The Bar Exam. Or, How I'm Spending My Summer.

Hi all!

It's been a busy two weeks. To recap: FitBlog, then the next day I went to Cuba for a school trip. I got back, celebrated Sourabh's birthday, then my parents arrived for my law school graduation. Which took place in the pouring rain with thunder and lightning also making an appearance. My parents and I then headed up to Montreal and Quebec City for a five day road trip.

I forgot to include this photo in my post about Quebec!
They have tiny buses!! Look at this tiny adorable bus!

It's been wonderful, but I'm really looking forward to settling back into routine over the next few months. It's hard to eat healthy and get in the kind of exercise I like to do when traveling, and while I try to always walk a lot and eat a healthy breakfast and lunch, I also don't want to miss out on experiences like trying an authentic Cuban dish or eating in a wonderful French bistro. And that's a good thing, I think!

But now we're back to routine, which is also good. I have a special routine this summer. What does that routine look like?

Bar review books. Foam roller included for scale.

This. It looks like this.

I've mentioned bar review and the bar exam, but not said much about it. Basically, I will be either watching lectures or reading about topics and completing practice questions, all summer long.

For the course I'm taking, I can either watch a taped lecture in a lecture hall with classmates or in my apartment, so I have the feeling I'll mostly be watching at home.

My screen view today.

Each lecture is about 4 hours long, but some are a bit more and others are a bit less. You have a book of handouts which you fill out as you follow along with the lecture (except for this week, where we don't have handouts and just have to take notes). There are also books with more information that you need to study and learn.

The bar exam is a two day exam, 6 hours each day. It's offered twice a year, in February and the end of July, and I'm taking it in July. It has multiple choice parts and essay parts. It is closed-book, meaning I have to have everything in those books up there memorized. Basically.

After yesterday's first lecture, I had 9 pages of notes total. There are about 30 lectures. Eeeeek. Yes, I'm getting kind of nervous.

I'm going to start increasing my mileage in anticipation of marathon training, so it'll be nice to have therapy runs to turn to whenever I get stressed. I have the feeling there will be a lot of those! And yes, there will also be more healthy eating and exercise posts again :)


Have you ever taken a giant exam? Do you like getting back to routine after being away from it for a while?

Burlington, VT, and Bar Exam Prep Begins

Getting a late start today after arriving in New York at 9:30 PM last night, completing 550 miles from Quebec to Montreal to Burlington, VT, and finally home to NYC. To say I'm a bit creaky this morning is an understatement.

Since we had such a long day ahead of us, we decided to do two minor detours -- drop by Mont Royal to see the views of Montreal and eat lunch in Burlington, VT.

Montreal cityscape from Mont Royal

Montreal was unfortunately a bit hazy but it was still wonderful to look out over the city and see the Olympic Stadium from the top of Mont Royal. 

Next up -- Burlington, VT! I officially get the Vermont love after driving through more of this state than I had before. The northern part, with its mountains and lakes, is truly beautiful. Make sure you take the Ethan Allen Highway (Route 7) if you are driving through Vermont!

Adirondacks view and the bottom of Lake Champlain from Route 7

Burlington, VT, was also a really cool town that I'd love to travel back to this summer. It's right on Lake Champlain and has a lot of neat local stores and cafes plus plenty of chain stores, like Banana Republic. 

The downtown, walking-only area

I feel like going to school at the University of Vermont here would be like summer camp. I went to school in a town less than 1/10 the size of Burlington and always wished there was more to do, so Burlington seemed like the perfect mix of country and city!  I am officially applying for enrollment (ok, not really, no more student debt for me).

See? Adorable!

Using Yelp, I found my parents and I a great little cafe in downtown Burlington: Zabby & Elf's Stone Soup. It had lots of vegetarian and vegan options, a hot and cold salad bar, and some incredible baked goods. I got a plate of mixed salads and veggies from the salad bar then split a piece of apple cake with my mom. It was stuffed with chunks of apple and spice. It was so good that my dad got a piece for himself as well!

