GREASE TAKES US BACK TO THE FIFTIES

Sandra Tiltman with Bert Newton

Grease is definitely the word around Pyrmont after everyone’s favourite musical, GREASE, opened its season at Sydney’s Lyric Theatre on October 13.

Featuring all the unforgettable songs from the hit movie including You’re The One That I Want, Grease Is The Word, Summer Nights, Hopelessly Devoted To You, Sandy, Greased Lightnin’ plus many more, this is a show the whole family will enjoy.

Get into the spirit of the fifties and go back to a simpler time when the girls in their bobby-sox and flared skirts and the guys with their leather jackets and greased hair ruled.

The cast is excellent with Rob Mills playing the lead role of Danny alongside Gretel Scarlett as Sandy singing all the famous songs we know and love.  They are particularly eye catching when they channel John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John in the famous dance scene in their black outfits. Lucy Maunder is superb as bad girl Rizzo and Bert Newton brings all his charm to his role as veteran disc jockey Vince Fontaine

Todd McKenney, dressed in white, stole the show as Teen Angel, with his fantastic dancing and singing.  Anthony Callea was also a treat in the role of Johnny Casino.

The students of Rydell High gave us a wonderful evening of singing and dancing and judging by the happy faces of the audience all humming and singing along as they left the theatre, everyone seemed to have enjoyed the show.

Sandra Tiltman     Photo:  John Pond 

RE-LAUNCH OF “NAME THIS BAR”

Darlinghurst’s bar scene is in the news again with last week’s re-launch of Name This Bar.  Located in Oxford Street close to Taylor Square, Name This Bar has been totally revamped with wood paneled walls, paintings, luscious ferns, bright flowers and an AstroTurf floor.

After recently hosting the Rolling Stone Magazine Live Lodge pop up bar for three weeks, Name This Bar is using its new revamped venue, purpose built stage, PA system, DJ decks and lighting to reposition itself as one of Sydney’s top live music venues.  Performers at the launch included BRAVE, a band with a unique mix of indie and nu-R&B who are currently making a buzz on the music scene and regular performers at the Sexy Sunday Jam.

Name This Bar is set to conquer the live music and art scene with a new line up of weekly music and creative events by hosting regular live music nights, themed events, live Art Battles competitions, and a Sexy Sunday Jam, as well as offering function hire on Fridays and Saturdays.

Not just another bar, Name This Bar is a venue that makes you feel like you belong, where you can relax and chill out, but at the same time, receive the service and attention you would get in a first rate hotel.

Sandra Tiltman     Photos:  John Pond

ASIAN FOOD – SYDNEY HAS IT ALL

Sandra Tiltman with Lord Mayor Clover Moore & The Hon. George Souris, MP Minister for Tourism

Eating great Asian food with all the variations of flavours, no longer means a trip overseas.  Sydney now has an enormous range of restaurants and take-aways covering every price bracket, offering cuisine from China, Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Cambodia, Taiwan, Indonesia, Thailand and the regions within those countries.  Sydney food lovers are spoilt for choice.

Almost any Asian food item is now available in Sydney at specialty Asian supermarkets and small shops.  Even many of the mainstream supermarkets have large Asian sections offering a wide range of products.

At Sydney Town Hall on Wednesday evening, Lord Mayor Clover Moore launched Asia On Your Doorstep, a special initiative designed to celebrate the fabulous feast of flavours on our doorstep during Sydney Good Food Month.

The Lord Mayor commented the Festival gave Sydneysiders the opportunity to visit one of the city’s most popular cultural precincts and to taste their way through Asia without leaving the city.  “People will be able to see some of Chinatown’s best chefs at work and try out some of their offerings” said the Lord Mayor.

The annual City of Sydney backed Festival runs until 31 October and helps diners discover the secrets of top chefs and also enjoy some of Chinatown’s signature dishes.

A Festival highlight is the one night only ‘Little Eat Street’ night markets which will be held in Little Hay Street on Friday, 25 October, where more than a dozen restaurants will bring their best street food and snacks to Haymarket.

