Carole Terwilliger Meyers's Blog, page 80

Good Eats: Diablito Cha Cha Cha, Playa del Carmen, Riviera Maya, Mexico

Diablito Cha Cha Cha  On Calle 12/5th Ave., 984 803 4507.  Located on a side street known for its popular clubs, this bar (and restaurant) is famous for its Mango Diablo—a pretty drink composed of mango, lemon, and chamoy with tangy and colorful chili on the glass rim.  Things don’t get going around here until after 10 p.m. 

More things to do in the Riviera Maya.

More things to do in Mexico

Good Eats: McMenamins High Street Brewery & Cafe, Eugene, Oregon

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Good Eats: Marche, Eugene, Oregon

Marche  In the Fifth Street Public Market, (541) 342-3612.  B-L-D daily; $$.  Featuring a French flair and a name that is the French word for market, this popular spot features a sophisticated decor and some spacious booths inside as well as courtyard dining outside.  The locally sourced menu changes with the season.  Summer might see a very French salade Nicoise made with fresh albacore tuna

Good Eats: Our Daily Bread, Veneta, Oregon

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Great Sleeps: Hotel Mitzpe HaYamim, Eastern Galilee, Israel

Hotel Mitzpe HaYamim  In Rosh Pina, (+) 972-4-6994555.  99 rooms.  No children under 10.  Indoor pool; outdoor & indoor hot tub;
fitness room; dry & wet sauna; health spa; 1 tennis court.  In the Upper Galilee at the foot of Mount
Canaan, near the artist village Rosh Pina and the Kabbalah city of Sefad (and
rumored to have hosted celebrity Madonna), this romantic resort/health retreat
is spread over 37 acres.  It opened in
1968, when this property was mostly barren, hot, and dry desert, but is now
lush, like an oasis, and features fragrant gardens, walking paths, and ponds.  It is well-known for its organic fruit and
vegetable gardens as well as an organic dairy farm with herds of sheep, goats,
cows, and chickens.  Because the soil is
considered sacred, no one poisons it with pesticides.  Rock mounds in the vegetable garden attract
and protect insect eaters.  The 30-acre
organic farm grows 100 different vegetables and 70 kinds of fruit, and in
spring there is an amazing bloom of wild flowers.  The owner works twice a day in the fields just
because he enjoys doing so. 

Each guest room here has a unique decor,
heavy on English style.  Mine had a large
bathroom with vintage white marble floors, a pull-chain toilet and pedestal
sink, and an oversize whirlpool tub with separate glass-walled shower.  Furniture included a desk and armoire, and
the bed faced an upper wall of windows that looked out into trees and over a
duck-pond below.  Guest rooms are spread
between the main building and four other stone buildings.  Oriental rugs and charm reign throughout, and
a central atrium holds a 7-story-tall Washington palm tree that hugs the
ceiling (it is NOT dead).  One person I
chatted with said, “I come for the silence.” 
The freezer-less Vegetarian Restaurant serves everything fresh,
including fish from the Sea of Galilee, while Muscat Restaurant offers refined
dining and menu items such as beetroot ravioli filled with goat cheese and
hazel nut oil, and organic duck with pomegranate-caramel sauce with five
passion spices and organic vegetables.  The
morning breakfast buffet is beautiful, bountiful, and an organic delight.  A daily activity program includes classes and
tours—perhaps bread making and a healing workshop or a guided tour of the farm.
 In addition to hundreds of cows, the
hotel has 200 goats and 100 sheep.  View
my video of the baby goats:  



The hotel has been leading the trend of
ecotourism and sustainability here for almost 40 years.  A house bakery makes everything fresh daily,
and the dairy provides all the organic dairy foods and some meats.  





More things to do in Israel.



image and video c2012 Carole Terwilliger Meyers   

Great Sleeps: Hotel Mitzpe HaYamim, Upper Galilee, Israel

Hotel Mitzpe HaYamim  In Rosh Pina, (+) 972-4-6994555.  99 rooms.  No children under 10.  Indoor pool; outdoor & indoor hot tub;
fitness room; dry & wet sauna; health spa; 1 tennis court.  In the Upper Galilee at the foot of Mount
Canaan, near the artist village Rosh Pina and the Kabbalah city of Sefad (and
rumored to have hosted celebrity Madonna), this romantic resort/health retreat
is spread over 37 acres.  It opened in
1968, when this property was mostly barren, hot, and dry desert, but is now
lush, like an oasis, and features fragrant gardens, walking paths, and ponds.  It is well-known for its organic fruit and
vegetable gardens as well as an organic dairy farm with herds of sheep, goats,
cows, and chickens.  Because the soil is
considered sacred, no one poisons it with pesticides.  Rock mounds in the vegetable garden attract
and protect insect eaters.  The 30-acre
organic farm grows 100 different vegetables and 70 kinds of fruit, and in
spring there is an amazing bloom of wild flowers.  The owner works twice a day in the fields just
because he enjoys doing so. 

