by Steven Cole; Lowell, MI
For years, our good friend Johnny Cheung, a Hong Kong businessman who travels to the US often, urged my wife, Sharon, and me to visit his native city. However, some other destination always seemed to capture our interest more.
My guide, Roberto, met me at Madrid’s airport, we rented a car and minutes later we were southbound on the freeway, immersed in the vastness of La Mancha. It’s a tough terrain. A windmill — weathered into a rough little useless nub — still capped its blustery hill.
The Villa San Michele School of Cookery is located in Villa San Michele (Via Doccia, 4-50014 Fiesole, Florence, Italy; phone +39 055 567 8200, fax 567 8250), an Orient-Express luxury boutique hotel in a former monastery overlooking Florence.
The school’s half-day cooking classes, “Morning with the Chef,” are offered to villa guests Mon., Thurs. & Sat., April through Oct. (except Aug.). The basic course costs $200 per person or, with six to ten people, $180 each.
My wife, Sandy, and I arrived in Hong Kong, China, a stop on our ’round-the-world trip, in July 2013. Looking for excitement, we took the funicular to the top of Victoria Peak. There were lots of little fast-food joints up there plus, at the terminus of the road up to the peak, a place that was definitely upscale. It was in a very fine contemporary house sitting across the street from and south of the terminus for the funicular.
Just wanted to follow up on the letter “Alsatian Wine Route with LCA Toptour” (June ’14, pg. 12) in which Stephen O. Addison, Jr., wrote about his excellent experience with LCA Toptour (8 Place de la Gare, 68000, Colmar, France; phone 03 89 41 90 88).
Visitors to Japan who are looking for a home-cooked meal can sign up with Nagomi Visit (based in Japan), a nonprofit service that matches visitors with local families.
In the 1700s, Haiti was the glory of the French colonies and one of the richest colonies in the world. In 1804, Haiti, then known as Saint-Domingue, became an independent republic. Over the years, poor leadership and other issues caused economic troubles from which Haiti has never fully recovered, and the earthquake in 2010 only exacerbated the problems.
9-day, 7-night “learning journey” in Tuscany, ITALY, Oct. 11-19, 2014. Highlights: Learn Italian in five 4-hour-long morning classes, taught by professional instructor/2-part cooking course/culinary and historical walking tours/taste wines and local produce at winery in hills above Lucca. Land, from $2,360. Single supp., $602.
Italy Vacations (Woodcliff Lake, NJ; 800/482-5925).
Jeanette Mell; Menlo Park, CA
My husband, Ed, and I spent four nights in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, in April 2013 prior to a cruise. Arriving at the airport at night helped immensely with jet lag (May ’14, pg. 14). When we reached our hotel, the Arabian Courtyard Hotel & Spa, we got a light snack and went straight to bed.