Students from the City of Sydney’s inaugural International Student Leadership and Ambassador program will act as Festival Ambassadors, helping businesses in Chinatown, Thai-town (Campbell Street), Korea-town (Pitt Street) get involved in the event.

MC Lee Lin Chin of SBS with Adam Liaw

Adam Liaw, MasterChef Australia winner and SBS TV chef, will demonstrate some of his favourite dishes at lunchtime from 10-13 October at Market City. He will also judge an Asian cooking competition between TAFE students, with the winner taking home a $1,000 prize.

More than 70 restaurants across Haymarket will create signature dishes for the Festival, using their five favourite and most interesting ingredients, all for $10-$20.

By enjoying a meal at a restaurant participating in Asia On Your Doorstep, diners will be able to enter a competition to win a trip to Thailand.

Another foodie event currently underway is the Macau Food Festival in Feast Restaurant at Sydney’s Sheraton on the Park, running until 20 October.

The lunch and dinner buffet features a selection of new dishes, along with Macau food specialities of Macanese curry prawns, Caldo Verde (a Portuguese potato based soup), a casserole of bacalhau (cod), and Minchi (mince topped with a fried egg), plus the traditional Serradura and Macau egg tarts for dessert.

As part of the Macau Festival, family friendly events will be held in Darling Harbour’s Tumbalong Park over the weekend of 19-20 October.

Sandra Tiltman  Photos:  John Pond.

FACE OF AUSTRALIA COSMETICS NATIONAL COSTUME COMPETITION FOR 2013 MISS UNIVERSE PAGEANT

Melbourne medical student Olivia Wells, who was recently crowned Miss Universe Australia 2013, is studying a Bachelor of Medicine & Surgery at Monash University and has hopes of assisting underprivileged countries that require medical assistance.

Miss Universe Australia is a national beauty pageant of Australia that selects the representative to the Miss Universe pageant.

Olivia will soon be heading to Russia, where she will be Australia’s representative at Donald Trump’s International Pageant, to be held in Moscow on 9 November 2013, where hopefully she will win the coveted crown.

Miss Universe Australia in conjunction with Face of Australia Cosmetics staged the “Face of Australia Cosmetics National Costume Competition” for emerging designers to create and design the Australian National Costume to be paraded by Olivia in Moscow.  Queensland Designer, Jason Chectcuti, was announced as the winner with a design that was inspired by the curves of the female form, the blue incorporating our beach culture and the feathers on the dress representing Australia’s wildlife.  Jason studied in Paris and has worked on Project Runway Australia.

The National Costume Launch Presented by Face of Australia Cosmetics held an exclusive Runway Show in Sydney recently at L’Aqua, which showcased a sneak preview of Jason’s winning design, which was paraded by Olivia Wells.

The runway show also featured Adelaide designer Paolo Sebastian’s beautiful handcrafted evening gown that Olivia will wear in the contest.  The parade also included a collection of dresses that will Olivia will take with her to Moscow as part of her wardrobe.

Miss Universe is the second most watched event in the world with over 3 billion viewers, following the World Cup.

Sandra Tiltman  PHOTO:  John Pond  

 

NEIL OLIVER COMING TO SYDNEY

Neil Oliver, historian, archaeologist and presenter of acclaimed BBC TV series such as Coast, Vikings and A History of Ancient Britain, is coming to Sydney for a fascinating live show at the State Theatre on Wednesday, 4 December at 8 pm, presented by Lateral Events and BBC Worldwide Australia & New Zealand (ANZ). Neil Oliver – History in the Making will coincide with the broadcast of Oliver’s new series Coast Australia on Foxtel in December.

In History in the Making, Neil will bring British and Australian history to life and will give a unique insight into the intriguing and turbulent Dark Ages era in Britain, when King Arthur was rumoured to have held court and the Saxons and Vikings invaded.

“For me, the characters and events of the past are every bit as exciting as breaking news today. I want everyone to feel the same excitement about these stories as I do, even a sense of personal connection to them, so I am very much looking forward to presenting History in the Making live on stage in Sydney and Melbourne,” said Neil Oliver. “We’ll be evoking some of the most exciting periods of history and bringing them to life. If you’ll excuse the pun this will be a ground breaking experience!”

