"We are the Sherlock Holmes English Speaking Vernacular"*

Some of my "more favorite" photos from my recent vacation...



    




Clouds in London rock!!

*lyrics from "The Village Green Preservation Society" by The Kinks

Re-Entry

So much has been going on with me lately that I have really been neglecting my blog, but things should be shaping up so that I can redirect my full attention to this again soon.

"What have I been doing?" you may ask; well, I am glad you did. First, I have been taking a 19th century English literature class at Wesleyan University and have crammed in A LOT of 19th century fiction into a very short period of time and have had to write my first academic papers in 17 years a REALLY long time. And that is NOT an easy thing when you haven't had to write an analytical argument of a text since you got out of college 17 years!! a REALLY long time ago.

And then, of course, because I am taking this 19th century literature class about London, I felt it was necessary to go there and do research in person... as you do...

We read Joseph Conrad's The Secret Agent, so I thought it would be a good idea to go to Greenwich and check it out the Royal Observatory, completely for class...

And we also read Phineas Finn, which is about an Irish MP, so I thought I would check out the Palace of Westminster...again, final paper research...

There is really nothing quite like a first person accounting of things...

Or bluebells, which always make me think of both Howards End and I Capture the Castle.

Not a Book Review, but a Recommendation

I think that there are two books that are essential reading for any Anglophile bibliophile, and those books are 84, Charing Cross Road and The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street by Helene Hanff.

The first is a collection of Hanff's 20 year correspondence with Frank Doel, an antiquarian bookseller at Marks & Co., situated at the eponymous address in London. It all begins when Hanff, a great reader of English literature, but also a woman living on her own on a budget in post-WWII New York City, spies an advertisement for Marks & Co. in the Saturday Review of Literature. What starts out as a simple purchase order for some hard to find classics evolves into witty banter and, ultimately, a transatlantic friendship forged over a love of classic literature and books themselves.  (As a person who also romanticizes appreciates books, I completely understand Hanff's delight at some of the leather bound editions she receives in the mail at ridiculously inexpensive prices!) The book calls to me on so many levels: that of a reader and that of an Anglophile. I think that the only way that this book could be any more appealing to me would be if every time I opened it, a footman would pop out and serve me afternoon tea and then Tom Hiddleston or Richard Armitage would read me the book by candlelight in front of a fire. (Okay, that MAY have been a bit of an overshare...but I think you get the point.)

In the first book, Hanff had planned to travel over to England to meet her friends in the bookshop, but life (also known as $bills$), as it does so often to all of us, got in her way, and she had to postpone her visit. Unfortunately, she didn't make it to England before SPOILER (highlight to read - JR, you should be thanking me right about now...) ;-)

the untimely death of Frank Doel in 1968 and the closing of Marks & Co. two years later.

The book based on Hanff and Doel's correspondence was published in 1970, and due to the success of the book in Britain, Hanff traveled to England in 1971 to do some promotional work for the British publishers of 84, Charing Cross Road. She chronicled her visit in a diary; the resulting work became The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street, which was published in 1973. This book inspires in me a feeling of "I am so jealous of this woman that I want to eat my hat, and I wish I too could benefit from the kindness of random strangers because I wrote a book that touches the heart about books and my love of all things British." In 84, Charing Cross Road, Ms. Hanff wrote that someone once told her that people going to England find exactly what they go looking for, and she says that she would go looking for the England of English literature. That is exactly what she did, starting on the street with the bookstore that became her touchstone in the heart of its capital. She got her own personal literary tour of London and didn't take any of this for granted and approached each wonderful thing that happened to her in England with the same sheer delight that I would feel if I were in her shoes.

I think because that is exactly what I have tried to do on each of my visits to England, I feel utterly connected with this book. (She stays in Russell Square. I have BEEN to Russell Square, and I had a bit of a moment when I saw the Russell Hotel and thought that my next step was the Heaviside Lair! And, yes, I did just reference Cats!!) I love Charing Cross Road, but Bloomsbury Street is the book that I read when my heart needs lifting.

