Taipei, A Foodie City

 

Three days and four nights wasn't enough for me to eat all of Taipei's specialties. With my limited command of Chinese, I made people laugh a lot with my Vietnamese accent and half of the time they didn't understand me at all. But it was fun and I'm glad that I made the effort.

 

 

 

One thing I was wondering about before the trip was how I would be treated by my Asian neighbors. It's always a little bit awkward because in this region, people assume that I am from their country and are quite surprised when I can't communicate. I need not have worried because the people from Taipei are amongst the most friendly I've ever met in all my travels. I think I need come come back and spend at least two weeks to walk around for both sightseeing and eating as well as to see other parts of Taiwan. On this trip, I didn't spend much time visiting tourist areas at all except for the Longshan temple.

 

 

On the food front, however, I probably spent too much time! There are so many dishes to try and, because I'm Asian, the rice and noodle base never gets boring. Some Chinese Taipei dishes are a bit similar to Vietnamese dishes but I think it's more about BBQ and stir frying. It doesn't really matter which way the food is cooked as long as it tastes delicious. Perhaps my favorite dishes (from a long list!) were the squid noodles with thick broth and Asian basil or Guobao which is another version of steamed bun.
 

 

The weather wasn't that great but it didn't stop me wandering around to try Taipei moon cake and at the Astoria cafe, I had their famous Mazurka cake and coffee. At their retail outlet I also went a bit crazy, taking away a great Portuguese Pasta de Nata and a creme brûlée. I think one of the best things about sweets in Taipei is that they are not too sweet like they tend to be in Vietnam.

 

I need to send special thanks to Robyn and Dave for all of their great recommendations to eat and stay in Taipei. Their blogs continue to give me lots of good tips for my travels.

Mirissa

Yet another 3 hours local train trip but this one was less crowded compared to the short suburban one in Colombo. I sat with a Sri Lankan family who didn't mind letting me sit next to their daughter, the father talking a lot in his limited English combined with body language. We had fun conversations with lots of laughs. This train trip was full of interesting passengers, especially the ones selling food, who jumped on for a stop or two before getting off again. I bought quite a few snacks including shrimps, fried corn fritters and peanuts and chick peas with curry leaves from these sellers and they were very tasty.

After alighting from the train in Weligama, I travelled the short 6kn to Mirissa to our accommodation, the Sunset Guesthouse which is located right on the beach. The hotel rooms were very basic with a slight plumbing problem from time to time (pooh!) but they had a fantastic chef, super friendly staff and very cold beer. There's nothing quite like enjoying a beer on the beach on holiday. Sometimes I had two!

I walked along the beach in the late afternoon to try to find something to eat. There were quite a few restaurants and bars on the beach but nothing compared to the food at the hotel, even though the environment at the other places was nicer. This is often part of the experience of travelling, I find. Dinner was fabulous from the hotel restaurant which cost $6 for 6 different curries and they were all really tasty. The chef told me that the curries are freshly cooked to order and I think that's the best and what makes it different from other places in Mirissa.

The range of curries, especially the vegetable ones, was incredible. Over our five night stay, even though we were often having the veg curry option, we tasted so many different curries, including okra, snake beans, eggplant and pumpkin. While I wasn't eating and drinking, I was walking the beach and watching the sunset. It's indeed a very nice beach, and reminded me a bit of Phu Quoc beach or Doc Lech beach in Vietnam. Mirissa is a great place to just chill for a week or so. I will definitely be going back!

Maning market, Colombo

After 2 delays in Hanoi and another 2 delays in Bangkok , finally, I arrived in Colombo at 1.30 Am local time (3 AM Hanoi time) Sometimes what seems to be a relatively short flight in the region ends up a full day of travel. I felt sorry for the driver waiting for me at the airport but he met us with a very nice smile which took my exhaustion away.

After a short but lovely welcome to our hotel at Mount Lavinia, the next morning I walked along the beach after a very big fresh fruit and small omelette breakfast. The hotel is about 5 minutes walk away from the beach and hardly any tourists around. There were lots of people playing cricket on the different ovals but no one playing tennis on the sandy courts which made me wonder.

So far Sri Lanka has proven a very reasonable destination for both food and transportation. Most trips in the ubiquitous tuk tuk costs about a dollar and the drivers usually offer the real price and drive very carefully. I'm not a bit fan of heavy food and I expected Sri Lankan food to be heavy but I've been pleasantly surprised by the great vegetable curries and fresh fish dishes, which have been the highlights so far.

I went to the Maning Market, Colombo's main wholesale vegetable market, after a crazy crowded local train trip. I was a bit worried about the passengers hanging out the door and it is amazing how many people can be stuffed into a train carriage. The worst part was when the train arrived at Colombo's Fort railway station and I wanted to get off but I couldn't because people were pushing to get on the train at both doors. At the last minute, I managed to jump onto the tracks on the wrong side and climbed up onto the platform on the opposite side. It sounds crazy but that's what most people do here in Asia and I felt fine at the end. The good thing here in Sri Lanka is whoever I meet on the train or on the street, they always smile and come up with a conversation or give me a hand with directions which I love.

