One Week, NYC/Hamptons, conclusion

Our last full day in NYC was the last day of the blog conference. We went to classes that morning and then attended the Katie Couric luncheon that afternoon. Katie was lovely and inspiring. The food was just OK. That afternoon we both blew off classes for some midtown shopping, followed by my favorite meal of the trip at a restaurant in Chelsea called Scarpettas. It will go down in my personal history as one of the best meals of my life--and one of the most memorable.

We were seated next to possibly the loudest woman in the tri-state area, which is really saying something since New Yorkers themselves are a fairly loud bunch. On top of her robust volume, she also has the misfortune to possess a gratingly shrill voice. It was unpleasant. We spent most of the meal trying to communicate through looks and gestures (and text messages) since our voices couldn't carry over hers. Then the real fun started when a new party was seated on the other side of us, comprised of 2 older women. The older woman closest to me looked at me in horror and said, "She is LOUD! Will you get her attention? I must tell her to quiet her voice. I read a piece in the Times that was talking about how people are going deaf because of the noise level in restaurants. Get her attention, please."Awkward. I don't remember how I got out of it. But, thankfully, the loud girl left probably halfway through our entree, so Mom and I could actually converse face-to-face. Unfortunately, another party on the other side of the Times lady was seated--and they were also much to loud for her liking. And since they were within her reach, she wasted no time in  letting them also know that they were much too loud. She was rather polite, but it is a pretty nervy thing to do, and the gentleman did not appreciate her interference and very soon they were yelling at each other--and it finally ended with the older woman's friend telling her, "That is enough!!!" But of course the jerks on the other side of her wouldn't let it drop so easily, and kept saying (more loudly than they had been in the first place), "What? I can't hear you! Speak louder!" It was all very uncomfortable and dramatic. It was a fantastic meal, but in the end we were somewhat relieved to get out of there. We then wandered around Chelsea (where I don't think I've ever wandered before), which was a charming little surprise.

The next morning we caught the jitney out to the Hamptons. While I LOVED our stay in the Hamptons, this is where the more lazy part of the trip began. You'll forgive me if I gloss over it a bit and just hit the highlights?

*The Hamptons are a cluster of quaint townships; each little hub has its own main street/shopping/restaurant district full of posh boutiques, indie restaurants, and traffic cops. While we were there, we visited Southampton, Sag Harbor, Montauk, and East Hampton, where our rental was. We didn't make it to West Hampton or Bridgehampton.

*I'd read a bit about how Montauk was supposed to be the "armpit" of the Hamptons--but let's be honest; it's still the Hamptons, and I was totally charmed by Montauk's unstuffy friendliness. We spent an afternoon checking out the lighthouse (beautiful), and wishing we'd brought some beach gear. Nevertheless, we sat for a while on the beach before we headed to dinner at a restaurant on the harbor and watched a beautiful sunset of purples and peachy tones. (Note: Something about traveling with my mother is magical--poetic things happen left and right. Like the night we were in Bath and wrote in our journals by the light of the moon while listening to the nearby Three Tenors' concert from our window, which also overlooked the magically golden city below. It just works out this way for the two of us, what can I say?)

*We never did run in to the Barefoot Contessa, which is just as well, since I have no idea what I would have done anyway if I had. "Hi! Aren't you just dying to have us over for dinner while Jeffrey is out of town?"

*Best meal in the Hamptons was in East Hampton at Citta Nuova. I really, really, wanted to love 1770 House (as it's one of Ina's favorites), but my steak was overdone. The rest of my meal was phenomenal, though--so that's something!

*The beach in East Hampton is one of the most beautiful I've been to--beach as far as you can see in either direction; super soft sand; long grass; surprisingly uncrowded.