Category: Travel

Buenos Aires – Day Three

So it was a rainy day in Buenos Aires. Good time to visit a cemetery, right?

Our intrepid guide, Pedro picked us up at the appointed hour for a stroll towards the Recoleta area, a mostly residential neighborhood but noted mostly for the famous Recoleta Cemetery.

Group Pic
Pedro, AAC CPA, Leslie & Ron go on the town

On the walk over, we stopped in at the Café Biela, which is frequented by locals and natives alike and, in 1999, was declared to be a Place of Cultural Interest by the city of Buenos Aires. Just inside the entrance is sculptural art of two very famous Argentine writers, Adolfo Bioy Casares and his buddy, Jorge Luis Borges, both of whom frequented the café.

Cafe Biela
Casares and Borges at table #1

Just across from the café is this enormous rubber tree, hundreds of years old. To keep it from collapsing, low-hanging branches have been propped up as in this photograph:

Plaza Francia Gum Tree
That’s one big rubber tree!

Continuing along, we approached the 2nd oldest church in Buenos Aires, Iglesia Nuestra Señora del Pilar, dating back to 1732. As Sunday mass was underway, we didn’t go inside to take a look around, but it’s pretty impressive from the outside.

Iglesia Nuestra Senora del Pilar

Just down the street is the entrance to Recoleta Cemetery. There are many notables buried there, but one towers above them all. On the way to that mausoleum, however, we noticed this very interesting deco artwork:

Deco Mausoleum

And then, there it was:

Familia Duarte

Familia Duarte - 02

It was raining pretty steadily when we arrived at the Duarte mausoleum. Pedro was full of information about the many travels of the remains of Eva Duarte Peron from her death in 1952 until her final resting place in this cemetery, over 20 years later.

After strolling through the cemetery a bit more, we went across the street and up to the top floor of a nearby building where I was able to take this overhead shot of the cemetery:

Recolete from Above

TRAVEL TIP: Recoleta Cemetery

By then it was time for lunch and we strolled to a local restaurant for some empanadas. Along the way, we saw this placard at the Hotel Meliá Recoleta Plaza:

Evita at Melia Recoleta Plaza
That girl is EVERYWHERE!

By the time lunch was over, it was raining pretty steadily, so we decided to cab it over to La Boca, another neighborhood wherein Italian immigrants (particularly from Genoa) settled. It was a very poor neighborhood and its residents lived in abject poverty. Today it is of interest to tourists because of its colorful houses some of which are adorned with art, as well as restaurants and tango clubs. As we walked through, we saw couples dancing the tango on slightly raised stages at several of the restaurants on the Caminito, the main street of La Boca. Outside of this small tourist area, the neighborhood is still one of poverty.

La Boca

La Boca Polo Eva Tango
Three Argentine Passions: Polo, Evita and Tango

La Boca Tango Frieze
Frieze in honor of the Tango

La Boca - Tango Demo
Live Tango on a Rainy Sunday Afternoon

La Boca - Dog Day Afternoon
Dog Day Afternoon at La Boca

Pedro escorted us back to the hotel and we thanked him for the 2 days we spent together while he showed us his city. Again, if you’re planning a trip to Buenos Aires and want a personal tour of the city, Pedro is the guy for you.

TRAVEL TIP: About Pedro

Then it was time for some relaxation before heading out for dinner.

While I was having some down time, I checked my wallet to make sure I had enough pesos for the evening, and look what popped out:

Eva Pesos
And there she is again!

Tonight we dined at La Cabrera Norte, another restaurant notable for its beef and large portions. While the food was delicious, the service was problematic.

When we arrived for our reservation at about 8:30, the restaurant was practically empty. But, within 15 minutes, the place had filled up. Our waiter presented us with menus and some “tasties” to get us started, and we ordered an excellent bottle of wine – Angelica Zapata Malbec 2011 – as we checked out the menu. As we did at Fervor 2 nights earlier, we decided to share a couple of first courses, followed by several cuts of excellent Argentine meat and sides.

So far, so good.

The first course arrived after a few minutes and all was well. But a few minutes later while we were in the middle of enjoying our food, platters of beef and pork and papas fritas and other side dishes arrived. There wasn’t even room on the table for everything, not to mention that the plates from our first course weren’t replaced by fresh ones. While it’s not as if we were confronted with an earthquake or hurricane or being diagnosed with a life-threatening disease, it did put a big dent in the evening.

We soldiered on, however, and kept eating and eating and eating and, again, the beef and pork were delicious. The Argentines really know how to treat their meats.

What’s interesting is that we arrived at 8:30 and by 9:25 we had completed our entrée, setting a record for the quickest meal of the trip.

However, by the time we ordered and shared a dessert and departed the restaurant, another hour had gone by.

So, maybe it was just an off-night with lousy pacing of the meal. Or maybe that’s the experience of dining at La Cabrera. We noticed that the tables were being turned over with great frequency, so who knows?

I can tell you with certainty that, after the amazingly good service at both Fervor and I Latina, the service at La Cabrera was several notches lower.

And thus concluded our 3rd day in BA.

 

 

 

 

Buenos Aires – Day Two

Greetings from sunny and warm Buenos Aires!

We’ve just come back from a sensational dinner at I Latina, but more about that later.

The day started with a delicious buffet breakfast at the hotel. So far, the weather has been warm and sunny – it’s summer down here, after all.

AAC Breakfast
AAC CPA on the terrace for his first breakfast

Breakfast Buffet 01
A sampling of 1 of the 3 buffet stations

Breakfast Buffet 02

Amazing breads and sweets

Today was our first opportunity to see this great city with our amazing guide, Pedro Werberg. Pedro is extremely personable and, also, knowledgeable about the history and geography of the city and we had the pleasure of spending many hours with him walking around the city and seeing the sights.

I can say – without reservation – that, if you’re planning a trip to Buenos Aires and want a professional private tour guide, Pedro is your man.

