Η Επιστροφή- The Return (2011) – Part 5 – Major & Minor Keys of Life

"We all try to live our lives in harmony
For fear of falling swiftly overboard
But life is both a major and a minor key
Just open up the chord"
"Side" - by Travis

Yesterday I rode across four countries in seven hours.

My day started badly with the GPS getting confused in Val Gardena – and consequently sending me down every driveway of virtually every resident, past the hotel four times (much to the amusement of the porter who had watched me depart – only to see me return again, and again and again . . .), eventually spitting me out on the right road after half an hour of messing about. [Note to self: don't rely on technology when common sense will work just fine!]

Things did not improve as I crossed into Austria through the old windy mountain road on the Brenner Pass when, getting frustrated sitting behind a large coach, I overtook it at some speed (around 120km/h) around a blind bend in a village. . .

What I had failed to see was a) the sign forbidding overtaking b) the speed limit signs (although you don't have to be a road safety genius to work out that 120 is a little quick for a village anywhere!) and c) the two policemen waiting at the side of the road for idiots like me on motorcycles.

I was duly pulled over and helmet off, started my familiar dialogue with representatives of the law. . . "I'm so sorry, I don't know what came over me, etc etc etc."

The moderately attractive senior female officer explained that she had to "give me punishment", there and then, by the side of the road. I confess that my mind did wander slightly at this statement, but she looked fairly severe and I suspected that my German and her English were not up to attempts at naughty schoolboy humour, so instead I continued to profusely apologise, and remind both officers that my bike was made in Austria (amazing how much patriotism helps – junior male officer's dad has the same model KTM as me, and this brought out a smile.).

I supplied my papers, deciding to produce my Arabic driving license from Dubai as this usually confuses the authorities and makes them think of horrendous paperwork and so on . . . Of course there is always the risk that I may be confused for a terrorist . . .

My politeness, keenness to help and best performance in the role of "shocked and apologetic holiday maker who is sorry to have taken up so much of the good officers' time", ensured that my punishment did not involve impounding the bike, a visit to the police station and a record in the State of Austria, but instead earned me a nice little fine which I paid up in cash and thanked them both profusely for their leniency and kindness, promising I would not overtake in a restricted area, I wouldn't speed and I would take good care on the roads. A promise I did indeed keep. For about 2.3 kms. . .

The riding thereafter was lovely – especially in Austria while the sun shone. Beautiful mountain roads, dense forests, long valleys and simply stunning scenery were my backdrop for around 3 hours plus of traversing Austria, passing through some lovely villages and towns with some impressive architecture and a great deal of charm. I noted that Austria would indeed be worth a return journey some time in the future.

Eventually dark clouds filled the sky in a rather threatening manner and the temperature cooled to a degree where I had to make a stop and change to warmer trousers, put the lining in my jacket, don a neck warmer and put on heavy winter gloves. Not good!

A quick flit across Liechtenstein (honestly, I am surprised they bothered with making Lichtenstein a country. It took me all of 11 minutes to enter and leave!) and I entered my fourth and final country of the day, Switzerland.

While the weather remained threatening, the scenery improved even further as I climbed mountains riding up to cold fresh air filling my nostrils along with the dense smell of pine trees and the swollen aroma of rain in the air.

One particularly beautiful moment - where all the important senses converged - was as I a climbed the mountain on one side of an incredibly green and beautiful valley and looked across at the land below me. At that moment, the rain started to spit its moisture out and my sound system delivered "Comfortably Numb" by Pink Floyd. At the same time my mind was filled with thoughts of someone who I wished was on the back of the bike with me, to witness this scene (as well as many others) and the world smelled fresh, alive and incredibly beautiful.

I had a brief moment of utter elation, total joy at being alive, and being there for those few precious seconds.

However, in stark and sudden contrast, this moment of utter joy was followed quickly – and sadly – by frustration. Frustration that the moment was totally ephemeral and that I could not capture it in any meaningful way so as to be able to share it. And it was a moment truly worth sharing.

Words wouldn't come close and a photo also wouldn't nearly suffice.

You had to either be there or be in my head. Dammit.

Life is full of those moments of contrast and that is the theme that occupied my mind all afternoon and lead me to thinking about life as a series of Major and Minor keys - and major & minor chords.

