Prester John's Kingdom

I have become obsessed with the idea of Prester John and his kingdom's influence upon history. Between the 12th and 17th Centuries many believed Prester John, a.k.a. Presbyter Johannes, lived in a mythical kingdom and reigned as a Christian monarch even further east than Persia. Prester John is a character that has influenced scholars throughout the ages, spurned exploration, missionaries, and treasure hunters, east of Europe. I did not know about the concept of Prester John until I read the book Baudolino by Umberto Eco. However, the Prester John idea has popped up here and there since I "discovered" him via Eco.

Prester John was a descendant of one of the Magi, and his kingdom was a Nestorian Christian stronghold amongst Muslim nations. Additionally his extremely wealthy kingdom held the Fountain of Youth, and was populated by strange creatures, including the chimeras, manticores, skiapods, cynocephali, blemmyae. Western Europe learned of Prester John and his kingdom through a famous letter that made its way around Europe in the Middle Ages.

The famous letter made its way across Europe in around 1165, and described a kingdom with unbelievable treasure, and some of the most sacred Christian relics under its auspices: in short, Prester John's kingdom was a veritable utopia. The famous letter was addressed to several rulers, including Frederick Barbarossa.

In the novel, Baudolino, the protagonist, Baudolino is one the greatest liars that ever lived (besides the author, Eco.) He believed his lies were necessary to protect and promote his adoptive father, the Emperor Barbarossa. Lies he created in the book influenced the outcome of real history. In the novel, it is Baudolino who forges the letter from Prester John and addresses it to Barbarossa. Subsequently Baudolino and his entourage are sent to find Prester John's kingdom.

Outside of Baudolino, the non-fiction Christian world of the middle ages also sought Prester John's kingdom. Any ruler who could form an alliance with Prester John would certainly be the most powerful ruler in Western Europe. Explorers were sent to find Prester John's kingdom, resulting in a better understanding of our world, improved mappaemundi. It was also recognized that if Prester John could have a powerful and rich kingdom in the midst of non-Christian nations, missionaries could establish Christian communities throughout the world. Eventually when Prester John's kingdom was not found, stories circulated that the kingdom moved to Africa, or was always there, however, the letter had been misinterpreted. As a result, Africa became ripe for exploration.

The irony and beauty of this story is that Prester John did not exist. It is for this reason, incredible that his myth had such an enormous impact on the West, and for that matter, catapulted the West to its Renaissance. It has been said Prester John sparked the entire Age of Exploration.

I hereby nominate the non-existent Prester John as one of the most influential people in history.

Where have I seen references to Prester John?

• Eco, Umberto, "Baudolino"
• Marvel Comics
• Edson, Evelyn, "The World Map, 1300-1492: The Persistence of Tradition and Transformation", John Hopkins Press.
• Wagner, Richard, "Parsifal"
• see references compiled by others

Rue Mouffetard

While living in Paris in the late 90's, my classes were split between two universities, the famous Sorbonne, and the infamous Sorbonne Nouvelle (a.k.a. Paris III, "Censier"). Although the Sorbonne is more well-known, I will tell you that personally, I had a better reception, as well as better educational experience at Censier. Aside from the educational experience, I had a recurring cultural experience that was tied to Censier:

The idée fixe was a theme and variation on arriving and leaving the university. I always arrived at the Gare d'Austerlitz via RER C, and took the underground tunnels to the Jardin des Plantes. I walked into the Jardin's gate, and underneath the tree tunnels, glancing at the roses and other flowers, when the season permitted. I exited the Jardin through a gate next to the Musée d'Histoire Naturelle, and walk past the mosquée where I sometimes had tea, and pastry. A couple more blocks would take me to the communist-block-looking university of Censier.

Leaving, I would wind my way through different streets, but always with the goal in mind to visit my favorite street in Paris, Rue Mouffetard. Rue Mouffetard is a medieval, tortuous and narrow street lined with shops, vendors of seafood, vegetables, a butcher, and about anything else one might imagine. Later, scenes from Le Fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain would be filmed on Rue Mouffetard. Recall the scene where Amélie returns the box containing childhood memories to Dominique Bretodeau.

