Ireland, Green and Grand

Castles, Gardens and Rugged Coastline – Ireland’s Awesome Beauty

I have become a believer in the ‘luck of the Irish’. On a recent tour of the southwest of that green island, I lost a twenty euro bill, and found it stuck inside my touring map. A random choice of pubs for lunch in Glengarriff resulted in the best seafood chowder I have ever enjoyed, and, against all odds, I snapped a photo of an Irish castle that will forever be my tangible memory of Ireland.

I had been trying to get a good photograph of historic Dromoland Castle but every time I reached for my camera, the sun disappeared and it would begin to rain.  Not rain exactly, more like a light mist, what the Irish call ‘soft’ weather.

So I had little hope as I headed out in the fog to tour the grounds. An hour later, returning to the castle via a curving path that wound around the famous golf course on the property, I emerged from the trees at the exact moment that the sky cleared and the sun lit up the castle. The light lasted only long enough for me to take a few pictures, before the clouds descended again.  I felt I had been in the right place at the right moment – Irish luck.

Even in the mist, Dromoland Castle Hotel is dramatic.

This five star property is a short 12 k from Shannon Airport and the perfect place to unwind after a long flight.  It’s also an ideal starting point for a driving tour of the southwest of Ireland.

Driving the Irish roads is less intimidating than it used to be – many roads have been widened, and there are modern multi-lane highways that can get you where you want to go quickly and easily. 

But in Ireland, getting there is not the point, and the Ireland you want to experience won’t be found along the freeways. You need to take the winding roads that lead you along the coastline, through the mountains, and into the villages where pubs lure you into stopping for a pint or two and lush gardens seduce you into long walks.

On a drive along the Irish coast this Spring, from Shannon to Cork City, I followed the quieter roads.  With minimal planning and some Irish luck, these roads took me to seaside towns that each possessed a character and a story.

Knightstown, on Valentia Island, partway along the Ring of Kerry, is a tidy little village that borders the harbour.  This is a summer holiday place, with water sports, fishing and boating.  It is best known as the place where the Transatlantic Cable was completed.

You can take the ferry from Knightstown to the Skellig Islands, with Skellig Michael the most captivating. Rocky and forbidding, this jagged island was home at one time to a group of ascetic monks who craved the isolation and austerity that the islands promised, for their spiritual health. The remains of their monastery, abandoned in the 12^th century, are a compelling and sobering vision of the monastic life that would once have been lived here, but the climb up rocky steps can be challenging, and the trip out to the islands can only be made in good weather.  The island is a Unesco World Heritage site.  

After an island adventure, The Moorings in Portmagee is the place to warm up by the fire.  You can spend the night in a room with a harbour view, enjoy great seafood and maybe spend a few hours in the Bridge Bar with a glass or two of Guiness,listening to the locals make music. You could even join in, if you know a song or can carry a tune.

Waterville is a small town further along the coast that boasts one of the best golf courses in the country, - Tiger Woods comes here to golf and fish, silent film star Charlie Chaplin lived here for years, Barrack Obama has visited and Richard Nixon hid out in Waterville House after his disgrace.

“Seventeen U.S. presidents have roots in Ireland,” my Irish friend, Byron, tells me.

Kenmare is a serene town comprised of quiet streets lined with colourful shops and cottages.  There is a stone circle and a haunting fairy tree, under which unbaptised babies were traditionally buried in the past.  Visitors still leave little tokens tied to the trees for luck, and to appease the fairies.

 

“Be careful to speak quietly when you are near the tree – the fairies don’t like to be disturbed, and they are notoriously dangerous when they aren’t happy,” Byron warns me.

In the centre of town is the Park Hotel Kenmare, whose grounds are a gardener’s delight, with green sloping lawns leading down to the bay and paths lined with rhododendron and azalea.

For an inland diversion, head out from Kenmare through Moll’s Gap to Killarney National Park, where you can boat along the lakes and hike the McGillycuddy’s Reeks, or take a jaunting car through the Gap of Dunloe.

East along the coast from Kenmare is Baltimore, where the town’s castle is worth a tour, to hear the story of Barbary pirates who raided the village in 1631. If you take the local ferry out to Sherkin Island , you can tour the ruins of a Franciscan abbey, walk the island or visit one of the two pubs.