Prompted by the Travis lyrics at the top of this page which caught my ear as I listened to the song – it struck me that it is indeed the contrast of major and minor that gives us happiness and joy, as well as sadness and pain.

One juxtaposing the other, the contrast being the necessary ingredient for us to feel to the full.

Let me explain what I mean . . .

In music there are major keys and minor keys. Major keys and chords are the ones that sound happy, like sunshine, like a smile. Minor keys and chords are the ones that sound sad, like a cloudy sky, like a frown. We can all sense this from music even if we have no musical knowledge.

The Blues – the ultimate mournful, sad, downtrodden musical genre - is predominantly played in the Minor Pentatonic Scale. Not only sad, but with the addition of the two flat fifths which appear in the Pentatonic scale and give it its character – and those "flat fifths" make the music even sadder. They are the "blue notes". (Interestingly classical Chinese music is also built around the pentatonic scale which is probably why it sounds so sad...)

Conversely, country and other "popular" music is predominantly played in major keys – usually G, C, F or E, A, D – and always sounds cheerful, happy – to the point of being saccharine sweet sometimes. But add in a minor chord or two and it changes dramatically.

For example, Townes Van Zandt's "Waiting Around to Die" (which I wrote about previously) is utterly sad and miserable – and it's a country song. . . but it uses Am, Dm and Em – three minor chords – to achieve this mood. If that was changed to A, D and E it couldn't and wouldn't sound sad at all.

It works in classical music in exactly the same way from Bach to Vivaldi, Handel to Mahler. The Minor and Major Keys reflect the emotion contained in the music. Think of all of the emotions in the ever-so-cliched but nonetheless wonderful Four Seasons by Vivaldi? See what I mean?

So the keys define the mood. Or do they?

Actually I think it is not only the keys themselves, but the combination of minor and major keys that makes music resonate with us so enormously on an emotional level – it's the contrast between them which stands out.

And here is where I think music mirrors life.

We can feel happiness because we know sadness. We can feel joy because we have known despair. We can feel comfort because we have known pain. We can feel love because we have known loneliness.

We can feel the minor key because we transitioned from a major key...

Here are some of the emotions that I attach to each key or chord, starting with the most frequently used melancholy minor chords…

A minor – you know things are not happy when a piece of music begins with A minor. A resolutely introspective key that usually spells misfortune, displacement, loss and disconnection. Often a starting point.
B minor – reflective or self reflective, the B minor is going to lead us somewhere, maybe better, maybe worse, but in the meantime it will keep us insecure, unsure, worried and uncertain, waiting to see what life (or the next bar) holds in store for us.
D minor – sometimes called the saddest key of all. D Minor is a broken heart, an unimaginable soreness of the soul, seemingly without resolution, a subdued wail from within. Romantic in the sense of William Blake, not Mills & Boon. . .
E minor – the rock bottom, desperation and despair. E Minor is forlorn hope gone bad in a bass note bonanza of misery and pain. Black. As in "Paint It Black" - which uses all minor chords until the chorus...

And now the majors:

G – solid as a rock, ringing like a bell and warming every fibre
A – happy-go-lucky, a smile on its face, the key of A sets off to somewhere good
C – like a G but lighter hearted, fun loving, gentle and bouncy, sunshine on our skin
D – sweet, soulful, joyous and glad, the D makes us smile and turn away from dark thoughts.
E – Mr. Reliable, a foundation, a platform from which to grow and ascend, E Major is a powerful partner, a companion on a journey.
F – friendly and warm, the F helps us out, looks after us, lifts us up and makes us feel good.

I won't comment on B Major or C Minor as they seem to be rarer – at least in my musical lexicon – while the others are more commonly used and heard.

So that's how I hear them and feel them. You may of course be different. And the mood of a chord changes depending on what it follows but also whether the tone is rising or descending etc...so there is some variation but no-one can make a minor chord sound like sunshine!

Assuming the above resonate somehow with you, let's consider the emotions attached to the keys / chords and the effect of stringing them together or combining them . . .

Let's start with a major grouping. G, C, F – classic country chords, key of G.

Solid as a rock and ringing like a bell then gets a little lighter hearted and bouncy, finally going on to become friendly and warm. Repeat for 96 bars . . .

It's a nice group of feelings & emotions, but it is somehow a little underwhelming after a while. In fact "nice" really sums it up. You could listen to it for a while and you certainly wouldn't feel sad, but after a while your emotions would dull. The happiness of the first few bars would begin to diminish and at the end you'd feel warm, but not on fire . . .

