A CITY A WEEK...NADI, FIJI by Guest Blogger CHERRI MEGASKO

This week’s guest blogger, Cherri Megasko, puts me to shame in at least two categories—and I have to say these are two that I usually think I’ve got covered--traveling and having an adventuresome palate.  Trust me when I say, Cherri more or less leaves me in the metaphorical dust on both. In fact, we met when I felt compelled to introduce myself.  I overheard her talking about how hard it is to find all the ingredients she needs for real Vietnamese food of the type and quality she had enjoyed in Vietnam.  When she mentioned not cilantro or chili paste but tripe I thought this gal is the real deal!  Now she's just back from Fiji--and about to scoot off to Turkey next week-- and yet Cherri has been kind enough to write a post for A CITY A WEEK…It makes for very fun reading—and  hopefully will whet your appetite for Cherri’s own blog Bucket List Travel Club.

NADI, FIJI

Fiji. Just saying the word sounds exotic. But before my recent trip I was a little worried that this South Pacific destination wouldn’t live up to all the hype. Sure, there are beautiful beaches, fantastic scuba diving and breathtaking views, but how do Fijian cities stack up against other international destinations? I explored the Fijian city of Nadi (pronounced non’ dee) with exactly that question in mind.

A Few Facts About Nadi, Fiji

Nadi is located on Fiji’s largest island, Viti Levu. It is the country’s third-largest city and home to its only international airport. Slightly over 50 percent of its population if Fijian and surprisingly (to me), about 40 percent is Indian. By U.S. standards, Nadi is a small city with a population somewhat similar to Biloxi, Mississippi, and Cupertino, California.

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The downtown area of Nadi, Fiji, offers a good mix of both essential and touristy businesses. (Photo credit: Cherri Megasko)

The Culture of Nadi, Fiji

Much of the culture in Nadi is impacted by its strong Asian influences. The people are very conservative in both their actions and dress. In fact, to enter the villages we were asked to be sure our clothing fully covered our shoulders and knees.

You won’t find opera and ballet in Nadi, but that doesn’t mean they’re lacking in culture. Instead, kava ceremonies and mele performances are still very much a part of everyday Fijian life.

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I enjoyed my first taste of kava in the Namaka Market in Nadi, Fiji. (Photo credit: Cherri Megasko)                              

             The Cuisine of Nadi, Fiji   

Seafood, curry and anything Asian make up the Nadi food scene. When we asked our taxi driver/tour guide to name two dishes that he felt spoke to the essence of Fiji, he told us kokoda and mud crabs. So, being the student of international cuisine that I am, I tried them both.            

I first traveled to Smuggler’s Cove to check out the Ghost Ship Bar & Grill. The kokoda caught my eye right away. Its description sounded like a Fijian version of ceviche, which I love. It’s basically raw fish marinated in coconut milk and lime juice. It is both creamy and tart, and the version I had also contained sweet peppers and lots of spice. I found an outstanding preparation of mud crabs at the Rokete Restaurant inside the Mercure Hotel in Nadi. They were prepared with a thick sweet chili sauce and were absolutely to die for! Even though it may have been the messiest dish of my life, I would order it again in a heartbeat.                                                                                                                                         

What to Do in Nadi, Fiji

·      In the city itself, the largest attraction is no doubt the Sri Siva Subramaniya Temple, the largest Hindu Temple in the Southern Hemisphere.

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The Sri Siva Subramaniya Temple in Nadi, Fiji, is the largest Hindu Temple in the Southern Hemisphere. (Photocredit: Maksym Kozlenko Wikimedia Commons)

·   A visit to the local market is a great way to get a feel for the everyday life of Fijians in and around Nadi.

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Local vendors sell fresh fish and produce in Nadi’s open air market. (Photo credit: Cherri Megasko)

 The Sabeto Hot Springs and Mud Pool are located just outside Nadi and offer visitors a relaxing and therapeutic mud bath and hot springs spa.

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After treating yourself to an all-over hot mud pack you can relax in the mineral waters of the Sabeto Hot Springs. (Photo credit: Cherri Megasko)

The Garden of the Sleeping Giant boasts what was once the private orchid collection of American actor, Raymond Burr.

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The Garden of the Sleeping Giant contains more than 2,000 varieties of Asian orchids and Cattleya hybrids. (Photo credit: Cherri Megasko)

So what about my quest to answer the question of how Nadi, Fiji, stacks up against other international destinations like Paris and Rome? The answer is that you simply can’t compare them. They are each remarkable and amazing in their own ways. If high fashion and fine dining are what you’re looking for, then Nadi is probably not the destination for you. But if you think you’d enjoy immersing yourself in the traditional culture of a proud and colorful island nation, Nadi, Fiji, may be a dream come true.

You can read more about Cherri’s exotic travel adventures on her travel blog, the Bucket List Travel Club.

A CITY A WEEK...BEAVER CREEK, COLORADO With Guest Blogger JESSIE BRINKLEY

Today we hear from guest blogger Jessie Brinkley who's not long back from skiing Beaver Creek. It's a bit of luck that even though this post was scheduled weeks ago, it feels just right on  this bitterly cold 'snow day' in North Carolina. Vicarious thrills for those of us who won't be making it to the slopes anytime soon......and we have more to celebrate than just this great post coming along with the first regional snow of the winter.  Today mark's the 52nd post for Studio Traveler's 'A CITY A WEEK...'so one full year of weekly shout outs on cities large and small...Now that we have our sea legs, we are ready to tweak things up a bit.  Beginning next week we'll have a new look and we'll begin to roll out of some new guest bloggers.  Good things ahead...beginning with today's post--

Last fall, 2 friends and I scrambled to find a few winter days to head out to Beaver Creek for a ski in/ski out vacation. My friend, Suzanne, has a brother with a beautiful house right on the slopes of Bachelor Gulch and Bachelor Gulch sits right next to Beaver Creek-- 25 minutes from Vail. The house is in a resort community of lodge-style houses which rim the ski slopes with a Ritz-Carlton Hotel placed comfortably at the base. It is truly picturesque.

Early January was the only time that worked for all of us and our fear was that it would be really COLD. It turns out this is the perfect time to go on a ski vacation in Colorado. The temperature was a balmy 30 degrees, the lift lines were non-existent and there was fresh powder.

Our first day we worked on getting our ski legs back as fat snowflakes fell most of the day. We enjoyed lunch at the top of the lift at Mamie’s Mountain Grill. Mamie’s unique menu features “grill your own” options of Colorado lamb or chicken and burgers, homemade signature soups and European style hot dogs. The grill is peacefully nestled among an outcropping of birch trees.

The lifts close at around 3:30 which seems early but the sun sinks low way before 5. This is a great excuse to head back to the house for some rest, drinks and a few snacks by the fire before dinner.

And speaking of dinner, one of the highlights of our stay was dinner at Spago at The Ritz-Carlton. I was skeptical. Could the name live up to the hype? It was already clear that in Beaver Creek it's especially easy to spend a large amount of money on only a pretty good dinner. Spago certainly lived up to it’s reputation. We started with 2 appetizers; short rib ravioli topped with fried Parmesan curls, sun-dried tomatoes and beautiful baby swiss chard. The flavor of the filling was subtle but rich -- it melted in your mouth. Even tastier were the 3 crispy sesame cones of sashimi grade tuna with roe, ginger and some type of nori confetti bursting out of the top. Also as delicious was a signature wood fired pizza topped with wild mushrooms, butternut squash, grilled radicchio and ricotta salata.