In Bantry Bay, in the sheltered harbour of Glengarriff, you’ll find Garinish Island which is home to a subtropical garden property.  The gardens were designed by Harold Peto and are lushly beautiful in every season.  When I visited in Spring, the rhodos and azaleas were in full bloom.

A few miles from the coast, in the country near Skibbereen, is Liss Ard, another hotel gem with famous gardens. This estate, a remarkable mash-up of classic country house design and contemporary aesthetics, is known for its extensive gardens that occupy 150 acres around the hotel. The centrepiece of the gardens is James Turrell’s Sky Garden Crater, a green experience that is both memorable and almost surreal. If you descend the crater and lie on your back on the stone plinth in the centre, your view of the sky and the grassy bowl of the crater’s sides is otherworldly, especially at dawn or dusk.

I stopped in Kinsale to visit the wine museum in Desmond Castle and to sample the seafood and then headed for Shannagarry and Ballymaloe House.

This lovely property near the end of my drive is a quiet retreat, a country manor that feels like home - or how home would feel if mommy were Lady Ballymaloe. 

Each room in the hotel is different and unpretentiously comfortable.  I’m in the Flower Room, with a view of the walled garden. The big draw at Ballymaloe is the dining room, reknown for its cuisine and for its dedication to local products and producers.  The hotel is run by Allen family.  Just down the road is the Ballymaloe Cookery School, run by more Allens, cookbook author and chef Darina and her daughter Rachel. You can take cooking classes, walk in the extensive grounds, enjoy peaceful hikes to the coastal cliffs or plan a visit to the Jameson Distillery for a whisky tasting.

For a change of pace, spend a day or two in Cork, a bustling and prosperous city with its well known English Farmers Market.  The Hayfield Manor Hotel is a serene pocket of gardens and sophistication in the middle of the city, situated next to the university where guests are welcome to walk through the quadrangle and enjoy the campus. 

Blarney Castle and the Titanic Museum are nearby.

And with a bit of Irish luck, you will come back again.

If You Go

While you could depend on Irish luck to help you find your way, the Irish Tourist Board has excellent maps and driving routes, complete with not-to-be-missed highlights, dining suggestions and available accommodation choices. Visit www.ireland.com for more information.

www.dromoland.ie

www.moorings.ie

www.parkkenmare.com

www.lissardestate.com

www.ballymaloe.com

www.hayfieldmanor.ie

www.ballyfin.com

A Snow Thrill on the Downhill 

in Charlevois, Quebec:

Rodelling at Le Massif 

 

I stood at the top of the hill, shivering in my helmet and new Ugg boots. Ahead of me was the first leg of a colossal snow slide.

“Don’t worry,” laughed Giles, a twenty something kid I’d met in the snow tractor on the way along the top of the mountain, and who obviously couldn’t wait to attack the hill.  “Your fear will keep you warm.”

In a way he was right.  While the fear dissipated quickly, the adrenalin kept me warm.

If as a child you experienced a Canadian winter, you will share the collective memories of sliding down icy hills on toboggans, sleds, flying saucers or even pieces of cardboard.

That childhood descent was intoxicating, but would only last ten seconds, if that, and then you would have to drag your sled back up the hill to do it again.  I remember wishing that the downhill thrill could go on for ever.

If you shared that feeling, rodelling is for you.  It’s a ‘piste de luge’ experience featured at Le Massif in the Charlevois, the only place in North America that offers this winter adventure. It’s a sledding dream come true, providing a professional hand-crafted sled, a long uninterrupted and challenging groomed track, and at the end, a gondola to take you back to the top.  The 7.5 kilometre track winds through natural forest, twisting its way down the mountainside to end at the edge of the frozen St. Lawrence River. In total, the rodelling experience takes about two hours, and it is a cool winter thrill, an exhilarating alternative when skiing becomes old hat.  Or old tuque.

So, now I have snow down my neck, leaking into my gloves and glued to my cheek. My tuque is ascue and the fir trim on my new boots is heavy with ice pellets.
So why am I smiling?  Because, even though I was going too fast, missed the turn and ended up inbedded in a snowbank, this is the most winter fun I've had in years.

The attraction has proven so popular for the resort that it has expanded its hours and is often fully booked. Any winter sports' lover, especially one who is finding skiing and boarding a bit ho-hum, will want to try rodelling.