It normally took me about half an hour to walk from end to end. I never became bored with my strolls down the street, and let my French friends know of my obsession with the street. Subsequently, and on no particular occasion, I was given a children's book written by Pierre Gripari, entitled "The Witch of Rue Mouffetard."

It is basically a Hansel and Gretel variation where a girl, Nadia, is kidnapped by the witch of Rue Mouffetard. The witch believes if she eats a young beautiful girl topped with tomato sauce, and having a name beginning with N, she too will become young and beautiful. Nadia is eventually saved by her brother, Bachir. At the time, the book was perfect for my level of French reading comprehension, and a nice break from Astérix et Obélix.


After watching Jaws as a child, I felt certain there were sharks even in the swimming pools of my state which is a ten hour drive to the nearest ocean. Of course, I knew Jaws was but a story meant to scare. I will tell you dear, small-handful of readership, I have never felt scared, intimidated, or even vexed while strolling Rue Mouffetard after reading the little gem, "The Witch of Rue Mouffetard." I think the street is lovely and relaxing, but then again, according to the story, the witch would have no interest in me: I am a male, and my name does not start with N!

2004 McWilliam's Chardonnay

2004

McWilliam's

Hanwood Estate

Chardonnay

South Eastern Australia

Although I am not a big white wine drinker, I really like this inexpensive Chardonnay. It has a buttery texture, with notes vanilla, and an almost marshmallowy taste. This wine is neither too dry nor too sweet. I drank this with shrimp quesadillas, and for the price, it is a great everyday wine. I plan to purchase more the next time I go to the wine shop.

X Winery 2005 Red X

It has been a long time since I wrote about a specific wine. It is not that I haven't been sampling wine, but, instead, that the wine I imbibed lately has been so bad that I haven't had the inspiration to write about it. I know that bad wines deserve reviews as much as good wines (maybe even more from a public service standpoint), but that is how it is.

Last night, I opened up a little gem for the money: X Winery 2005 Red X from California. As I have written before, never purchase wine because of the bottle itself. That being said, the X Winery bottle is very pretty. The wine is a blend of the following varietals: 42% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Syrah, 19% Petite Sirah, 5 % Grenache, 3% Cabernet Franc.

Here is what X Winery has to say about this wine: "Explosive dark cherry and blackberry aroma. Complimented with blueberry, clover and dark chocolate with a hint a cedar. Medium body with balanced acidity and a long delicate finish."

The first thing I noticed about this wine was the color: a very pretty, inviting dark burgundy. Immediately upon tasting, I noticed the wine has a very heavy mouth feel. Although the wine is slightly more complex than I am making it out to be, basically, there are cherry notes on the front which turn to tannic-chocolate throughout the medium-length finish. While I did get some dark fruit notes, I didn't specifically get blackberry, blueberry, clover, or ceder. I most definitely disagree the wine has a "long delicate finish." For one, there is nothing "delicate" about this wine, and secondly, the finish does not linger enough to be called "long" unless "delicate" means "undetectable." I am not knocking the wine, but am simply disagreeing with someone's description of the wine. At approximately $10-12, this is a good, robust, semi-complex wine.

Wine Memory

Late in my life, I started to hear people talk about what wine complements what cuisine. In France, I often heard conversations that go beyond the complementary relationship of food and wine, discussing what I will call in English "wine memory." I have never heard anyone talk about this subject in English, even in wine circles. I suspect its because maybe the food we eat in this country does not want to "be remembered" by the wine. Maybe terminology already exists that is superior to the concept I present to you as "wine memory." I am paraphrasing from the French concept, "ça rapelle" which I would translate directly as "it recalls", but using the phrase "recalling food" brings images of Upton Sinclair's "The Jungle," and Peter Pan peanut butter instead of the romantic notion I intend to impart. In order to introduce this concept, I have to reveal to you what a hick I was in my youth. Well, everyone has to learn at some point, you are not born a gourmand, it is a lifelong process. My first experience with "wine memory" was when I was 21. I was on a date with a French woman, and it was my first time to eat at a French restaurant. This date would change my life in more ways than one. Most importantly, it was my first glance into how mysterious wine can really be, and opened my life up to the idea of eating for pleasure as opposed to eating to feel full. My date ordered an appetizer of Saumon Fumée (a.k.a. Smoked Salmon.) I had never had smoke salmon, no, just the smelly salmon patties my mom made growing up. She asked me what kind of wine I wanted- easy, "red." She told me red doesn't go with Saumon Fumée, and that she would order for me. I mainly knew Franzia back then, so cannot recall what kind of white was ordered, but I think she ordered a Sauvignon Blanc.

