Prosit Neu Jahr, Bonne Année!

Tags

cakes, Canada, Halifax, Moose, Musikverein, New Year, Vienna, Weather

The day started with a thick fog and warm mild weather. We heard the fog horn of a laker as it was coming into port but could not see it. I heard the engines but again no sight of the ship, the fog was that thick just 200 feet away. It is hard to believe that today is 1 January, the weather is very mild and it rained all day, very similar to the weather of yesterday in New York. I do not need to say that this is highly unusual, if not abnormal for this time of the year. It seems that in the last 5 years the weather has become warmer and warmer in Winter. Gone are the days of massive snow falls and frigid weather. I do not doubt that we will eventually get a big snow storm, when?

A quiet day with not much going on, which is perfectly fine. Friends dropped by to have coffee and conversation with Will. In fact almost every afternoon someone will drop by for coffee, it is good for Will to see people and have a chat. We have lots of good treats, gum drop cake, ginger biscotti, pistachio-zest of orange-cranberry cookies shortbreads, stollen and some dark chocolates and some Geld.

Again beautiful concert from Vienna on New Year’s day with the Vienna Philharmonic in the Musikverein.

Today we went to visit our friends G & M and their 10 month old baby Max, he is so funny and very animated. At 10 months now you are starting to see his personality, we first saw him at birth and then through out this first period and he changes constantly as he matures, first teeth coming out. He loves to grab peoples glasses and giggles all the while. He also likes to grab men’s noses, it amuses him.

The weather is still warmish and I am going to Halifax to fetch my carpets next week, they called from the shop and they are ready now. The drive is 3 hours and looks like it will be fine, no signs of winter storms in the forecast. When you leave the Island the bridge toll is $51. dollars now, it was set to go up to $59. in 2023 but the Federal Government who owns the bridge and leases the operation to a private company thought otherwise. The toll is essentially for maintenance, there is insufficient traffic at 4,000 cars and trucks per day if compared to Montreal where one bridge alone across the St-Lawrence river see 170K cars/trucks/buses and now trains daily.

I always like to go to Halifax, it is a big city, always something to do and great restaurants.

On New Year’s day we had the traditional Levee at the Club and some 500 people dropped in for a glass of Moose Milk and a piece of cake. I stayed away, that is far too many people for me and a concern for Covid spread. Moose milk is a traditional Canadian alcoholic mixed drink with roots in the historic celebratory events of the Canadian Armed Forces. It is served at the Levée, a New Year’s Day celebration in honour of the King of Canada.

Moose milk is composed of five different ingredients:

• Spirit a combination of Canadian whisky or dark rum
• beverage: Kahlua 
• Dairy: a combination of whole milk, cream, eggnog, or vanilla ice cream
• Sweetener: maple syrup
• Spice: nutmeg

I assure you it’s a very good drink. God Save the King!

Halifax and back

Tags

Canada, Club, Halifax, J.S.Bach, Jubilee Dinner, Leipzig, life, N.S., Public Gardens

I heard a little story tonight taken from the 1723 City Council Meeting of Leipzig in Saxony where J.S.Bach made his career and where he lived with his family. The City Council was looking to hire a new Cantor (music director) and they had their sight on Georg Philip Telemann who was at the time the most famous musician in Europe. The other candidate was J.S.Bach, the job was offered to Telemann but he turned it down, he had better offers elsewhere. So in the minutes of the meeting you can read that the job was then offered to J.S. Bach though the City Councillor thought he was a mediocre choice.

Last Saturday was the Platinum Jubilee Dinner to celebrate 70 years in the Reign of HM Queen Elizabeth, I was on the committee to organize this dinner at the Club. It was a great evening and the PEI Regimental Band played during dinner. The food was exceptional and everyone had a great evening, even the weather was gorgeous. Because I lost weight I was able to fit into my wool/silk Italian suit very comfortably. The Lieutenant Governor attended as our Vice-regal Patron and she came with her ADC who is Commanding Officer of the HMCS Queen Charlotte, he is quite young, can’t be more than 35. I told him he had a good resemblance like a young Tsar Nicholas II, the Lieutenant Governor laughed, she said, Oh Laurent only you would think of saying such a thing.

Here I am with the two members who worked on this evening for 4 months, I was happy to be able to assist.

On Monday I drove 3 hours in fog and rain to Halifax and because it was Monday lots of big trucks on the road. I was tired when I got to my destination. I picked up the 6 Oriental carpets from the shop Tabrizi who had cleaned them following the traditional method.

