Category: Cuisine

Friday: Thanksgiving Recap and Another Day at Sea

So, how was your Thanksgiving? Like us, did you eat too much and live to regret it? Have seconds on everything and cap it off with a turkey sandwich at midnight? We weren’t quite that bad, but pretty bad nevertheless.

Before our Thanksgiving feast for 8 was served up in our beautiful cabin aboard Celebrity Silhouette, we spent the day on St. Maarten. That is, to say, AAC CPA and I spent about 15 minutes on the island. (We’re such bad tourists, you know.)

We decided we’d be terrible people if we didn’t at least make an effort. So we traipsed off the ship, ducked into a Belgian chocolate store, picked up some candy for our favorite on-board concierge, Jola, and came right back on board. The ship is so delightful when everyone else goes ashore. And that was that.

However, here’s AAC CPA communing with an Island celebrity:

St Maarten AAC
AAC CPA has a little Island chat with Pieter Stuyvesant

By late afternoon, it was time to set sail and move on.

St Maarten Departure
Departure from St. Maarten

A bit later on, we had a lovely sunset

Celebrity Sunset
Is that a beautiful sunset or what?

And then it was time to get ready for our little Thanksgiving fête. Our superb butler, Alex, had already set up the cabin for the turkey feast:

Celebrity Big Table
The big table

Celebrity Little Table
The kid’s table for AAC and me

Celebrity Alex
Our butler, Alex, pops the cork 

And I set up the bar:

Celebrity Bar Setup
My domain: Negronis, anyone?

The guests arrived right on time and the Negronis were flowing along with the assortment of hors d’eauvres that Alex had provided. A little later, at the perfect moment, the food arrived and we sat down to the main meal. The food was delicious and we were all grateful for the meal and for each other’s company. After we’d polished off the turkey and trimmings, dessert was served: pumpkin pie AND a lovely chocolate pecan pie. Good thing we were all wearing elasticized pants, if you receive my meaning.

We all went our separate ways around 10:00 PM.

Around midnight, there was some shipboard drama: we made an unscheduled stop on the island of St. Thomas. A couple of passengers were escorted off the ship; not sure why. Of course, everyone is gossiping about it this morning.

Today we learned that the captain has taken the ship slightly off its designated course due to some rough waters. As I sit on the veranda typing this post, I can feel the motion of the ocean, but nothing too serious. In fact, we like it – it reminds us that we’re on the ocean, after all.

And now we’re coming into the home stretch of the cruise: sea days today and tomorrow and then they throw us off the ship on Sunday morning. As you know, we love sea days – we just lollygag around and take advantage of what the ship has to offer: food, food and more food. Maybe a trip to the casino or a wine tasting this afternoon. And there’s that champagne tea to which we’ve been invited. So many choices, so little time. 

Oh, and it’s the last formal night this evening. On this ship, however, anything goes and I DO mean anything.

All in all, it’s been a lovely time.

Thursday: St. Maarten, Thanksgiving and Why I’m Thankful

Greetings from sunny St. Maarten. And happy Thanksgiving to those of you who observe/celebrate it. AAC CPA and I went into town for all of 15 minutes to purchase some Belgian chocolates as a gift for our wonderful concierge, Jola. She has taken such good care of us. Then we got back on board as quickly as possible. The ship is fun today because most of the passengers are off exploring and we have the run of the place. Woo-hoo!

St Maarten
A gorgeous St. Maarten beach

Our butler, Alex, has already been here to start setting up for our Thanksgiving feast, as we’re hosting our group chez nous. We’ll be 8 for dinner. Alex did a preliminary setup, and he’ll be back later to put the finishing touches together. We’ll start with cocktails and hors d’eauvres at 7:00, followed by the all the Thanksgivings fixings at 7:30, served buffet style, as I want everyone to have as much or as little of everything that they desire. Pumpkin pies for dessert, natch. I, of course, have already started my prep work and the turkey just went into the oven. (Truth or dare?)

Celebrity Child
True or false: Is this me prepping the turkey?

So is Thanksgiving a day of reflection for you? Do you take stock and count your blessings? Or is it just another day where we all eat too much and pay for it on Friday?

For me, I tend to be overly-analytical about everything in life so today’s just another day to do more of the same.

However, in these dark and dangerous times, I think it’s a good idea to consider who and where I am at this point in my life. Am I measuring up? Do I have what it takes? Am I headed on the right path?

