Auckland Wrap Up

On approach to the land of the 'cotton wool' clouds (Australia)

I'm now back in Sydney where the coffee is better and the temperature, surprisingly, just a little bit colder than Auckland. Sydneysiders, me included, don't shop for the cold. The result - some less than attractive specimens walking the streets today dressed in an assorted collection of shapes, colours and styles. Some managed to pull the 'snug as a bug in a rug' look off while others missed the connection and got horribly lost in the translation.

NZ Fashion
Aucklanders' dress casually, and comfortably for winter. The pure wool clothing available is of a high standard, and NZ's designers are known for their use of good quality fabrics, and their high standard of construction.
There was nothing exciting to be seen in boutiques as most of the shops were displaying 'sale' windows.
A few hints of what's to come for summer.....colourfully patterned fabrics, reminiscent of the swinging 60's. Fine if your figure can take bold patterns, but not much fun for those who prefer to dress plain and accessorise with jewellery, pattern and texture. This heavily patterned long summer dress is a sneak preview of what's to come. You should wear minimum, if any, jewellery with this look.

Also promising/threatening to make a comeback is the 'bubble' skirt. It wasn't attractive the first time round so let's hope it's a fizzer this summer to. I spied it in a Sydney window today.

Three beautiful things that caught my eye

Lladro figurine

Potted Cyclamens

Bright shining beads feature in an interesting reflection

NZ Food 
It was impossible to find a good soy cappuccino in Auckland. Finally I scored one at the Airport before I left. If it's coffee you're after, before you fly out head for the cafe upstairs on the terminal side before going through immigration.
One absolute winner in the food stakes  - a home cooked meal of  pan fried snapper fillets ($NZ14.50 for three) with a tomato, black olive and caper sauce, served with mashed kumera and a simple green salad. All good fish shops sell snapper fillets. I bought mine in Glen Innes.
If it's double bliss that you're after pick up a dozen Bluff Oysters for starters.

Market Update

'La Cigale, an outdoor market with indoor market stalls (more like shops) in the inner city suburb, Parnell. Outdoors - fruit and vegetables, yogurts,cheeses,breads and all things foodie. Indoors, shops with a french flavour (as the name of the market suggests) and elegant winter clothing, made in NZ.The clothes aren't cheap, but neither is the quality, so well worth a look before you hit the shops in Parnell and Ponsonby.

Taste sensations worth noting
Breads - roasted golden kumera (sweet potato), and honey and walnut
Yoghurt - coffee and walnut
Tapenade - lemon zest
Olive Oil - Extra Virgin, Cold pressed Olive Oils from Turkey, imported in their original bottles. Great visual display potential for your home or cafe kitchen. I was excited to spot these as am going to Istanbul in three weeks so will be able to source them first hand.

I know it's a French 'style' market but there's a stall selling Turkish food imports.
Traditional Turkish delight is sold (not surprisingly at the Turkish stall) in a great variety of flavours. My favourite? Nougat Pistachio.

Just across from the Turkish stall is a stall selling the best fudge (made by "Oh Fudge") that I've tasted in ages. I'm not a sweet eater so it has got to be 'special' to impress me......the sticky fig and ginger fudge is divine (see header photograph and salivate)

Observations from way down under

The sparkling Waitemata on a not so sparkling winter's day

I'm staying with family in Auckland, NZ's largest city. It sits on an isthmus, astride two coasts. Consequently the weather is very unpredictable. Public transport is limited so there are a lot of cars on the roads. I had to check that the car that I was driving had  indicator lights as nobody seems to indicate,. As for letting you pull across two lanes.......forget it. They drive the supermarket trolley with the same level of aggression.The left hand rule of the road is archaic - when turning left give way to everything on your right. Think about that one! The All Blacks beat the Welsh last night; ALLof NZ went to sleep happy.
I'm staying with family who have family living overseas...Skype calls are the norm; so much for the empty nest when the family leaves home. Off to a market this morning to hopefully pick up the threads of where NZ is at. I do know, based on my visit to the supermarket that fruit and vegetables are more expensive than they are in Australia. Let's see what today brings....

Aotearoa - the land of the long white cloud

....and the land of the All Whites (currently a sensitive subject with Australians).

Meanwhile the All Blacks are making really sure that they keep their heads tucked in in the scrum.
Next World Cup match between the All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies is on 31 July in Melbourne.

