Category: Museums

Tidy Tidbits: Books & Local Scene

JWF 2 Comments

RECENT READING

Love is Blind by William Boyd

I have known of Boyd’s work and watched the TV production of Any Human Heart, but until now had not read any of his novels.  Love is Blindwas a very satisfying read.  Set in the years from 1894 to 1906 and in a variety of venues ranging from Edinburgh, Paris, Nice and a remote island, it details, as the subtitle states, The Rapture of Brodie Moncur.  A Scotsman with a domineering and abusive father, Brodie is a gifted piano tuner who escapes his gray tumultuous home life for the light and beauty of Paris.  

(thetimes.co.uk)

His talents enable him to find a job wherever he goes, and with a diagnosis of tuberculosis, he often needs to seek out warmer climes.  But what really propels and drives him is his obsession, call it love or infatuation, with a young Russian singer named Lika Blum.  The fact that Lika is in a relationship with one of his clients, the past-his-prime pianist John Kilbarron, doesn’t deter Brodie, and they enjoy brief periods of togetherness.  

Scotsman Boyd is a good storyteller and his prose provides enough local color to differentiate the various locales while detailing the changing times as automobiles replace horses in the early 20thcentury.  I found myself caring a great deal about Brodie and his peregrinations. (~JWFarrington)

Just Mercy:  A Story of Justice and Redemption  by Bryan Stevenson

In today’s news, there are more reports of prisoners wrongly accused or punished being released or having their sentences reduced.  Prisoners on death row for decades for crimes they didn’t commit or those whose punishments far exceeded what was just for the nature of the crime.  This was not always the case. Author and lawyer Stevenson was a pioneer in these efforts with his creation of the Equal Justice Initiative in the early 1980’s.   Based in Alabama, Stevenson and his small team challenged the death row sentences of innocent individuals and those who were sentenced when they were mere children, thirteen or fourteen.  

Bryan Stevenson (the sunflower.com)

An account of Stevenson’s work over more than twenty-five years, the book offers up details about some of the people whose cases he appealed, some successfully, some not.   The heart of it, however, is the story of Walter McMillian, one of his first cases, and a man who’d already spent several decades on death row for a murder he did not commit.  What Stevenson uncovers about faulty justice, indifferent lawyers and law enforcement officials, lying eyewitnesses, and easily led townspeople is chilling; what Stevenson is able to achieve for Walter and his family is a testament to perseverance and dedication.  This book, published in 2014, won several awards and appeared on six best books of the year lists.  Thanks to our Pennsylvania friend Mark for recommending it. (~JWFarrington)

LOCAL COLOR

MUSEUM EXHIBIT

If you’re a fan of animals, then you might trot over to the South Florida Museumto see the new National Geographic “Photo Ark” exhibit by Joel Sartore.  Gorgeous up-close photos of fifty animals (mostly taken in zoos) against stark black or stark white backgrounds.  The exhibit just opened to the public and runs into July.

POWERFUL THEATER

Set in Reading, Pennsylvania, against the backdrop of the 2000 presidential election and the financial crisis of 2008, playwright Lynn Nottage’s Sweat at the Asolo, packs a punch.  The language is raw and the emotions even more so.  Focusing on three women who are union workers in a local factory, two young men who are the sons of two of them, and the local bar where they all hang out, it’s a portrait of working-class America that many of us haven’t experienced. The bar set is realistic-looking and TV videos overhead as a transition between scenes make for effective staging.   I thought the acting was uniformly excellent.  We came out exhausted, but appreciative of the high caliber performances we see here. It’s a play that could be required viewing for all adults—it’s that good!  

DINING NOTES

A friend and I had lunch at Mar Vistarecently and it was lovely!  This waterside restaurant on Longboat Key has been totally remodeled and is almost unrecognizable.  It’s been spiffed up and is very inviting with three options for seating—inside, in the open air on a covered terrace, and fully outside at tables on the sand. We opted for the terrace and both enjoyed Cobb salads which were very fresh and tasty.  Service was pleasant and efficient.  To learn more, see the write-up in this week’s Herald Tribune.

Poke salad (courtesy TripAdvisor)

If you’re enough of a stalwart to brave St. Armand’s Circle during the season, then lunch at Shore is a great choice.  Located upstairs almost next door to Chico’s, the outside tables are airy with a view of the street.  The menu offers lots of fish and plenty of salads and sandwiches.  We three friends opted for a poke salad and the fish tacos with a green salad (instead of the menu fries).  The tacos were tasty and the service super-efficient.  Perfect for getting on with more shopping!

