Walk the walk

The national pastime of this country is walking or to be more precise, hiking. The common Germans would have no qualms hiking for 4 to 5 hours straight. Nothing puts them off, even on cold winter days. Today, however, is no normal winter day. The sun was shining brightly and the temperature was at a pleasant 18 degrees. The Germans were out in full force to hike and to enjoy the sunny weather, taking a nice break from the cold. We were no exception.

When Mr R informed me of their plan to go hiking last night, I was not at all enthusiastic. It immediately reminded me of my very first hiking in my life, which was roughly 1 and half year back. We hiked 14km in total that fateful day! This is no bloody ordinary feat for someone like me. Close friends who know me well, are aware that I hate all types of walking, be it hikings, short walks, long walks, brisk walks, marathon walks etc. I'd rather take a bus or flag down a cab. However, the latest reality check is I am not living in Singapore at the moment.

So, despite my unwillingness to hike, I was also painfully aware that a perfect beautiful day would be totally wasted by doing nothing at home. This is Europe and shops are closed on Sundays. Therefore, I went along with their plan reluctantly.

17km! Almost 5 hours of walking, with little breaks in between. The last half hour stretch before our destination which was our car, my body was so spent that my arms hung limp at my sides while I dragged my feet. They felt like lead, by the way. Once I hit the car, I dozed off in no time from the fatigue of the long hike.

This little pixie is one with brains and looks.

Hobbits in the woods??


Pixie finding a way to get down.

Some were getting a sun while some did BBQ.

Pixie was beat.

A Vietnamese Experience

I love soups. To death. Especially broths which have been simmered for hours with tender loving care. All the goodness and the essence of the ingredients would have been transfused from the long simmering into the soups and thereby adding a lovely flavour to them. The flavours, deriving from the ingredients, usually marry well together in the broth, rather than overpowering each other. The end result would be either a clear broth subtle in taste and light, or a rich brew with an intense colour. More often than not, such soups smack of delectable sweetness. What more can one ask for on cold winter days other than a delightful warming soup?

Hence, I'm often seen searching the web for soup recipes. That's how I stumbled upon this recipe for Pho Bo, a vietnamese beef noodle soup. I am no expert in Vietnamese cuisine but I've always loved their Beef Pho and Chicken Pho. In addition, the step-by-step detailed recipe is provided by a Vietnamese cook who has her own collection of cookbooks. Thus, I concluded it would be safe enough to follow her recipe. I was all excited like a schoolgirl on her first day of school and couldn't wait to get my hands on all the ingredients and start brewing away. Which I finally did on Tuesday.

Beef Pho

I am not bragging but the Pho tasted authentic aight! Okay, all the ones I had before were in Singapore so what do I know about authentic Pho? On a consoling note, mine was at least as authentic as the ones in Singapore. One tip though, never omit coriander and spring onions for Pho as both garnishes complete the whole Pho experience. It would be quite a shame if one is not a fan of them. Also red chilli padies are a must, that goes without saying. Total bliss while slurping my lovely broth thereafter. Mr R has only praises for me. Hehe..

However, all that simmering yielded only 3 servings of soup unfortunately. Thereby, dashing my hopes of having Pho for the next few days. I need a bigger pot for all them bones and soup!

A Prawns Affaire

After watching Anthony Bourdain slurping our Prawn Mee in Singapore, I've been craving for the divine orangey shrimpy soup ever since. 2 weeks ago, I finally made my attempt in brewing this soup concoction. Almost all the recipes I've researched on, called for loads of prawn heads and shells. That requires plenty of time and naturally tons of patience, which was rather thin especially in my craving moment. Luckily, I had the foresight of keeping a pack of such shells and heads months back, just for emergency like sudden cravings. Obviously that little pack wouldn't make for a great shrimpy broth. But as luck would have it, my decision for having a reunion dinner somehow helped in making my prawn mee dream come true. I had to use almost 2kg of prawns for the Ngoh Hiang. That's where I got my supply of heads and shells!!! Wasting no time, I gathered the rest of the ingredients and set about simmering the broth. The only ingredient missing was Kang Kong. Even in the asian shops here, we do not have the luxury of having a wide variety of chinese vegetables everyday like in Singapore, let alone the usual supermarkets.

