Latest news with #SilkRoads
New York Times
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Times
This Easy Dinner Merges Histories (and Fish and Couscous)
Peter Frankopan's 'The Silk Roads' has been on my night stand for some months now. It's a hefty presence, nudging me whenever I reach past it for my phone and lighter sorts of entertainment. It's a book with such intellectual weight that it invites both eagerness and a sort of low-grade anxiety. There is something about reordering your entire view of world history at 9 p.m. that feels … ambitious. Recipe: Spiced Couscous With Fragrant Steamed Fish And yet I keep picking it up. Frankopan tilts world history eastward, and the ancient routes of Central Asia become the center rather than the periphery. He traces how these pathways carried not just luxury goods but ideas, religions and diseases, connecting far-flung kitchens and cultures long before we started talking about 'globalization.' Among all the accounts of silk merchants and military campaigns, I'm drawn to the ones of barley, wheat and millet, traveling in saddlebags across mountains and deserts. It's the kind of book that makes me ask questions that haven't occurred to me before. Who first decided to mix cardamom with rice, or cinnamon (originally from China) with tomatoes (from the Americas)? What possessed them? What were they looking for? Who first tasted the result and declared it good? We have a tendency to draw history in straight lines. We want clear origins, neat progressions, definitive end points. This came from there, traveled here, became this. But life is rarely that tidy, is it? Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Tatler Asia
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Tatler Asia
Zhang Zhang, the first Chinese musician in the Monte-Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra, brings Monaco's musical heritage to Macau
Above Zhang Zhang and the Monaco Zhangomusiq Concertmasters at 'Macau for Galaxy Music Gala: A Musical Journey from Monaco to Macau' (Photo: courtesy of Galaxy Macau) Monaco, she explains, has a 'long history of artistic excellence.' The Monte-Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra, founded in 1886, ranks among Europe's most prestigious symphony orchestras. The principality also played a pivotal role in supporting the avant-garde, serving as a haven for the exiled Ballets Russes in the early 20th century—bringing together visionaries such as Nijinsky, Debussy, Stravinsky, Picasso and Coco Chanel. Today, Monaco remains a beacon of cultural excellence. The principality is home to the Opéra de Monte-Carlo, led by Cecilia Bartoli, and the celebrated Ballet de Monte-Carlo. Zhang values the diversity of her performances, which span symphony, opera, ballet and chamber music—and range from grand venues like the Monte Carlo Casino to intimate settings such as retirement homes and hospitals. 'I like bringing the joy of music to those who are no longer able to attend concerts,' she said. In 2004, following the devastating tsunami in Sri Lanka, where Zhang and the Monte-Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra performed at a charity concert to raise funds for an impacted fishing village, she launched Zhangomusiq. Its unique operational model ensures that all concert revenue directly supports humanitarian, ecological and educational projects, with production costs covered by corporate partners. The initiative's first event raised funds to rebuild a fishing village—an experience that showed her how music could do more than entertain. Since then, Zhangomusiq has delivered more than 70 concerts and supported projects in 40 countries. The group is currently planning to build two schools for girls in Afghanistan. In a world often divided, Zhang sees music as a means to foster empathy. 'By listening to each other, we can understand one another better,' she said. 'Classical music is one of the most accessible and universal art forms of our time. Like food, it needs no translation.' She recalled an inspiring moment in Kenya's Amboseli Valley, where she played for a Maasai village unfamiliar with the violin. Despite the language barrier, the shared experience of music united them in laughter, dance and song. 'We could not speak in the same language, but we understood each other through the music we shared,' she reflected. 'Musical arts should create bridges and break down barriers. As musicians, we have a powerful voice. We can—and should—be leaders of peace and positive influence.' Above Zhang Zhang visiting a Maasai village in Kenya (Photo: courtesy of Zhang Zhang and Marco Strullu) While continuing her work with Zhangomusiq, Zhang recently left the Monte-Carlo Philharmonic after nearly 25 years and is relocating to Asia. Her next venture is a documentary series for TVMonaco exploring the cultural influence of the Silk Roads. Whether through violin or camera, Zhang remains driven to connect worlds. 'Keep listening, keep learning, always remain curious,' she advises the next generation. 'Being the best is not the goal. Creating beauty and serving a meaningful purpose is much more rewarding.'
Telegraph
17-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Bottomless lasagne? London's latest foodie trend fills me with dread
There are some culinary artefacts among the marvels in the British Museum's Silk Roads exhibition. A platter for a flatbread that found its way from Central Asia to China; a wine jug repurposed as a funeral urn; countless ornate goblets and bowls that wound up thousands of miles from their place of origin. Astonishingly, there are even some 1,500-year-old baked goods, found at Astana Cemetery in the Gobi Desert. Insert your own joke about your local bakery. Gazing on these items, imagining the intrepid travellers who conveyed them across unknown or hostile land, I wondered what archaeologists from the future might learn from our food and drink curiosities. Would they marvel at Huel and its ilk, forerunners of the meal replacements they inject into themselves? Or gaze on air fryers with awe, as we do with Stonehenge? Will they revere Charlie Bigham as a deity? It was with these thoughts swirling that I checked my phone after the exhibition and saw an email about a new east London concept: 'bottomless lasagne'. Senza Fondo, which translates as 'without bottom', will open on February 20 offering unlimited lasagne for £20 a head. 'Lasagne lends itself to bulk production,' says the founder, Joe Worthington, who calls himself the 'chief bechamel officer'. 'You sit down, have a big, chunky piece of lasagne and – if you want – you can order it again.' 'Bottomless.' Of all the ominous terms in food – deconstructed, gooey, ultra-processed, nutritionally complete – none inspires as much dread. The word reassures the diner that they will not be judged, no matter how base their urges. The implication is not only that there is no bottom to your bowl, plate, trough or whatever else you are eating from, but possibly no bottom to you, either. As with Casper the Friendly Ghost, food and drink will simply plummet through you. This is not to denigrate 'lavish' or 'indulgent', which are ancient and admirable qualities in a meal. Nor is it to dismiss buffets, which at their best have a democratic sense of generosity and acknowledge that you want to add ham to stuff. No, bottomless is really a 21st-century curiosity. It started with unlimited soft drinks, fries and Pizza Hut pizza at lunchtime. But it achieved its zenith with the 'bottomless brunch' where, for a fixed fee, diners are given as much cheap booze as they can glug within their allotted time. Bottomless brunch not only normalises drinking in the morning, but specifically normalises drinking many low-quality drinks. Hopped up on lowest-common-denominator plonk, the bottomless mob make themselves vulnerable to sides, pudding and other cunning upselling. The bottomless promise also uses the diner's essential stinginess against them. To a certain cast of mind, hearing the word will get the cogs whirring. 'I will beat the system,' they think. 'I will be the outlier.' They crave a bargain, rather than endless layers of bechamel, ragu and pasta. Nobody has ever had a serving of lasagne and still felt hungry. That's the point of lasagne. One might as well offer bottomless mashed potato or risotto or bread and butter pudding. When archaeologists unearth the 'Senza Fondo' menu buried in the mud by Old Street, they will wonder about our priorities.
