Category Archives: Culture

San Francisco Social Diary: Festival del Sole – Napa Valley Part III

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In 2013, the annual Festival del Sole once again drew artists and audiences to the Napa Valley with unique venues and a tradition of vintner hospitality.

FESTIVAL DEL SOLE – NAPA VALLEY PART III

The annual ten-day Festival del Sole celebrates the fine arts in life, including music, dance, visual art, culinary arts, and wine making, with spectacular events held throughout the Napa Valley.

Part I and Part II of my coverage describe some of the food, music, and wine events. The story continues:


DARIOUSH WINERY: CELEBRATING PERSIAN AND RUSSIAN DYNASTIES

Credit Shahpar and Darioush Khaledi and Tatiana and Gerret Copeland with the clever idea of highlighting the culture of two great dynasties, Persia and Russia, to create one of the most exotic of the Festival’s parties.

The lavish experience took place against the stunning architectural backdrop of the Darioush Winery. Its founder, Darioush Khaledi, was raised in the Shiraz region of Iran, and the building evokes the ancient city of Persepolis, the ceremonial capital of Iran (formerly Persia) from 550–330 BCE.

The entrance of the Darioush Winery, built of Persian straw travertine stone, is flanked by 18-foot columns topped with depictions of bulls.

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San Francisco Social Diary: Festival del Sole – Napa Valley Part II

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In 2013, the annual Festival del Sole once again drew artists and audiences to the Napa Valley with unique venues and a tradition of vintner hospitality.

FESTIVAL DEL SOLE – NAPA VALLEY PART II

The annual ten-day Festival del Sole celebrates the fine arts in life, including music, dance, visual art, culinary arts, and wine making, with spectacular events held throughout the Napa Valley.

Part I of my coverage describes some of the food, music, and wine events. The story continues:

FESTIVAL GALA AT MEADOWOOD NAPA VALLEY

During the Festival del Sole, local vintners open their famed wine estates to guests, hosting fabulous soirees and meals prepared by local celebrity chefs and featuring local produce. Sunday Night was the Festival’s Annual Gala at St. Helena’s Meadowood Resort, a 250-acre private wooded estate.

Surrounded by meadows and rolling greens, with not a grape in sight, one guest said, “I feel that I’ve been transported some place other than Napa.” As he was intended to be: the party’s theme was “The Great Gatsby,” from the F. Scott Fitzgerald novel set on the coast of Long Island.

Meadowood Napa Valley is a luxury resort with golf, tennis, croquet, swimming, spa, and a three-star Michelin restaurant; many of the local vintners use it as their country club.

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San Francisco Social Diary: Festival del Sole – Napa Valley

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Napa Valley celebrated its eighth annual Festival del Sole with a number of performances by the Russian National Orchestra, joined by a variety of high-profile soloists and conductors.

FESTIVAL DEL SOLE – NAPA VALLEY

Every July since 2006, the cognoscenti who enjoy music, food, wine, and culture have headed to Napa Valley’s Wine Country for the international Festival del Sole, an event The New York Times has very accurately dubbed “a feast for the senses.”

In the course of the ten-day festival, over 10,000 attendees enjoy a roster of international musicians, dancers, artists, and thespians in spectacular performances as well as exceptional culinary experiences with notable wines.

In 2013, the annual Festival del Sole once again drew artists and audiences to the Napa Valley with unique venues and a tradition of vintner hospitality.

For eight years, the Festival has offered not only a varied musical repertoire but also a diverse program of theater, opera, and dance.

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Shanghai Social Diary: Shanghai Girls Uncensored

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Certain Shanghai girls are known for snagging sugar daddies to finance a lavish lifestyle, though the ultimate goal is marriage and children with an affluent man. At her wedding, only an extravagant wardrobe will do, including gowns like this one by designer Tsai Meiyue.

I recently returned from another fall season in Shanghai—that exotic, endlessly fascinating, and ever-changing city. I’ve compiled the best of the stories and pictures I gathered about social life and travels in China in diary form, and I’ll be posting them from time to time. Here’s another:


BESTSELLING BOOK SHANGHAI GIRLS UNCENSORED AND UNSENTIMENTAL: HOW TO MARRY UP AND STAY THERE

Shanghai was abuzz over Shanghai Girls Uncensored and Unsentimental: How to Marry Up and Stay There, a book by Korean-American author Mina Choi Hanbury-Tenison. As the New York City of China, Shanghai is unlike the rest of the country, and so are its women.

According to Mina, Shanghai girls have a reputation for being divas—opportunistic and materialistic, high maintenance, and focused on upward mobility, primarily through marriage. You’ll be trampled if you’re in their way, whether they’re zeroing in on a promotion, a man, or your man. Mina’s book represents the first time that one of these formidable specimens has talked on the record.

Shanghai Girls Uncensored and Unsentimental—the cover design is as eye-catching as its title.

Author Mina Choi Hanbury-Tenison.

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Shanghai Social Diary: Historic Shanghai

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Shanghai is an international mecca of Art Deco design. This night scene features two of the city’s architectural gems—the Fairmont Peace Hotel (center) and the Bank of China (right).

I’m back in the USA for the summer.  This past year, I spent another season in Shanghai—that exotic, endlessly fascinating, and ever-changing city. I’ve compiled the best of the stories and pictures I gathered about social life and travels in China in diary form, and I’ll be posting them from time to time. Here’s another:

HISTORIC SHANGHAI

Though Shanghai is becoming known for its flashy Lamborghinis and mirrored skyscrapers, it seduces many newcomers with its historic charms—the stately Neoclassical buildings on the Bund, the tree-lined streets of the former French Concession, the beautiful chaos of its teeming lane neighborhoods.

