Travel Tips: How to deal with the language barrier when you travel

I have wanted to post something on over-coming language barriers when you travel for a long time.

Obviously, if you speak English and stick to the 'touristy' area of travel.. it is rare that nobody could understand you at all.. also if you have WIFI and a decent programme for translation.. it may not be perfect but it will get you going... but if you are off the beaten path.. this gets tricky.. but not impossible and most of all- NEVER LET IT STOP YOU!!

1. Sticking to the tourist areas

Japan... did I tell you I love Japan? I am consistently feeding myself with a staple of anime and manga (don't judge, a creative adult is a child who survived!) and knew this was a place I wanted to visit. My first trip was in 2005 then 2012, 2013, 2014 - yes, it is that good. During my first trip, I did everything a tourist would do.. I visited Tokyo and Kyoto and took a tour to Mt Fuji and Hakone (all in English of course), we ask for where to eat at the hotels and rest of the time pointed at menus with pictures.. or those realistic food display on the window... uurrgghh I can't find a picture.. but it is a window display of the menu and price and you can't go wrong (unless if you want to know if it is beef or pork... or.?)... Train stops had both Japanese and English signs and the tourist map was clear enough for first-timers to find their way...

Hotel staff are especially 'useful'/helpful, they would speak English and would more likely recommend you a place that speaks English and can help guide you on the public transportations system.. I didn't particularly feel that language was a barrier... save for the time I couldn't find the flush button on one of those fancy Japanese toilets (it was concealed on the wall ಠ_ರೃ).

There is always a way to get around... if you like to be adventurous but not too adventurous, just stick to the main tourist areas.. and they are the main tourist area for a reason - it would be still 'exotic' enough until you are ready for more...

somehow.. my friend and I managed to book a day trip with
Japanese Rail to Atami, a hot spring village which included
access to the hot spring and a delicious lunch... (May 2005)

What has difficult is to buy a 'charm' from the temples
though.. many had no clear sign what they are for..
I also found out that for some odd reason the charm
for easy child birth is much more expensive
than the rest.. (May 2005)

2. Prepare yourself.. do your homework..

In my later trips,  I grew older and bolder.. Fred and I started venturing to areas with much less international tourist.. and things started to in a sense harder... but at the same time.. it gives fun and excitement to the trip.

We both eat just about everything save for insects and protected animals- so it is not difficult when it comes to food. Usually we do some research on regional speciality and check for famous place to eat it and usually cross check it with the hotels... sometimes you can get let down foreign guidebooks/review sites doing a review of another foreign cuisine.. sometimes it is just hype aimed at the tourist. When you have things in mind, print out the dish or the name of the restaurant or both.. just show it to reception and ask them to mark it on the map or you or even help you make a reservation.. or ask if they know a even better place to go, no harm in asking!

Same thing goes for places you want to visit, print them out or save them on your phone/tablet (to be more environmentally friendly) and ask the people you are staying with.

3. So you are fussy...

More and more people have allergies or due to other dietary reasons avoid some type of food. I always advise my friends to print out a list or a small flash card that list the most basic food type and useful phrases in the local languages. With the internet, this is incredibly easy. Avoid the pleasantries (you will pick them up as you go along) and you don't want to start compiling a dictionary.. just really  basic words you will need:

Yes, No

Chicken, Beef, Lamb, Fish, Prawns 

Nuts, Seafoo, Allergy

Hospital, Toilet 

Taxi, Train

Name and address of hotel

Everything in the local language and your language that applies to you - you might have a good memory but poor pronunciation... so unless you can say them correctly.. have them in writting. When in doubt, just point.

Or just get international roaming/WIFI or an app that works offline... we are usually too cheap to do it.. so we continue with our silly adventures.. 

Here is a funny story, Jayce and I were invited by some fancy friends to attend some horse auction and race in Australia in 2011.We took days off and booked our flight into Brisbane.. only just a couple of days before the flood shut off the roads out of the airport..  there wasn't much sense to go to stay at the airport... so we ended up having the money for the air tickets back but it goes into a fund which allow us to use the money to buy another ticket with the same airline (of course).. as Jayce had already taken her days off, she has adamant that we go somewhere.. with little time to plan, we needed somewhere relative close and with no visa required, she choose KOREA.. (eh?) I was working in Germany at that time and came back with only summer little summer dresses to frolic around Queensland and was looking to escape the cold.. but we went anyways and it was an adventure... nothing was planned saved for the first night of hotel.. we knew nothing outside of her knowledge of Korean gained from Korean dramas.. It was a fun but funny trip.

We visited Seoul and Gyeongju. The average guy on the street can't speak English in Korean- and we spoke 2 words of Korean so hilarity ensues. Just to randomly tell a (there are more) story of how we survive a the language barrier by chance..

We ate in a couple of touristy places in Seoul and they had English menus or menu with pictures, so we wanted an authentic experience of having Japanese BBQ on charcoal.. not a fancy place but a wholesome local hangout... so we asked the guy at the hotel and explicitly said this. He gave us 2 addresses close by in case one way close and it was both in the back alleys of some street... We went into one and everything looks great.. locals on the floor.. charcoal grill.. wonderful.. then we tried to order... the staff spoke no word of English!! None.. Jayce doesn't really like beef and lamb but will usually humour me but we will get a pork or chicken dish too so she doesn't starve...