Stayed in downtown Halifax one block away from the Provincial Legislature just below the Citadel. Halifax is a big city and it has loads of history and great heritage buildings. It was the first City the British created in 1745 in their war of conquest against France. So the City has this garrison appearance with its great citadel at the top of the hill, forts in the islands defending the approaches to the City. Many old cemeteries to British Officers and soldiers, many in the Royal Navy. The street names are reminders of the old alliances between Prussia, German Principalities and the UK, like Dresden Row, Coburg. Many of the early settlers were also German and Dutch mercenaries brought over from Europe by Britain to fight the French.

The abundance of stone gives the city a great appearance with its Georgian architecture. One place worth visiting in Halifax is the Public Gardens first designed in 1837 and then enlarge and opened to the public in 1875, the designer was Richard Power and this is one of the rare surviving Victoria era garden in Canada. Bedding patterns, exotic foliage, the serpentine, favourite Victorian era flowers, trees, and bushes, there is also the old bandstand, benches, statuary all original of the period. It is a delight to walk in this garden situated along Spring Garden Road.

The Diamond Jubilee Fountain erected in 1897 in the Public Gardens for Queen Victoria.

Shopping in Halifax is also fun, they have quite a variety of luxury products and other items simply hard to find or not available in Charlottetown, we are a very small town. I did stop at IKEA, they have 3 of them, I did not realize that until I looked at the map. I had some items to get for the Club and at the same time I bought dishes for the house. They also have a wonderful chocolate shop on Morris street by the new Library. They had Ginger covered in dark chocolate by Roger’s, a Canadian Company. I also found this coffee cup for Will.

Will loved it!

The drive back was fairly easy, the weather was sunny and warm. I hope to return to Halifax in the Fall with more carpets to clean. Though I was speeding on the Hwy and at the first traffic circle entering Charlottetown, the RCMP caught me. The Officer Parsons was nice enough to let me go with only a $130. ticket, it could have been much worse, I was 20 miles over the speed limit.

This past week

Tags

Charlottetown, Halifax, Haviland Club, Nova Scotia, Oriental carpets, Tereza Berganza

This week one of the great Opera singer died, Teresa Berganza
March 16, 1933 – May 13, 2022. She truly was a star of the Opera stage and lucky those who heard her perform. Will did many times. He wrote a blog entry on her passing. willyorwonthe.wordpress.com/2022/05/13/another-great-has-left-the-stage

Tomorrow morning I am going away to Halifax, 3 hours down the road off Island. I am collecting my 6 Oriental carpets from the cleaners of such rugs in Bedford a suburb of Halifax. I will return to PEI on Tuesday.

Last night at the Club, we had a mix-in Military Dinner with members of the PEI Regiment and the regimental bands, Members of the Royal Canadian Navy and Air Force. Everyone was wearing their Mess Kit. The food was wonderful the main course was a filet of Beef Wellington, one of my favourite dishes. The best part was because I have lost 11 lbs I was able to wear comfortably my Italian silk and wool dark blue suit. I bought that suit in Rome in 2010. I could not wear it because I had gained so much weight.

Here I am in the Great room of Farringford House with my fellow members in their mess kit of the PEI Regiment, the fellow next to me is a Colonel and the other fellow a Captain, both now retired from the Armed Forces.

I still need to loose 20 lbs. I was asked to make the Loyal Toast to Her Majesty at the dinner this being the Platinum Jubilee Year. I followed the formula of Windsor Castle, not the one President Obama got caught it by speaking the name of the Queen to soon which is always the cue for the band leader to give the signal to start playing the Royal Anthem. Once they start they cannot stop. So I was careful to word it properly and we had the Royal Anthem on cue.

Because the Lieutenant Governor was also present, the band played the Royal Salute upon her arrival with her ADC a Canadian Royal Navy Commodore. There is a lot of protocol in such dinners, the food was fantastic, the wines and the port was also very good. Throughout the evening the Band played including Canadian Regimental marches.

H.H. Antoinette Perry, Lieutenant Governor of PEI with members of the PEI Regimental Band and her ADC, Cdr John Macdonald, Commanding Officer of Naval Base Charlottetown on the right.

My little trip to Halifax

Tags

Halifax, life, Nova Scotia, road trip

The Old Clock Tower on Citadel Hill of 1803, a wood structure in the Palladian style, recently renovated.

On Hollis Street, old home used as an office.

The old Lions of NSCAD Univ.

The 1800 Palladian style Official Residence of the Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia, built by Governor Wentworth who had previously been Governor of New Hampshire, he fled at the revolution and was named as Lieutenant Governor of N.S. he was replaced by a professional soldier in 1808 when war with the USA threatened. To this day the Lieutenant Governor wears the Windsor Coat, official dress for any official ceremony. Once upon a time prior to 1970 in Canada, all officials of senior rank wore this uniform.