The wine and smoked salmon came to the table. The smoked salmon was orange in color, and oily looking, decorated with little green balls I would later discover are capers, and a small feathery green herb I was familiar with, but had never seen, dill. I reluctantly took my first bite, and was very surprised at the fresh taste of the smoked salmon. I took a drink of the white wine, and after swallowing, exclaimed, "this wine tastes like fish!" My date's face grew red, and she laughed until she cried. I thought she was laughing because she picked a wine that tasted like fish. She wasn't. She was laughing because I was learning as an adult what French children learn shortly after speaking their first words. (As an aside to Francophiles, I also learned the word "plouc" that night. "Aah, c'est plouc," she said!)

She explained in broken English that one of the mysteries of wine is its symbiotic relationship with food. We don't really know how it happens, but by pairing the proper wine with the proper food, we can increase the chances of it happening, and we WANT it to happen. What I was tasting was the wine recalling the memory of the food I just ate. I took another sip of wine, and could again taste the smoked salmon. It was a revelation to me, as big as when I discovered Santa was not real, that I really could not grow up to be whatever I wanted to be, including and especially president, and that I really could not use the force if I concentrated hard enough. I did not want to move on to the next course, but to slowly eat the salmon, and drink the wine until the memory of the food could no longer be recalled.

All Hail the Pig!

All Hail the Pig! Pork, Couchon, Schweinfleisch, whatever you call it, it is made into many different luxury products. Photo. The king of the pork products, though, is prosciutto.

Prosciutto, also known as Parma Ham, Jambon Rouge, and Jamon is known throughout the world as a luxury product. It wears a lofty price tag to go along with it too. In America, at the time of writing, Prosciutto di Parma costs about $12-$15 per pound. Is it worth it? You better believe it! What is it about the ham that makes it so valuable? It is all about the process.

The process is ancient and at least partially well-guarded. In general terms, the ham is salted for several months, then air dried for up to two years. The drying process removes the water, and concentrates the flavor and aroma. The end process is a velvety-textured ham with a unique flavor and aroma. The entire job description of some lucky individuals is to place a special tool into specific locations on the ham at certain intervals before pulling a sample, and checking its aroma and taste.

What should you look for when buying prosciutto? Dark red is not a good sign. I have purchased pre-packaged 'proshoot' in the grocery store, and it just is not right. I cannot believe the proper process was used to make it. You should look for dry, whole prosciutto that is sliced razor thin on the spot. Specialty grocers are more apt to have a better product in this country, as frankly, the people who work at the supermarkets don't even know what prosciutto is, and will make comments like "why would you pay for this when the honey baked ham is on special?" Or, even, "this stuff looks disgusting!"

Beware one of the oldest prosciutto sales tricks in the book: the idea that the paper thin slices must be layered with wax paper to keep it from sticking. This is simply hogwash, and in my opinion, a way for the $12-$15 per pound delicacy to quickly reach your desired weight, and at your cost. If the prosciutto is quality, and dry, it should not stick together anyway! I want prosciutto, not wax paper!

One of the best ways to eat prosciutto is by itself with a glass of red wine. The red wine should recall the taste of the prosciutto for several minutes after your last bite. Keep sipping the wine and tasting the prosciutto until the taste is no longer recalled, then eat some more. In the Southern European culture, it is common for most people to eat even the fat of the prosciutto. I admit I pull most of the fat off before eating it. My friend from the northern European reaches of Göteborg, told me it is a common practice in Sweden to remove the fat. A very popular way to present prosciutto at a dinner party is to drape it over melon (a.k.a. cantaloupe). The melon, like the wine should recall the taste of the prosciutto, although in my opinion, not as well. Just remember, keep the accompaniment simple.

