Abu Dhabi – The Pearl Of The World

    

            The desert has always been the perfect backdrop for romance-  think Lawrence of Arabia, The English Patient, all the way back to Valentino’s 1921 movie, The Sheik, in which “a charming Arabian sheik becomes infatuated with an adventurous, modern-thinking Englishwoman and abducts her to his home in the Saharan desert”. 

So it is not surprising that Carrie, Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte should run away to Abu Dhabi and the deserts of the United Arab Emirates when their New York lives threaten to become mundane, in 2010’s Sex in The City 2.  Its nickname is ‘the pearl of the world’.

While Dubai is the emirate that you hear most about, it is Abu Dhabi, with its more subdued profile, which became the nominative setting for the adventures of the Sex and the City girls. The capital of the emirate, also called Abu Dhabi, has wide boulevards, larger than life architecture and immense wealth.  And right on the doorstep of the city is the immensity of the desert. Perfect backdrop for a blockbuster movie. 

            It is a city that confounds categorization.  On one hand there are gleaming shopping centres, exclusive luxury hotels and expensive yachts anchored in the harbours.  This is a very wealthy city and it celebrates its abundance in daring architecture, like the Emirates Telecommunications Company (Etisalat) Building with its gigantic golf ball at the top or the pointy topped National Bank of Abu Dhabi building.  I saw cars parked casually in front of hotels that would make a car lover’s heart sing – and that you seldom see in the real world.  Shops team with gold jewellery, and perfumeries prepare personal blends of signature aromas for their customers.

            Abu Dhabi is also home to the seven star Emirates Palace Hotel, the most expensive hotel ever built.  It is a fairy tale hotel, with marble halls, gilded domes, and splashing fountains.  Suites open to balconies that look out on the Persian Gulf.  A private butler greets you with chilled champagne and hands over his card with his cell phone number, to be used “whenever there is a need.” Later in the evening, the bath has been drawn, with fresh rose petals sprinkled on the towels, and more petals beside the bed.  There are 114 domes, 1002 chandeliers, 13 restaurants, and a vending machine that dispenses gold. The ATM-style kiosk monitors the daily gold price and offers small bars up to 10 grams or coins with customized designs. It’s an experience tailor made for a Carrie Bradshaw.

            This is a hotel that is a destination in itself, outrageously luxurious, and imbued throughout with the romantic style of the Arabic world.

            But the ancient world lives on in Abu Dhabi.  There is much reverence for the Bedouin life style that existed in these parts up until oil became the driving force of the economy in the early sixties.  So you can see ancient dhows still plying the waterways.  In the souks, piles of dates, heaps of carpets, handicrafts and spices are offered in shops along narrow ally ways and at makeshift stalls and tables.  The Iranian Souk is one of the most authentic souks in Abu Dhabi, while the Al Meena Souk is the place to bargain for carpets. Go to the Madinat Zayed Gold Souk for good buys on jewellery.    In the fish market, local fishermen display their catch like artwork.

If you leave your window open, you’ll hear the muezzin echo through the city, calling its citizens to prayer, five times during the day.  In my hotel room, inside one of the drawers is a prayer rug and a compass.

There is a concerted effort to preserve the Arabic style in architecture, furnishings, and cuisine.  While almost any international cuisine is available, every corner has cafes and restaurants that offer the special foods of the Middle East.  A traditional meal will usually start with mezzeh, a selection of tasty appetizers, often including tabbouleh, hummus and falafel. Main courses include lamb infused with cardamom, saffron, turmeric and thyme, and the meal will end with desserts made from dates, pistachios, and honey, or muhalabiya, a milk pudding served with rose water and pistachios.   Before the meal, diners are welcomed with dates and small cups of ghawah, the fragrant and sweet Arabic coffee .And after the meal, there’s usually  a hookah or ‘shisha’ to help you relax.  This exotic water pipe bubbles smoke through water, and can be spiced up with flavours like lavender, vanilla, cherry, cinnamon, or orange.

The Anar Restaurant in the Emirates Palace Hotel does elegant Persian food, while the Abdel Wahab, near the Grand Mosque serves a simpler take on Emirati and Lebanese dishes.

While most restaurants, particularly those in the large hotels, serve alcohol, many will not serve alcoholic drinks before sundown during Ramadan, the month long Islamic holiday that requires fasting from sun-up to sun down.   This year Ramadan runs from early August to early September

            One of the surprising facts about Abu Dhabi is that less than 20 percent of the population are UAE.  The bulk of the population is made up of expatriates.  That means that the atmosphere of the city is more cosmopolitan and more liberal than one would expect in a predominantly Muslim country.  While it is good manners to respect the conservative mode of dress of the city, most forms of dress are seen on the streets with no problem.  Within hotels and resorts, there are no dress restrictions. 

