Cruising the Caribbean (yes one r and two b's)

An hour in the Jacuzzi shower and Asian Fusion which was OK but not great but the lobster tails were good enough to forgive any other shortcomings. A short period in the nightclub and then off to bed.
Next morning up and showered early as there are said to be whales to be seen at this time of the year when the ship pulls into Samana, Dominican Republic. Nup - nothing to see but a very early breakfast. Gather in the lounge for my whale watching tour.

Onto a flat bottom boat for 36 eager sightseers. What did happen on this tour was:

• Incredibly rough seas
• A lot of spray over the boat
• Half the people chucking up
• Not enough bags for people to chuck into

What didn’t happen – any whales!! How annoying.

Some information:

• There are 40,000 to 60,000 humpback whales in the world
• They come down from Canada to reproduce for just 2 months of the year 
• Half of the whales have been identified – this is done by using the black and white marking on the tails which is unique like a fingerprint
• They don’t eat for half the year
• Dominican Republic has a population of 10 million of which 3 million live in the capital Santo Domingo. The second largest Dominican Population is in New York – 1 million.
• Main income is tourism, cacao and the production of 10% of the world’s nickel
• Average income is $US150 per month
• Dominican Republic is half of an island of which Haiti is the other half. 3 million of Haiti’s population live in the Dominican Republic and provide a very productive part of the workforce.

Anyway after three hours on this horror trip we are dropped on a lovely island beach where I sit for an hour getting a bit of sun. I then have one of my toughest negotiations to get a 30 minute massage which was awesomely good. A 48 year old woman with 5 grandchildren.

I head back to the ship and another hour in the Jacuzzi before watching a really great musician playing the Mandolin as well as various world flutes including Ireland, Norway and Slovakia. His medley from Fiddler on the Roof on the mandolin was outstanding.

The first disappointing meal in La Cucina Italian Restaurant but I will forgive one meal as all the others were excellent.
A short spiel at the Casino (small win) and off to bed ready for swimming with dolphins in Tortola tomorrow.

I have a stretch of six stops in a row on this cruise followed by 2 days at sea before Miami.

Wednesday and a day I am most looking forward to – “Swimming with Dolphins”. I get my usual reason to wake up – Telstra advising that overseas calls and data can be expensive. While my phone is on silent I hear it vibrating on the desktop.

Early breakfast – well 09:00 and a two hour walk around Tortola before my 12:00 tour. The supermarket was fascinating – bread (frozen) $US5.45, Milk $US2.70 for one litre and everything so expensive - of course – absolutely everything is imported. The population of the British Version Island is 30,000 and the minimum wage is $5 per hour or around $11,000 per annum.

Back to the ship to join the tour and off to the dolphin park which consists of 5 or 6 large pools with one or two dolphins each. The company that operates this facility seems to have another 6 to 8 around the Caribbean and Mexico.

One amazing thing about Tortola is that the cars are all left hand drive and they drive on the left side of the road meaning that the driver is always adjacent to the footpath – truly bizzare.

A short (7 min) intro, photo time (yawn) and a lifejacket and into the tank where we get kissed, kiss a dolphin shake hands and get pulled along by a dolphin. I agree to take photos of Alberto, a guy I have met at dinner from Italy and he to take pictures of me using my waterproof camera in return. A truly amazing experience that is hard to capture on film but here are some shots.

Shower off afterwards and have a poor lunch using wi-fi on my iPad before returning to the ship for the third shower of the day and a pre-dinner rest. I decide on my first meal in the main dining room and it is excellent - smoked salmon tartar and some other nice dishes.

Nine o’clock and I head off to what was a remarkable sleight of hand magic show. It was done by a magician sitting at a table with a video camera showing all of his tricks on a screen the size of a movie screen or maybe even bigger. I must say this guy was G-O-O-D. He had appeared in Las Vegas at the MGM and Venetian but the combination of his patter and the tricks were a-m-a-z-i-n-g.

A good night of sleep and I wake and shower to see us pulling up at St Maarten or if you are on the French side St Martin. Albi from yesterday had not booked any tours so we decided to share the cost of a car and drive around the island. It is split between a French Colony and Dutch Colony and they couldn’t be different. Dutch take dollars EVERYWHERE while French only take Euros. On the Dutch side everybody is friendly while on the French side everybody is well…French.

Albi and I are a good combination as he drags me from beach to beach and I drag him from shop to shop. The French side is very expensive while perfume, jewellery and alcohol is amazingly cheap on the Dutch side. Absolut plain $A11.50 a litre and Dewars 18 year Scotch $A48.50 a litre – a little too far to schlep though.

We visited: Maho Beach where the airport runway is across the road from the beach with a warning that aircraft thrust can cause physical harm and death; Marigot, the capital of French side; Grand Kays Beach; Oriental Beach, Dawn Beach and finished up in Philipsburg to shop (no damage) and return the car and watch the beautiful sunset as we left port heading for Antigua.

Dinner at the Steakhouse was made for me. Just ordered four appetisers Prawn Cocktail, crab cakes, Portobello mushrooms with crab and oysters. Just delightful! Then went with some friends to the comedy show which was musingly so lame “My wife ran away with my boyfriend two years ago and gee I miss him so much” yawn – which is what I did yawn and off to bed.

Next morning the weather is delightful as we pull into Antigua where I go for a 45 minute walk around what is a small town before my tour which comprises highlights and a lobster lunch which was pretty darn good. From one of the lookouts we can see Montserrat which is a volcanic island just 28kms away. We also spent an hour at Turner’s Beach Bar where I wet my feet and chilled at the bar in the most beautiful combination of sun sand sea one could imagine – more than I can say for the bar but it was part of the tour.