Walking toward the market right near the train station was a bit of a worry at the beginning as there were so many buses, the bus station being next door. Thanks to the lady who pointed me in the right direction; the Manning Market is an amazing market where I saw only male vendors with big smiles who offered me their fruit to try with no hassle and also asked me to take photos of them. I will definitely send them their photos as they also gave me their shop address. I'd never seen such beautiful fresh fruit and vegetables in what seemed like a very quiet market. I wonder why all the sellers are men, which is very different to the situation in Vietnam.

Anyway, I had a fabulous time and it is definitely a highlight of my trip to Colombo and I wouldn't mind going back to this market again.

George Town

I have been to Malaysia several times for short vacations and I've always enjoyed it very much. Finally, this time I made it to George Town, a UNESCO listed town in Penang to visit friends and also to try some great food.

I loved George Town immediately because of the old houses, small streets and food everywhere. I'd say this is a food town as food stalls are prominent everywhere; from Indian, Malay to Chinese food and the PROBLEM here is they all delicious. My friends who have a very delicious food blog (Eating Asia) took me eating around George Town to their favorite places. I feel very fortunate to know Robyn and Dave not just because of their food expertise, but also because of how I got treated and learnt so much from them, about photography and about food.

It's really hard to pick the best dish in Penang as I love them all. You probably have your choice but for me they were all fabulous. For me street food served on the street or in a small stall is the best. It's really my type of dining and I never have any issues eating on the side walk as I know and see what I'm going to eat, which is fresh and well cooked. It's a bit similar to the street food in Hanoi but probably heavier with lots of stir fries and curry with noodles. Probably my favourite meal was from the lady who sells a small buffet of Nyonya dishes one of the main food markets. The highlight was a fantastic fish curry with lots of fresh chilies. I love her life story (in one of Robyn's recent blog posts) and loved her big smile and friendliness. We also drank white coffee, similar to Saigon's style with lots of crushed ice which is kind of addictive.

After a few breakfasts, a few lunches and a couple of dishes for dinner per day, it was essential that we walk around George Town's small lanes to try to create space for more food the next day. It definitely pays to be led by experts. Not one meal or snack opportunity was missed. But I do need to go back George town for more. I had a ball!!!!

My Eating Job

Working as a food tour guide, I have so many chances to meet different people from different nationalities everyday which makes me feel like I'm traveling around different parts of the world daily and also learning so much from my clients.

It's so hard to nominate my favorite clients or my favourite nationality because most of the people who make a booking with Hanoi Street Food Tours are food lovers so we have an instant connection. It's like we speak the language of food. I would never say that I teach my clients about food but I do show them what is special from the city I love, Hanoi, even though I'm not from here. I suppose I'm the one who helps them to understand more about Hanoi food. I enjoy working everyday and I'm pretty much always excited about going to work.

Many people think it is a very easy and relaxing job where I simply eat, drink and talk to earn some money. But from my experience, you need to have a genuine love for people and food, plus a determination to keep every tour upbeat and special for every client. The tours are not only about eating around Hanoi, but also is about the culture around the food. In Vietnam, we love to eat but we eat in a very healthy way! My clients regularly ask me "Why are Vietnamese people so skinny because it looks like they eat and drink all the time?" The answer is that we eat healthy food with lots of herbs and veggies. We are also meat lovers but we always balance meat with steamed or sir fried veggies and pickle fruits. And another very important factor is we do heaps of exercise everyday.

For my job I frequently work 3 to 6 hours a day, 7 days per week and sometimes, I have to walk around the city eating for 9 hours a day. For exercise, I do a bit of running around the tennis court trying to use up the calories and maintain my weight. At the end of the day, I have to admit that I love eating and I would never complain about hard work. I am a very lucky guy to be able to work in my desired field compared to million of people around the world without jobs or un happy with their jobs. I try to live by the saying "Work Hard, Play Harder".

Phnom Penh May 2013

Before my first visit to Phnom Penh, most of my friends warned me about the heat but it was not too bad. I like walking around the city and sweating a bit to feel the city and see how local people live and survive in the conditions. It's not that hot compared to Hanoi in the summer time where the heat can be reach up to 40+ degrees.


I especially enjoyed visiting the wet markets in Phnom Penh as I think that's the best way to experience the rhythm of the local people, as well as to see amazing produce and food preparation.The markets in Phnom Penh are well maintained and very clean compared to other Asian wet markets, even Hanoi's. Sitting down and eating in the middle of the market, I can see how people cook my noodles, BBQ or cakes. Veggies and fruits are well arranged too, and so colorful.