Now let's look at a minor grouping Am, Dm, Em . . . In the key of A minor...

I'm feeling lost, disconnected with no place to go, left in the cold . . .now I feel crushed, awfully and terribly sad, with a pain in my soul that aches constantly . . .and finally I despair, I give up hope and lay down to meet my fate . . .repeat for 96 bars . . .

You get the picture. There is no way this song is going to make you feel good, but by the end the initial tragedy and sadness of it also diminish in impact and it will leave you feeling sad, but no longer suicidal. Indeed, it may work cathartically for you and actually leave you feeling a little happier . . .

But what if we start to contrast and build with both major and minor?

Am – I am introspective, going down hill, destined to be more and more unhappy. . . Dm – now I have become enormously sad, reflecting on my soul's pain, beginning to doubt if there is hope . . . C Major . . . and suddenly the clouds part and the sunshine bursts through. The world lights up, I feel lifted higher and higher and then F Major – I reach the top of a mountain and feel the warmth of the sun on my skin. I am no longer alone. I am happy . . . Bm . . .but I begin to wonder where life will lead me, to wonder if this state of happiness will continue etc.

You can begin to see the effect of juxtaposition and contrast. The impact of the change of chords is much stronger when the chords and moods are in opposition – and the feeling and emotion created is much more dynamic and impactful.

This explains my elation and frustration on the mountain in Switzerland... A big enormous G chord, followed by an A minor (or possibly a B minor)!

Chord changes can build emotion and change it fairly significantly, BUT a whole key change can be really dramatic and take the piece of music somewhere else entirely in terms of emotion and feeling. So too in life.

A change of key in life might be falling in love, moving home, town or country, having a child, losing a loved one and so on. Not everyday events, but important soul shaping events - and usually dramatic and full of contrasts of emotions.

Think of how the overall key defines how we feel life...

When we're in love (a major key of life), almost nothing gets us down. Life is rich, vital, engaging and wonderful. We refuse to be sad or get depressed.

When we're in mourning - another key entirely and certainly minor - it's the opposite. All of our mood and emotion is ultimately rooted to that key of life and everything is black and sad. We laugh infrequently when digesting death and it takes a long time for us to be ready to be happy again. (But we will!)

However, if the key never changes and the chords remain the same, we get bored, in a rut. Life suddenly needs salt to have taste, needs spice to be interesting and things are very flat.

Most of us lead lives that have plenty of chord changes – it's the reality of our existence. Things go well, things go badly. It evens out. And most of us have our fair share of key changes also. Some major keys, some minor keys.

But many wish for more consistency and stability, a smoother existence, less ups and downs.

But if you take away some pain, you will take away from joy from your life. Do you really want that?

I don't. I want contrast. In contrast I am alive. I feel. I am well. I am going somewhere.

My capacity to love is defined in no small part by my capacity to endure loneliness. My capability to be happy defined by my experience of being sad.

Life would be very dull if it was just Dolly Parton and Status Quo… give me some Lightnin' Hopkins and Johann Sebastian please!

Η Επιστροφή - The Return (2011) – Part 4 – Meal in the Mountains

Last night I dined in the gourmet restaurant of the Alpen Royal Hotel – which is under the supervision of Chef Felice Lo Basso.

It was wonderful, creative and interesting food, accompanied by delicious wine from the Alto Adige. 

However, while the meal overall was not good enough to enter my “Top Ten Greatest Meals” for a variety of reasons, the food itself was so good, I feel compelled to write about it.

The setting:

In the basement floor of the hotel, the gourmet restaurant is set apart from the other dining areas.

It was far too brightly lit for my taste, making the candle that was lit on the table entirely superfluous in terms of both light and mood – its only remaining function being decorative.

The table style, linen and overall décor was pleasant if a bit dull with comfortable chairs and tables large enough to not feel cramped at.

The music – well, the music was a crime. Elevator “muzak” that comprised of reworked versions of pop and rock classics to a varying beats from Samba to lounge with an insipid collection of dull voices re-interpreting songs from U2 to the Rolling Stones to Guns N Roses. Terrible, awful and after a while, painful. This alone was enough to strike the meal from the Top Ten list for starters.