Shanghai’s living past beguiles some of these newcomers to remain for decades and to become passionate advocates for its study and preservation.

Among the foremost examples are Tess Johnston, Patrick Cranley, and Tina Kanagaratnam. Tess, a full-time author retired from the U.S. Foreign Service, has lived here almost continuously since the 1980s, while Patrick and Tina, who run the marketing and communications firm Asia Media, arrived in 1997.

In 1998, the trio established the Shanghai Historic House Association, now called Historic Shanghai. A loose association of mostly expatriates, it is dedicated to raising awareness of the social and architectural heritage of the city through research, publications, programs, and tours.

I refer often to guidebooks edited by Tess (Walking Tours of Shanghai and Still More Shanghai Walks) and to Tina and Patrick’s contributions to Insight Guide Shanghai.

Historic Shanghai founders Tess Johnson, Patrick Cranley, and Tina Kanagaratnam. (Photo courtesy Shanghai-Today.com)

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San Francisco Social Diary: Spring Events

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The Bay Area American Red Cross celebrated at Union Square. Here, Raghu Shivaram and Harry Denton mingle with a pair of San Francisco 49ers cheerleaders.

SEEING RED AT THE BAY AREA RED CROSS GALA

SAN FRANCISCO –– Everyone was seeing red (or wearing it!) at the American Red Cross Bay Area Chapter Gala to fund disaster readiness and response efforts.

Some 580 guests, men in black tie and women in red gowns, as custom demands, partied in a clear tent under the stars. Co-chaired by Susan Atherton and Gwyneth Borden, the event put $615,000 into the organization’s coffers.

Joseph Saunders, Chairman and CEO of Visa Inc., was honored as the CEO Humanitarian of the Year.

Honoree Joseph Saunders, co-chair Gwyneth Borden, co-chair Susan Atherton, and Harold Brooks.

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Shanghai Social Diary: Fall Cultural Events

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Our view of the landmark Pearl Tower, as we headed to the VIP dinner at the former British Consulate. It’s because of views like this that I love Shanghai.

SHANGHAI — Now that I’ve returned to the U.S. for the winter and have finally downloaded and organized my photos in Lightroom, I’m back to writing about my fall adventures in China.

ARTIST ZHANG HUAN AT THE ROCKBUND ART MUSEUM

One of the most talked-about events in Shanghai last fall was the reopening of the renovated Rockbund Art Museum (RAM) with a solo exhibition by Zhang Huan, one of China’s contemporary stars. Fumio Nanjo, the well-respected director of Tokyo’s Mori Art Museum, curated the show.

In this largest-ever one-man show at RAM, “Q Confucius,” Zhang—who in recent years has embraced Buddhism—used Confucius symbolically to explore how changes in Chinese society and the country’s economic growth have impacted art, society, and religion. His answers were in the form of via large-scale sculptures, ash paintings, and installations, most commissioned for the exhibition.

He is interested in what place religion will have in the future of China and how the country will or will not incorporate its traditional beliefs. While during the Cultural Revolution, the teachings of the ancient sage Confucius (551-479 B.C.) fell out of favor, the Government of the People’s Republic of China now has opened Confucius Institutes to promote China’s cultural influence abroad. Confucianism emphasizes such tenets as morality, responsibility, and respect for authority.

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San Francisco Social Diary: San Francisco’s Winter Social Season

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San Francisco Ballet celebrated its 79th Repertory Season Opening Night.

Though I hibernated much of the winter in San Francisco—writing my columns about Shanghai and organizing over 100,000 photos from China—I did manage to catch some of the highlight events of the social seasons so I could share them with you.

THE SAN FRANCISCO BALLET GALA OPENING

The opening night black-tie gala for the San Francisco is one of my favorite social occasions of the year. This year, the 79th anniversary of the annual event attracted 850 guests and raised an incredible $2 million.

As always, the evening was an all-around treat. In addition to a spectacular performance by first-rate dancers and gorgeous ballet scenery and music, first-nighters enjoyed a dinner and after-party with lavish décor and splendid food.

And of course, the glamour quotient could not have been higher. All of San Francisco’s bold-faced names were there, and the ladies dazzled — gloriously gowned in rich jewel tones and sporting their special-occasion sparklers.

The Gala performance included ten classical and contemporary works and excerpts that won rave reviews.

An incredible success in every way, the event raised over $2 million dollars.

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Shanghai Social Diary: Shanghai Tour of Jewish History

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Shanghai, a major port, was one of China’s first cities to open to Westerners. View of Pudong on the other side of the river and Shanghai’s financial center.

SHANGHAI – Not far from the famous Bund district in Shanghai is Hongkou district (pronounced “hong koh”), a quiet neighborhood with a history of Jewish immigration; it was once known as the Jewish Ghetto.

Shanghai-based Israeli photojournalist Dvir Bar-Gal introduced me to the remarkable history of Jews in Shanghai, when I joined his comprehensive walking tour, Jewish Shanghai.

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Shanghai Social Diary: Qi Bao, the Ancient Water Town

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By Jeanne Lawrence

SHANGHAI — The dozens of idyllic water towns near Shanghai are among China’s most unusual attractions. These towns, sometimes referred to as the Venices of the East because of their canals and bridges, are a perfect escape from the big-city bustle.

If you have just a few hours, you can easily make a trip to the closest one, Qi Bao Ancient City. Qi Bao has a 1,000-year-old history and is ten miles and 15 minutes by taxi and accessible by subway also.

When I read that the Shanghai Community Center (a wonderful resource that offers more than 100 classes and tours) had a guided tour, I signed up and I was so glad I did!

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