Here’s where it stands for me:

I have AAC CPA and we both have our health. That’s first and foremost. Added to that, we’re extremely fortunate to have the resources that allow us to live this lovely life (which, in turn, provides fodder for this blog) which we never ever take for granted. We have the added blessing of getting along famously with both of our families (I think that may be a rare thing), and a circle of friends, who keep us amused and on our toes. And, I think, there’s real affection there, too.

We have very good and dear friends in London – they know who they are – who just had a bit of a close shave in the London tube. Thankfully, they’re all right and nothing really terrible happened. But they wrote to tell us about it and to ask if we were having 2nd thoughts about our upcoming trip to London. (Yes, gentle readers, we’re somehow returning to London – our 3rd time this year!! More on that very soon.) I replied with no hesitation whatsoever that we wouldn’t dream of cancelling our trip. We love London and the thought of spending Christmas there is simply irresistible.

And herein is the real thing for which I’m most grateful today: AAC and I live in NYC and were there on that terrible day in September 2001. Then and there, we made a vow to each other that we would never put off anything that we wanted to do, whether it was to read that book, see that play, try that new restaurant, or get on a plane or ship and hit the road. In these uncertain times, we try not to live in fear but, rather, to live our lives fully and enjoy them to the best of our abilities.

I didn’t mean for this post to turn into any kind of sermon, so mea culpa if it came off that way. It’s just my way of saying how truly lucky and blessed we are.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all.

Tomorrow: We’re back at sea!!

 

 

Tuesday/Wednesday: San Juan and St. Kitts

Thought I’d forgotten about you, huh? Of course not. But yesterday – San Juan – was somehow a very busy day and I ran out of time. And perhaps the various cocktails I sampled during the day tuckered me out just a tetch.

So, in brief, I thought I’d share our day in pictures with you. Not much narrative, just what it looked like. Is that OK with you?

Before that, however, here are a couple of pix from our own AAC CPA at Qsine, the specialty restaurant where we dined on Monday night. I told you about it in a past entry. The thing I forgot to mention is that your menu is actually an iPad, and you scroll through and add to “my favorites” all the dishes (tapas-style) that you want to sample. It can quickly mount up and get out of control. But then Yelena comes up and tells you what to do. Relinquishing control makes it so much easier. So:

Qsine AAC
AAC CPA self lubricates at Qsine.

qsine Sushi
Sushi lollipops with dipping saucesI

Qsine Spring Rolls
Vegetarian and Short Ribs Spring Rolls

Qsine Crab Cake
Amazing crab cake, which somehow has spaghetti, too

Next day around 2:30 in the afternoon, we arrived at San Juan.

San Juan Docking
Buenos tardes, San Juan!

San Juan Arrival - 01
AAC CPA disembarks

San Juan Arrival -02   And more disembarkation

And now we set out on a quest to find an excellent Piña Colada, a most important mission. We’d been told, by one whose credentials on such matter are beyond reproach, to seek out a place called Barrachina, and so we did. And, within a matter of minutes:

San Juan Barrachina
   And there it is: Barrachina

And, should you visit their website, it clearly states that Barrachina is “birthplace of the famous Piña Colada”, so there it is in black and white.

San Juan Drinks
  And there they are, in living color – note the umbrellas, by the way

After our cocktail, we took a little stroll through Old San Juan. Here’s one of the indigenous places we found:

San Juan Flip Flops
You never know when you might need a pair

More interestingly, AAC CPA and stayed many, many years ago in a charming former convent appropriately called El Convento. According to google maps, it was literally a stone’s throw away.

San Juan El Convento
Brings back very sweet memories of a long-ago time

Then it was time to head back to the ship. Just before boarding we saw a lovely almost full moon rising over the city.

San Juan Moon
Moon over San Juan

A little later we saw this amazing sunset:

San Juan Sunset
Nice, huh?

And then it was time to meet our group at the Sunset Bar for – what else – cocktails.

San Juan Group
Here we are: The Might Eight: Steve, Ian, Jamie, Kurt, Linda, Dave, AAC CPA and – behind the camera – your faithful servant.