My waiter – I’ll call him Guiseppe – was friendly and attentive with broken English that just stopped short of comedy English in the style of an Italian “Clouseau”. We ended up conversing in Italian mainly for it was easier for both of us, but he was keen as mustard to try his English, bless him.

Amuse Bouche #1:

I began the meal with a glass of Prosecco while studying the menu. During this contemplation I was served my first “amuse bouche” – a small cold soup of melon, kiwi, raspberry, celery and blackberry. It was incredibly fresh and together with the Prosecco, it was a lively and vibrant start to the meal.

I consider the “amuse bouche” stage of a great meal as the gastronomic equivalent of a musical “Toccata”. The Toccata is a virtuoso piece of music that precedes the main piece. It uses the notes and scales of the main piece and is usually flamboyant and elaborate – allowing the virtuoso musician to warm-up, sensitize the audience to what is to come and also show-off a little. The Toccata exists also in Eastern European / Turkish and Middle Eastern music where it is referred to as the “taqsim” – and is predominantly used in music involving santour, bouzouki, oud / outi and other stringed instruments. While in classical music the most well known producer of toccatas was of course J.S. Bach.

Amuses Bouche #2

Amuses Bouche

While I was still studying the menu, the next set of amuse bouche arrived. And quite a collection it was too -  a major gastronomic toccata that really set the scene well for what was to follow:

1. A rice wafer, very crisp, with dried flakes of black olive  - crunchy, light and delicious
2. A nest of fried pasta with a parmesan filling – another delightful bite which added softness to the crunch of the pasta and moved the selection on in terms of texture choices . . .
3. Next was a Parmesan mousse with black truffle caviar - light as a feather, using the little knobs of the black truffle as caviar on top of the mouthful of mousse. It was sublime.
4. Then a tiny Chou pastry bun, about the size of the tip of one’s thumb, filled with a cream of smoked aubergine (egg plant). The texture had gone full circle from outright crunch to soft and creamy and this little savoury profiterole melted in my mouth.
5. After this, the next taste was a small piece of speck of duck wrapped around a piece of white peach and some snow peas. Again delicious with the duck giving a rich, meaty, smoky flavor counterbalanced by the light flesh of the peach and its sweetness and the fresh, garden note from the snow pea. Very good.
6. Then to a deep-fried miniature calzone of buffalo mozzarella and anchovy. A little inverted suitcase of flavours, nicely balanced and perfectly cooked.
7. Finally, in this little suite of tastes, I moved to the final piece, which Guiseppe had suggested I leave till last to refresh my palate. A pair of watermelon balls sandwiching a piece of Japanese mint. Indeed very refreshing and cool. 

By the time I had finished this selection of amuses bouche, as you can imagine, I was quite inspired by this chef and his ideas.

I decided to go for the Tasting Menu “Raw Fish at High Altitude”. While the A La Carte Menu had some delicious sounding dishes, I couldn’t settle on anything easily and wanted to continue this teasing and flirting of my taste buds by the man in the kitchen . . .so the tasting menu made sense.

The Tasting Menu

I asked for Guiseppe’s advice on wine to accompany my choice of raw fish dishes. He rather unhelpfully suggested that I go for white . . . that resulted in my responding with just a hint of sarcasm. Then we got down to it and discussed Sauvignon’s – finally he recommended the Sauvignon “Quartz” from the Alto Adige town of Terlano. It is called Quartz – I learned later – because of the quartz porphyry rock in the soil it grows in. This gives the soil a red volcanic colour – while the wine keeps a grassy and full gooseberry flavor. Quite delicious it turned out to be and I thanked Guiseppe for his recommendation at the end of the meal.

And so to work I went on the Tasting Menu – six courses with a pre-dessert in addition.

Bread, etc:

Bread & Accompaniments

Guiseppe presented me with seven kinds of bread – all home made – from Focaccia to Grissini – each with a unique flavor and textures.

Accompanying the bread were four spreads – including butter from Normandy salted with black salt, a spicy tomato paste from Puglia in Southern Italy, green olive tapenade from Sicily and a horseradish cream with green apple pieces. Nice.

And if this were not enough, Guiseppe brought me four different salts – a Sea Salt from the British Isles, a pink salt from France, Black Salt and a salt made with crushed hibiscus which was the most delicious and which I couldn’t help but put into my hands and eat on its own by dabbing a moist finger into the little pile in my hand. Not the most sophisticated dining behavior, but taste is taste baby!