Each guest room here has a unique decor,
heavy on English style.  Mine had a large
bathroom with vintage white marble floors, a pull-chain toilet and pedestal
sink, and an oversize whirlpool tub with separate glass-walled shower.  Furniture included a desk and armoire, and
the bed faced an upper wall of windows that looked out into trees and over a
duck-pond below.  Guest rooms are spread
between the main building and four other stone buildings.  Oriental rugs and charm reign throughout, and
a central atrium holds a 7-story-tall Washington palm tree that hugs the
ceiling (it is NOT dead).  One person I
chatted with said, “I come for the silence.” 
The freezer-less Vegetarian Restaurant serves everything fresh,
including fish from the Sea of Galilee, while Muscat Restaurant offers refined
dining and menu items such as beetroot ravioli filled with goat cheese and
hazel nut oil, and organic duck with pomegranate-caramel sauce with five
passion spices and organic vegetables.  The
morning breakfast buffet is beautiful, bountiful, and an organic delight.  A daily activity program includes classes and
tours—perhaps bread making and a healing workshop or a guided tour of the farm.
 In addition to hundreds of cows, the
hotel has 200 goats and 100 sheep.  View
my video of the baby goats:  



The hotel has been leading the trend of
ecotourism and sustainability here for almost 40 years.  A house bakery makes everything fresh daily,
and the dairy provides all the organic dairy foods and some meats.  





More things to do in Israel.



image and video c2012 Carole Terwilliger Meyers   

Good Eats: La Cueva del Chango, Playa del Carmen, Riviera Maya, Mexico

La Cueva del Chango   Calle 38/5th Ave., 984 147 02
71.  M-Sat
8am-11pm, Sun 8am-2pm.  Featuring a
jungle garden atmosphere, this popular spot is primo for breakfast.  The menu then includes fragrant fresh papaya,
fresh-squeezed juices, huevos a la Méxicana (scrambled eggs with onion, tomato,
and chiles), a selection of chilaquiles (I especially like the one with pasilla
salsa), molletes (like melted cheese sandwiches), and warm tortillas as well as
empanadas and cappucinos. 




More things to do in the Riviera Maya.



More things to do in Mexico.



image c2012 Carole Terwilliger Meyers  

Good Eats: Helser’s on Alberta, Portland, Oregon

Helser’s on Alberta   1538 NE Alberta St., (503)
281-1477.  Daily
7am-3pm; $.  Breakfast is served all day
in this simple corner spot, with a $4.95 early bird special available weekdays
from 7 to 9 a.m. (note that coffee is not included with the special but is included with
the regular breakfast, making any savings almost a wash).  The usual is done
nicely, but you’ll want to try some of the specialties:  smoked salmon or mushroom hash, an array of
Benedicts, a Scotch egg (a hard-boiled egg wrapped in bratwurst, then lightly
breaded and fried) with potato pancakes and horseradish cream, a German
pancake/Dutch baby.  Lunch items are also
available from 11:30 a.m. 




More things to do in Portland.



image c2012 Carole Terwilliger Meyers

Good Eats: Aldea Corazon, Playa del Carmen, Riviera Maya, Mexico

Aldea Corazon  5th Ave., next door to Hacienda Tequila, 984 803 1942.  Delicious contemporary Mexican cuisine is served here in a lively interior.  In back, an exquisite garden seating area with strangler figs is adjacent to a dry cenote.  It can be very dark at night, when it is also hopelessly romantic. 




More things to do in the Riviera Maya.



More things to do in Mexico.



image c2012 Carole Terwilliger Meyers 

Great Sleeps: The Royal/Playa del Carmen, Playa del Carmen, Riviera Maya, Mexico

The Royal/Playa del Carmen  Av. Constituyentes #2, (984) 877 29 00, US 800-760-0944.  507 luxury suites.  3 pools; 2 hot tubs (+ 4 in spa); full-service spa (with temazcal).  7 restaurants, no reservations needed, gluten-free and vegan menu avail.  All-Inclusive; adult only (16+).  Guests at this beachfront luxury resort are greeted by staff members holding a hand over their heart.  It is a beautiful, calming gesture that evokes a smile.  Each guest room has its own terrace--90 percent with a hammock—and indoor turbo tub whirlpool with sports car-like seats for two.  The resort is especially popular with young couples in their 20s and 30s who like to drink and party, and sometimes the communal hot tubs sometimes seem to hold more people than water.  Tequila and more flows at the swim-up bar, at the swing bar, and also in each room’s included mini-bar.  On-property activities include:  scuba diving school (the introductory class is included); daily yoga, pilates, and spinning classes; an escorted morning and afternoon bicycle tour; a weekly cooking class, tequila tasting, and wine tasting.  A different show is scheduled every evening, and special events and theme dinners are sprinkled in.  When you want to explore, you can rent a Mini Cooper ($40/hr., $130/day) or sign up for a day trip to one of the spectacular Maya archaeological sites found in the area.  This hotel has been rated the highest in the region for food safety preparation.  It has the very strictest standards for food hygiene (find more hotels with stellar kitchen sanitation at www.checksafetyfirst.com).  This means you can eat lettuce and unpeeled vegetables without worry.  Additionally, the fare is gourmet quality.  Among the many restaurants are beach-side Pelicanos and buffet Spice, which has a special corner for vegans.  Exclusive Chef’s Plate--where diners watch their seven-course gourmet dinner being prepared—is available only to guests staying in Royal Jr. Suite Ocean Front and higher categories.  A romantic dinner on the beach with violins—perfect for popping the question or celebrating something special--is available at additional charge.  A coffeehouse and evening tequila bar with 50-plus brands are also available.



See The Royal live via webcam.



More things to do in the Riviera Maya.



More things to do in Mexico.



image c2012 Carole Terwilliger Meyers