Do It Go

I could not wait to land and say my first G’day to some unsuspecting Aussie. We had been flying for what seemed like an eternity, a flight longer than our non stop marathon the Berlin from Phoenix, where we hired a taxi and toured the German city. Instead, we were two for the road, Dagny and I on our first trip down under, and we would not be staying at any of the luxury hotels Melbourne Australia kindly made available. We thought we would rent a caravan, or recreational vehicle,and visit the various sight of OZ. But first, we were starving (we thought,what with the time changes, we did not know what we were supposed to be) and so looked forward to food from the barbie. I was speaking Aussie already.

We went to New Quay, a place seemingly claimed by artists and had fish kabobs and crazy pizzas. We walked along the the peaceful scene and realized we were in a food court. We laughed when we realized the equivalent in India from our recent trip was a road of food hawkers. We delighted dealing with the Indian brethren of the food court stall-warts, and we wondered what Indian fellow would think of this. The food was food was good, if a little less adventurous. Needless to say a pub stop was in order, and we had some local brews,and when we had to speak to order, giving away our origin identity, we received hearty back slaps and hand shakes and we did not have to buy our beers. Thanks Melbourne. We whiled away the evening , headed down to the beach and strolled about. The next morning we grabbed a tall blond, also known as a latte, and loaded up the caravan a searched for breakfast, got our bearings and headed out .

Tags: luxury hotels, Melbourne
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“We gotta go to Yum Cha Dragon, what a great name,” said Patty, practically drooling at the thought of Chinese food. How a girl from the Bitter-root Mountains of Idaho developed such a of love of Chinese food, I will never know. Oh wait, I do know. I went back with her to meet her family for the first time in the spring and we had some of the Chinese food in her hometown. I knew we were in trouble when they had ketchup bottles on the table and not a chop stick in site. Plus they served pizza. Maybe now when she get s good Chinese food she can really appreciate it. She apologized for the hometown chopsuey debacle as we like to call it now. I just think it made us stronger. “Sounds good to me,” I said. “But if they have ketchup bottles on the table, I am out of there,” and we both giggled. Patty was fun to travel with, has been all over Europe, and this was the first visit for either of us to Oceania, no less, and Melbourne. We were reluctant to try the luxury hotels Melbourne has seemingly everywhere, and wanted the Chinatown experience.

“Maybe they have Yum Cha T shirts?” said Patty in her flat Midwestern drawl. She had studied economics at the University of Chicago, and after graduating become a well known model, appearing on billboards all over the US. Well since YumCha means drink tea in Cantonese that’s what we ordered straight off as we were seated. We were in time for buffet and had our pick of seafood dumplings as we plodded around the restaurant. The prawns were worth it, and even the usual Chinese themed interior of lanterns and bamboo made us feel happy and at home.

Tags: luxury hotels, Melbourne, prawns, Yum Cha Dragon
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Could the Sagrada Familia be any bigger? I just could not take my eyes off this massive church, still under construction and will be for twenty or thirty more years. It is like some dreamy, ephemeral creature has set down in Barcelona, an almost organic intricacy that you just can not take your eyes off. We sat at luxury Barcelona hotels anywhere that had a good view of this astonishing edifice. Designed by Gaudi, the famous artist, the church possess a surreal Gothic Revival style that is absolutely compelling. and in the midst of this and other architectural wonders, parrots. Big green parrots that flew from palm tree to palm tree, reminding you that while you were in Europe and looking at Gothic, say, architecture, it’s just different, like weird, or, if you will, weirder Munich, with green parrots, and warped smash ups ofarchitectural types.

That’s when a guy tried to sell me a parrot. He was sort of dressed up as a parrot, what with a green leather jacket, purple shirt, and white cravat. “This Pierre the parrot. I think he likes you.” Well, what the hell am I going to do with a parrot. This guy should be selling the green leather jacket like the one he had on, and I told him so. “Oh, Senor,” he said, “A parrot is a living thing of beauty, much more valuable.” I had to agree with that, but still, how would I get on theplane back to Toronto. There are no palm trees in Toronto. The CN Tower, but no palms. Maybe Phoenix. Well, apparently he was a magician, because the bird disappeared in a wink behind a flourish of purple silk kerchiefs and marzipan. Then he disappeared too in a burst of red smoke. Just then a parrot landed on my shoulder. “Hello, my name is Pierre,” hesquawked. Looks like I had a parrot.

Tags: Barcelona, Gawdy Gaudi, luxury hotels, Sagrada Familia
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For those visiting either Pretoria or Johannesburg, the Sterkfontein Caves are located just about an hour’s drive from each city, and should be on the itinerary of all those touring the country and staying in the luxury hotels Johannesburg and Pretoria offer.  These caves are located within the Heritage Site of the “Cradle of Humankind” and claim as their own, some of the most dramatic and important archaeological discoveries in the world.  These discoveries have been responsible for changes in the ways scientists, and society in the whole, the history of the evolution of human beings and humanity in general.   The two most recent discoveries that are on exhibit are those of Little Foot and Mrs. Ples.  Little Foot is the name given to the fossil remains of an almost entire skeleton recovered dating more than three million years old.  Little Foot is a member of the hominid species, Australopithecus.  Mrs. Ples, also Australopithicus was found previous to Little Foot, and is the complete skull of a female member of the species.  These are just two of the many famous findings the caves have revealed.

