China and Taiwan

     Ni hao, viewers.
    
     Last night, I started out with China, and then detoured to Taiwan.  Yesterday morning, my mum and I went to the market together and selected some Chinese foods.

     For dinner, my mum made Chinese noodles with broccoli, beef, bamboo shoots, and a gourmet assortment of fresh mushrooms, and on the side, vegetable/shrimp shumai (bite-sized dumplings), with an ever-so-slightly spicy dipping sauce.

     Luie did not join me on this "trip", but Misa did for a little while.  Here he is, with a scarf that my great-grandmother's friend once brought back for her from Singapore. 

I wore it too, as a hat.  I doubt this is how it's worn traditionally, but no matter.  I like hats. : )

     My first film tonight, was Mao's Last Dancer (2009), a biographic film based on the ballet Li Cunxin.  Though not all of the movie is set in China, a fair part of it is; some in Shandong Province, and some in Beijing.  His story is quite an interesting one, and it ends nicely.  Furthermore, this film boasts some spectacular dancing. 

     As I watched this, I drank several cups of oolong tea, of which I am quite fond.

     Here's a "slightly" smaller Chinese tea set.  When I was a little girl, I had many of these tiny tea sets.  I parted with them years ago, but I kept this one for nostalgia's sake, and because it matches my decor.

     Then I watched a film called Smile (2005), which begins with a pampered teenage girl named Katie, who volunteers to assist in a charity program called "Dr.'s Gift".  In China, she begins to gain a new outlook, and a new appreciation for life.  She becomes interested in the story of a girl exactly her age named Lin, who was born with a facial deformity, and was therefore abandoned, later to be found by a kind man named Daniel, who, despite opposition and abandonment from his wife and son, raised her as his own.  While in China, Katie takes it upon herself to find them.  The half of this movie that take place in China is set in an unspecified rural village, and then later in Beijing.  It was filmed in Shanghai and Jingxi.

    
     While I watched this, I had some Chinese rice crackers, with a hot and sour dipping sauce.

     Then I had a glass of tamarind juice.  In my opinion, it tasted like what I imagine apples would taste like if apples were a tropical fruit.  It also has a slight plum-like essence.  I enjoyed it.

     Then, I did some Chinese brush painting with coloured inks.

     I considered using one of the tutorials in my Art of Chinese Brush Painting book, but instead, I decided to paint the poster for Puccini's Turandot on my chocolate tin.  That picture of the story's Chinese princess looks rather formidable, I like it for some reason.  To paint her, I used 5 coloured inks, black ink, and 1 Chinese paint brush.  I reached for brown to shade and outline her face, but I accidentally grabbed dark red.  At first I thought "Oh no!" but I decided to just go with it.  As Bob Ross used to say "There are no mistakes in art; just happy accidents."

     After that, I crossed over to Taiwan. 

     Watching Taiwanese dramas has made me want to try a popular dessert made from shaved ice, called baobing, tsua-bing, or chhoah-peng.  Basically, it consists of a pile of shaved ice, drizzled with condensed milk, and/or syrup, and topped with your choice of fruit, nuts, or what have you.  sometimes it's served with a scoop of ice cream or sorbet. Inasmuch as I knew I'd be eating this in the small hours of the morning, I pre-shaved my ice, and put it in the freezer, poking at it now and then to make sure it didn't freeze into a solid lump.  However, by the time I got to it, it had frozen back into ice cubes.  I went ahead and made my baobing anyways; it was just rather more...crunchy than was intended.  I drizzled sweetened condensed milk, and omitted the syrup, and added thawed strawberries, and a small scoop of strawberry ice cream.