Neil will also discuss his new series Coast Australia, in which he has gathered stories, amazing facts and revelations about Australia’s own history, people, archaeology, geography and marine life. Neil has recently completed filming Coast Australia for The History Channel which starts Monday, 2 December at 7.30 pm.

Trained as an archaeologist and journalist, Neil made his television debut in the BBC’s Two Men in a Trench which featured Neil and close friend Tony Pollard visiting historic battlefields and recreating the battle situations using state of the art archaeological techniques.

Sandra Tiltman 

LI’TYA SPA CARE FROM THE AUSTRALIAN DREAMTIME

LI’TYA, meaning ‘Of the Earth’ is Australia’s leading five star spa beauty range for skin, hair and body products.  Based on Indigenous Australian plants and healing principles, with a commitment to ethical and sustainable manufacturing, LI’TYA uses sustainably wild harvested, pure Australian botanicals and organic ingredients.

Using Indigenous plant knowledge and healing principles, pure essential oils and botanical bases with no synthetic fragrances, LI’TYA products are Australian made and owned.  They use responsible biodegradable recyclable packaging, natural and organically sourced ingredients and are never tested on animals.  Their products are used and stocked in a number of international and local leading day spas.

The native Australian ingredients and active extracts in the range are some of the most potent botanicals available. The Wild Rosella, Lemon Myrtle, Kakadu Plum, Cherry Alder and Quandong are exceptionally high in Vitamin C, exfoliating fruit acids and natural antioxidants.

Springtime for northeastern Aboriginals is known as “Kakkaba” the coming of the rains and the Bogong moth. This Kakkaba, LI’TYA is featuring a number of its best Spring products including Boronia Absolute Eye Serum, Wild Rosella Mist, Cherry Alder Hydrating Cream, Lillypilly Gel Cleanser and Mother of Pearl facial Polish.

LI’TYA’s tips for Spring health include:  Begin to refresh your body, emotions and spirit by using fresh foods grown above ground, preferably clean, organic produce.  Flush and hydrate your body with water, juices and herbal teas.  Create a daily routine of meditation and contemplation to help remain focused and clear on intentions.  Use hydrating, nutrient rich skin and hair care based on marine collagen, macadamia oil, plant based blends for cellular renewal and strength. Strengthen energy through activating pressure points and energy centers through the feet.

Sandra Tiltman 

MACAU FOOD FESTIVAL

Macau Tourism’s Mike Smith with Sandra Tiltman

The Macau Government Tourist Office recently launched the Macau Food Festival in Feast Restaurant at Sydney’s Sheraton on the Park.

Macanese cuisine is a mixture of Chinese, Portuguese, Indian, African and Malay that has evolved over 500 years of Portuguese history in the tiny Asian centre.

This is the second successive year the Food Festival has been held at the hotel and will showcase a selection of new dishes, along with Macau food specialities including Galinha A Portuguesa and Macanese Curry Prawns, which will be featured at Feast Restaurant’s famous daily buffet, both during lunch and dinner, plus all the usual favourites and seafood found at this outstanding buffet.

The Macau Food Festival will be available at Sheraton on the Park until 20 October.

As part of the Macau Festival, family friendly events will be held in Darling Harbour’s Tumbalong Park over the weekend of 19-20 October.

Sandra Tiltman   Photo:  John Pond

AZAMARA QUEST TO VISIT AUSTRALIA

For the first time in Azamara Club Cruises’ four year history, Azamara Quest will visit Australia in 2015.

As part of a 14 night holiday and New Year’s voyage departing Bali on 22 December 2015, Azamara Quest will make maiden port calls at Thursday Island and Darwin, as well as at the Great Barrier Reef destinations of Cooktown and Port Douglas, ending the cruise in Cairns.