One of the startling contrasts I witnesses was on the beach in front of the Rotana Hotel.  On a lounge chair, a woman relaxed in the shade, dressed in a black abaya that covered her completely from head to toe.  On the adjacent lounge, another woman sunned in a tiny bikini.  Neither one seemed to be bothered by the other.

            This is a city of beaches.  Abu Dhabi is actually a T-shaped island, connected by bridges to other islands and to the mainland.  There are over 400 kilometres of coastline.  The Corniche, the elegant walking path in the centre of the city, is a favourite place for walking, jogging or biking, and is lined with cafes and shops.  A white sand beach stretches for 2 kilometres along its length, and there are landscaped parks and picnic grounds.

            Day trips from the city into the desert give visitors the chance to experience the nomadic life of the Bedouins.  You can visit the large camel market at Al Ain, where white robed locals barter for the best camels, and you can see every size, from babies to full grown, of this ancient ‘ship of the desert’.  You can ride a camel through the dunes, sleep in a Bedouin tent and dine under the stars in an encampment. A popular activity is dune bashing, or wadi bashing, where practised drivers take you on hair-raising races through the desert, sliding down the sides of one dune and skidding up the next.  You can even surf the sand dunes, or play golf on sand links, with a portable circle of grass that you tee off from.

            If you tire of the sand, Al Ain, 150 kilometres from Abu Dhabi, is the ‘garden city of the Gulf’, an oasis in the sand and the home of the Royal family.  It is a much more rural city, with a National Museum, the Hili Archaeological Park and surprisingly, an Olympic sized ice skating rink.  me of the best scuba diving in the world is to be found in the clear waters of the Persian Gulf.

            This is one of the safest and most cosmopolitan cities in the UAE, and I felt very

comfortable here.  Most people speak English and there is a casual acceptance of western ways, while the life style and history of the desert region has been both preserved and celebrated. 

            Abu Dhabi is the perfect city to begin an exploration of the Middle East.

Travel Information

 The United Arab Emirates is a federation of seven Arab emirates, with Abu Dhabi being the largest, and the capital.  It also has the largest oil reserves.

Canadians do not require a visa to visit Abu Dhabi.

Etihad Airways has three direct flights a week from Toronto to Abu Dhabi.

www.etihadairways.com

Where to Stay:

www.emiratespalace.com

www.rotana.com

General Information:

www.visitabudhabi.ae

www.abudhabitourism.ae

© Barbara Ramsay Orr

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

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

 

Rome Lives Forever in the Hearts of Travelers

In the Heart of The Eternal City, A Classic Within Reach


It’s not fashionable these days to indulge in luxury. The zeitgeist has made conspicuous consumption unpalatable. But surely a little hard-earned indulgence is permitted, as long as you don’t make it a habit?



My room in the Hotel Hassler in Rome is perfect. It has everything I want in a hotel room. The bed is large, with fat pillows and quality linen. Although the room is smallish, cream colours, high ceilings and classic design make it seem larger. The bathroom is elegant, with marble walls and floor. There is free wireless internet connection and Herald Tribune is at my door in the morning. There is fresh fruit and two tiny pastries perched on a plate on the desk by the window. There are fresh flowers in a clear glass vase. It is quiet, and the air is fresh.
Everything I value in a hotel room is very well done.
But the bonus is the window that opens to a view of the Spanish Steps, the apartments across the way where Keats stayed to write some of his best poetry, and the sun setting over the hills of
Rome.