Course #1:

A Wild Black Pearl Oyster served with lemon caviar and cucumber foam- accompanied by a gin & tonic.

Oysters & Gin!

It was beautifully presented in a half bottle with a tiny miniature gin & tonic on the side. The gin used was Hendrick’s - a unique gin in that it is infused with rose and cucumber in the distillation process in addition to the usual botanicals and juniper.

The cucumber foam was incredible light, like a cloud, but full of flavor and deliciously fresh. The oyster lurking underneath yielded some of its liquor to the cucumber foam with the lemon coming through to add that pinch of acidity to the strong salty fish flavor and the gentle cucumber veneer. The gin and tonic added some sparkly and botanical notes from the juniper flavor which beautifully completed the sensation . . . indeed it was an addictive activity putting a small piece in ones mouth, savoring the flavor for a few seconds and then sipping the gin & tonic to add the finish.

A delicious and auspicious start.

Course #2:

Grilled watermelon with raw scallops, pea shoots and pecan nuts.

Water Melon & Scallops

This was a very different dish – also very delicate with quite intriguing flavours and textures. The watermelon flesh was soft and rich, gushing out its juice that was quite strong in flavor. The scallops were cool to the tongue and delicate as scallops always are, with the pea shoots adding a tiny zing of garden freshness, while for me the note that gave the dish its character was the very finely sliced pecan nuts which gave a woody, organic flavor to the dish and added a textural bass note with their chewy nut crunch. An interesting and daring combination of ingredients, which I was skeptical about initially, but which one me over as I ate it.

The Sauvignon Quartz adding a tangy, citrus, grass twist to the palate – and then refreshing with my beloved San Pelegrino.

Course #3:

Cuttlefish, Caviar & Gold . . . in a smoke cloud . . .

Cuttlefish, caviar & gold - the smoke had departed by this point!

This was a very inventive dish but also very simple. The dish came served in a large white bowl containing a small plastic sphere. Inside the sphere was the food, and the smoke.

Guiseppe lifted the lid dramatically and with a flourish – in a way only an Italian waiter can – and proceed to allow the smoke to waft out of the sphere and around the dish. It was clear that after the smoke had been out inside the dish it had been chilled, because when it escaped it was cool and fell around the food and the dish.

Inside was a nest of raw cuttlefish which had been finally julienned to make it into a kind of seafood spaghetti twirled together with a generous dollop of black sturgeon caviar on top and littered with gold leaf. If the cuttlefish was the “spaghetti”, the caviar was the “sauce” and the gold leaf the “cheese” sprinkled over the top. Visually very appealing and a clever in-joke from the chef in terms of fooling the dinner with visual gastronomic conventions which are then inverted with the actual ingredients. Magnifique.

The flavours were very intense – the cuttlefish VERY fishy and strong flavoured with the caviar adding salt and intensity on top. The gold leaf was of course flavourless, but fun and visually very appealing.  This was just the right sized portion as it was very rich indeed. Any more would have been too much.

The smoke (from burned oak chips I learned from enquiring) had left its imprint on the food in a very subtle way, leaving a hint of the forest and the fire on this otherwise totally raw set of ingredients.

Course #4:

Dentex carpaccio with poppy seeds, sea urchin ice cream and coconut milk.

Dentex Carpaccio & Sea Urchin Ice Cream

The dentex is a fish somewhat similar to a sea bream – one of my favourite fishes. It was beautifully presented on a glass topped box contained sand, shells seaweed etc and was very pretty.

The meat of the fish was cool to the taste, laid out in slices on the dish with a spread of the coconut milk over the top and sprinkled with the poppy seeds which had a surprisingly strong effect on the taste, providing minute moments of crunch with a slightly sour taste to counterbalance the smooth, gentle coconut milk.

The star of this course, however, was the sea urchin ice cream. It is very difficult to describe just how stunning this was. Firstly it was a proper ice cream in a beautiful orange / pink colour, served on its own spoon. The flavour was certainly from the sea, a super fresh oceanic burst combined with an almost – but not quite – sweetness that may have just been an idea rather than a reality. The texture was creamy, cool and deliciously smooth and it married perfectly to the fish with the coconut milk as the “connection” between the two.

Innovative and interesting.

