I must admit one of the very cool things I enjoy about the condo in Vancouver is the view up Burrard Inlet and the great fog formations that sweep down and more often across it. Not as fabulous as London or San Fran but I do enjoy watching it. This is a sequence of three shots at dawn I took last weekend with one particular fog bank creeping west toward us.
1) first attempt at croissants - not too bad
Croissants made the list of must-makes this past weekend; croissants made with fresh yeast to boot. Croissant making is both an art and a science and is, many would argue, the supreme "you`ve made it" as a baker testament. The premise is really so simple: laminate a half pound of butter inside a dough, cut, form, bake and voila; croissants.
But the space between simple premise and perfection is a gorge wider any any Grand Canyon and - like the perfect sushi rice - takes years to perfect.
And that, perhaps, is its riddle and driving force.
So, we took to making croissants - our benchmark being the utter marvel that is a Jules croissant in Toronto, which, in our humble opinion remains the best croissant in Toronto.
While I think we`re very, very happy with our result, we`ve some work to do yet to bridge the chasm between execution and perfection. Key: more folds, better forming, not proofing in the oven and more investigation into best temperatures and time to bake these at.
2) gather your ingredients for the dough (butter, yeast, flour, whole milk and sugar; 3) here is 'real' fresh yeast
4) I took to vacuum sealing the remaining yeast for the freezer; 5) mix the dough
6) ready to work the dough; 7) shape then let rest in the fridge overnight
8) ready for the fridge; 9) time to make your butter packet
10) pound - and roll - into a square; 11) we used parchment paper to help get a perfect square
12) time to start laminating the butter into the dough; 13) this takes time as you need to let the dough/butter rest in the fridge between each of the 4 turns you'll make
14) ready to head into the fridge to get back to 60F; 15) after another rest - with the butter in it - you then form the croissants by rolling the square into a rectangle and dividing it
16) here I am trying hard not to cut the silpat; 17) once formed ... they sit again to rise
18) here they are all risen; 19) brush with milk/egg mixture and into the oven then go in batches
20) yummy!
21) the inside - needs way more layering
Meanwhile, on other fronts, I prepared a couple of Araxi-inspired dinners a week or so ago which included these two winners.
22) scallop tartare with avocado-citrus salad
23) prosciutto-wrapped Halibut with quinoa
And last week in London, here was my grandmother, Lady Kay - turning 100 years young - on the phone trying to understand anything I was saying to her. I'm not convinced she heard a word I said! So, to rectify that, I shall fly to London next week to pay a visit. I'm on my way GeGe.
24) she's like 'what?" ... with thanks to Papa for the pictures
25) making quite the wish I bet
And finally, with thanks to Blee, I was busy in the kitchen tonight and made homemade "Rain Forest Crisps". I was tired of paying CAD$8.00/box. These are easy to make and - time aside - probably cheaper.
26) the batter is flour, buttermilk, brown sugar, baking soda and some salt; 27) add in rosemary; pecans; roasted sunflower seeds; sesame seeds and fax seeds
28) pour into greased tiny loaf pans; 29) and bake for about 35 minutes then let them cool in the fridge till cold before slicing as thin as you can make them
30) then bake in 150C oven for 15 minutes - or so - each side; 31) cool and store or freeze
32) damn fine!
1) Chesterman Beach Friday 10:30PM with full moon; that's G with his flashlight and Blee further off in the distance
We enjoyed the Thanksgiving weekend by journeying to Vancouver Island via Nanaimo, Coombs, Qualicum, the magnificent Cathedral Grove and Port Alberni. Fortunately Blee flew out from Toronto to join us, which was wonderful!
