I expected to have a few months off.
I expected to not to have to travel anymore.
But, as the famous Scottish poet, Robert Burns, said:
The best laid schemes of Mice and Men
oft go awry,
And leave us nothing but grief and pain,
For promised joy!
In September I took a short contract with a company, which is based in Paris... which ended up including a trip back to Paris for a few days. Although I spent most of my time in meeting rooms, I had one morning on the weekend to do some exploring. I discovered a lovely area in the 5th arrondissement, Rue Mouffetard, which probably what Rue Cler was like before Rick Steeves wrecked it for the locals. For those who read this site looking for Rue Cler tips - my tip is, after visiting Rue Cler 5 or 6 times, go to Rue Mouffetard instead.
In November I was in Toronto for a meeting, and took the opportunity to make a weekend trip down to New York City with two friends. Aiming for a culinary experience, with every restaurant checked it would meet a high Zagat score, we took time to visit Babbo, ACME, Lavo, Beau Marchais, Mission Chinese, and Pure Thai. Everything was amazing, except for the service at Beau Marchais!
I convinced my fellow travelers to deviate from the plan and take another trip over to Sullvian Street Bakery, to experience where the root of the NY Times no-knead bread I make at home comes from. I also picked up Jim Lahey's new My Pizza book from the bakery while we were there, so look for some pizza this Christmas holidays if you visit.
Sprinkled somewhere between meals we took some time to walk the High Line, and see parts of the west side from up above.
I have more pictures to post, and will hopefully get to them when I have another break!
