Tag: Negronis

Sailaway and 1st Full Sea Day

Good afternoon and greetings from somewhere in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.

We sailed from Lisbon late yesterday afternoon following our boat muster. Our departure was delayed for about an hour, as the ship needed some “spare parts” – don’t even know what that means, but OK.

AAC, CPA and I decided to have our own sailaway party on our balcony.

sailaway-01
Sailaway beverage of choice, courtesy of our butler, Sebastian.

sailaway-02
And AAC, CPA enjoying a bit of the bubbly as we depart Lisbon.

As we headed out to sea, there were a couple of notable sights along the way:

statue-02
The iconic Christo Rei statue on the southern banks of the River Tagus

bridge-and-statue
The 25 de Abril Bridge which, to me, is so reminiscent of the SF Golden Gate Bridge

And, finally, before we head out to the open sea:

lighthouse
The lighthouse.

After a little snooze – good Champagne can make one drowsy, you know – we got cleaned up and dressed for dinner. Here are a couple of the dishes we had last night:

smoked-scallop-cucumber-foam
It’s a hot smoked scallop, with cucumber foam and charred cucumber

beet-sherbet
Red beet sherbet, which we used as a palette cleanser.

OOPS! I forgot to photograph my entree: a yummy pink-roasted pancetta pork tenderloin, which I had with mashed potatoes, yellow carrots and olive oil caviar and chives!

chocolate-brownie
“Chocolate & Banana Harmony”

After dinner, we took a little stroll around deck 6, where all the “action is”. The theme of this crossing is “Big Band” and, true to form, Crystal has engaged the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra to play every night. The band has all the old charts and Great American Songbook standards, so it’s a pleasure to listen to them. We’ve sailed with them on numerous occasions and they are marvelous.

tommy-dorsey
Great musical evenings with the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra

So to atone for my sins yesterday (all that Cristal, all that food!!!), I was up and out by 8:00 AM this morning to do my 12 laps around the Promenade Deck. Both Crystal ships are great in that they have Promenade Decks that extend all the way around the ship. For those of you who count, a mile is equal to 3.7 laps.

Around 9:00 AM, the Captain made an announcement that rocked my world: On every westbound crossing we’ve made from Lisbon, the first port of call is always either the Azores or the Canary Islands. As we’ve made this crossing so many times, we’ve been to those places more than we really need to be. So, when the Captain announced that, due to the remnants of a hurricane somewhere, he decided to cancel our call at the Azores and proceed directly to our only remaining port: St. Thomas, I was extremely happy. What this means for me is 8 consecutive sea days – WOO HOO!

Then it was time for breakfast. As it was such a lovely day, here’s AAC, CPA having an alfresco breakfast, a lovely start to the day:

aac-breakfast

(According to dear friends Lynne and Garry, who know all that one needs to know about what’s happening on board, a couple in an adjacent cabin to their’s had booked the crossing for the sole purpose of visiting the Azores, so I suppose these folks having a bad day.)

I, for one, am not upset. With no disrespect intended, once you’ve seen the Azores, you’ve seen the Azores, if you receive my meaning. And you can quote me.

So, it’s just about 6:00 PM and Sebastian is about to drop by with some evening canapes at our request. That’s one of the joys of sailing on Crystal. I think we requested pigs-in-blankets (I never said we were highbrows, after all), crudite (but NO cauliflower) and potato chips. I’m already chilling the glasses for the Negronis which I’m about to make.

sebastian
The absolutely indispensable Sebastian, “the best in the West”.

aac-cocktail
AAC, CPA with Negronis and all the rest.

After our leisurely cocktail “hour”, we’ll get cleaned up and, as it’s our first formal night, we’ll have dinner tonight at one of the specialty restaurants: Prego.

Buona sera a tutti – a domani!!

Yountville Opening Night – Negronis & Ad Hoc

Good morning from Yountville on a beautiful and cool Tuesday. The weather here is just amazing: rising into the 90s in the shank of the afternoon, but cooling down in the evening and dropping into the low 60s overnight. So, imagine us sitting on our private balcony overlooking the beautiful foliage that surrounds the hotel, AAC CPA sipping his coffee and perusing the NY Times as I chat with you.

Our first night in Yountville started in fine fettle with cocktails at the hotel. The four of us were actually here exactly 1 year ago (to the day), and the superb bartender, Sarah, was at her station and ready to mix our Negronis. She uses locally made No. 209 gin, Campari (of course) and Antica Carpano – it’s a very smooth cocktail. Sarah – pro that she is – also chills the glasses, so we enjoyed an icy concoction. It was deeee-licious.

Negronis
Bartender Sarah at work on our Negronis

The great thing about staying at the Hotel Yountville is that it’s on the main drag – Washington Street – as are all the fine restaurants, most of which are within a 5 minute walk. (French Laundry is another 3 minutes away.) So, after getting our buzz on, we strolled down the street to Ad Hoc – another Thomas Keller inspiration.

Ad Hoc

Opened in 2006, Ad Hoc is Keller’s casual restaurant open 5 nights a week, featuring a 4-course pre-fixe menu and a extremely well-considered wine list both of which are moderately priced. Every week, fried chicken is featured, either at Sunday brunch or Monday dinner. Luckily for us, it was on the menu last night.

Ad Hoc Menu

We were warmly greeted on our arrival and seated at exactly the same table we had last year. As soon as we settled in, Ad Hoc’s general manager, Elias Mandilaras, stopped by to welcome us back – what a great touch! Turns out that Elias is from the east coast, too, and he had worked for the BRG Restaurant Group, which owns some of our favorite restaurants in New York. Our evening was off to a great start!

