Ricercato, Osservato, Acquisto ! - Fashion and shopping tips learnt from my trip to Italy

My recent trip to Italy was fabulous in every way. However, before the trip, I was stressed about what to wear and pack given how well Italian women carry themselves. Hence ‘ricercato, osservato, acquisto ’ i.e. I researched, I observed, I shopped.  Here are some of the things I learnt the easy or the hard way -

• Take clothes that will not risk you being stopped at duomos or cathedrals; as a thumb rule maybe wear clothes that at least touch your knees and cover your shoulders. I had a near escape at Milan Duomo thanks to the girl in front of me wearing a shorter skirt!
• Carry a nice leather handbag; you are in the land of leather and iconic Italian fashion so you have no excuse
• Pearls go with almost everything that you can or should plan to wear
  
• Almost everyone in Italy wears cool glasses so feel free to wear your funkiest pair. No one even blinked at my otherwise in your face red D&G frames
• Don't tie your scarf on your head in Italy as it’s very French; unless you are French. Throw it stylishly across your shoulders or wrap it around your neck 
• Forget contacts, prescription sunglasses are the way to go especially if you plan to go into water
• Italian youngsters wear leather everywhere i.e. leather jackets paired with jeans, leggings and short skirts. Something to keep in mind if and when you plan to go out
• Don't try to compete with Italian women when it comes to walking on the cobbled streets in high heels; you've not been trained by birth 
• In fact, do not carry any shoe that you cannot walk in as there is no getting around walking in Italy. My RL loafers, Jimmy Choo wedges and low heeled ferragamo sandals worked out just fine for me and I never once used any other heels I carried. I had also researched how Hogan sneakers (owned by Tod’s group) are all the rage in Italy and saw it firsthand.
• Shopping in Italy is great. Period! It’s the land of iconic brands like Armani, Bvlgari, Dolce & Gabbana, Fendi, Gucci, Salvatore Ferragamo, Prada, Valentino....; so many that they can have their own alphabet.. so plan to splurge on a few of these brands if they catch your fancy! If you like outlet shopping, you may be able to find a few good deals but be ready to slum it out with other Asians !  
  
• Try and find some local designers as the delight of self-discovery elevates any shopping experience. I was not sold on more popular Italian brands like Liu Jo or Pinko which are as expensive as the Italian brands you may have heard of. Instead I discovered and adored the beautiful tops and dresses from Massimo Rebecchi, shoes from Vicini (same house that owns Zanotti) and silk scarves from Massimo Ravinale.
• While shopping for leather in Italy, no amount of research substitutes what you can deduce by look and feel. We looked into quite a few stores and distinctly found the difference in quality of leather and stitching in the shop that we eventually purchased from. Rest, time will tell!
  

• Italy is probably the only place where your grocery shopping can likely exceed any clothes, accessories or shoes purchase. The pastas, sauces, mushrooms, truffles, spices, wines, mushrooms…..I could go on.
• VAT refunds can make shopping worthwhile but expect to stand in long lines for VAT refund and preferably take cash as the return on credit card comes late and at an unfavorable exchange rate
• Bottomline, don't pack everything you want to as you will find something even more beautiful in Italy if you are willing to look for it! 

p.s.  Let me know if there's a better Italian translation available !

Icelandic Adventures - Northern Lights, Blue Lagoon and Reykjavík

I wrote the prelude (read my earlier blogpost here) to my Icelandic adventures almost a year ago and have since then helped plan trips to Iceland for several friends but never got around to the follow up blog posts. Clearly my writing has not caught up with my yapping. Well, it’s time to fix just that. I have not explored enough of this beautiful country to legitimize any authority on it but I can definitely claim to have the ability to pique your interest.

View of Reykjavík from top (Courtesy Closed Shutters)

Sometimes, it’s hard to instantly shake the grime and hustle of city life by just geographically transporting yourself to a new place. During every trip, there usually is a distinct moment or inflection point, when and where you become aware of being in a different paradigm. It could happen at the destination airport but with McDonalds, Burger King and Starbucks mushrooming the way they have been; it’s getting harder and harder to get that feeling right away. 

Even though the crunchy, cold and clean air threatened to burst our lungs and miles of nothingness tried to drive home the change of scenery, the light bulb did not go off till we sighted the faint visage of the northern lights right from the Reykjavík harbor on our first day. Faint green bands reminding us of the tricks up nature’s sleeves and at that glorious moment I became aware. Jumping like little kids, the boy and I hugged each other and ran to score the best seats on the tour bus that was to drive us into darkness and magic.