     While I ate it, I went on youtube.com, and watched one of my favourite Taiwanese films, Love You Ten Thousand Years (2010).  This film is about a Japanese girl who goes to spend 3 months in Taiwan, and a Taiwanese fellow who can't make a relationship work longer than 3 months.  Inevitably they meet, and agree to date seriously, with the intention of breaking up at the end of 3 months.  Although they grow to genuinely love each other, disagreements arise, and after a misunderstanding, they break up just before the end of the 3 months, and she goes on to China.  Neither of them are happy with this, and each has obviously made a big impact on the other's life.

This movie always makes me want boba milk tea, alternatively called bubble tea, or pearl milk tea, named for the large, chewy tapioca pearls it contains.  The main character's favourite drink is "boba milk tea, no ice, less sugar."  Unfortunately, I was unable to procure the tapioca pearls, so I settled for plain milk tea, "no ice, less sugar."  I used lotus-infused green tea.

     After that, I listened to my favourite Vic Chou songs, and that was the end my adventures in China and Taiwan.

     Zai jian, viewers; I hope you all have a lovely day.

    

Hawaii

     Aloha, viewers.  I've just finished a "trip" to Hawaii.

     As usual, I began with dinner when I woke up in the evening.  After researching Hawaiian cuisine, I came up with a dish that's inspired by a traditional Hawaiian meal, and my mum cooked it for me before I woke up (so obliging, isn't she?).  I had swai fish (a mild white fish) which mum seasoned with ginger, white pepper, garlic and soy sauce, cooked with egg and edamame (soy beans), served over rice, topped with chopped crisp bacon, and a seasoning blend which contains chilies, sesame seeds, and shredded seaweed.  It was fantastic.  With it, I had a macadamia nut latte that I bought at my favourite cafe yesterday morning before I went to bed.

 

     A couple of "sharks" smelled my dinner, and came in for the kill.  I had to share it with them, for my own safety.  They thought it was fantastic too.

 

     Later, I listened to music by Israel "Iz" Kamakawiwo'ole.  He seems to have been especially well-known for his rendition of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow", but he sang many things, in English and Hawaiian.

     Then, my trip came to full swing.  I spent the night being crooned to by Elvis Presley and Bing Crosby in Paradise.  Nice, eh?

     I began with Elvis Presley's Blue Hawaii (1961).  The story is set in Kahala, but the filming took place on Waikiki Beach, in Diamond Head, Mount Tantalus, Hanauma Bay, Kauai, and downtown Honolulu.  Elvis's character Chad has just returned from the army, and his wealthy Southern parents want him to take over the family pineapple business, and don't approve of his beach-boy habits, or his native Hawaiian girlfriend, and as he fights for independance, he gets a job as a tour guide, and is put in charge of a group of teenage girls and their young and pretty school teacher.  Chaos ensues.

     The proper accompaniment to this film would have been pineapple juice, or something involving pineapple, but, I had none.  Instead, I had all-natural guava nectar garnished with fresh banana slices, and a few pieces of teriyaki beef jerky.

     After that, I watched another Elvis film, Girls! Girls! Girls! (1962).  This film was also shot in Hawaii, but the specific location isn't mentioned.  In this one, Elvis plays Ross, a slightly angsty fisherman who wants to by the boat that he and his father built before his father died, but he can't afford to, which is, in part, the reason for the angst.  He spends most of the movie caught between a pretty, but immature, insensitive club singer he's known for years, and a pretty, sweet, but flighty girl he's just met.  At one point in the film, there are a pair of little Chinese girls that sing with him.  That's the highlight of the film for me; they're so adorable.

     With this film, I had a handful of sweet potato and taro chips, and an orange smoothie.

     For my final film, I watched Bing Crosby's Waikiki Wedding (1937).  A spokesgirl for a pineapple company (another pineapple company...) is taken to Hawaii for a promotional thing, and she hates it.  Bing's character Tony is hired to fix this problem, and keep her from going home.  So, he wins her over with his charm and pretty voice, creates some fake drama, a fake adventure, fake peril, and then falls for her for real.

