Jason has a nice write up of our tasty dim sum lunch yesterday at Spring Moon in the Peninsula Hotel, Soup dumplings, part 2. He mentions that I had mango pudding for dessert, which I did. And it was so yummy! I've turned into something of a mango fanatic this trip. When I lived in Mexico I tried many times to enjoy mangos, but I never did. And since that time (which admittedly was a long time ago!) I've never tried mangos again, until day one of the breakfast buffet at the hotel. But now I'm mango loco. I have a huge plate of them every morning. And when I read about mango pudding, I knew I'd have to try it.

I've never had mango pudding before, so I can't honestly say it's the best mango pudding in the world, as Arthur claims. But it was perfect, as perfect as I could imagine mango pudding to be. There were small chunks of mango mixed in with the lightly sweet creamy yellow pudding. The pudding was smooth and it captured that distinct tang of mango, so the aftertaste on the tongue was a feeling of being refreshed rather than drubbed by sugar. It encapsulated all that I love in a dessert: a sweet light finish to a meal rather than a sugary over-the-top "I'm so full now I'll burst" termination. I might have to have it again today. Apparently you can order it in the cafe in the lobby!

Those who know me in real life know that I don't drink much beyond water, coffee with soy milk, and wine. OK, and some juice (orange or V8) in the morning. But I usually stick to water throughout the day because I don't like all the sugary drinks we have in the US everywhere, like sodas, or juice drinks like Sobe that are still full of sugar. So yay! for Hong Kong, where I've found two yummy drinks while out and about to accompany my water guzzling.

First is Malted Soy Milk, which boaz recommended in Jason's thread about our trip. I spotted it when we stopped for bread snacks near the Star Ferry. Since I love soy milk, and I love malted milk, I figured malted soy milk would be perfect for me. And it was! It was a tasty sweet little treat, and I plan to have it again.

Then yesterday we headed to Mong Kok to check out the MUJI, and boy what a MUJI! It had food (freeze-dried!) and drinks even! So after stocking up on MUJIlicious items like demitasse spoons, a 3D acrylic snowflake, a lovely eggplant-colored scarf, and some simple items of clothing, we topped off the basket with drinks! Jason got a fizzy apple juice, which I didn't try but he said was, "interesting." And I got this MUJI cafe au lait. It was amazingly tasty, and I gulped it down in about two seconds after leaving the store. MUJI, please come to NYC, and bring your delicious bounty of drinks with you!!!

Or, Why I Won't Ever Try and Emulate R.W. Apple Again…

In preparation for this trip to Asia, I read various food recommendations over at the New York Times, including an article by Nina Simonds entitled
Hong Kong Reignites Fire Of China's Regional Cuisines. Praising the Shanghai-style restaurant Xiao Nan Guo (Little Southern Country), she wrote:

At Little Southern Country, hairy crab, plump with sweet meat and available only from May through December, was succulent. It was in a rich, reduced soy sauce glaze atop soft rice cakes, which absorbed the mellow sauce.

The tempting words Available only struck me, along with her glowing review, so Jason and I went last night for dinner. I will now admit I am not the eater I thought I was. It is sad but it is true.

First of all, why was I suckered by the Available only? May through December? That's eight months! That's like telling someone they need to come to Vermont to experience winter, "we only have it November through April!!!!" Second of all, I DON'T KNOW HOW TO EAT A CRAB!

This became apparent when they brought the plate to our table and there were two creepy sticky looking creatures. The waitress brought a cracker, but when I picked up the claw I discovered the dark covering was slimy (the hair, I guess) and I was repulsed. Then I noticed the top coming off the body and goo oozing out, and a minor wave of revulsion passed over me. I put down the claw and utensils and said to Jason, "I don't think I can eat this." He was all understanding, as he had no intention of eating it in the first place.

The soup dumplings were excellent though: the broth was lighter than in the US but still rich in flavor. I could have eaten an entire order myself. And Jason's "Grandma's pork belly" had crazy looking mushrooms that were delicious, and the pork was sweet and yummy too. So I didn't leave too hungry. Still, my culinary confidence has been shaken. Perhaps a trip to Alain Ducasse's Spoon is in order for this evening.

Related: How to… Eat Hairy Crabs.

Today we took the ferry to Cheung Chau, "a picturesque island with a waterfront that bustles with activity." Only a thirty minute fast ferry ride from Central, Cheung Chau was indeed picturesque when we arrived. Fishing boats were moored along the water's edge. School children walked through the streets in their school uniforms. An old woman with a large straw hat placed small fish on a screen for drying. A man worked to repair very fine wisps of fishing net in the bow of his boat. And everywhere people biked to and fro, as the island has no cars. We disembarked with the enthusiasm of tourists ready for a new site. And then the heat nearly felled us.

My God, but it was hot! The clouds that hung above the skyscrapers of Hong Kong were gone, and in their place was relentless blue. Within minutes we were sweating heavily, and all thoughts of renting bicycles to tour the island were forgotten. We shuffled down the main drag, taking note of possible lunch spots, then ducked into the shade of the Pak Tai Temple, where we lit incense for long life. We should have lit incense for cooling breezes instead!

Then over to Tung Wan beach, which was littered with sea glass of all sizes and colors. I collected two green souvenirs as we walked its unshaded sandy length. Then it was back to the harbor-side of the island for lunch, but not before my sandal had a blow-out. On day two of a twenty-one day trip! Luckily, the blow-out didn't seem to effect the mechanics of the sandal whatsoever, and I walked along almost in more comfort than I had when it "worked" as we headed to lunch.