As it was a warm summer night, we decided to go with a light, local Rose to accompany our dinner. It was the perfect choice.

Paradigm Rose

And then the fun began, starting with a crispy iceberg wedge with warm bacon, tomatoes, fresh herbs, and a tangy green goddess dressing. As you’ll see, everything is served family-style, so it’s everyone for him/herself.

Ad Hoc Wedge
The fabulous first course: iceberg wedge

Then we got what we came for: Ad Hoc’s famous fried chicken. Your faithful correspondent almost forgot to take its picture, so here are the remnants:

Ad Hoc Fried
It was so yummy, but too much to finish

The chicken was accompanied by beautifully al dente Romano beans in a light tomato sauce and the creamiest grits you could imagine. I somehow forgot to take their pix – mea culpa.

And then, thanks to Elias’ generosity, we were treated to a special course not on the menu: the most flavorful bone marrow served with grilled sour dough bread and stone fruit. It was a surprise and it was a real treat. Thanks, Elias!

Ad Hoc Bone Marrow
Our special  off the menu extra course, compliments of the house.

Back to the regular menu, although we were fading just a bit, our next course was a cheese course, accompanied by a molasses drop biscuit. It was a perfect combination.

Ad Hoc Cheese

Finally, it was time for something sweet. Bring on the brownie sundae topped with caramel sauce.

Ad Hoc Dessert
The perfect end to the perfect meal.

At that point, there was nothing left to do but to take our very satisfied selves back to our hotel, 5 minutes away. We thanked everyone at the restaurant and made our getaway.

CULINARY TIP: Ad Hoc – HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

As we approached the entrance to the hotel, a full moon was peeking from behind some trees.

Yount Entrance - Moon
Is that a gorgeous sight or what?

On the way to our room, we took a stroll by the pool.

Yount Pool - Night
Midnight swim, anyone?

And, thus, concluded our first day in the wine country.

ADDENDUM:

As TheCulturedTraveler has been in business for about 9 months now, I get questions about who this person is and how come TCT is never seen. Bowing to the masses, I’m attaching the first (and, possibly, last) photograph for your enjoyment:

TCT Self Portrait
TheCulturedTraveler,  photo taken on June 20, 2016, Napa, CA

 

 

 

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.

Embarkation Day

So, greetings from Deck 9 aft on Queen Mary 2. It’s now about 11:30 PM and we’re out on the open seas. There’s nothing like a crossing to get the pulse racing. Think about it. For the next week, there’s nothing around or near us but the North Atlantic Ocean. It’s kind of thrilling, in a way. For those of you whose ancestors may have come to America from Europe in “the old days”, they most likely sailed on a ship to get to the new country. Perhaps not like we’re doing this week, but you get the idea.

Backing up, we were picked up at the hotel this morning at 10:30. Our driver, Pan, took great care of us and delivered us to the ship just before 1:00 PM. We were whisked through check-in and on board within 15 minutes. Surprisingly, our luggage made it to the cabin before we did.

Here’s AAC CPA just getting on board:

06 - Boarding QM2
AAC CPA Deck 3 – Boarding

We got settled in, met our butler, Michael, and headed up to Queen’s Grill to check our table and have a bite of lunch. So far, so good.

12 - Queens Grill
Queens Grill on Queen Mary 2

Then we took a walk around the ship to reacquaint ourselves with the layout. After many years of sailing on Crystal, this ship is very different and much bigger.

01 - Veuve Cliqout
Veuve Cliquot Bar – One of many watering holes

02-Propellers
AAC CPA on board posing with an extra set of propellers

03 - Vogue
AAC CPA vogueing out on deck – Thanks, Nick, for the caption

By 4:30 it was time for the life boat drill – mandated by law and kind of like the safety announcement you hear whenever you fly. Nobody really pays attention but you have to know how to get into your life jacket and where to go in case of emergency. So there it is.

08 - Life Boat Muster
The obligatory life jacket photo

Then back to the cabin to get ready to sail away. There was some kind of “party” on 8 deck aft with champagne, which was not free. As it turned out, we received a bottle of the bubbly in our cabin and decided to have our own party on our balcony. We put a little Ella on the boom box thing, popped the cork, and watched our departure from Southampton. Perfect.

09 - Bon Voyage
Hail and Farewell (with champagne)

Then it was time to get ready for dinner. Tonight is “informal” meaning jackets with or without ties. We decided to go for it.

But first: a pre-dinner cocktail at the Queen’s Grill Lounge. Guess what we had?

10 - Negroni
First Negroni of the Voyage

Then over to Queen’s Grill for our first dinner. We have a lovely window table for two, in the front of the Grill. (Thanks, Osman.) We have a team of 3 waiters and a sommelier to spoil us. We like it. Tonight, it’s Dover Sole, which just might have been caught in Dover today – it’s that fresh. And a lovely Chassagne-Montrachet to accompany our meal.

Then a brisk stroll around deck 7 – the promenade deck. It’s just a bit brisk this evening. Hope we packed the right wardrobe. We’ll see.

The ship is very quiet tonight. It’s as if everyone disappeared into their cabins after a long day making their way aboard. Tomorrow we’ll see who’s here and what everyone is up to – this will be our community and neighborhood for the next week. And it’s up to us to make an adventure out of it.

Stay tuned.

PS. We turn the clocks back tonight, so everyone gets an extra hour of sleep – or an extra hour to play.