Note: Photos by JWFarrington unless otherwise noted. Header photo is a white-fronted lemur from the “Photo Ark” exhibit.

Mexico to Florida: Dining Haute to Casual

JWF Leave a comment

LAST DAY IN MEXICO CITY

We crammed a fair bit into our last full day in Mexico City.  It was all built around our reservation for a 1:30 lunch at Pujol, considered the best restaurant in the city. Our exquisite meal lasted nearly three hours.  Pujol changes the menu daily, and we had our choice between two seven course tasting menus, one built around corn and the other, the sea.  We chose, “Mar,” the sea, and were delighted and intrigued by the range of tastes, textures and presentation.  

Everything from street foods including two tender ears of corn that had been smoked in incense and coated with a caramel covered sauce, to a wreath of diced scallops in a lime pico, to a beautiful piece of grilled octopus with a dollop of pureed carrot that looked like egg yolk (I was never a fan of octopus, but this trip has expanded my palate), to a square of sea bass on tomato marmalade under a brittle green leaf, a puddle of two kinds of mole, plus more. It was the height of culinary talent, but also very tasty. 

Chayote squash and scallop pico

Octopus and pickled carrot
Mole madre 1,847 days, mole neuvo

BIRDS

Before going to lunch, we visited the aviary in Abraham Lincoln Park in the Polanco neighborhood.  We got there just after it opened and the birds, parrots, parakeets, songbirds, and one lone peacock, were noisy and screechy, but oh, so colorful.  With an assist from the Chief Penguin, I made some camera setting adjustments that enabled me to get some satisfactory photos.  And it was fun!  The other visitors were mostly mothers or nannies with young children plus one young couple. Not crowded and you could get up close to some of the parrots and to the peacock.

ART

After lunch, we made brief tours of two museums.   Museo Jumex is a relatively new museum, opened in 2013, which focuses on contemporary art and aims to “become a laboratory for experimentation and innovation in the arts.”  There wasn’t a lot on exhibit, so we didn’t stay too long.  Across the street is another museum which in some ways is more noted for the building’s architecture than the collection.    

Museo Soumaya

Museo Soumaya is a large private museum and is the collection of founder Carlos Slim, one extremely wealthy man who named the museum for his late wife.  Its distinctive building, narrow at the base and widening like a vase as it rises to a rooftop space, make it stand out from the more linear buildings surrounding it.  This collection of 66,000 pieces covers a wide range of time periods from European art to Mexican artifacts and articles to the largest collection of Rodin sculptures anywhere.  We were there very late in the day and the museum had been invaded by several big groups of what appeared to be middle school students all in like garb, each group with a different colored stripe on their black pants.  I’m not sure if they had a specific assignment, but there was an adult or two herding the separate groups.  They made for a noisy visit so we somewhat quickly wound our way up several levels and then in a more leisurely way surveyed the art and wound our way down. 

FLORIDA RECOVERY

We returned home several days ago.  What better way to recover from a gastronomically challenging trip than to go to a prized Irish sports bar?  Several of our male friends have enthused about going to Clancy’s after golf for a leisurely lunch. Bill, marketeer supreme, has suggested for the past year that several couples should go with him and Alice for the experience.  It finally happened!  We four, along with Cathy, Dean, Jane and Mark, gathered for a relaxed lunch.  Clancy’s outside is very pleasant.  There is a now a sunshade over the tables, new pristine restrooms, and an owner and waitress who know our crew well.  

The menu has all those good items you probably shouldn’t eat but will willingly indulge in on the right occasion.  This was the right occasion.  Between us all, we ordered a tuna melt, chicken quesadillas, a burger, wings, a Clancy roll (fried and very special) and scoops of tuna salad on greens.  The latter proving that if you want to be healthy, it’s possible to find a salad or two!  Oh, almost forgot to mention the Clancy’s chips with blue cheese dip that Mark ordered to share.  These orders went along with an IPA or two or three just to wash it all down.  A good time was had by all; and as my sister Sal might add, we laughed a lot!  We will return.

Good times at Clancy’s!