I'm heading across the Tasman this week for a five day visit to see family and friends.
My 'designing' eye will be on the look out for interesting fads, food and fashions in New Zealand that I can bring you 'live' on this blog.

....and sheep (forget those Aussie sheep jokes)

....wooden bungalows with tin roofs.

....tin sheds and settlers cottages.

...beautiful bays (Russell - Bay of Islands)

....fishing boats and their ship to shore catches. Nowhere in New Zealand is far from the sea

....ducks beside the seaside, and on the lakes.

....and Punga ferns - "the silver fern"; one of the most widely recognised (unofficial) symbols of NZ.

A mix of moods, minds and food

The technicoloured moods of yesterday didn't end at sunset.

A couple of short chapters of 'the book', a glass of red, were followed by a night of vivid and extraverted dreams.  The book's author, James Gunn is a writer, actor and filmmaker (what an enviable combination) has an elegantly rich and satisfying style. The chapters are short and beautifully constructed, the words simple, and the prose is very much alive.

There must be a message in all this intergalatic upheavel, but so far it has eluded me.

Circular Quay - Sydney 's famous green and yellow ferries in repose
It was back to reality today (there is a link to yesterday though) with a book launch at the Customs House, Circular Quay. Not just any old book.  This one was launched by Therese Rein, business woman and wife of Australia's Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd. So what is that gave this book 'The Modern Woman's Anthology 2010' the celebrity treatment and the proverbial  "leg-up?'

The book's cover

It's the result of the combined contributions of 22 talented, successful and inspiring Australian women who banded/bonded together to  raise awareness and funds for mental health. The project grew out of a weekend's get together at a writer's centre in the Blue Mountains. It brings together their individual musings, memoirs and stories. Olympian Cathy Freeman, media commentator Dr Cindy Pan and author Libby Hathorn are three of the contributing writers.

There appears to be a common thread running through their stories -conquer adversity, know your self,  work on your strengths and have the courage of your convictions. Some sage words of advice from these women in the know. Find a mentor who will still your self doubts and encourage you to shine in your own image.
Perhaps there really was a message to be taken out of my technicoloured day yesterday.

Be sure to buy the book and keep it in mind when you're shopping for a friend's birthday present. Revenue from sales will be donated to the Black Dog Institute to assist with their research into mental health in Australia.

Therese Rein (far right) talking to Sydney's Lord Mayor, Clover Moore

And so to lunch
Prompted  by the display, also at the Customs House, of memorabilia from Sydney's original Italian fruit shops, I stopped off at Bill and Toni's Italian restaurant in Stanley Street for a deliciously over -stuffed sandwich and a satisfying coffee. I drink soya milk which is adds 50cents to the price.  
At $7.50 this must be the cheapest lunch in town.

Bill and Toni's -designer chic? NO     small Italian village feel? YES

It's a topsy-turvey world

Temporarily distracted?

Do you ever find yourself spinning and reflecting simultaneously? The positive side to both these states is that they usually present themselves in user friendly, mood lifting, technicolour.
I'm sure a psychologist would come up with an interesting take on these (non drug induced) technicoloured  moments of mine.

I'd like to share two such complimentary  images with you.

"My world is spinning" - Westfield Centre, Bondi Junction

"There's a whole lot of reflecting going on" - Queen Victoria Building, Sydney

Today's hopefully transient mood is reflected in the book that I've chosen to read this week. "The Toy Collector" by James Gunn, is described on the cover as "alternatively funny, tragic, erotic and violent." I'll keep you updated....


Heavenly Chocolate and Raspberry Cakes.
As promised, the name and web address of the supplier of these delights is posted on my blog "Literary Writer's, Wine and Food" - enjoy!
Coincidentally I 'discovered' Manna from Heaven's Lemon Polenta Cakes five years ago. I was involved with in-house catering for a dealing room of
dinkum Aussie blokes with a food mentality based on sausage rolls and chips.
Mysteriously the polenta cakes proved to be winners. I'm surprised that I didn't pick up the maker this time round. I did recognise quality though.