At the end of the hill, you can glide up to the top to the ski resort in the gondola and enjoy white linen dining in Mer et Mont at the chalet. 

Afterwards, you can take the train back to Baie Saint Paul, and warm up with a night in Hotel La Ferme, or return to Quebec City.  

Rodelling - my idea of a cool winter sport!

Le Massif

Le Massif de Charlevoix Ski Resort 

Phone : 1-877-Le-Massif (536-2774)

www.lemassif.com/en

 Directions:
To the Summit (+/- 75 km from Québec City):

• Follow signs for Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré
• From Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré, continue along Route 138 for about 45 km
• Turn right at the sign for Le Massif, located on the right-hand side of Route 138, 15 km BEFORE the town of Petite- Rivière-Saint-François
• Drive 6 km… You’ve arrived!

To the Base (+/- 110 km from Québec City):

• Follow directions for Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré
• From Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré, continue along Route 138 until you see the sign for Petite Rivière St François, located about 15 km past the sign for the summit of Le Massif
• Turn right, drive to Petite-Rivière-St-François
• Continue along Principale St. for about 15 km
• Turn right at the sign marking the entrance to Le Massif, onto the access road
• Proceed to the parking area… You’ve arrived!

Doing The Mexican Salsa: Authentic Mexican Cuisine

The journey out to Bucerias was torture - a tedious and uncomfortable bus ride, a possibly dangerous ride with a local, and a long walk caused by incorrectly reading our map.
But it was all good once we arrived at My Mexican Kitchen.

This small and intimate cooking school is run by two gregarious and knowledgeable young men, Travis and Edgar, who pride themselves on teaching local  cuisine as the Mexican mothers and grandmothers would -. basic, local and fresh.  We began by making a large jug of agua fresca from fresh pineapple.  This refreshing drink is served everywhere in Mexico, and can be made from one single fruits, a mixture of fruits, or a combinati0on of fruits and vegetables, like mango and celery, for example.

I thought I knew salsa - but no, I only knew the ubiquitous and delicious pico de gallo that is found on every restaurant table in Mexico.
Travis showed us the basic ingredients - tomatoes, onions, peppers and garlic - and then explained that by switching the type of vegetable, or by changing the prep method, you could create  many different variations of salsa.

Switch the Roma tomatoes  for tomatillos or change the jalapena  peppers for habaneros and the salsa has a new character.  You can use freshly chopped tomatoes, or you can boil the tomatoes and peppers, or roast them.  Voila, a new salsa.
Some cooks add lime juice to their salsa while others add a bit of vinegar.  It is a versatile sauce that can be made to your own personal style.
Together we made agua fresca, chilaquiles  rojo, homemade corn tortillas, quesadillas with potatoes and mushrooms, and Sopes.
We ended with Mexican coffee, pungent with cinnamon and dark piloncillo sugar.

We ate well, learned much about Mexican cuisine and ingredients, and enjoyed good company.
This was a very pleasant way to spend an evening, and I would recommend a night at My Mexican Kitchen to anyone who loves good food and enjoys the communal closeness of a shared table.
My idea of a great vacation experience.

My Mexican Kitchen

Bucerias Art Walk Plaza

#62 Lazaro Cardenas Street, Bucerias

Nayarit, MEXICO 63732

Phone Numbers:

From the US or Canada  011-52-1-322-159-0069

In Mexico, from a land line  045-322-159-0069

In Mexico, from a cell phone  322-159-0069

Email: mymexicankitchen@yahoo.com

 

The Long Cruise: Follow Me

Day Five: Malaga, Spain
We arrived in Malaga just after dawn and the harbour, though very industrial, was beautiful.

Malaga sits comfortably between the Mediterranean and the Sierra Nevadas. It’s a very pretty city, with an elegant promenade and many historic buildings. We walked up the Molina Lario to the Malaga Cathedral, then headed for the historic district. We visited the small house where Pablo Picasso was born, now a museum and gallery, and had an excellent coffee and churros in the Café de Picasso. We spent some time photographing the narrow streets and plazas, toured the shopping district, and were back at the ship by 3.
We had an early dinner and then watched the movie “Julie and Julia”.