2) Horseshoe Bay where we catch our ferry; 3) heading for a coffee prior to boarding
4) heading onto the Ferry; 5) in the hold we leave the car and head upstairs for the crossing
Our destination was the Relais & Chateaux Wickinninash Inn on Chesterman Beach. While Tofino does not seem all that far from Vancouver, the reality is the place is world's away and involves a 2-hour ferry across the Strait of Georgia and then a 3 hour drive on the Pacific Rim Highway, which is a horribly narrow two-lane road with no shoulders that winds its way from Port Ablerni up over the Clayoquot Plateau mountain range to Ucluelet before turning north through Pacific Rim National Park and dead-ending in Tofino.
The road requires snowtires or ice chains October through April as up on high, it can get bloody awful with snow and/or flooding and/or rock slides (even though Tofino itself doesn't get snow; rather, its blessing is annual rainfall of some 3 meters!). Our drive over the Plateau was in teaming rain which did make for some adventuresome moments indeed - thank heavens for 4x4s!
On route we stopped into Qualicum Falls for a hike and a place called Cathedral Grove which is in MacMillan Provincial Park that has towering Douglas firs that soar 100s of feet into the air. This grove is scared to the first nation peoples and trees here are 800-1000 years old.
6) G heads down to the falls; 7) Qualicum Falls
8 & 9) G and I have fun with a might tree
10 & 11) Great and Little Qualicum Falls
12) the hiking at Cathedral Grove is beautiful with massive trees and rainforest beauty
13) G appraoches the largest tree in the Grove; 14) looking waaaay up to the largest tree
15) a plaque by the tree gives you a course in just how big that tree is; 16) very Jurasic Park
After fueling up in Port Alberni we headed on our way to Tofino arriving there around 4pm.
17) the entrance to the hotel; 18) our room with Blee looking out onto "Secret Bay"
19) no denying where we are; 20) Blee and I suit up prior to heading out for a walk on a VERY rainy and VERY windy Chesterton Beach
21) Blee is windswept; 22) we spend Sunday morning at the Ancient Cedars Spa which I can only highly recommend - it was stunning
23) the sun starts to peek out; 24) going for a beach walk early on Saturday morning
25) G and Blee at 7:30AM on sur le plage
26) G mulls his battle with the waves slated for later in the afternoon
27) me shooting Blee shooting ... rocks?!; 28) the hotel with the Pointe Restaurant
29) in Vancouver you can buy rather expensive baskets made from this seaweed; 30) a catch of mussels
31) damn, I love this picture
32) the view from our room to "Secret Cove"; 33) beautiful cedar branches
34) the view of the hotel from the far end of the beach; 35) a surfer catches the wave - water here is 10C
36) G, Blee and others prepare to tackle the waves
37) a pep talk prior to heading out; 38) in they go
39) Blee catches a wave; 40) heading back for me
41) brunch overlooking Tofino Harbour
42) me waiting for my lunch at Sea Shanty, which is run by First Nations; 43) yummy!
44) I've made it to the end of the road; 45) dinner at the Pointe Restaurant in the Wick Inn
46) the amuse is a wee crab/lobster croquette; 47) my appetizer of oysters is stupendous
48) the view from our table; 49) G's halibut and carrot pasta
50) Blee's bacon wrapped sardines; 51) G's cucumber soup
52) in Coombs on the way back we stopped at "Goats on the Roof"; 53) which is a country market with - yes - live goats that live on the roof
54) lots to choose from; 55) it's a real mix and match of food
55) Blee and I await lunch; 56) these two kids played the piano for us while we ate
56) handing out at Duke Point in torrential rain waiting for the ferry back to the mainland; 57) look at the rain pooling on the sun roof
58) the ferry arrives and back we go
And finally before signing off, a shout-out to Lady Kay - my grandmother - who turned 100 years old today! ... she even has the letter from Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II to prove it. I'm over to London again in a couple weeks and I'll sing at you then.
1) arguably, the museum's most famous sculpture is Bill Reid's "The Raven and the First Men" which depicts the Haida creation myth when the raven discovered man hidden within a clam shell.