Grouse Mountain Grill at The Pines Lodge also served up some especially good food. It is described as New American fine dining but the menu featured heavily on wild game including elk, rabbit and bison. First came house made pickles and crispy brussels sprouts. We raved about the brussels sprouts which had a maple gastrique and were soon rewarded with a copy of the recipe.

The most interesting starter we shared was the Carrot Tasting. This dish contained roasted baby carrots, crispy quinoa, locally made yogurt, carrot emulsion and ras el hanout which, it turns out, is a Moroccan spice mix, much like Garam Masala in Indian cuisine.

Suzanne tried the rabbit which was actually a bacon wrapped sausage of rabbit with sweet potato tortellini, chestnut puree, apples and rabbit jus. She refused to share so I’m assuming it was a hit.

The only dark cloud in an otherwise perfect ski vacation was a trip to the urgent care after our last ski run. Coming down a small hill leading to the house, I fell and cut my leg. As the nurse was prepping me for stitches, she ran down her list of mandatory questions about visiting Africa and whether I had done any drugs in the past year. I asked her clarify whether she meant legal or illegal drugs -- we were in Colorado, after all. It was just a joke but we did read in a local magazine that an occasional issue restaurants are having is that a diner will fall face first into their meal. I’m pretty sure that wasn’t considered when legalization was being discussed.

A CITY A WEEK...THE BRONX By Guest Blogger NANCY BEAVER

This week's post deserves a bit of framing--and not because The Bronx may strike some as an odd choice.  There's a whole lot more to that borough than one might think. Take for but a very few examples, the tony neighborhood of Riverdale, the gorgeous Fordham University campus, the fabulous Bronx Zoo (the largest zoo in North America) or today's focus--Arthur Avenue.  The list could go on and on.  I have to admit though that highlighting this diversity was not the original prompt for today's post. 

It started, rather, with an email that came in a few weeks ago.  The folks at Smartling,  a translation software company, were in touch to ask if I'd  like to be a part of their 'Dream Destination Dinner' initiative with a post about my ideal dinner in my ideal spot in the world.  I just couldn't decide on my favorite 'away' so instead decided to focus on a wonderful 'here'--a place with terrific food from 'away' but accessible state-side.  Guest blogger Nancy Beaver--now of NC but formerly of NYC--has long raved about Arthur Avenue--and suddenly I had my 'where'...so without further delay, I give you Nancy's wonderfully encyclopedic post on the 'real' Little Italy...

Borgatti's store front (Photo credit: Conde Nast)

The Italian area of Manhattan is but a pale shadow of what it once was. Encroached upon by Chinatown in the south and cool SoHo in the north, it exists now as a few “red gravy” old time restaurants and Ferrara’s Pastry, where cannolis still reign supreme. If you want a glimpse of what a true ethnic Italian neighborhood was like, you need to travel to the Belmont section of The Bronx (Metro North train).

Originally the estate of the Lorillard family, it was settled by Italian immigrants who worked on the Kensico Dam or in tobacco in the beginning of the 20th century. Now there are still individual Italian cheese, pasta and cheese shops, but also Albanian, and Salvadoran places as well. Typical of New York, immigrant groups moving in or out.

The epicenter of food is 187th Street and Arthur Avenue. Start at Borgatti’s Ravioli and Egg Noodle shop. 

Borgatti's 'Famous' Pasta Machine (Photo credit:Borgatti's)

The same machine has been cleaving sheets of pasta (narrow or wide) since the turn of the 20th century. Look around while you wait for your fresh pasta, they also have great tomato sauce and ravioli. Next, walk to Teitel Brothers on Arthur Avenue, planted on a corner since 1915. You’ll be greeted with open vats of olives, anchovies and beans, guarded by the company cat part of the charm of this crowded deli. Make sure you pick up some salted anchovies, home cured olives and some imported Italian home cured olives and some imported Italian dried pasta, really the only kind worth buying

Move on past the fish store, if they will open clams for you on the sidewalk, have them with lots of lemon. Then move on to Madonia Bakery, this is the place for bread with bits of cured pork, family sized Italian loaves, sfogliatelle and cannolis filled to order. My favorite is quaresimali or jaw breakers. They look like biscotti filled with almonds and are hard as a rock.

Dip in wine/coffee or just gnaw on them.

Cookies at Madonia's Bakery (Photo credit: youropi)

Don’t stay too long because your next stop is the Arthur Avenue Retail Market created by Mayor Laguardia in the 30’s to get push carts off the streets. Still flourishing, you’ll find men rolling cigars when you enter. It’s amazing to watch them work, and they will roll to order. Moving along you’ll find two meat counters one selling offal, liver, kidneys, sweetbreads and other inner bits. The next counter is filled with huge pork chops, flattened scallopinis, aged steaks and rolled, stuffed veal roasts. Recipes and cooking opinions are free. On to Mike’s Deli, food adventurers make sure you accept a taste of aged prosciutto from the deli man who will slice a piece for you. Sample the home cured olives and definitely buy a large chunk of imported, aged Parmesan Reggiano. You can also get a giant sub made with 

mortadella and sopressata, amazing. But I like to move past the vegetable stand in the back to the opposite corner where you can get pizza like flatbreads with tomato, spinach, mushroom or cheese toppings. They also have freshly made entrees for the day. Get in line with the doctors and nurses from St. Barnabas and take your lunch to one of the tables covered with checked oil cloth. You’ll be eating in the middle of the market so you’ll be able to pick out aged balsamic from the stall across from you to take home. Just a note, this market is not to be confused with the over-the-top emporium Eataly, Mario Batali's food emporium (a wonder in itself) in theFlatiron section of Manhattan. It’s a local neighborhood supplier of food, gossip and sense of place.

Provolone at Calandra's (Photo credit uncredited Yelp review)

On to Calandra’s (back on Arthur Avenue) where they make their own ricotta, not that awful paste you find in tubs. The provolone hangs from the ceiling, and especially interesting is the provola, stuffed with butter. Make this cheese cake with the fresh ricotta your buy. http://allrecipes.com/recipe/sicilian-ricotta-cheesecake/

Make sure you stop at Calabria Pork Store for dried mild or hot dried sausage. 

Sausages at Calabria Pork Store (Photo credit: The Infatuation)

They are all hung from the ceiling to dry and often have tags with special order clients names on them. They are wonderful sliced with wine. This is also the place for cotechino and other Italian deli meats like the pate-like N’duja. Get a chunk of guanciale to fry in dices to flavor tomato sauce. I hope you’ve noticed the many meat stores on the street with freshly killed (still fur covered) goats, rabbits and lamb. They sell regular meats as well, cut to order.

Although this area is all about food, dip into The Belmont Library and Enrico Fermi Cultural Center. One of four cultural centers in the NYC library system, this one highlights the Italian culture of Belmont.

We have only just explored the tip of this mozzarella. There are many wonderful shops and we didn’t even hit restaurants (see annotated list below). Please add this to your trip to New York, especially when you are visiting the Bronx Zoo or Bronx Botanical Gardens near by.

Restaurants:

Dominick's

- Old time “red sauce”, checked tablecloth and no menu. Just tell them what you like to eat.

Roberto’s

- A really wonderful contemporary take on traditional food. If they have rabbit, order it.

Zero Otto Nove

- A quite new and lovely restaurant with a surprising, enclosed back “garden”.

Umberto’s Clam House

- Eat this here: linguine with white clam sauce.

Edigio’s Pastry Shop

- Arrange your shopping bags around you, take a deep breath and order an espresso and something with pignoli nuts on it.

Cookbooks to inspire you:

The Classic Italian Cookbook

by Marcella Hazan

Lidia’s Italian-American Kitchen

by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich

A CITY A WEEK...HELSINKI, FINLAND

[A for those of you who got this week's email alert--make that 'City', I'm not the best proof reader...]