For The Traveling Music Lover: North America's Top Ten Cities for Live Music

TRAVEL WRITERS SELECT NORTH AMERICA’S

TOP 10 CITIES FOR LIVE MUSIC

August, 2009: The Society of American Travel Writers (SATW), the world’s largest organization of professional travel journalists and photographers, recently polled its members to come up with the “Top 10” best North American cities for live music.

“Travel should involve all five senses, and one of the great travel experiences is listening to live music in the places where it originated or in spectacular settings,” says SATW president, Bea Broda.

Listed in order of votes with comments from SATW writers, here are North America’s “Top 10” destinations for live music.

1. New Orleans, Louisiana, www.neworleanscvb.com

“New Orleans bleeds music – it’s in the air, in the water, in the people. You can’t go to New Orleans without the music swallowing you whole.” Lisa A. Tomaszewski, travel editor, HMP Communications

2. New York City, www.nycgo.com

“Where else can you “Rent” a seat next to some “Guys and Dolls,” let down your “Hair” and be transported anywhere from the “South Pacific” to “Chicago,” and leave the theatre thinking, “Mamma Mia!” that was some enchanted evening!” Evelyn Kanter, freelance travel writer/photographer

3. Austin, Texas, www.austintexas.org

“Only in Austin, Texas can you go for super-delicious and inexpensive barbecue, sit outdoors at a picnic table and hear decent live rock at no additional charge.” Carole Terwillger Meyers, travel writer

“Austin is home to the yearly South by Southwest (SXSW) Music Festival, where nearly the entire city becomes a music venue for a week. There are hundreds of live shows a day, making it just as fun for locals as for industry executives.” Joshua Hinsdale, freelance travel writer

4. Nashville, Tennessee, www.visitmusiccity.com

“Nashville isn’t just the ‘home’ of country music. It’s the heart and soul of country music.” Steve Winston, freelance travel writer

5. Chicago, Illinois, www.choosechicago.com

“Chicago's reputation as home of the blues can't be understated, with live shows available at clubs every night. The diverse neighborhoods and city-sponsored events also offer live music, from Old Town School of Folk Music to Lollapalooza in Grant Park and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. It's all here, all the time.” Laurie Borman, freelance travel writer

6. Memphis, Tennessee, www.memphistravel.com

“Barbecue and blues, blues and barbecue. Memphis is a foot-tapping, sensory delight.” John H. Ostdick, freelance travel writer

“Doesn’t get any better than Memphis, Beale St. and barbecue, wow, what a concerto. Plus the ghost of old Elvis is always hanging around somewhere, munching on a fried banana and peanut butter sandwich and strumming his guitar.” Rich Browne, host, Barbecue America

7. Montreal, Canada, www.tourisme-montreal.org

“Montreal has anything you might want, with a European accent.” George Bryant, freelance travel writer

“Montreal is a hotbed of world music, and free music festivals!” Nancy Lyon, freelance travel writer/photographer

8. Las Vegas, Nevada, www.visitlasvegas.com

“From Elvis and Frank through Barbra and Barry to Celine and Bette, Vegas has been THE venue every great act hopes to get booked into. And with all the smaller lounges at the major hotels, you can catch talent on the way up, too.’’ Bob Jenkins, freelance writer.

9. Branson, Missouri, www.explorebranson.com

"Where do top sidemen go when they tire of the LA lifestyle? To Branson where they can play their music at any of its 52 live performance theatres, enjoy life on three pristine lakes and 12 championship golf courses. Every day's a musical high, but the Christmas scene is fabulous!" Lorraine O'Donnell Williams, travel writer.

10. Denver, Colorado, www.visitdenver.com

“Red Rocks is the most visually stunning outdoor amphitheatre in the country, maybe the world. “ Ted Alan Stedman, freelance travel writer

“A concert at Red Rocks should be on everyone’s bucket list…Red Rocks is one of a kind.” Kim McHugh, freelance writer

The Society of American Travel Writers (SATW) is a non-profit professional association that works to promote responsible travel journalism and to provide professional support for its members, including travel journalists, photographers, editors, electronic media, film lecturers, television and film producers, and public relations representatives from the travel industry.

For more information on the Society of American Travel Writers, visit: www.satw.org/TopTen

Iconic Dining - Twenty Places to Dine Before You Diet: Part Two

Searching for the best tables in the world? (This one is in Puebla, Mexico) Read On!