Course# 5:

Langoustine with aubergine and burrata cheese parmigiano, black olive powder.

Return to Italy with hints of the Tricolore . . .

I was now beginning to wonder how the meal would progress in terms of taste and texture, believing that it was going to be a struggle to improve on the previous dishes.

However, I was wrong to doubt this Chef’s imagination.

This final dish before the dessert finale came full circle and brought us back to Italy with a classic dish from the south – the Neapolitan Parmigiana, adapted and adopted to become the “wrapping” around a superb raw langoustine. Instead of ordinary mozzarrella, the chef used “burrata” (literally meaning “buttered”) which is a mixture of mozzarella with cream, creating a much smoother, silkier cheese in the process and adding a delicacy to this miniature Parmigiana which clothed the raw and naked langoustine.

The plate was beautifully presented in a ray of fresh colours, and the Italian references underlined with the colours of the tricolore flag suggested in the palate of the dish. A hint of basil, a splash of tomato, just enough to keep the flavours dancing on the tongue as one savoured the mouthful and bit down into the semi gelatinous flesh of the langoustine.

A relaxed and confident triumph to end the savoury part of the meal and a nice return to home for the Chef who comes from Southern Italy but developed his career in Northern Italy by the coast. A southern Italian classic (Melanzane Parmigiana) married to the fruit of the sea, the Langoustine, and dressed in the Italian flag. Very clever stuff.

Course #6:

Pre-dessert of pineapple and basil ice cream

Slipped into the gastronomic conversation was a brief pause to refresh the palate before the main dessert. A delicious pineapple and basil ice cream with a piece of dried pineapple as an accompaniment – functioning as an exotically sweet wafer alongside the ice cream, again the Chef playing visual games as well as developing intense and interesting flavour combinations. Full marks on form and function.

Course #7:

Prickly Pear Sorbet in almond and orange waffle, pink grapefruit mousse.

Flavour & texture married in perfect harmony

I felt throughout the meal that this Chef has a keen sense for textural combinations as well as visual appeal and flavour harmonies.

This was fully borne out in the final act of this meal – the dessert.

The waffle of orange and almond was citrusy, nutty, crunchy, warm and organic tasting, protecting the tangy and incredibly refreshing prickly pear sorbet underneath which was surrounded in turn by a “moat” of the pink grapefruit mousse which was soft, creamy with the slightest acidity in the aftertaste to remind you that it was grapefruit – and at the same time – cut through the sweetness of the waffle.

The textural contrasts were extraordinary, as were the lovely flavours crossing the spectrum of sweet to bitter and back again.

What was also remarkable about the dessert was the “lightness” which suited the overall meal, which while intense in flavour, had avoided being dense or heavy in any way.

I was deeply impressed with the cooking and the imagination of this Chef De Cuisine. A joy to eat.

Coffee, biscuits and a mint:

I concluded the meal by finishing the delicious Sauvignon and drinking not one but two cups of lovely nutty black espresso with some homemade cookies, and a lovely chocolate mint.

All in all this was a stunning meal from the perspective of the food – and indeed the wine. Excellent presentation, wonderful flavours, great balance, tremendous innovation and imagination and an intelligence and playfulness with the idea of each dish that added an exciting dimension to the dining experience.

BUT . . . it does not go down as a GREAT meal because it was incomplete. My mood – nothing to do with the restaurant – was not the best, although it improved throughout as I was treated to this splendid food. The service was fine, indeed good even, but not remarkable. The atmosphere was unrewarding – I was the only diner in this restaurant in what is its lowest season in terms of visitors. The décor was neutral, not to say dull. The lighting was way too bright – like a hospital or an operating theatre.

Most of all  - as I mentioned at the beginning - the music was atrocious – a meal like this deserved either something rich and deep like Bach – perhaps a Fugue, which would have fitted the rotating ideas in the food and service beautifully. Or another alternative would have been jazz –something beautiful but abstract, like Miles Davis for example. BUT NOT F@CKING ELEVATOR MUZAK FOR THE LOVE OF GOD!

And finally, the meal was again consumed alone, and while I took many tasting notes and photographs and even chatted with a friend who is equally gastronomically debauched, it was food that was worthy of conversation, discussion, sharing and celebration.