Azamara Quest is a mid-sized ship for 694 guests with comfortable uncrowded social spaces.  The bars, restaurants, lounges, casino and cabaret are relaxing havens and the cabins feature modern amenities, furnishings and European linens.  Many of the cabins have their own verandas

Azamara Club Cruises are known for their destination focus and their itineraries feature longer stays and more overnights in port.  This allows guests to enjoy a fuller experience at each destination, including the nightlife experience, not offered by the majority of other cruise lines.  Their ships are smaller and offer a more boutique style of cruising, while their size makes them particularly well suited to calling in at the smaller, off the beaten track ports.

Earlier this year, the cruise line introduced AzAmazing Evenings, a complimentary night tour on each voyage that provides guests with an exclusive and bespoke slice of a destination’s authentic culture and character. They have also expanded their complimentary beverages to include wines, select standard spirits, sodas, international beers, bottled water and barista coffees plus included gratuities. There is also a complimentary self-service laundry, shuttle transportation to city centres in ports where available and English Butler service for suite guests.

Both Azamara Quest and Azamara Journey were recently refurbished.  As well as refreshing all public spaces and staterooms, a caviar & champagne bar was added, as well as a new Chef’s Table venue on both ships.

Perfectly suited for the sophisticated traveller, many of Azamara Club Cruises’ voyages are timed with major events and celebrations, so guests can join in the festivities.

Gavin Smith, Regional Vice President, Asia-Pacific of RCL Cruises Limited said “Azamara Club Cruises is a hidden secret amongst savvy Australian cruisers, but even though its ships have never sailed in the region, Australians are now the third biggest nationality of guests onboard. It has long been our dream to bring an Azamara ship to Australian waters and our whole team is very excited to welcome Azamara Quest in 2015.”

The deployment of the Azamara brand to this region completes a hat-trick for the Royal Caribbean family of brands.  Azamara will be joining sister cruise lines Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruises.

Sandra Tiltman  

FRENCH LIAISONS WITH SYDNEY SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

Gautier Capuçon

Two of the hottest young names in classical music will join forces with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra this October for a celebration of all things French at the Sydney Opera House. French Liaisons will feature 26 year old French conductor Lionel Bringuier and 33 yearold French cellist Gautier Capuçon with a program of Berlioz, Dutilleux and Saint-Saëns.

Bringuier is certainly a fast rising star. At 20 he became the LA Philharmonic’s youngest resident conductor ever. He made his New York Philharmonic conducting debut at just 22 and his BBC Proms debut at 23. Now, at age of 26, he has made appearances with major orchestras around the world. Bringuier takes over as Chief Conductor of the distinguished Tonhalle Orchestra in Zurich next year and has just completed his sixth and final season as resident conductor with the LA Philharmonic under the direction of Esa-Pekka Salonen and Gustavo Dudamel. This will be his Sydney Symphony Orchestra debut.

Gautier Capuçon was a hit with critics and audiences alike when he made his SSO debut in 2009 and has been called “A young star in the cello firmament” by Gramophone magazine. Since winning the Victoires de la Musique (the French equivalent of a Grammy) as “New Talent of the Year” in 2001 he has quickly established himself as one of the leading cellists of his generation. Capuçon has performed with all the major international orchestras as a guest soloist. In 2004 he received a Borletti- Buitoni Trust Award and since then he has received several Echo Klassik awards, most recently for his recording of Tchaikovsky and Prokofiev with conductor Valery Gergiev and for his recording of Fauré’s complete chamber music in October 2012.

Lionel Bringuier

French Liaisons will feature three very different French composers. In what will be a fitting tribute to French modernist composer Henri Dutilleux, who died earlier this year at the age of 97, the orchestra will perform one of his most popular works Métaboles.  Also on the program is Hector Berlioz’s audience favourite Symphonie fantastique. The extravagance will continue for Saint- Saëns’ first cello concerto, exquisitely crafted to show off the soloist’s virtuosity and style.

Gautier Capuçon plays Saint-Saëns on 10 Oct 1.30pm, 11 Oct 8pm and 12 Oct 2pm.