(Also, I would HIGHLY recommend watching the film of 84 Charing Cross Road. It stars Anne Bancroft and Anthony Hopkins, but the supporting cast is made up of people you might recognize...Judi Dench being one of them!)

A Day Around Savannah

"Georgia, Georgia,
The whole day through
Just an old sweet song
Keeps Georgia on my mind"*







"He's leaving,
On that midnight train to Georgia,
And he's goin' back
To a simpler place and time.
And I'll be with him
On that midnight train to Georgia,
I'd rather live in his world
Than live without him in mine."**





*lyrics from "Georgia on My Mind"
**lyrics from "Midnight Train to Georgia"

The Holy City*

The things that I like about Charleston: the sense of history comfortably mingled with the present day (much like Boston); the architecture (especially the side porches that run the length of the houses-on each story!); the delicious food & great restaurants (try Tristan's - you won't regret it - $5 cocktails!); the friendliness of the people (we met a lovely woman in the Market making/selling sweetgrass baskets that Friday night); and the walkability of the city. I was sad when it was time to say goodbye.











* Charleston is nicknamed "the Holy City" because the skyline (which is otherwise pretty low - no skyscrapers here) is peppered with the steeples of the many churches within its limits.

"What's a Grit?"*

Back in the summer of 2010, my book club read Kathryn Stockett's novel The Help, and we held our discussion meeting at Tupelo in Cambridge. At that meeting, I had my first taste of grits (along with some amazing chicken and waffles and Southern sweet tea!) Someone ordered grits for the table, and I felt obligated to try them in an attempt at Southern authenticity. (The only thing I really knew about grits was that Flo on TV's "Alice" used to tell people off by telling them to kiss hers!) 

Paula Deen's version of shrimp and grits

Uneasily putting that first spoonful into my mouth, the taste was surprising and delightful. Where I had expected something bland and grainy, there was heavenly, mushy, buttery goodness.  With my second spoonful greedily in my mouth I asked, "What are grits again?" To the amusement of my fellow book clubbers, I ended up finishing off the bowl. Turns out, grits are a corn meal porridge. What's not to love about that, right? Right.


This year, I drove back north from Florida, and, for the first time in my life, I got to visit a number of towns in the South (as opposed to having layovers in the Charlotte or Atlanta airports). Stops were made in: Jekyll Island, GA; Savannah, GA; Beaufort, SC; Charleston, SC; and Williamsburg, VA. I ordered shrimp and grits (a popular combination) at a number of restaurants along the way; some places served it traditionally (more soupy), while other places served it more firm, so that it was almost like a polenta.  My favorite version of the dish was at 82 Queen in Charleston. I had the seared shrimp and scallops over stone ground grits with sauce Newburg, which was positively AMAZING. (I highly recommend dining out at 82 Queen if you are in Charleston. They also have really wonderful she-crab soup.) I don't know if I would ever try cooking grits myself, but I can guarantee that I will be ordering them at Southern style restaurants in the future!!(But if you do make grits regularly and want to make a suggestion for a brand to try at home and/or a recipe in the comments, I would be glad to have that info.)



*the classic line from My Cousin Vinny

"Can you fly this plane and land it?" "Surely you can't be serious." "I am serious... and don't call me Shirley."*

So the new tv show that I am hooked on is "Pan Am". It is the PERFECT kind of television program for a Sunday night. (Unfortunately, it is on at the same time as "Masterpiece", so I have to DVR it and watch it on Monday, but it is still good on Monday.) "Pan Am" takes you back to a time when air travel was actually something that people dressed up for and enjoyed, rather than strip for and endure, like we do nowadays.

I wouldn't want to be a flight attendant in this day and age, but these ladies sure make their job look glamorous (well, except for that drunk who hit on Christina Ricci), AND they get to fly all over the globe! And have cool clothes and fancy cars and drink cocktails in Paris and champagne in Monaco! (Yes, I am sure in reality it wasn't quite as fabulous, but that is why this show is on ABC on Sunday night and not on HBO on Friday night.)