In Beaune I was also alone, but the atmosphere and the other diners created a human dynamic that was pleasant and rewarding as I saw that everyone was enjoying the food as I was. But in Val Di Gardena I was alone in an empty room – and that was sterile and detached.

So I would certainly commend this restaurant and the Chef, and indeed recommend it to anyone, with the caveats of musical punishment, poor lighting and average décor. And if you are to go, go with company that cherishes great food or at least in the busy season in the Winter or early Spring.

Bon appetit!

Η Επιστροφή - The Return (2011) – Part 3 – Ancona to Val Gardena

My day has been frustrating, painful and tiring in equal measure – but it concluded reasonably well.

I woke very early on the boat  - around 5am. The cabin was not as comfortable as the boat I had taken out to Greece and the noise of the engines combined with the rattling of doors, conspired to keep me awake from that point on. Some reading and some reflecting saw me use up two hours before I decided to get up and face the day.

I ate in the self-service restaurant as I had the previous evening. Fresh orange juice, yoghurt, scrambled eggs and bacon  - plus two cups of hard core coffee got me started for the day.

I enjoyed the old man who served the food. He must have been 70 years old and remembered me from the night before. “What to give the young man to make him strong? – for he is a brave young man!” was his greeting at the food counter. I admired his memory, his customer service skills and his love of life. I also enjoyed being called a brave young man, when – at 7am – I looked far from young or brave!

Breakfast dealt with I went on deck and admired the wake left behind the boat and thought of how many things it symbolized. I returned to my room and read Hemingway for a couple of hours before showering and then packing.

I went to the central reception area on the boat to wait for docking. While I was there I wrote about departure and my feelings about leaving Greece.

The boat was late – more than an hour – but I didn’t know this until I wasted an hour standing by the elevator waiting for the boat to dock so I could return to my bike. I whiled away the time writing to friends and moaning about the delay to myself.

Eventually the boat docked and – frustrated and annoyed – I went below deck to my motorcycle and loaded up.

By the time I got off the boat I was at least an hour and a half behind schedule with a long journey ahead. I was annoyed and in a shitty mood.

It took an age to exit Ancona with single lane traffic and lots of it… but eventually I made it to the awful Autostrada and headed north.

Wearing just a t-shirt and some light trousers the initial weather  - sun and a temperature of about 28 degrees – was pleasant.

But the traffic was terrible and worse, there were road works continually bringing the highway to single lane for many kilometers and resulting in me riding between cars and trucks and emergency lanes just to make headway. I was more angry now and in a worse mood. Several times I had to brake hard to avoid collisions with car drivers and trucks.

As I neared Bologna, the heavens opened with a vengeance and I was instantly soaked. The rain came down like stair rods and it felt like being repeatedly shot with a nail gun.  And suddenly it was cold.

I could barely see out of my visor as trucks sped past while I waddled around in the heavy rain of the storm. I was frightened and pissed off that the driving conditions demanded I focus on the road and not the music I was listening to.

Eventually the rain storm subsided and I could see once more. The road was dull and the traffic made it worse. I pressed on, determined to put some kilometers under my belt before stopping.

Eventually I stopped at a truck stop on the highway to grab some lunch and join a conference call of my firm’s leadership group. No rest for the wicked.

I was impressed by the sign at the truck stop. It said that the establishment did not sell alcohol or pornography, but that coffee ordered between midnight and 5am was free of charge. Very ethical and sensible – if ever so slightly incongruous with the world of truckers.

I ordered a piece of pizza and a soft drink and then allowed myself to be persuaded into making it a “meal package” by adding fruit salad. Ha!

I sat and ate quickly while emailing colleagues for updates in preparation for my call.

The man next to me was a large Italian trucker and possible a member of the Mafia by the looks of him. He had three pieces of pizza which he woofed down quickly and then gulped a quick espresso down too. Afterwards he sat for moment, then stood up, farted loudly and impressively, and left. Lovely. I began my conference call and gave my report & update from the car park of the truck stop.

Back on the bike I was still frustrated and not myself. Even the music couldn’t bring me round. The sky was grey and cloudy, threatening more rain at any moment. I was only just drying off from the first storm.

As I passed Verona, a place of much rambling in years gone by, the cloud cleared the temperature improved. I felt better, but not much as the traffic was still lousy – forcing me to swerve and weave among the trucks and cars. But at least the sun was out.