Helsinki has been much on my mind lately and in a way that is not unlike time spent wondering what an old flame’s up to these days. It’s a city that has lived in my imagination for a very long time--long enough, in fact, to have its own little rotating carousel of mental images.  Merrimekko’s crazy, crayon-red poppies.  Alvar Aalto’s Savoy vase. Iittala’s Teema dishware. Gravlax on rye with a sprig of dill.  Cloudberry cakes.  Saunas.  Summer solstice parties. Blond and gorgeous wood.  Blond and gorgeous people. The midnight sun.  And a particularly lovely image mentioned by a friend whose mother was Finnish--candles placed in the snow at 3:00 p.m. on an already dark Christmas Day. This one has stuck with me for a very long time now with its power to make the darkness of mid-winter sound as warm and magical as that of those endless Finnish summer days.

Both traditional and modern, invitingly cozy and yet earthily elegant in their simplicity, all these images have that certain something so often to be found in the Finnish aesthetic…natural materials, sleekly simple forms, a relationship to the out of doors…

Lately though Helsinki has begun to strike me as being more contemporary than traditional and/or modern.

Guggenheim Helsinki Finalist: GH-121371443. (Submissions were submitted and remain anonymous) (Photo credit: Malcolm Reading Consultants)

The Helsinki Guggenheim project may be the most obvious—some might say flashy and still others might say suspect—evidence of a city determined to join the international cultural conversation in a new and bold way.  This on again/off again project is not without controversy but for now at least it is on again.  In December 2014,  the 6 competition finalists for the building design were announced.  The ultimate winner of the architectural competition is to be announced in June, 2015.  There is a chance even then that the building will not be built.  The Helsinki City Council has reserved its final decision over its portion of the funding until after the competition winner is chosen.  Even if there are never bricks and mortar, though, the ambition that has fueled this six-year battle to bring the Guggenheim to Helsinki is impressive and seems to indicate a city interested in re-positioning itself as cultural hub. 

Fish, stick and rock, the New Nordic brings new meaning to 'locally sourced' (Photo Credit: The Washington Post)

 While the fate of Helsinki's Guggenheim project remains uncertain, the city is already very much a major player on another contemporary front--the New Nordic food movement.  Sadly the 2 Michelin starred Chez Dominique has now closed—for the very simple reason that the chef/owner Hans Välimäki said he was ready for something new--but the food scene is still crowded with excellence and innovation.  There are currently six restaurants with one Michelin star: Ask, Demo, Luomo, Olo, Pompier and The Chef and The Sommelier; each with their own unique take on the New Nordic.

Kamppi Chapel (Photo credit: The Inspirationalist)

While a bit harder to define, Helsinki’s collaborative approach to civic life feels just as 'of the moment'.  Take, for example, the sensitive fusion to be found in the Kamppi Chapel, a joint project between the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland and the Social Services Department of the City of Helsinki.  It functions both as an ecumenical and a secular space with representatives of the church and the city in attendance and 'available for conversation' as it says on the chapel's website. This could have gone so wrong but instead it is considered a rousing success by any measure including the fact that it recently had its 500,000th visitor a scant two years after completion.

Even in this moment of change however there still one constant to be found in Helsinki, providing the city with a throughline running from traditional to modern to contemporary and that constant continues to be visual design. No doubt the depth of this aesthetic tradition informs and directs not only the present but what lies ahead in the future for this most appealing of cities. As the New York Times recently noted of Helsinki--
'Aesthetics fuel a new cool' ...
Seems to me the NYT got it just about right.

BTW, for 2 interesting and contrasting views on the value of
Guggenheim Helsinki project check out these links

Richard Armstrong Interview in De Zeen
and
Michael Sorkin Interview in ArchDaily

A CITY A WEEK...CAPE LOOKOUT, NORTH CAROLINA

Image credit:WikiImages

Cape Lookout may strike seasoned readers of ‘A CITY A WEEK…’ as a mistaken choice since, at least in terms of this blog’s framing device, there is simply no there there.  There’s no city, no town, not even a village.  In fact, if you don’t count raccoons, river otters and shore birds, there’s nobody there, at least nobody permanent.  A few odd 

souls do rotate through on National Park Service duties or NC State’s marine biology program, but otherwise there are no human inhabitants. Mostly it’s just an empty sandy spit at the tip of a chain of islands. 

I usually manage to resist the urge to write about anything other than cities out of that ever-helpful notion of the disciplined approach--to be about everything is to risk being about nothing--however, I can’t quit thinking about a recent trip to Cape Lookout and so have decided to indulge in this ever so slight variation in theme—and it is, ultimately, ever so slight. Cape Lookout has the allure to be found in all great destinations—whether empty and wild or crowded with built things--and that is it cannot be imagined up out of other experiences. It is only truly available at first hand…

The easiest way to introduce Cape Lookout is to envision the map of the coast of North Carolina.  It’s that hook out in the ocean just before the Outer Banks takes their sharp turn westward towards the mainland.  This whole long line of an island is most properly known as South Core Banks.  The Cape Lookout portion begins at the 1859 lighthouse and extends south--all the way to that hook.

The island is an absolute stunner year round.  Great fun for an outing and, in fact, in the summer it is usually jammed packed with folks there for the day.  Its unique allure is most strongly felt, however, in the winter with its miles and miles and miles of beach littered with shells, gorgeous and intact, there for the taking.  There are also other, more mysterious remains such as the ancient and still unidentified shipwreck that is now on the beach—its sudden appearance as mysterious as its origins. 
It takes about an hour—maybe an hour and half—to walk from the lighthouse down to the island’s tip.  The surf keeps up a constant roar.  There’s the sea haze even on bright days.  No company but your companions. It is really truly like a walk out to the end of the world—or perhaps it is more accurate to say to the end of a world, one that is more pristine, less ravaged than our own.  I can’t say I begrudge the modern world even with its burdens but it is nice to take a break from it every so often and feel the profound freshness of a new experience. That is the rare and valuable thing to be found on a winter's day on Cape Lookout.

If you’d like to see for yourself--and don’t happen to own a boat--then there are at least two easy options.  One point of departure is in the coastal village of Beaufort and the other is on the more isolated but equally appealing Harkers Island.  Both ferries are operated by same local concern and schedules can be found by clicking here:
Island Express Ferry Service.

A CITY A WEEK...NEW ORLEANS

As we lay another year to rest it is hard to resist the urge to speculate on what lies ahead. As a travel planner this comes with a built-in complication. 2015 is in many ways past all speculation.  Trips have been announced, itineraries set.  Boatloads of hard work and preparation are still to come but an essential aspect of ‘what’s next’ for the coming year has long since been decided.  So it is in these waning days of a difficult, yet personally rewarding year, that I find my speculation lies not in 2015 but in the year beyond that, in the still distant 2016 and with new and newly interesting places.  Along with all the known-to-be-wonderful cities like New York, Los Angeles, Berlin and London, some new spots have been increasingly on my mind.  My short list right now has on it two resurgent American cities--New Orleans and Detroit--and two cold, northern European cities--Helsinki and Reykjavik.

Even for a travel planner it is a bit early to make decisions about actual destinations for the year after the year not yet arrived.  These cities are not  ‘under consideration’ so much as  ‘caught my eye’ or ‘found myself thinking about’; places where the cultural energy just seems to be bubbling up in new and interesting ways.  Places where things are not yet set so there is the extra promise of the new and the unexpected.

With only room and time to write about one city per post, I’d like to start with that most festive of American cities in honor of tomorrow night's fun.  That town is, of course, New Orleans.  Detroit, Helsinki and Reykjavik—we’ll come back to you in the new year...

