree with me- I think that it's simply a beautiful city to look at. Then again, I'm not much helping that cause. Exactly one year ago, I started this blog with my first photographic entry, a piece about photographing Hollywood, which was written in and about Los Angeles. However, in the year that's followed, I've only written six more entries devoted entirely to the city. I have hundreds of photographs of LA, but I've probably published less than thirty of them on Primitive Culture. So I'm starting a new series: L.A.ndscapes. I'll be combining urban photographs with stories, pieces of history, or tips for traveling in the city of angels. I don't expect to change anyones mind about Los Angles- but I hope to at least show why I love it.

Lonely landscapes of the LA zoo.

Many people complain about the LA Zoo. They say it's too small, too strange-- they favor instead the massive animal amusement park in San Diego. But the LA zoo seems just the right size to me. With its overgrown landscape, it seems almost to be a massive, primeval garden-- making it all the more surprising when you turn a corner, and come across a Sumatran rhino or a Bactrian camel.

Perhaps because so many people overlook it, the grounds of the LA zoo are often quiet, and perfect for exploration. The further back in the zoo you walk, the farther you get from the minor crowds, and the more you escape into the manicured wild.