Eventually the sun warmed my bones and I started to settle into a rhythm of riding – and began to enjoy my music, singing along at the top of my lungs to an audience of car and truck bound people, deaf to my joy.

Every part of my body was killing me – back, legs, arms and face – as I pushed myself to complete another 150 kms before stopping briefly to refuel and stretch my legs.

I hate motorway riding at the best of times, but today it was true to say that the first 500kms of my journey were hellish.

Eventually I left the motorway and joined the mountain road to the Brenner Pass (Brennero). Suddenly my whole mood lifted and I was in heaven once more.

Such a gorgeous road, such amazing scenery – and now, few trucks! All replaced by motorcycles. My brothers were in the mountains having fun like me!

I enjoyed the last 50 kms of my ride enormously. While I was very tired, the road and the scenery inspired me – not to mention music which included Bob Dylan, Mark Knopfler, JJ Cale, Lucinda Williams (look her up – she’s amazing), Guns N Roses (try Sweet Child of Mine while riding at 160 kms/hour through a valley surrounded by great rocky mountains!) and an amazing song from Keane (“Somewhere Only We Know” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oextk-If8HQ )

Lyrics here:


Somewhere Only We Know - Keane

I walked across an empty land

I knew the pathway like the back of my hand

I felt the earth beneath my feet

Sat by the river and it made me complete

Oh simple thing where have you gone

I'm getting old and I need something to rely on

So tell me when you're gonna let me in

I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin

I came across a fallen tree

I felt the branches of it looking at me

Is this the place we used to love?

Is this the place that I've been dreaming of?

Oh simple thing where have you gone

I'm getting old and I need something to rely on

So tell me when you're gonna let me in

I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin

And if you have a minute why don't we go

Talk about it somewhere only we know?

This could be the end of everything

So why don't we go

Somewhere only we know?

Oh simple thing where have you gone

I'm getting old and I need something to rely on

So tell me when you're gonna let me in

I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin

And if you have a minute why don't we go

Talk about it somewhere only we know?

This could be the end of everything

So why don't we go

Somewhere only we know?

This could be the end of everything

So why don't we go

Somewhere only we know?

Another song which I listened to twice was “It’s All Over Now Baby Blue” by Dylan. I love that song and have both played it live and recorded it. Magnificent. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YN25Pp0hrOM )

As I headed into the mountains and climbed, the frustration of the previous part of the day disappeared as I rode across biking Nirvana. These roads were designed by a man who travels on two wheels. No doubt about it.

And as I rose up the cool air filled my nostrils and refreshed my cheeks. All I could smell was pine trees – as though someone had stuffed an air freshener in my nose. With the small difference that this was REAL!

Oh what joy to be on such a road with such beautiful scenery! Small wooden houses, medieval stone churches and endless forest capped by a huge stone mountain. A feast for the eyes.

As I climbed I encountered more and more bikes. At first I felt joy in the camaraderie of the biking community, but then I saw license plates and my nationalism came to a fore – along with my Alpha spirit. Belgians, French and most of all Germans were dispatched dispassionately as I accelerated through the bends, overtaking on blind corners and generally enjoying 15 minutes of being a biker hooligan!

So long guys, I’m heading to the top of the mountain!

Well, near to the top. . .

Mountains - the biker's first love!

I arrived in Val Di Gardena just before 7pm and parked up at my wonderful hotel – The Alpen Royal  - one of the “Leading Small Hotels of the World”.

Val Di Gardena

I looked around at the amazingly beautiful valley and thought two thoughts:

Where are you Julie???

1. God must have used up most of the green paint on this part of the world. Between grass fields and forest, it was a complete sea of green – refreshing, natural, and wholesome.
2. I expected Julie Andrews to pop out of the bushes any moment and burst into song!

On check-in, I was given an upgrade to a suite. Nice.

The I was escorted to the bar for a “Welcome Drink”.

5 Star Biker!

As I felt very welcome I had three drinks – pink champagne. They served some lovely nibbles including tomato bruschetta, some local Speck, and some wonderful pieces of aged Parmesan. I consumed and relaxed in the fading sun of the day – content in my Sound Of Music surroundings.

I had a wonderful dinner at the hotel’s gourmet restaurant (more in a separate piece) – and now I lie ready for sleep and to dream of the Brenner Pass tomorrow.

It’s one of the most famous mountain passes in Europe and paradise for bikers!

I can't wait!