After a shower and change of clothes, AAC CPA and I made our way up to deck 15 for a lovely dinner at the Lawn Club Grill:

San Juan - AAC on deck.JPG
AAC CPA on the way to the Lawn Club Grill for a sunset dinner

And here he is at the Grill:

AAC Lawn Club Grill
Feeding time, so AAC CPA is very happy

By the way, the Lawn Club Grill has a great concept: al fresco dining, 4 course meal, beginning with a flatbread that you can make yourself (including twirling the crust), generous salad bar, following by the grill course – steaks, lamb, fish, seafood, vegetables grilled to perfection, with yummy sides and then, finally, dessert – the cobbler and chocolate chip cookie with vanilla ice cream are the ones to take. 

And while we were enjoying our meal, we began our departure from San Juan. The ship’s movement provided a gentle breeze as we headed out to sea.

All in all, a lovely way to end the day.

This morning, we landed in St. Kitts. Here are a couple of shots:

St Kitts.JPG       What we saw from our veranda this morning

And look what’s next door to us:

St. Kitts Ships
Yes, it’s a Celebrity sister ship

And now it’s time for lunch, so that’s all today, kids. Enjoy your pre-holiday and we’ll see you next time!

Monday – At Sea but Not AT Sea

So you probably know that AAC CPA and I love traveling by ship and what we especially like are sea days. Our friend, Kurt, invited us to join him on Celebrity Silhouette for this 7-day cruise round-trip from and to Ft. Lauderdale and visiting 3 ports in the Caribbean. The best part for us is those sea days: 3 of them, in fact. Today is the first of them, and it’s been delightful. Nothing to do and all day to do it!

Here’s what I saw from our veranda first thing this morning:
Celebrity AM Shot
  Aren’t sea days the best?

We started with a lovely breakfast at our designated restaurant, Luminae. Everyone there is so friendly and eager to please. Of course, there is way too much food. I thought I’d just have a couple of eggs (over medium) but how did it happen that out from the kitchen came home fries, hash browns, a broiled tomato, sautéed mushrooms, corned beef hash and rye toast? I haven’t even mentioned the pastry cart, from which this nuclear Danish leapt onto my plate.

From there, we went to visit our concierge, Jola (from Belgium), who’s been amazing. AAC CPA and I have decided that we want to host our group (there are 8 of us altogether) for a Thanksgiving dinner in our cabin. It looks like that’s going to happen, so now we’re determining the logistics. Stay tuned, as I think it’s going to be a fun experience.

On the way back to the cabin from Michael’s Club, we passed by the Molecular Bar and vowed to have a cocktail there this evening.

Celebrity Molecular
  Wouldn’t you want to drink at this watering hole?

Then back to the cabin, as we like lolling around the suite. We have a wonderful butler, Alex, who’s taking excellent care of us. The cabin was all made up and we could just set up with some nice morning music (Duke Ellington) and some light reading on the veranda.

Celebrity AAC on Veranda
   AAC CPA peruses the Sunday NY Times on Monday.

Before we knew it, it was time to eat again. We exercised some restraint, because we have great dinner plans tonight – the 1st of our specialty restaurants: Qsine, which has a really cool dining concept. Here’s how they describe the food: “Flavours originate from around the world to fuse in delighting ways at Qsine. Sushi lollipops, lobster escargot and popcorn fish and chips all feature on a menu designed to evoke your senses.” Who wouldn’t want to try that?

Celebrity Qsine1
And here’s the entrance to Qsine

Celebrity Qsine2
And here’s some of the wacky innovative Qsine cuisine

After lunch, it was time for a stroll up on decks 14 and 15, where the pools and other fun things are. Did you know that there’s a real grass lawn up on deck 15? And that’s where the Lawn Club Grill is located and where we’ll be having dinner on Tuesday evening. They also have some funny furniture up there:

Celebrity AAC Chair
AAC CPA channels Edith Ann, “and that’s the truth!”

Later, it was time for AAC CPA to try out the veranda Jacuzzi, for real this time. You may recall that Kurt photoshopped AAC CPA into the Jacuzzi, which appeared in a recent blog entry. Here’s the real deal:

Celebrity Jacuzzi.jpg
Isn’t he a cutie?

And here’s a late day view from the veranda, much like this morning’s but yet different:

Celebrity PM Shot
   Watching the world go by

Now it’s time for a little nappy and then it’s a dress-up night. We’re going to try and have that cocktail at the Molecular Bar and then off to Qsine.

Oh, and yes, tomorrow mid-afternoon we make our first post, San Juan.