The fabulous Zabby & Elf's Stone Soup

So, as of today, I'm officially in bar exam study mode. That means 3.5-4 hours of online lectures every day, Monday to Friday, and homework assignments for the afternoons. It should be lots of fun (*sarcasm*). Still, it'll be nice to have a clear-cut schedule for studying. I'll update you all on how it's going occasionally because I know some of you are grad students who have similar exams that you'll be studying for and may be curious to hear how it goes!


Do you ever have college town envy? Have you had to study for something like the bar exam?

Quebec: French Food, Gorgeous Parks, and Giant Waterfalls

Happy Tuesday!

Ok guys, despite loving my adopted city of New York, after spending a day and a half in Quebec, I think I can safely say that it's one of the most beautiful cities I've ever visited.

A gorgeous old town that looks like a French village, old army battlements to explore, plentiful parks for running, and delicious food? Sign me up.

We stayed two nights at Hotel Port Royal. The hotel had a fantastic location, right near the water and in the lower half of old town. It was easy to get around, which is a plus, and there were even welcome cocktails for us! Our room also had a kitchenette so we could make tea and coffee, and we could have cooked if we'd wanted to get groceries.

Croissants at Paillard, a tasty cafe and bakery, on top
Egg white veggie omelette at Le Cochon Dingue on bottom

But who wants to cook when you could eat food like this? We had a fantastic breakfast at Le Cochon Dingue yesterday morning, a short walk from our hotel. Our waitress was friendly and helpful, our meals were delicious, and the price was very reasonable for Quebec (nothing seems to be "small city prices" here, unfortunately).

We had dinner Sunday night at Echaude, and although my dish wasn't very flavorful, the appetizers my parents and I shared were terrific and my parents raved about their dishes. I also had a great Quebecois sparkling white wine there!

Monday night we had a really great dinner at Bistro Sous Le Fort. Every dish was tasty and the service was terrific. Prompt and friendly, just the way I like it. I'd recommend both these restaurants for dinner if you're ever in Quebec City! They're both in the lower part of old town.

Chateau Frontenac from the lower city

Quebec is known in part for the beautiful large red hotel, Chateau Frontenac, that dominates the skyline in Old Town. It opened in 1893 and is now owned by the Fairmont company, so it's technically the Fairmont Chateau Frontenac. The WWII Quebec Conferences, where D-Day was planned, were both held here!

By the way, the city is extremely hilly since it's basically built on the edge of a river gorge. It felt like we were continuously going up or down staircases and hills!

The stairs never end...

Quebec City looks out over the beautiful St. Lawrence River, and the higher you climb the more beautiful the view. I'm so grateful that Monday was so clear and gorgeous or we would have missed the incredible vistas.

Only a 15 minute drive from downtown Quebec is Montmorency Falls. This may have been the highlight of the trip for me because the falls were so awe-inspiring -- they're 98 ft. taller than Niagara Falls!

Check out the staircase in the top right!

We walked along the suspension bridge over the falls, climbed down the staircase to see the falls from below, then went right back up 28 flights of stairs (I counted) or ~450 steps (my mom counted). If you visit Quebec City, make sure you head out of town for a quick hour or so to check out the Montmorency Falls because they're absolutely spectacular!!

I didn't wear workout gear to the Falls, unfortunately, but if I had I would have gone up and down the stairs multiple times. There were quite a few people with water bottles and shorts on, clearly getting in their workout by doing stair repeats. I can't think of a cooler way to get in a cardio workout than climbing stairs by a giant waterfall!

Our trip is ending today as we drive back to New York City, but my parents and I are already plotting to meet in Quebec City for Christmas someday. It's only a 1.5 hour flight from NYC! I can only imagine how lovely this picturesque place would be with a covering of snow.

Sadly, going back also means saying goodbye to my parents, who are flying back to Washington State on Wednesday. Thankfully I'll see them again in September! By the way, did you hear about this bridge collapse? It's on the main route from Seattle to my parents' house!


How was your Memorial Day weekend? Have you ever been to Quebec City? And how freaky are bridge collapses???

Workout Recap and Weekly Goals: Canadian Road Trip Edition

Bonjour from Quebec!