The highlights mainly comprise lookouts over the beautiful oceans that surround the islands 365 beaches while lunch at Nelson’s Dockyard is excellent. It is the only still operating 18th Century dockyard. Antigua is the home of an annual yacht race and moored at the Dockyard are amazing yachts and $50m+ boats of the rich and famous which come from all parts of the world. I spoke to an Aussie crewman of probably the largest cruising boat there who said it comes from the Netherlands and takes 18 days to reach Antigua. There was space underneath with room for maybe five or more cars to be driven onto the boat.

Antigua is totally dependent on tourism and cruise ships and is still quite rustic with a lot of agriculture – mangoes, pineapples, cocoa, bananas, some of which they do export. However like most of the islands they are very dependent on imports to survive.

The ship leaves at 16:00 as it is a stretch to make Barbados in time arriving at 10:00 the next morning. I sleep for a few hours because of which I miss the Shabbat Service which I always go to on ships to meet people and I am really annoyed. Dinner in the main dining room with some Americans from Missouri and Tennessee – quite interesting and a guy from Idaho who is a hunting guide as in takes people to shoot animals.

No show for me tonight as I am pretty tired to turn in around 21:30 falling asleep not long after.

Next morning we arrive at Barbados (on what we find out is a public holiday), an island of 300,000 inhabitants. No tour organised as nothing appealed and I had been here before.

Albi and I again agree to share a car which we rent on the wharf. Off past Sandy Lane for our first beach stop. The water is an amazing colour and so inviting but the beach and I continue our torrid love affair. We drive up the West side and then down the East side which is very rough indeed as the Atlantic Ocean creates wild surf and currents according to the signage along the coast.

We head inland and to the wildlife sanctuary which I had previously visited but enjoyed for a second time. We head down south for a beachside lunch and then…..Yes Kids I found it….. the 350 year old Nidhe Israel Synagogue right in the centre of Bridgetown the capital. Last time we looked for this we wound up at the Mosque with a taxi driver that had no idea what a Synagogue was. There are currently 84 Jews in Barbados of which 8 are black. The original community of 800 came from the Portuguese Inquisition in Brazil. On High Holidays 40 of them gather at “the other Synagogue”

The Synagogue rebuilt at various points due to hurricanes is quite beautiful in a Moorish style. The Bahai faith guide was exceptionally knowledgeable about the Synagogue, religion and community even knowing the names of Jewish Families who had changed their names. He himself had traced his family back to 1086 and the change from Judaism during the Spanish inquisition. All very interesting even to Albi. A bit about Albi, he is a 25 year old Masters Student in
International Relations specialising in Human Rights. He is politically worldly and we have had many robust discussions about religion, politics, and fundamentalism. He is trying to get a three month internship in Saudi Arabia with the Foreign Ministry after which he hopes to do a PhD in London.

A quick walk around the wharf and back to the ship for dinner at the French Bistro - most of which was excellent. I then go to a hypontism show which was very good fun followed by a quick spiel (profitable) and sleep.

Some Pics...

Hope all is well

Love to all

D

 

LA to Miami and Cruising

Wednesday night room service dinner from the hotel restaurant and a relatively early night after catching up on some of my overdue emails and work.

Thursday morning I try the Simon Wiesenthal Centre to see if I can access their archives but the woman in charge isn’t there and doesn’t return my call for two days which is really annoying. I stop in LA for two nights on the way back so will try again then but am not holding my breath.

I go out for the morning and mooch around a nearby area called Manhattan Beach which is an upmarket beachside area about 10kms from LAX. I head back to the hotel stopping at a restaurant I was recommended to try – Eatalian. This is a most strange place being a large commercial bakery with a concrete style quite funky restaurant in an industrial area. It is obviously a bit of an institution being quite crowded to the point where I had to eat at the counter.

I would have to rate the mushroom pizza with Prosciutto Crudo as one of the best pizzas I have ever had. Lovely thin and crispy crust and the taste was simply amazing. A homemade sorbet topped off a really great meal – strongly recommended. I so love finding these out of the way places and being surprised.

I get back to the hotel around 15:00 and have a schloof – shopping and eating is s-o-o-o-o tiring. At 19:00 I am picked up by a friend of mine, a thirty something year old lawyer who lives in Los Angeles and we go to very trendy restaurant Mastro’s at Newport Coast. It has a lovely feeling to it and with a live singer and pianist and active bar scene it is almost perfect – apart from the noise. How do you know when you are getting old – when each restaurant seems noisier than the last one.

Anyway the meal was great apart from the grotesquely large servings. I ordered a side of creamed spinach and mac/cheese (ok call me common) and each of these alone would have been enough to feed a family of four. My friend drives a BMW Z4 two seater and generally travels at fifty percent over the speed limit. Anyway I make the 45 minute drive back to the hotel safely and a good night’s sleep.

Friday was a bit of a write off. Got a late start, did a bit of mooching including driving to a friend’s sister’s business twice only to find she was not there (I did try to meet her unannounced). I then watched a movie on the GFC and how it was handled by the Federal Reserve in the USA – very interesting and returned the car back to the hotel for a few hours before my 01:40 Saturday morning departure.

Los Angeles: Not one of my favourite destinations but there are enough things to see if one makes an effort to check out what is available. I was incredibly lucky with the weather an unseasonal 25+ degrees fine and sunny which made the visit good fun. I really enjoyed the Getty and Grammy Museums and my two meals but also enjoyed some relaxation and catching up on work and emails too.

I arrive at the airport three hours before my flight and check in to find out that my flight out of Memphis is delayed by an hour so what is 4.5 hours flying 2.5 layover 2.5 flight now becomes 10.5 hours for what would normally be a six hour direct flight.

