12 Hours in Hong Kong

Hong Kong has been my lay-over point for my trip home for the past 10 years. It is the home base for Cathay Pacific, the airline that I frequently use when I fly home or to any cities in Asia. I've been to Hong Kong, beyond the airport, several times - my first visit was in the early 90s with my youngest sister where we visited most of must-see places and attractions both in HK Island and Kowloon.

Chin Lin Nunnery

On my way back from Bangalore on Wednesday, I had a 12-hour layover in Hong Kong and had a great time visiting a garden, a tea shop and a tea house. After having a quick breakfast at Crystal Jade at the airport - my flight arrived very early in the morning-, I headed to Nan Lian Garden and Chi Lin Ninnery (took Airport Express to Central then MTR to Diamond Hill Station) to enjoy the peaceful part of Hong Kong. It was sooooo nice to take a walk in the garden that is like an oasis in the middle of a bustling city. 

I spent my morning through afternoon in the garden and had a delicious lunch at Long Men Lou, a vegetarian restaurant operated by Chi Lin Nunnery. After lunch, I was tempted to have some Wuyi Yancha (Wuyi Rock Tea) at Song Cha Xie teahouse across from the restaurant but decided not to because I was planning to check out Lau Yu Fat Tea Shop anyway. 

After spending a few hours sampling delicious teas at the tea shop, I went to Museum of Tea Ware, had some dim sum and tea at Lock Cha Tea Shop before heading back to the airport.

Fall in Vancouver

I was in Vancouver for a conference this week and managed to enjoy the city a great deal. Despite experiencing not so friendly weather, I had a fabulous time! What made my trip more enjoyable and easy was the people I met. Every one was super friendly, nice and very helpful; from the immigration officer at the airport and volunteers in every station to the bus driver and people in the street and at the restaurants.


Finding something to eat was a little bit of a challenge but I managed to eat well and was happy with all the vegan food I tried and a few tea houses I visited. As shopping was not in my agenda when I travel (shopping for tea and teaware is the exception), I avoided the malls and clothing stores event though my hotel was located right in the shopping district. 

Let me bore you with my day-to-day activities in Vancouver :-)
Saturday, October 23: LA to Vancouver on Alaska Airlines. With the help of a very nice volunteer at the VYR Airport, I took Canada Line to the City Center then walked about 3 blocks to get to the hotel. Checked into Hyatt Regency Vancouver was easy. 30 minutes later I was already in a taxi to SAWA Tea Lounge for lunch and tea! After checking out the area near the restaurant, I took a bus back to downtown Vancouver then walked around the area to check on dinner options before heading back to hotel. I did some work a little bit, then went to the Urban Tea Merchant to check their teaware. Their teas are from The O Dor, which I am not a big fan of so I didn't try their teas. Dinner was the vegan version of Tagliattele Funghi and bruschetta from Italian Kitchen. 

Sunday, October 24: Had a great session in the morning at the conference. After light lunch at the hotel, I walked to Canada Place then along the promenade walkway by the harbour, passed Cardero's Restaurant where hubby and I had our first lunch in Vancouver 7 years ago. When hubby and I did this walk,  the place was busy, lively and packed with people. This time it was really quiet, damp and raining. But it's still beautiful. Lunch was veganized items from Vietnamese Restaurant CHAU Kitchen & Bar. After lunch I strolled down Robson Street toward Stanley Park. The walk could not be more perfect! I very much enjoyed the vibrant Fall leaves, damp streets, the drizzle and colorful storefront and signs of ethnics restaurants on both sides of the street. What a treat for the eyes! Stanley Park was too cold and damp for me so I went straight back toward downtown along Robson Street again and grabbed soy milk and some snacks from Whole Foods before stopping by Michi Waffle & Espresso Bar for a pot of hot tea. Dinner was a takeout from Panz Veggie Restaurant. 

Monday, October 25: A long day at the conference but had really fabulous sessions. Dinner was delicious Indian vegan food at Salam Bombay.


Tuesday, October 26: Had great session throughout again ended with group dinner at Dockside Restaurant at Granville Island. 