As mentioned in my earlier blog post, seeing Aurora Borealis aka Northern Lights was the raison d'être for our trip to Iceland in February 2014. The bus ride was spent in acute anticipation and once it stopped outside the city in what seemed to be the middle of a frigid no-where, we scuttled down like rabbits to stretch our legs and pupils. And there they were! Dancing, prancing, teasing, and putting up a show like a coquettish performer with green, red and pink plumage! They swayed and marched and jumped in and out of the dark curtains of the night. My favourite part was when it’d appear that the night's curtain has parted and the lights would spread out as laser beams into a semi-circle of red or green. 

Their majesty - The Northern Lights 

While most folks scrambled back into the bus at some point due to the cold, sweet sips of captain and coke (packed in a moment of puerile genius) helped our behinds stay perched longer while we soaked in the brilliant display.If you are in Iceland for a short time, I’d recommend booking the tour earlier in the trip as the tour operators allow you to go a second night for free if the lights flake out on you the first time. There are more luxurious ways to see Northern lights including watching them from the lounge/ hot tub of ION hotel. You would think that my trip was successful, but I came back wanting to go see the southern sister concern, Aurora Australis!

Blue Lagoon: Most people think of a naked Brooke Shields when they hear the term Blue lagoon. Imagine having to compete with that and yet, Iceland’s geothermal spa ‘Blue Lagoon’ is able to establish its own mind space. Amidst the freezing temperatures, a periwinkle blue lagoon of warm water with mystical vapors is set against the backdrop of black rocks and a panoply of white and light blue sky; the imagery is startlingly unique. You can chill in the warm lagoon, apply freely available silica mud pack for a self-induced beauty treatment, frolic in the hot showers and fountains or disappear into multiple steam baths or sauna rooms. Add to that a whimsical floating massage wrapped in a warm blanket and a glass of wine or ice cool smoothie in the lagoon bar and one starts thinking that this must be how it’d be like to bathe in heaven; hopefully with fewer and better looking folks around.

Blue Lagoon (Courtesy Closed Shutters)

Blue lagoon in Grindavik is 24 kms. from the Keflavik airport (Iceland’s main airport) and about 50 kms. from the city of Reykjavík. You can either drive or buy one of the bus tours (Reykjavík excursions, Iceland excursions, flybus) which will pick you up from hotel and drop you back or to the airport. There are several packages to choose from but I’d recommend booking in advance if you want to avoid the lines and carrying a towel or slipper if you just want to do an entry package. If relaxing so hard makes you hungry or bored, you can try out the delicacies at their Lava restaurant or shot at their souvenir shop.

Reykjavík: First things first, I had to unlearn pronouncing Reykjavík as (Rik-ja-vik) and say it the right way(Rey-e-ka-vik). For a capital city, Reykjavík is pretty understated but then one can blame it on the Danish influence. It’s about 50 kms from Keflavik airport and again you can either book a bus tour or rent a car (recommended) to get to the city. Car rentals can get pricey to book when you land so better book online or use some of the cheaper ones (Budget, SixT) located about 300 mts. outside the airport.

Colorful Reykjavík (Courtesy Closed Shutters) 

Reykjavík’s city center is its lifeline and that’s where I’d recommend people to stay if you want to be in the middle of action. Most of the sightseeing spots as well as restaurants, boutique shops and bars are within walking distance. Best way to explore Reykjavík is on foot and you can plan to cover most of the city in a day. The Hallgrímskirkja church in Reykjavík is the most well-known landmark with its simplistic yet unique architecture and a very large pipe organ (15 metres tall and 25 tons in weight).

Hallgrímskirkja church, Reykjavík (Courtesy Closed Shutters) 

While driving around the city, we came across the frozen lake Tjornin and the childlike joy of sliding down and running over a frozen lake has stayed with me as one of the other moments where travel transports you not only to a different place but to a difference plane in the time space continuum. 

Frozen Lake Tjornin (see if you can spot the skater) 

Despite not being in city center, we thoroughly enjoyed our stay at the Icelandair Marina hotel with the beautiful view of the marina and the ice capped mountains. The hotel with its quirky décor and theme based rooms was kind of a treasure hunt the daily breakfast spread of fresh salmon and heavenly pesto dip sealed the deal for us. The close proximity to Harpa (the business/community center close to Harbour) was an added bonus.

View from outside and inside of Harpa

Harpa has won several architecture award but for us it was more special as were able to catch the chef's battle finale of the ‘Food and fun’ festival as well as explore the farmer’s market with local vendors offering everything from rye bread (one cannot escape it in Iceland), wine, sea salt, fresh produce, sausages, soaps, scrubs, to kleinas (Icelandic donuts) and other delicacies including horse meat (don't ask why!) 