As the menu was all in Korean, we resorted to sign language.. hands on the head like horns and went 'moo'... Beef? Moo.. we could then understood a nod or a shake to say no.. as we were continuing our stand-up comic, Jayce and I were discussing that maybe we just randomly point at something and just take it.. then a helpful staff that heard us speak in Mandarin walked to us and started speaking to us in Mandarin!! We were saved.. everything else went really after that and we got by with with Mandarin.. So here is what we had (part of it):

delicious Korean charcoal grill.. yum (Jan 2011)

And with our point and wait to find out strategy- just point to the most expensive (but still reasonably priced) item on the menu.. we got this at Gyeongju :

Namsan was worth the climb
(Jan 2011)

Just to end Korea with another funny story, Jayce read that Namsan is a must see spot..'you have not seen Gyeongju if you have not seen Namsan' she said the brochure (only in Korean or Chinese) wrote. The park ranger was a friendly old guy who spoke very little but some English.. we want to know how long the trek will take to see if we could make it... I think he said something like an hour (we think) but at the end it took us 3 hours (up only).. with many pit stops to take pictures and really slippery slops because of the snow... to go up and a bit faster to descend... we ended up spending the day at Namsan.. We are still not sure if we understood him wrongly or we were just really slow.. but plenty of senior citizens were trekking and floating by us.. so, we may not be the fittest one around and most people can make it up in 1 hour.

Would some translation be helpful for us at any of these points.. of course! Less traumatic.. but perhaps less memorable? Good news is though.. recent friends who went to Korea said that information in English is much more readily available now.

I couldn't find my pictures for Korea so I pinched all these
from Jayce's facebook (Jan 2011)

and now for some helpful tips...

Tips & Tricks for Travelling (cheap) in French Polynesia

The biggest challenge of French Polynesia, FP (or usually called the Islands of Tahiti) for the average traveller is cost. This place is freaking expensive. The main reason as you could imagine is that it is in the middle of nowhere and there is hardly any livestock farming or consumer goods manufacturing.. this means most things are imported from their closest neighbours New Zealand, Australia or US - coupled with the cost of shipment, storage and low demand (there is less than 300,000 inhabitants!),  the most basic offerings can cost an arm and a leg.

For our own trip, here are some tips and tricks to save some cash and little stuff that will hopefully make small but meaningful difference in your trip..

It is all about the money, money..

1. Salon du Tourisme

Find friends in Tahiti.. if the concept of 6' of separation holds through.. you should know someone that knows someone in Tahiti.. or make new friends.. this is crucial as there are travel fairs that targets locals/residents of Tahiti to visit the other islands. Here is the link: http://www.salondutourisme.pf/

Unfortunately you need to be physically there to make find deals and bookings, hence the need for a local friend.. some packages might explicitly require you to be a resident of FP but lots of them don't.

The best deals are usually for expensive over-water bungalows in these luxurious resorts that goes from usually USD 1000/night upwards.. you can get something which is like a 50-70% savings which still doesn't make it cheap.. but at least it is within reach for a few nights of stay. There are of course also the regular accommodations and mixing them up will keep the cost under-control. With the special deal we had, we spent 3 glorious nights in Sofitel Moorea.

>> Watch for basic comforts

Word of caution though, if you are on a shoestring budget ask yourself what are the basic comforts that you need.. once out of the main islands, air conditioning, electric mosquito repellents and even hot water can be a luxury!! So do ask in advance and don't take it for granted that you will have it.

The sparsely populated islands are a treat.. there is more sea life, the beach is usually more pristine, life is more natural.. with less humans - there is just less disturbance to nature. However.. it is all about the money money.. the cost goes exponentially up with these island.. there would be no petrol station.. some small islands within the islands still uses a generator for electricity and everything is brought in by plane or ship weekly or even less frequently.. So you could be staying in something REAAAALLY basic for USD 200/night and something for luxurious doubles the price.. so do gauge what you think are minimum comforts that you need and if the cost doesn't correspond to that.. well, perhaps you need to skip it or do very minimum number of nights stay.. 

2. Air Tahiti multi-island tours

There is only one way to fly.. Air Tahiti is the only commercial airline doing local routes. There is a multi-island pass that will save you some money if you want to visit beyond Tahiti and Bora-Bora. See here:

https://www.airtahiti.com/multiisland-fares 

This is very important.. you need to plan where you want to visit then check back to see if the connections are feasible.. many small island do not have daily flight so you need to be able to plan accordingly.. we took the Bora Bora-Tuamotu Pass and visited Tahiti, Moorea, Raiatea, Maupiti, Bora Bora, Rangiroa & Tikehau in 3 weeks. We wanted to visit Marquesas Islands, but alas, cost was a barrier..

3. Stay with the heard

So contrary to the 'normal' instinct to stay away from tourist areas - Tahiti, Bora Bora and Raiatea offers more cheap accommodations and cheap eats simply because there are more people there and enough for them to have supermarkets for example. I found Raiatea to be the cheapest in terms of what you can get for quality over money.. but I'd make another post on the islands that we visited and their 'characteristics' later. Rule of thumb.. more people, cheaper.. but with less people and no major hotels, these islands are far more rustic and fits into your image of:

In the world of FP, this:

is more expensive than this:

yahooo... a new header

I love the internet... I am currently sick like hell and could not sleep because all my coughing is keeping me awake. I decided to tweak the blog design and found this cool logo generator:

http://www.hipsterlogogenerator.com

Don't you just love the charitable people on the internet?

Cooking without Recipe - Stuffed Tomatoes

Haha.. another cooking without recipe post. 'cause it is just that simple. You don't need a recipe! It is also a good dish to make when you have vegetarians friend coming over. 

Pictured here is the non-vegetarian version though. You need those big super-sized tomatoes. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture so that you could gauge the size of these babies but they are roughly as large as my palm.