New Orleans—so does it really take a travel planner to point this one out?  No and yes.  I—like two centuries worth of other people—have always had a weak spot for this beautiful destination, a food town, a fun town, a music town, a visual stunner, Degas’s ‘other city’—who could not love it?  

It has also been—and long before Katrina came to town to just about finish it off-- a very tough place to live with its high crime rate and its crumbling infrastructure.   I have to admit to wondering in the wake of the hurricane’s destruction if this would be New Orleans’s coup de grace.  Maybe this below sea level port city was designed to flourish in centuries and economies that have now passed.  It happens to cities.  In fact, it happens all the time.  But nine years after Katrina, it seems clear that there is an ever-increasing gathering of cultural steam.  

Beasts of the Southern Wild was my first clue though I am sure the evidence was all around if only I’d been paying attention.  This 2012 independent film--the one that introduced Quvenzhane Wallis to the world--was made by Court 13, an artists/ filmmakers/everything collective based in New Orleans.  The film has a particular blend of raw energy and visually sophisticated power that could only spring from this native soil.  Post-apocalyptic and really interesting.  It made me wonder what else was happening down there.  I have since increasingly come across things that further piqued my interest. I’ll mention just a few.  There’s the really engaging ‘musical architecture’ (The Music Box;  The Music Box: The Kiev Outpost; Chateau Poulet) being done by New Orleans Airlift,  another only-in-New-Orleans artists collaborative that blends a street art sensibility with residencies for artists of international stature. 
The Joan Mitchell Center, an arm of the  Joan Mitchell Foundation, is now permanently headquartered in the Treme section of New Orleans and it also has a focus on artist residencies.  

Since 2008,  New Orleans has hosted its own biennial—though since it happens roughly every 3 years it is usually referred to as its ‘biennial’.  The exhibitions in the current  Prospect 3 are up through mid-January and while this iteration has been met with decidedly mixed reviews, it continues to be big and ambitious and, perhaps equally  important, it continues to use venues throughout the city. I always think this ‘we’re all involved’ is good for any city’s soul and I don’t remember it being much a part of pre-Katrina New Orleans with the obvious exception of Mardi Gras.  The Inside Arts New Orleans site now lists 15 art museums and institutions in addition to the city's flagship New Orleans Museum of Art as well as a staggering 48 galleries.  Many of these galleries are located in the newly revitalized Warehouse district as is the Contemporary Arts Center and the new, wildly popular National World War Two Museum. 

There is an equally new something going on with the food scene. I’ll mention a few restaurants that seem to be in the groove of ‘only in New Orleans meets post-Katrina’.   Doris Metropolitan is a sleek new steak house with a menu that successfully and somewhat improbably draws on the co-owners’s Isreali heritage. The menu at Oxalis’s  is a lively blend of  gastropub fare with  Cajun flavors and Peche is giving older oyster bars in this bi-valve-obsessed city a run for their money with its impeccable sourcing of all sea living things.  Peche has also just won two James Beard awards.  Ryan Prewitt for Best Chef in the South and the establishment for Best New Restaurant (as in 'the nation'…). Move over Galatoire’s, Camellia Grill and Central Grocery.  There’ll be no laurel-resting in this town no matter how fine these old school spots remain.  There is a new style of cooking come to town and it is at its best and most creative…

It is heartening in its own way to know things aren’t all prettied up yet either. This new iteration of New Orleans now nearly 10 years in the making still has plenty of foment and mystery.  Take it from Court 13.  As it says on their website, ‘Court 13 exists where life is mysterious and springing wild’.

I most definitely could not have said this better myself…

But this I can say--Happy 2015 and to all that lies ahead!

Cheers and now have some oysters...you'll be glad you did.

A CITY A WEEK...BRESSANONE, ITALY

I was recently asked if I had a favorite destination, a question that for a travel-besotted person like me comes close to being asked which child I’d choose. It turns out though that I had a ready answer—the Italian alpine town of Bressanone, introduced to us a few years ago by the very talented and knowledgeable Libby Lubin of ITALIAN JOURNEYS.

I’ll be the first to admit that the minute before or the minute after, I might have named a different ‘favorite’.  After all, I sort of live my life in permanent pining for New York City; can be moved to tears—and by that I mean sobs--watching the opening credits of Philadelphia with its lush, extended scenes of my beloved adopted hometown; I am prone to feeling that I might stop breathing each time we drive away from Santa Fe and generally have to fight the impulse to leave the house for the airport every single time I create or revise an itinerary to, well, to anywhere.  In short, I got it bad…and yet, there is no denying the unique allure of Bressanone, with its 10^th century cathedral, its perfect cobbled streets, its 360 views of the majestic Dolomites, its abundant cafes serving the region’s delicious cuisine, German-inflected but with a certain lightness of Italian touch.   And then there is the local white wine, as clean and delicious as any I have ever had—and so much a part of local life that it was on offer at an open air pancake breakfast—a fundraiser for the elementary school, no less--in the market square on the Saturday morning of our visit.  This felt not the least bit Bacchanalian but rather deeply civilized, warm and convivial. 

Beyond the town limits lies an extensive cable car network running from the valley floor up to peaks where there is a seemingly unending network of trails—hiking in the summer, skiing in the winter.  The town though--and this is perhaps one of its most satisfying qualities--is not simply a postcard town come to life.  It has none of the cloying snow globe taint of self-consciously preserved quaintness.  It is a living, breathing town and, in fact, quite prosperous with plenty of industry and professional services encircling its ancient core.

Even amongst this heady array of charms, however, there is one particular favorite among favorites for me and by all evidence for many, many others and that is the HOTEL ELEPHANT.  The precise nature of its powerful appeal can be hard to identify.  It is old and elegant and run by the 8^th generation of its owner hoteliers. It has a Michelin recommended restaurant with a perfect little second story terrace overlooking old town.  The breakfasts may be quite simply the best I have ever had. Delights to be sure but variations of ones that are often to be found in hotels of a certain quality.  There is something else about the Elephant.  It is just one of those places in this world that is special--special enough, in fact, to take up a permanent spot in one’s memory.

Having visited in summer, we long to visit Bressanone in winter—in fact, the notion of the holidays at the Hotel Elephant may have become our family’s version of the promised land.  One day this may actually happen but in the meantime just dreaming of it is happy sustenance. 

This year will not be our year, however, to spend the holidays in Bressanone or anywhere else but rather it is a year for hearth and home--and who could complain of that? In fact, dear reader, I wish the same for you and yours. There will be plenty of time for traveling in the new year.  For now, it’s good to be home….

Merry Everything…

Christmas 2014 AT

A CITY A WEEK...THE BUENOS AIRES ITINERARY

BUENOS AIRES 

OCTOBER 18 to 24

offered in partnership with KPE ARTS

$4250

CLICK HERE FOR ITINERARY AND DEPOSIT OPTIONS

I am so excited--how can I not be since I am planning a trip to a another fabulous 

destination with Kristin Peterson Edwards of kpeARTS?  We think that Buenos Aires rocks and, in fact,

 we're so excited about all things Argentine that we've added the option of a four day trip to 

Salta in northern Argentina. We hope you'll click on the above for more details on for this upcoming adventure.

...and I hope you will CLICK HERE for a link to Kristin's blog.  You'll be in the know like never before....

A CITY A WEEK...THE LOS ANGELES 2015 ITINERARY

LOS ANGELES 

offered in partnership with Preservation Greensboro, Inc.

