What’s in Our Queue? Chucho Valdés and More

I’m on assignment in Brussels, where I’m covering the European Union. I’m usually reading several books at the same time, and lately, as I get to know the city, I’ve been exploring restaurants, cafes and museums.

Here are five things I’ve been listening to, watching and discovering →

I cannot stop listening to the Cuban pianist Chucho Valdés’s rendition of “Embraceable You.” Maybe it’s something about hearing a different, jazzy take on an old George and Ira Gershwin favorite, as I explore a new city, that feels fitting right now.

Villa Empain, built in Brussels in the 1930s, is a stunning example of Art Deco architecture. It was a private residence, and then an art museum, and then was requisitioned by the German army after Hitler invaded Belgium, before being repurposed into the Soviet Union’s embassy. Today, it hosts exhibitions and is worth visiting for the building alone.

Learn more about the villa here.

I have read Jhumpa Lahiri’s New Yorker article “Teach Yourself Italian” too many times to count. Her memoir, “In Other Words,” explores her love affair with the language. She describes English as a “hairy, smelly teenager” menacing her nascent Italian, which she cradles “like a newborn.” In Brussels, surrounded by French, I can relate.

Brussels empties in the summer, but I spent August in town. I’m a big fan of the French television show “Échappées Belles” (“Beautiful Escapes”), where a guide takes viewers to places around the world, interviewing locals about food, culture and history. It’s the next best thing to being on vacation myself.

Watch the episodes here.

This was the last show I saw in London before moving to Brussels. Going to the Open Air Theater in Regent’s Park is a summer ritual for me. It’s magical. The shows start when it’s light out, the music accompanied by the chirping birds nearby. After sunset, you can just make out the rustling of the trees surrounding the stage.

Here are some more favorites:

• What’s in Our Queue? Cycladic Art and More
  
• What’s in Our Queue? ‘Below Deck Mediterranean’ and More