Down, under, out, back

My impulse purchase of 2012 is a trip to the Australia outback during Christmas/New Year break. It is a long trip to make for a relatively short stay, spending a almost 3 days in totally flying to and from destinations to have 15 days on land. All for a little surprise to my partner who is spending a year travelling around the world.

The highlight of the trip is a 5-day camping trip in the outback. On Christmas Day, after spending a day in the Ayers Rock Resort in Yalara admiring Uluru (aka Ayers Rock) and Katajuta (aka the Olgas) from afar, a rugged 4x4 truck (Bindi) complete with a trailer rolled into the parking lot to pick us up for the trip. We met Bec, our guide, and the other 12 people in our 14-person tour. The tour we joined was the Wayoutback 5-day Kangaroo Dreaming tour. The itinerary is well planned, containing a variety of activities and locations to give a taste of the outback.

Each day has a feature activity / hike, amongst the essentials of eating, travelling, showering and sleeping. We get to walk around the base of Uluru, admiring the rock from different angles, including the sacred aboriginal sites. We get to hike amongst the valleys in the Olgas. We get to walk up to and around the rim of King's Canyon. We get to scramble across the boulders in the Glen Helen Gorge accompanied by some wallabies and followed by a swim. We get to spend time with Loi, a knowledgeable aboriginal woman who told us about some history and showed us some landscape. And of course we had some bumpy 4x4 drives on loose gravel and dirt surfaces.

Breathtaking redness of Kings Canyon during sunset

Chilling at Glen Helen Gorge after a long bumpy drive

As for the camping, we also had the opportunity to try different styles. From having pre-built tents and bed on a campground to bush camping sleeping in a swag, we got to truly enjoy the overview of what the outback has to offer.


There are some excellent detailed review of similar Wayoutback trips online already, so I won't go into too much detail.  You can see what fellow Canadian WestCoastGirl and The Fourteen Month Weekend have to say about the trip.


Last but not least, the food. Bec is a good cook with years of campfire cooking experience. Within the confines of the food provided by the tour operator (and some supplements out of her own pocket), she tried to vary our meals. Lunches are mostly simple sandwiches (served Aussie style with beet root), although we did have BBQ and bacon and eggs on 2 of the days. Dinner has a larger variety - meat stews, steaks, even turkey with gravy on Christmas Day (complete with Christmas crackers and chocolate), baked zucchini with feta and chocolate cake (with sprinkles!) for an early celebration of her birthday.  We had our fair share of discussions about new possibilities she can try.

Our luxury Christmas dinner - turkey with gravy, roasted vegetables, dessert bread.  Complete with Christmas crackers and chocolates on the table.

During a conversation on the trip, Bec reminded me of a very important philosophy in life.

It's the small things that count.

Here are some of the small things (in no particular order) that counted during my 5 days on the tour:
- Playing 'Hey Cow' with Bec on the road
- Looking at the full moon and stars lying in the swag at night
- Waking up to the "bacon and eggs" song
- Having people around who care enough to scour for ice for my sprained ankle (which is also when the "small thing" conversation happened)
- Sitting on the open-air toilet looking at the moon
- Having philosophical discussions about politics (e.g. South Africa apartheid) and life (e.g. not delaying decisions) with Pat, an older well-travelled gentleman on the tour
- Listening to Bec's funny travel stories
- Chatting with everyone over some Curtin Springs Fucking Good Port

- Everyone showing up fresh & clean for dinner after returning to Alice Springs

It is unlikely I will return to the outback soon. I will keep the memories alive with all the photos, videos and the classic Aussie songs I will add to my playlist.

2011 in Review - Significant Foodie Moments

2011 has been a very busy year, both at work and in my personal life.  While I have not had time to write about my foodie adventures, I was still able to savour some significant foodie moments.  I even managed to lose a few food virginity this year!

White Truffle
What is more perfect than a piggy being born in truffle season? White truffles arrived just in time for my birthday dinner at Auberge du Pommier! 

Cuy (aka Guinea Pig) 
A major event for me in 2011 was travelling in Peru for 3.5 weeks.  It has been my long time dream to try guinea pig (or as they are called in Peru, cuy).  I stumbled upon a celebration in Cuzco where indigenous Quechua women were selling traditionally stone roasted cuy.  Mmm ... The other white meat ...