San Juan
Lovely San Juan

Watch this space for more schmoozin’ and cruisin’. Buh-bye for now.

 

 

 

 

Sunday: Heading Out to Sea

Greetings from somewhere in the Atlantic between Ft. Lauderdale and San Juan, P.R. This will be a quick entry, but I wanted you all to know that we arrived safely and are now ensconced in our lovely Royal Suite aboard Celebrity Silhouette.

Our day began in Ft. Lauderdale under threatening skies:

Celebrity Ft Lauderdale   Overcast Ft. Lauderdale – where’s the sun??

We boarded the ship around 12:00 noon – an easy and fairly quick process. And here’s our intrepid AAC CPA checking out the atrium just around the corner from our cabin:

Celebrity AAC Atrium     AAC CPA gets acclimated to his new surroundings

We’re traveling with some friends and we all convened in the Sky Observation Lounge forward on deck 14 for our departure – it’s been raining on and off all day, so we didn’t want to get wet.

Celebrity Sky Observation
   Sky Observation Lounge up on Deck 14

In brief, the ship is gorgeous – and very large for us who are used to traveling on mid-sized ships (our QM2 crossing in September notwithstanding). We have a designated restaurant called Luminae, but there are also 4 specialty restaurants that look very yummy, and we already have reservations at each of them over the next few nights.

There are also a lot of bars all over the ship that we must check out: the Molecular Bar, the Martini Bar, amongst others. We also have a dedicated lounge – Michael’s Club – just for us. How lucky are we??

Here are a few pix of the ship:

Celebrity Molecular Bar
   The Molecular Bar for wacky cocktails

Celebrity Cocktail
   Martini, anyone?

Celebrity Luminae.jpeg
   Our dedicated restaurant, Luminae

That’s all for today – have to head up to Michael’s Club for the 1st Negroni of the cruise. See y’all later!!

Hello – I Must Be Staying!

Hey Everyone!

So, it’s been just about 7 weeks since I started TheCulturedTraveler and I’m thinking that I want to recap what’s been happening with the blog and the life.

OK – full disclosure – I was offered a “blogging 101” primer to help me improve my blogging skills (such as they are) and, perhaps, to breathe new life into this adventure. I’m game for it and eager to see what may happen as a result. Of course, that means that I’ll have to do my “homework”, which means you may be seeing a lot more of me over the next few weeks.

For those of you who have stuck with me (and many, many thanks for that), you’ll know that I had a lot of friends who have encouraged me over the years to share our travel experiences, as well as our culinary and cultural adventures. Living in New York City, we’ve had the very good fortune to take advantage of all that this amazing place has to offer, and we’ve been equally lucky to be able to travel hither and yon and to meet some wonderful people along the way.

Version 2
Blog Highlight #1 – AAC CPA gets ready for takeoff.

Finally, just before our Queen Mary 2 crossing in later September, I took the plunge and, even since, have posted about 2 times a week. What’s been really interesting to me is that the travel posts get a very good readership, while the posts pertaining to culture and food, less so. That’s something I’ll have to figure out as we go along.

03 - Vogue
Blog Highlight #2 – AAC CPA on Embarkation Day aboard QM2

My goal is to connect with fellow travelers, culture and food mavens and to share experiences. I’m pretty good on all of these tracks, but I’m also fortunate to have good friends who share their experiences as well which gives me – well – food for fodder.

IMG_1388
Speaking of food for fodder: Blog Highlight #3 – Post-theatre dinner at The Ivy in London

I’ve had some success so far in connecting with other bloggers who somehow found TheCulturedTraveler, and that’s been great. It’s given me other blogs to read and, from them, to get ideas about things that I might want to do myself. Hopefully, that’s what my blog will do in turn.

Looking a year ahead, where would I want the blog to be? Here are some initial thoughts and goals:

  • I’d like to build the blog so that it can be used as a resource for like-minded people.
  • I’d like to attract a larger following giving TheCulturedTraveler more exposure.
  • I’d like to make the blog itself more attractive with, perhaps, more bells and whistles, so as to make it more interesting to the people who come to visit.
  • I’d also like to arrange for “guest-bloggers” to take over the space from time to time and share some of their experiences.

Finally, I’ve enjoyed posting so far and hope that I feel the same way as time goes by.

As always, thanks for reading stay tuned for more of our adventures.