Preparation is easy peasy. First, cut off the top of the tomato then spoon out the inside part of the tomato. Chop what you got out into smaller cubes. Mix them with some minced meat (I used beef) and add salt, pepper and some olive oil to taste. The stuff them back in. I sprinkled a bit of breadcrumbs and some Herbes de Provence (but this is just because I have them) and put the 'cap' back on. ((I always have some Zucchini left, I have them because I buy lots of them.. you can make lots of yummy things with Zucchini and eggplant!)) Well, so I sliced up the Zucchini (seasoned it with salt, pepper, olive oil) and pop them together with the tomatoes and then bring them in the oven. 180'C fan and 20-30 min later, ta-da.. this comes out:

A vegetarian option is to use rice instead of minced meet and that's very tasty too.. But keep in mind that the rice grows when it is cooked and the meat shrinks.. so 'stuff' wisely..

You can have this as a main meal when you have 2 of them.. it fills you up.. or as a starter.. either way, it is something that is easy to make and looks pretty attractive when served. 

Have fun!

Cooking without Recipe - Salmon & Leek Quiche

I love Quiche. It is my go-to food when I have something left in the fridge that I need to get rid off or make a simple starter when I have friends over for dinner!

Basically, it is a bit like pizza - there is no limit to what you can do. Although Fred insist that there are some rules and tend to shake his head when I do a new strange-to him combination.

As we had some leek left the other day, I thought of a quiche.. mm.. and maybe a fish quiche for a change.. so I got some smoked salmon and had 2 tomatoes left uneaten - might as well add that too. 

As  this is a 'cooking without recipe' post, it is more of an idea to what you can do rather than a precise recipe of how to make something. I am going to also add some tips that I discovered a long the way to make a 'beautiful' looking quiche. I did a lot of trial and errors on this and welcome new tips for you too! hehehe.

Ok, let's start. You  need a base. We use 'pate brisee'.. We buy this from the supermarket and keep it frozen. If you don't have it.. it is easy to make, just look up a shortcrust pastry recipe (e.g http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/8894/basic+shortcrust+pastry) throw everything in the food processor and voila!

I usually use the basic fillings of a 'Quiche lorraine'. 

Crème fraîche + cheese (I use Emmental) + eggs.  Some people add milk.

I usually use around 1 cup of  Crème fraîche, half a bag of grated emmental and 3 eggs.. the quantity of course depends on the size of quiche that you want to make.. Here is a simple recipe you could try. There is just so many of them on the web that you'd be spoilt for choice. 

First, I sauté the leek in olive oil to soften it. Then I make cream + cheese + egg mix while the leek cools. Usually most recipes will ask that you mix the other ingredients into this mix. While it taste great, it leaves you usually with unattractive brownish top. The ingredients don't 'float' like how they seem to do in those glossy recipe books. I have discovered that you should instead 'deck' the quiche last with the 'main ingredients'. After preparing the mix, I pour it into the pastry then I add the leek, followed by the salmon and then the sliced tomato on top of this mix. This way I am controlling how it looks on the quiche instead of having one big lump of mixture. Then I pop it into the oven. I bake for usually 30 min under 180'C with fan in the oven.. and this comes out:

You can make it with anything you have left in your fridge. I love Tomato + Spinach, Ham + Zucchini + Goat cheese, the lorraine version of course.. and I once mixed 4 different kind of cheeses into on cheesy quiche..

Try it out with a conventional recipe and once you know your way around.. this is one great dish to experiment with. Usually it has lots of success in parties too! Have fun & enjoy!

Crickets

Ahhhhhhhhhh.. I am alive..  no doubt I have not been making any updates.. but I have a good excuse.. many things have happened since the last few months.. one being- Fred and I got married.

 It was one of those simple registration at the town hall with just the immediate family members. We were busy with our new apartment, with the papers to get married, papers to stay in Germany, having my parents around and we did a fair bit of travelling that I should also soon post about.

So ta-da, and cheers to a new beginning.

Speaking of new beginnings, I am lucky enough to have a new contributor. Amy, the founder of Pikaland will be joining us. I can't heap enough praises on Amy. She is incredibly talented, just head to Pikaland to see- but most of all, she is the kind and nourishing person that gives you nudges in your life. She has given me a quick kick to get of my ass and start doing something with this blog... "What do you love most?", she asked. "Eating and travelling!!", was of course what I answered.

So more is coming... on eat, laugh and travel...

Lessons about life I learnt from Candy Crush

Art mimics life and life mimics art? I find that life is a lot like a game of Candy Crush. Assuming that everything is random and not controlled by an algorithm that is trying to make you part with your money, here is what I learnt:

1. You can still succeed through sheer luck, without knowing anything. BUT it wouldn't get you too far. To survive you need to learn the way of the game!

2. While skills are definitely important, so is luck. If you are given a shitty combinations, it is like playing with a very bad hand in poker.. it just tough.. don't blame yourself and don't blame the game.

3. When you are successful, it could just be luck again - doesn't mean you got any better at the game but you got through.

4. If once you don't succeed, try and try again. You can't have good luck all the time, but you can't have bad ones all the time neither! I once played a stage for one whole week, I didn't get any better, one day I got lucky.

5. Sometimes you only realise you made an obvious mistake after you've done it. But there isn't an undo button.. there is always many what 'might have been'-s. You just need to try and try again.

5. With little skill and luck, having deep pockets help! You can buy your way through 'cheats' to get extra lives, special power items and such.. but isn't this just like real life? When you have the dough, you can access the help. You could still screw up though, but it certainly makes life easier. But then again, half the fun is trying to get there. 