It is carved in white cedar and is the iconic emblem found on the back of a Canadian $20 bill
At the last moment I realized back in February I purchased a Groupon for the Museum of Anthropology at the University of British Columbia that was expiring this week. Never one to give up a deal, out G and I went on Sunday afternoon to take a peek at one of Canadian architect Arthur Erickson's seminal buildings, built way back in 1976. While the fabled fountain/pond at the museum's rear is but a shadow of its original (it is still an impressive building). The famous pool has only been filled three times now: once for the filming of the movie "Intersection"; a second time for the 1997 APEC leader's summit; and a third time for Erickson's 80th birthday in 2004. The museum is a wondrous storehouse of works by First Nations people from, in particular, the Pacific Northwest.
2 & 3) G explores the main hall
4) visiting the museum makes you realize how common masks are to so many cultures; 5) Haida totem poles
6) the mock Haida village with the much depleted fountain/pool; 7) more First Nations carvings
8) here is the exterior of the museum
We've also been busy of late cooking, but of course, which included fresh live scallops (which are so yummy but rather creepy to prepare as when you are removing the skirt, the poor things still pulsate like a human heart); a Peking duck pizza that G whipped up; a scallop pasta; veal shanks with a uber yummy green olive gremolata; pulled pork with homemade buttermilk biscuits; and a cassoulet.
9 & 10) the scallops await dispatching
11 & 12) eek, de-skirting the scallops is icky work
13 & 14) but worth the effort as we quickly broiled these and served with a spicy Japanese sauce
15) scallop pizza; 16) G's Peking duck pizza
17 & 18) preparing the green olive topping for the veal
19) here's the finished dish; 20) and the cassoulet
21) the pulled pork with biscuits
Isn't it interesting that these last three dishes actually all 'look' the same. Lots of redness thanks to many cans of tomatoes.
I arrvied in Toronto Wednesday last week for a whirlwind two days of meetings with friends that included:
1) Lady Sarah and Annabel; 2) the greatest boss in the world!
3) moi and Diana enjoying lunch at the Rectory on Toronto Island; 4) the Rectory
On Friday night I attended the 3rd annual Equality for Gays and Lesibans Everywhere (EGALE) Gala at the new Ritz Carlton Hotel. As G was in Vancouver, Blee kindly stood in as my date and did a smashing job. Thanks! The evening was good fun with MC Elvira Kirk on game as she always is. Her opening zinger comparing the Ritz Carlton ballroom's chandeliers to labia set the tone for the evening. We were conveniently sat right behind Elizabeth May (Leader of the Canadian Federal Green Party) who was a hoot and her fundraising push on stage with Canadian Liberal Party member, the one and only, Bob Rae was perfect political satire. Also in the house that night were Minister of Research and Innovation (and good friend of the program I manage) Glen Murray; former MP (friend, and friend of the program I manage) Rob Oliphant; Olivia Chow (wife of the recently deceased Leader of Her Majesty's Official Opposition, Jack Layton); and two former Chief Justices of the Supreme Court of Canada (thanks to both for making gay marriage legal in Canada). Dinner was excellent and served by white gloved waiters. Billy Newton Davis (gosh, remember him?!) was the evening's entertainment.
A
5) the EGALE Gala ... does that chandelier look like labia?
6) my table; 7) catching up with dear friend, and opera mate, Neville (yes that is a stripper pole in the background but this is the EGALE Gala afterall)
8) appetizer was a crab cake; 9) the main was kobe beef
9) dessert was an apple tart
Saturday morning at god o'clock had me on yet another flight to London to spend a longish weekend at Riverside with the family. It was SO nice to come home and recover from way too much flying of late. Home-cooked food, time with my mom and papa, a bed I knew all were great! Sunday I visited Lady Kay, my grandmother, who in 2 weeks time will be turning - 100 hundred years old! Isn't that amazing and gawd, doesn't she look great?! She still goes down 5 days week for exercise classes.
