Blenheim Palace

Birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill, home of Spencer's, an odd-Vanderbilt, and many Churchill's... http://www.blenheimpalace.com/

Sadly, the visit was rather brief and rushed (due to laggard Dutch folks). Good enough reason to come back another time!

About last summer

Overview of the places traveled for work between June and September of 2008.
Montreal, Canada - June 2008
Goteborg, Sweden - June 2008

Berlin, Germany - July 2008

Chicago shore, Evanston, IL, USA - July 2008

Boston, MA, USA - July 2008

Raffles Hotel, Singapore - July 2008

Xi'an, Shaanghi Provence, PRC - July 2008

Terracotta army, Xi'an

Italian Alps - August 2008

Rimini, Italy - August 2008

Rome, Italy - September 2008

Trevi Fountain

Ancient Rome

Vatican City

Thailand Trip (1)

Guiltily I admit that - despite travelling in the past couple of months - the blog was not updated. My sincere apologies to my readers.

This might seem like "musterd after the meal" (a Dutch saying that actually translates rather well), I'd still like to post a couple of pics from our terrific holiday in Thailand!

This voyage took us to Bangkok, where we cycled through China Town and various farms just outside of Bangkok. What a way to explore this busy city!

Next destination was Chiang Mai. Three days in the jungle just west of this "Rose of the North" brought us not only closer to nature, so to speak, it also afforded us with the opportunity to meet and live with the Karen tribes. Our group of 11 - not exactly a good number - was terrific! Si(ck)x Frenchmen, four Dutch and one German (no white socks - a disappointing fact, Phil) made for a lively bunch.

As total foodies, we took the opportunity to finally learn how to cook terrific Thai food at http://www.thaifarmcooking.com/. Well worth it!

A trip to the Doi Suthep temple complex and various temples within the walls of Chiang Mai taught us more about temple life, Buddism and the monks in general.

Next stop: I-Saan!

A night of magic

Accompanied by the Editors of one of my journals, the EER, we saw Die Zauberflöte at the Met www.metoperafamily.org/metopera/season/production.aspx?id=8885&detect=yes, something that turned out to be absolutely unforgettable, in every way! We started the night at Gabriel's, a modern Italian Restaurant www.gabrielsbarandrest.com/, that knows how to cook its venison just right, and that managed to surprise us all, from the excellent pumpkin risotto, to a beautiful octopus salad.

No one could have prepared me for the sensational stage, the grandeur of the theater - quite a size larger than the ones I've been to - and ultimately the quality of the music. But the Queen of the Night, Anna-KLristiina Kaappola, proved to be the show-stealer. Her soprano voice was one that I shall not forget any time soon...

It's up to you, New York, New York!

The flight over was not exactly pleasant. It seems that a passenger on a previous flight had a case of anti-peristaltic movements and had failed to tell KLM staff that this should be cleaned up... Poor Jenny was sitting right next to that particular seat, I was right behind her. Though the serwardess did her best cleaning it up, the smell lingered throughout the flight. Needless to say, we were glad to get off the plain!

I stayed the first night at the Hotel Roger Williams www.hotelrogerwilliams.com and made my way to the Hotel Chandler www.hotelchandler.com for the remainder of my stay in the Big Apple. Both are "boutique" hotels, and staff is certainly helpfull. Getting the temperature of the room and the water, does seem to be a problem, in both hotels...

Lucky me, got to spend all of Saturday to stroll through the streets of this huge village! First stop was the Saturday farmer's market on Union Square. The produce looked terrific and people were stocking up on apple or pear cider, wild mushrooms, and an extensive array of vegetables and fruits.

Though the weather changed on Friday afternoon, I managed to catch a sunny spell on Thursday. And hating to have an overpriced breakfast at the hotel, picking up some good bites is absolutely easy in NY. Having your brecky's in a window seat, allows you to observe the eclectic array of humans on the streets. Quite a treat!

But the ultimate in great food, I experienced on Thursday evening at The Tasting Room www.thetastingroomnyc.com. Great location, comfortable decor (though the A/C could have been turned down a little), and surprising and tantalizing dishes. The idea is to share things with your table mates, and so we did. Amongst the five of us, we had 7 starters and 5 entrées - that proved to be a good choice. Portions are American, and therefore we had ample to eat, especially sharing the two 16 oz (!) ribeyes. Ingredients, presentation and cooking techniques were all surprising and refreshing. The dish that impressed me most, was the root vegetable side. Absolutely great! And certainly well worth another visit.