6. I think the most important lesson though, is have fun. Don't let it consume you. And don't compare.. most people I know are playing at 3 digit level.. I am pretty much at the level 86 now and that is NO SHAME!!

Have fun!

Takumi - Ramen Restaurant

Immermannstr. 28
40210 Düsseldorf

http://brickny.com/takumi/  

I like this place. I call this a Ramen restaurant because they predominant serve Ramen - A Japanese soup noodle dish. You get some other stuff like gyoza or some teriyaki dish. You can check out their website for the menu: http://brickny.com/takumi/  

The Ramen is pretty decent and it has rather authentic feel to it, the small cramped interiors, the Japanese staff, plus load of Asian faces easting there. Unless you go off 'normal eating hours'. We were there at 3pm the other day, the restaurant can be kinna full.. and I think they don't take reservations.

 

Lunch has good deals (if you are hungry) to get 2 dishes for what is usually the price of one plus maybe 20%-ish.  But overall, you can eat below EUR 10 and have free flow of tea. Otherwise you can always order Japanese beer to quench your thirst.  

How do I find this place as compared to what I have tried in Japan? I find it a bit saltier.. but could be in my mind... and a more liberal use of mayonnaise.. I had it in my teriyaki chicken with rice.. taste good but I think this is kinna unusual.

Otherwise, if you are looking for a casual place to go for a nice Japanese bowl of ramen at a warm, friendly atmosphere. Do try this one.

Ridiculous things you never knew you needed #2

Now.. don't you hate it when you are cooking spaghetti and it just sticks our of you pot.. You then kinna have to wait for the bottom part which is soak in water to be soft and the push the rest of it into the water. or maybe you have another technique. But most of the time, the pot is just never big enough..

Seems that it bothered someone enough and enough people agree that we needed a solution to this. Presenting the 'spaghetti pot'. 

Actually I don't know what it is called, I saw this in a Japanese 'Vogue'-like magazine while waiting for my friend at a Japanese hair dresser. 

I think I will rank this with the egg cracker... (yes, they exist, if I see it again - I will take a photo) as seriously one of those products that if you have in your home.. you most likely have more money that you can spend... which in that case, I don't mind a bit of donation coming my way.. or you are a perfectionist that is bordering on OCD. It is not that they are not helpful.. I wouldn't mine having one, but these products usually cost a fortune and you can achieve the same result free or with a small fraction of the cost... ahhh.. marketing.... they let you know about the things you never knew you needed.

Ridiculous things you never knew you needed #1

Recently I accidentally picked up a roll of scented rubbish bag! Yes, rubbish bags. Those plastic bags that you line your trash can with. 

As I was in a hurry, I grabbed a roll and went. I was surprised by the lemon scent when I opened it and took a piece out. The smell was fresh and covers the smell of the food leftovers that went into the bin. So, not bad. My first roll is gone.. and I just bought another roll from another brand to try.. who knew... it turn out to be a really unnecessary 'nice to have' and becoming something I need. =D

Europe on a shoestring - How to travel on budget around Europe

Many people always tell me how expensive it is to travel Europe. There are many ways to cut cost, but it will require some advance planning.

Also, Europe is a continent, please do not try to visit 'Europe' in one or two weeks. When you do this, you are essentially spending most of your time on the plane/train and this is expensive as well as taking time away from the real sightseeing. Focus on what you want to see. If you do feel that this is a trip of a lifetime and you must visit multiple countries cramped into a short period of time- a lot more planning is required or you will need a holiday after your holiday due to sheer exhaustion...

As a rule of thumb, Eastern Europe is usually cheaper (Prague in Czech Republic is especially popular recently but countries such as Croatia, Poland, Hungary, Russia seems to be gathering momentum etc), Southern Europe is reasonable but tourist areas are suicide during peak seasons (Italy,Spain, Portugal, Greece etc), Western Europe is what most people know and do (London/UK, Paris/France, Berlin/Germany etc) and the most co$tly is Northern Europe (Iceland, Sweden, Norway etc).

Try to avoid travelling during summer holidays (end Jul- August) because everyone is travelling and it will be crowded and costly. If you can afford it, avoid winter too, Nov- Jan especially as day light hours is very short. When it starts to get dark and cold.. you can't do some sights, it is hard to take nice pictures and you might be bored etc etc.. but things especially accommodation is the cheapest in winter. when the hotels are empty, the prices go down. And the que to see famous sites are shorter too.. a good balance I find is to visit in spring and autumn. Not too cold, not too many people, not the cheapest.. but not the costliest.

While every country is different, but some important tips remain the same. So here's mine for your budget travel to Europe.

1. Getting there

Find cheap flights. The best is to book during promotions but perhaps you are never really in the know and often miss them. Use a flight comparator. I use mostly www.kayak.com and www.skyscanner.com.What these sites do is trawl other websites offering flight tickets and compare them, this way they can very quickly show you what is the current best deal. However, this only works if they partner with this site.. so use both to compare. If you have a bit of flexibility, use the options to see the flights +/- a few days ahead or after your chosen travel dates, also other alternative airports close-by. 

Generally flights that require transits are cheaper and airline from countries (I am being kinna mean here, it is not completely true) that not that many people want to visit in the first place but wants to develop a market as a regional air-hub will be the cheapest. Look out also for deals with the airline/airport of the transit point - usually they organize some short tours which they will bring you out of the airport, tour the city and return for very little money and you get to see something extra.