Today's post is heavy on photos of our road trip so far and light on words. Except for the workout recaps at the bottom since I'm a week behind since I recapped Cuba last week instead of posting a workout recap. I also have workout goals for this week that I'm sharing in the hopes of added accountability, as always! It's the last week before marathon training starts. Eek!!

Friday morning, after breakfast with Sourabh, my parents and I drove up to Montreal in Quebec, Canada. Montreal is actually the second largest city in Canada! I didn't realize it was so large since the total population of the metro area is only 3.8 million, so it's the size of, say, Seattle, WA.

Marie-Reine-du-Monde, Old Town in Montreal

I'd been to Montreal once before -- it was the first vacation Sourabh and I took, a weekend away from undergrad one month after we started dating. It was November and absolutely freezing, but we still enjoyed exploring the city. I'd expected to explore the city under nicer circumstances this time, but it ended up raining for the day and a half we were there!

Marie-Reine-du-Monde Cathedral

It was a bummer that the weather was so bad, but my parents and I still explored quite a bit. We're planning on stopping by on Tuesday while we drive back to New York so we can check out Mont Royal on a sunny day. It's a giant park with beautiful views so good weather is kind of a necessity!

Besides exploring the old town, we had a terrific Lebanese dinner at Garage Beirut and also took a free pilates class at a Lululemon!

We stayed two nights at Hotel Chateau St-Marc, a bed and breakfast. It was a quirky little place with speedy free wi-fi and a small but tasty complimentary breakfast. The extra bed for me was super soft and I slept like a baby.

Our hotel!

Sunday afternoon, we headed to Quebec, and after exploring the old town here we had a tasty French meal. Photos and updates on Quebec to come tomorrow!

Oh, I almost forgot to share this vital piece of information. I found this place in Montreal:

Yes, it's a pick-your-own-ingredients-and-get-a-cookie-made bar. I didn't try it because I'd just had our delicious dinner at the Lebanese restaurant,  but I'm hoping to find an outpost of this chain here in Quebec...

Ok, on to the workout recaps. Yup, two workout recaps this week because I didn't recap the previous week's workouts since I was in Cuba!


Workout Recap - Week of May 13

Monday: Rest after Flywheel/Refine double.

Tuesday: 45 min. spin at Flywheel & 60 min. Flybarre class. Another fantastic class with Kate H at Flywheel! She is a phenomenal spin instructor and I have gotten my two highest power numbers ever in her classes. I also really enjoyed Flybarre (review to come!)

Wednesday: 60 min. Refine Method class.

Thursday: Rest.

Friday-Sunday: Rest due to travel. Stretched and walked a lot during my lengthy layover in the Miami Airport, and walked several miles each day exploring Havana.


Workout Recap - Week of May 20

Monday: 1.5 mile run in Havana. SO HOT AND HUMID. I promise not to complain (too much) about the humidity in NYC now.

Tuesday: Rest (Sourabh's birthday).

Wednesday: 45 min. spin at Flywheel with Dani Devine. My first time in this rockstar's class, but it definitely won't be the last! I was pushing myself hard and loved her playlist. Felt so good to get a hardcore sweat going!

Thursday: 60 min. Refine Method class. Tough but not so tough that I collapsed onstage as I crossed during graduation ;)

Friday: Rest (drive to Montreal).

Saturday: Oiselle Dr Lesko Core Routine and walking around Montreal.

Sunday: 60 min. Pilates class at Lululemon in Montreal. This class was pretty easy, but it was a nice way to wake up before another day of driving (it's 3 hours between Montreal and Quebec).


Goals for This Week
I'm going to be gearing up for marathon training this week, making some runs a priority to see how my legs are feeling. Hopefully I'll be running up here in Quebec since there are some beautiful parks!

• 3 runs (2 short and 1 long-ish)
• 3 strength workouts
• 1-2 yoga classes
• 1 spin (?)


What are your goals for this week? How do you work out on vacation?

Law School Graduation! Or, I'm a J.D.!

Like my Elle Woods-esque manicure?

I graduated from law school yesterday! In the middle of a monsoon!