10) Lady Kay and I in London ... is she not the greatest woman alive?!!! At nearly 100 ... gosh, I'm so blessed to have her. She thought my iPhone was so funny
11) mom has the table ready; 12) out in Papa's garden there are still wonderfully lovely things
13) more garden; 14) even the birds are still enjoying it
15 & 16) Sunday mom cooked the darnest ham ever
17) and there was plenty of roast veggies; 18) and a salad with beetroot .. mmm my favourite
19 & 20) Friday night Papa hauled out the grill for our steaks ... he was not cutting the steaks with those clippers, honest!
21) Papa and Chloe; 22) dinner nears completion
23 & 24) my niece with Sadie, the world's highest jumping doggie
I'm back to Vancouver (and OMG so sick of travelling) but looking forward to our next adventure, over Thanksgiving, to - wait for it - one of the world's best hotels and certainly one of the best in North America (or, at least, as rated by Travel & Leisure magazine; see here) the Wickaninnish Inn in Tofino.
1) gosh the West Midlands are so freaking gorgeous!
I had a delightful time in Birmingham over the weekend. Mel picked me up at the airport and we were instantly off to Wales to spend time at her cottage and enjoy a proper English supper. We stopped to explore Ludlow and it's famous food markets. We watched Coronation Street and the Eastenders. We drank more fine Welsh tea than I've had in umpteen visits to England. We walked amid the oh-so-quaint streets and for the barest of moments I could envision living in merry olde England permanently. Hmmmm, perhaps, perhaps.....
2) there are more sheep than people in Wales; 3) you know you're in Wales when ...
4) is that not the cutest cottage going?; 5) Mel & T's backyard at their Welsh home
6 & 7) then it was down to the local for a fine supper complete with lamb, pudding and the good Reverend James, who, we joked, we could hear calling as we crossed the border from England to Wales... fyi: the Rev. James is the beautiful ale you see above
8) Mel & T as we stroll back home; 9) Mel finds the good Reverend in the shoppe to take home to Birmingham with us
10) a stunning rainbow greeted us on our drive back down to Birmingham on Sunday night
11) on Monday, we did a tour of culturally significant places in Birmingham including here - 56 Edwards Road - the home of my great grandfather and actual birthplace of my Papa
I'm safely returned to Toronto at the moment in preparation to attend the EGALE Gala tomorrow night at the Ritz Carlton before flying to London bright and early - and likely hungover - Saturday morning to visit family.
As an aside here - you know I flew no less than 6 flights inter-Europe over the past 10 days with Lufthansa and not a single one - zero, none, nada - actually arrived on time. Grrrrr for a country known, like the Swiss, for their punctuality and percision that was very frustrating.
1) Looking up the canal in Baja as Andi and I walk down toward the Danube on a gorgeous day
Though Baja (pronounced 'bouy-yah') is but 150kms south of Budapest, it is worlds away in many respects. Reached by a local bus that takes 4 hours to wind its way through seemingly endless farmers fields and itsy-bitsy villages, you arrive in the town (population some 37,000) at the convergence of the Danube and Segovica rivers. Baja sits on the Great Southern Plain, a stone's throw away from the Serbian border (it's actually 30kms) and for the days I spent there was exceptionally hot for mid-September. Temperatures were 30-33C each day with endless sunshine. This is unusual weather for the time of year but I wasn't complaining. Two years ago one of my staff was visiting the town and had to buy a parka as it was so cold.
2) Hungarians have a proud history of rowing and plenty of folks where out walking the river; 3) here's Andi with her town in the background
4) more Olympians?; 5) me with the downtown core in the background
6) here's the Blue Danube; 7) I want his job!
8) where the rivers meet, lovers have professed their love with hundreds of locks; 9) here's one up close
Baja is old and like Budapest has been a by-way for countless armies through its ages. It's most recent conquest has been - like in so much of Hungary - the arrival of multinationals. The previous national government, the Hungarian Socialist Party, a party with ties to the communist regime that ruled Hungary with help of the Soviet Union since World War II, was keen to make money and sold much of the country's assets (telecommunications; finances and natural resources in particular) to the highest bidder. And while you shan't find any Starbucks or McDonalds in Baja, Ford, Tesco, T-Mobile, Shell have all taken up shop.