It was a 2 day trip to bring oriental carpets to be cleaned in the only store that does this in the maritime region. The business is owned by an Iranian family and are well known in Nova Scotia. I am very happy to have met them, they have a gorgeous store and their carpet selection is wonderful. We had a good talk about the cleaning etc and I could see they were knowledgeable. From what I could gather they fled Iran in 1979 at the revolution and came to Canada to establish themselves. They speak French, the way the educated do in Old Iran. I will be going back in 3 weeks to get my 6 carpets and will bring others that need a good cleaning. The process is very different from the modern synthetic carpets, Orientals must be treated the way a nice wool sweater would be treated, gently no harsh chemicals or big industrial machines. Most of my carpets come from Baluchistan, that region between Iran and Afghanistan.

Halifax is a big seaport, with ship building, a Royal Canadian Navel base, saw 4 war ships in dock, container port and marinas. The city itself is a mix of modern and heritage buildings. General, Sir Edward Cornwallis founded Halifax in 1749, he was at the time the military governor in Nova Scotia but had to contend with a large population of Catholic, French Speaking Acadians and Mi’k Maq natives who were loyal to the King of France.

There are lots of good restaurants and bars, things to see and visit, a beautiful area on the sea. Here are some photos of the city core, area

Many old building in the core of the city have been saved by incorporating the facade into a modern building. The street maintains its historical character.

The Legislative building of Nova Scotia, our own Legislative building mimics this one with its Georgian Style.

These two buildings currently house the Art gallery of Nova Scotia. The Teichert Gallery with the red banner has beautiful paintings you can rent to buy. It is located across the street from the Legislature.

The other visit I made was to IKEA, they do deliver items to PEI but I had not been in 3 years, so it was worth going to see what was on offer. The weather was good and had dinner with friends at LaFrasca, an Italian restaurant on Spring Garden Road.

The trip back to PEI appeared a lot faster and I was back at the Confederation Bridge in no time at all or so it appeared.

Halifax

Tags

carpets, Halifax, life, Nova Scotia

Well I loaded the car with the oriental carpets I am taking with me tomorrow to Halifax. It’s a 3 hour drive down to Nova Scotia. I will first go to cross the bridge at Borden and then due East towards Amherst and Halifax via Truro.

I will stop first in Bedford which is a suburb of Halifax near the international airport just North of the city and then I will go downtown staying within walking distance of everything. The weather looks good for the 2 days I am in Halifax.

The city has lots of really good restaurants and cocktail bars, it is a very large city compared to Charlottetown. It has a very different feel all together being an important sea port right on the Atlantic coast.

This weekend

Tags

Beaverbrook, Budget, Food, Fredericton, Halifax, Riopelle, Ukraine

A quiet time really, much was done this week and now it is quiet. I continue to be horrified by the situation in Ukraine and the war crimes of Russia. The Federal Budget came out yesterday and I am happy with it. I think that Chrystia Freeland as Finance Minister gave us a responsible budget and is addressing important issues. I was also happy to see Justice Brown Jackson confirmed to the US Supreme Court, I heard her speak at the hearing and was impressed with her knowledge and calm, well spoken, she will do well on the Bench. She reminds me of our Canadian Supreme Court Judges, in the way she handles herself.

I am still trying to plan a trip to Halifax which is 325 km away. I would go over 2 days so as not to be too tired.

We visited Fredericton in New Brunswick 2 years ago and at the time the Beaverbrook Art Gallery was closed for a large second expansion construction work. It reopens this weekend with a Jean-Paul Riopelle, CC GOQ RCA (1923-2002) painting exhibit.

He was a painter and sculptor from Quebec, Canada. He had one of the longest and most important international careers of the sixteen signatories of the Refus Global, the 1948 manifesto that announced the Quebecois artistic community’s refusal of clericalism and provincialism.

If ever you visit Fredericton, do go see the Beaverbrook Gallery, it’s collection is beautiful and extensive. The city itself is rich in Canadian History and great heritage architecture. It became an important military garrison town during the revolution in the colonies, several well known figures like Major Andre, Benedict Arnold and others came to Fredericton and their homes can be seen. Fredericton is the Capital of New Brunswick and is name after one of the sons of King George III.

The Beaverbrook Gallery with the new Harrison McCain wing.

I always say to people who would not visit an art gallery that if you go and see a painting that appeals to you, think that the painter is talking to you. The painting is a conversation and the painter is expressing a thought, an idea or a mood. Every painting has a story just like a book, it is up to you to make the effort to decipher what is going on.

