Hair! The Market and Ballet

April 19 - 30

I'm happy to report we had SMASHING weather for a couple of weeks -- sunny and warm, lending a cheery demeanor to most everyone, it seemed. But that came to a halt as the first weekend of May arrived...here's hoping it warms up again! 50 and gray/rainy make for great sleeping/coffee drinking weather.

Post ash hold ups found us whipping through school stuff, after school activity stuff, homework stuff, the norm. Claire's international committee at school pulled me in for Tex Mex festivities, as apparently living in Texas for six years qualifies one to be an expert at whipping up Tex Mex favorites.

So I huddled with several other cook types to plan a Cinco de Mayo fest. Can't go wrong with margaritas and chips/salsa, can we?

I also enlisted the babysitter for an evening performance of "Hair," a musical I'd arranged to see w/ the ladies. Unfortunately my "date" for the evening was trapped in Cincinnati due to ash issues so Joe got to attend (not necessarily his first choice theatre entertainment). The synopsis:

'A story of love, friendship and very long hair...'

HAIR is about a group of young New Yorkers in the 60's struggling to balance their lives and loves, rejecting the lifestyles of their conservative parents and rebelling against the looming draft. As the plot develops, each tribe member tells their story although two become increasingly compelling: Berger the tribe’s ring leader and Claude its conscience.

Claude is enrapt by his new life, in awe of Berger and in love with university student Sheila. But he's faced with an unbearable decision - resist the draft as his friends have done, or compromise his pacifist principles and step up for his country...

Infectious, outlandish and exuberant, HAIR has gained iconic status since erupting onto the musical theatre scene in 1967 and is responsible for many era defining songs that have become part of the twentieth century pop landscape. And as critics and audiences have found, the messages of HAIR are as relevant today as they have ever been.

While it certainly held my attention, there just isn't enough hippie in me to say I enjoyed it that much. And I'm out of the loop on the music so there you go. I was thankful not to be in the front row as one of the hairy cast members took off his shoes and enlisted a member of the audience in a foot rub. You could say the Hair cast definitely interacts w/ the audience, at times creeping across chairs as they perform.

In other news...

Claire's student led conference took place in late April; she did a great job presenting her portfolio, which showcases her 2nd grade work up to this point. She's enjoyed the year and done well in class, we can proudly state!

On the 23rd I got to put on my foodie hat and spend a few hours touring Borough Market. About the place...

Borough Market is London’s most renowned food market; a source of exceptional British and international produce.

Since its renaissance as a retail market just over a decade ago, it has become a haven for anybody who cares about the quality and provenance of the food they eat - chefs, restaurateurs, passionate amateur cooks and people who just happen to love eating and drinking.

The market is populated by a community of remarkable individuals from all over the UK, Europe and the rest of the world.

As far back as 1014, and probably earlier, London Bridge (near where the market is located) attracted traders selling grain, fish, vegetables and livestock. In the 13th century traders were relocated to what is now Borough High Street and a market has existed there since.

In 1755 the market was closed by Parliament, but a group of Southwark residents raised £6,000 to buy a patch of land known locally as The Triangle, once the churchyard of St Margaret’s, and reopened the market. The Triangle, where you’ll find Northfield Farm and Furness Fish and Game, is still at the heart of the market today.

The market continues to feed this core community and has grown to include about 130 individual stalls.

With a group of fellow foodies of all ages and from various parts of the world, I followed our guide, Celia, around the market -- first starting with "elevenses" at Roast, a well-known, well-loved restaurant in the middle of Borough Market. Elevenses is a small, late morning meal. Ours featured a few British specialties (rarebit, sausages, carrot cake). All delicious!

From Roast we wandered the market, stopping at various stalls -- mostly favorites of Celia for various reasons -- great produce or purveyors of exotic foods. She pointed out vegetables and fruits currently in season, gave tips for preparing them, etc. (Celia is a chef, cookbook author and has her own garden plot.) She has developed relationships with various vendors at the market, so we got to do some tasting at some of the stalls -- the scallops, harvested south of us, were incredibly tasty, as were the roasted lamb/beef and pork at another stall. We got to hold an ostrich egg and learn about ostrich meat (which led me to pick up ostrich burgers for the weekend -- tasty and quite like beef).

Other stops were to taste olive oils and balsamic vinegars, chorizo and Spanish cheese and olives, tomato relishes, flan...

We took a break mid-way through and tasted two wines, white and red, with nibbles in a lovely, rustic old cellar converted into a tasting room for a little wine shop.

When we parted company I picked up a few fresh items and retrieved the kids -- great day out!

The next day we took the kids to see "The Ballet Shoes," a children's ballet performance. It was very well done; the talent is amazing, particularly considering the ages of the performers. The kids seemd to enjoy it, and Claire read the book prior to attending so she had a very good understanding of the story.

To kick off the following week, I went along on a tour of Leighton House with our fearless leader, Alice Leader (no pun intended).

About Leighton House:

The house was the former home and studio of the leading Victorian artist, Frederic, Lord Leighton (1830-1896). Built to designs by George Aitchison, it was extended and embellished over a period of 30 years to create a private palace of art.

The Arab Hall is the centerpiece of the house. Designed to display Leighton's priceless collection of over a thousand Islamic tiles, mostly brought back from Damascus in Syria, the interior evokes a compelling vision of the Orient.

The opulence continues through the other richly decorated interiors, with gilded ceilings and walls lined with peacock blue tiles by the ceramic artist William De Morgan. On the first floor is Leighton's grand painting studio with its great north window, dome and apse.

It's a lovely place, the Arab Hall particularly auspicious with brightly colored tiles and extraordinary detail.

For lunch we ate at the Orangerie at Kensington Palace, a lovely lunch in a lovely room with a lovely view! Then I stopped at Whole Foods, which is always a fun experience though spendy.

And to top off the week, my Italian friends and I hit a very odd movie -- "I am love." I'm not sure any of us really enjoyed the movie BUT we did enjoy our time together and it did hold our attention (well other than Bernadette's 10 minute snooze mid way through).

I also got in a lunch with the Abercorn ladies at a WONDERFUL Turkish restaurant in Marleybone. Superb food, supposedly very authentic (can't say I would know) and very reasonable. Nice combination, I'd say...