(As a side note here, there are but 2 Starbucks in Budapest (the first arriving about 1.5 years ago). At dinner with a friend in Budapest last Monday night, she confessed that while she likes Starbucks, its prices are beyond the reach of most Budapest residents and she can afford to visit but once/month.)
10 & 11) here's my room in the former Mill turned guest house
12 & 13) city hall sites
About a year and a half ago federal elections produced a right of centre party that is busy undoing the doings of the previous government. My sense - at least within the circles I move with in Hungary - is this is generally a good thing. The country has a long list of challenges but to I'll briefly note but one that was the topic of every conversation - mortgages.
Mortgages
Home ownership in Hungary is, like everywhere I suspect, a much sought after dream. Under communist rule to achieve this you had to save and - literally - pay cash for your home upfront. Mortgages were unknown. When the communists were dispatched in 1989, there was a surge by citizens of many former Eastern Bloc nations - Hungary included - to embrace the West and buy homes. Banks jumped on this and mortgages were offered either in Hungarian forints or Swiss francs. Banks pushed the Swiss franc option noting it was the European thing to do and that interest rates in francs were cheaper than in forints (which at the time was true). Sadly, since then the franc has continued to soar and many, many Hungarians now carry mortgages completely beyond their means. Essentially, the franc has tripled and homeowners face mortgage payments triple what they planned for. This is certainly tragic and made worse by the fact - and this is the most salient point in this story - that Hungarians as a population have no cultural experience with mortgages. They flew headlong into a banking culture completely foreign to them. Their parents and grandparents never carried mortgages.
The banks, being banks, are playing hardball with homeowners and the current government - to their credit - has stepped in (just last week) to put a moratorium on any bank foreclosing on a family and providing homeowners a grace period to pay back the mortgages by obtaining loans in forints and/or money from family.
Anyhow, here's a few other thoughts on Hungary....
Uniqum / Palinka
Drinking is an embedded part of Hungarian life and culture and without fail, no matter what the circumstances, a tiny glass of Uniqum will be poured and offered upon your arrival at a family's home and/or in business situations.
(As an aside, if you ever have the opportunity be invited into a Hungarian family's home, or to a evening of Hungarian work colleagues' 'boy's nights', take it! Such invitations are the highest honour and gift a Hungarian can make).
Uniqum means 'unique' in Hungarian (one of very few words in Hungarian that kind of seems 'english') and is a mixture of some 40 herbs and spices that are then distilled into a digestive aperitif that has potent kick power - 40% or so. That's fine but my experience has been that as a guest you are never just offered one Uniqum. It is highly, highly offensive to say 'no' as 1) you will immediately lose face with your Hungarian hosts; 2) you'll never be re-invited as a guest, and, 3) your visit will quickly end. This is true as well with business meetings (be forewarned).
On Thursday I had a meeting with a director of Bacs-Kiskun Megyei Onkormanyzat Specialis Kozoktatasi (which probably means nothing to you as Hungarian is a viciously and notoriously difficult langugage - more on that later, but if you want proof visit their website here). BKMO is a thoroughly unique school for children with intellectual and motor disabilities I was keen to visit and is doing some truly remarkable things for these children, teens and young adults. It draws children from the surrounding countryside and prepares them to be as independent as possible and works to develop workforce skills, including carpentry; the trades; hotel/service industry and farming. Upon my arrival I was ushered into the school to a meal prepared by teens in their hotel service division and sure enough, at but 1PM, out came the Uniqum.
That evening, I went for dinner at a dear friend's home in Baja. Andi and I worked together some years ago and have remained in touch since then working to continue to develop links between what I do in neurorehab and some of the cutting edge things happening in Hungary. Yes, Hungary is far, far ahead of the curve with both education and rehabilitation. Hungarians are a brilliant, if rather deep and thoroughly paranoid people.