Now I need to explain that the direct flight was $610 while the one stop flight was $136 so I suffer in silence – well sort of.
Board the flight and sleep from wheels up to wheels down which is good. I arrive in Memphis and the Elvis café at the airport to find that the delay is a further thirty minutes. This is caused by the need for the flight crew to have the minimum sleepover on Houston and the subsequent delay on the plane arriving in Memphis. I am feeling unhappy at this but console myself for getting a $6 breakfast voucher. Anyway we are herded onto a 76 seater plane after having all of our on-board bags confiscated only to be held on the tarmac for 30 minutes because the flight plan lodged which not have gotten us to Miami. Anyway all sorted, land in Miami and shuttle to Sofitel Hotel and a lovely room which is a shame because only for one night.

That night I continue my Tour of Nobu restaurants at South Beach. Usual fare tried a few new dishes but again very noisy so I am probably getting really old.

Next morning the 12:00 shuttle takes me from the hotel to the ship. After a quite reasonable one hour immigration, security and check-in I board the ship (NCL’s Norwegian Dawn) and have lunch after which the cabin is available for occupancy with my bags waiting outside. I am very happy indeed with my cabin. It is spacious with a large bathroom sitting area couch and bed and a large wardrobe to store everything in.

Amazing what well-oiled machines the cruise companies are in terms of unloading and loading the ship. All unpacked for the next ten days I tour the ship finding all of the specialty restaurants and see a sign for the Jewish Sabbath Service location stuck up outside one of the meeting rooms – I intend to go on Friday. I buy my internet package which is a relief for me which many would understand. By way of information there is a permanent mobile phone connection online through their Satellite system – can only imagine what it would cost to make a call.

I look at the tour lists and realise that I have booked a catamaran tour at one stop where I had intended to do swimming with the dolphins which I am very very keen to do. Luckily the tickets are changeable to that goes without a hitch.
I go to the dining room for dinner only to find a 45-60 minute delay so decide on the Churascaria which is amazingly good. The lamb and marinated eye fillet (who marinates eye fillet) were remarkably good and the salad bar great.

To the lounge bar for a drink and the nightclub for the lounge act singing all my favourite songs. I have met a few people along the way and had drinks with others so not all solo so far.

Day one and the ship is at sea (one of three only). 09:00 breakfast and 10:00 information talk about the tours at each of our destinations which I found incredibly interesting. Two of the stops have nude beaches where the speaker says “those who should be naked usually stay dressed while those who should stay dressed are usually naked” I have booked three of the six stops, plan to hire a car at one stop and two are as yet unaccounted for.

So here I am catching up on my blog after having spent an hour around the pool and an hour in the spa. I now propose an afternoon siesta before tonight’s dinner at the Asian Fusion restaurant and the show which follows.

All happy with me and I hope with you all....
Hope all is well
Love to all
D

Finishing Up Las Vegas

The funny thing about Vegas is that for the last 12 years I have been here in May when the sun sets late in the evening around 09:00. This time however it starts to get dark at 17:00 – probably better for restaurants and casinos.

Forgot to mention yesterday that I went to a private commercial art gallery in the Mall which had the most remarkable collection of artwork I have ever seen in a commercial gallery. Pieces by Renoir, Picasso, Chagall, Dali and so much more. Some a mere $250,000 while others much more reasonable. They have been there for 30+ years so likely reputable (http://www.centaurgalleries.com/). One artist that the Americans adore is Leroy Nieman but he is so overdone everywhere I go that it doesn’t do it for me. An artist I hadn’t seen before and quite liked was Mark Lewis – modern commercial but appealing to me (http://marklewisart.com/html/gallery.html).

I woke up and spent some time looking at Grand Canyon Tours. Many are eight or ten hour affairs which isn’t too interesting but there are some for four hours which is fully helicopter and includes the skywalk. It is very expensive but hey seeing one of the seven natural wonders of the world (as compiled by CNN) it’s probably worth it along with: Great Barrier Reef, Harbor of Rio de Janeiro, Mount Everest, Aurora, Parícutin volcano and Victoria Falls

Buying plane tickets on the fly is an interesting game. I needed to book a flight Los Angeles Miami and was quoted $129 online. Went back a few days later tried again and same quote. When I went to book it jumped up to $659. So I was forced to book a 01:40 flight with a stopover in Memphis for $136 but I can probably save $100 in accommodation costs as I have a car so can live like a gypsy for half a day.

Friday was the type of holiday day that I really enjoy – mindless nothing. I decided to take a drive around North Las Vegas (Summerlin 15km out) which I had never seen. The mortgage distress is palpable with large housing estates looking like they have been unlived in for some time. A few stops here and there but nothing too meaningful. Before I know it the sun is setting and I head back to the The Strip. It is very active as one would expect on a Friday Night and I head back to my hotel for a brief rest.

Around 20:00 I head to the food court and have a nice stir fry with my own choice of veggies from the 30+ offered. I definitely 100% absolutely got somebody else’s fortune cookie – “Don’t accept that others know better than you do” p-u-h-l-e-a-s-e.

I then decide on some spieling (is it i before e in Yiddish too) for a few hours. I meet a guy from New York who now lives in Vegas and we have a coffee while I learn about Las Vegas. He works at the Cosmopolitan Hotel/Casino just near here where he runs the café from midnight to 08:00 – he says he is a night owl. He earns around $15 an hour and another $5 an hour in tips. So for his 40 hours he received $700 after tax and claims he can save $200+ dollars a week as living costs here are quite cheap.

All of the casinos on the strip are closed shop or union controlled except for Cosmopolitan. After four owners failed to complete the Cosmopolitan Deutsche Bank stepped in and completed it and are the current owners. His big concern is that if one of the other casinos buys it then it will become union. How this happens is that the casino sacks every single worker without notice or redundancy and then re-employs only union employees. What his concern revolves around is lower salaries, $120 a month union fees, and none of the current extras he has negotiated. He gets 13 days a year holiday with a right to earn another two days. As graveyard workers are hard to find he can earn another 5 days taking him to four weeks. Anyway it’s interesting to see life from the inside in Vegas.