Harrison McCain (1927-2004) was the potato king in Florenceville, New Brunswick. McCain products can be seen in all grocery stores from french fries to frozen pizza. He died some years ago and his family gave money to have this wing built at the Beaverbrook. Back in 1984, I was starting my Foreign Service Career and in those days, the Department of Foreign Affairs would send all new recruits on a Canada wide tour. We came to visit the McCain factory and HQ in Florenceville. Harrison McCain, spoke rapid-fire English — and he drove his Cadillac just as fast. He was assertive, salty-tongued, headstrong, and charismatic, he greeted us and like all multi-billionaire business tycoon, he was super confident in his product and it was a national success. After showing us around and boasting about the Frozen French Fry, he showed us a new products aimed at kids after school snack, the mini pizza. It was no bigger than 3 inches across with a tomato cheese topping. The audience test had gone very well, mothers and kids loved it. He asked if we had any questions, one colleague of mine being very earnest and a bit of an nutritional activist, said; Mr McCain how do you feel about feeding fast food to children and ruining their health. McCain was obviously very angry at this question, he immediately demanded the name of this person. We were ushered out quickly and the next day we heard that he had phoned Ottawa and spoke to the Minister asking that this individual be sacked on the spot for attacking a national brand. This person was not fired, but we were told in no uncertain terms never to do this ever again.

Two shows

Tags

car, Halifax, PEI, Spring, tourism, Travel, tune-up

Being members of the Haviland Club and doing the newsletter and involved with memberships means that every week I have a lot to do, all on a volunteer basis. Will being the musical one, his involved with the theatre play reading group and with entertainment.

On Friday 1 and 2 April, we had 2 shows dinner/theatre style. It was a great success and lots of fun. All the shows are done by volunteers, many are Club Members, so it is a lot of work and fun.

The Friday show was located in a real small Italian village of Poggi Bonzi, in central Tuscany.

The second show was about Gypsies or Travellers as they are called now.

It really is Spring now, the weather is mild and rainy. On April 22 in about 3 weeks the first Cruise ship in two years is scheduled to arrive, restaurants are frantically looking for staff and the use of frantically is not an exaggeration. The owners still don’t get it, low pay means no staff after these 2 years of shut down. This also applies to kitchen staff and cooks. It is a really serious issue, but greed has made a lot of owners blind and obtuse in facing this problem. Our politicians do not help either, too many back door deals with business groups at the expense of employees, this is the Island way as they say here.

We also have now a serious problem with Covid infections in PEI, the highest rate in Canada per Capita. The Government gave in to business groups who were crying poverty while riding around in the Mercedes Benz S class. So the policy now is do nothing and let it ride. Not too happy about that but you know money talks.

I really need to go to Halifax at some point, probably next week for 2 days to get some oriental carpet cleaned. It’s an easy drive and it will be nice to leave the Island for the first time in almost 3 years.

Halifax, 500,000 population, originally the city as a military garrison city and sea port was heavily fortified, the citadel is a sight to see. When Halifax was founded in 1749, the majority of residents were from England, Ireland and Scotland. Soon after they were joined by immigrants from Germany and New England. Black people, some from Africa, others escaping enslavement in the United States, settled in or near Halifax beginning in the 18th century.

Today Monday off to the garage for a Spring Tune up and change of tires. I also need my annual inspection for my car licence, it is a bit silly to do this each year but this is the way in PEI. Of course this morning it is snowing lightly, it is called a Spring Snow, how poetic.

Canadian Painter

Tags

Art Gallery, art., Halifax, life, Maud Lewis, Nova Scotia

We were in Halifax about 3 weeks ago, an easy drive of 3 hours from Charlottetown across the Sea Bridge down to Truro and a hop and a skip to Halifax. This time around I wanted to visit the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia to see the collection.

The Art gallery is housed in 2 buildings next to each other, one is an old government building facing the Legislature and the other is an Italianate style stone building called the Dominion building which has a statue of Britannia sitting on the roof.

The two building have an underground passageway connecting them. The collection of Canadian art is of good quality and interesting featuring many artists. The one in particular I wanted to see  was the works of Maud Lewis (1903-1970) born in Yarmouth and died in Digby, Nova Scotia. She married in 1938 Everett Lewis. Prior to being married Maud had a daughter out of wedlock named Catherine Dowley. Maud never acknowledged her daughter who moved to Ontario and had a family of her own.

I had heard much about Maud Lewis and she is one of those painters discovered late in life by the art world and the public and became a celebrity, though that did not enrich her at all. Today she is an icon in the Canadian art world for her simple ”naif” or folk art style of painting. Maud (Dowley) Lewis came from a simple background, her family were tradespeople, her father John was well known in Yarmouth for making good quality leather harness and other leather goods.  Maud was born suffering from juvenile rheumatoid arthritis and for the rest of her life suffered from this crippling disease. She was a very small women described as gnome like and her hands were severely deformed.