A bit of additional advice, if you take route that requires you to change flights - don't do it yourself unless you are saving a substantial amount of money. The reason being- if you first leg of flight is late and you miss your connecting flight, you will be in a foreign country and with lots of trouble. Even if you have insurance, the hassle of getting the next available flight, the lost time, the aggravation, trying to claim you insurance afterwards.. is not worth it. If you bought it as a package (on the same airline or their coach share partners), any delay will have the airline try to get you on the next flight out, in the event the next flight is longer than a certain hours they will give you food vouchers or one night hotel etc.. it is still a big hassle but someone else is taking care of it for you until you cab leave. Hmm, also try not to transit in French airports.. employees go on strike and tada.. you are stuck.. It is not that often, but France is a great end destination but a horrible transit point.

2. Getting Around

Now that you are there, you would have notice that local transportation is costly. But more frequently than not there are many tourist passes or transport passes that you can use. The best way to get this information is to visit the website of the train/bus service provider of the country/city that you want to visit.

There are plenty of offers. For example in Germany, you can buy a daily ticket so you pay a flat rate and hop on and off as much as you want. There are other offers for people travelling in groups, students, etc etc.. In the UK for example, you have off-peak/super off-peak/advance tickets etc which offer a lot of saving. Each city will also have their own 'scheme' for example London have their Travelcards and Oyster. There are also plenty of discounts for students/young people, you need proof age or a internationally recognised student card..

For example, do you know that there is a German Rail pass that lets you hop-on all trains (also their high speed train), buses and such for EUR 269 for 7 days. With this you can easily cover 3-5 cities. Which can be a steal if you want to do Berlin- Hamburg- Munich (some day trips in between) and then perhaps go to Austria.. But if you are just doing just one city in that particular country.. hmmpphh.. you'd be better off with other offers. So research and find what fits you best.

Actually, if you are travelling within one region/country only and there is 2 of you at least, I find that it is often cheaper to book a car. A small car is cheap and gives you the freedom to stop in places in between. But you need to plan it in such a case that you pick-up and leave the car from the same spot.. or there will be hefty charges. Also, automatic cars are more expensive than those with manual gear box. :(

City deals are best found on the tourism website of the city you want to visit. Sometimes it comes as a pass for the city that is bundle with offers for other attractions for the city like The Cologne Welcome Card or one which is for transportation only. It can also get quite complex but research online and you shall find! For example here is a break down of the various options that you can find in Paris alone. Life is more complicated in countries where different companies run different services, different trains, distance trains vs metro/subways etc and passes might not always be interchangeable - so do check. But google with key words like 'one day pass NAMEOFCITY'/ 'tourist pass NAMEOFCITY' it would usually give you something to read.

Of course, one can also always walk. 

3. Crossing Borders

If you need to fly, I suggest again checking with www.kayak.com or www.skyscanner.com. Skyscanner trawls a number of budget airlines in Europe.

Same applies to trains. Here's a summary of what's out there from one reseller. 

You will notice that the trend is early booking, cheaper prices but it usually means no change, no refunds etc.. so if your plans change you are pretty done for. Last minute deals aren't that good in Europe but you could look them up.. most of the time advance booking is what gives you the best rate.

If you need to travel last minute and don't want to pay too much, there is a new scheme these days where travellers/drivers heading a certain direction and for little money, they let you go along. Quite a few people found this to be cheap and convenient and they love the company. But personally I'd rather not take the chance to be stuck with someone in a car for hours whom which I may not like... mm... also most of these sites are in the country's native language... so if you can't speak it.. your stuck.This arrangement can also be useful for inter city travels as well as cross border travels - and I know many people that liked it.. Here's an example:

Sauternes - something sweet

Here's a mighty good intro from Wiki:

Sauternes is a French sweet wine from the Sauternais region of the Graves section in Bordeaux. Sauternes is made from Sémillon, Sauvignon blanc, and Muscadelle grapes that have been affected by Botrytis cinerea, also known as noble rot. This causes the grapes to become partially raisined, resulting in concentrated and distinctively flavored wines. Due to its climate, Sauternes is one of the few wine regions where infection with noble rot is a frequent occurrence. Even so, production is a hit-or-miss proposition, with widely varying harvests from vintage to vintage.

I personally love sweet wine - this has been a bit of a joke with my wine loving friends who prefer drier wines and pretty much think that sweet wines are nothing more than grape juice. But hey, I am all for individuality and I will proudly say, I love sweet wines. I really adore Sauternes. It can be quite hard to find out side of France and most probably it is because wine snobs like my friends are consistently ignoring sweet wines.

While I like cheaper sweet whites (will save this for another post), Sauternes is one which has pedigree. Sauternes' wines have been around for a long time (documented since 17th century) and are extremely expensive to make, hence the end product is not cheap too. Premier Cru Supérieur from the estate of Château d'Yquem is supposedly the most premium you can get. This poor cat has never tried it but what other 'cheap' ones I had was never disappointing. Sauternes typically starts out with a golden, yellow color that becomes progressively darker as it ages - so find the darkest shade that you can and if possible from a good year of harvest that fits your budget. 

Sauternes can be drank as an aperitif to being a dessert wine and whatever is in between. Like other white wines, it is usually served chilled. I (please take this with a pinch of salt as I am no sommelier) would suggest having it with stronger tasting food.. as it is a 'strong' and sweet wine. I feel that it goes especially well with South East Asian food which is heavier on the spices, or spicy food in general as the sweetness work well with the spices. Traditionally food pairing however is - Sauternes with Foie gras. 

Here's a list of the vintages if you are interested... 2007 is a good year it seems a 2008 no so good for instance.. but for me, I justly just go ahead and grab something I fancy that fits the budget. One man's meat is another man's poison and you don't know until you try.. if you don't get it right, try and try again.. mm somehow that sounds like the recipe for alcoholism.

