By Debi Catenacci
The journey begins on the Silver Dawn cruise ship, one of twelve exceptional vessels in the Silversea Cruise fleet.
Cruising is captivating.
This is an invitation to join me on a poetic soul pulling odyssey into a few international ports and unexpected portals of time and space. Beyond the physical cruising entering into a personal thought provoking voyage.
It’s easy to become mesmerized with the adventure, drama, tragedy, and romance of the intense stories of the Titanic. The rush, the thrill, and maybe even the exuberance of sailing the untamed seas beckons from beyond.
Sailing on the splendid Silversea luxury cruise ship has been incredible in the unique way of creating white space for enabling my wondrous wanderlust to be energized.
Wanderlust; a noun, defined as “a strong and irresistible impulse or desire to travel the world.”
One of my favorite things about traveling is that it has a way of destabilizing, and deliberately drawing the mind out of the typical things, either subconsciously or consciously. Travel is transformational, if you allow the shift to happen.
In the past, people used to say, “there be dragons…” Well, these days, not so much. It’s more like there be Ubers, shuttles, planes, and cruise ship liners. We go out, explore, discover and conquer the tales of the past in a modern luxurious way unknown by the great world explorers.
Vanquishing of our little ponds and our daily habitual routines, and stepping into an expansive portal towards the unknown within our own soul.
My wanderlust begins in Lisbon, Portugal. It’s hard not to fall in love with the glazed colorful tiles from the 13th century. But what surprised me the most was the traditional Portuguese Fado songs. On a dinner experience, I stepped into a Portuguese’s portal hearing songs that traced back to the 1820s.
The mournful tunes and lyrics, often about a lover lost at sea on a ship that was destroyed in a sudden storm, and never to return. Beautiful voices calling out and snatching your heart with their never ending pulling passionate prayer song of pain. The performers were from another time, the sadness they expressed was unexpectedly palpable.
Back on the ship, we proceeded to sail forward to Spain. As the ship entered each wave the air became permeated with a thousand unseen particles of vibrating droplets of salt. Could these salt droplets be tears from the past?
Bilbo, Spain is where the past sails into the future, via the Guggenheim Museum.
Waves of flowing titanium and limestone in maritime shapes and sails represent a siren’s song charming one into this modern masterpiece.
| At the end of the day, I’m back at sea beginning the journey to the next port and longing to savor some of the finest wine from Bordeaux, France.
Pictured here: Le Porc Et Les Pommes (Pork and apple meatballs on a bed of sautéed red cabbage, with Calvados sauce and pickled mustard seeds.) |
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Enthusiastically embracing the next private excursion entering into the enchanting beauty and exquisite flavors of the Chateau Smith Haute Lafitte. The estate’s history dates back to the Crusades. It offers the most picturesque vineyards, and secret cellars of wonderful wine treasures.
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I had the honor and pleasure of meeting Daniel Cathiard, the owner of Smith Haute Lafitte Chateau.
Then back on the, not so simple ship, I went to the S.A.L.T. Kitchen restaurant for dinner. It’s my absolute favorite because the S.A.L.T. Kitchen represents the sea and land taste. The concept is to make food and drink on board more connected to the destinations that we’re visiting.
Homard Au Beurre
(Lobster tail with a rich butter sauce. Served with a seaweed and herb salad and parsley Parisienne potatoes.)