14) the uniqum comes out at Andi's; 15) Csaba and Ferenc pose for me
16) Andi's wonderful goulash; 17) the entrance to the school
(As an aside, you have Hungarians to thank for the Rubic Cube, the ball-point pen, the dynamo, the carburetor, the lunar roving machine, the telephone exchange, the transformer, holography and 'flow' psychology)
I enjoyed an evening with Andi and her wonderful husband, Ferenc ("Ferry"), son Csaba ("Chubby") and daughter Hanna. Uniqum was served immediately upon my arrival, followed by beer and then the creation of every Hungarian household, home made palinka - a traditional fruit brandy that runs, oh, in the 50-70% alcohol range. Ferry's brew was made from walnuts and apples and when I asked what percentage he thought it might be, the conversation turned to politics. Go figure.
Friday I met with the director of Bajai Szent Rokus Korhaz. Saint Rokus is the main hospital for the region and I was delighted to get the full tour of all the wards, starting with neurology and working down to a Parkinson's ward, a stroke ward, out patient services and physiotherapy. You'd be very amazed at the conditions here with open windows throughout, very limited technology (as we'd understand it), far less pharmaceutical use, and an alternative and holistic approach that works. Much could be learned for "western" medicine here. The local press was out in full form complete with radio, television and print and I was the belle of the ball, so to speak. An official press conference was followed by lunch down on the river - the classic and famous Baja fish soup - with Uniqum to start followed by much rose wine amid our discussions of joint work together. We'll have to see!
18) here's where we had lunch on Friday; 19) and the entrance to the hospital
20) here's our soup cooking outside; we called ahead so the chef could prepare this as it takes time - it contains two types of freshwater fish (one that is VERY bony) and is served with a long egg pasta
Friday night, I was taken back to the school to meet the head director, Istvan, who was not available on Thursday when I visited. This visit happened at 8PM in the school and was essentially a boy's night out to celebrate Istvan's "Name Day". Hungarians celebrate their birthdays and name days. The entire contingent of male staff was on site, including Ferry, with an amazing feast on spread, and more booze would be practicable let alone legal in a school at any time. It was a fun night.
Breakfast
Breakfast in Hungary consists of fresh bread served unfailingly with a selection of salamis, cheeses and peppers and usually, yogurt. A cup of fabulous Turkish-inspired coffee is without fail its accompaniment and orange juice (though more often) apple juice can be added. It is a satisfying start to one's day I have found though, truth be told, I do miss my Corn Flakes.
21) breakfast is served
Hungarian
As to the language, Hungarian is unique and is actually not related whatsoever to the many Indo-European languages we know - French, English, Italian, Spanish and etc. In fact, Hungarian is a Uralic language and part of the Urgic group that includes Mansi and Khanty - essentially meaning waaay back Hungarians were Siberians who travelled west from the Ural Mountains. In Europe, Finish is probably its closest relative (and another impossibly challenging language to get any grounding in). Because it is so unrelated to Indo-European languages and has so (very) few words that sort of/kind of similar in English or French, it is incredibly difficult to understand let alone master.
But a few examples, should you ever visit, include:
Szia (see-yah) Hello
Igen (ee-ghen) Yes
Nem (nhm) No
Koszonom (kus-suh-num) Thank you
Sajnalom (shoy na lohm) I'm sorry (if you bump into someone, say)
For a break from all things Hungarian, I flew to Birmingham, England on Saturday to visit friends, touch base with a couple of my staff who are going to school there, and - yes - work. It was a good time - complete with a visit to Wales (more on that later) - and I just have returned to Budapest tonight in preparation (Air Canada strike aside) to fly back home to Toronto tomorrow ... I hope!
1) Buda (on left where I am taking this picture from high atop Citadella) and Pest (on right) with the beautiful Danube in between). The bridge you see is Lanchid (or Chain) Bridge. My hotel is just to the left of this where you see the Danube river cruiser tied up
I arrived in Budapest on Monday after some 13.5hrs flying time. That's a long way indeed but two stops - one in Montreal; the other in Frankfurt - went some way to breaking it up.