Anyway I go to sleep a little more in front against the casino and with only two days to go am expecting to declare a small dividend to the “Yerusha”. The good dynamics about where I am staying and the casino is that if I leave the room with a limited amount of money and go to the casino and lose it, the 800 metre schlep each way is enough to deter a lazy man from going back to the room to get some more money and back to the casino. Must remember this for future visits.

For some reason in Vegas I never seem to be up and ready before midday which is a little irritating for an early riser but…..I decide today to do something new, walk from one end of the strip to other on one side and back down the other. While I have been to all the mainstream casinos I haven’t had much of a look in at the secondary ones like Flamingo, Bally’s, Harrah and Imperial Palace. And what an eye opener it was with a totally different crowd of people best described as redneck bogans - I think would cover it. One example will let you know all. In these establishments they play BeerPong where you set up paper cups as you would a set of bowling pins and from the end of a long table which seems purpose made you fling down a ping-pong ball to try and get it into the cup thereby scoring. Oh well the amusement of the masses who have lost their money or don’t gamble I guess.

I get all the way down to Wynn’s at one end and about half way back up the other to Bellagio when I call it a day and taxi back to the hotel not before securing a ticket to see Cirque du Soleil Love (for the third time) tomorrow (Sunday) night. Am I crazy seeing a show I really love for the third time? I think not others may think yes however it needs to be set against the background that I have seen most of the shows in Las Vegas including O!, Mystere, Jersey Boys, Phantom of the Opera, David Copperfield, Rita Rudner, Lance Burton, the late Danny Gans as well as some second line ones as well. So why not see what one truly enjoys.

These are decendents of the original MGM lion and are housed in the lobby during the day - behind glass of course

I had spent close to six hours walking so am feeling happy with myself. An hour of resting and off to see Human Nature at the Imperial Palace. I discover that there is a monorail from my hotel to the venue so I hop on that and am there in no time. I am now early so I throw twenty dollars into the slot machine and collect over $500 which feels good – temporarily only as I lose that on the way home.

Anyway the concert was sensational enhanced by being just two metres from the stage in long trestle table seating. I love the old Motown songs and Human Nature does them the ultimate justice. They had the audience, around one third Aussies, fully engaged the whole time and the evening exceeded my expectation. I would strongly recommend this to anybody coming to Vegas and it is relatively cheap compared to other shows being just $80. As I noted above some serious and losing gambling until about 02:00 but am still in front which is all I hope for when in Vegas. And like just about every good act I have EVER seen they were backed by a seven piece band of unbelievable musicians with the 110kg black rhythm guitarist and the 65 year old pianist (brilliant) and brass section all of whom were loving being there.

Next morning I decide to have a jacuzzi (in my suite) and sit there for about forty minutes which again delays my departure to around midday. I have nothing planned and decided no more gambling on this trip – report to follow.

I simply mooch around some places I know including Saks off Fifth Avenue, their outlet centre where I fall in love with a jacked reduced from $600 to $80 but at the end of the day I decided I really didn’t need it. Yes folks who know me well that usually isn’t a deterrent but I am getting older and more conservative.

As I have a coffee at the Coffee Bean a weird thing happens. They have available the Jewish Times so to speak called David. I read it while having my coffee and see this advertisement. Rabbi Yehoshua Fromowitz, Certified Mohel (for my non Jewish follwers that is a person who conducts circumcisions). Now practicing (the word practicing alone scares me but read on) Reference Available on Request. Now think about that “References Available on Request”. What does he do send you a portfolio of his works, give you the phone numbers of babies and kids and adults whom he has circumcised. WTF!!!

Anyway back to the hotel where I finish this blog and get ready for the show.

Tomorrow I am off driving to Los Angeles (and a meal at Nobu) for four days before one night in Miami and CRUISE TIME. Will share the itinerary in the next blog.

My cold is much better but still coughing and a cold sore has taken a long time to heal as I bought some instant magic tablets to cure cold sores before I left and didn’t take them in time – how dumb is that. Apart from that am having a really good time being footloose and deciding what to do day to day.

Hope everybody is well and love to all
David

Lost Wages - Sin City

Wednesday morning and my cold now with cough in full flight. The upside to my cold if there is one is that, with subdued tourism, I am now on top of emails and work.

I secure a late checkout but as I am all packed from the night before I check  and go for one last time through the now icy cold streets of NYC. The weather is about zero degrees but with wind chill factor "feels like" minus eight degrees. Anyway I am reasonably well rugged up sans hat though.

A toasted everything bagel on which I ask for half egg salad and half chicken salad thinking he would put half of one on the left and the other on the right half.  Nup. Half  on the top and half on the bottom and squashed together. Oh well tasty anyway although I could only eat half it was so enormous with filling.

I then go and visit a Sony exhibit on the progress of technology which itself seemed quite dated.

I went to the Sony shop and enquired about an item and whether the price was the best they could do. The sales associate (their name not mine) went to the desk clicked a few keys and says "I have found it online at 42% less and can price match". How good is that for just asking?

I decide on a manicure and ten minute neck massage only to hear the tittering when I left a 10% tip which they felt was clearly inadequate. Some more walking taking every opportunity to enter any mildly interesting shops and warm up.

A mushroom soup and back to the hotel to get a cab to Grand Central Station and the shuttle bus to LaGuardia Airport.
Check in was smooth once I shifted three kilos from checked bag to on board bag mercifully only one bag as it is $20 for the first and $35 for the second. The flight was so full that the check-in clerk offered to check in my on board bag for free. Um no thanks!