Prosciutto can also be made into a sandwich- just lightly butter baguettes, and incorporate the prosciutto. I would advise against adding too many other ingredients or spices- you paid for the prosciutto, enjoy its taste, not the taste of other ingredients. Oh, and one of the biggest sins in my opinion is cooking prosciutto- it ruins everything the curer worked for and you paid for.

Photo

The Very Thought of You...

"I am writing my blog if anyone cares."(1) It is once again the holiday season, time to "shovel the turkey, and stuff the snow."(2) Thanksgiving is just around the corner and it is time for my yearly ritual of watching one of my top ten movies, Home For The Holidays. The underrated Jody Foster movie has been criticized by some as being sacrilegiously anti-family. I disagree, I think if anything it tells the awful truth about so many families that many would rather hide.

It also tells another uncomfortable truth about loneliness. It reminds us we can be surrounded by our family and still be alone. This is apparent from the beginning of the film after Claudia (Holly Hunter) is picked up by her parents at the airport. She looks into another car where a man who we assume has also just been picked up by his parents looks at her as if to say "help me, I am begging you!" When Claudia arrives at her parents house she asks herself, "who are these people?" Later, when Claudia's parents drop her off at the airport, Adele Larson (Anne Bancroft) asks, fighting back her tears, "who was that girl anyway?" Tommy Larson (Robert Downey Jr.) is clearly alone, as no one except Claudia will even acknowledge he is gay. The movie is full of similar dialogues and situations that remind us we are all alone.

The tension is apparent between family members, but all hell breaks loose when Tommy Larson accidentally (?) pours the stuffing from a turkey on his sister Joanne's (Cynthia Stevenson) head.

The section entitled,"The Point" is the climax of the film, and a very beautiful, poetic, nostalgic way to bring everything together. I am a real sucker for nostalgia, and my favorite movies almost always seem to contain nostalgic elements. For me "The Point" is reminiscent of my favorite movie, Cinema Paradiso, when Salvatore (Jacques Perrin) watches a montage of kissing scenes spanning every movie that was shown at the Paradiso throughout his life that had been deemed pornographic by Father Aldelfio (Leopoldo Trieste), cut and reassembled by Alfredo (Philippe Noiret).

In "The Point" the viewer hears the voice of Nat 'King' Cole singing "the Very Thought of You" as we see what appears to be old home movies of the various characters. We find out that even the characters that may appear mean-spirited or soulless in the film have passed short-lived moments in their lives where they are happy and before our eyes they are rehabilitated. Henry Larson's proud moment was standing with his family on the airport tarmac watching a plane fly close overhead. Tommy's moment was his marriage on a beach with his partner and friends. Even Joanne and Walter Wedman (Steve Guttenberg) share a playful moment together chasing each other around.

We have heard about Claudia's moment with her daughter Kit (Claire Danes) throughout the film. In fact, throughout the film, she reminds herself, "just float." We finally see in her moment, she is snorkeling with her daughter; they see a beautiful school of fish and look at each other in wonder. Curiously, Dylan McDermott, who Claudia will try her best not to fall in love with is named Leo "Fish". The Point is touching, and pure genius.

The soundtrack, including original music composed and arranged by Mark Isham, is one of my all time favorites. The only thing I would criticize is the use of the Janice Joplin tune, "Piece of My Heart," for the credits which in my opinion, breaks the mood created by the cinematography, and the rest of the soundtrack, but especially, "The Point." Jody Foster has defended the choice, saying the words match perfectly what she was trying to convey.

The film reminds me to be thankful for ribbons of memories that sweeten life when youth is through.(3)

1. Adele Larson makes a similar comment about making coffee.

2. Henry Larson (Charles Durning) makes this funny faux pas in the Thanksgiving prayer.

3. Paraphrased and unashamedly lifted from "With You" from Pippin.