Budapest is a gorgeous city that is currently caught - delightfully - in an Indian summer heat wave and the days have been hot and humid with temperatures at 30C. It is an old city by North American standards - initially founded around 1AD by Celts. Since that time though it has been a stopping ground of many invaders including the Romans; the Mongols; the Ottomans (Turks) who built many of the splendid thermal spas the city is known for; the Hapsburgs; the Germans and of course, most recently, the Soviets. The beautiful bridges that criss-cross the Danube that I look out on from my hotel were all completely destroyed during WW II and have since been re-built.
The food is excellent - and I've had my fill of some fine goulashes; Dreher beers; fabulous Hungarian wines (they are so often overlooked but I suggest you take the time to try some (roses in particular)) and more warm, cheese-filled Hungarian desserts than I care to admit to.
2) even here, graffiti; 3) the famous Gresham Hotel aka The Four Seasons sits across from me
4) Hundarian Parliament Buildings on the Pest side
5) looking up towards Margit Bridge and Margit Island. So named after Saint Margaret who lived her life here as a nun when, in 1245 , Hungary was liberated. Her father King Bela IV vowed to dedicate a daughter to religion in honour of his defeat of the Mongols
6) the streets of Budapest are alive with colour; 7) Matthais Church high atop Buda Castle
8) the city has the cutest ever telephone booths; 9) Matthais Church
Budapest, at night, is truly a stunning wonder to see as you walk across its many bridges.
10) looking across to Buda and Buda Castle from the Pest side one evening
11) looking across to Pest and the Erzebet Bridge as the full moon rises
12) simply gorgeous!
I have enjoyed my time here and adore the view from hotel, the awad-winning Lanchid 19 Hotel. I am on the Buda side of the city (the Buda Castle is just behind me) and I look out across the Danube to Pest.
13 & 14) my room at the Lanchid
14) the view from my room across to Pest daytime and night
15) the hotel only has a handful of rooms and has an open atrium in its interior; 16) at night the hotel is set alight and is a jewel on the street
17) Rudas Spa; it is quite the experience - very homoerotic, very confusing to understand how to get in and about, but so old (circa 1500s) and Turkish; 18) the Nagyvasarcsarnok (or Grand Market Hall) is an absolute must visit
19 & 20) this deli shop in the Market was a real hot spot
21 & 22) every fruit and veggies
23) REAL paprika (if you ever wondered what it looks like) - a little smaller than a golf ball; 24) this is foie gras the size of footballs - stunning and yours for only 5000 forients
25) seems every city has it water buss and Budapest is no exception; 26) the city reflected in it's largest indoor mall glass facade
27) even here ... Critical Mass does its thing; 28) there's the Church again
29) the dome of the Hungarian Parliament
Today I will take a bus another 3 hours south - down to the Great Southern Plain that borders Serbia - to the town of Baja to spend a few days and taste Hungary's famous 'fish soup'.
1) Westin Whistler Resort - the pool motto pretty much sums it up
G and I spent the long weekend in Whistler, British Columbia residing at the Westin Whistler Resort. It has been 10 years since we last visited Whistler and the village has grown and matured - me thinks with thanks to the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. The village has instituted a push to become a 'cultural' destination and we were witness to this as the Whistler Jazz Festival was on during our stay. This coming weekend is the GranFondo cycling race from Vancouver to Whistler (all 122kms) which I'm sure is a ride G and I shall be doing in the coming years.
Ironically, there was even an article on this in the Globe & Mail during our stay. See here.
We had a lovely loft suite during our stay and the Westin team were excellent in every regard. We even were invited to a private reception the evening we arrived. We spent our time, well, doing very little (we're quite good at that). We did manage to take a 3 hour zipline tour on Saturday morning; dined at the superb "Araxi" Saturday night and lounged in the Avello Spa Sunday to enjoy massages and a milkbath.