Shade and a checked tablecloth alongside the water's edge beckoned us to Hing Lok restaurant. Looking over the menu, we bemoaned our lack of gastronomic capacity. So many delicious choices, but an emulation of R.W. Apple's culinary adventures was not to be. Jason ordered fried noodles with soy sauce and pork, I ordered "salt and pepper shrimps" and a (what turned out to be quite large) Tsing Tao. As we waited for our food, a woman came out from the restaurant with a live lobster in her hand, its tail flipping and flapping, showing it to the table next to us for approval before cooking. Again I cursed our small bellies with room for only one item each! Secretly I hoped she'd show me a handful of shrimp, but it didn't happen.

Soon they whisked a heaping platter of pink shrimp to me and I dug in. By "pepper" I think they meant hot pepper, and by "salt" I think they meant garlic, but no worries, these shrimp were delicious, and I decapitated, peeled, and consumed with relish! When we were finished, we strolled back to the ferry, content to return to its air-conditioned comfort and our return journey "home," a delightful–if slightly shortened–outing to the outlying islands complete.

One of the great things about living in New York City is the access and exposure to so many varied cultures and cuisines. Unfortunately that means that upon traveling abroad, one's first reaction to walking the streets of Hong Kong and its markets is to turn to one's traveling companion and exclaim, "Hmm, this is a lot like Chinatown." Except in NYC Chinatown I haven't ever seen the flattened ducks shown in this picture. I couldn't tell if that was fat or skin or a combination of fat and skin surrounding the duck. Nor could I discover what one would do with a duck like this after purchase. Reconstitute in boiling water?

Jaded and shallow NYC Chinatown/Hong Kong comparisons aside, so far Hong Kong is hot! I was ready for winter in October, and now I'll really be ready for winter when we return. But the breeze along the ocean is cooling, the ferry trips across the open water choppy and fun, and the shopping opportunities amazing! Or they would be if we cared to shop, which we really don't. So today we're heading to one of the outlying islands for a more "authentic" experience. And hopefully some reconstituted flat duck dumplings! Or, you know, some great fresh seafood.

Jason's got a post about our trip to Asia. I meant to link to this before we left but ran out of time. So now we're here in Hong Kong but I'd still love to hear any suggestions you may have for us while we're here. So if you have some for Hong Kong, Bangkok, or Saigon, go ahead and post to Jason's thread. Of course I am especially interested in food suggestions and places to get great authentic meals.

I'm always in search of a good outdoor adventure, so when I saw this article in the New York Times, Hikes in Europe, With Your Boots on the Ground and Your Bed Above It, my feet felt ready to ramble. Alas, the article details guided trips that are rather expensive and not my cup of tea. But the article is still useful as a suggestion of where to hike in Europe. I hadn't realized that Corsica was good for hiking (as the author points out, most Americans haven't…)

Though it is hardly news to Europeans, Americans have only recently awakened to the hiking opportunity on the rugged Mediterranean island of Corsica, France's "mountain in the sea."

Apparently Corsica is home to the GR20, "the spectacular and arduous 130-mile route that many claim is Europe's best backpacking trail." Oooh! Perhaps my next trip to France will involve a visit to the GR20. Spectacular and arduous are two of my favorite hiking-related adjectives!

I'm back from a lovely but very rainy visit to Ireland. It was a very different vacation for me, as I'm not so used to driving around so much. Most of my trips involve visits to cities where I stay in one place and travel by subway or foot. I managed to avoid car travel for one day though and took a 14 mile hike/walk over some pretty green rugged terrain that involved close encounters with many sheep. It was long but fun. The south-west of Ireland is beautiful, and I'd like to return again and see all the stuff I felt like we missed. I'll post photos in a week or so, once I have time to go over them properly. Now, to catch up on all that email…

I'm off to Ireland for pretty much the rest of the month. I'll be traveling with my family around the south-west of the island. There will be no updates while I'm gone, as it's a real honest-to-goodness vacation, and I'm ready for it! I hope to take lots of pictures while I'm there, so look for some greeny photo goodness when I return.

As many of you know, while I was in Paris last month I took French classes. I searched online for a schools and was overwhelmed by the Google results. Then the first day I was in Paris, I was reading an ex-pat's blog (he too was in Paris) and he mentioned studying at the Alliance Française. The next day, I headed over there, took a placement test, paid my fee, and got my student id. Sure, I could have done more research, but somehow, this just felt right, so I went with it.

I signed up for two hours a day, four days a week. The off day (which is the same for all courses), the Alliance offers cultural outings for students. From the very first day, I loved my class. Our teacher (Madame was what I called her, as her last name was complicated to pronounce and using her first name seemed too casual) was wonderful. Fluent in French, English, and Spanish, she also seemed to speak Chinese and Russian when the moment arose. She spent time talking about French culture and history in addition to grammar and vocabulary.

The class size was about twenty people, but it didn't present too much of a problem, and Madame made sure we all had opportunities to speak aloud (during which time she'd correct our pronunciation) both within small groups and to the whole class.

I really enjoyed it, and my classmates, and was very sad on the last day, especially since the rest of my group was continuing together with our teacher in Paris, and I was returning to the States. I learned a lot and felt that my French really improved a great deal, to the point that I could understand a lot of what was said to me, and could (in most situations at least) make myself understood.

Based on my limited experience, I'd definitely recommend taking classes at the Paris Alliance Française. I certainly plan to return to Paris, and when I do, I'll sign up for more classes there again.