Note: Mexico City photos by JWFarrington; Clancy’s photos by Bill & Mark. Header photo is a ceviche served at Pujol.

Cultural Cuba: History, Art & Dance

JWF Leave a comment

WED. JAN. 30

Today, our last full day, was packed with economics, history, visual art and dance.  Lourdes, dean of economics at the University of Havana, was our morning speaker here at the hotel.  Like all the other individuals who have shared their insights with us, she was both spirited and informative. The Cubans we’ve encountered up close have been passionate about their work, candid about conditions in the country, and yet able to present them with a touch of humor.  

From her, we gained a better understanding of how wealth, or more often the lack of it, is distributed in Cuba and how rich Cubans rely upon their relatives living in the U.S. or abroad to send them money or goods.  For example, salaries for academics are low given their education, and one might make as little as 22 pesos a month. We all wished we’d had more time with her to ask more questions about the U.S. embargo on goods and about her own story. 

Hall of Mirrors under renovation like much of the museum

After our economics lesson, we went to the Museo de la Revolucion.  This is Cuba’s version of the events leading up to Fidel Castro’s takeover and what followed including the Bay of Pigs, Cuban Missile Crisis, and Cuba’s engagements with Russia and the rest of the world through the 1980’s.  Outside the building, several military planes and vehicles are on display including, behind glass, the yacht Fidel Castro and 81 others came in from Mexico in 1956 to launch the Revolution.

Lunch at Ivan Justo was across the street from the museum and upstairs (as many restaurants are) and began with the usual mojito.  (I think it must be the Cuban national drink since they have appeared at every lunch but one and several dinners!)  

Today, everything was served family style. An assortment of appetizers (shrimp ceviche, hummus, fried taro sticks), followed by platters of luscious lamb stew, chicken thighs, and grilled fish plus white rice and black beans.  Dessert was a dish of rice pudding.  Normally, I am not a fan of puddings, but this was quite good with the sprinkle of cinnamon on top.

Appetizers at Ivan Justo

After lunch, we walked half a block to the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes de La Habana. There our delightful guide, Aylet Ojeda, a student who gives tours as payback for her free university tuition, highlighted the work of Cuban artists from 1929 through the 1990’s. She shared how early artists were heavily influenced by famous artists from abroad and then over time created paintings that were more reflective of Cuban society and more political in nature. The header photo is by a Cuban artist.

Music and dance are important elements of Cuban culture, and we had the treat of a short performance by Habana Compas Dance, a professional troupe of female dancers.  Their dance incorporates aspects of Afro-Cuban music as well as flamenco dance steps from Spain.  They study five days a week and learn to play several types of drums as well as other percussion instruments such as the clava, washboard gourd, and castanets. The troupe is unique in having incorporated small side chairs into their routines as yet another percussion instrument.  Bursting with energy and enthusiasm, their short program was a welcome shot of adrenaline.

This was the day that never ended. After a brief break at the hotel, we went out again, this time to a dance studio to learn more about the steps that inform Cuban ballroom dancing.  Initially two pairs of dancers did an elegant dance, then the dances got more animated and erotic as more couples joined the floor.  

Next was a short salsa demo, and then the dancers grabbed our hands (no weaseling out here) and we ladies lined up behind the lead instructor and the men behind one of the male dancers.  With great patience, the instructor demonstrated the basic steps, then they were put to music, and we got a partner. Some of us excelled while others got by passably.  It was a fun experience!

Then, on to our farewell dinner at a glass-walled contemporary restaurant, OtraManera, that would have been at home in La Jolla. We had a choice of drinks (I went for the house white wine) and a look at the menu to choose what we wished to eat beyond the shared appetizers.  Appetizers included croquettes, ceviche, and a lovely avocado and tomato concasse.  

The Chief Penguin ordered the grilled red snapper and I had the Chinese style noodles with pork tenderloin graced with a few cherry tomatoes and broccoli florets.  Also popular with our group were several of the salads, one with green papaya, and the lamb entree.  It was a lovely meal in a lovely setting, ending with Alfredo providing a summary of what we’d done over the past five days. He was complimentary about our group and said we were a group he would be sorry to see leave.

Tomorrow we all go our separate ways. I’ve made a new friend or two, and my head is filled with images of art and architecture in this “city of columns.” I was charmed by the individuals with whom we conversed. I am also armed with a better understanding of Cuba’s history and its relations with the U.S. along with the challenges and opportunities this society faces. For sure, I’ll be sharing the magic and delight of this trip with my friends at home—it’s hard to let go! Thank you, Marlon and Alfredo.

