cigar Archives - Page 25 of 25

North America USA

Final Destination: Florida

Greetings from South Florida!
After 12 hours of travel (3 flights + layovers) i arrived at the underwhelming Fort Lauderdale airport – underwhelming that is until i saw a blonde vision in active sportswear: my sister (and her faithful companion, Giovanni). My flights, while long, where supremely relaxing. I read, completed a sunday NY times crossword and listened to Company, Sweeney Todd and My Fair Lady on the ipod.

I got in late, so Dawn just drove me to her new residence in the schmancy gated community known simply as “The Resort”, complete with 3 swimming pools, gym, hot tub, tennis courts and security guards (no need to pack heat here).

We watched “Final Destination 3” (creative, gory death scenes) and retired.
Today she was busy teaching classes, so i spent about ten hours on South Beach. “Bliss” would not be too strong a word to describe my mood as I strolled beneath the palms in the uber-humid Florida weather. I smoked three cigars over espresso and salad, went shopping and visit some old haunts, like the South Florida Art Gallery. Little changes here (I even saw some of the same colorful homeless people I recall from when I lived here – if you have to be homeless, this is the place to do it). My favorite cigar lounge has closed, but there are countless other satisfying venues in which to enjoy a double corona, so I am not too broken up about it.

As I was on my own today, I had many interesting conversations with people. One fellow, at the Hustler store sighed fondly when I said I was from Canada. “I’ve never seen snow”, he said. He told me he grew up in Fort Lauderdale and moved to Miami and has never been anywhere else. Ever.

At dinner, on Lincoln Road at World Resources (i had a fabulous Thai curry) I chatted for about an hour with a family and their friends who are 7th generation Floridians from Ocala – super rural Florida with horses and citrus farms. They had crazy fake-sounding southern drawls and told me all about how they love to go hunting for turkeys and hogs, except they pronounced it “howgs”. It seems that it takes a surprising amount of cunning and ingenuity to outsmart a turkey. I also learned all about Florida gun laws and it seems that it is quite legal to carry a gun with you at all times (except in court, at football games and in clubs), provided that said gun is in plain sight. (You can carry a concealed weapon, but you have to take a four hour course to qualify.) So if you want to drive with your 45, you have leave it in your lap, not tucked under your shirt.

Anyway, I had a fantastic day. When I come here, I can’t remember why I ever left. The beach, the weather, trees filled with coconuts and green parrots are so seductive. Like I said, it is bliss.

Now I am back at Dawn’s place and we are going to watch a horror movie about a killer ventriloquist’s dummy.
Enough rambling.
Good night.
d

Europe Netherlands

Home from Amsterdam

We are home…at least I am. Betty Lou will return to Summerland tomorrow.

The last leg of our journey took us back to where we began: Amsterdam. We didn’t do much with the evening (dinner & bed), but had a lovely day today (at least I think it was today…it feels like yesterday).

We visited the Anne Frank house/museum, which was very moving and certainly worth a visit. After that we walked along the canal to the flower market, had a bit of lunch and returned to the airport.

The flight (10 hours, I think) went by remarkably quickly, considering that neither of us slept.

And now we are back. I’m not sure how I feel about that, but then again, I am so tired I cannot really evaluate my feelings about anything.

It was an excellent trip and neither of us could have asked for anything better.

Thank you again for taking the time to read about our adventures.
Dale & Betty Lou North

Estonia Europe Russia Trip 2007

Afternoon in the Town & A Night at the Opera

Another day in Tallinn. Walked around the town some more. We went to the St. Nicholas Church – a medieval structure that has been repeatedly rebuilt following fires and bombing by the Nazis. It was quite lovely; very simple.

We also went to an old monastery – the oldest structure in the city supposedly. It was beautiful.

We had more coffees and snacks and then walked atop the remaining portion of the city wall, which afforded us beautiful views of the town and its red rooftops. The wall walk also allowed access to four towers, which one reached by climbing perilous, spiral stone staircases, which were dark and guarded by territorial pigeons.

We had lunch in the town square. It is beautiful and sunny today, but the odd gust of cold wind reminded us that we are in fact quite far north. After lunch/dinner Betty Lou joined me in a visit to the cigar lounge I found on our first day here. It was wonderfully relaxing.

