A Lady in London

Penang. A Shangri-La, a distant spice island in a mysterious legend. The Far East, full of traders and sailing ships, the meeting place of Easterners and the coveted jewel of Westerners. The final destination on my Malaysia travels.

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The sky is magenta. I scramble out of my seat, nearly toppling the woman next to me, and run to the opposite window to get a photo. And a video. It is one of the most beautiful sunsets I’ve ever seen, and it reminds me why I decided to travel by train in Malaysia.

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Looking out over the Strait of Malacca, I feel I’m peering into history. Like most Westerners, the body of water is something I read about in books as a child but never expected to see in person. But it’s here. Right in front of me. And being in Malacca shows me that the strait’s fame as a historic trading passage still affects its namesake city today.

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“You’ve eaten lunch?” she asks. She’s not actually wondering whether I’ve consumed my afternoon meal. Rather, she is greeting me in the traditional Malaysian manner. And this simple salutation speaks volumes about the culture here. The food culture. The food obsession.

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London’s food scene is buzzing. Seemingly every week a new restaurant opens, many of them greatly anticipated. Ametsa with Arzak Instruction, a little sibling of the famous three-Michelin starred Arzak restaurant in Spain’s San Sebastian, is no exception. It opened last month while I was traveling non-stop, but I made sure to line up a review as soon as I got back.

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Spring has arrived in London. Yesterday was the first warm day we’ve had all year, and the whole world was outside enjoying the sunshine. I was no exception, and spent most of my day in South Kensington. I have always loved South Kensington’s restaurants, museums, and architecture, and I had a great time exploring the neighborhood.

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Lately my travels have come on a back-to-back basis. The day after I returned from California, I left for Australia. The day after I got back from Australia, I went to Belgium. It was exhausting, but given that it was still below freezing in London, I was excited to escape for a weekend in Brussels.

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Melbourne is on everyone’s mind. Whenever Australia comes up in conversation, people rave about the city. So when I flew to Adelaide last week, I extended my trip for a few days to travel to Melbourne and see what all the fuss is about.

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I’m an aunt! My new nephew was recently born in San Diego, and my mother and I traveled down from San Francisco for his arrival. We spent most of our time at the hospital, but when we weren’t fawning over our new family member, we explored the nearby Point Loma area.

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People always ask me what I miss most about living in San Francisco. My answer is always the same: the food and wine. But what’s a Lady in London to do when she goes home to California to await the birth of her nephew and can’t make any firm foodie plans?

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Not many people visit California’s Napa Valley in the winter. The grape harvest has long since taken place, the vines are brown and bare, and the famous Chardonnays and Cabernets are growing old in their barrels. But for those that make the effort, traveling to Napa in the off-season can bring some unexpected rewards.

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