TRAVEL TIP: About Pedro

Here’s a photographic journal of a few of the sights we’ve seen so far:

We started by admiring some of the architecture of the city, much of which is heavily influenced by the French style of the 18th and 19th centuries:

Former Private Residence Avenue Alvear
This building was once a private residence!

Argentine Facade
Another example of French-style architecture in Buenos Aires

On our way, I happened to see the following advertisement, which should please Harvey Fierstein quite a little bit:

Casa Valentina
Go, Harvey!

Many of the sights we saw today were in honor of José de San Martín (1778-1850), an Argentine general who played a pivotal role in obtaining South America’s independence from Spain. As we walked our way through the city, San Martin was commemorated with, among other things: a park, a statue, a palace and, finally, his tomb in the cathedral, which is attended by an honor guard. San Martin was a true hero.

Plaza San Martin Retiro
Plaza San Martin Retiro

Palacio San Martin
Palacio San Martin

San Martin Tomb
Tomb of San Martin inside the Metropolitan Cathedral

San Martin Tomb Ceiling
The gorgeous ceiling inside the tomb

Circulo Militar
Circulo Militar – now a private club

Harrods
Harrods – once upon a time, but not for many, many years

Along the way, we asked Pedro to help us change some US $ for some Argentine Pesos. Since the recent Argentine presidential election, the currency has stabilized greatly but exchanging money can still be just a bit confusing. Pedro found us the best place for the exchange, and we got a rate that was more favorable than I could find online, about 14 pesos to the dollar. And look what we found next to our money changer:

The King
The King – Still very popular in Argentina

Then it was time for lunch. There’s a lovely area waterfront area called Puerto Madero, which consists of a very long row of British built brick buildings, converted into shops and restaurants. We found one of those restaurants – Happening – and had a delicious lunch on the terrace, accompanied by an excellent Malbec (of course).

Puerto Madero
Puerto Madero

Happening
Happening – where we had lunch

Argentine Urinals
The mirrored urinals at Happening – just thought you’d be interested

After lunch, we made our way to one of the most famous landmarks in the city, especially if you’re a Lord Webber fan: the Casa Rosada (Pink Palace). Two of the most famous people connected with Casa Rosada were former president, Juan Peron and his wife, Eva – you all know them, right? Pedro was really great in explaining the complicated history of this charismatic couple and the roles they played when they were in power. We also discussed many of the myths associated with this couple, even to this day.

Casa Rosada Balcony
Casa Rosada Balcony

Perons
Eva and Juan Peron

By then, it was time to return to the hotel for a little downtime and get ready to head out for a very memorable dinner at I Latina, which had been recommended to us by everyone we had asked where we should eat. It did not disappoint.

I Latina

Arriving by taxi in a somewhat questionable neighborhood, we were confronted by a locked wrought-iron fence, through which we could see a very charming restaurant. Fortunately, we rang the bell and someone immediately came to escort us inside and to our table. It is a small-ish place, probably with no more than 20-25 tables.

I Latina Interior
Inside I Latina

There is a set menu, with optional wine pairings that can complement the meal. We elected to go all the way.

The food was inventive, sometimes playful, and absolutely delicious.

I Latina Menu - 01
Our menu – part one

I Latina Menu - 02
And part two

I Latina Entree
Maybe our favorite course: The braised pork

And, btw, I just wanted you all to know that our AAC CPA ate every bite of every course. He can sometimes be a – how to say it? – picky eater, but not at I Latina. If that isn’t a great review of a restaurant I don’t know what is.

I’d also like to mention the young staff, all of whom were wonderful, spoke excellent English and were incredibly friendly. A couple of them were from the US and their stories of how they wound up in BA were very interesting.

The service was completely professional, but not at all pretentious. It was almost as if you were in a friend’s home being served this fabulous feast.

I Latina Infusion
Wonderful infusion at the end of the meal

I Latina Urinal
Signage in el baño

Our meal lasted almost 3 hours, at the end of which, our waiter arranged for a taxi to transport us back to the hotel, where we said a fond goodnight.

CUISINE TIP: I Latina

We’ll be up tomorrow for another day of sightseeing with Pedro.

Buenas noches, y’all.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Buenos Aires – Day One

Buenas noches, gentle readers!

I’m sitting here on the 15th floor of the beautiful Palacio Duhau Park Hyatt on a balmy Buenos Aires evening listening to – what else? – tango music to get me in the mood as I report to you.

Tango
Inspiration for this blog entry

Yes, we’ve arrived.

But before we arrived, we had to pack – and you know that this is a very delicate topic around certain people – no names, please. Here’s our luggage just before we left for the airport:

Luggage for 3 Weeks
Think we brought enough for 3 weeks?

As it was a late night flight (departure was at 10:00 PM), we opted to eat in the terminal at JFK, which has an outpost of Bobby Van’s Steakhouse. By doing so, we could (a) get a decent meal (don’t expect to eat well on the plane!), and (b) go to sleep as soon as we wanted.

Bobby Van's
Grabbing a quick bite before our flight

Our flight down was about as painless as it could be. American Airlines has a non-stop every night from JFK. They’ve reconfigured their business class section with very comfortable seats that can be adjusted into lie-flat beds.

AA Reconfigured
My bedroom last night

So within an hour of takeoff, I’d taken my pharmaceutical of choice, changed into “something more comfortable” and got under the covers. Miraculously (for me), I slept for almost 6 hours. Woke up in time to see a really good flick – The Walk – and had some breakfast, changed into my Buenos Aires attire, and prepared to land. Total flying time was just a bit over 10 hours (traveling almost 5,300 miles).

Final Approach into BA
Here’s our final approach before landing this morning

Getting through passport control was pretty much a breeze in spite of the long queues and, by the time we arrived at baggage claim, our luggage was already circling the carousel. How lucky are we? From there, we had to go through customs and have our luggage scanned (never seen that before when entering a country). Fortunately for us, Veronica at AmEx FHR had arranged with the hotel to have a waiting car and driver for us, so we were literally whisked into Buenos Aires and to the hotel.

