Hyatt Regency Hong Kong, Tsim Sha Tsui

This month, October 2009, has seen the re-opening of the Hyatt Regency Hong Kong, in that very hub of Hong Kong, Tsim Sha Tsui. This opening completes a trio of Hyatt properties in Hong Kong, with the other two being Grand Hyatt Hong Kong in Wan Chai and the Hyatt Regency Hong Kong, Sha Tin, which opened earlier in 2009.

Hyatt Regency Hong Kong, Tsim Sha Tsui, spans floors 3 to 24 of the new K11 development that runs the length of Hanoi Road in the very heart of Tsim Sha Tsui. The hotel is right at the top of ‘The Art Mall’, which is six stories of boutiques and restaurants, and through The Art Mall, you get direct access to Tsim Sha Tsui MTR subway.

The hotel is beautifully contemporary and international, with a strong emphasis on home-style comfort. The hotel’s 381 rooms, including 33 suites, are decorated in rich tones of burgundy and grey, with tactile textured wallpaper, leather-effect headboards and plush velour armchairs and ottomans. There are fantastic views over Victoria Harbour, Hong Kong Island and Kowloon.

So what about eating? At Hugo’s you can get classic European cuisine while you enjoy magnificent views from the floor-to-ceiling windows. Hugo’s is loved for its Caesar Salad, Lobster Bisque, Steak Tartare, Cherries Jubilee and Café Diablo. Especially popular are Hugo’s Chocolate Bonbons, which are round, ice cream-filled chocolate shells, served from a bowl of billowing dry ice.

At the all-day restaurant Café you will find international food, with seven show kitchens specializing in sushi and sashimi, teppanyaki, Chinese and dim sum, Indian with Tandoor ovens, antipasti and pizza, cold cuts, and desserts.

The hotel also has a Chinese restaurant, and the famous Chin Chin Bar.

So for a hotel in the very heart of Tsim Sha Tsui, with good connections, great views, wonderful comfort and perfect food to suit every taste, Hyatt Regency Hong Kong is the place to stay.



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Belgrade - art, music and architecture

Belgrade, situated at the point where the Sava and Danube Rivers join, is the capital city of Serbia. It was first settled by the Celts, then later by the Romans, and has been under various rulers at various times including Byzantine, Frankish, Bulgarian, and Hungarian. Once a part of the Ottoman Empire, and then later the Habsburg Empire, Belgrade was also the capital of former Yugoslavia, before the establishment of Serbia as an independent country again in 2006.

Belgrade is still in some ways a little off the beaten track for a city break, but now is really the time to visit, before the city becomes more expensive, popular and crowded.

So what is there to see? Well, The National Museum of Serbia has plenty to take a look at with its fantastic displays of archaeology, numismatics, and its collection of art which ranges from the medieval to the modern. The art collections include French, Italian, Dutch, Flemish, Russian, Austrian, German and Japanese art as well as Serbian, and other art of the area of former Yugoslavia. The museum now has a glass dome for the roof, which allows plenty of light into the museum. Nearby you will also find The National Theatre where there are performances of drama, opera and ballet. The theatre was designed by Aleksandar Bugarski who designed a great number of Belgrade buildings in the nineteenth century.

The impressive Kalemegdan Fortress also attracts the visitors, as much for the surrounding parkland as for the fortress itself. From the fortress the view is fantastic, and you can see clearly where the Sava River flows into the Danube.

The bohemian quarter of Belgrade, Skadarlija, is really popular with tourists, artists and musicians, who like to enjoy its restaurants, art galleries, antique and souvenir shops. You’ll also find street performers here from music to people pretending to be statues.

So next time you fancy a city break to some part of Europe that you’ve not yet explored, give Belgrade some thought.


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Provence - home to innovative TV cook Keith Floyd

As a tribute to the late Keith Floyd who died last week I feel it would be fitting that today’s post be about Provence, that delightful region of south-eastern France where this witty and voluble cook latterly made his home. In fact for the widely travelled Keith there are numerous other places that would also make equal tributes, as he covered cookery all over the globe, with an interest in cuisine was truly international and cosmopolitan.

Floyd settled finally near Avignon, a small walled city on the banks of the Rhône. Walk through Avignon and you are immediately impressed by its beauty - its magnificent 12th century Romanesque cathedral, the Palais des Papes, and other fine buildings. Needless to say, one of Avignon’s most famous sights is its medieval bridge, the Pont d’Avignon which was immortalised in song.

The climate and lifestyle of Provence has attracted writers, painters, and other creative people for a long time. F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote The Great Gatsby here, living at St. Raphaël. Somerset Maugham lived here at Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat. The list of painters who lived in Provence and were inspired by its light and colour is so long that I’d need a book to tell you about them, but suffice to say the list includes such names as Van Gogh, Cézanne, Renoir and Matisse.

So it’s no surprise really that Keith Floyd chose to live here, particularly as the cuisine of Provence is sensational, along too with its wines and social life. As for places to go in Avignon, Floyd was fond of the Café de la Comédie, saying, “The regulars are wonderfully eclectic - the vet, the road sweeper, the mayor. It's a place where I can be just another punter, order a pastis and have the kind of benignly philosophical conversations about politics or France thrashing England at rugby that make being in France so inspiring.”

Floyd was fond also of L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, a small town famous for its waterside cafes and restaurants, as well as its Sunday market, saying, “At home in France, this is where I shop for food. It's the best market in Europe, I reckon. Whatever you want, you can find it here. Sunday is best – everyone’s got the day off, and they make a party of food shopping.”. In his blog Floyd also mentions happy times here sipping pastis in the Café de France, and enjoying the wine in Rocky’s wine bar.

So if you find yourself in Avignon, or in L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, you might well check out some of the places recommended by the great man himself, who will be sadly missed.


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