Rachelle’s leisurely weekend in london
Every time I fly Philippine Airlines (“The Heart of the Filipino”), the first thing I do as soon as I fasten my seat belt is check the latest issue of Mabuhay, the airline’s monthly magazine. I don’t just browse through it but read it, according to The
STAR’s blurb, “from cover to cover.”
My favorite feature is how a celebrity spends her weekend. It is written in a leisurely style that fits how the subject enjoys (to the hilt!) her Saturdays and Sundays — unhurried, uncluttered and unplanned.
On a recent flight to the US, I was pleasantly surprised to find Rachelle Ann Go as the topic of the month. So you think that since she’s busy performing as the lead role in Hamilton (after her extended stint as Gigi in Miss
Saigon, which won her accolades and awards, and as Eponine in
Les Misérables which was staged in Manila two years ago), Rachelle hardly has time for herself, right? Wrong!
In the story by Arwen Joyce, Rachelle gives us a tour around London which, Arwen quotes Rachelle, “may be one of the most bustling metropolises in the world, but it doesn’t feel as hectic and crowded as other cities — there’s plenty of space to breathe.”
That’s exactly what Rachelle shows us.
On Saturdays, Rachelle wakes up at 9 a.m. and makes her breakfast from her weeklong stock of blackberry honey, apricot, almond loaf and buttery croissants, and a carton of free-range eggs purchased from the neighborhood market and bakery. Her schedule includes: meeting friends in Central London for brunch after which they check out the bargain shops (“for second-hand and pre-loved treasures”); dropping by Daunt Books, said to be one of the city’s most beloved independent bookstores, located on Marylebone High Street; killing time at the Wallace Collection, “one of Europe’s finest treasure troves of art and furniture;” meeting another friend at Clarette, “a chic wine bar in a mock Tudor-style townhouse;” and by 7 p.m. having dinner at The Hardcourt, “a modern Scandinavian restaurant in another Grade ll-listed Georgian townhouse.”
Says Rachelle, “It’s the perfect, delicious end to a busy and funfilled day.”
Her Sundays usually start at 9 a.m. “in a comfy armchair at No. 11 Pimlico Road” located near her home, “with a pot of loosed-leaf Earl Grey tea.” Like other Londoners, Rachelle takes the tube. She’s meeting a friend in Notting Hill which is immortalized in a romance-drama movie starring Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant, apparently inspired by the Audrey Hepburn-Gregory Peck classic film
Roman Holiday, followed by brunch at 11 a.m. at Kyoto Garden in Holland Park.
Then, they try to burn calories by strolling in the park before stopping at the Design Museum and, if time permits, at the Victoria and Albert Museum. Until I read it in Mabuhay magazine, I didn’t know that there's a Romulo Café in London (the Romulo Café in Quezon City is among the favorite venues for movie press conferences). Missing home, Rachelle minimizes her homesickness by gorging on comfort dishes like barbecued pork belly skewers, and beef and oxtail kare-kare.
“At work,” confesses Rachelle, “I’m totally a Filipino food ambassador; I love sharing dishes from home with many castmates and have gotten them addicted to chicken adobo.”
Between 4:30 and 6:30 p.m., Rachelle shops at Liberty department store and, according to her Christian faith, attends a music-centered worship at Hillsong Church.
“We should share our God-given gifts,” adds Rachelle, “and for me, performing is an opportunity to communicate to others that anything is possible and dreams do come true. My goal on stage is not to please or impress but to move and inspire.”
At around 10 p.m., she’s home... refreshed and re-energized, ready for more daily performances in
Hamilton...after dinner at Ham Yard Hotel and a quick stop at a bowling alley nearby.
There’s no mention in Arwen’s story how Rachelle spends time with Martin Spies, the New York-based businessman to whom she is engaged. The question is: Will Rachelle (and Martin) beat her ex-boyfriend Christian Bautista (and girlfriend Kat Ramnani) to the altar?