Thanks again to Veronica and the Platinum FHR program (of which I’ve spoken many times), not only did we get the usual FHR amenities (complimentary breakfast, late check-out and $150 spa credit), but we were also afforded a DOUBLE upgrade! So, we’re beautifully ensconced in a Deluxe Park Suite. TheCulturedTraveler’s travel karma continues!!!

The Palace. jpg
A view of the Palacio Duhau Park Hyatt

Turns our my sister and her husband beat us to the hotel. They had flown in from the west coast, so we met up with them after getting settled in. Feeling a bit peckish, we checked out one of the hotel restaurants, all of which have lovely terraces, and had a delicious bite of lunch.

From there, we went for a little stroll to get acclimated to our surroundings and saw the restaurant we’ve chosen for tonight, Fervor, only a couple of blocks away.

Then back to the hotel where AAC CPA and I passed out for about an hour.

As I began this entry, he took care of his evening ablutions. This being our first night in town, we’re having an early dinner, so we can hit the ground running tomorrow.

Tick Tock – Three hours later:

Just back from a fabulous dinner at Fervor. It had been recommended by several friends, including some folks who live in BA. Our new friend at the hotel’s reception desk said it’s one of the best meals in town.

Fervor
Definitely check out this establishment if you’re coming to BA

He wasn’t lying – it was great. Basically a beef place, we ordered 3 different cuts of beef to share. All were succulent and perfectly prepared. To compliment the beef, we had this amazing Malbec that you’ll all want to Google and find for yourselves:

Wine at Fervor
This wine will blow your mind.

Afterwards, a short walk back to the hotel and calling it a day in anticipation of our first full day in town.

Luckily for us, we’ve engaged the services of a local guide to squire us around the city for the next 2 days. More about it and him in my next post.

For now: adios, amigos!!!

What’s New, Buenos Aires??

I know it seems like all we do is travel, travel, TRAVEL! Cruising around the Caribbean in November, spending Christmas week in London town and now here we go again. Too much galavanting about in too short a period of time, you say? Well, maybe – I’m just grateful that we get to go at all!

You may have already noticed that I like to plan my travel way ahead. At this point, we’ve booked trips (mostly cruises) through 2017. I think it’s great to get them on the calendar. Sometimes, there’s a financial incentive to booking early. If you’re traveling by ship, perhaps you want to snag a certain cabin. Maybe you’re traveling with friends or family and need to coordinate. You get my drift.

Here’s the deal: our cruise line of choice for the past 11 years has been Crystal Cruises. We’ve sailed on Serenity or Symphony more frequently than all other cruises we’ve taken combined. We like the service, the crew, the spaciousness of the vessels and, not least, the passengers with whom we sail, many of whom have become good friends over the years.

TRAVEL TIP: Crystal Cruises

So, about 2 years ago, Crystal announced that, in January 2016, Symphony would be sailing from Buenos Aires to Antarctica and to several other ports. We’d never been to Buenos Aires, let alone South America. And how many opportunities do you have to visit Antarctica? It sounded too good to pass up, and so we booked it, way back then. I contacted my friends at Tully Luxury Travel, chose my cabin, and they booked it for us. Thank you, Nada and Monika.

TRAVEL TIP: Tully Luxury Travel

Crystal Symphony Antarctica
Look what awaits us in about 2 weeks!

As it turns out, my sister, Leslie, and her husband, Ron – who introduced us to Crystal Cruises back in 2005 – decided that they wanted to get in on the action and offered to join us. They’re good sailing buddies, so we thought “why not”?

Crystal Voyage
Here’s where we’ll be going

In addition, we have other good friends who are joining us on this cruise, at least 4 of them (that we know about). One fun thing about Crystal is that, while you’re at the terminal waiting to embark on sailing day, you’re inevitably going to run into people with whom you’ve cruised before. AAC CPA and I are always amazed (and totally flattered) when people walk up to us on line, reintroduce themselves and say how pleased they are to see us again. That’s pretty nice, right? That’s also part of the Crystal experience.

Our cruise doesn’t begin until January 13th, so we decided to fly down to BA this Thursday evening (American Airlines has an 11 hour, nonstop overnight flight from JFK to EZE) and we’ll spend 5 nights at the Palacio Duhau – Park Hyatt. It’s reputed to be one of the loveliest hotels in Buenos Aires. Thank you Veronica at AmEx Platinum FHR for taking care of our hotel reservations.

TRAVEL TIP: AmEx Platinum FHR Program

BA Night
We’ll be there in just about 72 hours

BA Park Hyatt
Our digs for 5 nights

TRAVEL TIP: Palacio Duhau – Park Hyatt

Oh, and here’s another little TRAVEL TIP, if you have the means to do it. You know when your cruise ends and you’re thrown off the ship first thing in the morning (probably kicking and screaming and in total denial)? Well, what if your flight home doesn’t depart for another 13 hours? What’cha gonna do?? Our policy is if you don’t ask, you don’t get. So we asked Veronica if she would contact the Park Hyatt and inquire if we could reserve a “day room” until it was time to leave for the airport that evening. Guess what? We asked and we got! (Thanks again, Veronica!) We’ll be able to check in as early as 9:00 AM, and we’ll have the room until early evening. And, because it’s only a “day room”, the rate has been reduced. So now it won’t hurt so much to get off the ship – we’ll be able to laze around the hotel, hang out by the pool or the spa, and just be pampered, pampered, pampered.

If you’ve been following my posts at all, you know that I’ve already booked our dinner reservations and retained the services of a very cool guide who will squire us around the city.

And for all of you concerned with jet lag, here’s a cool travel fact: there’s only a 2-hour time difference between NYC and BA. Not only that, it’ll be the same everywhere we sail on the cruise. Jet lag: BE GONE!

Casa Rosada
Guess who lived here once upon a time

I’ll be posting while we’re away although, as usual, we’ll probably have the usual lousy Internet challenges for the 2 weeks we’re aboard Symphony. I know, poor us!!

Stay tuned – it’s going to be a great trip!

London Recap

Greetings and Salutations. And sorry to be MIA over the past few days – it’s been a very busy time and all that.