Wednesday, October 27: Morning session was again superb. The conference ended before noon. I planed to have lunch and tea at SAWA Tea Lounge again. But this time, instead taking a taxi, I walked to the foot of Hornby Street then hopped on the boat over the Granville Island. SAWA Tea was not too far from Granville Island. After lunch I went back to Granville Island to visit Public Market and picked up some marinated olives - one of which was huge distinct bright red olive and giant emerald green olive - (which I later learned that they are from the family of Bella di Cerignola Olives) and artichoke which were delicious - all from Duso's Italian Food. 

Before leaving the market I grabbed a bar of handmade dark chocolate (71%) from artisan chocolatier Wim Tas of ChololaTas. It was the only dairy free bar available at the store. The taste was strong and intense but good! This bar is thick so I will enjoy one section of it at a time.


Wanted to check out the neighborhood near Granville Island, I walked west a couple of blocks then stopped by T Tearoom for a cup of tea. Went back to Granvile Island to enjoy warm Vancouver while watching boats, people and kids chasing seagulls at the deck before heading back slowly to hotel. I did some work a little bit in the hotel room until dinner time. Too tired to look for new restaurants that offer vegan options, I went back to Chau Kitchen & Bar for dinner.  

Thursday, October 28: After breakfast, I walked around the hotel for some fresh air then picked up some fresh fruits and bread from Urbane Fare. Checked out, took Canada Line back to the airport to catch the afternoon flight home. It was an enjoyable and a fabulous trip. 

French Riviera and Monaco - Part 1

Antibes and Cannes
Greetings from Paris! Writing a quick recap of our weekend from my hotel room before I forget all the details about it. 

What a wonderful time we had this past weekend. My husband and I, my sister, her husband and their adorable children left Bergues early morning on Friday to catch our morning flight from CDG Airport to Nice. As soon as we exited Nice Cote d'Azur Airport, we were greeted by gorgeous weather, perfect blue sky, beautiful beaches - felt like we're at home in California! After we checked into  La Perouse, we headed straight to Antibes, located halfway between Nice and Cannes. 

We enjoyed our walk from the harbor -filled with multi-million dollar yachts- through the old town while snacking some baguettes that hubby bought from a bakery that seemed to be popular amongst locals which turned out to be really good baguettes.


Had a decent lunch at a vegetarian restaurant, Chez Helen (for my husband an me), my sister and her family enjoyed their lunch at a nearby restaurant because their kids couldn't find anything they wanted at Chez Helen. 

A visit to Le Marche Provencal - covered farmers' market in the heart of the Old Town was the highlight of the day for me. Marche Provencal was a fabulous market of local specialities; fresh cheese, olives, fruits, vegetables, honey, potpourri, spices and herbs, etc. 

This gentleman sells the best olive tapenade ever. And it was vegan! He assured me (well he told my niece as I don't speak French) that he wasn't using any animal products in the recipe. The black one especially is to die for! Bought a lot of them (me thinking enjoying it with fresh baguette) in case I can only eat salad when we go to restaurants during our stay in France. 

After a quick trip to see the exterior wall of Musee Picasso, we didn't have the time to explore and to see inside, we left Antibes and continued our drive to Cannes. 

Cannes, here we come! We did what most tourists do; strolling along the Promenade de la Croisette, home to many designer boutiques and run into the Palais des Festivals et des Congres - where the Cannes International Film Festival takes place.

taking some pictures ...

Enjoying the narrow streets of Rue du Suquet and Rue St Antoine in the old quarter. 

We also walked up the hill around the fortress of old Cannes and enjoying this beautiful and breathtaking panoramic view of Cannes from the top of du Suquet.

After a long walk around Old Cannes, we went to the beach so that my niece and nephew could play a little bit. 

It was already late by the time we arrived back in Nice so we went straight to get some food. Unfortunately finding a table for six on Friday night in Nice proved to be challenging. Every restaurant was packed with people and the wait was long! We ended up eating at Cote Sud, a restaurant with the shortest wait. The food was not good at all. Hence it had the shortest list - I assumed. Oh well. Since we had a really nice time today, our dinner experience will be soon forgotten.