Fort five minutes to go through security. Note to self, iPod Shuffle sets of metal sensors. On time departure and knowing the flight was full I play the disabled need early boarding card to ensure I get my bags stowed.

Ok so New York. I am guessing I have been there seven or eight times and have learned to like it more each time.  The first few times were a couple of days in Times Square and I actively disliked the city. But each time I now go I tend to spend a week there and each time widen my search for new and interesting places like Chelsea, Seaport, the Upper West Side etc.. I always have regrets that I haven't done more like this time I didn't see a show and am pissed off that only today I noticed that Patty Lupone and Mandy Patinkin had a show together which I would have loved to see - oh we'll something for next time.

New York is one of the world's great cities and it makes me realise just how expensive Sydney has become. I went to supermarkets, delis and specialty food stores and almost every item was 33%+ less than Sydney. Even the Michelin restaurants while expensive at $215++ and $190++ didn't seem too bad compared to some average $120 meals in Sydney upscale restaurants and tickets to things like sporting events, operas, concerts etc..

Tipping does add to the cost landscape with most expecting 20% or 15% as a minimum.  When I had my oysters the service was abysmal and the printed bill came with a 20% gratuity added in. When I paid $40 instead of the $42 (20% included) on the bill I was queried by the sever telling me I had paid short - that was annoying.

One thing I did notice was that I constantly held the door open for people and to a person nobody ever said thank you. I'll put it down to culture. 

Anyway am on my flight to Las Vegas via Denver and arrive lateish at night which isn't a problem in a city like Vegas. I managed to get a great deal of a 50 sq mtr suite with spa and kitchenette at the MGM for around $A160 a night. The only trick will be to lose too much gambling although I really plan not to spend much time doing so. Have been washing every night but am looking to my Laundromat on Harmon complete with slot machines which sort of makes sense if you think about it - not for me though.

I do have a plan to do the Grand Canyon which believe it or not I have never done as it snowed when we last tried. Other things of nerves Human Nature doing Motown and seeing Cirque du Soleil Love (Beatles) for a third time. One of the best shows I have EVER see EVER.

Layover in Denver all OK and empty row through to Las Vegas. Usual 30 minute wait for luggage to appear - it has been as long as 60 minutes - and off to the car rental company. Usual 'balagan' $12 a day for the car and $12-$40 a day insurance. I have two travel policies so will rely on those. Note to self never ever ever ever use Fox car rentals. Every rental company is in a purpose built facility no not Fox a second bus to reach them. 

Next morning i book a ticket to see Human Nature Motown Show which is very much my scene. Will try for at least one more show before I leave next Monday. I have decided for expediency as much as not wanting another plane trip to lee the car, drive to Los Angeles and spend a few days there before going to Miami to board the cruise. I haven't done the beaches like Malibu and Newport and would like to go to the Getty Museum for a long period than last time as it was late in the day when I went.

Out of the hotel around 11:00 and the march back to the MGM to collect my car. Yes folks walked through the casino and didn't spiel. Off to the Fashion Mall not really for shopping more for a coffee and meal. That's not to say the I won't shop merely it is not my primary intent. the mall has a Nieman Marcus, Nordstrom,Macys, Bloomingdales, Dillard's and other nice shops but a full retail not much interest compared to the 300 shop premium outlet just a few miles away. People complain that retailers are being damaged by the internet but some of it is self inflicted. I saw a new Parker Pen that I was interested in buying. Being a new model it was unlikely to be discounted on the internet. I offered to buy it at the $190 asking price of they included two refills normally $8 each. Sorry we can only do one sir and they let me walk - which I did. Anyway didn't buy anything nothing nada. They are even selling real estate in the Mall and look how cheap....about $1000 a square metre - that would translate to around $100k for a 100 sq metre apartment.

Note to self - don't ever do foreign exchange in a Mall in the USA - this equates to a 17%+ Margin - I should go into business.

I go to Wholefoods and do a shop with a plan to making dinner in the hotel. I buy two lovely pre-made soups and some salad things. Wholefoods have one of the best quality and assortments of salads, pre-made meals fruit and veg in the USA. Back to the hotel where I shake the salad dressing to mix it, the top pops off and it goes everywhere. Oh well so much for no cleaning and washing while travelling. All fixed and I enjoy the fruits of my labours.

I go and spiel for a little bit and am in front enough to be certain (as certain as a gambler can be) that I will leave here in profit. How bad are some gamblers - there are pits of roulette tables about 10 metres apart, some have one zero while others have two - same limits same everything including the number of players - 2.7% house edge versus 5.26% - why not lose your money twice as quickly.

The MGM Grand has a Joel Robuchon restaurant. I glance at the degustation menu, ok ok just out of curiosity. The cost here is $425 but there is smatterings of caviar which changes the equation. Anyway no plans for fine dining here so it was seriously out of curiosity.

Interestingly smoking in casinos is still allowed including F*^#ng cigars. Off to an early bedtime 23;00 well for Vegas standards anyway.
Hope everybody is well
XD

More New York

If you aren't interested in food then this blog probably is best missed. If you are interested then you are in for some mouth-watering.....

Saturday morning and I have parted company with the Evanses as they are doing a tour of the 09/11 Trade Centre which had little appeal to me. I got going quite late (11:00) and decided to go to Telepan for Brunch. I have been here before and love the atmosphere and the menu. At the table next to me were two Australians as well as the waitress so felt right at home. I really enjoyed my choice Mushroom Soup ricotta spaetzle, pine nuts & sage followed by Omelet with salad and potatoes lobster & scallion bacon & aged cheddar mushroom & herbs - it is Telepan who couldn't spell Omelette not me. Then walked down Broadway to Times Square across and up to the Rockefeller Centre where I again went to"Top of the Rock". I always find looking at New York in 360 degrees as stunningly beautiful.