Happy drinking!

Homemade Pasta

It started with me wanting to make Mee Hoon Kueh (Hand-pulled noodles). Belle and I were eating and talking about the the best places to eat it. But as I came back to Germany, I thought hey.. why not start with pasta.. that should be easy (??)

So I did. 

Actually, it isn't hard. I use basically this two videos below as guide and instead of the pasta machine just rolled the dough with a rolling pin. 




The recipe basically calls for one egg per 100g of flour and 100g of flour feeds 2. There are many other recipes.. some to add a bit of salt and/or olive oil and others detailed in the type of flour (or flour mix) to use. 

I tried the simplest with egg and flour.

Basically:

1. Chuck everything into the food processor or knead by hand..
2. Some recipe calls for the dough to be rested for 30 min, others say go ahead..
3. Run it through the pasta machine or use a rolling pin and make it really thin...
4. Spread some more flour on it so it doesn't stick and cut.

my pasta in the making

So, how was it....? a bit too thick.. I need to roll it more but otherwise OK. Not spectacular but hey, a novice attempt. I think fresh pasta has more 'buoyancy' or is more 'elastic' than the packaged dried ones... and it is not hard to do.. so I will keep it up and maybe invest in a rolling machine too which I can then use to also make other chinese noodles.

Today, I served the pasta with the leg of the rabbit cooked with fresh cream and mustard. You need a cast iron pot or they call it a 'French oven'. I use Le Creuset. 

1. Brown the meat then 
2. add fresh cream (I use Crème fraîche) and (french) mustard, 
3. turn down the heat to minimum and let it cook slowly. 
4. Serve.

This is a good dish with pasta ;) My boss, Mr. Fred said I didn't put enough mustard though.. but otherwise I should still be able to keep my job as resident cook.

The Eternal City - Rome

Rome, Roma.. The Eternal City.. there is not many people who do not know of this city. A number of friends actually asked for recommendation on what to do in Rome and quite a few who were there gave us pointers too. It seems that this is one of those places that most people have on their must visit list.

Rome is one of the most visit cities in Europe, the capital of the Roman empire, the home of the Pope... the impressive list will go on and on and as we all know 'rome was not built in a day'. It took more than two and half thousand years they say... so you can't really do it in a short few days... But here's what you still can do in 3-4 days.

Best time to visit Rome is when the weather is good - late spring, summer, early autumn.. but obvious the crowd and the cost goes exponentially up. We choose to visit in late November 2013 and took our changes. Flight was cheap, accommodation was cheap.. so why not ;) The trip was still really good but it was raining the the whole time! And when you travel in winter it is dark by 5pm, so hours of sight seeing with daylight is much shorter. The first tip on visiting Rome during rainy season. A good pair of water proof shoes and an umbrella! During peak season.. lots of patience because there will be throngs of people and lots of pre-booking ahead to skip the ticketing lines.

Generally Rome can be divided into 4 'main' areas to visit. Depending on your areas of interest, it can be divided into 4 days for a comfortable visit or combine them for a brisk tour of 2-3 days instead. If you are very interested in history or classic art etc... you could easily spend even more days. Here's a short guide on what you can with 3-4 days.

Rome & Vatican City - Area Overview

Area A - Vatican City & around

This would be the must see for any regular tourist. What some people may not know about the 'Holy See' is that it is an independent state. It is not a part of Rome. In fact, Vatican City is the smallest internationally recognized independent state in the world. How does this effect you? The Roma Pass doesn't work here, you need the buy  a pass intended for the Vatican City or you can just but the tickets online for the museum. St Peter's entrance is free anyways but there is a queue.. so do go early and plan your time well. Also, note the dress code: no shorts, miniskirts or bare shoulders. As we were there in winter, we didn't have this problem. On the weekends look out for time which St Peter's is closed for preparation for Mass.

If you want to see Pope Francis, a nice way is to attend his Sunday Angelus at St. Peter’s Square. You need to go early if you want a place to sit, but otherwise you can watch further away and still see him on the big screen.

We wanted to join a guided tour of the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel. Unfortunately if you don't pre-book there was no chance to get an official English tour. There were plenty of other people hawking their own tours but we were not sure of the quality and decided to just give it a miss. If you are interested in taking a tour organised by the museum, do book early with them on their website (link here).

If you like history and renaissance art and such, you could spend easily more than one day just going through the exhibits and the work of many great masters. Leonardo, Michaelangelo, Raphael.. I think all the teenage mutant ninja turtles was there save for Donatello - but I am not too sure.. darn should have taken a guide. Jokes aside, the collection was impressive especially the frescoes. Michelangelo’s frescoes the creation of Adam is perhaps the most well known.. while it was no doubt impressive it was much smaller than I imaged. You practically need to find it amongst a large number of other drawings - it was a strict no photos area with people pushing and swarming all over. Walking while looking up to the ceilings in this condition was not easy.

I'd say spend a whole day here to witness what mankind could so when they set their mind to it. If you are not into this kind of stuff.. 2 - 3 hours will see you brisk walking through everything. At the same time, you could also do Castel Sant'Angelo the fortress and tomb of Emperor Hadrian. Fred said that there is a tunnel from the Vatican for the Pope to escape here if the Vatican City was attacked.