Penne pasta with tempe and tomato sauce

As Indonesian, I grew up eating tempeh throughout my life; fried tempeh (tempe goreng), rice flour-battered tempeh (tempe mendoan), stir-fried tempeh (orak arik tempe), marinated tempeh (tempe bacem), tempeh cooked with chilli sauce (sampal tempe) etc.  When I switched to plant-based diet in July, I started using tempeh in my pasta sauce. One of my favorite recipes is this easy and yummy pasta sauce. 

For the pasta:
-Cook as per directions on the package. I  used organic, vegan penne. 

For the sauce: 

Adapted from here

- strained tomatoes (I used Pomi)

- onion, chopped

- garlic, minced

- 4 roma tomatoes, chopped

- maple syrup

- apple cider vinegar

- himalayan pink salt

- sambal Oelek

- tempe, cubed (I love Organic flax from Lightlife) 

Directions:

- simmer all ingredients in a pot 

- once it boils, add tempe to the pot

- stir often until the tempe absorbs the sauce and breaks into small pieces 

- pour into the cooked pasta, add fresh spinach and arugula, toss well

- stir in chopped fresh basil

3 Days in Seattle

Hubby and I travelled to Seattle for the weekend. It was a lot of fun and relaxing. Glad we built our trip around food and tea. Seattle is definitely a gourmet heaven for us. Here is an overview of the trip.

We arrived in Seattle around 9:00 a.m. on Friday and took the Light Rail to Westlake Station which was about 2.5 blocks from Hyatt at Olive 8.  We were starving when we arrived at our hotel. So I did a quick freshen-up then walked to Wild Ginger for our 11:30 a.m. lunch reservation. After lunch visited Robert Fornell studio in a beautiful setting of Lake Washington to pick up a couple of chawan. Stopped by the hotel to dropped off the chawan before strolling downtown then to Belltown neighborhood. Had dinner at Zoe -the food was phenomenal-. Walked around the neighborhood after dinner toward the Space Needle. Spent the rest of the evening enjoying the incredibly breathtaking view of downtown Seattle, suburban area and the water in three different settings; with late afternoon sun over the city, on sunset and at night.  Took the monorail back to downtown. 

We woke up early the next day and had breakfast at the hotel's Urbane Restaurant which was surprisingly delicious. Spent the morning on the 2-hour Pike Place Market food tour. (We're not big fans of arranged tour but would highly recommend this one). What a great way to explore the market and learn historical info! Tried delicious food from 10 great places during the tour that included dangerously delicious donut,  savory Russian piroshky pastries and renowned chef Tom Douglas' mini crab cake. Didn't need to get lunch after that. 

Late that day we took a bus to Ballard neighborhood. Walked around downtown Ballard, stopped by The Market Arms Pub in Ballard to take a peek at US vs England WC game on the way to Ballard Locks. Enjoyed outdoor concert performed by Highline Community Symphony Band at Ballard Locks. Ended our afternoon in Ballard with delicious Spring 2010 Oolong Teas from Taiwan with Shiuwen at her Floating Tea Leaves Teashop. Dinner at Green Leaf for a flavorful Vietnamese feast. Took a quick swim before going to bed and enjoyed a lap pool all to myself. 

Come Sunday, breakfast was back at hotel's Urbane Restaurant for its yummy zucchini & cheese frittata. Went back to Pike Place Market to pick up some goodies to take home from Beechers Handmade cheese, Chukar Cherries; Market Spice and Pappardelles' Pasta. Stopped by Le Panier for its super yummy croissant and pastries before exploring the market again. Lunch was a cup of award winning chowder for hubby and scallop bisque for me from Pike Place Chowder. Relaxed at the waterfront near the market and watched the bustle of Pike Market on Sunday. Had an early dinner at Etta's, then stopped by a Native American Art Galleries to see Northwestern Coast Native American art and artifacts on the way back to our hotel. Checked out from hotel, took the Light Rail to the airport to catch our 7:00 p.m. flight back to LA. A very eventful and enjoyable trip indeed.