The most fabulous time that I ever had on a plane happened when JR and I were stuck in London due to a massive Nor'Easter and all the flights into the East Coast were canceled. I HAD to be back for work event and spent hours on the phone with Virgin Atlantic trying to get us back into the US. (Travel Rule #1 from Auntie N who worked in reservations at American Airlines for many years: if your flight is canceled, even if you are AT the airport, get on the phone to the airline. Do not wait in line to deal with the people at the desk. Even if you are put on hold, you will get to a reservations person much faster if you call.)

We finally got re-booked onto the airline's first flight into Boston the next afternoon, and JR and I got to Heathrow SUPER early to make sure that we were on that plane. (Four hours early. I spent a LOT of money in the duty free terminal, mostly on Cadbury, but I digress.) As our flight started to board, we were pulled from the line by the gate agent, and the two of us exchanged looks of despair. We thought we were being bumped from the flight!! But my hours on the phone being nice (albeit somewhat desperate) to the reservations people provided us with an unexpected bonus: we were bumped up to business class!!! FANCY!!

We got to sit on the upper level of the plane in bulkhead seats with all the legroom in the world AND got free champagne AND sat across from the flight attendant who became our chatty friend for the flight (and who looked like Jude Law, a gay Jude Law, but Jude Law all the same.) JR listened to her (fancy new) iPod, and I read The Eyre Affair. It was awesome! Best flight ever!!

This is me being goofy in business class (you can see where they changed my seat assignment on the ticket).

*from Airplane

"I've been a wild rover for many a year And I spent all my money on whiskey & beer..."*

This time last year, I was touring around Ireland with Sister K. It was definitely a trip of a lifetime, and it was completely worth the early morning calls and hotel changes to see so much of the country in only ten days.
I have been thinking about that trip because 1. JR & RH are heading out today for their own trip to Ireland, and 2. the weather in Boston is doing a fairly accurate impersonation of the weather we had when we were in Dublin. (That is to say, it has been on the cold side and raining on and off for the last two days.) I am a little jealous that they are getting to visit Ireland again, but I need to start thinking about my next big trip. Scotland, anyone? (I'd love to get Sister K to come with me, but we'd have to sort her out with the accent first!)


Photographs by Sister K (actually it is one panoramic photo by her, that I cropped into two photos)


* "And it's no, nay, never, No nay never no more,
    Will I play the wild rover No never no more."   The Wild Rover

"Sky rockets in flight..."*

I had a wonderful time this weekend visiting with Je Glide on Nantucket. After dinner on Saturday night, she, her new Beau, and I went for a walk down to Straight Wharf with the hopes of being able to catch a glimpse of the fireworks on Jetties Beach scheduled for that evening.



Our perch not only provided us with a great vantage point for watching the light show, but we also got to see some A-MAZING yachts under the full moon.



After the fireworks were over, we applauded and started to walk back to the car. To my delight, the folks on the yachts added their "kudos" by honking their ships horns. To borrow a quote from Singing In the Rain: "It was good and loud."


*I apologize if you have "Afternoon Delight" stuck in your head after reading this. I had that problem the other day, and it wasn't pretty.

"I'm not hungry anymore; isn't it glorious?"*

When I was a kid, my mom would recommend that my siblings and I watch certain films (usually old films), and we wouldn't watch them because we were stubborn and contrary. (And KIDS!) But invariably one of us would be sick and end up a captive audience to mom's film suggestions, and that one sibling would LOVE the movie. Then we'd all end up watching it and would ALSO love it so much that we'd watch it ALL THE TIME. (I don't know how my mom stopped herself from saying "I told you so" but she did...for the most part.)