I still say, do it leisurely and take a tour. It is more meaningful if you know the significance of what you are looking at. While it is impressive today, imagine how awe inspiring it was 600 years ago. I guess if I were a peasant and saw for the first time the Vatican City, I would not be able to doubt that God must surely exist to inspire such magnificence. Being an modern day agnostic, I am struck by how much religion can inspire such devotion, fear, love and bring a sense of hope, peace and at the same time cause so much hate, death and destruction of what is perhaps collateral damages for those that got in the way. Rome is incredible in such a way that it offers a brief summary of mankind's religious evolution. The classical Greek gods made way for the classical Roman gods made way for the Christian god - and the Christian church as evolved today as we now know it since what was the beginning of the Catholic faith. How short is our lives compared to what some of these monuments have seen and endured?

Area B - City Landmarks

Around the centre area of the map, you will find the famous landmarks which as mostly made famous because they were in one movie or another. So maybe it is worth watching them before going to Rome :)
Try La Dolce Vita and Roman Holiday.

Everything is walking distance and if you are  fast walker, you can easily cover them in 1/2 day if you want just a touch, snap and go. If you'd like to leisurely walk and shop and eat.. you can also spend a whole day to cover these sights. You will usually see all the usual hot spots highlight on your tourist map, but here are the popular ones once again:

i. Trevi Fountain (Italian: Fontana di Trevi)  

It's the site for many classical films. La Dolce Vita is perhaps was most people know or Roman holiday.

We were told to throw a coin for good luck so that we can return to Rome again someday - but the fountain was so crowded, we just looked around a bit and left. I found this tidbit on Wiki though:

Coins are purportedly meant to be thrown using the right hand over the left shoulder. This was the theme of 1954's Three Coins in the Fountain and the Academy Award-winning song by that name which introduced the picture.

An estimated 3,000 Euros are thrown into the fountain each dayThe money has been used to subsidize a supermarket for Rome's needy; however, there are regular attempts to steal coins from the fountain.

ii. Pantheon

This is the favourite of many history buffs. But if you are not into this kind of thing, you'd be wondering what the buzz is all about! This is a 2000-year-old temple which is now a church, the Pantheon is the best preserved of ancient Roman building. It survived as it was quickly turned into a Church in the 7th century and hence survived to this day. It then became an important burial place for Raphael and some kings. Not too shabby. But look out for the dome. Now that's quite the engineering feat in 120 AD.

iii. Spanish Steps

The 1953 film Roman Holiday made the Spanish Steps famous to audiences. Our host told us that the steps were actually designed by Italians and built by the French - but the Americans started calling it the Spanish steps and the name stuck. The Piazza di Spagna is at the base of the steps and there are some nice frescoes and a poor fountain called Fontana della Barcaccia (Fountain of the ugly Boat), house of the an English poet and lots of high end stores. So if you need to get your fix for some luxury goods, you can start here.

Be prepared for people and more people though... If you want to take good photos, go really really early... otherwise what you get is a loads of people and hardly any view of the steps... :)

Top Nyonya Dishes to Try

 uurrgghh.. a total lack of planning.. I thought I have more pictures than this. It seems that I only have a not so nice picture of one dish.. I'd add them as I go along when I eat them but click on the links if you want to see how they look like! Bon Appétit! ** latest updated: managed to add new photo's from making mum cook!

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Peranakan or Nyonya cuisine is something that visitors to Malaysia & Singapore (also Indonesia but I am less familiar with the variety) must try. They comprises of many speciality dishes that you just cannot find anywhere else in the world except these few specific regions. Over the different regions these dishes then vary from each other- Cooking in Penang for example would have differences to Singapore. Even within the same region the dishes will be different as every family will have their own recipe. Hence, the look and taste of these dishes may be some what different from what you see from my pictures.

If done right, real nyonya cooking have these 2 similar traits:

1. It is laborious (time consuming to prepare)
2. It is an explosion of flavours (ingredients are never few or simple)

Early Chinese settlers came in the late 15th and 16th-century to what was major ports in this part of the world- Melaka, Singapore, Penang, Java and married local spouses of local origin. A good spot to learn about the uniqueness of the Peranakan culture is the Peranakan Museum in Singapore

I find the museum well organised and pretty comprehensive. But otherwise - live it.. you can still find its legacy best kept (for me personally) in Melaka. Here is a good wiki entry to explain the Peranakan/ Nyonya Cuisine and as to not reinvent the wheel, I will not write more.

However I must add that the life of the Nyoya (women of the Peranakan communities) are pretty hard. They are stay at home housewives and life is pretty competitive to gain favour with the in-laws (monster-in-laws is a global timeless theme),  husband and the society in general. Women should be stellar cooks, great at needle work as well as all kinds of housework. If you want to marry well, you must first have all these prerequisite of a 'fine lady' (or these days a good house maid). No kidding. Because of this, the nyonya left with them a legacy of fine recipes and impressive needlework. Most of the tradition of needlework are unfortunately gone. There is the nyonya kebaya which endured perhaps thanks to Indonesia but the real hand embroidery work are hardly seen in normal daily life. 

Luckily, Malaysians and Singaporeans remain gluttons. Recipe thrived over the years and there are a number of great Nyonya restaurants around. As most traditional Nyonya dishes are incredibly time consuming to make, most people opted for modified recipes at home or just crawling to the nearest restaurant to get a fix.

The ladies on my grandmother's side comes from a lineage of Nyonya women. My mum has recipes were pass down from my grandma and aunts and friends and my mum is a pretty good cook. So, I will be a bit biased as I will be recommending what I feel are the top 3 must try distinct Nyonya dishes predominantly based on Mummy's cooking. Before you ask, nope. I don't. Plus a short list of other stuff to try which you can also get at other restaurants and street food stalls in Malaysia/Singapore as well as the nyonya version at nyonya restaurants.