Lulu Dress
Today’s Blog Highlight – Attending the dress rehearsal of Lulu at the Met

Travel Flashback: Lunch at Locanda Cipriani

Today, I thought I’d share with you a favorite travel memory of AAC CPA’s and mine. In August 2010, we traveled to Italy for a couple of weeks and visited Rome, Venice and Cernobbio on Lake Como.

One of our best experiences on that trip was a magical lunch we had at Locanda Cipriani on Torcello, a sleepy and sparsely populated island (with only a few dozen permanent residents), located on the northeastern side of the Venetian Lagoon.

Locanda Cipriani was the inspiration of Giuseppe Cipriani who, in 1934 purchased a wine shop, which he then transformed into a small locanda (inn) with just 6 rooms surrounded by a magnificent garden. The Cipriani family owns the Locanda to this day.

Ernest Hemingway bestowed great fame on the inn in his book Across the River and Into the Trees, which he wrote during a visit there. With his imprimatur, Locanda Cipriani became a magnet for world-famous celebrities. When we were there, we visited their photo gallery, which includes pictures of the Windsors (yes, THAT family) who visited in May, 1961. It is said that the Locanda is the only restaurant that Queen Elizabeth II has visited privately.

So it was with great anticipation that we departed from our hotel (the famed Cipriani on the island of Giudecca) by water taxi for the 45-minute ride to Torcello. The hotel’s illustrious “doorman”, Roberto (there is no door, actually, as you’ll be arriving to or departing from the hotel either by water taxi or the hotel’s private launch), arranged for our water taxi and told us that we would very much like our “driver”, who the doorman referred to as “Blue Eyes”. And to prove it, Roberto made “Blue Eyes” remove his shades to prove it! And he did!

Venice Doorman
Entrance to the Cipriani and its doorman

Venice - Blue Eyes
“Blue Eyes”

Venice - Depart
Departing the Cipriani on our way to Torcello

The ride to Torcello was very beautiful and exciting as we sped across the lagoon past many other islands along the way.

Venice - Arriving Locanda
Arriving at Locanda Cipriani

Venice - View from Locanda
View from the inn

We asked “Blue Eyes” to return for us in about 2 hours and stepped inside. We were warmly welcomed and shown to our table in a beautiful garden setting.

Venice - Arbor
The garden at Locanda Cipriani

The menu at Locanda Cipriani is a typical for the region. Here’s what we had:

Antipasti:

Venice - Tomatoes
Pomodorini ripieni di verdure in agrodolce con salsa “carlina”
(Ripe tomatoes stuffed with vegetables in sweet and sour sauce)

Venice - Figs
Prosciutto di San Daniele e fichi freschi di Torcello
(San Daniele ham with fresh figs of Torcello)

We skipped the Primi and went directly to the Secondi:

Venice - Lamb
Costolette di agnello dorate al rosmarino e misto di erbe aromatiche, con papate salate in padella
(Golden lamb shops with rosemary and mixed aromatic herbs with salted potatoes in the frying pan)

Venice - Entree
Filetto di branzino dorato in padella con zucchini trifoliate del litorale
(Golden filet of sea bass in the frying pan with three-leafed zucchini of the coast)

And, of course, a bottle of vino:

Venice - Wine
A lovely Fiano di Avellino 2008

Did we possibly save room for some dolce? You bet we did. And a cappuccino for AAC CPA.

Venice - Dessert
Millefoglie in porzione con crema Chantilly
(Individual Napoleon with Chantilly cream)

Venice - AAC
A very satisfied AAC CPA with his cappuccino

Let me tell you that the service was perfect: relaxed, polite, casual and very correct. We were made to feel like special guests and I can’t imagine a more serene setting for this perfect lunch.

After lingering over our dessert, we still had a bit of time before “Blue Eyes” picked us up for the return trip to our hotel; we walked around, visited a church and just generally marveled at this jewel of an island.

The trip back was uneventful except for the amazing views:

Venice - Relaxed AAC
AAC CPA soaks up some rays in the water taxi 

Venice - View Duomo
Lagoon view on the way back to the Cipriani

Venice - Back Home
Arriving back at the Cipriani

If, in the above photograph, you look at the top right, you’ll see our room, which had its own private balcony overlooking the lagoon. How LUCKY are we??