One of those films that mom thought we would all benefit from watching is Charade. Now if you've never seen the film Charade, what is wrong with you!?! I would suggest that you go to Netflix and put it at the very top of your queue because it is WONDERFULLY GOOD. These are some of the reasons it is so good: Audrey Hepburn, Cary Grant, mystery, stolen money, murder, imposters, romance, and suspense, set in Paris, with a score by Henry Mancini. (Those are all very good things as far as I am concerned.)

If you have seen the film, you know that stamps play a part in the story. When our family went on vacation to Paris back in 2000, one of the things that delighted us as we were walking around the city was spying a storefront with the front window filled with stamps at the Place de la Madeleine. The shop was closed so we couldn't go in, but instead we three sisters had our photo taken in front of it with these huge grins on our faces. A Frenchman passed by us and, shaking his head, muttered, "Americans". After he was out of earshot, we all started to laugh. We really didn't care because of our love for Charade and because we knew it was really silly anyhow.

And, if you can't do silly things while you are on vacation, you need to take better vacations!


*Old Audrey Hepburn films make life better, don't you think? They always put me in a good mood.

"All around the Cathedral, the saints and apostles look down as she sells her wares."*

Great article and video up at The Telegraph about the completion of the 15 year renovation project at St. Paul's Cathedral, London.

I have had a bit of a weird history with St. Paul's: it took me multiple trips to London to actually visit the building. This was not from a lacking of desire or attempts! The first time I went to London in 2000 with my family, we couldn't get into St. Paul's because there were private events that week for the Queen Mum's 100th birthday.

I made my second attempt during my visit in February of 2003, but JR and I couldn't go in because it was too close to Vespers. (Permanent note to self: don't plan on doing sightseeing at a church on a Sunday.) That trip, we got stuck in London an additional day because a blizzard in the Northeast canceled our return flight, but we visited too late in the day and had only an hour to sight see before the building closed. We got to hear choir boys rehearse, but I didn't have enough time in the crypt, and the interior renovations prohibited us from seeing much of the Nave. We did make it up to the Whispering Gallery, but my fear of heights prevented me from going any higher up.

Third trip was the charm. When Je Glide and I went to London in 2008, I finally got a proper visit to St. Paul's. (Although we were at first told by the police that we couldn't go in because there was some kind of scare there. I felt CURSED! We went to lunch, and when we came back, we finally got inside. I was ECSTATIC!) The interior renovation was completed, and the building looked AMAZING. While Je Glide climbed up into the Dome, I crawled around in the crypt and explored the ground floor of the church, seeing the effigies of Donne and Lawrence and the tombs of Wellington and Nelson. We met up again to look at the American Memorial Chapel, dedicated to the memories of the American service men and women based in Britain who died in WWII. While we were in the Chapel, a bell sounded, and everyone there was invited to join in saying the Lord's Prayer for peace. It was very moving, and I remember thinking to myself that maybe I was meant to wait to see the Cathedral until it was restored to its proper glory.

St. Paul's Cathedral is definitely a MUST SEE during a visit to London: for its architecture, its history, and the sacredness of its space. (Just be sure to check the website ahead of time to make sure that you are well within visiting hours!)


* "Feed the Birds" from Mary Poppins

Today would be a nice day to walk around Dublin

Happy Bloomsday!

I have never read Ulysses (or any other Joyce for that matter, with the exception of the short story, "The Dead"), but I am currently reading Pat Conroy's novel, South of Broad, whose main character is named Leopold Bloom King, so that counts for something, right? And I can now say that I HAVE been to Dublin...

So far, South of Broad is good, but not great. The parts describing Charleston are a beautiful love letter to the city (makes me want to go there even in the heat of summer), but I forgot about Conroy and his somewhat over the top plot lines, which require some suspension of disbelief in parts and a strong stomach in others. It is a bit of a beach read; unfortunately, I am not at the beach... yet.