Anyhow, in no time, the whole apartment was filled with an aroma of herbs and prawns. After spending half a day in the kitchen (okay, I am a slow worker when it comes to cooking), I finally sat down with Mr R and enjoyed my fruit of labour. My first sip of the broth brought a satisfying smile on my face. As I continued eating, my grin got wider. I have to let in, it cannot be compared to the ones sold in the hawker centres. Even so, it was good enough for me. If it's good enough for me, it's good enough for Mr R.

Prawn Mee

So, I have changed my mind and decided to post some pictures on my blog. Indeed a blog does appear more interesting with pictures which add colours and liven up an otherwise lacklustre page. It would be too dull with just text and text, wouldn't it? Oh well, the female species are afterall fickle creatures. They are entitled to change their minds every so often, aren't they?

Dong Dong Qiang

Chinese New Year celebrations in the Western world and in Eastern and Southeastern Asia are as different as day and night. Especially in this area where only a relatively small chinese community exists. No CNY goodies, no ang baos (phew!), no public holidays, no relative visitings, no gambling sessions and most of all, nobody rushes to shop for new clothes. Even so, I am not put off by the nonchalant surrounding me. I resovled to have my CNY celebrations in little possible ways. I, therefore, planned a menu for our reunion dinner with Mr and Mrs R Senior. And the mandarin oranges on our coffee table are as far as we can get in terms of decorations to mark the new year. I have never cared much for those unattractive red and gold deco anyways.

Two days of slogging away in the kitchen, marinating, hacking, simmering, I pulled off the feat of serving my hungry guests on time. Something which I never appreciated when my mum does the exact same thing for us each year. Being the lazy pig and undutiful daughter that I am, the furthest I went to help her was setting the table and washing up after. I have never taken an interest in learning her cooking skills and have never given a serious thought of the hard work she puts in so we can have our yummy and sumptuous reunion dinners all these years. Baad baad girl. I deserve a spanking.

Well, it is never too late to repent. At least on the learning to cook part. Guided by my mum's tips, my guests and Mr R were able to relish Braised Duck, Ngoh Hiang, Chilli Prawns, Roast Pork, Bak Kut Teh (okay, this is not very CNY) and Stir-Fried Snow Peas. It may sound simple and not much a big deal but trust me, the work one goes through to churn them out is exhausting. By the time we drank our coffee, I was totally beat. Though I don't regret it one bit. I am pleased and proud that I carry on some part of this tradition. You can call me a true cheena at heart.

No relative visitings tomorrow. However, not contended with staying at home on Chu Yi (the first day of CNY) , I am hooking up with a Singaporean friend in the city to... to... to buy new clothes for the new year, what else!

新年快乐!!!

No Reservations

Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations will be on TV tonight. His destination this time is Singapore, so we were informed by a friend. I enjoy his culinary globe-trotting escapades immensely. Back then in Singapore, I would tune in to his programs religiously. He is one dare-devil because he eats EVERYTHING. Everything here means warthog anus, sheep testicles, ant eggs, a raw seal eyeball, fetal ducks egg, cobra's heart etc. Nothing fazes him.

So I was curious what food he would be sampling in Singapore. And on top of it all I do crave to see my home country again, even if only fleeting glimpses of its comings and goings. Plus Mr R finds Bourdain interesting and entertaining too. Thus we tuned in to his show. Big Mistake.

What do you do when:
Chicken rice
Bak chor mee
Prawn mee
Satay
Prata
Chilli crabs
Char kway teow
Roast pork
Carrot cake
appeared right before your eyes, yet you DO NOT get to eat them? I resorted to salivating. And then more drooling. It was agonizing watching him devouring the food, I must concede. The show ended with me feeling empty and HUNGRY.

I miss home.

Benumbed

Try standing in the cold for nearly 3 hours. Even with four layers of clothes, leggings, wool pants, wool socks and boots. 1 hour later, I couldn't feel my feet anymore, let alone immerse myself in the carnival spirit around me. Yes, it is that time of the year again for the german carnival. Though they couldn't have picked a better time. February, right smack in the middle of winter!

When it was all over and we had to walk back to our cars, my feet were all numb and weak. It's as if my body could not command and coordinate my feet anymore. I was walking with a block of numbness underneath me. Without a doubt, it was uncomfortable. I cursed silently why I bothered coming. Forget that I came up with the brilliant idea of going to the official carnival and supposedly the best one in Cologne next year. Well, unless I get to dress up as a bear. Fur keeps you warm. Paws not included. And no pictures please.