Topo Gigio: March 2011

Flat white - London

A flat white is a wonderful coffee, similar to a cappucino but uses microfoam instead of dry foam. On visits to London Topo Gigio likes to visit the small independent cafes that specialise in this beverage. There is an excellent blog, written by Rob, that discovers new spots (http://londonrobstuff.blogspot.com/).

The search for the perfect flat white leads Topo to explore a wide variety of London neighbourhoods that he might not otherwise visit.

Coffee in New York City

Topo has a fondness for good coffee and good design. On trips to New York he visits Zibrtto Coffee which is located on 6th at 56th. A new branch just opened in the Financial District but Topo has not yet visited it (http://www.zibettoespresso.com/).

Visiting Kew Gardens, London 2010

Topo loves gardens and gardening. It is a strong element of his heritage. He made a little journey to Kew Gardens to see some of the new architecture which included the walk through the treetops and the new Davies Alpine House.

The new Davies Alpine House, designed by Wilkinson Eyre Architects, houses a lovely variety of Alpine plants. Many of them are quite close to the ground, which suits Topo.

He ran into an old friend and they had a nice visit.

A sign of spring in London is always the blooming of the primulas.

New York City 2010

Topo Gigio loves New York. He visited there often when he was on the Ed Sullivan show (50 appearances). Topo visited the theatre once more when he attended the David Letterman Show.

He also went to visit Martha Stewart at her show. The set is very large and quite lovely but it should be noted that no snacks were offered.

Topo also went to the Daily Show. He is a big fan of John Stewart and enjoyed the experience even though he had to walk through a metal detector.

While waiting in these various lines, Topo spotted a few well-know people.

Dalai Lama

Oscar winner Geoffrey Rush

Johnny Depp

This time it snowed quite a bit so the city was very quiet for a few days - and very beautiful.

Topo decided to try skating at Rockefeller Centre.

Topo decided to visit the Transit Museum in Brooklyn and so was able to see the Brooklyn Bridge up close.

No trip to New York is complete without a visit to H&H Bagels, so he invited a few friends along to have a party.

Coronation Street set , Manchester, England May 2010

In May 2010 Topo Gigio visited Manchester and the set of Coronation Street to celebrate its fiftieth anniversary. It is the long-running television show in the world.

At the heart of Coronation Street is the Rover's Return which is the local pub.

Here is the Prima Doner shop (formerly known as the Kebab Shop) which is owned by Dev.

Streetcars is the local mini-cab company. Topo used their services to travel to the Coronation Street Party.

Andy Whyment plays "Kirk Sutherland", a very kind-hearted but somewhat dim-witted character. Andy is an excellent singer and provided lots of good tunes at the party (it was also his dad's 60th birthday).

Special "fairy cakes" to celebrate the anniversary.

Topo seemed to enjoy the party a little too much.

Visiting Los Angeles 2011

Topo Gigio went for a trip to Los Angeles - home of many of his entertainment friends. The Academy Awards were on.

He won tickets to attend Oprah's Oscar Party show at the Kodak Theatre, the day after the Academy Awards. The experience was not very interesting (lots of lineups, not much fun- but it did allow a chance to see the Kodak Theatre and the left-over Oscar decorations.

Topo didn't attend the Awards Ceremony but he was at the Vanity Fair Party.

And spent the night at the Chateau Marmont

While in Los Angeles, Topo also went to a taping of the Craig Ferguson show which was lots of fun. He is a very intelligent, talented fellow.

Topo's presence always attracts a lot of attention from the paparazzi.

Topo is a great fan of all kinds of architecture so he visited the Schindler House (http://www.makcenter.org/MAK_Schindler_House.php) and also Case Study House #22, also known as the Stahl House (http://www.stahlhouse.com/) which was a memorable experience.