I know that there is merit to staying in small intimate pensions to absorb the local flavour, but there is a definite local flavour at the high end too. This hotel has been the Roman address of so many famous people that it has absorbed some of their glamour. Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn waltzed through this lobby on their way to film Roman Holiday. U.S. Presidents John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon, Pierre Elliot Trudeau (with Margaret), Grace Kelly, and in more recent times, Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, have used this 5 star hotel as their place to stay in Rome.
The one thing that the lagging euro and the escalating Looney has done is to move some of the classics of European travel out of the stratosphere and into more sensible pricing territory. And that means that an unforgettable trip to Rome, the Eternal city, is now a possibility.
The best is never cheap, but right now, the high end is more affordable than it has been in decades. My single room at the Hassler, which last summer would have cost 550 Euros ($ CAD approx. 880 at the 2009 exchange rate) is now in the 410 euro ($ CAD 514 ) range. Not bargain basement, but you won’t be sleeping in a bargain basement either.
Even more important, if you stay at the Hassler, in the morning you will step out at the top of the Spanish Steps, with the Plaza D’Espania below you, the Via Condotti a few steps away, and the Borghese Gardens a short walk off to the right. The treasures of ancient Rome are within easy reach.
I walked to the Trevi Fountian in less than ten minutes, then along the Via di Muralti to the Temple Adriano, the Pantheon and then the Piazza Navone. In the nearby Campo di Fiori, I searched for the little bakery where my local breadmaker stayed for six weeks to learn how to make Roman pizza. I found, on a small side street, Il Forniao, with six foot slabs of pizza they cut to order. Not Mark’s place, but delicious none the less. Then I headed out along the Corso Vittorio Emanuel, stopping at the Area Sacra to watch the cats that live there. It has become a cat sanctuary, and scores of felines sleep in the sun on top of excavated Roman walls. Next was the Vittorio Emmanuel Monument, then the Coliseum and the Palatine.
The metro took me back to the Spanish Steps at the end of the day, and I spent a few quiet moments enjoying the beauty of the Triniti de Monti Church next to the Hassler before calling it a day.
At the cocktail hour, I met with Roberto Wirth, the handsome owner of the Hassler, whose crisp white shirt, classic tie and pinstripe suit make me feel rumpled. He has a shock of pure white hair and an easy smile. Talking to him, I glimpse a Rome that I am sure few visitors ever get to see. He has hosted memorable characters, and, when he learns I am Canadian, reminisces about Trudeau and how our Prime Minister had entertained many friends in his suite during his stay. Deaf from birth, Roberto nevertheless speaks flawless English and lip reads in four different languages.
Later, enjoying a late dinner at an outdoor cafe just across from the Hassler, I watch Roberto come out of the hotel. The doorman raises his arm and a black Mercedes limo slides up to the door. Roberto salutes his doorman, climbs in and disappears into the dark roman twilight. I imagine him pulling up to some secluded villa in the hills, with another uniformed attendant waiting, perhaps with a glass of champagne on a silver tray - but that is just imagination.



Currencies change, times change, opportunities come and go. There’s talk of the Euro being at par with the US dollar within the next year, which would mean that the treasures of Rome would be even more affordable.
But the opportunity is here now, and my advice is to seize the chance to savour the best of Rome while you can. Who knows which way the currency cat will jump next?




Hotel Hassler Roma
www.hotelhassler.com
Piazza della Trinità dei Monti, 6
00187 Rome, Italy
066 99340

The Long Cruise: Follow Me! - Rough Seas

MS RotterdamDay Sixteen: Rough Seas
We seem to be in the middle of some rough weather. Ironically the movie playing on the television today is The Perfect Storm. Is the captain playing with us?
It is still warm , about 79 degrees, but the sky is overcast and there are force eight winds. So the ship is rocking and several people are looking green. Good thing Bob and I are hearty sailors. Running on the treadmill is challenging, though the view is fascinating.
There was a Grand Buffet at lunch, with ice sculptures , really good big shrimp, (No, Miss Al, I didn’t eat any!) roast beef, the whole nine yards, as well as rum babas and triple chocolate cakes.

After, we did the audio guided art tour of the ship. There are paintings, sculptures, archaeological pieces, antique ships models - a couple of million dollars worth of art works. It makes the ship far more interesting than most.



I then went to a talk called Five Hundred Years of Art History - a real gallop through the ages, but well done. Bob opted for a talk about navigation in the Queen’s Room.

I have encountered such strong Anti American feelings on this trip, shocking and
nasty. The Brits and other Europeans have expressed real disgust, not only with the country but with the people. Even the Americans are anti- American and fear their country is falling too far behind the rest of the world to ever catch up. The general opinion seems to be that the country is doomed, that Obama will never overcome the goon mentality of the powerful right, and that the reforms that are essential will never happen. The best result would be that America would draw in its tentacles, build walls around itself and exist in isolation from the rest of the world.
There used to be admiration mixed with the complaints about America, but that doesn’t appear to exist any more.

The captain has promised sunny skies and quiet seas for tomorrow.