Touring The World, One Meal at a Time

Here's the next five iconic dining experiences that should be on every traveling gourmand's list. Let me know if you have dined at any of these, and leave a comment if you would like to nominate a foodie destination for the list.



6.Castle Mallow, Ireland - Dine in your own castle, with staff. Order what you want, but be sure to include fresh soda bread, freshly caught salmon from the Blackwater River that runs past the estate.
A warm inviting home with an engaging staff of family retainers, this fine castle was the 16th-century seat of the Lord President of Munster and the home of this family for four centuries. You may stroll through the eight-hectare (20 acre) deer park, where over 100 white deer roam freely (a christening gift from Queen Elizabeth I to her god-daughter). The 'new' castle, occupied since 1689, overlooks the stately 'old' castle ruins, a national historic monument.


Before dinner enjoy a game of snooker in the billiard room or a quiet drink in the drawing room. The castle can be rented, complete with staff, at www.elegant.ie



7. Eigensinn Farm, Ontario, Canada -Michael Stadtlander's amazing dinner which is a four hour walking dinner with each course taking place at a different station, where he and his wife Noboyu have designed an art installation that matches the food course.

The barbecue is made in the shape of a red wattle pig and the roasts being grilled are from the same red wattles, served with an apple and sage sauce, baby green beans and dumplings with caramelized onions and bacon ( made from the same red wattles) .

That was course #5 in a twelve course feast. Eigenssen Farm has been named the sixth most expensive place to dine in the world by Forbes Magazine.


8. Iles de la Madeleine - The lobster festival every June is one of those dining experiences that seafood lovers should put on their must-do list. The islands produce the best lobster in the world, because of the cold water and the rocky, as apposed to sandy, sea bottom.

Most of the dining rooms are modest, and can be found in the small inns dotted around the island.

The seafood is unbeatable, but the scenery - red cliffs, blue water - is spectacular too.

9.Dine With the Nobility at Swinton Park Hall, Yorkshire - If you time it right, the resident Lord and Lady might join you.

You can watch the white deer run in the park outside the window, while tucking in to a great venison stew. Not really that disturbing.

The historic hall has a cooking school as well, and you can arrange to take classes while enjoying a stay.



10. Tea with a Princess in Beautiful Bermuda - Stay at the pretty pink Princess ( Fairmont Hamilton Princess)one of the nicest hotels anywhere, and be sure to book a room on the gold floor so you can enjoy the lovely high tea each day.

Breakfast is served on the patio in the warm Bermuda sun. Lovely.


And you can finish the day with a "Dark and Stormy", Bermuda's official cocktail
( made from dark rum, ginger beer and lime juice)


So there it is, part two of a culinary journey around the world. Be sure to leave a comment if you've been to any of these. And check in again for part three.

Nova Scotia Beckons: Lobster, Lighthouses and Lithographs.

Culinary and Artistic Rambles in Nova Scotia

Somewhere between the lobster corn chowder and the pan seared Digby scallops, I started to speculate about what it would be like to live here. By the time I got to the lemon tart and fresh raspberries, I was discussing with my dinner companion the logistics of selling my home and moving here.

Parts of Nova Scotia have that effect on visitors.

I was comfortably settled in a corner table of Tempest, a fine restaurant on the corner of Front Street and Central in Wolfville.

As we finished our main course, we watched the lawyer in his office across the street put on his suit jacket, hoist his briefcase and set out on his walk home. It wasn’t just the sight of a lawyer who still wore a shirt and tie, or a lawyer who walked home from work that was intriguing. I could imagine dinner waiting for him in a high ceilinged dining room in one of the large clapboard homes, maybe one painted white or pale yellow or blue, like the ones we had seen in the centre of town.

Others walked by – exercising their dogs, completing errands, just walking for pleasure as the sun turned the historic Acadian dykes to pink and gold.

The scene was a graphic explanation of why so many artists have either been inspired here, or have migrated here. Nova Scotia has become a Mecca for the artistic spirit, and in that process, has developed into an art lover’s destination as well.