Venice - Balcony
AAC CPA on our private balcony doing some laundry, Italian-style

So, should you find yourself in Venice – the jewel of the Adriatic – I strongly encourage you to make a special trip to Torcello and have lunch at Locanda Cipriani. I won’t lie to you: traveling there by water taxi is not cost-effective (there are less expensive but much more time-consuming ways to get there), but I guarantee that you will have a very unique experience and seeing Torcello and the Locanda will be a wonderful memory for you to cherish.

And, should you want to blast a hole through your hotel budget, a stay at the Cipriani is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. I’m just sayin’.

TRAVEL TIP:  Locanda Cipriani

TRAVEL TIP:  Hotel Cipriani 

CULTURE TIP:  NY Times Review: Across the River and Into the Trees

CULTURE TIP: The Other “Blue Eyes”

A Quick Check-In From London

Greetings, everyone. It’s just about 12:30 AM in London on a Sunday morning. We’re leaving in exactly 10 hours for Southampton where we’ll board Queen Mary 2 and I thought I’d give you a VERY quick check-in from our whirlwind day in London.

If you read my post from the other day, you’ll know that we had a fast and furious day here. Our flight landed Friday evening and it was non-stop since then.

IMG_1372
Our intrepid AAC CPA getting ready to fly

We got into our hotel room around 10:00 PM Friday evening and here’s a little look at our room. Quite nice.

Shangri-La Premiere Room
Premiere Room at the Shangri-La

And here’s what we saw when we awoke this morning:

IMG_1378
Good morning, St. Paul’s

After a lovely breakfast down at Ting Lounge, we were on the run. Off to the National Portrait Gallery to see the Audrey Hepburn Exhibit. While it wasn’t large, what was there was cherce. And we enjoyed it. And the place was filthy packed. I guess there are a lot of Hepburn fans out there. Us, too. She was a good woman.

From there, back to the Shangri-La for lunch with the aforesaid Lynne and Garry. It was so good to see them. We did have a bit of a kerfuffle at the restaurant, however. I must say that the hotel has some issues with service in the restaurants. Getting seated was a bit of an adventure, even with a reservation. And then we had the most leisurely lunch. Too leisurely, in fact. I mean, does it really take almost 2 hours for an appetizer and a burger? I mean it was wonderful visiting with good friends, but we were all getting a bit anxious about it all. We took it in stride but I may have to have a word with the manager before we leave, don’t you think?

Anyway, here are the lovely Garry and Lynne with our own AAC CPA:

IMG_1381
Garry, Lynne and AAC CPA

And check out Garry’s fashion statement:

IMG_1383
Garry is one stylish dude!!

Because lunch ran SO long, AAC CPA and I had to make a decision: nap or cocktails at the Corinthia. No chance to do both. For better (at least for our livers) or for worse, we opted for the nap. Good thing, too. We were out like lights!! Woke up in time to clean up and head out, over to the Duke of York’s Theatre.

IMG_1384
Duke of York’s Theatre

The theatre was packed, a hit in the making.

IMG_1386
A little unauthorized pre-show activity – shhhhh!

So, what did we think of the show? Enjoyed it – marvelous cast and production, didn’t really fulfill our expectations, and that’ll teach us to have expectations!! Actually, as AAC CPA says, sometimes you need to sleep on it and see how you feel the next day. We’ll get back to you on it.

Intermission was interesting, however – look at the entrance to the bar:

IMG_1387
Finding Neverland, anybody?I

Got out of the play and walked over to The Ivy – one of our favorite London establishments. We always feel so welcome there and the place has a great vibe.

IMG_1388
The Ivy, all gussied up on a Saturday nightI

And, here’s our own AAC CPA enjoying his evening out:

IMG_1389
AAC CPA after his 1st cocktail

And, so that was our day in London. Have to be up and out in the morning for our drive down to Southampton, where we’ll embark Queen Mary 2 bound for lil’ ‘ol New York.

Next time you hear from me, we’ll be somewhere on the Atlantic!

Good night, Mrs. Kalabash, wherever you are!!

Leavin’ On A Jet Plane

Greetings from a beautifully sunny Thursday morning in New York City.

Packing is well-underway and we’re now less than 24 hours from lift-off to London. We’ve checked in for our flight (isn’t it great how we can load our boarding passes into our mobiles? I just LOVE that.), and we’re taking care of this ‘n that. Have to be up at 5:00 AM tomorrow to get ourselves out to the airport. But it’s great to be able to take an AM flight to London so that we arrive in the evening, have a light dinner, hit the sheets and then hit the streets first thing on Saturday (our only day there, as it turns out).