John Gurche is the world renown paleontologist, the resident scientist for the site who has exhibits located throughout the world, including the Field Museum in Chicago, the Museum of Natural History in Manhattan, and at the Smithsonian Institute.  Due to his vast expertise, he also served to consult during the movie shoots of “Jurrasic Park”.  The University of Witwatersrand owns the caves, and the scientists of the university have been among those responsible for the main excavation projects.  Many other fossils of the hominid species and various species of mammals have been discovered withing the caves, all dating back four million years.  In 2005 the site under went an extensive restoration process and now includes a fine dining restaurant, more accessible access into the caves, and boardwalks and pathways that present one with the incredible experience of touting the site, the site that has become known as the birth-site of humanity.

Tags: Field Museum in Chicago, History of Humanity, Jurrasic Park, luxury hotels, Smithsonian Institute, Sterkfontein Caves
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Bonnie Ntshalintshali was a brilliant South African ceramicist. She was born in 1967, on a farm in KwaZulu. By the time she was eighteen, she was working for an artist, Fee Halsted-Berning, as an assistant in her studio near Pietermaritzburg. Halsted-Berning noticed very early on that Ntshalintshli was talented in both painting and sculpture, and encouraged her to pursue creating her own pieces. Just three years later, she beganreceiving awards, first the Corobrik Ceramics Award and then the Young Artist Award that was give to both she and Halsted-Berning by the Standard Bank. She also began studying with sculptors Ian Calder and Juliet Armstrong at the University of Natal. She started to create images of her own sculptures, in silk screen and they were exhibited in Grahamstown at the Print Festival.

She began by building or coiling the clay. Her forms are complex and innovative and once they were fired she painted them with intricate detail. She created visual stories on the pottery, mixed her views and her understanding of western culture and imagery with that of her traditional Zulu images. She was said to have piled the stories in layers. Her work is in high demand, represented at many of the fine galleries and luxury hotels South Africa supports throughout the entire country as well as in the top collections in the United Kingdom and the United States.

During the early 1990′s she presented shows in Seville and participated in the Venice Biennial. That exhibit was part of a touring show that was also put up in Amsterdam and in Rome. She traveled to Germany and was the guest of state functions and dinner parties. She did this all as a single parent. During the late 1990′s she began working from home due to her health issues. In 1999 she passed away due to ailments related to HIV. She is survived by her daughter, and by her tremendous body of work.

Tags: Bonnie Ntshalintshali, Daughter, Fee Halsted-Berning, luxury hotels, South Africa, University of Natal, Venice Biennial
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Of the seven Canary Islands, Tenerife is the largest and most populated. It is known for its scenic attractions, though one of its most interesting features is the cuisine. Also, it is a major manufacturer and exporter of cheese, and the luxury hotels Tenerife are certain to offer some of the local cheeses in their happy hour food options. The island exports about 3,400 tons of cheese per year, and it accounts for approximately 50 percent of Tenerife’s output. It has become crucial to the economy and also the daily lifestyle of residents.

The commercial business of cheese manufacturing began after the Spanish conquest of the island. In the early days, cheese was also used as a form of local currency and good be traded for other commodities and services. It greatly consumed on the island is regularly served as an appetizer, part of an entrée and as a snack. Most of the cheeses are hand made and the major farmers are La Orotava, Teno and Arico. There are various varieties including soft cheeses, smoked cheese and curd cheeses.

The current industry produces mostly goat cheese products. There are still some cows or sheep. They produce around 75 different varieties of cottage cheese, and have an excellent standard of excellence. The Fundacion Tenerife Rural is the quality management organization and serves to promote and guarantee a high level quality and stability of product. The agency also serves to promote and publicize the product, and help it to maintain and international recognition and appreciation. In general, the cheeses to come from the Canary Island are popular and considered to be of good quality. The cheese from Tenerife has been acknowledge for being sweeter than most European cheeses, which sets them apart. In 2008, the Tenerifan cured goats cheese won in the final of the World Cheese Awards that took place in Dublin, Ireland.

Tags: Cheese, goat cheese, luxury hotels, Tenerife, world cheese awards
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In the realm of accommodations, Singapore luxury hotels are a whole world apart.  Nestled in one of the world’s most interesting and livable cities, the hotels are a beautiful combination of old-world traditions and absolutely contemporary style.  There is an extremely lively youth culture here, and they have a fascinating way of adopting the latest trends, recycling them, and then turning them into something entirely local.  Art, design, and visual culture generally are watched and absorbed very carefully, and then refabricated in new and innovative ways.  The hotels are a mirror of this, where the best of the old world, with traditions of hospitality and graciousness, are added to the most cutting edge trends in hotel living, to make for a very lovely experience for guests.  With incredible food, and a very knowledgeable staff to help you plan your days, your stay here is destined to contain adventures.

Some of these things will become apparent as soon as you walk outside the door, where the incredibly lively urban scene will play out before your eyes.  People watching is at a premium here, and there are way too many things to do.  With restaurants featuring delectable meals, clubs playing some of the hottest beats in Asia, and live performances that demonstrate the best in live art, this is a place to see and to be seen.  Fashion, of course, is a big part of urban life, and one of the coolest places in Singapore is Surrealist Love Scene.

Started by a group of four like-minded (read: extremely hip) individuals looking to unite fashion and rock culture, Surrealist Love Scene is a physical store in Singapore with an interesting on-line presence.  Too cool even for a website, their store is a blog, with updates on some of the newest trends in fashion in Singapore, Asia, and the world.  The writing is incisive and witty, and their taste is really impeccable.  They carry and distribute some of the coolest labels out there, and their world of fashion has a global scope, and a local feel that is utterly modern.

Tags: luxury hotels, Singapore, Surrealist Love Scene
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