Funniest travel story
Well, my parents were great travelers. [Weaver’s father was president of NBC from 1949 to 1955.] Once they were sharing a private plane with Elizabeth Taylor and Mike Todd. Each couple had their own bunks with these little curtains. My parents overheard Elizabeth say to Mike, “Do you have the toothbrush?” And he said, “Yes, here it is.” My parents were horrified. They couldn’t imagine using the same toothbrush! You find out what people are really like when you travel with them.
Your all-time favorite vacation
My family and I went to Cuba this past May on a trip organized by our local record store in Manhattan. We spent a week in Havana listening to a lot of different music—street musicians, classically trained pianists like Roberto Carcassés, rumba groups . . . and just roaming around the city. We left feeling that what Cubans have is incredibly unique: their emphasis on family, on community, their cohesiveness as Cubans. We’re trying to go back there over Christmas. We really miss it.
Last item you bought abroad
Swedish bitters in Stockholm. It looks like booze to me, but my husband swears it’s for digestion. I haven’t tried it, but judging by the level of liquid in the bottle, he has.
Best meal eaten on a trip
In Iceland, we were taken to a wonderful little fishing village outside Reykjavík called Grindavík, where there was a lovely café called Bryggjan frequented by actual fishermen. The walls were lined with “Best Fisherman” plaques covered in amazing family names that were a meter long! And they had this lobster soup—very thick and hot and served with fresh bread. That saved us; otherwise, we would have all come down with pneumonia.
Must-pack item
I always tell people to pack a cotton turtleneck; I’m convinced I’m going to be cold wherever I go. We were in Hong Kong during the summer shooting Years of Living Dangerously, a docu-series on climate change. People thought I was ridiculous for bringing a turtleneck. But then there was a typhoon, and when everyone else was freezing, I had on my little cotton turtleneck. I was so right!
Prized travel souvenir
My father’s old leather briefcase. He was a Californian and loved the water. His briefcase had stamps on it from all over—Cuba, Hawaii, Acapulco. He’d literally pack only one thing in it: his bathing suit. Then as soon as he got off the plane, even if he had a thousand meetings lined up, he would go to the beach and water-ski.
Hotel items worth swiping
The bars of Hermès soap from Le Bristol in Paris. I’ve been lucky enough to have had two extended stays there: the first while filming One Woman or Two with Gérard Depardieu, and then when I did Death and the Maiden with Roman Polanski. My makeup artist, hairdresser, and I would compete to see who could collect the most soap. I still have all those little jade-green boxes, and this was over 20 years ago! I don’t even use them; I just put them in rooms for that lovely orange smell. I hope I’m still welcome there.
Travel motto
There’s a wonderful song from Anything Goes called “There’s No Cure Like Travel/Bon Voyage.” It’s exactly how everyone should feel getting on a plane: “And there’s no cure like travel / to help you unravel / the worries of living today. / When the poor brain is cracking / there’s nothing like packing / a suitcase and sailing away.”
A Monster Calls will be in select theaters in December 2016