Sunday On St. Barth

In another beautiful part of the island, on the Grand cul-de-sac Beach, there is an elegant five-star resort: Le Serano. After a rainy morning Jim thought it would be OK to drive there, where we had a lunch reservation at Le Serano's restaurant, now called "Al Mare." A new chef recently took over, and both Italian and French dishes are offered. Marylin, Barbara and Dan all enjoyed either excellent Caesar or Nicoise salads, full of fresh ingredients. Before Jim's salad he had an exceptional starter, the piquant eggplant parmigiana, in a savory tomato sauce. Dan's dessert was a tiramisu. On the way back to the villa in Gustavia Jim took the mountain roads past Grand Fond Beach, Toiny, and the "Maison Nouriev," the former villa of the great ballet dancer Rudolph Nureyev, one of the most charismatic performers in any field. It was my luck and privilege to have seen him dance a few times at the height of his career, and the villa is a poignant reminder of those nights. - Dan