5 Days in Malacca and Singapore

I went home again early this month to take mom to see a doctor in Malacca then to Singapore for a short vacation. The flight from Los Angeles to Hong Kong then to Jakarta -both on Cathay Pacific- as always was great especially during the first leg as hubby was flying with me on his way to Manila. Arrived in Jakarta Sunday afternoon, relaxed at home on Monday then onto Malacca early morning on Tuesday. The trip went well and mom seemed to enjoy it. Both mom and I had been to Malaysia and Singapore before so we just took our time and had a very easy and short itinerary.  

Tuesday/April 6: Jakarta to Kuala Lumpur on Air Asia. From Kuala Lumpur airport hired a limo -which is actually a premium taxi- to Malacca. The drive to the historic port city of Malacca was easy and pleasant. About 2 hours later checked into Renaissance Melaka Hotel. Relaxed over afternoon tea at hotel's Famosa Lounge before heading to the hospital. After the hospital visit headed off on an old area around Christ Church. We started the day very early today so decided to forgo the River Cruise and Jonker Street. Rode in a colorful trishaw back to hotel via Chinatown. Dinner at hotel's Olio Italian Restaurant.

Wednesday/April 7: Went back to hospital in the morning then had a late breakfast at the hotel. Mom tried teh tarik and liked it. Hang out in the hotel until noon before leaving for Singapore. Had a pleasant 4 hour bus ride to Singapore. Checked into the Grand Hyatt Singapore early evening, Cakep arrived 30 minutes later. Had a delicious dinner at Crossroads Cafe at Marriott Hotel.

Thursday/April 8: Slept in and had a leisurely breakfast at the hotel. Took MRT to Chinatown, cooled off with refreshing tea and lunch at Chinatown Heritage Center before heading back to hotel to relax. Dinner at Food Republic.

Friday/April 9: Had breakfast in the hotel then took a taxi to Singapore Botanic Gardens. Spent a couple of hours in National Orchid Garden. Had lunch at Casa Verde inside the gardens before headed back to hotel. Walked around Orchard in the afternoon, tried Singapore Laksa at the Canteen (Shaw Center) then relaxed in the room for the rest of the afternoon. We're all still full by dinner time so we decided to just grab some snack items and teas from the hotel's club lounge.

Saturday/April 10: After breakfast at the hotel, took MRT to Chinatown again. The plan was to explore less-crowded spots of Chinatown so we could enjoy the architecture in the area. Alas it was pouring rain by the time we got off the MRT at the Quatram Park station. We decided to go back to our hotel then walked around Orchard until noon. Checked out from the hotel, took a taxi to the airport then flew back home on ValuAir/Jetstar Asia Airways.

Meals on the plane

I went back to Indonesia for a family emergency last month and stayed home most of the time. While I didn't get a chance to eat out during my stay, I enjoyed my meals on the plane. Was pleased to find the Oriental Breeze - Cathay Pacific's non-alcoholic signature drink- was on the menu on the outbound flight. Oriental Breeze (pictured on the left) has become my favorite drink since I tried it for the first time 5 years ago. It's a sour--plum tea and cranberry juice with honey, fresh lemon and a hint of rose water. It's refreshing, delicious and very aromatic. 

On my flight from Los Angeles to Hong Kong: appetizer was shrimp and pineapple plus lobster salad. 

For the main course, I chose salmon and ended the meals with cheese platter

After a few good hours of sleep, I got hungry again and was served a bowl of noodle with duck breast and and vegetables when I asked for a midnight snack. I was worried the duck meat would be very fatty but was pleasantly surprised it wasn't. I didn't eat the skin and the meat was tender and tasty.  

For breakfast, I started with fruits, then a bowl of muesli and fried noodles with dumplings as the main course. At the same time, I also managed to eat two muffins - always like Cathay Pacific muffins which were delicious!

I was still full when breakfast served on board from Hong Kong to Jakarta. So I opted out for most meals offered except for muffin (of course) and dim sum. The muffin as usual was good, but the dim sum was so so.

On my flight home, I was not very enthusiastic taking pictures of the meals. I just lost my father and I was having a real hard time grasping the reality that he is no longer with us.....