Coconuts and music

Musical moments

Looking for an enjoyable way to relax on a Sunday afternoon I joined the audience at the ABC 's Eugene Gossens Hall for a live broadcast by one of Australia's most distinguished pianists, Clemens Leske. In celebration of Chopin and Schumann's 200th anniversary he played Chopin's Scherzo No2 and Nocturne No3, plus Schumann's Davidsbundler Dances. For me,Chopin's Nocturne No3 was the winner for.
As the Eugene Gossens Hall is a camera free zone I had to take a quick pic before the concert started. Hence the grainy quality but it will give you an idea of the over-sized recording studio.

Coconut Milk - the new 'buzz' food
Forget a coffee or a glass of apple, carrot, beetroot and ginger juice with lunch. The latest craze is to drink the milk from a young coconut. Considered to be a drink and a 'meal in one' it helps to build up the immune system. At $2.50 a coconut, it's cheap medicine. I intended to photograph one today, but Wholefoods had sold out. It's kind of cute to see Sydneysider's dressed in business suits sitting sipping a coconut through a straw.
Coconut water (bottled by Nudie) is also making inroads.  Promoted as a natural alternative to vitamins, mineral water and sports drinks, it's available in four flavours. At $3.50 a bottle you could forego a second cup of coffee.

Where to for coffee?
What better place to have a cup of coffee after an elegant recital than under the Dome of the heritage listed Queen Victoria Building in George Street, Sydney

Boots, Roses, Art

"UBIQUITY"
Art while you're out


Emma de Clario 18 June to 01 July 2010
Frances Keevil Gallery 28-34 Cross Street, Double Bay, NSW
A sensitive execution using mixed media on wood panel. Oil and beeswax on mobile phone photographs, printed on recycled acid proof paper and mounted on reclaimed and kilm dried old growth Australian timber.

These boots are bliss
I'm a retailer's worst nightmare - the shopper that keeps trying on and on, yet seldom buys. Sixteen pairs of boots later, I scored a rare winner. A stunning pair of black leather lined, knee high boots, lightweight, superior style and craftsmanship, with the added bonus of a 30% discount. How could I resist them? All that had gone before them suffered by comparison. I tried to say no to these beauties by convincing myself that I could have two pairs of made in China ankle boots for the price of one pair of these Spanish sensations. Had I waited until next week the discount would have been 50% but when you wear the world's most common shoe size (8) it isn't worth leaving it to chance.
Keep an eye out in the sales for these life enhancing boots (like gloves on your feet) made in Spain. (Hispanitas).

Footnote
On my way to an Art exhibition in Double Bay I noticed several pairs of  boots made in Italy, in a shop window. I was tempted to add another monument to European style to my wardrobe as they too were reduced. I'm fickle. Once again it was love at first sight...fortunately the shop was closed.

Postscript
Crunch time. I have a house rule that for every one thing that comes in, one must go out. A hard decision when it comes to shoes, but a must do if you want to stay in control of your fashion style, and have space in your wardrobe.

Flower power
After such an exhilarating retail purchase I walked head held high, feet hardly touching the ground with everything in my world looking rosy. Hope you enjoy smelling these roses to....

Roses were everywhere I looked

Graffiti - disaster or designer?

Graffiti in the raw...

These shots were taken in Newtown, an inner west suburb of Sydney with a reputation for "extending" the boundaries.

Your opinion on graffiti please - good, bad or somewhere in between?
It's time for an on-line chat forum on the contribution, pluses and or minus's, that graffiti brings to our lives.
How do you differentiate between graffiti as an art form and graffiti that's a 'statement' piece? It's a fine line; somewhere out there is the next Banksy.

The graffiti artist, as opposed to the graffiti destructor, needs an outlet. How about setting aside public spaces to accommodate this form of self expression. Council buldings, playcentres, parks and reserves, train and bus depots could all benefit from an injection of colour, creativity and a greater sense of community. Those bent on destructive images could be encouraged to post their images on 'graffiti central' giving them a much greater audience, and the global exposure that they're not getting now.

Literary Writers; Wine and Food

If you have to go out on a winter's night pick somewhere that's warm and inviting.
I scored on both counts last night. As part of the Bondi Winter Festival celebrations I went along to my favourite bookstore - 'Gertrude and Alice Cafe and Bookstore' for an evening aptly titled  "Famous Literary Drunks" accompanied by wine tasting and enhanced with foods to match the wines. When these writer's (quite a few of them Irish) weren't writing they were drinking. Most drank to write, but several combined both. I'd like their secret recipe. I can't drink and write at the same time and still manage to make sense.