I don't enjoy eating in restaurants as much as eating on the street. Of course, there are always streetfood places that don't look that great or clean but I just avoid those places, for example anywhere located next to big rubbish bins or on the side of major roads where you can see all the dust flying into the food. Interestingly, I tend to get food poisoning more at restaurants than at street food stalls. It happened again this time. That's my lesson and my tip is that the best and most authentic food is served and prepared on the streets and in the markets.


I wouldn't mind coming back to Phnom Penh again to try more food and learn more about Cambodia's culture. I had a great time here.

Nha Trang Cake

Almost every year, I go back to my hometown, Nhatrang for Tet (Lunar New Year) for at least a week to meet old friends, family and also to eat and relax. This year was a bit different compared to the last couple years because I had to work in between. It was very interesting wandering around with my clients and proudly talking about my hometown's amazing food. And for sure, I showed my clients all of my favorite places. Now they have some of my secrets.


One of my favorite dishes is called Banh Can. I ate it many times during my 2 week holidays for both breakfast and dinner. I love the way they cook the cake with either egg or seafood or mixed together. There are a number of people who don't really like this dish very much but I think its kind of unique. The rice flour batter is poured into little clay cups over a hot brazier, a quail egg is broken onto the top, sometimes a whisked chicken egg. Also I have enjoyed the cake with squid or shrimp steamed on it for a little while. The dipping sauce can be a challenge for some people; but I love "Mam Nem" a fermented fish sauce with a milder flavor than "Mam Tom". Added to the sauce is shredded green mango, stir fried spring onion, chilli and minced pork balls are served on the side. I love the rich and spicy taste of the dipping sauce and the smokiness of the grilled cake in my mouth. It creates a great flavor combination. This dish is not available in Hanoi. Perhaps that's a good thing as I would probably eat far too much of it.

Salamanca

Two nights in Salamanca wasn't enough and I wish I could stayed longer. I totally love this town especially the main square. Every night after 8pm, the lights are turned on and everyone gasps. Each night we were there, we had dinner in the square and listened to the traditional student bands in costume singing songs from the region. There were 2 groups singing on opposite sides of the square;  I preferred the voices and personalities of the younger group and of course, I bought a CD to support them.

During the day, we did a walking tour of the town's main sights. The old town was amazing with a beautiful church and lots of small gorgeous shops around.

Of course, we kept coming back to the main square for coffee, drinks and meals and the illumination of the lights at night. The restaurant and bar located in the corner of the square is one of the best places to eat in town. It could be a bit expensive but it worth the money for the friendly service and great food. Their sangria also was superb!!!! If you don't want to have dinner, you also can go upstairs to their great bar, which is busy serving tapas and has nice table settings looking over the square.

We were lucky with our hotel choice, choosing one with comfortable rooms overlooking a park just off the corner of the main square. Typically, as we'd discovered in Madrid, Spanish people party until the morning and this was a university town so it was pretty noisy at night once the clubs closed down. By This stop on our tour of Spain, we realised that we either had to get used to it, get earplugs or get out there and join the party.

Madrid

I was in Madrid for three nights right at the beginning of our recent trip to Spain and Portugal. It’s a city which doesn’t seem to sleep much at night. They must have unique body clocks though one thing they do have in common with Vietnam is the afternoon nap. The only difference is that the people in Madrid have their siestas later than in Vietnam. The shops and businesses open again late in the afternoon. 

But I love the idea of starting dinner at about 9pm and partying until 5am even though I’m getting a bit old for that kind of timetable. I suppose people in Madird just get used to it. I stayed at the Francisco Hotel located in Sol district, a vehicle free area with lots of public squares, shops, restaurants and night clubs. Every evening, the locals come out for a walk before heading to restaurants to eat and later to bars and nightclubs to party. The noise happens when they go home in the early hours of the morning. I could hear them very clearly. They take a long time to go home! This may have been the reason why I wasn’t able to adapt to the timezone that quickly this time. I kept waking up. One night, I fell asleep at the table and my friends woke me up. How embarrassing!!!!!

 My drink of choice in Spain was sangria which is great for a hot day, a bit sweet but not quite as strong as bubbles and prosecco. I drank sangria almost everyday – even at lunch – as well as a few glasses of cava every now and then. 

 I can't complain about the food in Madrid as most of the local places we ate at were great and not that expensive. Pickled octopus, prawns and mussels in vinegar and the jamon ham was the best. I love them all. One dish I especially remember was a brilliant baby mushroom stir fried with ham, yum!!!!! 

I used the hop-on, hop-off bus to get an overview of Madrid and then we walked for the rest of the time. The architecture in Madrid is fabulous with impressive old squares, early 20th century buildings along the Gran Via Street. There is a great feeling of space here which is very different to the big cities in Asia.