In my usual tradition, I had made reservations at supposedly one of the best restaurants 'Laekjarbrekka' in Reykjavík. The restaurant had excellent service and I tried the Icelandic platter (whale, fermented shark, puffins and dried fish). Whale tasted a bit like beef, shark more like stinky sticky cheese and I have no recollection of any distinct flavor for the putin and the fried fish was well fried fish. Apart from that and a good glass of wine, there was nothing notable to remember about the restaurant. Later our concierge recommended the Icelandic platter at Seafood grill but I had enough of rare meats for one trip. Le bistro for French and Icelandic influenced French food was a nice yet rushed meal. No matter where you eat, do not forget to try the rye bread ice cream at Café Loki in front of the church or world’s most famous hot dog Bæjarins Beztu Pylsur when in Reykjavík.

Icelandic treasures (fresh salmon, rye bread ice cream,world famous hot dogs and hlölla bátar)  

Although 70% of Iceland’s population lives in Reykjavík, you would not see too many souls waddling on weekdays. Weekends are a different story when Iceland comes out of hibernation and comes out to party. This was evident at the 'Slippbarin' in our hotel which transformed from a hotel guests only bar to a buzzing cocktail lounge full of hip crowd in a matter of few hours on Friday. I really liked Loftið club for it’s cool lounge vibe despite a little bit of Icelandic snootiness and dress code but was not a big fan of being in line at Austur for spotting celebs whom I could not even recognize even if I bumped into them. We ended up at B-5 which was full of drunk and belligerent college crowd; this went just fine with the boy’s idea of a great night out. The happy hour and movie trivia night at “Lebowski bar” was a great way to blend in with the locals and yes, Big Lebowski is big across the world! After downing several rounds of Katla (Icelandic vodka and Brennivin (schnapps and Iceland’s national drink), we found the perfect 4 AM food in ‘hlölla bátar’ (chicken sandwiches).

Glimpses of Reykjavík's nightlife 

I have used unique to describe Iceland for very many reasons, one of them being the Icelandic Phallological Museum dedicated to phallus. It houses specimens from land and sea mammals including homo-sapiens for scientific research and enquiry if one is so inclined. For a country, that’s looking at tourism as its poster child to come out of its economic slump, the prices are a little prohibitive. However, once you consider the natural wonders, unique experiences, breathtaking landscape, friendly locals and a buzzing nightlife; you'll start looking at flight tickets. In my next blog post, I will cover our tour of the Golden circle and an adventurous South shore trip. I guess, it’s time to take out that bottle of Katla and have a shot! Skál! 

Breezing in Barbados

Barbados is not for you if you cannot stand rich old white men and their fat old wives in frumpy floral monokinis; but then neither is any expensive beach destination. A lot of people saw my Barbados trip for Valentine’s Day as either a sign of positive change post marriage aka some warm fuzzy in my cold heart or a sign of absolute madness. I got 'romantic', 'bourgeois', 'crazy' and, 'bitch' probably in the same breath. To me, it was a make-up beach vacation for not having one during our honeymoon last December. Little did I know that my innocuous plans may not fructify as I saw most of Barbados either drugged (not alluding to the easily available marijuana) or scorched (not alluding to the sun but to an an ill-timed viral). So now I need a make up make up vacation. (Note to self - make sure the boy reads my blogs).

Paynes Bay Beach, St. James Barbados

Barbados is one of the south eastern Caribbean islands but probably you know it better as being a part of the West Indies or as Rihanna’s home country. It’s a small pear shaped island nation (~21 miles long and ~14 miles wide) and can be easily covered by road in half a day. We had rented a car and tried and tested the saying 'you cannot get lost in Barbados, you can only take a wrong turn' to perfection. The beautiful multi-hued azul waters with white sandy beaches typical of the Caribbean’s on the east coast, surfing on the west coast, copious amounts of rum, warm and affable locals, lush green interiors, clean roads, some great resorts and restaurants along with great connectivity makes it a popular Caribbean destination for Europeans and Americans alike; more so if you are over 60 and have a retirement fund.

Barbados is divided into 11 towns with each town offering some attraction or activity and a distinct character of its own. We had rented out a beach house on the beautiful Paynes bay beach in St. James town in the east which is lined with resorts, beach houses and restaurants. Being close to Holetown was an added bonus as it is a happening area with its boutique shops, local festivals, duty free mall or the lively 1st and 2nd streets full of bars, lounges and restaurants. In fact, the entire east coast is known for its white sandy beaches and more conducive for less intense activities like tanning, snorkeling, jet-ski and jumping into water from a party boat.

Map of Barbados (Courtesy Google Search)

We spent a lot of our time in the Christchurch town further down south. It boasts of ever popular St. Lawrence gap known for it's nightlife consisting of karaoke bars, sports bars or dance clubs and Oistins Fish Fry where the locals and tourists come out for some chilling and grilling. I have really come to appreciate the concept of Fish fry prevalent in some of the Caribbean islands. For the uninitiated it’s a congregation of several shacks, small time grill/barbeque restaurants where fresh catch/ meat is grilled, barbequed or jerked and the entire community comes together to enjoy a meal, grab a drink, socialize and have a good time.