Pointers I took away from the wine tasting

• Wine matched with food is all about drinking with food rather than drinking for drinking's sake.
• Tepranillo (Spanish grape) is a great full bodied red perfect, to serve with a lamb dish
• Riedel Glassware (Austrian) is a must if you're looking to get the most from the wine.   Described by one wine afficiado as "the finest glasses for both technical and hedonistic purposes". They are shaped according to the type of wine they are designed to hold and consequently they have "a profound affect on the pleasure of drinking, bringing out the full character of the wine"

On the way home in the bus I sat beside a young woman who was just going out for the night as I was heading home. She was dressed in one of my pet subjects (see "Food and Fashion Observations") a short skirt, a waist length cotton jacket, fine textured leggings, and knee high boots; she was off to the Soccer World Cup outdoor venue at Darling Harbour. And yes, she admitted, much to my delight, to having "very cold" legs.

My favourite bookshop cafe

Cafe details:
Gertrude & Alice Cafe & Bookstore
46 Hall Street, Bondi Beach

Postscript - a foodie's delight
I enjoyed the 'best ever' chocolate and rasberry morsel today with my afternoon cup of coffee. Bursting with generous chunks of chocolate and sweet juicy raspberries it was to die for. I'll find out the name of the supplier and post it here for all to share.
Answer: the supplier of these heaven sent morsels - Manna from Heaven (Sydney based)
Check them out at http://www.mannafromheaven.com.au/

'Designer' dogs

Love me, love my dog.....

"Leading a dog's life" - once considered to be a comment that indicated that someone didn't lead the most charmed of lives. If research can be believed, "leading a dog's life" is now something to aim for.

"Too much easy living is dumbing down our pampered pooches" (SMH June 16). Apparently domestic dogs have become so dependent on humans they can no longer pass simple intelligence tests or solve problems which their counterparts in the wild find easy.

In Paris, pampered pooches are both a fashion statement and a social accessory - they're fed, walked and groomed to perfection. From what I've seen on the streets this week Sydney's dogs are right up there.

A Parisian pooch off to work for the day

Spotted in Sydney  - a gorgeous White Samoyed drapped elegantly across the back seat of a ming blue, open top, Mercedes. A poodle dressed to kill in a tartan waiscoat and matching scarf. A dog owner coming out of the pet shop with three dogs on diamond encrusted leads, and a basket full of expensive playthings. Then there was 'Renzo' being wheeled through Newtown in his pet pushchair (see shot below for living proof). A woman ordering sirloin steak for her "very fussy" dog, and the ultimate in pampering, a matching pair of  Sydney Silkies enjoying doggy chinos at an outdoor table....I kid you not.

'Renzo' in his stroller

'Toto' stepping out for a stroll

Heaven forbid that this could be happening to our children to. Too pampered to know how to play; too over indulged to need to put up a fight; too over extended to be able to find their own direction.

Check out "A Doggy Conversation" on my second blog, 'Image'

Don't get me wrong, I'm not anti-dog, just waiting for someone to produce a designer dog - one who knows its place, is pooless, doesn't shed hair, most certainly doesn't bark, bite or sniff, and most importantly, doesn't run up hugeVet's
bills.

Where to for lunch?

Lunch in style

                                                                                                Lunch on the run

On a "sunny at last" winter's day where better to eat than outside by the harbour.
I've given you two options within 50 metres of each other.
For those with deep pockets, or better still in the company of someone with deep pockets, lunch in style with all the other beautiful people at one of the many restaurants along Cowper Wharf, Woolloomoolloo.

If it's something more simple, far less expensive, and just around the corner that you're after, don't go past Harry's Cafe de Wheels, a Sydney institution since 1945. Check out the photos of the famous faces that have eaten there. You'll notice a shot of Australia's favourite 'Gladiator' (Russell Crowe) - coincidentally he has an apartment at the end of Cowper Wharf.

Food and Fashion Observations

Is he to blame? (see Girls in short skirts)

There's a huge 'foodie' awakening happening in this town.