Her interest in art came from her mother Agnes who would paint Christmas cards and sell them to supplement the family’s income.  After her parents death Maud lived as a recluse and her only brother grew distant and rarely saw her.

At the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia a section of the museum is dedicated to her and her tiny little house in which she lived with her husband Everett Lewis, it has been transported from its original site and reconstructed for visitors to see.  It is as it was during her life, quite small, basically a one room house, with all the furniture, paint brushes and other items one finds in a house. What is so special about this little tiny house, is that Maud Lewis painted and decorated every inch of the place inside and out including the glass windows.

 

The house as it appears re-installed inside the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia today.

Her paintings are joyful and full of vibrant colours, showing life and scenes around her and what she saw.

Though I was not particularly interested in Maud Lewis as a painter despite having heard of her, coming to the gallery and seeing her tiny house and several of her paintings, I was enchanted by her work. It was I think the simple beauty of it all, childlike quality and the joy which radiated from her work. She has no agenda, no ideology, no philosophy or trying to pass a message. It is simply art for the beauty of it.

 

 

203 miles or 3 hours and 28 min.

Tags

art., cocktails, Food, Halifax, Nova Scotia, vacation

This is the distance between Charlottetown PEI and Halifax N.S. by car or 3 hours and 28 min. A lot of people will go to Halifax for the day.  Halifax is an old sea port on the Atlantic, population half a million people compared to the small town status of 36,000 for Charlottetown.

Travelling by road to Halifax is not that difficult and the road is quite nice. You get a very different vibe as you cross from one province to another, once over the sea bridge to New Brunswick and then down the Highway to Nova Scotia, you know you crossed a border, I don’t know how that is done but everything looks different in the scenery despite being still in the Maritimes.

Halifax with its famous Citadelle. 

We are going for a few days for a change of scenery and to see friends and try out new restaurants and old favourites, staying in the historical downtown. The weather looks like it will be warmer.

We hope to return to a favourite of ours Bar Kismet, barkismet.com   excellent cocktails and superb cuisine and also try new places, Ostrich Club https://theostrichclub.ca and Field Guide   https://fieldguidehfx.com.

There will be shopping and just plain fun. As I write this the Premier of PEI has just announced that the Provincial Election for the Legislature is now underway. He had been to see the Lieutenant Governor, H.H. Antoinette Perry today to ask for her to dissolve the Legislature so the election could take place. Saw the Premier a few days ago and he looked preoccupied and was not his usual talkative self. Everyone was expecting him to announce we would be going to the polls in April and yes we are on 23 April just after Easter weekend. The Green Party is very strong in the polls right now and the Liberals have been in Office for 12 years, many feel it is time for a change.

Looking forward to driving to Halifax, should be fun. The road will be Charlottetown to the bridge at Borden, then across the Strait 12Km, to Sackville, N.B. to Amherst, N.S. down to  Truro and straight to Halifax.

 

 

 

Life Events

Tags

Birthday, Halifax, Harness races, Mont Blanc cake, PEI Symphony

This evening is the 51th Gala of the PEI Symphony with our New York Juilliard Maestro Mark Shapiro at the Top of the Park restaurant at Red Shores raceway. Live orchestra with a well known Island singer Tara MacLean and comedian Patrick Ledwell. It is sold out and it promises to be a very nice evening with harness racing live on which we can place bets, live auction the items are wonderful, plane tickets, pounds of lobsters, Canadian artist art work, designer jewellery, etc and great food, I really like Top of the Park, their food is alway tops and the menu changes daily. The guest list is impressive, the ”gratin” of the Island will be present, all the big names. Will has worked very hard at organizing this event, preparing things and giving interviews to the press.

 

Tomorrow is my 63rd Birthday, friends will come for a glass of bubbly and a Mont Blanc Cake which has chestnut purée and whipped cream. This is my favorite cake, we use to have it all the time in Rome. Will surprised me today with a beautiful bouquet of flowers.

The cake I ordered from my favourite pastry chef Valerie. A Mont Blanc with Chestnut purée. “Mont Blanc” cake. Layers of vanilla sponge, soaked with chocolate liquor, then chestnut mascarpone cream, meringue, more chestnut cream, whipped cream, more meringue, more cream… more… more…more. Topped off with shaved white chocolate.

We will be going to Halifax about 3 hours away for a few days, change of scenery and to see friends.

Birthday Bouquet it has a subtle fragrance