Category Archives: Peregrinations

We went to Rio del Mar tonight, dined at Palio (the prize to the horse winning the annual race in Sienna, but that’s another story), then hit the casino. I won at both roulette and blackjack, Maria had to chase away a blonde who thought she was my good luck charm, and we drove home under a huge, beautiful full moon. We walked back to the villa through the forest amidst the tree frogs. This is a burden, but someone must do it.

Download MP3

and now also on iTunes

We dined in Fern here at the resort on Monday, run by Jean George, whose Manhattan restaurant we aren’t crazy about, despite its reputation. We encountered the same here, rather indifferent food. But last night we dined in a highly recommended informal restaurant about 30 minutes away, and enjoyed mofongo, which is fried plantain, mashed with garlic and oil. It is accompanied with seafood or chicken or beef. Fabulous.

The pool area at the resort is gorgeous, and contains several levels with islands amidst them. I found two, yard-long iguanas on one of them, a lime-green specimen and an olive drab colleague. The latter was on the ground and staring at me at eye level as I stood in five feet of water. These are wild animals and come and go as they please, meaning they swim across the pools to hunt food or visit friends! (Iguanas can swim in the ocean, often traveling between islands.)

Can you picture a kid in the pool suddenly watching a small dinosaur coasting by, with those huge, rotating eyes taking him in? The kid screams for his parents, the iguana disappears, and his parents assure him that there are no monsters in the pool. It would, perversely, make my day and no doubt drive the kid eventually into psychology where he would unsuccessfully attempt to deal with his own demons.

I digress.

The weather has been great, the ocean warm, the place serene. Tonight we’ll go off property for dinner and some modest gambling.

Be careful, you might want to stay out of the water!

© Alan Weiss 2012. All rights reserved.

We flew from Providence to Atlanta to San Juan yesterday, on two very full but very fine Delta flights. Excellent service.  A car took us on the 40-minute trip to the St. Regis Bahia Beach Resort, and we were greeted by flaming cauldrons on the pools leading to the entrance under a full moon. It was 80-something degrees.

A welcoming rum punch and a private check-in and we were off, via golf cart, to our suite. Breakfast today on the balcony overlooking the ocean, and lunch (a foot-long hot dog) on the beach with a Bahia Beach: rum, muddled cantaloupe, and coconut milk in the coconut. You just can’t beat muddled coconut.

The Atlantic is warm and the beach empty. We dine tonight in the resort’s flagship restaurant, Fern, run by none other than famed chef Jean George.

© Alan Weiss 2012. All rights reserved.

I couldn’t upload my photos in Sydney because of a wire that caused my lap top to lose power, so here’s an example of the view from my suite on a threatening day.

The Harbor Bridge and the Opera House

My flight out of Sydney was 90 minutes late, I suspect because Qantas mechanics are once again using the public to strike back at management. The flight itself was fine. But Qantas, trying to help, cancelled my nonstop Boston ticket because they were afraid I’d miss the flight, and rebooked me through Chicago. Turns out, I could have made the original flight with 30 minutes to spare.

Chicago, of course, has weather problems. So, I’m sitting in the Admiral’s Club in O’Hare waiting for a scheduled 10:15 pm flight to Boston, but they don’t know if the crew will be here on time. As it is, I get into Boston at 1:20 am, then will have to see if my luggage made it, and if not I’ll have to take more time to file a claim.

With all of that, it’s been a great trip, the conclusion of five major events: Toronto, Boston, Palm Beach, Newport, and Australia (Melbourne and Sydney). I’m happy and grateful all worked out so well, and I’ll be relieved when we have wheels up tonight.

Ten day, 20,000 miles or so, 80 people, excellent business.

© Alan Weiss 2011. All rights reserved.

We concluded the Sydney workshop and “mini-college” today, and I had a great time. We had a fabulous group and covered a huge amount of material.

I’m ensconced in the wonderful, fabulous Qantas first class lounge, but my flight to LA is delayed by 90 minutes, which will make my connection to Boston highly problematic. My first reaction is: Is it a legitimate problem or still another Qantas union job action?

President Obama has gone on to Bali. He was very warmly received here despite some terribly lame jokes and use of Aussie slang, that left the locals smirking. At least his plane tends to leave on time.

© Alan Weiss 2011. All rights reserved.

Dinner in Melbourne with Andrew Hollo and his wife, Katie, at The Press Club was fabulous, though Andrew tricked me into walking more than my maximum three blocks to get there. Want to talk about government interference? When I questioned the manager about what had happened to apparently half of my martini, he told me the government mandates the size of drinks! What’s up with that, mate?!

Back to Sydney and a day and a half of relaxation and writing, overlooking the harbor. Then dinner at the Shangri-La’s Altitude Restaurant for my first 12 registrants. Today was the first day of my program here, with a fabulous group of 29 from all over Australia and from New Zealand (and Linda Popky from the US).

President Obama is here with me, and we’re trying to stay out of each other’s way. He’s in Canberra, and I’m pretty sure I have better digs here in the Shangri-La than he has there. I’m also flying in a plane larger than his going back, an A380 compared to his 747.

© Alan Weiss 2011. All rights reserved.