Speaking of which, remember how I said that we’re going to be in London for only about 36 hours before motoring to Southampton to board Queen Mary 2? And that our “dance card” is full, as they say? I thought it might be interesting to share our London itinerary with you for Saturday. Here goes:

Following a lovely (and included) breakfast at the Shangri-La at the Shard (courtesy of AmEx FHR Program) here’s how our day unfolds:

11:00 AM – We’re off and running to the National Portrait Gallery to see the “Audrey Hepburn: Portraits of an Icon” exhibit. For those of you who might be able to make it, the exhibit is on until October 18th.

Hepburn

CULTURE TIP:  Audrey Hepburn: Portraits of an Icon

After a leisurely stroll through the exhibit, we’re hoping to have time to drop by Anya Hindmarch (the bespoke store only a stone’s throw from Harrods), where we did some shopping last May. I needed a new travel portfolio (long story short: we got the referral from the Concierge at the Peninsula Hotel in Paris, and he was SO right), and got a beautiful one there. This store is amazing, even just to walk through to see their merchandise.

IMG_0911
AAC shops at Anya Hindmarch

SHOPPING TIP:  Anya Hindmarch

1:30 PM – Lunch back at the hotel – Ting – with our dear friends, Lynne & Garry. They are a lovely couple we’ve sailed with aboard the Crystal ships on several occasions. We have so much fun with them and it’s always a pleasure to be in their company.

Ting
Ting at the Shangri-La

3:45 – Nap!!!!!! (Is there anything better than an afternoon nappy?)

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From last May aboard Crystal Serenity

6:30 – Pre-Theatre cocktails at the Corinthia. The Bassoon Bar there is a must. I mentioned the other day that we’ve stayed at that property several times over the past few years. The hotel is perfectly placed: just 5 minutes from Trafalgar Square and the Strand and, in just a few minutes more, you’re on the West End. The bar is very snazzy. Last time we were there, the manager (who always makes sure we have a really good time), waltzed over to our table, and said (in a very low tone of voice): “Don’t look, but to your left – – – – – OPRAH!” And indeed, there she was.

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The Bassoon Bar at the Corinthia

TRAVEL TIP: Bassoon Bar at the Corinthia

7:30 PM – Farinelli and the King, now in previews at the Duke of York’s Theatre. This is the West End engagement of a production which started at Shakespeare’s Globe and stars Mark Rylance as King Philip V of Spain. Mark Rylance is such a sensation that tickets to this production are impossible to obtain. I tried for months before getting lucky. (Persistance pays off.) This play is a cinch to transfer to Broadway, so keep an eye out for it.

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Mark Rylance in Farinelli and the King

CULTURE TIP:  Farinelli and the King

10:15 PM – Post supper at The Ivy. Who doesn’t love the Ivy, I ask? It’s been around for over 30 years and never fails to impress. The place closed down earlier this year for a complete renovation and we were there last Spring for its soft opening. The place is gorgeous, the service impeccable, and the food delicious, whether you’re enjoying a burger, a steak, or fish ‘n chips. I’d say it’s the go-to place in London for your post-theatre supper. And you never know who’s going to turn up. We’ll never forget the night many years ago when Princess Margaret was two tables away and having a “really good time”. Then there’s the time in 2012 when AAC CPA and I were shown to our table, and who turned up at the next table but the cast of Sweeney Todd, which we’d just seen. The Ivy is a place you should try at least once.

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AAC enjoys his fish and chips at the Ivy

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The Ivy refurbished and renewed

FOOD TIP:  The Ivy

And that’s our planned whirlwind day in London on Saturday. I figured that I should post it now as I may not have time when we’re actually there and doing it.

Bon voyage to us?

A Little Taste of Paris Down in Soho

Gentle Readers:

Who knew that I’d be blogging for a 2nd time in the past 12 hours, but I wanted to share our day with you and, also, pivot towards the other two prongs (“PRONGS”???) of this blog: food and art. I hope you won’t mind.

First of all, today presented a bit of a challenge, as it was the housekeeper’s day to be here and, although she doesn’t mind when we’re underfoot, AAC CPA doesn’t care for it at all. Please understand, we have a fabulous housekeeper – Nalini – and she’s been with us for more years that we can count. Nay, AAC just likes to have the place – the entire place, that is – to himself. So he’d rather clear out than share it. The fact that he shares it with me is a minor miracle, in fact.