     With this one, I had a cup of white tea flavoured with mango, mangosteen, rose hips and hibiscus, and a serving of Hawaiian haupia (coconut) pudding.  The package assured me that I would taste the flavour of Hawaii.  It was very easy to make.  You boil a cup of water, stir in the packet of mix, pour it into a dish, and chill it.  It's somewhat similar to flan, but it's more firm, is whiter than milk, and tastes rather like young coconut.  Before eating it, I drizzled a bit of agave syrup over it.  Although it was firm, it was smooth as silk, much like Bing Crosby's voice.

     Later, at the end of my "trip", I finished off with a Pepperidge Farm "Maui" cookie, which, I grant you, is not Hawaiian, but it's Hawaiian inspired, so I went with it.  "Maui" cookies have chocolate chunks, almond pieces, and coconut.  Rather like an Almond Joy candy bar in cookie form.

    And that, viewers, was my Hawaiian experience.  In case you're wondering, Luie did join me again, and Kitsu tagged along for a while as well.  Here's "Luau Luie", and "Kauai Kitsu".  They're such good sports~

     To conclude, here's a bit of Hawaiian trivia --

Fun fact #1: Pupule is the Hawaiian word for crazy

Fun fact #2: Hawaiians are the second largest consumers of Spam in the world.  In 2005, Hawaiians consumed more than five million cans of Spam.

 

India

     Last night, my hypothetical travels took me to India.  I ought to start collecting frequent-flyer miles, what?  Haha.

     I even dressed for it this time, wearing one of the salwar suits that a friend once gave me (I believe loose-fitting ones like these are called salwar-kameez), and a dupatta (long scarf).  I also wore some of the bangles she gave me.

 

     Luie dressed up too, but only long enough to take a picture.  He's such a patient cat.

     I started my night with a bowl of chana masala (chickpeas with masala sauce) over rice, and a piece of naan (a flat bread) with roasted red pepper hummus (a chickpea spread), and an almond/coconut-milk latte.

     Then I watched Aisha (2010), which took me to Dehli and Mumbai.  Incidentally, Aisha is based on Jane Austen's Emma.

     Watching this movie always makes me want chai tea, and something sweet, so I made myself a cup of chai, and had a dish of rice pudding with cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, and sliced bananas.  According to my research, a similar Indian rice dessert is called kheer.

     I went from there to Amritsar and Goa with Bride and Prejudice (2004), which is based on Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice.

     As I watched it, I did some yoga (to burn off some calories from the rice pudding), and then I tried some masala-flavoured popcorn, and washed it down with all-natural coconut water.

     I finished my journey in Karaikudi and Chennai, with Kandukondain Kandukondain (I Have Found It) (2000), which is based on Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility.

     Then I had a morning snack, consisting of a piece of leftover naan, cut into strips, and dipped in hummus.  So good...

     And thus ended my trip to India.  I thoroughly enjoyed it.  Stay tuned for my next adventure; I already have it planned.  Good day, viewers~

 

Ireland

     Last night, I took a "trip" to Ireland.  I didn't travel alone this time; Luie was my travel companion.

     I started my night with an Irish cream latte, and a variant of the Irish dish colcannon (literally: white-headed cabbage), a dish consisting of mashed potatoes with cabbage and bacon.

     Then, I listened to songs that weren't Irish, but were about Ireland, and then I watched an Oscar-winning Irish short-film called The Crush.  The little boy who starred in it was just adorable.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s2TL2gbcSxg

     Then, my tour of Ireland commenced with Evelyn (2002), a film based on the inspiring true story of Evelyn Doyle, whose father fought for custody of her and her brothers in a time when single fathers weren't allowed to raise their children.  I'm not sure where the film was shot, but Dublin and Kilkerry are specifically mentioned.