Sandra Tiltman 

BONDI COAST WALK – TOO MANY STAIRS

Justin. featured in Bondi Roller Coaster

I am not disabled but I find that the coast walk from Bondi to Bronte is almost impossible to negotiate – there are so many stairs to climb, steep and worn stairs, that I have only ever walked it once.

The walk is beautiful but the stairs are just too much, they put me off wanting to attempt it again.  With Sculpture By The Sea coming up, how many people will miss out on seeing this event because of the stair issue.

Adam Long’s film ‘Bondi Roller Coaster’ featuring his friend Justin, highlights access improvements that could be made to the path, allowing the walk to be enjoyed by many more people.

Adam said “Justin’s path is intended as an improvement for everyone, not just wheelchair users. We’d like anyone who struggles to climb those stairs to have better access and to allow parents with babies in prams to walk along the coast.”

Adam explained that the idea began more than three years ago when Justin, who lives in Bondi Junction, received a flyer in the mail from Waverley Council inviting everyone to enjoy the coastal walk. He’d have loved to, if only it was accessible. Justin’s crusade began.

Adam went on to say he was the first of many people to think it was an impossible dream, as there are just too many stairs. The day after talking with Justin, he went for a walk along the coast and realised how simple it would be. Everywhere there are stairs, the path could simply follow the contour line, crossing a couple of small bridges and climbing or falling gently. There are several bottlenecks on the busy path, surely the most used and best loved of it’s kind in the whole country. Justin’s path would improve access and safety at these points for everyone. They were not talking about getting rid of the stairs, so the runners and power walkers who have no trouble with them can continue to use them; in fact it would be better as the slower walkers and rollers would be on the stair-free stretch of the path.

They took their idea to Waverley Council and after collecting hundreds of signatures on a petition, they were allowed to present to a Council meeting, receiving a unanimous vote of support, but were told the Council had no money for the project.

The coastal walk is a resource for all of Sydney and vast numbers of international visitors walk along it every day, so State or Federal Government should contribute to the access improvements. Justin and Adam have met with the local members, both State and Federal, and have tried to get Council co-operation so they could pitch to private investors. What do you think?

Their film “Bondi Roller Coaster” can be viewed on YouTube    Sandra Tiltman 

MSC EXECUTIVE CHAIRMAN NAMED “PERSONALITY OF YEAR”

Pierfrancesco Vago Holding Award

Pierfrancesco Vago, Executive Chairman of MSC Cruises was recently named Seatrade European Cruise Personality Of The Year at Seatrade Europe 2013 in Hamburg.

“As CEO of MSC Cruises Pierfrancesco Vago guided the business through a series of strategic moves which has seen the fleet grow three-fold through a €6 billion new build programme, with the most recent new vessel MSC Preziosa, launched earlier this year. His leadership of over 15,500 employees in 45 countries is dynamic, open-minded and characterised by a focus on team building” said Mary Bond, Editor, Seatrade Insider.

MSC sails throughout the year in the Mediterranean as well as seasonally in southern Africa, northern Europe, the Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean, the French Antilles, South America, the Canary Islands and the United Arab Emirates.

MSC offers cruising with an Italian flair with their twelve ship fleet of MSC Preziosa, MSC Divina, MSC Splendida, MSC Fantasia, MSC Magnifica, MSC Poesia, MSC Orchestra, MSC Musica, MSC Sinfonia, MSC Armonia, MSC Opera and MSC Lirica.

MSC makes cruising the Mediterranean even easier and convenient with their choice of embarkation ports. Instead of having only one embarkation port as shown in the itinerary, MSC allows passengers to choose from specified ports where to begin their cruise, which will also end at the same port.

If two 7 night Mediterranean cruises are booked back to back, MSC even offers free transfers between Genoa and Venice.

Great news for seniors, they get a discount per cabin if two people aged over 65 are sharing a cabin together. Don’t forget, children under 18 sharing a cabin with two adults travel free, only paying the port charges.

From 16 March 2014, for cruises from Genoa or Venice around the Mediterranean for 7 nights or more, a limited number of cabins will be offered with zero single surcharge.

Sandra Tiltman