NOTE: If opera isn’t your thing, please skip to below the CULTURE TIP below. 🙂

So, our first stop today was the Metropolitan Opera, where we’d been invited to a “working rehearsal” of Il Trovatore, with Anna Netrebko and Dimitri Hvorostovsky in the leading roles. We are very fortunate to be able to attend these rehearsals, as I very much enjoy the opera. AAC CPA is a bit more discerning. Yes, it’s true he’s attended something like 6 Ring Cycles over the years, but ask him to attend a mediocre performance of La Boheme and he’ll go right to sleep.

A working rehearsal, unlike a dress rehearsal or regular performance, means that there will be stops, things will be cleaned up, lights will be set and who knows what other mayhem may occur. Sure enough, there were some interesting repeats today. And you should have heard that Anvil Chorus!! And those men who worked the anvils – mamma mia!!!!

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See what I mean?

Madame Netrebko was in fabulous voice, even for a working rehearsal. And her core strength must be awesome, as she slowly lowered herself onto one knee as she sang a beautifully shaped phrase without any stress whatsoever on her beautiful voice. Talk about star quality!!

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Anna Nebtrebko in Il Trovatore at Salzburg

We were very fortunate to be able to hear Hvorostovsky. He was diagnosed with a brain tumor in June and canceled all summer performances so that he could begin immediate treatment. While his vocal cords were unimpaired, he was having severe balance issues, which kept him off the stage. While our sopranos faint, jump off parapets, and often portray the weaker sex, we like our baritones sturdy. As it turns out, he’s been able to appear in the 1st three performances of this run of Trovatore, after which he’ll return to London for further treatment. We send him our best and hope for a complete and permanent recovery.

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Dimitri Hvorostovsky in Il Trovatore at the Met

We will be at his 3rd performance, which is on Saturday afternoon, October 3rd and, if you have any interest at all, you can attend, too. Or, at least you be there as a part of the Met’s Live in HD series. Cinemas all over the world will have a live transmission of this performance, with lots of fun looks backstage during the breaks. Tickets are around $22.00 (whereas you’d probably pay between $230 – $340 for an orchestra seat at the Met). A good deal, I’d say.

CULTURE TIP: Live in HD

We stayed at the Met ’til the first break, in the middle of Act I, Scene iii (Azucena had just admitted that she’d thrown the wrong baby – her own son!!! – into the fire – don’t ask!), and decided it was time to head downtown for a little taste of Paris in Soho. By that, I mean we decided to have lunch on the patio at Laduree. Do you know it or have you, perhaps, eaten or shopped there when you were in Paris? It’s an institution and you really know that you’re in Paris when you enter its doors. Before you can get to the restaurant, though, you have to pass through the patisserie, which just made my mouth water as I typed that word.

The Laduree in Soho has a lovely shaded patio, where we sat and enjoyed a leisurely lunch of club sandwiches. All around us, people were chatting in French and, if you closed your eyes and took a bite of your sandwich, you would swear you were on the Rue de Rivoli or the Champs-Élysées. It was that good. And, in fact, here’s AAC CPA anticipating his lunch:

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Yes, it’s AAC CPA at Laduree

And here’s lunch:

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Laduree Club Sandwich

Let me just say that Laduree didn’t let us down. We had a very civilized meal on their beautiful patio between the Il Trovatore and the next Italian experience we were about to have.

CUISINE TIP: Laduree

After our delightful lunch, it was time to turn our attention to the world of Italian neorealism. Our new favorite movie house in New York, Film Forum, has just started a Vittorio De Sica retrospective, and this afternoon we went to see what is arguably his greatest film, Ladri di Biciclette (Bicycle Thieves). It is a film that we’ve known about for many years, but just saw for the first time today. Almost plotless, it shows the desperate circumstances in which the working class found itself in post-war Italy. A somber and tragic film and yet laced throughout with moments of humor. Check it out here:

CULTURE TIP: Bicycle Thieves at Film Form

And that was our day. When we got back to the apartment, the place was so clean that you could eat off of the floors. That’s no joke – Nalini is that good.

Now begins the task of packing for London and our crossing on Queen Mary 2. We leave for JFK in 36 hours. Tick, tock, everyone!!