On Good Friday, we closed the trip in Lisbon, or as we insiders like to refer to it, Lisboa (to find out why, we would have had to stay another day.) At the Praca do Comercio, facing wide, impressive Tagus, this magnificent arch dominates a huge plaza, which is anchored by this statue of King …
4, we went to southern Atlantic Coast, where we saw the perfectly perfect coast of Albufeira, but which was altogether too orderly and civilized in comparison to the rocky, wild Praia De Gale, which was about ten miles away. On close inspection, all those rocks reveal themselves to be composed of thousands of shells and …
The beautiful Atlantic Coast town of Cascais was just lovely. We saw the bathers and fishing fleet along the quay; enjoyed the disorienting tile pattern on the sidewalk; say a replica of the Schtandart, an early 18th century Russian frigate; and a had an excellent lunch outdoors on the quay at a restaurant called Baia …
After visiting the Quinta da Regalaira, we then took on another enormous estate, the the amazing Pena Palace, the brainstorm of the amazingly accomplished King Ferdinand II (1816-1885), who along with being king,was an artist, poet, landscape architect, father of eleven, as well as nephew of King Leopold I of Belgium, and thus a first …
Portugal, Day Two: Sintra. Beautiful, charming, enchanting, Sintra is known for its many 19th-century Romantic architectural monuments, and a literary heritage that has made a important site in Portuguese culture. Touring the town via Tuk Tuk (a three-wheeled golf cart, complete with guide), we visited: Quinta da Regaleira, a beautiful palace full of lakes, grottoes, …
After bolting several scores of kilometers in the wrong direction, Jamie and Ginny (Jack Lemmon, Sandy Dennis) begin a long, bickery, endlessly comic trek over the many hills and through the valleys of western Portugal. Proficient non-speakers of Portuguese, we somehow blunder their way to Dolce, their hotel in Torres Vedras, which turns out to …
4.8 Daily Beast reports that Bannon calls Jushner “a ‘globalist’ and a ‘cuck’…He actually said ‘cuck,’ as in “cuckservative.’” 4.8 Axios: Steve Bannon, the engine and soul of President Trump‘s hard-edged approach to his first months in office, is increasingly isolated and will be forced out unless he can adopt a more cooperative approach, a …
APRIL 2017 “WHOEVER SAYS THAT IS A STUPID IDIOT.” Read More »
Along with Bob Dylan and Nat Hentoff, the Russian poet Yevgeny Yevtushenko was part of the larger, more sophisticated world to which my sister introduced me in 1966 or so. I read his memoir. I remember only one thing: his description of the government’s decision to devalue the ruble, which sent people out to spend …
3.31 After 111 consecutive victories, UConn women lose to Mississippi State in an NCAA semi-final game. 3.31 Maggie Haberman via Twitter: ” The NY wing vs national wing matters less as chronic infighting and more as a … death battle over who can move the president in a game of inches.” 3.30 SpaceX flew a …
MARCH 2017: “THE ANSWER IS SIMPLE AND NO ONE IS SAYING IT” Read More »
From the British magazine The Jackal, MARCH 15, 2017 Politics has never been the prime interest of the American people. Oh, we like to gussie up the whole Revolutionary War thing with the `life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,’’ mantra, but that was just something Thomas Jefferson spackled over what was basically a tax …