Strolling along we stumbled upon a row of artisans selling their wares – mostly of the knitted variety. I purchased a lovely linen sweater and scarf. Finally something new to wear! (my existing outfit is growing a bit stale).

This evening we shall attend an opera at the national opera house. It will be a production of La Traviata, which neither of us have seen, but we both enjoy the music.

Time for us to go ready ourselves for the evening’s events.
Tomorrow we are off to Helsinki on a 3:30 ferry.
Until tomorrow,
dale & lou

Europe Russia Russia Trip 2007

Leaving Leningrad

We have had a fantastic last day in Russia. The sun has been shining all day.

Our first stop was the Aleksander Nevsky Monstery. It was Sunday morning so the church was full of worshippers. We joined in…for about 10 minutes. That was enough to enjoy the voices raised in song – as it is an orthodox service, there is no sitting, which is why we didn’t stay longer, plus, we had to go in search of a certain gentleman we had been eager to find. That’s right…Dostoevsky.

After wandering amongst the fallen and overgrown tombstones we realized we were in the wrong cemetery, and made our way to the far tidier plot which houses the famous graves. We found Dostoevsky, Tchaikovsky, Mussorgsky, and others. We were quite pleased.

From there we hopped on the metro to visit the Chesma Cathedral, where Rasputin laid in state after his murder. A stranger church I have never seen. It is pretty and pink, like a cupcake.

We then zipped back downtown to take in the Russian Museum, which had an exhaustive collection of Russian Art, the early 20th century works being my favorites (i.e. Kandinsky). The museum is housed in the former Mikhailovsky palace and is quite impressive.

To close the day we went to the Grand Hotel Europe – bar none the most elegant hotel in the city. We sat in the uber elegant and refined hotel lounge which doubles as a cigar lounge of sorts. We were there for nearly three hours. I had two cigars and vodkas to match. Betty Lou sipped fruity non-alcoholic cocktails and we nibbled on a fine platter of fruit and cheese. It was a perfect way to close our trip.

We are now going back to our room to prepare for our train trip; we leave at 7 am, so it will be an early day.

We both agree that our trip to Russia has been as wonderful and inspiring as we had imagined. Hopefully Estonia will be equally rewarding.

Thank you again for checking in on us.
For the final time,
Da svidanya,
Dale & Betty Lou

Europe Russia Russia Trip 2007

Tackling the Hermitage

We awoke to more miserable weather today, which persisted until only a few hours ago. Now it is gorgeous – patio weather. I do not recall if I have mentioned it previously, but the daylight part of the day is so long here. I don’t know what time the sun rises, as we have yet to see this occur (which as many of you will know, is rare for us), but it is up very early and the sky is still light at 10pm. As summer approaches, the days will get even longer, until there is only a few hours of darkness each day.

Ok, enough of those trite observations and on to others.

Today we tackled the Hermitage. It is one of the largest museums in the world and is housed in former palaces of Peter & Catherine (the Great[s]). The building is spectacular – one glittering ballroom and throne room after another and each room hung with art from around the globe: everything from classical portraits & religious art to Picasso and Matisse. After awhile it is overwhelming to be in the presence of so much beauty.

Following the day we wound our way back to The Idiot. We both agreed that a finer mixture of atmosphere and food could not be found. We ate mountains of delicious vegetarian Russian food (yes, it does exist – and nary a potato to be found). I had a little vodka and tea, B had a beverage and we worked on a New York Times Crossword and I wrote postcards while enjoying a cigar. We passed nearly three hours in this blissful manner.

A note in cigar prices (although I don’t know if any of my smoking buddies are reading this): Non-Cuban cigars are very expensive, but Cuban cigars are roughly half the price of what they are in Canada. I am in heaven.

We are now meandering our way back to the room for what we hope will be an earlier night. I have several things to accomplish (i.e. sights to see) before leaving Saint Petersburg, but I have not yet decided what we shall do tomorrow. Perhaps I shall let Betty Lou in on the decision making process….

Alright, that’s it.
So long, farewell…
dale & blou

Europe Russia Russia Trip 2007

St Petersburg, Day 2

Ok, I bought some additional time on the computer. Where was i?

Ah yes, we were tired and cranky.

I am pleased to say that a good night’s sleep had restored us to our good humors and me to my agonizingly verbose self.