Then some mooching down at Macys and back to the hotel for a rest before 18:15 dinner at Daniel (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Boulud). The Restaurant is Michelin Three Star and the ambience, service and dining experience was certainly top of the top. However the food, while outstanding didn't measure up to L'Atelier the following night.

Amuse Bouche was a taste of Squash (Delicata with Smoked Sable/Parika Yogurt - Pickled Butternut With Buddha's Hand Lemon (??)/Cured Hamachi - Red Hubbard Puree. Also black truffle Cromesquis (??) with Lobster and Wild Mushroom Pomponette (??), Fontina and Black Truffle. And that was just the Amuse Bouche!!! For Entree (Australian Word) I chose the Yellowtail Tasting which was amazing. Main of Slow Baked Dover Sole with Sunichoke (??) Marmalade left me a little cold but I will put this down to the poor choice rather than anything else. For dessert a Chocolate-Coconut Biscuit with Caramelia Cream, Caramel Emulsion and Coconut Sorbet. Dont get me wrong I seriously enjoyed it but would prefer to try something else next time. But the experience was enhanced when the guy at the next table asked the lady he was with to marry him - and mercifully she said yes so that was good fun.

Then walked back to the hotel to change into casual clothes and walk to Time Square to watch the ball fall for NYE. Yeah Sure!!! I had tried to get a Times Square pass from the Accor Hotel or even celebrate there ($1000 a seat believe it or not - which I would not have paid even if it were available) but no luck with a pass. The closest I got was 7th Avenue between 58th and 59th which looks straight down at the ball but about 14 blocks away. Anyway it was very exciting being one among half a million. I then went to a cafe and watched the party/concert on TV before heading back to the hotel.

Sunday morning and another lateish start. I walked for about an hour including a visit to Grand Central Station and then hopped a cab down to Seaport which is on the South East tip of Manhattan near Fulton Street. There is a nice mix of restaurants and shops here so I had a dozen oysters while sitting in the sun. Yes folks the weather has been truly amazing with most days over ten degrees making the holiday and time in New York very pleasant. Four blocks away is R&J Electronics and Century 21. Didn't do too much damage. Hopped a subway (my 16th trip this visit yes folks the iPhone App is great) to 14th Street only to find Chelsea Markets shut. Had already been once but like mooching round the quaint shops and then Chelsea afterwards.

Anyway back to the hotel to change into my suit - no tie tonight - only two stars :). I have been to L'Atelier once before and I truly love it rating it in my top ten. I asked to eat at the counter which looks into the kitchen. The name L'Atelier means studio or workshop so hence the "sushi train" style seating. I was so fortunate to have a waiter who spoke to me during the entire meal service telling me everything about everything. Joel Robuchon (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jo%C3%ABl_Robuchon) was voted Chef of the 20th Century by a highly credited magazine in 1989. In 1995, seeing so many chefs burn out and die around him he precipitately decided to retire and moved to Tokyo. He was encouraged a few later to open a new restaurant which he did but only on condition that the style and menu was what he wanted not what Michelin said he should have. Anyway he now has more Michelin Stars (27) than anyone else and has a restaurant empire. I suspect that he puts his name to the restaurants, creates the ambience and menu, controls the quality and simply takes a royalty. There are around 10 L'Atelier restaurants around the world and I am guessing with similar menus. There is one in my next Stop, the MGM Las Vegas but I won't have a second meal this trip.

 

The ambience is excellent and service excellent. No not as overstaffed and effusive as Daniel but exceptionally good. I decide on the degustation which was a good choice. The Amuse Bouche was warm duck liver parfait with a pudding and froth - forgot was in them but sure tasted good.
Chilled corn veloute with caviar, Scallop Carpaccio with sea urchin, black truffle langoustine ravioli with lightly braised savoy cabbage and black truffle (which I couldnt taste), Seared duck foie gras with muscat grapes (peeled noch) and ginger confit, seared black cod with daikon and yozu broth. There was then a choice between caramelized quail stuffed with foie gras and potato puree (my choice) or glazed wagyu beef with olives capers and piquillas (??). To finish off a cranberry and marscapone cheesecake and chocolate cream, bitter chocolate sorbet and grated oreo cookies.

This restaurant does rate in my top ten on just about every front.

So next morning I wake with a cold and spend the day laying low venturing out just to get a salad for lunch but winding up with a sore neck from lying in bed. GRRR!!!! With eight and half days in New York not really a problem.

I looked at all the places I could go, airfares and other possibilities and settled for ..... Las Vegas. Yeah I know nothing new there but the Cavendish wont be held this year so no visit in May and I am happy to just chill for 5 days before I head to Miami for a few days and the cruise. One thing I have always wanted to do in Las Vegas is spend some time going to second tier shows. Human Nature sing Motown is one that springs to mind. I may also go and see Love (Cirque Du Soleil Beatles for the third time)

Anyway enough for now. I hope everybody had a really great New Years.

Da Big Apple

Wednesday - the day of the long march. I head down to 23rd St and Park Ave and phone Mike who meets me (he is staying at a relative's apartment). We walk to Chelsea Markets where we inspect all the fare, the fish market and all of the other delights located there. Through Chelsea with a few purchases from the boutiques (not me) we continue our walk down to the World Trade Centre, Century 21 (Liza only) and J&R Electronics for the men. We then subway up to the Rockefeller Centre but the crowds are massive. I have been to New York quite a few times but have never seen so many people by a factor. I excuse myself while Mike tries to make it to the Lego Shop.