Deli delights

Over the long weekend (Queen's Birthday) I've been doing what I enjoy the most -
wandering and observing to capture the pulse of what's going on around me.
Food Emporiums, temples to all that's considered to be of superior quality, are popping up in the more 'desirable' residential suburbs of Sydney. Selection is great, presentation top notch and prices sky high. I wouldn't like to have been the one paying the bill for the brimming over baskets of goodies I witnessed being presented at the check-out. For these gourmands, the cost of eating 'in' must be greater than the cost of eating 'out'. Add shopping, prep time, house cleaning, flowers etc and eating out presents a most attractive option.
To prove my point.....I joined friends for a Chinese meal at a restaurant in one of the more affluent suburbs.  All  courses were prepared to order, nothing was pre-prepared, food likes, dislikes, and agreeable combinations, weren't a problem, and the succulent vegetarian spring rolls and crunchy stir fried vegetables were my "best ever". The price? $35 a head. The equivalent to the cost of a jar of beautifully packaged Stilton, a small packet of walnuts and dates, and two truss tomatoes from foodies heaven. I rest my case.

Girls in short skirts

What's with these chicks, hasn't anyone told them that it's C16 degrees outside?
Didn't they check the temperature before they went out the door or were they prepared to dress to just to impress? I noted that the guys they were with were dressed for the weather. This triggered my curiosity. I went window shopping in the hopes of finding the answer. I found it. In  women's shop windows the bloodless, inanimate shop mannequins were sporting these tiny bum freezer skirts, and in men's shops the mannequins portrayed the perfectly packaged winter man, dressed to kill in high neck jumper, sporty scarf, heavy jacket and boots.
All things being equal........................?
Leggings aren't the answer either. Unless you've got legs as long as a super model it's a hard look to carry off. They're great with sloppy Joe's and long shirts. There not that great for middle aged woman who seem to adopt the leggings and artists smock look in an attempt to appear 'hip'

Australian Women of Film

Art Gallery of New South Wales

In conjunction with the Sydney Film Festival I attended a 'little gem' at the AGNSW. Margaret Pomeranz talking to Gillian Armstrong, Shirley Barrett and Jane Chapman about their films - "Last Days of Chez Noir" and "Love Serenade". Both films are now part of the National Film and Sound Archives collection. It was great to see retro chic that can still foot it today, as can actor Miranda Otto who also contributed to the panel discussion.
Their collective advice to would be women film makers ie. writers, directors, and producers? "Talent, initiative and drive are factors that contribute to success; gender has very little to do with the final outcome".

A must see at the AGNSW - there's a lovely exhibition on show until 29 August 2010 - "Victorian Visions". With richness of colour, romantic images of love, images of death and of historical events, make for lovely viewing.
Enjoy the added romance of a walk in Hyde Park afterwards.

Hyde Park Walkway

aatconjunction with the Sydney Film Festival I attended a real gem yesterday.

aA must seeA Q&A session "Women of Film" at the AGNSW, with Margaret Pomeranz talking to Gillian Armstrong, Shirley Barrett and Jane Chapman about their films - "Last Days of Chez Noir" and "Love Serenade". Both films are now part of the National Film and Sound Archives collection. Great to experience retro chic that can still foot it in the now. Actor, Miranda Otto was also on the panel.

Let there be light

VIVID SYDNEY
A winter festival of light, music and ideas runs through to 21 June 2010

Inside: my kind of scene at the MCA (Museum of Contemporary Art) last night.
Creative teams collaborating across disciplines for a one-off performance. Bringing together fashion, film, music, performance, design and photography.

Hot to trot

and the Band played on

Outside: Sydney by night takes on a translucent light.

Outdoor Bar - Customs House

Psychedelic street performers

Shopping habits

Writing can be a lonely existence; any excuse to 'get out' is a bonus. I'm writing this as I sit waiting for a prescription.

I'm a person that shops every day. Unfortunately not for the more glamorous things in life but for the basic essential - food.


Shopping habits (mine excluded) are changing rapidly. Malls are facing a hands on challenge from the inevitable 'next big thing' - online shopping. Virtual shopping centres, on behalf of retailer tennants where online orders can be placed.
This is shopping without sentiment.

With thousands of members signing up every week to private members shopping clubs these virtual shopping centres are expected to pull in a big following. It's anticipated that fashion will occupy the biggest segment of this expanding market.


I'm a sweet old fashioned girl who likes to see and touch what I'm buying and have the in-store (preferably a small store) tangible experience.

Am I alone in this?

Just now the Chemist asked if I'd like an SMS to remind me how many repeats are left on my prescription .......No No No thanks.
How much more technology can we handle before we implode?