The last time you’d heard from me, we had just attended a performance of Funny Girl, at the Menier Chocolate Factory, which was a real treat. If you’re planning a trip to London in the spring (and beyond), you can get tickets to see the production, which is transferring to the Savoy Theatre in March. Ticket sales are quite brisk, I’ve been told.

CULTURE TIP: Purchase Tickets to Funny Girl

Otherwise, our trip to London last week was a raving success. We had a blast and, rather than talking about it too much, I thought I’d share some photos with you to give you the flavor of the trip – you’ll get the idea.

On our 1st full day in London, we took afternoon tea at The Georgian at Harrod’s. The place was all gussied up for the holidays, of course.

Day 2 - HarrodsWorld famous Harrods

Day 2 - Harrods GeorgianIt’s the Georgian for your afternoon tea.

Day 2 - Harrods Tea - AAC
AAC CPA anticipates his afternoon tea

Day 2 - Harrods Rose Tea
Rose Tea made with actual Roses!!

Day 2 - Harrods Tea Tray
And all of the tea goodies.

CUISINE TIP: Take Tea at Harrods

Our first show in London was Terence Ratigan’s 1948 comedy, Harlequinade, starring and co-directed (with Rob Ashford) by Kenneth Branagh, preceded by Ratigan’s 1968 one-woman monologue, All On Her Own, starring Zoë Wanamaker. This double-bill is part of an ambitious six production season that the Kenneth Branagh Theatre Company is presenting at the Garrick Theatre and is currently playing in rep with A Winter’s Tale, again starring Branagh alongside Judi Dench. The season culminates next summer and fall with Branagh taking on the touchstone role of Archie Rice in John Osborne’s The Entertainer. Needless to say, I already have my tickets for that one!

Day 2 - Harlequinade - AAC
AAC CPA does Harlequinade at the Garrick

CULTURE TIP: Kenneth Branagh Theatre Company

Following the performance, we had supper at one of our favorite London restaurants, the venerable J. Sheekey which serves, arguably, the best fish in town.

Day 2 - J Sheekey

Day 2 - J Sheekey Fish & Chips
AAC CPA had the fish and chips – enough for many

CUISINE TIP: J. Sheekey

Next day – typically cloudy but unusually mild for December – we were walking around our hood and snapped this pic of the Shard, where the Shangri-La is located:

Day 2 - Shard from a Distance

Following the Funny Girl matinee, we had dinner at another of our favorite London establishments, Hawksmoor, which is where you go for beef and great cocktails. There are several locations and we ate at the one just off Picadilly in Air Street:

Day 3 - Hawksmoor Exterior

Each Hawksmoor has its own distinct design and this one is Deco:

Day 3 - Hawksmoor Deco Detail
Fab Deco Chandelier

Day 3 - Hawksmoor AAC
AAC CPA anticipates his cocktail and dinner

The grub is really good here, too. In addition to amazing beef, this Hawksmoor has lots of fish on the menu. We shared the scallop appetizer:

Day 3 - Hawksmoor Scallops
Great presentation, right?

CUISINE TIP: Hawksmoor Air Street

We took an after dinner stroll and saw some fab sights on Picadilly:

Day 3 - Picadilly

Picadilly, itself

Day 3 - Burlington Arcade

Burlington Arcade

Day 3 - Fortnum & Mason

Fortnum & Mason all tarted up for the holidays

Next day, we woke up to a brilliantly sunny day. Look at the view from our room:

Day 4 - Shard Shadow over St. Paul's
Note the shadow of the Shard to the right of St. Paul’s

After breakfast at the hotel – by the way, a great deal when booking through the AmEx FHR program, because your breakfast is included – we checked out the lobby men’s room:

Day 4 - Bathroom with a View
A (Bath)Room with a View

Day 4 - Mens Room Amenity
The Shangri-La thinks of EVERYTHING!!

And, if you want a thrill, take note of how the hotel keeps its windows clean:

Day 4 - Window Cleaners
This photo was taken on the 35th floor, kids!

What trip to London would be complete without a visit to Covent Garden:

Day 4 - AAC - Covent Garden

That afternoon, we experienced our first Panto, a holiday tradition in which drag plays a prominent role and lots of audience participation is encouraged (and expected). Today’s Panto was Cinderella at the Lyric Hammersmith.

Day 4 - Panto - AAC
AAC CPA does Panto!

Day 4 - Panto Show Curtain
The Panto show curtain

Following the Panto, we rushed back to the hotel to change for the evening performance of Guys and Dolls at the Savoy Theatre where, last Spring, we had seen Imelda Staunton’s star turn as Madame Rose in Gypsy.

Day 4 - Savoy Guys and Dolls - 02
Doesn’t this photo remind you of a publicity still from the film?

Day 4 - Savoy AAC
AAC CPA studies the Hot Box Cuties

Day 4 - Savoy Show Curtain
Opening image of the set

Needless to say, the show was aces. It’s such a great musical, definitely one of the 10 best of all time. Even when the show ground to a halt in the last few minutes – technical difficulties, they said – the audience was totally enthralled by the show, roaring its approval at the end.

On our way out – no pix, please, we’re British! – we noticed, sitting directly behind us, Jim Carter (Carson on Downton Abbey, and a former Big Jule himself) and his celebrated wife, the aforementioned Imelda Staunton. I couldn’t help myself and, in a very un-British-like manner, told them how much we’d enjoyed their performances and thanked them. They looked a bit startled (I guess that my outburst just isn’t done) but thanked me very graciously.

After humiliating myself, we strolled over to The Ivy, which is our favorite London haunt. As I reported when we were there earlier this year, the place had a makeover last spring and looks terrific, but the service and congeniality of the place remain unchanged.