This morning we slept in until 9 and then had breakfast at the hostel.

Today is 9 May, which is “Victory Day” in Russia (the day they celebrate their victory over the Nazis and all soldiers lost in war). It is kind of like their fourth of July. There was a huge parade today, which somehow we missed, but the streets are thick with Russians waving flags and sporting ribbons and drinking in celebration.

Due to the holiday, all of the museums and attractions are closed. Churches, shops and restaurants are open. I had planned that we would spend the day walking and exploring parks and the river. We gave it a shot, but it was bitterly cold, raining and windy. After about an hour or so, we were frozen, so we holed up at a little cafe and sat there for a couple hours, enjoying coffee and lunch (I had pancakes with mushrooms & Betty Lou had mushroom soup and pancakes with beef).

We then felt ready to take on the day and I led us on a walking tour that took us to the magnificent Cathedral of our Lady of Kazan and St. Nicholas’ Cathedral. We also walked to Sennaya Ploshchad; it is not much to see today, but back in the day it was a favorite haunt of Dostoevsky and is where he got much of the inspiration for the characters in “Crime and Punishment”. We walked past the colossal Mariinsky Theatre and Yusupov’s Palace, which is notable not only for its beauty, but for the fact that it is where Rasputin was killed.

Just down the street is the most fabulous restaurant/bar called “The Idiot” (after the novel). It is just below street level and is comprised of several small rooms decorated with antique typewriters and furniture, comfy leather sofas and dining tables. It is super cozy – exactly the kind of place one would want to spend several hours engaging in pretentious political or philosophical conversation or working on one’s next novel. Each patron is given a complimentary shot of vodka. We spent some time there. I had vodka and a cigar and Betty Lou enjoyed a non-alcoholic cocktail called “A Little Tenderness”. There we met and chatted with three Canadian students touring with their university symphony.

After that, a walk home, with a detour here, to the Internet cafe.

Tomorrow we plan to tackle the Hermitage.

Ok, I think I have brought everyone up to speed.
Good night.
Until next time,
drn & bln

Europe Russia Russia Trip 2007

Mastering the Moscow Metro

Good Day.

We awoke this morning after a surprisingly restful and cozy sleep in our somewhat shabby room. Much to our surprise it was snowing. That’s right, snowing. Fortunately the snow did not last long and it was atmospheric; it IS Russia after all, and it wouldn’t feel right without a little snow.

We ventured onto the Metro (the subway) today to transport ourselves to Red Square. It was quite an adventure, but one, I am pleased to say was without incident. Of course, none of the ticket sellers spoke English, so we had to rely on our rough and rudimentary Russian. Amazingly, we were able to purchase our tickets and made it to our destination. I must note, first of all that the signs in the Metro are entirely in Cyrillic. I must also comment on the stations themselves, which are quite ornate and extremely clean; some of the stations had chandeliers, other had stained glass and sculptures.

We arrived in Red Square and were greeted by St. Basil’s Cathedral, which is magnificent, so much so that it does not seem real. We wandered around the area and visited numerous churches, a former residence of the Romanovs, and the site of the (former) KGB, which, strangely is right across the street from the world’s largest toy store.

Also, at Red Square, we witnessed a curious sight: hundreds of Russian soldiers lined up like, well, soldiers participating in what appeared to be a military ceremony. We couldn’t communicate with anyone to find out what it was, but there was solemn singing and men in uniform.

At some point the sun came out and it was actually beautifully warm…for about 20 minutes.

My great moment of triumph came when I stumbled upon a shop selling candy, coffee, tea, wine, and…..cigars! Despite the fact that the sales people didn’t speak English, I successfully made my purchase. Victory!!

Tomorrow we head to the Kremlin, where, sadly, Lenin is unavailable for viewing. [insert our pouting faces here] That’s right, the old guy had better things to do apparently. Truthfully, I don’t know why his tomb isn’t open, but it is closed until the 15th. Tomorrow night we head to the Bolshoi to see the ballet.

That’s all. Happy trails,

dale & lou

Wandering North

Tag: cigar

Final Destination: Florida

Home from Amsterdam

Afternoon in the Town & A Night at the Opera

Leaving Leningrad

Tackling the Hermitage

St Petersburg, Day 2

Mastering the Moscow Metro