Back

The Bush administration is postponing regulations for U.S. citizens traveling in the Western Hemisphere by land or sea.

The regulations call for travelers to show a valid U.S. passport in order to re-enter the country from Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean. The mandate, known as the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, was set to take effect on 1 January 2008.

But the administration announced Wednesday that it was delaying the new regulations for at least six months. Instead, travelers can show government-issued photo identification, such as a driver's license, and a birth certificate.

The delay is prompted by an increasing backlog of U.S. passport applications since January 2007, when similar regulations went into effect for air travelers. The delays prompted angry applicants to complain to their congressional representatives.

The administration suspended the passport rules for U.S. air travelers earlier this month. The suspension will last until September.

New menu's spice up Star Clippers Cuisine

French Chef Jean-Marie Meulien assists as culinary advisor 

For the past two years Star Clippers has been working to revamp its menus and enhance the culinary experience on board the line’s three tall sailing ships: Star Clipper, Star Flyer and flagship Royal Clipper. With the assistance of culinary advisor and three-star Michelin chef Jean-Marie Meulien, Star Clippers recently completed the menu transformation with a new selection of starters, entrees and desserts featuring more local dishes and ingredients based on the ships’ itineraries.  

Catering to an international clientele, Star Clippers designed the two-week menu cycle to achieve a delicate balance of featuring dishes that were more seasonal, yet pleased palates from across the globe. Summer itineraries in the Mediterranean are reflected in the large selection of French and Italian dishes, while the menus for the winter sailings in Asian, French Polynesia and the Caribbean switch to highlight local fare. 

“We’ve worked for the past two years to evolve our cuisine while remembering that we serve guests from around the world with different tastes,” said Bernd Schroter, director of hotel operations for Star Clippers. “Chef Meulien has taken our menus to a higher level, and we know that both returning and first-time guests are going to enjoy the selections as much as we’ve enjoyed creating them.”  

Following is an assortment of new dishes featured on Star Clippers’ menu this summer: 

Starters:

• Creamy shrimp and seafood soup

• Chicory and orange salad

• Tuna fish tartar with vegetables and seaweed beef carpaccio topped with slivers of parmesan cheese

• Creamy snail soup from Burgundy

• Scallops with saffron sauce

• Stuffed aubergine with tomato sauce

Entrees:

• Breast of duck with ratatouille and spiced cherries

• Tenderloin of beef with onion chutney

• Lamb stew in phyllo pastry

• Grouper saltimbocca with tomatoes

• Leg of lamb with herbs in a Barolo wine sauce and dumplings

• Steamed lobster with hollandaise sauce and flavored creamed potatoes

Desserts:

• Apricot flan sponge cake

• Fruit tempura with a chocolate and ginger sauce

• Amaretto cream profiteroles

• Panna cotta with strawberries and sweet pesto

• Iced Grand Marnier soufflé

• Orange flavored crème caramel

Every menu also has palate-cleansing sorbet in tantalizing flavors such as watermelon, apple and carrot, and rum and lime; a variety of international cheeses, as well as a vegetarian selection. 

To maintain the high standards of the menus, Chef Meulien goes on board twice a year to conduct a weeklong training program with the ship’s culinary staff. As culinary advisor, Meulien brings years of experience, expertise and talent to Star Clippers’ kitchens. Formerly he was executive chef of Michelin three-star L’Oasis in La Napoule on the Cote du Sur on the French Riviera, and he upheld those three stars for 14 years. Prior to that, he was chef at Le Meridien in Paris and earned that restaurant two stars in just one year.  

Meulien also serves as a culinary consultant to several restaurants and hotels around the world, and he is a member of the Disciples of Auguste Escoffier and Toques Blanches Internationales. His most recent cookbook, Flavors of the Mediterranean, can be found in kitchens across the globe. 

Star Clippers, ranked one of the Top 10 Small-Ship Cruises by "Travel+Leisure," combines the luxury of mega-yacht cruising with the thrill of sailing aboard an authentic clipper ship. Guests rediscover what sailing was like during the golden age of tall ships while visiting intimate ports of call untouched by larger cruise ships.