Day 4 - The Ivy Exterior
The one and only Ivy

Day 4 - The Ivy - AAC
AAC CPA anticipates his Americano whilst perusing the menu

CUISINE TIP: The Ivy

Next day – Christmas Eve – was another double-header, starting with Jim Broadbent starring as Scrooge in A Christmas Carol at the Noël Coward Theatre. Dickens’ story was adapted by Patrick Barlow (whose 4-actor adaptation of The 39 Steps played for years and years both in London and in New York) and was designed by Tom Pye and directed by Phelim McDermott. We initially wanted to see the show for Jim Broadbent, a fave actor of ours’ since the 1999 Mike Leigh film,  Topsy Turvy, in which Broadbent played W.S. Gilbert. As it turned out, we found the production imaginative, enchanting and surprisingly moving. I guess that Dickens knew what his was doing.

Day 5 - A Christmas Carol - Exterior
Marquee at the Noël Coward Theatre

Day 5 - A Christmas Carol - AAC
AAC CPA does Dickens

Day 5 - A Christmas Carol Show Curtain
A Christmas Carol show curtain

And, by the way, can I just put in a word about the London theatre-going audience and, in particular, the kids? We saw two matinees in which the audience was literally filled with children (as young as 4 or 5, I’d say). They were amazing! Respectful, attentive, and really into the experience. Dare I say that I prefer them to most of the audiences to be found on Broadway these day? OK, come and get me for that last remark.

Another rush back to the hotel to change for our Christmas Eve festivities. And look what we found in our room upon our return:

Day 5 - Christmas Tree
Our very own tree. AAC CPA thought it might be edible. It wasn’t.

That evening, we had a brand-new London experience, and long overdue! We attended the last performance of Carols By Candlelight at the famed Royal Albert Hall. This concert is an annual event and completely fills the 5,200 seat venue. It was a real thrill for us to be there.

Day 5 - RAH - Moon
World famous Royal Albert Hall with a full moon overhead

Day 5 - RAH - AAC
AAC CPA checks out the program pre-concert

Day 5 - RAH - Concert
The Mozart Festival Orchestra and Chorus in performance

Day 5 - RAH - Doris Day
For all you film buffs, AAC CPA has a Doris Day moment

We had a great time at the concert, although there was too much audience participation for my taste. I didn’t realize that we were expected to sing traditional carols!! Standing, no less, and I’d already had a long day. (Bah, humbug, you say?) And added to all that, most of the carols were sung to different tunes than their American counterparts. Who knew??

CULTURE TIP: Royal Albert Hall

After the concert, we had another magical view of the full moon over London:

Day 5 - Moon Over London

Merry Christmas, everyone!! Friday – our last full day in London – and did you know that the entire city shuts down?? We had thought we might go to a movie, or ride around, or something. Uh-uh!! No dice (as they’re currently saying at the Savoy Theatre). Fortunately for us, we were staying in a beautiful hotel with gorgeous views, so we didn’t mind hanging around our digs and relaxing after seeing 6 shows in the previous 4 days.

As we subsequently found out, Uber was available for getting around – whew!! We had decided to have our farewell dinner at another of our favorite London hotels, the Corinthia, and Uber got us there and back. Not only that, but Uber turned out to be cheaper than taking a cab (if we could have gotten one)!

Day 6 - Corinthia ExteriorThe gorgeous Corinthia Hotel in Whitehall Place

We started our evening at the Corinthia’s Bassoon Bar, one of our favorite watering holes in London.

Day 6 - Corinthia Bassoon AAC
AAC CPA chooses his cocktail from the iPad menu

We moved from the Bassoon to the Northall for our dinner. It’s a beautiful room and the food was delicious.

Day 6 - Corinthia Northall
My starter: Beef Tartare and it was yummy!

Day 6 - Corinthia Lobby
AAC CPA strolls through the Corinthia lobby after dinner

Ubering our way back to the Shangri-La from the Corinthia and look at what we saw:

Day 6 - Uber View of London Eye

By the way, did I mention that we ate on the early side so that we could get back to the hotel in time for – wait for it – the series finale of Downton Abbey? Yes, gentle readers, we had already seen all of season 6, save for the final holiday episode. How lucky are we? No spoilers here. Just know that we’ve seen it all, and mum’s the word.

Day 6 - Downton Finale
Opening Downton Abbey credits – for the very last time

All good things must come to an end and, on Saturday morning, we got into a taxi and made our way to Heathrow, where our BA flight was waiting to return us back home (and to reality).

Day 7 - BA Concorde Room - AAC
AAC CPA hanging out in the Concorde Room prior to boarding our flight

Day 7 - BA 177 - AAC
And settling in for the 8-hour flight home (with Mimosa)

Here’s our lunch menu:

Day 7 - BA 177 - Lunch Menu

I opted for the fillet of veal, which was pretty good:

Day 7 - BA 177 - Entree

And then, several hours later, it was time for afternoon tea, British-style:

Day 7 - BA 177 - Tea

Post-script: The flight landed a few minutes early but, due to some unexplained issue involving attaching the jetway to the plane, we were delayed for about 40 minutes!!

An imperfect end to a just-about-perfect trip.

Happy New Year, everyone!!

PS. Next week, we’re off to Buenos Aires and then, via Crystal Symphony, we’re sailing to Antarctica. More to follow!

Greetings from London – Part 1

Happy holidays, everyone! We made it safely to London. Left on a jet plane Sunday morning and a mere 8 hours later were checking into our digs at the Shangri-La at the Shard, just a stone’s throw away from London Bridge.

We love London, what can we say. As I type this missive to you, night is falling over the City – look at this dramatic view from our room atop the Shard as afternoon turns into night and you’ll see what I mean:

007

See what I mean?

Because I’m on a tight timeline – off to theatre and supper afterwards – here are a few images of our adventures so far:

001

Packed and leaving for the airport (too much luggage for only 6 days?)

002

Our BA 747 Chariot awaits to whisk us off to London

004

AAC CPA buckles up – fasten your seat belts!!

003

Our final approach into Heathrow

005

AAC CPA under the tree and ready to eat

006

The view from our room last night just before bedtime

I’ll have more to report as the days go by. Tomorrow we’ll be seeing Funny Girl at the Chocolate Factory – a very, very hot ticket. Your faithful correspondent will let you know what we thought. (As it that matters at all, it’s already announced a transfer to the West End and tickets are very, very scarce!)