Ok, well maybe not a monsoon, but an insane downpour that left our robes drenched despite the Columbia Law School umbrellas we were given.

This may sound crazy, but the downpour somehow made the whole graduation more fun. I was laughing as we walked into the graduation tent because we were all drenched, and the thunder and lightning certainly livened up the speeches.

I'm the first person in my family to get a doctorate of any kind, so it was an exciting day. I feel so blessed by all the wonderful people who have become part of my life because of the law school experience.

My parents and me post-graduation, finally seeking shelter after the storm.

I am so grateful for the love and support of my parents. Where I grew up, only 40% of students from the local high school go to a community college or four-year university. Nothing I've been able to accomplish would be possible without them and I am constantly grateful for the life I'm able to lead because of them.


I am off on a graduation road trip with my parents to explore Montreal and Quebec. I'm excited to share what we do and where we go up there next week! For now, I'm leaving you with snapshots from my graduation ceremony.

"Family" snapshot before leaving for the ceremony

Woo! Ready to graduate! These robes are ridiculously large!

A classmate baked cookies for all 400 graduating law students to enjoy as we waited to march! Such a sweet gesture.

Negotiations classmates trying to stay dry in the deluge.

Wenli and me, work buddies from last summer and thankfully she'll be returning to the firm this fall!

Another work buddy, Aidan. So glad only the cool Columbia kids went to my firm ;)

Hi Jason! My Co-Development Editor for the Columbia Business Law Review last year. Our last names meant we were seated next to each other, which was fun.

There's a joke about lots of law students in one tent to be made here, I'm sure...

Our keynote speaker, Preet Bharara '93, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.  My favorite quote form his speech: "Nothing great was ever accomplished with a cynical heart"

We didn't get diplomas, just handshakes. Diplomas have to be picked up later. 

Handshake with Preet! 

Law school BFF Lena!! So glad we saw each other and snagged this picture!

If you've been to Montreal and Quebec, anything we need to do up there? Any running routes or yoga studios to hit up?

Random Bits & Pieces: Graduation Week

This post is all over the place, but that's how my week has been, literally. I started it in Cuba and will be ending it in Canada. Oh, and I'm graduating from law school today!

I got back from Cuba late Monday night, celebrated Sourabh's birthday with him on Tuesday (low-key since he's in the middle of the writing competition for journals at Columbia), then ran errands and cleaned our apartment Wednesday before my parents arrived last night. Phew!

I was so frazzled today that I completely forgot about my date with Carrie to do some much-needed Trader Joe's shopping!! The biggest apologies ever, Carrie, and thanks for being so understanding :) We'll be meeting up before book club next weekend. For those reading Savor, how are you liking it??

My parents are here now and I'm so excited for the short road trip we're taking after my graduation. We're going up to Montreal and Quebec! Anyway, to recap the post-Cuba and pre-graduation part of my week, here's what happened.

Sourabh was craving some top notch pizza for his birthday, so we headed to Motorino on the Lower East Side. It was fantastic. I got the Ramp Pizza and Sourabh had the Brussels Sprouts pizza without pancetta (he doesn't eat beef or pork). Both were great, but my ramp pizza was definitely the winner. The place was cute, too, without being kitschy. I'd definitely go back!

While in Cuba, there were a few things I really missed. Easily available fruit and veggies and iced coffee, to mention a few! It was crazy to me how little vegetables are in most cuban dishes -- it's very starch-heavy.

So the morning after I got home, the first thing I had was a bowl of plain Chobani Greek yogurt with some KIND granola (from FitBlog!) and a giant heap of raspberries. It was so satisfying!!

I also missed sweating a lot, despite running a very sweaty mile on the Malecon (the seaside promenade). Unfortunately, I didn't head out early enough, and even at 7:30 AM I was sweating buckets. Plus, the promenade isn't well-kept, so I stumbled quite a few times. Still, it's pretty cool to be able to say I went for a run in Cuba!!

I got back into the sweaty swing of things Wednesday by taking a fantastic spin class at Flywheel UWS with my friend Hana, taught by the amazing Dani Devine. Hana just graduated from UVA Law and just got back from Spain, so we had lots to catch up on! I'm taking a Refine Method class today, too, to make sure I get strength training in as well.

