BY: JANET STEINBERG
“I would not eat the soup of life with a fork; I would continue to use a
big ladle.” Those words of my late friend,
Holocaust survivor, and world-renowned restaurateur George Lang, have
remained with me long after his death.
Surviving a year of my husband’s health issues with flying colors, my
handsome hunk of a husband and I threw away all the forks in our life
and once again continued to enjoy the soup of life with a super large
ladle.
And, although we chose not to travel too far from home this past year, we
still managed to fill our soup bowl to the
brim. Come along for a taste of our delicious year.
OCEAN CRUISE: Silversea’s Silver Spirit sailed my husband and I on
a Caribbean cruise…one of the most relaxing, rejuvenating, cruises
I’ve ever taken. For 8 glorious days we escaped
Cincinnati’s snow and ice. We soaked up sun and sea, either from a
deck chair on our private veranda, or on shore in Cozumel, Costa
Maya, Belize, Guatemala and Key West. We were waited on hand
and foot by our butler and the Silver Spirit’s delightful staff
(whose services came with all gratuities included); ate gourmet meals (in
our choice of six dining venues), and toasted my birthday and our
25th wedding anniversary with complimentary champagne and
beverages (provided at no charge to all passengers on every Silversea
cruise).
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| SILVER SPIRIT ANCHORED IN BELIZE |
RIVER CRUISE: Volunteer Princess yacht’s
two-and-a-half hour Starlight Escape Dinner Cruise stepped me into a
world of ease and relaxation on the Tennessee River. We were treated to
breath-taking views of the Knoxville shoreline that changed with each of
our four delightful dinner courses. On board, we had another of the
many 25th anniversary celebrations we toasted this past year. We traveled
downstream on the Tennessee River, passing under the bridges of
Knoxville. The skyline included Neyland Stadium,
Thompson Boling Arena, the Sunsphere, and the beautiful shoreline
homes of Sequoyah Hills.
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VOLUNTEER
PRINCESS DOCKED IN KNOXVILLE |
Knoxville on Market Square, is an original expression of
the city. Originally built in 1876 as the Peter Kern Bakery,
the building has hosted everything from the Kern’s candy counter and
soda fountain to a drugstore, and dancing hall. Known for it’s
quirky, eclectic style, the hotel is the only boutique property in
Knoxville with a style that plays tribute to the buildings history,
yet offers charming sophisticated rooms with modern amenities. The
hotel’s Peter Kern Library, a cozy bar where Knoxville socializes,
cleverly incorporates its menus into old World Book Encyclopedia covers.
HOTEL TRANSFORMATION: Embassy Suites, Ft. Lauderdale has had a happy
face lift transforming its lobby, atrium, event spaces, restaurant, and
guest suites’ bedding to create a more beautiful and comfy atmosphere
at my Ft. Lauderdale home-away-from home. Add to this, daily
complimentary cooked-to-order breakfasts as well as complimentary
daily Manager’s Cocktail Receptions, a complimentary
business and fitness center, and tropical swimming pool area, and it
is little wonder why it is one of the best hotel buys in South
Florida. Located a short distance from the airport, and six blocks
from Port Everglades, it is also the best place from which to start and
finish all cruises out of Port Everglades.
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| LUSH VERDANT POOL AREA AT EMBASSY SUITES FT. LAUDERDALE |
INN: The Gratz Park Inn exemplifies the Southern grace and charm for
which Lexington, Kentucky is known. Nestled in the heart of
the downtown’s historic district, the Inn was built in 1919 as a medical
office. In 1987 it was renovated to become a
luxury hotel. Gratz Park Inn, and the nearby Gratz Park,
are named after the late Benjamin Gratz (1792-1884), a
graduate lawyer and the youngest of 12 children born in Philadelphia
to Jewish merchant Michael and Miriam Gratz. He headed
a prominent manufacturing business and is buried, along with his good
friend Henry Clay, in the Lexington cemetery.
SMALL CITY: Knoxville, Tennessee, resting on the banks of the
Tennessee River and back-dropped by the foothills of the Great Smoky
Mountains, is one of travel’s best-kept secrets. Surrounded by
unsurpassed natural beauty, it is a magical meld of rustic, Appalachian
wilderness and a cosmopolitan downtown. Blending small town
charm with some big city attractions,
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YOGA
BENEATH THE SUNSPHERE IN KNOXVILLE’S WORLD’S FAIR PARK |
BIG CITY: Chicago, Illinois, “that toddling town” that
keeps reinventing itself, never ceases to amaze me. The
“Windy City,” teeming with life and exuding an excitement all its
own, is now fully grown into a sophisticated metropolitan area that rivals
any major city in the world. Millennium Park is a
masterpiece! Chicago’s twenty-nine miles of lakefront, that
form the front lawn of what has become one of the world’s greatest
cities, make that vibrant city a ‘shore’ bet.
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CLOUD
GATE IN MILENNIUM PARK |
MUSEUM: The Headley Whitney Museum is the shining jewel in
Lexington’s crown. Founded on La Belle Farm in 1968, the museum’s
Jewel Room houses one of the world’s best contemporary collections
of bibelots. The museum’s dollhouses were created for Cornelia
Whitney, daughter of Marylou and Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney. They
are replicas of buildings on the Whitney estate. The dollhouses
are authentic down to the smallest detail…the books in the library
actually are printed…there is a small diamond ring on a dresser…the
silver on the dining room table is sterling silver… the Aubusson carpets
are reproduced in petit point and there is food in the kitchen cupboards.
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| THE GOLD AND JEWELED BIRDCAGE BIBELOT IN THE HEADLEY WHITNEY MUSEUM |
STEAK RESTAURANT: Gibson’s Steak House Chicago is the classic Gold Coast
steakhouse that attracts celebrities and VIPs. If you want to combine
great food with a casual-yet sophisticated-atmosphere and Chicago
nightlife, head to Rush Street on the Near North Side. Gibson’s’ next-door
sibling, Hugo’s Frog Bar is a hopping scene specializing in seafood
but serving the same steaks as Gibson’s.
PARK: The Kentucky Horse Park, the only park of its kind in the
world, is a working horse farm, an educational theme park, and an
equine competition facility dedicated to man’s relationship with the
horse. Herbert Haseltine’s larger-than-life statue of Man O’
War awes visitors as they enter the park. Reinterred beneath
the bronze statue of “Big Red” are the remains of this legendary
racehorse. In the Big Barn, one of the largest wooden structures in
North America, I got up close and personal with some of the gentle
giants that reside within.
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| ELISHA BLOW-DRYING THE “FEATHERS” OF CLYDESDALE LOU IN THE BIG BARN |
JANET STEINBERG is an award-winning Travel Writer and a Travel Consultant
with THE TRAVEL AUTHORITY in Mariemont, Ohio.