In the meantime, tally-ho!

2015 Wrap-Up, Part I – Travel

 

At this time of year, everyone seems to be publishing “best-of” lists. As I’ve been blogging for barely 3 months, I thought I’d challenge myself to post 3 of these lists: one each for travel, cuisine, and culture.

Today is for travel and I’ve narrowed the scope of this post to four places I’ve slept during the past year that I would recommend to you.

In alphabetical order:

L’Ermitage – Beverly Hills, CA

L'Ermitage - 01Entrance to L’Ermitage

We’ve been staying at this property for years. Back in the day – the early 80’s, to be precise – L’Ermitage was one of the very first “all-suite” hotels. I remember staying there in June 1982 and being wowed by the concept – all that space for lil’ ol’ me. The property was completely renovated and upgraded about 15 years ago to maintain its edge.

L'Ermitage - 02L’Ermitage Pool and Cabañas at Dusk

We were last there this past June and the hotel was in the midst of a major makeover. Because of our longstanding relationship with the hotel, we were given a sneak preview of the new rooms, and they’re extremely beautiful and up to the minute in terms of amenities and technology.

Another big plus is that L’Ermitage has a great location, just a few minutes walk (wait: who walks in Los Angeles??) to Rodeo drive and other Beverly Hills landmarks.

I’d also like to put in a word for the service at the hotel – couldn’t be better. You’ll be very well taken care of at L’Ermitage.

L'Ermitage Cabana LunchA bite of lunch in a poolside cabaña

TRAVEL TIP: L’Ermitage

Glenmere – Chester, NY

Glenmere - 01
A Tuscan mansion in upstate New York?

We discovered this fabulous property just after it opened in 2010. A 75-minute drive from Manhattan, it is the former Tuscan-style mansion built in 1911 by Robert Wilson Goelet on his enormous estate in Sugar Loaf, a hamlet in Chester. The original architects, Carrere & Hastings, also designed the New York Public Library and the Guggenheim Museum.

The estate was sold during World War II and converted into a resort hotel. By the 1960s, however, it had fallen into disrepair.

In 2007, the property was purchased by Alan Stenberg and Daniel DeSimone and over the next several years – and at an estimated cost of $30 million – was transformed into a magnificent luxury 19-room hotel and restaurant. A spa – perhaps unlike any you’ve seen before – was added a couple of years ago.

Glenmere - 02 - Spa

The Spa at Glenmere – Do I believe my eyes?

We returned to Glenmere for a couple of nights last August. If anything, they’ve upped their game. Butler service and a complimentary breakfast are now included. The grounds are magnificent, as is the property itself. If you want to splurge for a special occasion, Glenmere is the place to do it.

Glenmere - AAC arrives

AAC CPA arrives at Glenmere

Glenmere - View

Check out the view from our room

Glenmere - Terrace

AAC CPA relaxes on the terrace on a Wednesday afternoon

TRAVEL TIP: Glenmere Mansion

Peninsula Hotel – Paris, France

Peninsula EntranceEntrance to the Peninsula

We were in Paris last May following our crossing from Miami to Lisbon aboard Crystal Serenity. The Peninsula opened about a year ago and, as with all grand Parisian hotels, it is a masterpiece of design and execution. Located steps away from the Arc de Triomphe, it is an ideal location for a visit to the City of Light.

The rooms are beautifully designed and feature up-to-the-minute technology, including iPads on either side of the bed to control virtually everything in the room (except for AAC CPA, of course). This can result, of course, in dueling remote controls when watching television. (Should anyone have time to watch TV in Paris?)

Peninsula - iPad

Dueling iPads

The bathrooms defy description and I mean that in the best way possible.

Peninsula - 02

Do you believe me now?

There are several dining venues in the hotel, including the elegant rooftop restaurant, L’Oiseau Blanc, which has wonderful food and awesome views of the Eiffel Tower. It is adjacent to a very deco bar, which serves extremely tasty cocktails. In good weather, the bar opens onto a terrace where you can appreciate the territory.

Peninsula - AAC - 01

The outside terrace at the Peninsula

Peninsula - AAC - Cocktails

AAC CPA and I enjoy evening cocktails at L’Oiseau Blanc

TRAVEL TIP: Peninsula Hotel

Hotel Yountville – Yountville, CA

Yountville - AAC - 01

AAC CPA arrives at the Hotel Yountville

Any oenophile worth his or her salt will travel to California to enjoy the wine country. These days, there are so many wine regions out there but, for many, the Napa Valley is the place to go. We’ve stayed in the wine country on several occasions but, last summer, spent a few days in Yountville at the Yountville Hotel and I highly recommend it to you.

Yountville - Balcony

Our private balcony

Besides being a lovely place to stay, it is located on the main drag and within walking distance of all the great Yountville restaurants. (French Laundry, anyone?) And Yountville is an extremely convenient place to stay as you’re within a 30-minute radius of many of the great wineries in the Valley.

Yountville - AAC CoffeeAAC CPA relaxing after breakfast

Oh, and for those of you who like to get in a morning run before debauching yourselves at the myriad of wineries in the vicinity, here’s the view from one of my jogs:

Yountville - Jog

I actually jogged here!

Before checking out of the Hotel Yountville, we had already booked the hotel for a return visit next summer. That’s how much we enjoyed it.

TRAVEL TIP: Hotel Yountville

Next up: 2015 Best of Cuisine!

 

Countdown to London

“As a foreigner in London, I like that there are so many other foreigners.”
David Sedaris

How lucky are AAC CPA and I?

For the 3rd time this year, we’re on our way to London. This trip came about thanks to a blog entry by The Points Guy a few months ago giving us the skivvy that fares were being slashed to Europe over the holidays. If you happened to be an AARP member (reminder: you don’t need to be 50 to join AARP, just sayin’) and, for instance, went through the AARP website to a dedicated British Airways link, you automatically got a $400 per person discount. Added to that, we cashed in some Avios miles to save even more money.