Very often people in this region are passionate about their food and would argue who has the best version or where it originated from in the first place. See an example. So it may not be the best topic to discussed with locals. Good food is good food and everyone has their own taste - just try it and find your own favourite version.

1. Kueh Pie Tee

Mum's Kueh Pie Tee

Sometimes called Kueh Pati or Top Hats is a super appetizer/snack. Kueh Pie Tee is a thin and crispy pastry 'shell' filled with  thinly sliced vegetables and prawns. The shells are made of flour and the fillings are similar to popiah - a fujian version of spring rolls but that's another story, there is also the nyonya popiah but it isn't that distinctly different from the Chinese popiah which is why it is not on this list.

Anyways, Mummy's lazy to make the cups these days and they don't taste as good when store bought, so I have been missing it for some time. I will try to give her some pressure and maybe update this post with some pictures. I found this cute youtube video on how you can make the cups.. lots of work for a bite size snack. There are plenty recipes online too. Here's 1. Here's 2. But this is a 'mainstream' favourite.. I don't know anyone that doesn't like it yet.

The dish is usually an appetizer and is garnished with Monya chilli sauce (but of course) and Chinese parsley or some spring onions.. But as I may already be over emphasising everyone has their own recipe and the commonality would be the crispy cup-like shell and the main filling is sliced vegetables.

// update 15.12.13 : Managed to get mum to prepare them! So pictures are duly added. ;)

2. Acar

Acar is basically picked vegetables. Trust the Nyonyas to make it complicated. Much like the family turkey, every family has their own receipe- hence every restaurant will be different. Some spicier, some more sour and ingredients will vary. Acar Nyonya or Acar Awak is the Nyonya version which contains special local spices/sauces which count for the 'secret recipe' part. There are plenty of recipes (1,2) out there and again this is an acquired taste- everyone says their mum or grandma makes it the best.

Acar however is commonly served as a side dish to be eaten with something else. Usually it is the normal plain rice or nasi lemak, nasi kyunit etc. My favourite way of eating it is with the keropok (seafood crackers).

//I thought I have pictures for this, but I must have deleted it... and I have finished our Acar.. *sob*

3. Ayam buah keluak

Mum's Ayam Buah Keluak with rice

The first 2 dishes pale in comparison when it comes to the amount of work needed for this dish. Most people have plenty of short cuts such as buying pre-prepared buah keluak etc. But still this dish is difficult to come by due to the scarcity of its main ingredient the buah kelauk, the hard work needed and it is a bit of an acquired taste. It doesn't look enchanting like the first 2 and the taste is a tad odd.. You'd like it or you'd not.. if you do, you most probably are willing search and to pay top money for it. Like this person or try cooking it like this one.

The dish is made with chicken pieces (ayam in Malay) combined with “keluak” nuts (Pangium edule). Mum removes the fillings of the nuts and combine it with minced pork and stuff it back - but not everyone does it the same way and again cooking method will vary. Again be-warned that the taste may be odd for first timers. The dish is best eaten with plain fragrant rice as it is pretty strong and you don't need much else.


Other  dishes to try:

Nasi Lemak 

I am in love with Nasi Lemak, I like Nasi Kunyit too but again there is such a fine line of it being Malay/Indonesia food as it is to being the nyonya version.  But if you are in a nyonya restaurant, this should not put you off from trying. I always order nasi lemak. How much I like the restaurant will depend largely on its nasi lemak.

In any case Nasi Lemak is the perennial favourite Malaysian dish. You'd find it everywhere.. eaten breakfast, lunch, dinner and supper. You will find that the Malays, Chinese, Indians and Nyonyas all have their won Nasi Lemak.

Otak Otak

The Otak otak is risky... everyone makes it a bit differently again (there is so many versions!!!) and a good fresh fish makes a good otak otak obviously.. so if someone recommends it to you, by all means try - other wise try your luck because you might end up with a substandard dish because substandard ingredients were used . I prefer the grilled to steam version though.. Love the flavour that grilling the leaves leave to the otak otak. I detest those cooked in aluminium foil.. sigh.. it spoils it for me :(

Curry fish head

Mum's Curry Fish Head, cooked with curry and coconut milk

Nothing too surprising for Asians who love to eat the head of the fish- this is another regular favourite. For others it is something interesting to try - I kid you not, there is soft tender meat surrounding the head.

Cooked in curry you'd find the Malay version, Chinese version, Indian version, Nyonya version - in fact it is listed as 25 things you must eat before you die.... I wouldn't go that far though.. but it is not hard to find, so why not give it a try. Mum sometimes cook it without coconut milk, this time it was the creamy version with coconut milk cooked with aubergine and garnished with steamed ladies fingers. 

Salted Vegetable Duck Soup (Itik Tim)

So many versions again.. some are thick, some are light and everything in between.. key ingredients duck and salted vegetables. This dish is even sometimes a bit spicy.. really depending on the receipe.

Chap Chai

Mum's dish with pork meatballs

'chap chye' just literally mean mixed vegetables. So basically this is a vegetable stewed. The common ingredients is the use of fermented soy bean paste. Mum's family family recipe calls for pork meat balls which she claims is the most crucial ingredient in a vegetable dish *shrug*. Here's a nice post/recipe about making your own.

Nyonya Desserts (Nyonya Kuih)

Nyonya desserts are usually colourful cakes(kuih) which are sweet. I am not too big of a fan of sweet sticky cakes but some people swear by it. The Nyonya version is very similar to the javanese kueh though.

So enough for today.. I'd update the post if I think of anything new and definitely try and take some pictures for it! If you have a recommendation or 2 - please share ;)