Old Delhi is the India I feared, although I know there are far worse slums in the world. It is the India described in “Midnight’s Children” when the affluent and sheltered Amina Sinai is lured at night to a fortune teller at the […]
Ann’s Musings
ON THE ROAD WITH ANN – Day 1 in Delhi, several days late
So many impressions swirling about and little time to collect and transmit them. We are now heading into day two and it feels like we’ve been here a very long time. I can say, for all of us, that so far any trepidations have been unfounded. We are uniformly […]
ON THE ROAD WITH ANN – Up, up and away — to the muddle and mystery of India
A quick note before a bunch of us take off for India. Lots of preparation – reading, movies, visa, shots, packing, repacking. But how does one prepare emotionally for India? I don’t know. I am going, I hope, with an open heart and mind and no expectations of making sense of […]
TRAVEL PURSUITS – Calling all grandparents – to VENICE, the ultimate theme park
Calling all grandparents. If you have a grandchild or two between the ages of 10 and 16 and you are interested in travelling together to Italy with Classical Pursuits in early July, read on. Then, we need to hear from you pronto if you are seriously interested. You may have […]
ANN’S MUSINGS – A poem by Jack Gilbert that caught my attention
I discovered a poem, “How Much of That is Left in Me?” some years ago and was immediately drawn to it and continue to be. I did not know the poet Jack Gilbert, even though I think he is widely celebrated. Today I found another of Gilbert’s poem, written in […]
ANN’S MUSINGS – Yet another reason to read the Classics
I find just about eventhng going on in the world harder and harder to get a handle on. This morning I stumbled upon a piece from the New York Times wonderful Opinionater series. It helps a little to give fresh insight into Europe and elsewhere. Here is Simon Critchley on Oedipus, the […]
TODAY IN LITERATURE – Homer, James Joyce and Louis Slotin?
Last Saturday, Nigel Beale a bibliophile from Ottawa, was in Toronto. We spent a pleasant afternoon browsing used bookstores in my neighbourhood. Over lunch, we naturally talked about what we are reading. Nigel ignited as he told me about Bloom, a slim volume of poetry by a young Canadian, Michael […]
ON THE ROAD WITH ANN – Salman Rushdie & and a dog with a bone
A true confession: When I am intent on something, I can be more dogged than any canine wth a bone. One of the books we will be discussing in India this coming February/March (Confounded & Bewitched: The Strange Rise of Modern India) is a personal favouite, Midnight’s Children by Salman Rushdie. I learned the extraordinary Canadian filmmaker Deepa Mehta recently […]
ON THE ROAD WITH ANN – In Search of the Newfoundland Soul
I had hoped to write day by day from St. John’s and from Eastport. Full days and lack of Internet access prevented that. So much for On the Road with Ann. This was my second visit to Newfoundland. My enchantment with The Rock (as NL is commonly called) continues to […]
CONVIVIUM = “sharing life together” = Toronto Pursuits 2011
CONVIVIUM – convĭ’vĭ um In Latin, it literally means “sharing life together.” Convivium has come to refer to a banquet with emphasis on richly prepared and novel food, the partaking of which was a pleasure – a conviviality – which would be accompanied by a generous flow of wines. A […]