Oh yeah, another thing I missed. Hi cute face. Is there anything as great as how excited a dog is to see you when you get home from a trip, by the way??

And check out the sister cats, Bea and Betty, acting too cool for school. I know you missed me, cats. I'm the only one who pets Bea at 2 AM when she meows for attention...

I'm graduating this afternoon, so I will likely have a ton of photos tomorrow on the blog. I'll try to Instagram in real time, though, so follow along there if you're curious about what a law school graduation looks like! Hint: we wear funny robes and hats.


Do you have pets who miss you when you're gone? Do you miss certain foods when you travel?

Cuba Trip: Part 2

I just realized that yesterday was my 200th post! That's exciting :) It feels appropriate that it was something as exciting as my trip to Cuba. Of course, there's more to come today! If you missed it, here is Part 1 of my Cuba Trip.

As soon as we left the airport, I saw this car and got as excited as this little girl. Since the American embargo started in 1960 and became even stronger in 1962, no cars have gone to Cuba. The only cars there are old American cars, Soviet cars, and the occasional European car.

Funny story here -- during George W. Bush's presidency, anti-Castro images were projected on the large building behind all those poles. It's the "United States Interests Section of the Embassy of Switzerland in Havana" (can you say, bureaucratic mess?). Anyway, the Cuban government didn't like that, so they erected all those poles and flew Cuban flags from them, so that a forest of flags covered the anti-Castro messages. Eventually it was all taken down, but I think that entire episode says a lot about how the U.S. and Cuba interact...

While in Cuba, I could only use my phone for its non-internet/4G functions. Meaning no web browsing, no email, no texting, nothing. Placing a call to the U.S. to tell Sourabh I'd arrived safely was $2.45 a minute. While my hotel had internet you could pay for, it was so incredibly slow that I couldn't load cnn.com to see what was happening in the world.

To say that being in Cuba is isolating is putting it lightly. And that oh-so-slow internet connection? Almost no Cuban has even that. Even university students don't have internet, just intranet so that they can communicate within the school.

Requisite seaside pose. I'm standing on the Malecon, a miles-long, wide promenade facing the sea. 

Every night that we were in Havana, there were hundreds of people along this wide seaside walkway. It was mainly young people hanging out together, chatting, playing drums, and dancing.

There was a lot of live music everywhere, from restaurants and bars to our hotel lobby. Every few songs, the singer would come around with a basket, and it's recommended that you drop a small tip in (small meaning $1-2 or so). The musicians are all clearly well-trained artists, so it's nothing like panhandlers on the subway. But considering how little most people are paid in Cuba, these tips mean a lot to the musicians.

One of the students on the trip, Jose Mario, is half Puerto Rican and half Cuban. He grew up in Puerto Rico and told me that the beat of music in Cuba is different from that of Puerto Rico and that they're both different from the beat of music in the Dominican Republic. Fascinating!

Cuba is also extremely integrated. One major point of pride for the nation is how there is very little racial division. After the revolution, the university was integrated. The official drink is the negron, which has white sugar and clear rum on the bottom and coke and mint on top -- you then mix it up before drinking so that you can't distinguish white and black.

Yesterday, I was asked what kind of questions Cubans asked us. Besides asking about internet access, we were asked about New York City and if our university was free (HAH!!! Hahahahaha. I had to look up the Spanish for "student loans").

Then, while I was scrolling through pictures of America, one of the Cuban students saw my food pictures and asked about what we ate in America, since the average Cuban mainly eats rice and beans.

Traditional Cuban dish -- camarones enchilados, shrimp in a spicy sauce, with rice and beans and fried plantains.

Cubans receive ration books that are meant to last them for a month, but typically only get them through half the month. Then, they have to figure out another way to feed themselves.

Many Cubans receive money from relatives who have emigrated. Others try to subsidize by fishing (without gear). And there are lots of small arts and crafts markets where Cubans sell art, jewelry, and other handiwork to tourists.