We have a dinner arrangement at 18:45 with three guys who play Soccer for Hakoah New York and who tracked down Michael Evans. Ron is a marketing manager for El Al North America, David works for a Hedge Fund and Marat (Turkish and yes you don't have to be Jewish to play for Hakoah in New York) works for UBS. We meet at the Olympia Pita restaurant Glatt Kosher. The meal was fine but Mediterranean food isn't my thing. Very nice guys and it was remarkable how much Ron knew about Australian sport, soccer, politics and culture. All in all very entertaining. After dinner back to the hotel. I am quite exhausted having walked a minimum of 10kms and been on my feet all day and it shows as.......

Thursday morning and I shock myself at waking up 09:45. I ready myself and head to Macy's where I have to return a faulty suitcase which the manufacturer would not return without a receipt. Who keeps a receipt for a suitcase? Anyway the manager of the Macy's store where I bought the case arranged for me to return it in new York. I head up to Columbus Circle where I have arranged to meet Daniel Grynberg's good friend James Hookes for lunch with Mike Evans. Very interesting lunch at Bouchon Cafe discussing job markets, economies and everything else business. He is the CEO of three Mac Bank Infrastructure Funds so was very stimulating.

I then headed back to the hotel while Mike went to meet Liza and Ollie who had been ice skating most of the day to that point.

Back to Manhattan on the 18:00 shuttle to meet the Evans gang for Nobu dinner. There are three in New York and we chose the 57th Street location. The usual sensational fare Miso Cod, Lobster Tacos, a new dish home made silk tofu with scallops, mushroom salad, cucumber sesame salad, crispy salmon skin hand rolls and more. All up to the usual 10/10 standard for me and the Evans' loved it as well. Down to Macys which is open till 23:00 to pick up some things the Evanses wanted and then back to the hotel for me.

Friday morning up at 08:45 showered and dressed and off to drop my luggage at my new hotel, the Shoreham on 55th between 5th and 6th Ave. Quite a good find. The rooms, although compact but not small are beautifully appointed and extremely functional. Usual shit the hotel (owned by the same person as the limousine company) tells me the limo will cost $10-$15 to Manhattan and the driver says $25 - I refused and paid $15 but hate this sort of situation.

Then off to Chambers Street to meet Evans gang this time with Greg Sirtis, his girlfriend and son Jonah (Carol/Barry Pryer's grandson) where we looked at Wall Street before taking a return trip on the Staten Island ferry. The weather has been truly magnificent so far while I have been here ranging from 8 to 10 degrees with no wind or rain after Tuesday Night. While on the Ferry two 'bockers' ask are we Jewish and
we say yes and they ask if they can put Tefillin on u. Mike and I as one say "no no we have already laid Tefillin today but (pointing to Greg Sirtis) he hasn't". They gave him a hard time for a few minutes before moving on. They were very respectful and actually quite sweet.

I head back to to the Shoreham to get my room, unpack and then head to Zabar's to meet Evans/Sirtis for afternoon nosh. I had never been to Zabar's before. It is a truly amazing experience. First we had blintzes and other Jewish fare but the supermarket was awesome. While we were there a very under dressed and bedraggles looking Philip Seymour-Hoffman shuffled in bought some food and sat there eating it facing
the corner. Selection, quality and variety in the supermarket - it simply had everything. Without selling everyday groceries but being a totally devoted full service delicatessen. http://www.zabars.com/

We then part ways as I head back to my hotel where I eat some Lobster Bisque and raspberries I bought from Wholefoods on the way.

Spending time with the Evans Gang was great. I am very fond of all three of them and we seemed (to me anyway) to very compatible travel partners.

Very excited about Daniel Michelin 3 Star tomorrow  night and New Years Eve in Times Square if I can take the crowds. Some bridge friends invited me for their NYE party but I really do want to try and make a go of Times Square so I passed.
If not only 8-10 blocks back to the hotel. Was a bit disappointed with Atelier when they phoned to confirm my booking and say that I should be on time for my 22:15 booking as the kitchen orders close at 22:30 and the restaurant closes at midnight. I was tempted to cancel but a phone call an hour later that they have found a spot at 20:30 - and am I looking forward to that.

My problem du jour is that I leave New York next Tuesday but have no plane or hotel booking or destination. I am thinking London then Miami or Las Vegas Cancun and Miami or well I guess I will figure it out. My plans have been thrown around because my very good friends in Phoenix are having marital problems and even though I have been providing them both with phone counseling and trying to help going there figures to
be a bad scene. So my planned week in Phoenix has gone pffft.

Sure I have missed out lots of things like discovering Godiva Salted Caramel Chocolate ($2.97 Century 21, $3.99 Duane Read and $4.99 Morton Williams Puhlease)

Love and sincere best wishes for a Happy and Healthy 2012 and even a touch of Prosperity
XD

The Pre-Departure Excitement and arriving in New York

Well about three weeks ago Justin, Lindy and I decided to have a dumpling dinner at Bamboo. Little did we know that this dinner would set in motion a chain of events that would see the Stern family's second wedding in seven weeks.

That evening Justin and Lindy decided that they would get married  in a secret and private ceremony on Xmas day disguising it as a picnic for the Sterns to meet Lindy's sister, Lara. Just Parents siblings and unfortunately only one of Justin's gradmothers could attend (sorry Sybil).

Much work - caterer (not easy for Xmas Day and thanks Wayne for a great job), wedding dress, flowers, Rabbi (thanks Ritchie for making it a special day) Chuppah, Mikvah, rings and a million micro things - even down to having to find three males to make up the Minyan (thanks Robert Tom and Tony).

But it all came together in a fantastic surprise that has formalised what has been a beautiful relationship between the two of them.

Justin and Lindy even separated for one week without seeing or speaking to each other using me an intermediary. This wasnt hard as they had to make excuses why the other wasn't there when invited somewhere.