Note: All photos ©JWFarrington (some rights reserved). Header photo is of Barco negero, 1976 by Manuel Mendive.

San Francisco Interlude

JWF 3 Comments

 

SAN FRANCISCO
OLD HOME WEEK AT THE ACADEMY
The Chief Penguin and I had the great pleasure of returning to San Francisco and the California Academy of Sciences for the 10th anniversary celebration of its new building. Ten years ago, when he was the Chief Penguin of this wonderful museum, we sat on the since named Patterson Plaza, and celebrated the opening of Renzo Piano’s airy, light-filled creation. The mayor and other dignitaries were there to bless the occasion, the sun burst through the clouds, and butterflies were released to the sky. It was a glorious day and the line for entry wound down the sidewalk and around the building for almost a mile. 

This time, besides the expected speeches, we were treated to songs from the San Francisco Boys Choir and testimonials from two youth. The 10 year old girl was an infant when the new academy opened and has been visiting since those early days. She loves the place and shared her enthusiasm for it and her goal of becoming an academy scientist. A 15 year old young man spoke eloquently about his experience as a Careers in Science intern, his involvement with the planetarium, and his plans to become an astrophysicist. Both were memorable demonstrations of the importance and power of the academy’s education mission!  A champagne toast on the Living Roof, the scattering of seeds there, and a reunion lunch with former colleagues and friends rounded out the day.  

The next day we returned for tours of the new Giants of Land and Sea exhibit and Big Picture as well as a showing of the newest award-winning planetarium show, Expedition Reef.  I was pleased to see that exhibit labels are now in four languages and that there were so many informative interactive screens in Giants.

I’ve been through the redwoods several times, but was in awe of the giant slice of an 800 year old redwood tree that came down in a storm; for me, it was the highlight of that exhibit.  Big Picture, the annual exhibit of the winners of the Academy’s photography contest, is now five years old and better than ever. I particularly liked the shot of the mother flamingo’s feather encircling a baby whose nose is just poking through.

Watching the planetarium show, I gained an greater understanding of the role played by coral reefs around the world and why it’s critical to work to preserve them.

And if you think this is all a plug for going to the academy, it is!  I’m shameless about promoting it.

DINING BY THE BAY 
Lest you think we didn’t do anything else in our short visit, we also ate very well!
Pizzeria Delfina. Upon arrival we started in our old neighborhood and had lunch at this pizza place off Fillmore. Old favorites, insulata tricolore and the sausage pizza, were as good as we remembered!

Coqueta.  This restaurant on the Embarcadero is another one we love, and we had dinner here our first night. Their menu of tapas always pleases and we had some of our usuals—-chicken croquettes, meatballs, patatas bravas, smoky potato chips, and a couple of cheeses.

Potatoes & Chips at Coqueta

Mel’s Drive-in Diner.  On busy Lombard Street, Mel’s serves as hearty a breakfast as you could want in a setting complete with jukebox and crayons and balloons for kids.  A complete array of omelettes plus bacon, sausage and toast.  Our waitress was friendly and the place has an inviting vibe.

A16.  On Chestnut Street, a short walk from our hotel, A16 is the sister restaurant to SPQR and a more casual place. Lots of pizzas on their menu plus salads and some slightly different pasta dishes. The panzanella salad was excellent and the simple long pasta with ragu perfect comfort food. Have to admit that the fusilli with walnuts was a bit oddly flavored, but worth trying. For dessert, we settled on a plate of small cookies which provided the requisite amount of sweet.

Pacific Catch. This Bay Area chain serves excellent fresh fish alone, in sandwiches, tacos and poke, and atop salads or rice bowls. Located a short walk from the Academy, it’s long been a lunch favorite for staff. I and the C.P. both dined there separately with former colleagues, and I had the hard choice of either the taco plate or the grilled salmon sandwich. The sandwich won out.

Zuni Cafe.  An old standby downtown (40 years young), but still excellent, was the venue for our last dinner. We were joined by a good friend and, while none of us ordered their famous roast chicken, we liked very much our heirloom tomato and Caesar salads, fritto misto, simple risotto, and a made-to-order veggie plate.

Note: All photos by JWFarrington.