The Long Cruise: Follow Me! - Still Sailing along the Route of Columbus

MS RotterdamDay Fifteen: Steaming Towards the Bahamas
Woke up at six thirty this morning (actually seven thirty but we are turning our clocks back an hour each night to keep up with the time change) and went up to the promenade deck to watch a gorgeous sunrise and enjoy a cup of (not very good but at least hot) coffee. I was surprised at how many people were up and about. One couple was in the outdoor pool doing aquatics, a few staff were in the Lido pool doing lengths, and some early bird types were already tucking in to breakfast.
I brought espresso from the Explorer Café back to the room as a wake up for Bob, and then breakfast was delivered.
I only managed two miles on the treadmill because I had to shower and meet the executive chef Thomas Schumann for a tour of the galley kitchens. They bake thier own bread daily and most things are made fresh on board.

They are immaculate, and they are run with military precision.
Then we headed for the Lido pool, - it’s 82 degrees today - and managed to grab two deck chairs, where we dozed in the sun and read our books . I’ve finished The Angel’s Game, not very good but I felt I had to finish it, and have started another Ian Rankin. Bob is deep into David McCullough’s 1776.

Our cabin steward, Miftah, is thirty years old and comes from west Java. He has helped his younger brother get a job with the company and he will be joining the same ship as his older brother in Fort Lauderdale. Miftah is a very likeable young man with perfect manners and a good sense of humour.

I think he l0ooks live an Indonesian version of Brad Pitt.

Yesterday one of the passengers died unexpectedly on the ship. He was 75, and was apparently a very large man. It is rare that someone doesn’t die on a crossing - the average age of passengers is older for long voyages - and they have refrigerated cubicles for just such an occurrence. They keep the flowers there when it isn’t in use.
John Duffy used to say that a ship was in reality just a floating city, and anything that could happen on land could happen here - crime, death, insanity, love. So death is something for which they are prepared. But I was wondering how they would get that man’s body down the hall. He would be dead weight (pardon!) and would be very tricky to manoeuvre through the narrow cabin door and into the hallway. Maybe they would put him in a wheelchair and take him out that way.
I feel so sorry for his wife who must now continue the voyage, without the solace of friends and family, until she reaches Florida on Wednesday.

The Long Cruise: Follow Me! - 12,000 feet of water beneath us

MS RotterdamDay Thirteen: Still the Mid AtlanticLovely and warm today, high seventies and sunny.

We have asked Miftah to help us plan a birthday cocktail party for our new friend Matthew, who will turn 65 today. He and Gaby are coming to our room for cocktails before we go to a special Indian dinner in the Pinnacle Grill. Miftah arranged to get some extra chairs, a wine bucket, more champagne glasses and ice, as well as some nibbles to be delivered to the room.
Room service outdid itself. ‘Nibbles’ turned out to be an elegant tray of cheeses, pistachios, sugared walnuts, dates, fresh grapes, French bread, and little crackers. We sat out on the veranda of our room and watched the sunset, enjoyed a glass of bubbly and toasted Matthew’s birthday.

Then we went to the Pinnacle Grill, the gourmet restaurant on board ($20 extra pp) and had a special Indian meal:
Here's the menu:
Appetizer
Aloo Bonda ( spiced potato quenelles, fried in chickpea batter and served with mint chutney
Soup
Tamatar Shorba ( slowly simmered tomato soup flavoured with coconut and coriander)
Entrees
Kozi Varta Currry (spiced chicken in black pepper gravy)
Or
Jinga Masala ( Goan style prawns prepared with coconut milk and Indian spices)
Or
Malai Kofta Korma
Cheese stuffed potato dumplings in a creamy tomato sauce

All served with saffron and geen pea pilaf rice, butter naan bread anda condiments

Dessert
Gajar Ka Halwa ( carrots cooked and sweetened with cream and nuts)

Washed down with cold Dutch beer - Grolsch’s - it was delicious. The dessert was a bit odd, kind of like a mushy carrot cake, but the spicing in all the dishes was aggressive and delicious.

But no dancing for us, although many on board do so. I’m afraid that the rocking of the boat combined with Bob’s problems with balance would put us overboard.

Not such a bad way to go, really, romantic and dramatic at the same time. Apparently it takes over half an hour to slow the ship and get it turned around to come back for you , and that’s only if some one notices and raises the alarm. There is a story, perhaps apocryphal, although John Duffy, the hotel manager on the QE 11 for many years swears it is true, of a couple in their eighties who dressed up in their best outfits for dinner, enjoyed a good meal and a bottle of champagne, and then disappeared off the back deck. No one saw them go over, but their stateroom was empty the next day. The wife, so the story goes, had a terminal illness and had only months to live, and they had been together for many years.