And who said I couldn't keep a secret.

And how proud am I of my two kids and their partners. So much joy in a concentrated period is such a wonderful thing. I can now hopefully look forward to the joys of grandfatherood some time in the future (no pressure kids).

Anyway next day feeling post event excitement and off to New York to face the cold of a USA winter.

A little of the background of the 'secret, wedding'. About three weeks ago Lindy, Justin and I were having dinner and the subject came up as it did has every time we got together "so when is this wedding going to happen". For the first time there seemed little resistance from Justin and Lindy said "I don't need a wedding I just want t marry you Justin Stern".

I went on to say that it wasn't fair to deny Lindy a wedding dress and a wedding and the plot was hatched - Christmas day in Centennial Park. Two days later the rabbi had signed off on it happening, Centennial Park booked as were the photographer and videographer  and finally the next day the caterer was sourced on Gumtree and locked in - thanks Wayne you did a fantastic job couldn't have asked for better.

Justin and Lindy sent out invitations to a picnic for the Stern family to meet her sister Lara and husband Neil who had flown n that day from the USA. People had their suspicions that Lindy and Justin would be announcing their engagement and Gerald even asked in the car on the way whether Rabbi Moss would work on Xmas day and grew most suspicious when he turned up and saw Justin wearing long pants. Robert Grynberg came to make up the Minyan on the pretext that he was taking me to the airport and fortunately he had Kathy n tow to help share the moment. The other two 'rent a Jews' were Tom Moss who forwent a lunch in Castlecrag and Tony Leibowitz who drove down from Pearl Beach - thanks guys.

The secret wedding project was then in overdrive. Lindy working on dress, shoes, flowers and a myriad of tiny details while Justin and I deal with the logistics, van to get everything to the park, picking up the Chuppah, furniture, cutlery, crockery, drinks, Eskies etc etc.. And Hashem worked on the weather which apart from the occasional breeze was perfect.

Some family and friends dropped down to the park for drinks to help celebrate and Justin's good friend Michael Gara came with his photography equipment to supplement our photographer and videographer.

So two weddings n seven weeks - how happy am I.

So, after the excitement of yesterday the reality of 26 hours door to door travel Sydney to New York. I arrive at the airport with one full suitcase and one faulty one I am taking for a refund only to find that the former two bag allowance is now one and the second bag, remember empty, costs $65. That reduces the United versus Qantas differential by $130 as I am allowed an extra piece with Qantas as a life member.

The previously empty seat next to me vanishes and the plane is full. Despite This I manage to sleep for ten of the fourteen hours of the flight. I put it down to excitement letdown - hmm maybe a wedding before every overseas trip - no no bad idea won't be able to afford those trips. 

Smooth transfer in San Francisco to my New York flight where the whole economy section is just 72 premium economy seats with lots of business and first class seats. The woman in front of me points out a faulty seat to a cabin steward who shows one of the finest displays of passive resistance I have seen in a long time offering her to be moved to another flight.

Having internet on the flight is worth every penny of the $15 as I “chat” with the kids, friends, catch up on facebook and do a hundred little things and deal with the emails surrounding the wedding.

So my agenda is eight days in New York the first four with Mike Evans and family and New Year’s Eve in Times Square. I then have 11 days with nothing planned and a ten day cruise.

All good to the hotel (Z Hotel Long Island City 3kms from Rockefeller Centre) after the obligatory negotiating with a New York Limousine ($40+tip). The hotel is way cool but located in an industrial area just over the Queensboro bridge. It is funky top to bottom with a nice room. Only minor downside is an external walkway to the room but for $145 including continental breakfast I can wear a jacket.

I have seven hours of broken sleep and speak to Michael and agree to meet at 10:30 as they went to an ice hockey game last night the Ollie is sleeping in.

I catch the dhuttle which drops me next to one of my favourite shops - The Container Shop - ideal for somebody with an orderly mind or even OCD or as Justin says CDO as the letters have to be in the right order for me. Of course I find something I need and must have and of course may never use.

We meet up at Columbus circle with the intent of having brunch at Bouchon Cafe which is closed till 11:30 so we wander down to the Food Emporium on 8th and have a delightful lunch of soups, sushis, tuna tartare and Ollie with meatballs and chips.

We head over towards 5th Avenue buying Ollie some jeans to replace the track pants he is wearing (ah memories) which are not dealing well with the 5 degree temperature which as far as I am concerned was great weather.

Past the Rockerfeller Centre with huge queues waiting for the ice skating rink and to the Moma where the crowd to see an exhibition by Konining is large. Now for a Picasso or similar I would queue for a long time but for somebody we hadnt heard of - pass.

We head to the MOMA shops where we spend about 90 minutes looking at the wonderful array of new and functional designed chachkas that we must have and dont need and of course I still spend a few dollars on a gift for the newly married son and daughter in law.

It is now raining lightly so we head to the Russian Tea Room. It is very expensive so we have a light and cheaper meal while some around us are scoofing down $2,000 of caviar for four people. We cross the road to a deli and top up what proved to be an inadequate lunch with soup cheescake and some fresh raspberries.

Now it is raining REALLY hard and Mike wants to walk the ten blocks to HalfTix to see what's available - I dont do rain walking so we hopped a cab where the driver became grumpy with a short fare in traffic where he couldnt turn - a rather poor advertisment for New York as I told him. But when we get there via visit to the M&M shop, remember we have Ollie with us nothing appeals as we are all a bit tired.

We decided that maybe a movie would be in order but eventually gave up on that idea. catching a subway to where I could get the shuttle back to the hotel and they could change trains to get back to the apartment they are staying at (23rd and 3rd). Here are a couple of pics.

Enough for now. Hope all are well and more later.

XD