It’s a wonderful way to destabilize the pallet and give oneself permission to play with life in a culinary way.
| By the next morning, the ship had sailed to the splendid island of Guernsey, one of the self-governing Channel Islands in the English Channel. The scenery is spectacular with stunning meadows and farmhouses. My shore excursion celebrated the art of food and wine at the family owned Les Rocquettes Hotel and Restaurant. Lunch was filled with freshly caught culinary treasures of the sea, I could taste the tantalizing salt. This was a lunch expertly crafted with delicious pairings of wine that elevated the flavors of the sea. |  |
| After lunch, I enjoyed a leisurely stroll in the charming town to a captivating centuries old underground wine cellar, definitely a portal to a special time.It’s hard to bid farewell to this enchanting island. |  |
As the ship swiftly skimmed the top of the waves, I simply paused for a moment to reflect on the ports and portals from this ever-scenic journey. The journey started fast, rushing to various transportations then, once I arrived on the Silversea, time slowed and serene still waters engulfed me. Helping me to create some white canvas space for my soul to be surrounded by new sites, sounds and smells. I spiritedly soaked it all up like a sponge. Allowing the unfurling of my wanderlust.
Exiting the ship and pivoting to a van cruiser, I had one last stop. To a wildly mysterious landscape that I recall seeing in the pages of books, long ago.
Out in plain sight the isolated site of Stonehenge. This most complex stone circle sits on ancient ground from civilizations past and carries secrets from centuries ago into our ever-changing world.
I felt called to pause, to breathe, and circle around the circle, curious what cryptic messages those still stones hold.
As if, chasing the lonesome casting shadow from the past would reveal a sliver of other worldly wisdom from the unknown sunrise, sunset, solstice or skies overhead.
Deep in thought, an unexpected rare sighting, of an almost extinct bird, appeared…
Was he here to tell me something?
Would my modern ears be able to hear?
| Thank you for entering into this space and wading into the wonderful wanderlust seawaters of my Silversea adventure.
My hope is that you enter a new portal by exiting your current pre-dispositional pattern. Remember, the unknown is where the magic lies. Until next time, it’s been wonderful sharing this adventure with you. |
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Debi serves on the Board of Managers of The Service Club of Chicago, is a co-chair for the Holiday Luncheon and is actively engaged in charitable initiatives, notably supporting The Chicago Lighthouse, Flair, and Eversight Charites in Chicago.
Visit her website at divinebiscott.com you can follow Debi on Instagram @debicatenacci the book is available at amazon.com
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For those of you who read Debi’s last article, “Hibernating in Hawaii,” and were curious about her new Hawaii biscotti recipe. I am delighted to say, Debi is sharing her new recipe with all of you…Enjoy!
Recipe courtesy of Debi Catenacci:
Magical Maui Aloha Biscotti
(with Maui Dark Chocolate Chips and Maui Macadamia Nuts)
Ingredients:
2 large eggs, plus 1 large egg white
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
¾ cup organic dark brown sugar
1 ½ teaspoon Nielsen-Massey Madagascar Bourbon, pure vanilla extract
½ cup Kula Dark Chocolate Chips (mauichocolate.com)
½ cup raw unsalted, Maui Macadamia Nuts, Hawaii Grown
¼ cup sanding sugar for sprinkling
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper
In a small bowl, whisk the egg white with 1 teaspoon of water; set aside.
In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt
In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat the butter and dark brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
Add the 2 eggs and vanilla extract and beat on low speed until the eggs are incorporated. Beating on low speed, slowly add the flour mixture and continue to beat until almost fully incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the dark chocolate chips and macadamia nuts then beat on low speed just until distributed evenly.
Divide the dough in half. On the prepared baking sheet shape each piece into a 9 ½ by 1 ½ inch log loaf, spacing them 4 inches apart. Brush the logs with the egg white mixture and sprinkle with the sanding sugar.
Bake until the edges of the biscotti are light brown and the tops feel firm, about 35 minutes. Remove the log loafs and leave the oven on. Transfer the log loafs to a wire rack and let cool slightly, about 20 minutes. Using a serrated knife cut each log into 22 slices about ½ inches thick. Arrange the slices, cut side down, on the sheet and bake until the biscotti are golden brown and completely dry, 10-12 minutes. Using a metal spatula, transfer the biscotti to a wire rack and let cool completely.
Store at room temperature in an airtight container (divide layers with wax paper so the cookies don’t stick together). Pack the cookies into a decorative container as a lovely gift.
