I’ve been actively avoiding Laos for the past 10 years. Even though I have friends who used to live there and others who live there now, I never got the “wow” vibe from Laos. (Much like the way I feel about India. I know. Blasphemy.) Instead I...
Photography
Magic Spaghetti vs Pan-fried Fois Gras with Porcini and Pear Marmalade
Ever since buying a brand new pressure cooker from a friend for the princely sum of US$40, I’ve been doing slightly more cooking lately. By slightly more, I mean once a week. And by cooking, I mean throwing hastily chopped ingredients into the pressure cooker. The one-pot...
Bloom, Saigon, Bloom
The last yellow petals have fallen, the final oversized watermelons have been discarded and dried out potted mums litter the sidewalk like yesterday’s newspapers. The last vestige of Tet, Vietnamese Lunar New Year, is actually Abba’s sickly sweet Happy New Year playing an endless loop in my head,...
The Faces of the Season
Growing up, my immediate family never celebrated Tet (Vietnamese Lunar New Year), preferring to dodge all the superstitions that surround it, like it being ill-advised to sweep your house for fear all the good luck would go out with the dust, or the fear of being the...
Food Craving #57: Strawberries in Vietnam
As a kid, my favorite TV snack wasn’t popcorn, peanut butter and apples, fruit roll-ups or any of the other typical “white people” snacks. It was a big bowl of canned lychees over ice. Anytime I had a whole bowl to myself meant I had done something...
Travel Photo Roulette Awards Show
Awards season is upon us. We just saw the hilarious duo of Tina Fey and Amy Poehler host the Golden Globes. The Oscars (and BAFTA for our British friends) are coming up next month along with the Grammys. And American Idol 12 has just started. So, I...
Travel Photo Roulette Round #53: Serendipity
Update: Contest now closed. Please check back on Friday to see who won. And if any contestants want to send me a muffin basket or, I don’t know, say an iPad, “just because”, I’m TOTALLY ok with that… I never win contests. I come close to winning...
Are you a celebrity? Cuz I just might stalk you…
I’m not a celebrity stalker. Really, I’m not. I just have the habit of bumping into them. Like the time I was having breakfast at the Kahala Hotel in Honolulu where a pro-am golf tournament was being held. A friend (who is even more celebrity-challenged than I...
Photo of the Week – Vietnamese Embroidery
I remember as a kid, going through a crafts phase. First it was popsicle sticks and glue. Me: Mom! Look what I made! Mom: Another popsicle stick basket? Really? OK. Maybe she didn’t actually say that, but I’m sure that’s what she was thinking. Surprisingly, there are...
Saigon Cooking Class – Food As Art
I’m a bit of a food snob. There, I said it. Sure, I can get down and dirty with street food with the best of them, but secretly, I love it when food is not only delicious but beautiful to look at. So after seeing the chic...