SEPTEMBER 23 to 27, 2015

CLICK HERE 

for

Itinerary and

Deposit Instructions

I know I say this about, well, about a lot of places but I really do love LA.  It is such a great town and one that is full of surprises.  It has so many top-tier art museums that we can't seem to fit them all into this 4 day trip.  Apologies in advance to at least one LA treasure, LACMA, but if we also want to take in LA's architecture and gardens--and we do!--then we need some give in our schedule..even so, we'll only have time for a wonderful in-depth, intoxicating and rich sampling of what LA has to offer in 'buildings and grounds'. 

And the only thing that can make 4 jammed packed days in Los Angeles over the top better is to travel with Benjamin Briggs.  If you have traveled with Benjamin then you know that he is a resident expert in all things--and if you haven't, then I hope you will come along this time and see for yourself.  It's going to be a great trip!

A CITY A WEEK...THE PORTLAND, MAINE 2015 ITINERARY

PORTLAND, MAINE :: A CULINARY ADVENTURE 

offered in partnership with Terri Maultsby and think.eat.grow

August 13 to 16*

CLICK HERE 

for

Itinerary and

Deposit Instructions

* Please note that these are new dates

Sometimes it's hard not to believe in 'cosmic convergence'...take this week for example--
the most food-centric week in the American year also turns out to be the week we 
post the itinerary for our first-ever culinary trip to that crazy obsessed food mecca

Portland, Maine.  Offered in partnership with Terri Maultsby of think.eat.grow,
we think we've put together a pretty great--or should I say 'delicious'--trip... 

 ..but it did occur to us that since this is a 'first-ever' you might want more 
than just our word for it so please read on... 

Terri clearly loves food, and is passionate about sharing that love with others. I’ve left every shared meal with Terri amazed at the new flavors she’s introduced, confident in my ability to try to reproduce them, and hungry for more! To visit a food city with this food lover would be a weekend full of amazing tastes and memories.

                                                                                                       Mindy Oakley

If you are passionate about travel and discovering new things, the place to do this is with Studio Traveler, owned and directed by Adeline Talbot. The experiences we had were great, but most important was getting to know Adeline and being a witness to her expertise handling all of the different situations we confronted.  Needless to say, I am very grateful to have been part this!

                                                                                                             Marta  Tornero

...put us together and we think you'll find you are in good hands!

A CITY A WEEK...THE VENICE 2015 ITINERARY

This is it!  

This week and for the next 4 weeks we roll out our itineraries for 2015.

We begin today with Venice and The Biennale. So without further ado...

CLICK HERE 

for

Venice and The Biennale 2015

June 7 to 13*

with Nancy Doll and Weatherspoon Art Museum

Itinerary and

Deposit Instructions

Highlights include visits to the Biennale's multiple venues as well as to the Punta Delle Dogana, the Guggenheim, the Byzantine treasures of Torcello; the master craftspeople of Murano, Palladian masterpieces and Giotto's Scrovengi Chapel frescos along with great food and 4-star accommodations.  

* Please note that these are new dates

 We are very excited to be revisiting this wonderful, magical, mysterious and art-filled city.  Apparently we're not the only ones.  Interest in this trip is already high and, since we pride ourselves on being the best in small group travel, space is limited. If considering this trip then we urge you to reserve your spot with a deposit of $250. 

Deposits are fully refundable until December 31st, 2014. 

Bill Culbert of New Zealand

A 2013 Biennale 'offsite' entry

A CITY A WEEK AND WHY...LONDON With Guest Blogger Timothy Warmath

As I travel across the globe (but especially on my regular visits to the USA) I am often asked: “Is London kid-friendly?” I have a quick and enthusiastic answer: YES! As the readers of Studio Traveler prepare for a special trip of family fun over Christmas/New Year’s or Spring Break, 2015, the range of activities for kids (of all ages) is endless in London and surrounding areas.

From museums to shows to parks and everything in between, London has a multitude of offerings. Let’s start first with a special event every October (happening this week and every October in the run-up to Halloween) called The Big Draw (www.thebigdraw.org) This month-long festival is a celebration of artistic creativity. Kids can participate at special events including Big Draw at the Zoo (www.zsl.org;)  Kids at the Affordable Art Fair (www.affordableartfair.com;) and my favourite, special events at the Foundling Museum which documents the History of Abandoned Children in London from 1739-1954…it is an eye-opening and profound experience. (www.coram.org.uk)

Throughout the year, the range of activities for kids is truly extraordinary. Some of my favourites include experimenting in The Pattern Pod at the Science Museum (www.sciencemuseum.org.uk;) rambling over, across, through and below the Cutty Sark and The Great Map in Greenwich (www.rmg.co.uk;) or getting off-the-beaten track and exploring the hands-on (and sometimes weird) exhibits at the Horniman Museum and Aquarium (www.horniman.ac.uk.) 

While the Horniman Museum is one delightful day out, another that should always be considered is ‘The Making of Harry Potter’ at Warner Brothers Studio, just outside Watford (www.wbstudiotour.co.uk) This is a long day but a splendid one and the chance to see the sets and technology behind the films is an “Only in London Experience”

Eating across London is always a pleasure  - no matter your age – but here are many kid-friendly choices that won’t break the bank. As you explore London’s many parks and formal gardens, pop into any of the restaurants in Hyde Park, Regents Park or Holland Park (all are open year-round.) For a great café experience, try Huggle in Swiss cottage (www.huggle.co.uk;) Brother’s Grill at the ChickenShed Theatre –be sure to take in a show (www.chickenshed.org.uk) or the fantastic Polka Theatre Café (www.polkatheatre.com) with adult and kid-sized portions.

Lastly, you can never go wrong if you finish off a busy day of exploring the sights & sounds of London with a visit to M&M’s World on Leicester Square. It is a jammed with tourists from every corner of the globe – that in itself is an eye-opening experience – and the “Wall of Chocolate” has “trouble” written all over it….for your wallet and your waistline

MORE ON FOUR CITIES THIS WEEK AND WHY....VENICE; PORTLAND, MAINE; LOS ANGELES AND BUENOS AIRES

Here it is the second Tuesday of the month,  the day we usually feature Camille Cogswell’s  ‘NYC/FINE DINING'. Poor Camille, though,  is under the weather so please check back next week for her post on The Simone, a wonderful new Upper East Side restaurant.  (It really does sound extraordinary!)

As sad I am to hear of Camille’s misery, this unexpected opening in the schedule does allow for a little follow up on last week's 2015 trip announcements.  The response to our trips has been amazing and we are tickled pink!!! Thank you to all who have been in touch.   We will be releasing full itineraries for each trip in December.  In the meantime, I thought it might be fun to share a little bit more on the ‘why…’ for these very special destinations.

VENICE AND THE BIENNALE  (JUNE 21 to 27, 2015) always seems to have a new level of magic during the Biennale, but it’s not just the timing that makes me particularly excited about this trip—it’s the talent of the Weatherspoon Art Museum Director Nancy Doll.  Nancy is that rare combination--exceedingly good at what she does and an incredibly nice human being.  This means that wherever she goes, she is likely to run into a friend. Take for example last year's trip to Venice; we bumped into Carey Lovelace at the Peggy Guggenheim Museum.  Lovelace and Holly Block were the curators for the US Pavilion’s exhibition--Sarah Sze’s ‘Triple Point’.  Carey was kind enough to suggest that she give our group a special tour the next day—and of course we said ‘yes’!  Seems like the extraordinary is just what happens when you’re lucky enough to travel with Nancy!