The Long Cruise: Follow Me! - Tenerife, Canary Islands

Day Ten: MS RotterdamSanta Cruz, Tenerife, Canary Islands We walked up the Calle Castillo, bought a few things, and had an espresso. We ran into Matthew and Gabriella and arranged to have dinner at their table tonight.
Then I tried to visit the new Museum of Modern Art. I walked around the building three times before I found the entrance, and then was told that the museum was closed, which I should have known since most museums are closed on Mondays.
So I wandered over to the fresh market, the Mercada de Nuestra Senora de Africa,

and bought jars of picante sauce, torrone, and a bottle of Tio Pepe sherry fino blanco.
We also somehow wandered onto a street that was obviously for “working women” - there were two or three young ladies, in short skirts and very high heels leaning against the doorways on every corner.
Dinner this evening was a long and leisurely one, with good conversation. Both Matthew and Gabriella have led interesting lives. It was the Master Chefs dinner, where the staff sing and dance as they deliver the courses, with the last course being the famous baked Alaska.



At about six pm, the ship left port and headed out into the Atlantic. We won’t see land again for seven days.

The Long Cruise: Follow Me! - Lanzarote, Canary Islands

Day Nine: MS RotterdamArrecefe, Lanzarote, Canary Islands.
I was last here twenty four years ago when the QE11 stopped here. This is where, at that time, we had lunch in a little café by the ocean that served icy beer and spicy potatoes that were unique to the Canaries. They are little potatoes boiled in their skins in a thick salt and water solution so that the potatoes have a crust of salt on the outside. They served a delicious red picante sauce, quite hot, and mayonnaise to dip the potatoes into. When I got home, I created an equivalent recipe that I called Lanzarote potatoes and everyone has loved them for years.
So of course one of the orders of business was to try the special potatoes again. We found the Café Central, which claimed to serve the best tapas in town.

We had a good strong espresso then tried the potatoes. These ones were a bit different , served with both a red and a green sauce. The red sauce was the hot one, as I remembered it, except that this one had tons of garlic in it. The green sauce was a cilantro sauce, not as spicy. So now I will have to tweak my recipe when I get home.
We walked along the pretty breakfront boulevard, and found a food fair in progress, despite the fact that today is Sunday. There was a man offering tastes of sausages and grilled ribs, with a loud Spanish patter that was lovely to listen to.

It was also nice to see the men, generally older, sitting in the cafes beside the ocean, drinking sherry fino and playing cards. They looked so relaxed.
That evening, as we left Lanzarote behind, we enjoyed the Sommelier’s dinner in the Pinnacle dining room. The food was lovely - I will post a separate sidebar with the menu and pairings for those of you who are into such things (as I am) - but the wine pairings were disappointing, by and large.

The Long Cruise: Follow Me! - Off The Coast of Morocco

Day Eight: MS Rotterdam
At Sea, Heading for the Canary Islands

Mid seventies and sunny today, and a nice day to catch up on emails, on reading, on getting a tan. One of the little luxuries on this cruise is the laundry. You send your dirty clothes away in a laundry bag and the next day it is returned, all clean and folded and neatly wrapped in tissue paper, like a present.
We were very lazy, enjoying a late lunch by the pool . I am reading Ian Rankin, lovely , complicated spy thriller, with lots of blood and murder and not too much concentration required. Bob is reading the life story of The Widow Cliquot and the history of her famous Champagne house. A real feminist icon at a time when such women were rare.
It’s easy to lose track of time when all there is to see is sea. The coast of Morocco is off to the left somewhere, but it is out of sight.
This evening we attended a special reception held by the captain for his important guests - we were invited only because we are Press - and it turned out to be an interesting event. We all ended up crowded into a narrow corridor in front of the elevator, with the doors to the reception room closed until the opening time of 7:30. Bob and I tried to move over to one side to get out of the crush and a rude old American man scolded us for “getting in front of us in line!”
“I’ve been waitin’ for twenny minutes to get in first!!” he growled (Add the accent in your imagination) I wonder if he thought there would not be enough champagne to go around, or if being the first to shake hands with the captain was a special prize - I think his wife was embarrassed by his rudeness. At least I hope so.
We moved back, and Bob being Bob, he made it known that he thought the fellow was an idiot, and a very nice Dutch couple behind us agreed. We made friends with them, Matthew and Gabriela, and sat with them during the reception. He’s a banker, she’s an artist, and they are completely charming and great conversationalists. We have arranged to dine with them n a few night’s time. So it is an ill wind that does not blow some good.

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.