How could we not go?

TRAVEL TIP: The Points Guy

In the event, we’re leaving early Sunday morning, will arrive early evening local time, Heathrow Express our way into central London and be at the Shangri-La at the Shard in time for a late supper with our friends A & K, who will have arrived the day before. As I said, how lucky are we?

We also got lucky with a special promotion through the AmEx FHR program. Although we’d already booked a return visit to the Shangri-La, it turns out that, thanks to AmEx, you can pay for 2 nights and get the 3rd for free. Our awesome AmEx travel agent, Veronica, was happy to rebook the reservation so that we could take advantage of this offer. The only fly in the ointment is that we’re planning to be in London for 6 nights, and the hotel refused to let us use the promotion twice on this visit. Other hotels do it all the time but not the Shangri-La. Good thing it’s a really nice hotel or we’d be very miffed. (Well, maybe we are, just a wee bit.)

Shangri-LaTime for a return visit to the Shangri-La

TRAVEL TIP: AmEx FHR Program

TRAVEL TIP: Once you’ve booked your hotel reservation(s), go back every so often either to the hotel’s website or the AmEx FHR website and check for better deals. I’d say that there’s an excellent chance that you’ll find a lower rate or, even, a promotion like the one we’re taking advantage of next week. If you have the forbearance (and the time, of course), you may end up saving significantly on your hotel bill.

“In London they don’t like you if you’re still alive.”
Harvey Fierstein

Before we pulled the trigger on the airfare deal, I checked to see if we could score tickets to, arguably, the biggest theatre deal in London this fall: the revival of Funny Girl at the Menier Chocolate Factory. At the time, I went to the theatre’s website to check on availability and found that tickets didn’t go on sale to the general public until the following day. Call it my cultural sixth sense, but I decided that I had to get tickets right then so, for a modest donation to the Chocolate Factory, I was able to select prime seats (well, in a 188-seat theatre, I guess that ALL seats are prime), for a little more than tuppence. Having taken care of that task, we went ahead and booked the air tickets. Thank you, AARP; thank you, British Airways; thank you, Avios miles. (And thank you, Chocolate Factory!)

And, wouldn’t you know, when general public seating opened the following day, the entire engagement sold out within 2 hours!! The Chocolate Factory had never seen anything like it. Ever!!

So even if you can’t obtain tickets at the Chocolate Factory to see the show, don’t despair – before it even started previews, a transfer to the West End was announced! And, if you’ve never been to the Chocolate Factory, you really should pay a call. It’s a great space and some amazing productions have started there.

Chocolate Factory

CULTURE TIP: Menier Chocolate Factory

CULTURE TIP: Funny Girl at the Savoy

“London is too full of fogs and serious people. Whether the fogs produce the serious people, or whether the serious people produce the fogs, I don’t know.”
Oscar Wilde

As usual with our visits to London – I believe that this will be our 14th time there – we tend to book up heavily on the cultural side of things. This visit is no exception: 3 shows on the West End, the aforementioned FG at the Chocolate Factory, our first ever Panto (Cinderella at the Hammersmith), and another venue new to us: a Candlelight Christmas Eve Concert at the Royal Albert Hall. (AAC CPA has promised not to scream at the climactic part of the concert a la Doris Day in Hitchcock’s The Man Who Knew Too Much.)

Doris Day
Doris Day or AAC CPA? You be the judge.

Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall

“London is a roost for every bird.”
Benjamin Disraeli

In between all the culture, there’s the eating. We’ve booked some fun meals at some of our old haunts, and I’ll be reporting on them as merrily we roll along. We’ve also been invited to join A & K for a holiday dinner with A’s family, as they reside in Merry Olde. We’re very flattered to be part of their family for that special evening.

The other fun thing is that, on Christmas Night in London, the very final episode of Downton Abbey will be telecast and we’ll be there to see it. (Don’t tell anyone, but we’ve already seen the final season and it’s GOOD! Shhhhhhhh!) We’re a bit sorry to see the series go, but it seems to be ending on a high note.

Violet, Dowager Countess of Grantham
What would Violet, Dowager Countess of Grantham say?

I’ll try to post a couple of entries while we’re across the pond to let you know how it’s going.

In the meantime, I hope that all of you are enjoying a happy and healthy holiday season.

Cheers!

 

 

 

 

Let’s All Go Safari!!

“If there were one more thing I could do, it would be to go on safari once again”
Karen Blixen

PIC #1

I’m posting today to share an amazing travel opportunity for anyone who has ever dreamed of going on safari in the most luxurious way imaginable.

Before I tell you about it, I suppose I should also state for the record – as I’ve seen on other blogs – that there is no incentive for me to give you this information. (“Give” is the operative word, as I will not personally benefit in any way should you decide to indulge yourself in this trip of a lifetime. Consider it my holiday “gift” to you.)

Now that we have that piece of non-business out of the way, you may recall that, in an earlier post, I told you all about my awesome travel agents who book all of my cruises. I’ve developed an excellent relationship with the same agents, Nada and Monika, for over 10 years now, and they have delivered flawless service each and every time.

The company is Tully Luxury Travel, founded in 1987 by its extraordinary CEO Mary Jean Tully. To give you an example about how successful the company is, Mary Jean likes to say that: “The very first employee I hired 27 years ago is still with us today. I believe this speaks volumes about the kind of company we are.”

AAC CPA and I had the pleasure of having dinner with Mary Jean some years ago and, not only is she a delightful person and wonderful company but, as importantly, totally enthusiastic about all things travel.

Another thing about Mary Jean is that she is an avid conservationist and passionate about the protection of wildlife in Africa, where poaching poses an urgent threat to elephants, rhinos, and big cats. “Pay it forward” is her favorite expression.

PIC #2
“If I have ever seen magic, it has been in Africa.”
John Hemingway, African Journeys

All of which brings me to some exciting news: On August 1, 2016, you can join Mary Jean as she hosts a “Journey to Africa”, with visits to South Africa, Botswana and Zimbabwe. This adventure will be limited to just 12 guests, and you will have the exclusive use of each reserve during your stay and will fly privately between each camp.