A View of Sarah Sze' Triple Point at the US Pavilion in 2013

PORTLAND, MAINE (AUGUST 6 to 9, 2015) is something new for Studio Traveler—a culinary tour.  With a partner like Terri Maultsby of  think.eat.grow it just seems like a logical choice—and so does Portland as our first-ever destination.  A few words from Terri on why--

 Bon Appétit called Portland America’s "foodiest small town.”  Why?  Because there’s a cohort of talented young chefs hard at work there building an innovative “gastro-tourism paradise.” Collaborating with artisanal farmers, discriminating fishermen, and talented brewers and distillers, Portland’s restaurants are energizing a food scene where eating well is both easy and an exciting adventure.

Our trip will revolve around eating really, really well but also include some serious foraging, harvesting and ‘hands on’ cooking experiences.  Need a little more to whet your appetite then check out this article from this past Saturday’s Boston Globe "Culinary Boon in Portland, Maine'.  Talk about a ‘culinary epi-center!...’

The entrance to 'Fore Street'; the restaurant that may have started it all in Portland

LOS ANGELES  (September 23 to 27, 2015)—To travel with Benjamin Briggs of Preservation Greensboro, Inc., is to travel with an expert on ‘place’--what makes a city interesting—and how that relates back to our own surroundings   We have already traveled to two great East Coast cities—Philadelphia and Washington DC--as part of a series called ‘American Art, American Gardens, American Homes’.  Now we travel west with Benjamin in late September 2015 to the City of Angels.  For now, I’ll leave the final word on this to Benjamin who observes

From an East Coast perspective, Los Angeles often receives little credit for history and architecture. However, Angelinos found financial success around the same time as Greensboro (North Carolina) , and their architecture reflects the early twentieth-century Craftsman and Romantic Revival Period styles of Fisher Park, Irving Park and Hamilton Lakes. You are sure to gain greater appreciation for our Carolina architecture by exploring the homes and gardens of the Roaring Twenties in Los Angeles!

Frank Lloyd Wright's Storer House in the Hollywood Hills

BUENOS AIRES (OCTOBER 18 to 24, 2015)—Move over Cuba, Cape Town and Burma--Kristin Peterson Edwards and I say we are on to the next great destination.  Buenos Aires has it all.  Old World charm and New World energy.  European culture meets South American vibe.  The contemporary art scene is revving up to make a major impact in the next several years while the food scene has already exploded. Did we mention the hotels?  We’re having a hard time deciding between luxury and hip—but will probably just spilt the difference and go with modern luxe.  It’s all there in this one truly fabulous destination.

A streetscape of Buenos Aires's  fine Colonial-era Architecture

Our trips are small—8 to 12 participants—if you are considering one of these 2015 trips you may want to reserve your spot now with a $250 per person deposit. We do want to give you maximum flexibility however--2015 is still as ways off  and we know that things can change.  For this reason all deposits are fully refundable up to December 31, 2014. 

FOUR CITIES THIS WEEK AND WHY...VENICE; PORTLAND, MAINE; LOS ANGELES AND BUENOS AIRES...

Why these four cities...?  
This week that's easy...today Studio Traveler announces its 2015's  'open enrollment' trips.  We'll be going to these wonderful places in coming year and I can honestly say I don't think it is possible to be more excited about each destination.  I know it is not  possible to be more excited about my partnerships. Studio Traveler goes to 
VENICE AND THE BIENNALE with Nancy Doll of  Weatherspoon Art Museum
PORTLAND, MAINE for our first-ever culinary trip with Terri Maultsby of think.eat.grow
LOS ANGELES  with Benjamin Briggs of Preservation Greensboro
  BUENOS AIRES with Kristin Peterson Edwards of KPE Arts.   

Click on a city below 

Venice

Portland

Los Angeles 

Buenos Aires

for dates and costs--and to reserve your spot with a deposit that is fully refundable until December 31st,  2014. 
I hope you will join us for an adventure--or two!  As I look ahead to year 4, I feel more confident than ever saying Studio Traveler truly offers the very best in small group cultural travel...
...how can this not be true since we have the very best travel partners and the most wonderful clients!

A CITY A WEEK AND WHY...BERLIN

Today I am revisiting Berlin, the focus of my first-ever blog post this past spring.  That post focused on the complexity of the city’s many, many layers of history.  I was reminded again of this complexity when visiting the city last week.  Indeed, Berlin is a city with a number of different histories—its sudden rise as a 19^th century commercial capital, its years under the Third Reich, its Cold War partition and now it’s blending into a complex present that includes not just this distinctly German past but its current life as a truly multi-national hub.  One finds people of every stripe and sort and from every corner of the globe living in this very low-profile and livable city. 

 

Ramble guide Boris Abel in front of the Bradenburg Gate

Berlin is not alone in laying claim to being a world destination.  London and New York certainly come to mind--so many different nationalities, drawn as often as not by hope--the hope of future possibilities. Berlin feels like a world capital in a different way.  It is for the present tense promise of an enjoyable life rather than the more typical lure of future-tense happiness that brings so many non-Germans here—and here to stay. 

A view of the Ai Wei Wei exhibition at Neugerriemschneider

All this brings me to the real point of today’s post and that is in city as richly varied as modern day Berlin, the most valuable asset one can have is an excellent team of guides.  If you have a limited time to make sense of the city, its many parts and its complex history and present realities then you are likely to welcome the help of the wonderfully well-informed.  

'Fallen Leaves' by Menashe Kadishman at the Jewish Museum

Having just returned from leading a trip with the very talented Kristin Peterson Edwards of KPE ARTS, I can recommend with absolute confidence the guide team headed by Norbert Witzgall and Ariane Pauls.  Together they’ve started  a new company called Ramble.  Ramble has as its primary focus arts and culture but trust me when I say that these two along with their excellent colleagues can provide the perfect introduction to Berlin in all its many facets. And while I have had the pleasure of working with several outstanding guides since starting Studio Traveler two years ago, it is a special pleasure to recommend Norbert and Ariane since Ramble is a brand new venture.   I predict great things ahead and hope you will keep them in mind when traveling to this great city.  I just know you will be as pleased as we are! 

A CITY A WEEK AND WHY...LONDON With Guest Blogger JESSIE BRINKLEY

I was in England this summer, traveling with my 13 year old son and his soccer team. It was mostly all soccer, all the time but there was occasionally time for some good old fashion sight seeing. So after dropping off the group at the Tower of London for their tour, I started to make a beeline for the Design Museum across the Thames. I was stopped dead in my tracks when I spotted this beautiful sight.

                                  

The evolving installation Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red, marks the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War. The poppies will encircle the historic landmark creating a dynamic display visible from all around the Tower. The scale of the installation is meant to show the magnitude of such an important centenary establishing a powerful visual tribute. Each poppy is created by ceramic artist Paul Cummins, with stage set by designer Tom Piper. 888,246 ceramic poppies will progressively fill the Tower’s moat August 5 - Nov 11, 2014. Each poppy represents a British military fatality during the war and are are being sold for 25 pounds a piece with 10% going to help 6 related service charities.

                                   

It truly is a breathtaking sight and worth the time if you are lucky enough to be going to London before November 11. Learn more at http://poppies.hrp.org.uk/about-the-installation or watch a 3 minute video  https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=58aX_EBwzr4.

(I finally did make it to the Design Museum to see the an exhibit featuring American architect Louis Kahn which is wonderful. It runs until October 12. http://designmuseum.org/exhibitions/2014/louis-kahn.)

Attachments area

STUDIO TRAVELER'S BLOG CELEBRATE SIX MONTHS!

August marks 6 months of blogging for Studio Traveler.  To celebrate this 'semi-anniversary' we are launching a new expanded format.  Today you will see new tabs for a variety of options, some you know, some are new.  This week we feature a first-ever 'Readers Contribution' tab with stories on Galapagos Islands by Lauren Worth; Paris by Taylor Curry and Juniper Creek, Florida by Kate Breckheimer.  