In the next episode, I visit Salamanca to the west of Madrid.

Tho Ha Village

Recently departed friends from Hanoi invited me on a trip to Tho Ha Village, Bac Giang province. It was a really nice experience to discover another new place that I've never been. It's about 40 kms aways from Hanoi and it took us about 1.5 hours by car. It was a pleasant trip even though the weather wasn't the best and I was concerned about my motion sickness background but we had great conversations during the journey.

I had heard lots about the traditional culture in this village, a famous place for making Gốm Sành (pottery without glaze fired with dry grass and then firewood and coal) and producing rice paper and raising pigs.

When we arrived our tour guide directed us for a few minutes along a lane of very interesting and beautiful old houses before taking us on a ferry over the Cau River. What I found amazing was the fact that many families maintain their traditional trade and they are actually making rice paper for a living.

Strangely, our first stop was at the home of Mr Viet, a local man who can play four different musical instruments. He played a song for us then he helped us to practice the instrument as well and it was rather funny. I don't have much talent so I let my friend Viv and her family make fools of themselves while I sat down enjoying the music. After the music lesson, we moved onto the entrance of the house and Mr Viet's wife was ready to instruct us on the finer points of making steamed rice pancakes. It wasn't that easy but we managed it very well.

Next up we visited the amazing old Doan Minh pagoda and a very nice communal house. I loved the Doan Minh pagoda with its many statues. I thought it looked a bit similar to the Defence Pagoda in Hanoi(Chua Tran Quoc). We spent about 40 minutes wandering around the pagoda before walking back to the banks of the Cau River for lunch. During our walk through the market, I saw people grilling pig's feet and lots of children playing around. They were very friendly and happy which is a great thing to see when you visit a place.

We had lunch at a cafe on the third floor overlooking the Cau River. They served way too much food including deep-fried spring rolls, omelette, tofu with tomatoes sauce, chips, deep fried fish and a broth. I love eating in the countryside as people cook with their own authentic recipes. I felt a bit exhausted so I took a ferry back to the car while my friends keot walking through the village.

It was a great day. I had a fabulous time and I would definitely go back there again for a day. Thanks so much Viv, Sue and Michael for a brilliant day.

Venice, A Wonderland

On my trip to Europe at the end of 2010, arriving in Venice was just as magical as what people say about it. I don't think anything can prepare you for this amazing city in Italy. There I was, walking alongside the main canal in Venice looking for hotel rooms. We had arrived on a busy Saturday afternoon and most of the hotels were fully booked as Italians go to Venice for weekends with their friends and family and of course there were thousands of tourists just like us. As we expected the hotels were very expensive but luckily we found the Biasin Hotel right on one of the many canals. The owner, a feisty 85 year old, was a very clever business woman but a little bit eccentric. Her hotel was fully booked as well but she offered a partitioned off section of the attic, which we shared with several backpackers. We didn't mind as she had promised us a room across the canal in her other hotel, with actual views over the canal. because we were staying four nights, she gave us quite a good deal, too. In the hotel, most staff were students from around who had come to Venice for study were working here part time. The young receptionist who looked after us was actually from India.

I have to admit that Venice is gorgeous; no traffic, nice shops, great food and ice cream!!!! The Italians make the best ice cream in the world, I reckon. Another thing I have to admit is that, even though it was almost winter, I ate at least one ice cream each day we were in Italy.

Over the four days in Venice, we walked around town and it was like a difficult game of chess with the walkways, bridges and canals making it hard to get back to the hotel - or anywhere else for that matter. But I absolutely loved it. We took so many photos and checked out lots of beautiful shops for Venetian specialties like carnivale masks, they are brilliant!!! I kind of regret that I didn't buy one even though I know it's just another dust-collector. Next time!

We decided to visit Murano Island, famous for its glass, which is about 20 minutes by ferry and it was truly worth the effort. The beautiful scenery from the ferry - seeing Venice from a distance - was another time to say "Am I really here in Venice?". I bought some champagne stoppers and other small souvenirs for my friends and they were pretty cheap and very special. We wandered around this small village for an hour before visiting the other islands of Burano - famous for it's incredible coloured houses and Torcello, a more peaceful and spiritual experience.

Back in Venice, we visited the incredible San Marco Square and cathedral. My friends took a trip to the top of the building while I walked around the square and nearby promenade taking photos of the pigeons and gondolas. There were also people dressed in opera costumes trying to sell tickets - it was a pretty special atmosphere, even though it was cold and raining. On the way back to the hotel, we walked over the Rialto bridge and watched the boat traffic as the skies got dark. We used the city's great vaporetto system to get around as well as walking. Seeing Venice from the water is important, I think.

Four nights in Venice was not enough for me as there is still so many things to see and discover but that means I have a reason to come back.

I still have to pinch myself to believe I've been there.