Artists are notoriously retiring in nature, however, and finding them can be a challenge. The Studio Map, a year-round guide to Arts & Craft in Nova Scotia, is the answer. Originally created as part of the annual Studio Rally Weekend, a two day celebration of art held each spring when all the artists open their doors to the public, it has evolved into a useful year-round guide and the art lover’s best friend.

Through the Guide, I found artists who worked in every media, from watercolour, oil and graphite, to glass, clay and wood. The map/guide is an inspired pairing of the descriptions of the art work and the location of the artists of Nova Scotia with the several driving routes that the province has developed in their Doers’ & Dreamers’ guide. With a copy of each guide in hand, a visitor can discover the heart of Acadian culture, as well as the best places to stay and dine.

The Studio Map's directions to the homes of artists whose work is for sale are detailed, and often quirky. For example, visitors are led to Kathryn Gordon’s studio with directions like these: “At the Huey Lake/Mount Pleasant sign, turn left between the red barn and the white church. The studio is the fish shack at the very end of the lane.” Gordon transforms glass into one-of-a-kind beads that she fashions into wearable art in her ‘fish shack’ studio in Lahave.

The Studio Map brought me to The Tangled Garden in Grand Pre and to Beverley McClare who was one of the co-founders of the map. Actually, I had already fallen in love with McClare’s jams and jellies at the One of a Kind craft show in Toronto. I remembered them not just because the products were delicious, but also because they bore labels with a reproduction of a George Walford watercolour painting and were enclosed in wooden gift boxes painted in soft greens and blues.

The Tangled Garden is in fact a real garden, a living piece of installation art that visitors can walk through, ideally with a bowl of McClare’s freshly made lavender ice cream in hand. Her sculptures are a whimsical surprise along the garden paths. The cottage-like store displays her mustards, vinegars, flavoured oils and jellies as if they were works of art. On the top floor is George Walford’s studio, where he displays the large mixed media paintings he is doing right now, complex explorations of texture and colour. Formally trained at the Luton Art School in England, he fell in love with Nova Scotia some thirty years ago, and is still finding his artistic inspiration here

On the Lighthouse Route, I found the Mariner King Inn in Lunenburg, and enjoyed a bowl of green olive tuscan soup with shrimp and scallops at the highly rated Fleur de Sel Restaurant, before I hit the art trail. The Studio Map took me this time to Joan Bruneau’s pottery shop – it is one of her vases that was chosen as the cover art for one of the Art Rally posters. Then I walked to Bradford Naugler’s folk art studio.

In nearby Chester, a picture perfect coastal town, I visited Chez Glass Lass, where Sharon Mcnamara and Paul Palango create fused glass dinnerware settings that are now collectibles, and the studio of Jose Valverde, a transplanted Spanish painter.

Right now is the perfect time to visit Nova Scotia but the Fall is also a good time. In the Fall, the many trails of the province are much quieter, hotel rates are lower, the weather is surprisingly mild, and most of the artists are busily working on their next creation. While many of the galleries and studios are open daily, a phone call to any of the artists will open the door for you, especially if you are in a buying mood.

Adriane Abbott, co-founder,with Beverley McClare, of the Studio Rally and Map, describes the guide as a ‘catalogue of characters’. “The artists on this map are sociable and derive real pleasure from the interaction and feedback your visit provides.”

She has this advice for the art loving tourist: “Take the back roads and the far roads. Laugh a lot. Don’t get mad at the navigator; delight in the fact that you are seeing the same incredible view twice. Eat well. Visit the studios, enjoy the people, and if their work moves you, for heaven’s sake, shop!”

My last stop was the iconic Peggy’s Cove. On the patio of the only bed and breakfast in town I watched the sun set behind Canada’s best known lighthouse. It was clear why this is such an artsy island. Sky and boats and reflections in the water conspired to create a scene ready for pigment and canvas.

There is no lack of inspiration on this coastline.

If You Go

Studio Rally/Studio Map

Adriane Abbott

PO Box 41

Musquodoboit Harbour, N.S.

B0J 2L0

Tel: 902-827-7117

www.studiorally.ca – the website has the studio map complete with photographs and a short description of each artist’s work and contact information, or you can request a copy by mail.