Passionate fellow travelers, I hope you will consider this an open invitation.  If you have a story to tell or a destination you want to share, please be in touch. I am happy to post most anything travel-related. If you have pictures, all the better.  Together, we can cover this wide world one city, one museum, one restaurant, one garden, one adventure at a time....

For my part I'll keep doing what I have been doing: planning trips--there's a teaser this week about our upcoming 2015 trips--and writing about what, travel-wise, I love most in this world--cities, all shapes and sizes...I just love cities...so next week we'll be back with another A CITY A WEEK AND WHY...(and the week after that and the week after that, and the week after that....well, you get the picture... speaking of which check out Lauren Worth's great photos from the Galapagos...one of which appears below...)

A CITY A WEEK AND WHY...ASHEVILLE, N.C.

Sometimes its hard to appreciate the thing next door especially for those of us who suffer so powerfully from wanderlust.  'It is far away' can automatically confer status.  I was reminded of this recently on a trip to Asheville.  I grew up in North Carolina and live here now.  It is a beautiful state with an almost unlimited number of things over which to rave.  Still I have always been drawn to things 'far away'.  This is surely in part the result of having grown up at a time in North Carolina when it felt far away--far away from interesting and important things, far away from the cultural moment, whatever that moment might have been at the time.  This perception may not have ever been true.  Nonetheless, at least in the past, it sure felt true. It feels infinitely less so now.  Which brings me back to Asheville.  The food scene in Asheville is just incredible. I travel a lot. In even the tiniest towns now there is at least that one hipster restaurant and as for local ingredients sometimes I swear I could almost go for a slab of endangered species trucked overland at great expense and waste rather than have to hear this mantra one more time.  I think it is easy--easier than we realize--for innovation to overwhelm talent.  All this probably makes me sound churlish.  I hope I'm not but I do take my food very seriously and in Asheville what we have here is the real deal.   It is a food scene with not only an abundance of seriously talented people making seriously interesting and complex food but it has now begun to exert true gravitational pull, attracting more talent, more innovation--more excellence--at a seemingly ever-accelerating pace.   

On my recent trip I ate at All Souls Pizza.  All Souls takes local to a new level.  Much of the grain used for the pizza dough is locally sourced by the chef/owner David Beaur, who also owns Farm and Sparrow Bakery.  Much else that is served up at All Souls is grown on the restaurant's premises.  I had an arugula and summer tomato salad along with a tallegio and potato pizza.

 All things I've had before perhaps but what set the meal part was not the story behind the food.  It was quite simply the taste.  Each and everything was delicious, bursting with flavor but yet every flavor balanced within a perfect matrix of ingredients. It was a summer evening on a light-festooned patio filled with standard issue treated lumber picnic tables--more lobster pound than bistro--and yet it all added up somehow to the relaxed grace of an Italian cafe.  That's talent--and it's just one example. 

There is so much going on food-wise in Asheville these days that it is hard to keep up.  And talent just keeps attracting talent.  Katie Button comes from elBulli to open Curate and now, her new place, Nightbell.  John Fleer, the chef who made Blackberry Farm a food destination, has recently opened Rhubarb. There's The Admiral,  The White Duck Taco Shop, Cucina24, Table, Chestnut, Blackbird, Isa's Bistro--believe me when I say I am only scratching the surface and there is no getting to bottom of this list.  Every month there are 2 or 3 new standouts or so it seems...frankly I gave up trying to perfect my list for this post. There are just too many choices so in cheerful acknowledgement of defeat I include links below to several recent articles on this burgeoning scene.   

Really, it's an incredible town. Makes me awfully glad it's not far away...

'Why Food Lovers Are Loving Asheville' Food and Wine

'Eat Like A Local' Bon Appetit

'The Asheville Food Scene' Departures 

A CITY A WEEK AND WHY...PISA, ITALY With Guest Blogger CAMILLE COGSWELL

Today we wrap up our 5 week focus on Italy with a post about Toscana Saporita, a cooking school outside of Pisa.  Our guest blogger is Camille Cogswell, an up and coming pastry chef in New York City.  In her bio and in her post below, her all-consuming passion for food is clear, whether it be within the buzz and fizz of the NYC food scene or in the lush and rarefied environment of Toscana Saporita.  

You'll be hearing a lot more from Camille.  Beginning next week, under a tab labeled 'NYC Diner', Camille will do a monthly review of a New York City restaurant.  She has a terrific point of view and all the passion of a true artist.   I think she will be a great resource...oh, and in the interest of full disclosure, Camille is not just any talented young chef.  She is also my niece.  I am positively thrilled silly at this chance to collaborate and so without further ado, I will now introduce you to Camille Cogswell ...

My name is Camille. I'm a pastry cook in my early 20s and living in one of the most exciting food meccas in the world, New York City. As a professional cook, I get paid roughly the same amount per hour as high schoolers probably do at their summer jobs. Even in the fine-dining restaurant industry, which is the path that I've decided to pursue, most of these top tier establishments pay the people preparing the food alarmingly low wages. But that's the thing, cooks and chefs are some of the most passionate and inspiring people I've ever met. The intense love, bordering on obsession, and work ethic that I've witnessed in my peers in this industry is what makes working these physically demanding 10-16 hour days, 5, 6, sometimes even 7 days a week, while getting paid so little, possible for us, and believe it or not, fun too! Outside of work, I find myself spending the majority of my minimal free time and disposable income on eating, drinking, and binge cookbook buying. I feel that I can never get enough, never learn enough, never eat enough, and I'm always curious to experience more. Food is life, and I'm gonna live it.

Recently my boyfriend snagged an amazing opportunity to be a Chef Instructor at the Toscana Saporita Cooking School in Tuscany for one of their three month semesters. Which means that I subsequently made sure I would have the chance to visit him there. 

Andrew first heard about Toscana Saporita and its owner and head chef, Sandra Lotti at The Culinary Institute of America, where we both went to school. This year Sandra is celebrating the twentieth anniversary of founding Toscana Saporita with her cousin Anne Bianchi. Since its start in 1994 the school has gained extensive recognition. Sandra is a cookbook author and contributor to Intermezzo Magazine. When she is in NYC she cooks and teaches at The James Beard House, Degustibus, The International Culinary Center, and Eataly, and she is supported by chefs such as Mario Batali and Mary Ann Esposito. But foremost she is the perfect balance of vibrance and passion that makes a wonderful teacher and host.

Sandra graciously agreed to let me come stay with Andrew, inviting me to participate in all meals, classes, excursions, relaxing, or otherwise that I cared to. The set up for a pretty perfect vacation. I arrived on a Tuesday, although the students come Sunday through Saturday for their week-long program. I was blown away by the villa where Toscana Saporita is located outside of Pisa. The Agriturismo site encompasses many acres of farmland with fruits, vegetables, herbs, sunflower fields, olive orchards, and a family of livestock that includes cattle, goats, horses, chickens, and even a peacock. 

The first night I arrived I had the best meal of my whole trip. It was seafood night at the school and it seemed like a welcome feast. Beautiful Prosecco and Pinot Grigio were poured alongside servings of black rice with a bright seafood salad, a seductive stew of cuttlefish, octopus, prawns, and mussels, and a decadent lobster risotto. Suffice to say, this place had me in love the first day. 