St. Michaels which is home to Bridgetown, the capital of Barbados and the rum factories as well as the beautiful Carlisle bay is another town which is buzzing with activity. The west coast of Barbados has a more rugged shoreline and is ideal for surfing. Bethesda beach or “Soup Bowl” in St. Joseph’s town is home to several surfing championships during season. We set out driving along the coast trying to circumvent the entire country but ended up stopping at the breathtaking Animal Flower Bay in St. Lucy near north point and drove back home through some of the beautiful lush green interiors of Barbados.

Animal Flower Bay & Me 

The Barbadians or Bajans take tourism very seriously as was explicit from a tourism review survey being conducted at 2 AM at the airport. They also take cleanliness very seriously and you could see roads cleaner than most cities in the world along with signs claiming fine for littering. The Bajans are in general easy going and friendly people and you could attribute this to tourism being their bread and butter or just plain good manners. But we had several instances when people went out of their way to help us whether it was for parking, asking for directions or general chit chat.

Liming is the national pastime of Barbados and it can only be experienced to be fully understood. The closest words in English to liming would be breezing or chilling but with a sense of community involved. Some of the typical spots for liming in Barbados are bars, local fish frys and, the golf club houses. When people typically say everyone is going to be at Oistins Fish Fry on a Friday night, in Barbados it literally means everybody in the country is going to be there.

Some of the best food in Barbados can be found at a fish fry or a road side grill whether it’s Caribu deli’s fry chicken or Connie’s grill’s barbeque chicken or George’s Flying fish. Even an hour long wait at George’s at Oistins did not deter our enthusiasam and our grilled red snapper was so good, my fever and foul mood were uplifted immediately.

Chilling & Grilling in Barbarbados 

That does not mean that Bajans do not do 'fancy'. From world class resorts (Sandy Lane, Fairmont), expensive fine dining restaurants(The Cliff, Tides or CinCin), to expansive golf courses; Barbados has all the components of “the good life” granted with a commensurate hole in your pocket. Some of the prices looked outrageous even to me as a New Yorker but once I sat near a fire lit porch with the rummaging sea waves nearby and the lovely wine and fresh catch on the table; I forgot the worries of real life, like how will I make rent. Eat drink and be merry for tomorrow we may worry!

Dinner at CinCin

Coming back to our Valentine’s Day, we realized that most if not all restaurants had been booked in advance and we had to resort to using out connections (read our landlady’s reference), playing on generous emotions people display towards new love (claiming it to be our first valentine together) and what no one can resist (my feverish fervor for valentine’s day) to get a table at “The Mews”. Eventually, karma caught up with us and we had to cancel our reservations and stay in due to my fever. Within a matter of hours, a fancy Valentine’s Day dinner had converted into a take-out Indian food, lounging in 2nd street in Hole town had converted to streaming a Bollywood movie and India Pakistan cricket match simultaneously and a night out in Lawrence gap in Barbados had turned into a cozy homely night in. The irony of this situation is not lost on me but at the expense of sounding clichéd; it indeed turned out to be a very fun night... a very expensive one for that kind of fun but then we are all a little generous around this day.

Valentine's day breakfast (caveat emptor: managed under high fever & limited resources)

I will probably remember this vacation more than others. If not for the viral, then maybe for the expensive visit to a doctor, or for the relief of not having Chikungunya or the fact that I could not have been closer to the beach and yet not be on the beach. Well, it was not all so grim and we tried to make the best of a few hours every day when either the fever was low or when the rum got better of me. In fact if you ask the boy, this was one of the better vacations he has had. There was no nagging, no one making reservations at expensive places, no drama, no shopping and instead long peaceful hours of sleep and a profusely sorry or thankful partner. Perspective!

Barbados being a British colony also worked out well for us. It was a relief to have the right hand drive again, where people knew about cricket, understood that a world cup can only be played amongst different countries of the world and the Bajan dialect just added more colour to our conversations if you know what I mean.

This trip got me thinking as to why I love beaches so much despite being retarded when it comes to swimming or most water sports. The combination of balmy sun, rum and good food definitely has a lot to do with it but I also realized that there is something inherently calming about the grumble of the seas that puts the entire rumble inside me at peace. I heard some folks who had been going down to Barbados for 18 years and despite my love for beaches, I cannot understand the rhyme or reason for that, unless your mother lives there. Come to think of it, I have not even been home for 18 straight years. So, I guess it’s time to plan another trip where I won’t feel bad about staying in and eating Indian food because I will be HOME.