On Sunday afternoon, as our group walked along the Prado, a main boulevard separating districts, we saw lots of children painting, learning how to make crafts, and sketching. Teachers were helping them draw and teaching them artistic techniques.

My classmates! 

Traveling to Cuba was an incredible, once-in-a-lifetime experience (unless the embargo is lifted). A huge, huge thank you to our professor who made it possible. Being able to explore Havana with the insight of an expert on the nation was amazing. I hope that one day I can return to the island.

Cuba Trip: Part 1

Late last night, I finally got back to New York City. If you follow me on Twitter, you may have seen that I was traveling on Friday.

As part of my seminar on Cuban law this past term, we could go to Cuba legally with our professor and learn about the country. So last Friday, I flew down to Miami and boarded a plane to Cuba for the short, 45 minute flight to Havana.

I am so incredibly excited to be able to share this trip with you all. Cuba is an amazing country with a deep history and a sense of culture that permeates everything. Yet it's also a poor country, and despite what some say about the nation's healthcare or education, the poverty was very evident.

A huge number of the buildings in Centro Havana, outside Old Havana, are decaying and crumbling. However, this area used to be much more of a slum than it is today, so things are improving.

Many once-extravagant homes are inhabited by multiple families in different rooms.

Cubans were eager to talk to our group -- we stood out since four of us were blondes!

A group of students approached us as we took photos of the University of Havana, asking us if we were Americans. They were excited when they heard we were from New York, and we showed them pictures of the city on our phones.

The students were most interested in if we had internet. All of them asked us if we had free internet access at our school and what limits we had. Internet is not available at the University of Havana, only intranet, meaning it is only for communicating within the school and cannot be used for accessing outside websites or email services.

Cuba is, after all, a Communist country that has only one political party. This is very evident as you walk around. There are slogans, posters, and entire building sides dedicated to propaganda.

Street side booksellers largely sell Cuban revolutionary material.

We only had a few days there, Friday evening and the weekend, but we tried to make the most of our time.

Friday night we had drinks at Hotel Nacional de Cuba, a hotel famous for its celebrity clientele back in the 1930s and 1940s (including a major mafia conference dramatized in The Godfather Part II) and also for its bloody history. The hotel was the site of a small siege between rebellious army factions.

Saturday we got to meet and talk to Cuban nationals, one a former high ranking official and the other an economist. After, we walked throughout Old Havana, the UNESCO World Heritage Site part of the city.

Finally, on Sunday, we saw the university, explored Old Havana further, and saw the Plaza de la Revolucion before going to dinner in Miramar, where most embassies are. The neighborhood was quite upscale prior to the Revolution and there are beautiful houses and mansions throughout the wide streets.

The gigantic Soviety Embassy, now the Russian Embassy

During the Special Period, the time after the collapse of the Soviet Union when Cuba lost all support from the Soviets and experienced major food and fuel shortages, the Cuban government decided to turn to tourism.

But because Cuba is Communist, tourists use a different currency than Cuba nationals, called the convertible peso ("cuc" pronounced "kook"). The cuc has roughly a 1:1 ratio to U.S. dollars, and meals in most restaurants range from $8-20 or so. If this seems expensive for a developing nation, that's because basically only tourists can afford to eat in restaurants -- the average Cuban makes roughly $20 a month.

At La Bodeguita del Medio, famous for its notable clientele (Hemingway, Neruda, and Allende)
It claims to be the birthplace of the mojito.

Enjoying a daiquiri at El Floridita, famous for its daiquiris and being a favorite bar of Hemingway.
Note the Hemingway statue at the bar in the background!

This was the most beautiful, incredible, delicious thing I've ever had. It was mixed coconut water, meat, and milk that was frozen into a coconut shell. This will haunt my dream for weeks.

Old Havana is the main tourist destination in Havana. It's beautiful -- a mixture of crumbling and restored Spanish buildings dating back hundreds of years, with narrow streets and open squares.

That's all for now, folks. It's Sourabh's birthday and I still have some pre-graduation errands I need to get done! But I will be posting more about Cuba tomorrow.


Do you have any questions for me about Cuba that you'd like answered in tomorrow's post??