Araxi is noted for a couple of things - its use of local sourcing (a real push of Executive Chef James Walt) and its brush with Hell's Kitchen fame when 6th season winner, Dave Levey, sojourned in the kitchen for but a year before heading off to Europe. Dinner was fabulous with the fois gras appetizer being a monumental standout. Despite the restaurant being VERY busy, and, despite having to wait far too long for our second courses (to be fair, the staff did apologize), and, despite having our waiter unable to identify the type of chili in Chef Walt's too-die-for yuzu chili paste (utterly unacceptable!), it is a place you should visit if you find yourself in Whistler. Dinner with wine, tax and tip will run you about CAD$275.00.
2) G admires the view; 3) and here's the view
4) the Westin Whistler; 5) looking down to the living room from our loft
6 & 7) the runs are open! ... for mountain bikers
8) the first zip line is right at the village; 9) gearing up
10) G successfully finishes the first line; 11) on the bus going up the mountain for the 'real' lines
12) this is a treetop canopy bridge about 70m up in the trees; 13) thanks to Petr and "Barry" at Ziptrek for getting us through safely
15) here you can see some of the lines that criss-cross the two mountains; 16) the views up here - and the air - are fabulous
17) G ponders the lines; 18) this zip is actually over a kilometer long over the river ... damn, damn fun!
19) that's me out there heading toward you; 20) a happy zip-liner
21) here I come; 22) on the final line, I actually went ... wait for it ... upsidedown! ... with no hands
23) Canada Prime Beef Tataki with ponzu pearls and horseradish: 24) Spicy Albacore Tuna Roll with cucumber and crisp shallots
25) Roasted North Arm Farm Beet Salad with buffalo mozzarella, ruby streak lettuce and beet chips, orange, grapefruit and mustard emulsion; 26) the Fois Gras with poached pear
27) Wild BC Salmon with corn, summer squash, leek and chive risotto with Pacific squid, shaved summer vegetables and arugula leaves; 28) BC Halibut with an arugula and herb crust, english pea and mint agnolotti
snap peas, puffed wild rice and spice, lemon and olive oil vinaigrette
29) Orange Blossom Creme Brulee served with flourless pistachio square; 30) Fraser Valley Berries + Chocolate Cake, layers of dark and white chocolate mousse
assorted berries and raspberry coulis
31) an Olympian?....
Next stop ... Budapest, Hungary...
1) sunset from the balcony at the Westin Bayshore looking out towards the Pacific. I love this picture and I haven't tampered with it at all - that's what we saw at twilight
G and I spent sometime this past week residing at the Westin Bayshore in Vancouver. The Westin is perfectly situated right on Coal Harbour with spectacular views that look up Burrard Inlet, across to Stanley Park and out to the Pacific. The Prince of Wales Suite at the hotel sits atop the 20th floor and looks west and north with two balconies to enjoy. We ordered room service on two evenings and sadly, it was subpar - almost embarrassing so. And while check in is a gauntlet of line-ups and endless waiting, the ambiance and views do make it worth a visit when you want to splurge. That said, we've yet to try either the Fairmont Pacific Rim or Shangri-La hotels here which are newer, and, I suspect, posher.
2) heading in; 3) the addition of real flowers in each bathroom is always welcome
4) the living room; 5) the bedroom
6) contrary to popular belief, I do work now and again; 7) G waves to passengers as a Harbour Air float plane lands up Burrard Inlet
8) here's a short video of the panoramic view from the suite
9) looking down to the Westin pool from the top; 10) moi enjoying the view on the livingroom balcony
11) this series is the sun setting on the Pacific ... going
12) going ...
13) gone
14) this series looks up Burrard Inlet toward our condo (it's up just place the white sails of Canada Place on the right)
15) looking up Burrard Inlet at dusk
16) and here is a view one morning as the sun rose
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