"Charleston, Charleston, Made in Carolina"*

One of my absolutely favorite cities in the United States is Charleston, SC. I was there for a long weekend at Easter about five years ago and fell head over heels in love with the city. The architecture, the history, the food: it was all completely wonderful. We explored the Battery, took the boat out to Fort Sumter, and shopped in the city market. (I only wish I had been camera girl back then, although I probably would have been taking photos non-stop, which isn't that much fun for my traveling companions.) Sister K and I even went on a twilight ghost tour, which totally scared me into a completely sleepless night. (Turns out Charleston is one of the most haunted cities in America.)

Which leads me to my subject: author Karen White has released two books about haunted Charleston (with a third book to come out this fall) that are a lot of fun to read. The first one is The House on Tradd Street; its sequel is The Girl on Legare Street. The heroine of these stories is one Melanie Middleton: a successful realtor in her late thirties, single, utterly Type A, wicked sugar junkie, and inclined to see ghosts (which is unfortunate when you sell old houses in one of the most haunted cities in America.)

The first book begins with Melanie inheriting a neglected historical house on Tradd Street from an eccentric Charlestonian, with the caveat that she has to renovate it and live in it for a year before she can sell it. With her alcoholic father as the trustee and her architectural preservationist best friend insisting on using antiquated methods to restore the house, Melanie has her hands full, and that is before she realizes she isn't the only one "living" in the house. Enter Jack Trenholm, historical novelist (and the son of "Mellie's" mother's best friend), who comes to Melanie's aid researching the history of the house and trying to solve its mysteries. The second book picks up as Melanie's long estranged mother returns to Charleston to buy back the old family home when it comes on the market. The house on Legare Street is not only full of spirits, but secrets as well. It is up to Melanie, Jack, and an assortment of Charleston locals to solve the mystery there before someone else loses their life.

As I mentioned, these books are really fun to read. They have got a little something for everyone: a little mystery, a little romance, a little history, and a little humor. White does a great job recreating the feel of Charleston without drowning the story in description. The mysteries are clever, but are not too complicated, and the pacing of the stories is spot on. The characters are really well drawn, even the minor ones. (Melanie's secretary is obsessed with golf, and regularly Melanie comes upon her practicing her putting in the lobby.) Best of all: Melanie and Jack have a terrific flirty banter that recalls the "will they?/won't they?" of some of the best sitcom couples.

My mom had introduced these books to me because she noticed that I have several interesting bits of overlap with the main character, other than our first name. (There is nothing wrong with being well organized!!);-) With the anniversary of the start of the Civil War this week, I started thinking about them and bought copies for my Kindle. It has been great rereading them, and, unlike my actual visit to Charleston, these ghosts haven't given me any nightmares!


*Charleston, written by Cecil Mack and James P. Johnson

"Seven years passed, I stopped going to Paradiso Perduto, I stopped painting. I put aside the fantasy and the wealthy..."*

Last week, I was on vacation on the Gulf Coast of Florida. My family has been vacationing in Sarasota for the last 25+ years, but this year marked my first visit to John Ringling's (of Ringling Bros. circus fame) fabulous winter home, Cà d’Zan.

Built in the Venetian Gothic style in 1924-25, Cà d’Zan (which means "House of John" in the Venetian dialect) is both a relic and a reminder of a time when American opulence was at its pinnacle, and the wealthy tried to outdo each other by recreating the splendor of European palaces in American settings. Sitting right at the edge of Sarasota Bay and certainly as stately as any of the "summer cottages" in Newport, RI, Cà d’Zan is considered to be the "last of the Gilded Age mansions."

The house went through an extensive restoration within the last ten years, and it is simply splendid. The grounds include Mable Ringling's rose garden (the most outstanding American public rose garden of 2006), the "Secret Garden", and some fascinating banyan trees. Also on the property is the John & Mabel Ringling Museum of Art and the Circus Museums. You could easily spend the whole day there.







*If Cà d’Zan looks familiar to you, perhaps you recognize it from the Hawke/Paltrow version of Great Expectations. It was Anne Bancroft's house in the film!! (Quote is from the movie...)