Every element of this trip has been carefully and thoughtfully planned for your enjoyment, and you will be living a very luxurious 14 days during your time in Africa. Mary Jean has been to Africa on many occasions and she has forged some great relationships there, through which you will benefit.

PIC #3
“The Eye never forgets what the heart has seen.”
African Proverb

Have a glance at the trip’s brochure to get an idea of what is in store for you:

Mary Jean’s Journey To Africa

Should you decide that you want more information or have any questions, I encourage you to get in touch with my pal, Nada:

Contact Nada

She will be happy to speak with you and to answer all of your questions pertaining to this or any other trip in which you might be interested. As you may already know, Tully Luxury Travel books more cruises on Crystal Cruises vessels than any other company so, if you’re contemplating that kind of trip, you will also have gone to the right place.

TRAVEL TIP: Tully Luxury Travel

If we hadn’t already planned all of our 2016 travel, we would be taking a very serious look at this fantasy trip.

Enjoy!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dining in Brooklyn, Opera in a Loft; and an Uber PostScript

Greetings and salutations, all. I’m looking out of my office window at a beautifully bright and sunny afternoon here in the city that never sleeps. True, it’s on the cool side, but 50 degrees in December is almost like a heat wave for us.

Just to show you how lovely my city can be this time of year, here’s a photo I took at Columbus Circle late Thursday afternoon. Pretty gorgeous, huh?

Columbus Circle

I thought I’d share with you our excursion last night to a place called Brooklyn. Do you know it? As we say on the Upper West Side of Manhattan: “It’s over there, somewhere” as we gesture vaguely in some unknown direction. Actually, Brooklyn is an amazing place where all kinds of interesting things are going on: restaurants, shops, clubs, culture. It’s all there for the taking.

So, I had heard about this ambitious young opera company: LoftOpera. The company presents their productions in unusual spaces in Brooklyn. Believe me, this is NOT your parents’ opera company. Even though they choose operas from the standard repertoire, the productions are cutting-edge, exciting, unusual and cast with up and coming singers. When was the last time you saw La Boheme in which all of the singers were age-appropriate?

And speaking of age, the average age of the Metropolitan Opera audience is about 57+ (according to a sampling of 15,750 audience members taken in 2005). That makes AAC CPA and I relative youngsters when we go to the Met. Just looking around the audience at LoftOpera last night, call us Gramps, as the place was filled with people in their 20s and 30s. In fact, we viewed only a handful of audience members who were our age or older. Yikes!

Loft Opera

Check out the hip, young crowd at LoftOpera

Of course, the $30 ticket charge may have had something to do with the demographics of the audience. I’d argue, however, that it had more to do with the vibe and the experience. Entering the performance space, located at 501 Union Street (I have no idea where in Brooklyn that really is – over there somewhere??), the first thing you see is a long bar, from which beer and wine are being served. The atmosphere is party-like, as if everyone is there to partake in some kind cool experience. The performance space is a long rectangular room, the length of which has 5 or 6 rows of seats. At one end is the 12-piece orchestra, tuning up. It’s very social, it’s very hip, it’s fun.

AAC goes to LoftOpera

AAC CPA goes LoftOpera!

The work being presented was Benjamin Britten’s The Rape of Lucretia, which dates from 1946. It’s a very serious work with a gorgeous Britten score and deals with what might have triggered the beginning of the fall of the Roman Empire, tho’ that is never a stated theme.

Lucretia_LoftOpera
Production still from The Rape of Lucretia at LoftOpera

The production was simply staged, but very dramatically enacted for full and immediate impact. The cast, with which I was totally unfamiliar, was excellent, each and every one. The audience sat rapt throughout and, at the end, was very generous with its applause. All in all, it was a very groovy night and very exciting to discover this new company. Although specific repertoire hasn’t yet been announced, LoftOpera will be presenting 4 productions next year. If you’re in the area, I encourage you to check them out. These are professionally presented productions in intimate surroundings and adventurous locations, and at a fraction of the cost you’d spend at any other opera company.

CULTURE TIP: LoftOpera

And check out the New York Times review for your edification:

New York Times Review

Because AAC CPA and I needed to be well fortified prior to the show, I sought out a place to grab a bite. Enter al di la Trattoria, on 5th Street in the Park Slope area of Brooklyn. I’d heard that they served seriously good Italian food. Again, my phobia about getting lost in the boroughs has held me back. Bad boy!! We had a delightful dinner last night.

al di la

We weren’t able to sample their extensive wine list (no sleeping at the opera, damnit!), but we were delighted with what we chose to eat. We shared an Autumn Market Salad, beautifully shaved vegetables (except for the cauliflower, ewwww), and dressed in the lightest of dressings. Yummy. Followed by a special, pappardelle and duck ragu. OMG, it was so tasty.

al di la food
Talk about whetting your appetite!!!!

For mains, we went our own way: hanger steak with arugula for me (how healthy!) and the most tender pork chop I’ve ever tasted for AAC CPA. Our contorni was Crispy Squashed Beets with horseradish crème and chives. I’m telling you, it was a taste sensation, and totally worth the trip to Brooklyn.

CUISINE TIP: al di la Trattoria – Brooklyn

Speaking of trips to Brooklyn, perhaps that’s why God invented Uber?

Speaking of which: Remember when I talked about Uber last week and how it got us flawlessly around Fort Lauderdale? Well, we Uber-ed our way home after the opera last night and, not only did they pick us up within like 2 minutes, the trip back home was faster and cheaper than taking a taxi. And much more fun, ‘cause you generally travel in a nice car and the drivers are always friendly and chatty (but in a good way).

So, here’s the deal: if any of you are curious but have never tried Uber, use my code:

jeffreys567

and you’ll get $15 off your first Uber ride. (Full disclosure: apparently, I’ll get some kind of credit as well. That’s what I call a “win-win”.)

Travel Tip: Uber Sign-Up

That’s all for now, folks. Have a lovely weekend!!