Nova Scotia Department of Tourism & Culture

www.novascotia.com

tel: 1-800-565-0000

Ask for a copy of the 2009 Doers’ & Dreamers’ Guide. I found Tempest, and the comfortable Tattingstone Inn in Wolfville through the Doers’ & Dreamers’Guide issued by Nova Scotia Tourism. The publication, over four hundred pages long, is one of the best organized and most detailed driving guides I have discovered anywhere. It tells you about museums, places to stay and sites to see along several routes around the island province. In addition to the well known Evangeline Trail, there is the Lighthouse Route, the Cabot Trail, the Sunrise Trail and several others. It’s a practical and informative book.

Amsterdam’s Brown Cafes

Amsterdam's Brown Cafes -

Fiercely Dutch and Proudly Traditional

By Barbara Ramsay Orr

AMSTERDAM - This city has many delights, but its brown cafes have their own addictive appeal.

These establishments have been a central part of Amsterdam life for centuries.

The oldest one, Cafe Chris (at Bloemstraat 42), dates from 1624 and originated to supply the needs of workers building the nearby Westerkirk, one of the city's best-known churches. No doubt they used up a goodly portion of their wages in the place.

Brown cafes take their name from their traditional dark wood interiors, which have deepened in tone from age and years of tobacco smoke. They are by definition small - the Dutch describe them as "gezellig," meaning cosy and comfortable.

De Ooievaar (the Stork, at Sint Olofspoort 1, just around the corner from Central Station) is one of the smallest in Amsterdam - hardly larger than a couple of walk-in closets. On the night I visited, people were crowded around the tables and pressing cheek by jowl up to the narrow bar. The air was thick with smoke - the cigarette police have not hit Amsterdam yet - the temperature was steamy and the talk was loud.

When I casually asked what the dusty grey crocks were on the shelves, I was treated to an explanation - and a sample - of jenever, a potent schnapps-like gin.

A small glass of older jenever, darker in colour and more mellow than the younger, swallowed quickly from a small tulip-shaped glass, tastes like cold water until it hits the gullet, whereupon it delivers a warm punch.

The woman who had insisted we try the jenever then suggested we visit the brown cafe just across the alley where her husband was the barkeep. She didn't patronize his cafe, she said, because "it is difficult to relax when I have to watch him working."

Some of the brown cafes specialize in particular brands of beer or jenever, having begun as places where distillers would offer free tastings for patrons to try before they bought a cask. One such establishment is the Wynand Fockink, dating from 1679, which serves products from its own distillery as well as other well-established brands. It boasts a collection of liqueur bottles on which portraits are painted of every Amsterdam mayor since 1591. It is the custom in this bar to fill the jenever glass to the brim, making it necessary to put your lips to the glass instead of vice versa.

One of the most charming brown cafes is 't Smalle (Egelantiersgracht 12) in the Jordaan district. It serves simple dishes like soup and bread, sandwiches, local cheeses and sausages, as well as several brands of beer and jenever. The interior is small and dark, but there is a dock platform on the canal where patrons can sit by the water and enjoy the sunshine.

We jokingly suggested to two young rowers passing by that they might like to row us back to our hotel. To our surprise, they not only took us on a tour of the canals that led back to the Barbizon, but they supplied a running history of the architecture of the city. They were both lawyers, both Cambridge graduates who had returned to their hometown to work, and both extremely proud of their beautiful city.

The brown cafes lead to surprises like that. They are not known as tourist attractions: rather, they are the beloved meeting houses of locals. Each cafe has a loyal circle of patrons who come regularly to talk with friends, and each has a distinctive character. These little cafes remain fiercely Dutch in character and proudly traditional.

A favourite activity of bike-riding locals is a cycling tour of brown cafes. Start at the Cafe Karpershoek (dating from 1629), Amsterdam's second-oldest cafe.

Head west to the Jordaan neighbourhood near Noorderkerk for Cafe Papeneiland, opened in 1642, and nearby Cafe Hegeraad (mid-1600s), then hit Cafe 't Smalle and Cafe Chris. Southwest of the Jordaan, at Spui in the centre of town, is Cafe Hoppe (1670), a literary hangout. Swing east to Cafe de Sluyswacht (1695) and its terrace overlooking the Oude Schans canal. Wind up at Cafe de Druif (1631), near the Maritime Museum.

If you go:

Cycling maps are available from the Amsterdam Tourist Board (www.visitamsterdam.nl).

For more information on the Netherlands, visit www.goholland.com.