Back to my roots...

In the morning of June 13th, I finally got home to Antibes after a whirlwind trip south of the border of California.  I have been back now for 3 days and it's taking a bit of an adjustment but I think I am going to be okay...  It actually feels good.  It feels like home.  I am off the fast track and enjoying the slow lane...

I've moved in with my mom and my uncle in the house I grew up.  There's enough room for all of us and they could use a hand.  My mom does too much anyway and she needs a break.  She just has to learn to let go and let me do a few things...  It's different for all of us but we are starting to figure it out and I am glad to report we are doing great.  They love having me around and I love being here.  

I haven't made it past a mile from the house yet.  I am still adjusting and getting settled here.  It's gonna take a while... I look forward to exploring Antibes and surrounding areas and I promise to share my new adventures.

In the meantime, I'm enjoying spending time with mom and my uncle and soon the rest of the family, playing house in this beautiful home, watching the sun rise, enjoying long days, going to the beach, eating cheeses and charcuterie, reconnecting with old friends and figuring out how french people function!  And I'm even starting to cook again!  So this blog might come back to its original purpose a bit more.  Here is a start.  A simple lunch mom and I put together today.  

It was a "daurade" or sea bream baked with some tomatoes a bit of white wine, olive oil, whole unpeeled garlic cloves, Herbes de Provence, lemon slices and shallots.  Salt and pepper of course and the fish had some parsley, thyme and bay leaf inside.  We baked it at 400ºF for about 35 minutes.  I sauteed some Belgian endives in butter and olive oil with a bit of sugar, salt and pepper, covered, for about 5 minutes on each side.  We made some rice and voila!  It was absolutely delicious!!  It's good to be home... 

Before and after picture of the fish

Lunch on the French Riviera...

Mendoza

I am just now returning from 4 days in Mendoza, the most famous wine region of Argentina and the place I chose to celebrate my birthday cause I love Malbec... And it was not disappointed!  I mean, give me bold red wines, great foods to match and the snow-covered Andes in the background and it is a pretty good recipe for a fantastic time.

I arrived on Tuesday afternoon and I was starving.  Before I even checked into my hotel, I went straight to Azafran.  The food was simple and delicious and the Malbec to top it off was perfect.  I lingered the rest of the day in my luxurious hotel room.  I usually don’t spend much money on accommodations but it was my birthday after all so why not.  The Diplomatic Diplomatic Hotel was beautiful and had the best breakfast buffet every morning.  Which is exactly what you need before you start drinking wine by 10:30am...

So on my birthday, I took a tram to Maipu, the closest wine region to the city center of Mendoza.  I took a free tour at Lopez Bodega.  It was very informative and detailed and the wines were pretty nice too.

From there I took a 15-minute taxi ride to El El Enemigo.  I enjoyed a lovely hearty lunch paired with wines at their restaurant.  It was 45 degrees outside and the potato soup and lamb goulash were welcomed.   It is kind of strange to be spending my birthday in winter when I usually have sushi and a walk on the beach on a warm day.... It is still very sunny here and dry.  They get 300 days of sunshine but the difference in temperatures during winter and summer and days and nights is wide.  All these conditions make for colorful,  bold and delicious Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon and Franc.  To end a great birthday, I lounged in my hotel room and even got my own little birthday cake delivered from the front desk...

On my 3rd day, I signed up for a tour with Mendoza Wine Experience to take me around Lujan de Cuyo , another wine region in Mendoza, larger and closer to the Andes.  I joined a group of Australians, Brazilians and Argentinians.  We first headed to Renacer for a tour and tasting.  They have beautiful grounds and delicious wines.  From there, we headed to a much smaller and family-run winery, Caleum.  We finished our tour with a delicious 6-course lunch paired with wines, of course, at RucaMalen.  The food was outstanding, the wines were fabulous and the view was gorgeous.

Yesterday, I was lucky enough to stay an extra day.  The company that I booked my flight with  had cancelled my late-afternoon return flight to replace it with an early afternoon one.  After several emails, they changed my flight to a morning departure the day after.  So, I went on to visit the Uco Valley and I am so glad I did.  I booked a tour with the same company and they picked me up again early in the morning.  It was 8:30am and the sun was just rising.  I was with a whole group of very nice Brazilians.  We drove for about an hour and a half before we reached our first winery, Azul. Very small boutique wines that we enjoyed outside in a 44 degrees weather but the background and the wines were so good, you forget you are almost freezing.  From there we headed to Salentein.  This is a large winery owned by Dutch investors that went all out to build a magnificent yet understated bodega.  The building, the acoustic in the barrel room and the art are superb.  Their Primus Cabernet Sauvignon was the best I tasted all week.  Of course, at $50 a bottle, it is also the most expensive wine I’ve had.  

For lunch we went to the nearby Domaine Bousquet and enjoyed a nice lunch at their Gaia Restaurant in a relaxing atmosphere.

I am very glad I came to this part of Argentina and truly enjoyed the bounties of the region.  It was a perfect place to celebrate my last birthday in my forties... I was even blessed with a stunning sunrise on my way out at the airport.

Buenos Aires

It’s been 5 days now that I’ve been in the autonomous city of  Buenos Aires, Argentina.  Winter arrived the day after I landed and it’s been cold and rainy which is weird for me because it is June.  I’m not used to spending my birthday bundled up like an Eskimo.  I’m sure I’ll manage cause I’ll be drinking Malbec in Mendoza...

Anyway, armed with my umbrella, I’ve really been enjoying this big city with European influence. It has some cobblestone-lined streets, small and big markets, amazing restaurants, exquisite architecture, many plazas and fun bars, great neighborhoods, lively parties and a pretty good bus-subway-taxi system to get around.

Argentinians stay up late.  They eat late.  They party late.  They sleep not too late.  I’m glad I arrived with a 2-hour difference from Peru, I jumped right in.  Literally, as my friends took me to a bar where a 14-piece band was playing some latin music, on a Monday night, when I arrived.  We got there by 10:30pm and danced till midnight. Yup, I loved it.  I also went dancing on Thursday at Club 69 where they had an on-going show all night.  We left just before from 4am.  No I haven’t danced tango yet.  I went to a class but it was not happening.  I still have time...

So far, I’ve visited the neighborhoods  of Palermo, Recoleta and Centro.  The cemetery and the Teatro Colon are two of my favorite things I’ve seen so far.  Two great restaurants to try: Sunae  and Proper.  After Proper, have a drink at Verne.

Today, we went out of the city to spend the day at Tiger Isle and it was just beautiful and tranquile on the river.  The trees have colorful fall foliage. Oh yeah, that’s right it’s June in Argentina and it’s almost 10pm. I have to get ready to go out...