I can’t contain my pride, check out the BBC News Online today:
“Romanian drama wins Cannes gold”
Jury head Stephen Frears was on hand to congratulate Mungiu
Romanian film 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days has won the Palme d’Or at this year’s Cannes Film Festival
This weekend Amore and I took a spontaneous trip to Stratford-upon-Avon. This is in line with our getting-to-know-England-better plan. Also, with 3 degrees Celsius extra on our doorstep (this weekend’s Sunday Times illustrated article on global warming is not for the faint-hearted), we said to ourselves maybe it’s time we did our bit and cut down on those tempting cheap weekend flights to the sunnier sides of Europe. What the heck… We live in England and when somebody mentions High Wycombe we still think they are talking about Scotland…
So, we got on the train at Marylebone Station, one of London’s oldest and most charming, my personal favourite (have you seen their florists?). Two hours later we are in Shakespeare memorabilia heaven: there are souvenir shops, statues of characters from his plays, a tour of the haunted house that once belonged to the man who inspired Falstaff (the Bard’s brother in law).
There are, of course, the theatres, the lovely country pubs, the beautiful riverside walks and the overall olde worlde charm that sold England to me in the first place, all those years ago. We had a fantastic day and I recommend it to anyone who wants to get away from the hustle and bustle of London at the weekend. Not a place for longer than two days, methinks.
The day is also memorable for the sight I’m about to describe. As someone else was commenting, it’s got to be one of the strangest sights I’ve ever seen. As we were walking along the river enjoying the sunshine and eavesdropping on a tour guide, we saw this elderly lady coming from the opposite direction. When I say elderly I mean proper elderly, early 80’s at least, with a hunched back, snow white hair, a scarf and a long pink raincoat. Like any of our grandmothers, only older. She suddenly stopped, looked around her and decided on putting her large black bag by this big tree on the riverbank. Nothing strange about her yet. She wanted to have a rest. Well, here’s where I was wrong. I kid you not, ladies and gentlemen, the lady leant her bags against the tree, put herself in position and took off for a jog!! Up and down in a leisurely manner, stopping to draw her breath and then off she went again… I had never ever seen anything like this before. She was so fit, so the opposite of what you’d expect from a 80 something year old lady quietly shuffling along the river. She went on like this for at least half an hour while Amore and me were sipping our Stella’s at what we were told was the best known pub in the world (The Black Swan, also known as The Dirty Duck). She then stopped and dutifully did her stretching after which she recuperated her bag and went away. I can tell you that she made a lasting impression on a wide open air audience. She was our non-Shakespearian centre stage lady. She did make me smile. Amore thought she was not all there and felt sorry for her (How would you feel if your granny took off like that in the park?); I thought she was an eccentric fitness fan. Good on her.
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Let’s just say it was enough to make me reconsider the extent of my weekly exercise routine (three times a week walk from Farringdon to Elephant and Castle).
So here’s to you, the jogger in a pink raincoat in Stratford. You made the trip less about Shakespeare and therefore less predictable. Have you considered the marathon?
This may come like an obvious one to many of you, lovers of good film. Today’s recommendation / reminder is IL POSTINO. Bear with me, though, as I’m making it a double one. Let me explain.
We watched it on Friday night and what a wonderful film it is! Simple, sweet, sensitive, set against the background of beautifully picturesque Procida island in the south of Italy.
Not only is the film an utter pleasure to watch ( I did have to wipe away a couple of tears…), but I have made a discovery: Pablo Neruda’s poetry. IL POSTINO is about the friendship between a local postman and the exiled Chilean poet Pablo Neruda. Throughout the film and in the extra features, they quoted Neruda’s lyrics and I was hooked! I’m heading down the library and I will take out his 20 POEMS OF LOVE. And I will read poetry again for the first time in over 15 years. I am going to tempt you, too, with a couple of lyrics, maybe I can bring poetry back into your lives.
What can I do? I am a hopeless romantic. Enjoy!
Today’s recommendation is not to do with food or the big screen. At least not directly. Today it’s a place.
A friend talked me into going to ALMERIA two years ago, after she herself had spent a few weeks living there, working on the set of a film. In fact film plays an important part in the life of this otherwise sleepy place. Many of the old Western movies in which we saw Clint strut his stuff were in fact filmed here.
In my view, Almeria is Spain’s best kept touristic secret (until now).
I know at least one person who will blow steam over my revealing this last unspoilt piece of heaven. But I was going through my online albums this afternoon and felt this perfectly qualified for a B recommends.
So, if you like:
* deserted beaches and unconventional almost lunar-like landscapes
* peace and quiet holidays where not a chirringuito or socked & sandalled tourist is in sight for miles
* good simple food for decent prices
* very good mojitos
* super friendly and chilled out locals
* the chance to spend the day on a sailing boat and go dolphin spotting without it costing an arm and a leg
I suggest you book a (very cheap) flight with Easyjet or Ryanair and get down to Almeria. What my friends and I do is then rent a car and head to a former mining village called Rodalquilar, rent a beautiful whitewashed villa ( for next to nothing) and then explore the vast choice of local beaches. From late April onwards you’re pretty cert to get good weather, better than in England at that time, anuyway. It’s grand! A few piccies to tickle your appetite will follow. If you need any more info, let me know and I’ll be happy to help.
I have recently discovered this great Italian restaurant called SPACCA NAPOLI. Last time I went, Brian May had just finished his dinner there . If it’s good enough for Brian, it’s good enough for me. Seriously, do go if you like Italian food. http://www.london-eating.co.uk/6801.htm
If anyone would have said to me: “You will be given a 6 hour long film and watch it all in one go on a Thursday night until 4am”, I would have called him/her/it crazy…
Well, last night I did it. It’s an Italian film called THE BEST OF YOUTH. Winner of Un Certain Regard at the Cannes Film Festival in 2003.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0346336/
I came back from a very nice dinner with friends, made a cup of tea, sat down on the sofa with Amore and did not get up until 6 hours later. Not even to go to the loo…
So if you get a chance for a quiet afternoon/evening in, do get this beautiful film out! It’s a three decade long fresco of Italian social and political life, as seen and lived by a family of 6 from Rome. It’s tempting to turn all “review-ey” and voice opinions on the directing, acting, locations, etc.
However, I’ll stick to this: I recommend THE BEST OF YOUTH with all my heart. You will love it and this is coming from someone who is quite hard to please when it comes to film.
Enjoy and do let me know what you thought!