 

     Then, I covered quite alot of ground with Leap Year (2010), a romantic comedy about an American woman who follows her dispassionate boyfriend to Ireland in order to follow the old Irish tradition of women proposing to their boyfriends on Leap Day.  She ends up crossing paths with a hot-blooded Irish bloke, and...you can guess the rest.  The film takes place in the Dingle Peninsula, the area around the Aran Islands, Connemara, Temple bar, Georgian Dublin, Wicklow National Park, and Olaf St. Waterford.  It's shot in Dublin, and the counties Wicklow, Mayo, and Galway.

 

    

     Then I had an Irish-esque snack, consisting of a piece of toasted oat bread with a slice of cheddar cheese, and a glass of Irish cream-flavoured milk

 

     My Irish travels reminded me of a Celtic fair that I went to a few years ago.  I wore celtic-looking jewelry, and I made a wide belt out of green and gold brocade fabric, and handstitched loops on each end, and laced it up in the front with a gold ribbon.  At the fair, there was live music, a reenactment of a jousting tournament, and alot of booths filled with various products of a Celtic nature.  I bought a handmade Celtic knot earring/necklace set.

     I then resumed my journey, and ended up in Castletownbere, in the County Cork, whence was shot the film Ondine (2009).  It's a lovely, dream-like film about an Irish fisherman named Syracuse who catches a mysterious woman in his nets.  She claims to have forgotten everything up until that point, and calls herself "Ondine", a reference to the legend of the water-sprite.  Syracuse's precocious daughter Annie thinks she's a selkie (a seal-woman), and as Syracuse becomes involved with her, his sense of reality gets a bit muddled, until the truth about Ondine's past comes to light.

     During this point of the journey, Luie and I were joined by Misa, but he's not much of a traveler, and soon left us to journey on by ourselves.

     I then listened to various songs by Celtic Thunder, The Corrs, The Cranberries, Enya, and Sinead O'Connor, and had a cup of Irish Breakfast tea.

Then, my ever-obliging mum took me to the market, where I got Ben & Jerry's "Dublin Mudslide".  This delicious confection consists of Irish cream liqueur ice cream, with chocolate chocolate chip cookies, and swirls of coffee fudge.  Love.

     I finished my trip with the Celtic Women concert New Journey, which took place in Slane Castle, in the County Meath.

     So there was my Ireland adventure.  I'm all prepared for tonight's trip, which will be posted tomorrow.  I'm off to bed now.  Have a pleasant day, viewers.  As the Irish say, "May the road rise up to meet you."

 

"Trip" to Italy

     Inasmuch as I've been cooped up indoors for over a week, I've decided to amuse myself with a "trip around the world".  Last night, I started with Italy.  A good place to start, what?  There wasn't a whole lot I could do, considering the fact that I still have a cold, and, well, it was the middle of the night, but I enjoyed it, nevertheless.

     I began my day (night, that is), with a latte, and a bowl of spaghetti with smoked turkey breast, sun-dried tomatoes, capers, pine nuts, and mozzarella cheese.

     Later, I watched three films that are set in Italy.

 

 



      My first stop was Verona, with Letters to Juliet (2010) (borrowed from my mum).  While I watched this light, bubbly romance, I sipped a cranberry-vanilla Italian soda

      Next came Rome with Roman Holiday (1953).  While watching this bitter-sweet Audrey Hepburn film, I had espresso with cream over ice, and a couple of Italian truffles.

After that came Venice, with The Tourist (2010).  As I watched this decadent action-romance, I enjoyed an equally decadent piece of tiramisu cake, courtesy of the local grocery store.  They have a surprisingly impressive selection of gourmet food for a small-town market.

I finished off my tour of Italy in Florence, reading my favourite bits from E.M. Forster's A Room with a View, and listening to Puccini, whilst drinking Wild Sweet Orange tea, which is not necessarily Italian, but the taste puts me in mind of the Italian countryside.

     So, that was the beginning of my personal-peregrination.  Did you notice that my menu sort of "matched" the films?  What can I say?  I'm a stickler for detail~