We were up at Tenaya Lodge near the south entrance to Yosemite this weekend. The area around the place is beautiful, but some architect made some really bad decisions at this place.
Essentially, unless you book very, very early, this is the only place around that will have rooms available. There’s a reason for this: it’s pretty expensive, and not that nice.
The setting is a hill in the mountains, totally denuded of trees (in a very, very dense forest). The building takes no awareness of the land into account - no views, no tucked-in parts, nothing. Just a big building surrounded by parking lots.
I could complain forever, but I should say that for $320 a night, you’d expect a room to be ready for you during normal check-in times (it wasn’t), or that the staff would be nice about it (they told us to go walk around and come back to see when our room would be ready). You’d also expect not to be nickle-and-dimed for things like WiFi ($9.95 per device, not room, so be careful on your iPhone) and games ($6.95/hour for the Lodgenet nonsense on the CRT TV). But, strangely, valet parking is free.
The indoor pool was totally sterile (really just plain ugly), and at the outdoor pool you have to withstand blaring Muzak. It’s really, really loud.
Anyway, the one saving grace was a great running trail. I found it by running south on the highway and ducking in the next road below the place, but there’s also a road out the backside of Tenaya that gets you there. Most signs highlight the horseback riding a mile down - if you see that, you’re in the right place. It’s a dirt road that goes, I think, 13 miles. I didn’t go all the way down. But it’s rolling, and gorgeous, so if you’re looking for a run in those parts, it’s a good place to hit.
Sadly, no pictures. I honored that provision of the venue’s policies. I also poured my red wine into a Nalgene container (#2 - HDPE) so as not to attempt bringing a wine bottle in. But onto the music:
One of the main reasons I went was to see Elvis. I’m a longtime Elvis fan, and, as much as I like The Police, Elvis was top draw for me. Unfortunately, Elvis didn’t get the respect he deserved.
I arrived about fifteen minutes late, at 7:45, and heard “Pump It Up” blasting through the speakers. I knew they wouldn’t play a song from a band that would be on later the same night, so I realized Elvis was already on. Just fifteen minutes after the appointed start time? Things have changed since I used to go to shows, I guess. Or the entertainers are just getting older. I wasn’t expecting anything until 8:30 at the earliest. I figured 7:45 would be all-clear of good music. Unfortunately, so did everyone else. Elvis don’t get no respect.
Since the Bowl is basically known for picnicking, among other recreational activities, people were milling around, eating, drinking, setting up, going off to the sides to smoke, cleaning up their meals, etc. All the while, Elvis belted it out.
He played with the Impostors, who include Steve Nieve. They did some old stuff (Peace, Love, and Understanding) and some songs off Momofuku. Then Sting came out and did “My Aim is True” with Elvis.
The biggest problem with that part of the show was the sound. They must have optimized the acoustics for The Police, because Elvis basically sounded like shit out there. I could barely make out some of the music. I was praying that The Police’s sound quality would be better - and it was.
So then, while the sun was still up, Elvis ended his set.
A bit later, The Police came out. Nice, casual start (can’t remember the exact song). Lighting was great - lots of effects reminiscent of Ghost in the Machine art. The set was very well designed, and, as mentioned above, the sound quality was pretty excellent at this point.
They played tons of the good hits: Roxanne, Every Breath You Take, Don’t Stand So Close To Me, De Do Do Do De Da Da Da, Wrapped Around Your Finger, etc. I was a bit surprised that they played not a single song from Sting’s solo albums.
Sting looked pretty good. Not as full of energy as in the old days, but vibrant, engaged, and interested. Andy is really getting old. I guess he’s about ten years older than the other two guys, and it shows. He still has his skill as a guitar player, but his face is pretty much frozen in place, and he looks like he has to concentrate pretty hard to make it happen. Still - the talent is there.
But Stewart killed me. I can’t imagine that the guy hasn’t seem some footage of himself and worked on his look a little bit. But I guess our dear president still says ‘nucular’ and he’s got an army of attendants. Stewart looks like some kid who grew up too fast and ended up as a real estate agent, but always wanted to jam on the drums. Again, the guy is very talented - without question. But the super-tight black jeans, the sweatband (probably needed), the hair, the printed t-shirt, and, most of all, the facial expressions practically killed me with laughter.
The showed ended with a few encores. Right out of some live album that I’ve heard a million times, Sting started introducing the band in the end of Every Breath You Take, “And on guitar, Mr. Andy Summers . . .”
This guy really nailed it - you’ve gotta check out his post (and the pictures are pretty good too). I don’t think I’ll be able to keep from laughing next time I’m there . . .
I mentioned last week that I was awaiting a shipment from Salumi Cured Meats - Mario Batali’s father’s salumeria in Seattle. I was on the waiting list for four months (that’s right) and it finally arrived. I’m not sure which item held it up, but I think it was the guanciale.
I was a little surprised about how the shipment was packed. In my previous pork orders, the meat arrived in styrofoam boxes full of ice packs. The meat was cold each time. In this box, the meat was just wrapped in butcher paper, and stuck in the box, and shipped two-day. And mine arrived on a very hot day - I could smell the meat before I opened the box.
So I broke it open at work, and basically the meat was glistening from the melting fat. I ordered three products: the salumi salami, the finocchiona salami, and the guanciale. I haven’t used the guanciale yet.
We all gathered round and sliced into the salamis. First, we hit the salumi, and that remains my favorite. There is a big flavor of mellow garlic, and then a host of other spices that add a wonderful depth. On the website, they list ginger as one of these - that makes sense given the flavor. It’s hard to place overall, but it’s rich and delicious.
The finocchiona is also a great salami, but very different. This is a spicy log full of black pepper (cracked, but hardly) and fennel flavor - probably both pollen and seeds. It’s a very, very full flavor, and spicy enough that you can’t really taste whatever you eat next unless you give it a while.
So I’ll probably get on the list again for more salumi, and I’ll try some other logs next time. I’ll be back in four months with more - and I can’t wait to make a carbonara with the guanciale.