Most days I would lounge around the pool, sip espressos in the courtyard and read, wander around the property and say hi to the goats, and sit in on a couple of cooking classes, not to mention getting fed beautifully prepared multi-course meals three times daily. Classes were taught by Sandra, the two guest Chef Instructors, Andrew and Scarlett, and Sandra's son and a co-owner Alessio. My favorite lesson was pizza day. There is a small open air room on the property that houses an old wood-fired pizza oven. Alessio and Andrew teach the students how to make beautifully rustic and delicious Neapolitan-style pizzas from start to finish, including making the pizza dough, learning how to build the fire, work the oven, shape the dough, build the pizzas, and watch them cook in 90 seconds. We all attacked each fresh pizza, delighting in their thin, chewy crust crackled with bubbles from the flame and their incredibly simple, sigh-inducing toppings. 

The students take trips every afternoon with a tour guide to other cities in the area. On the list are unique towns like Lucca, Viareggio, and Pietrasanta, but my favorite outing we went on was on my second day in Tuscany. The professional truffle hunter, Lucca, and his dog, Giotto, from the Savini Tartuffi family company brought us along on a morning black truffle hunt. Tramping through the woods and unearthing prized specimens of gastronomical decadence was a pretty magical experience.

The day only got better with a lunch where fresh and preserved truffles overwhelmed our plates and perfumed our noses in the Savini tasting room. Somewhere between the truffled pecorino cheese drizzled with white truffle honey and the tagliatelle pasta tossed in truffle cream and topped with a fluffy mound of freshly grated black truffle, I lost sight of reality. Showcased were the superb preserved truffle products that I couldn't stop myself from grabbing practically every one in sight to share back home. 

Though I spent the majority of my week at La Casa Rosa, I can't withhold mentioning that I went on an incredible trip to the Cinque Terre filled with rock beaches, swimming in clear harbors, ferry rides, gelato, pesto focaccia, and Aperol Spritz.

Grazie Mille to Sandra and everyone who provided me with a no-less-than-perfect vacation. Check out her website and go visit!

http://www.toscanasaporita.com

http://www.savinitartufi.it/en/

A CITY A WEEK AND WHY...FLORENCE With Guest Blogger LINDSAY MORRIS

Studio Traveler's focus on Italian cities continues with this week's post on Florence by guest blogger Lindsay Morris.  Even with art history degrees from Davidson College and from St. Andrews University, I thought Lindsay was brave to choose to Florence.  How does one make the appeal of that most visited city vivid and new again?  Lindsay manages to do both, partly by writing exceptionally well and partly by bringing her expert's eye to some lesser known masterpieces.  With that in mind, Lindsay has aptly titled her post 'FLORENCE: A City with More Than One View', referencing both her opening quote from E.M. Forster's classic novel and the infinite surprises to be found in and around the city. 

“It was pleasant to wake up in Florence, to open the eyes upon a bright bare room, with a floor of red tiles which look clean though they are not; with a painted ceiling whereon pink griffins and blue amorini sport in a forest of yellow violins and bassoons.” 

                                                                                           E.M. Forster, A Room with a View

For centuries, the human eye has been enchanted by the magical riches of Florence.  From the city’s blanketed natural beauty of the surrounding Tuscan countryside to the serpentine flow of the Arno River making its way along its banks to the Etruscan hillside of Fiesole overlooking the heart of the city, inspiration is more than abundant. Artists even before the pinnacle of the high Renaissance have flocked to Florence to capture its loveliness in fresco, canvas, ceramic, sculpture and architecture. 

Giotto, Funeral of St. Francis, probably 1320s. Bardi Chapel, Santa Croce, Florence.

Perhaps the most significant predecessor to the Florentine Renaissance masters was Giotto di Bondone. In my early travels to Florence as a teenager I very quickly dismissed the genius of Giotto’s subtle palette and his even more understated, yet marvelously executed skill in capturing the human spirit. It was nearly 15 years ago that I fully appreciated the unsurpassed execution of the simple beauty of the human soul that Giotto brings to life in comparison to the darker palettes of his Italian Byzantine teachers such as Cimabue. He resuscitates humanity with breath and gives rhythm to the hearts of the human forms he creates. Unlike those artists who would learn from his mastery and focus more on the human form like Leonardo and Botticelli, Giotto is primarily interested in the human psyche. When I witnessed Giotto’s mastery of the Funeral of St. Francis as a then 20 year old art historian, I wept. The monk at St. Francis’ head pleads with the Almighty God for St. Francis’ life as two others at the feet and hands can’t bear to be parted. Even though I stood seven centuries removed, I could not help, but partake in their emotional worship of their beloved. If you make yourself even remotely vulnerable as you approach this remarkable fresco, you will soon find yourself heartbroken.

Fra Angelico, Annunciation, 1438-45, fresco, Monastery of San Marco, Florence.

(Probably commissioned by Cosimo de Medici)

Just over a century later, Fra Giovanni da Fiesole, known to us as Fra Angelico, followed in the footsteps of Giotto and Massaccio. He is still known today as “Beato” Angelico or “Blessed” because of his pious life and most of all the sincerity of his devotional work. Perhaps the most beautiful and in my mind, one of the most understated tourists sites visited in Florence is that of the Monastery of San Marco where Fra Angelico’s artistry adorns the corridors and living quarters. As a college student studying in Florence during 9-11, I found indescribable peace in Fra Angelico’s creations at San Marco. I especially fell in love with one of his Annunciation frescoes. While most of his annunciations and contemplative biblical scenes are intimately situated in the monks private quarters, this particular scene every monk encountered various times a day as they climbed the steps to their private chambers. Its inscription reads “As you venerate, while passing before it, this figure of the intact Virgin, beware lest you omit to say Hail Mary”. There are no gilded ornate emblems here, but simple unequivocal reverence. The intimacy created by the Corinthian columns and architecture compels one to reflection and solitude as you contemplate the tremendous calling of Mary to bear the baby that would be Christ our Savior. For me, the calling provided space in my every day busy life as a student exploring Florence to meditate on my life, my gifts and inevitably my own higher calling just as the monks responded to their daily spiritual calling.

Jacopo da Pontormo, Deposition, Capponi Chapel, Church of Santa Felicita, Florence. 1525-26

Perhaps the most compelling and little known gem of Florence’s artistic heritage is that of the Church of Santa Felicita and work of Florentine mannerist, Jacopo da Pontormo, Mannerism was the artistic response to the neoplatonic perfection of the high Renaissance and featured human forms that were stylistically enlongated and lyrical in their rendering. The color palette of the mannerists consisted of demarcated colors and organic use of fabric. Santa Felicita is located immediately across the Ponte Vecchio adjacent to the Pitti Palace. Sadly not often taught as part of artistic curriculums, I stumbled into Santa Felicita by mistake when I was seeking sanctuary from the heat of the Tuscan summer. What I encountered captured me both body and soul almost immediately. Pontormo’s altarpiece features a whirling vortex of the grief stricken. The serpentine composition gracefully flows downward toward the limp and unnaturally contorted body of the Christ. The young man whose very sheen of the fabric of shirt suggests the unbearable physical as well as spiritual weight that he carries, pleadingly looks to us for help. The burden of our sins is just too great. While nature has lost all the vibrancy of color, the mourners interestingly have not. Their clothes are painted with a vibrant monochrome color and perhaps hint at the joy that the Savior’s death brings. Pontormo’s figures and their contortions represent the very essence of the manneristic movement. The Virgin Mother’s body is unnaturally large in comparison to the crowd enveloping her and the figures as a whole create an architectural flow that further accentuates the weight of the melancholy. Of all the sites in Florence, this intimate church and hidden chapel are a must see. The beauty and genius of Pontormo were underestimated during his lifetime and only in recent years have been given the credit they deserve.

***All art images are from wikiart.com