What is in your cup?

[cromag]

And now, my last mug of tea for the day. The circle of life.

[CRussel]

Finished up the day with a wee drop of Talisker.

[kindlekitten]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

Just got home from Illinois locked the front door oh boy!
Got to sit down take a rest on the porch
Imagination sets in pretty soon I'm singin'
Doo doo doo lookin' out my back door

There's a giant doing cartwheels a statue wearin' high heels
Look at all the happy creatures dancing on the lawn
A dinosaur Victrola list'ning to Buck Owens
Doo doo doo lookin' out my back door

( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AywBUl9q2no )

Be it ever so humble... Good morning, everyone! Home again, with a great big grin on my face. I had forgotten just how much fun riding big motorcycles through the mountains could be! Six-eight hours each day, over high mountain roads as twisty as Christmas ribbon candy. (My shoulders may never be the same! Hard work but worth every minute.) Most of the mountain roads were along the ridge line, so views anywhere you look! Plenty of gentle curving roads as well in between the peaks, and dips down into sweeping valleys filled with small jungle villages and the occasional town. Perfect riding, perfect weather, perfect foods, and perfect companion! Now who could ask for more? This time I even remembered to bring along good teas, so mornings were just fine too!

Today's tea is East India Company's "Assam," and I'm already on my second mug and haven't yet been down to see the Food Lady. I'm feeling the call, though... It's amazing to think that no matter where we stopped to eat along the roads (no McD's or even a Pizza Hut in that part of the world,) eating in small Mom&Pop roadside places (calling them 'shacks' would be accurate) that had 2-3 tables at most, the food was consistently delicious. I have NEVER had a 'bad' meal in Thailand. I've had some that weren't 'great,' but no one single meal that I found unpalatable in the 25 years that I've been coming to Thailand. This contrasts greatly with the fact that we never found one single meal that was eatable in Burma... We often found ourselves just pushing the plate away and searching out a fruit stand... OK... time for the Food Lady!

Stitchawl

What makes Burmese food so inedible?

[Stitchawl]

Originally Posted by kindlekitten

What makes Burmese food so inedible?

Not quite sure... It shouldn't be. Food from all the countries around it are wonderful. Perhaps it was the extreme poverty in the areas we traveled? Or evil spirits? Actually, we were pretty turned off even by the food in Yangon (Rangoon) and that's the capital! The only way we could get decent food (actually some really good food) was to eat at the upscale hotel restaurants. We tried different places every day, and not one provided what we considered good tasting foods despite the locals all cramming it down their necks! We tried several different dishes in some places (at 25 cents a plate, why not try it all?) and most ranged from no taste all the way to vile.

We prefer to eat in small Mom&Pop places when we travel, so we can taste the foods that the locals eat. In Thailand, Cambodia, Lao, and Malaysia, that's better tasting foods than you usually get in the big international restaurants! The shops we ate at along the roads this trip never had more than 2-3 tables with plastic chairs in front of a cooking area. Often, no walls at all. Something like this (this isn't my picture.) The sort of places most Westerners would NEVER consider eating in... This is standard all over S.E. Asia, and as long as the cook looks healthy and the food cooked to order, we can be sure to get the very best meals at places like this, and pay about a buck for a big dinner!


Stitchawl

[cromag]

First tea of the day.

[Stitchawl]

Bombay Sapphire on the rocks!


Stitchawl

[badgoodDeb]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

Just got home from Illinois locked the front door oh boy!
Got to sit down take a rest on the porch
Imagination sets in pretty soon I'm singin'
Doo doo doo lookin' out my back door

There's a giant doing cartwheels a statue wearin' high heels
Look at all the happy creatures dancing on the lawn
A dinosaur Victrola list'ning to Buck Owens
Doo doo doo lookin' out my back door

( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AywBUl9q2no )

Stitchawl

Goodness! Is THAT what the lyrics are? Obviously, I've never really heard all of them!

[CRussel]

When we lived in Oakland, CA, there was a Burmese restaurant downtown. Amazing food, including a to die for ginger salad. So I'm more inclined to think it had to do with the level of poverty in the area you were travelling in, Stitchawl. OTOH, the world is not exactly populated with Burmese restaurants, so that should tell one something.

Finished up my morning Major Dickason's coffee, now sipping some Lion Mountain Keemun. And looking forward to a restful afternoon with a good book and some good tea. It's raining, my back is out, and I have no deadlines right now.

[ProfCrash]

I would not judge Russian cuisine based on the crap I was served when traveling there in 1987 and 1989. It was not good

[Stitchawl]

Over there, over there
Send the word, send the word over there
That the Yanks are coming, the Yanks are coming
The drums are rum-tumming everywhere

So prepare, say a prayer
Send the word, send the word to beware
We'll be over there, we're coming over
And we won't come back till it's over over there.
Over there.

( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5oWH6JWBJY )

Good morning, everyone. Happy Saturday! Another Saturday at the Chiang Mai Fencing Club... gotta get my game face on. I've joined the lists for another major international tournament... one week from today, down in Bangkok! I'll compete in both foil and épée, both individual and team. Should be exhausting but fun. No Veterans division in this one though... I'll be competing against all the young guys, including against the various National Team players from different countries... guys in their 20's and 30's who can actually run more than 100m without going into cardiac arrest...

So with one week to prepare, today's tea will be unbranded Keemun (at least 3 mugs to build up caffeine levels, ) lots of spicy stuff from the Food Lady (to get me used to being in pain,) and prayer. (Can't hurt, right?) Then it's off to the club to train!

Originally Posted by badgoodDeb

Goodness! Is THAT what the lyrics are? Obviously, I've never really heard all of them!

Often the lyrics that are presented on the Internet are NOT accurate. So we can't always consider them the Gospel. When I'm learning a new song, I try to check several different sources before I consider what is 'real.'

Originally Posted by CRussel

When we lived in Oakland, CA, there was a Burmese restaurant downtown. Amazing food, including a to die for ginger salad. So I'm more inclined to think it had to do with the level of poverty in the area you were travelling in, Stitchawl.

Normally, I'd think so too. But we encountered the same vile tastes in more upscale restaurants in Rangoon... Places with doormen, table cloths, and a wine list.

OTOH, the world is not exactly populated with Burmese restaurants, so that should tell one something.

I'm inclined to go with this one. You don't see Burmese restaurants, Filipino restaurants (we also ran into really mediocre meals there,) Navaho, Inuit, Hmong, or Micronesian (the signature dish in Micronesia uses 'Spam,') for very good reasons...

Originally Posted by ProfCrash

I would not judge Russian cuisine based on the crap I was served when traveling there in 1987 and 1989. It was not good

What westerners think of as good Chinese food is rarely found in China. While Hong Kong foods are great, just cross over the border from the New Territories into Shenzen, China and you will prefer to eat at 7-Eleven. Japanese food sold in the west is usually different from what is commonly served in Japan (although in that case both are pretty damn good!) Most people think Thai food is outrageously spicy, but local Thai foods usually are not, with the exception of just a couple of dishes. And of course, Pizza in Rome is nothing like that sold by 'Pizza Hut!'


Stitchawl

[Stitchawl]

To amend my previous post, to 'our' taste the very best Italian food can be found in New York City. The very best Chinese food can be had in Singapore. The best German bratwurst is sold in Minnesota. The ultimate Nepali Indian food is served in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. And the very best Vietnamese food is sold along the Gulf coast of Texas! We've eaten these foods many times, both in their native countries and in others, and this is what we have discovered.

Time for a glass of Captain Black Jamaica Rum!


Stitchawl

[CRussel]

Well, after a breakfast of excess, time to settle down and pretend to read while I sip a mug of Peet's Major Dickason's coffee.

[kindlekitten]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

To amend my previous post, to 'our' taste the very best Italian food can be found in New York City. The very best Chinese food can be had in Singapore. The best German bratwurst is sold in Minnesota. The ultimate Nepali Indian food is served in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. And the very best Vietnamese food is sold along the Gulf coast of Texas! We've eaten these foods many times, both in their native countries and in others, and this is what we have discovered.

I refuse to believe that Minnesota has a brat that can beat out a Nuerenburger brat IN Nuerenburg!
Time for a glass of Captain Black Jamaica Rum!


Stitchawl

I refuse to believe that Minnesota has a brat that can beat out a Nuerenburger brat IN Nuerenburg!

[cromag]

First mug of tea for the day.

[Stitchawl]

Hot dogs, Armour hot dogs
What kind of kids eat Armour Hot Dogs?
Fat kids, skinny kids, kids who climb on rocks
Tough kids, sissy kids, even kids with chicken pox
love hot dogs, Armour Dot Dogs
The dogs kids love to bite!

( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3fQwJdXFQlU )

Good morning, everyone! Happy Sunday! Looks like it's going to be a lovely day, starting off with an early morning (here) live TV presentation of the Men's Foil finals of the World Cup at www.usfencing.org. Should be exciting. These guys take fencing to a whole different level. Then it's off for a ride, a nice lunch, then back for some grunt work trying to figure out how to use Adobe Premiere... PhotoShop was easier to learn...
Good tea this morning, from Ahmad, his wonderful "English Breakfast" tea! They are now selling Ahmad's 'English Breakfast No.1' in an import supermarket here, and I've asked the manager if they can get the "English Breakfast" next order. The 'No.1' has a touch of Bergamot which I don't care for in a tea.

Originally Posted by kindlekitten

I refuse to believe that Minnesota has a brat that can beat out a Nuerenburger brat IN Nuerenburg!

I've eaten brats in Nuerenburg and I've eaten brats in New Ulm and in Saint Cloud, and although I prefer the ambiance of outdoor restaurants in Nuerenburg, I liked the taste of the brats in the Minnesota cities better. Stronger flavor, which appeals to my pallet. At one time, Minnesota had the largest German population in the US, and was actually a source of concern for the US government during W.W.II.

Time for one more cup of tea!

Stitchawl