Alpaca
Another commonly seen animal in Peru is Alpaca.  Not only do they provide wool, they make a tasty meal too!  And no, they don't taste like chicken.  (More like lamb.)

Ceviche
Being someone who likes my seafood raw whenever possible, I have prepared ceviche on my own many times.  However, it is no comparison to the ceviche at Cevicheria el Fayke Piurano in Lima.

Menu
The first major confusion upon arriving in Peru is thinking of menu as a menu - a book listing out dishes that a restaurant serve.  Menu (or cena for dinner) is actually a set meal, usually with an appetizer or soup, a main dish, and either a juice for lunch or dessert and sweet tea for dinner.  Unlike the gourmet prix fixe counterpart in North America, these meals are cheap, fast, and most of the time quite tasty.

Scrapple
Coincidentally, 2011 is the first year I have heard of scrapple (thanks to Food Network), and the first year I ate scrapple at Lancers Diner in Horsham, PA.  Mmm ... The other grey meat ... 

Wish everyone a bountiful & delicious 2012!

El Paso & Surrounding Areas on A Tank of Gas

I was recently in El Paso cheering a few friends in their bowling tournament. Of course it would be a waste to fly that distance without some sightseeing.

This is the story of how my rental Toyota Corolla used up its 1 tank of gas. 

I stayed at the Holiday Inn near the airport, on the east side of downtown. The hotel was quite old, and the swimming pool is an odd configuration of half indoors & half outdoors. It does have a courtyard that is good for chillaxing at night when there is no blazing hot sun shining down.

El Paso is not that big, probably a 20-min drive to pretty much everywhere. I would highly recommend having a car as it is definitely a low density sprawl type city. There are several places to eat and a club within walking distance of the hotel.  One of the places is Jaxon's Restaurant and Brewing Company - They don't offer beer flights so I was only able to try out their Borderland Lager and Cactus Jack Amber Ale.  I wouldn't say it's exceptionally good, but it is refreshing to have some microbrew while out in the boonies.

Mexican Lager

Amber Ale

First stop was downtown. There is a free city hall parking right next to the convention center and various museums. The signage is very confusing as it says free city hall parking after 6pm on weeknights and all day on weekends. But it also says parking for Insights Museum only. In any case, I parked there on Fri night and Sat all day with no problem. Street parking is generally free on Sundays and holidays. If you cannot stand heat, I would highly recommend spending the $3-5 for indoor parking at the convention center or across the street in the parkade.

If you are the cultural type, there are 3 museums right next to each other. Mind you they are not the scale of any museums in major cities, but can't beat free general admission either.  A group of us toured the El Paso Museum of Art one afternoon.  They have an eclectic collection of classical and modern art.

Of all the exhibits, I actually found something in the gift shop the most intriguing - a bracelet made with twist ties!  How ingenious!  

 
 
For the shopping type, there is the Golden Horseshoe extending from the convention center to the border with Juarez, Mexico. If you are on the hunt for cheap socks and underwear, football [soccer] jerseys, brand name sneakers and women's clothing that is way too tight for anyone who eats more than 500 calories a day, you will find yourself in paradise here!

For the rest of us, this Mexican "Magnificent Mile" is an amusing way to sweat off at least 10lb. I did manage to gain some pounds back from the yummy pistachio paleta I got from a "street vendor" - i.e. a woman with a rolling cooler standing on the side of the street. True Mexican spirit!

[BTW, from all the research I have done and people I have talked to, there is no real reason to go shopping in Juarez ... Your life is worth a lot more than some cheap merchandise!] 

The majority of the tank of gas was spent on a road trip to the White Sands National Monument. The trip is about an hour and a half from El Paso. I would recommend starting early, and stopping by the Little Diner on the way for brunch. According to the advertising in tourist books, George W Bush has eaten here; I didn't know he's considered a gourmet? For those who have time, there is also a relatively large outlet mall at the same exit.  After this section, there are not many selection for decent food on the deserted highway.

As I started late on the trip, I drove directly to White Sands. I also bypassed White Sands Missile Range Museum on the way. This is the site where the atomic bomb used in World War 2 was tested, so it should be a good stop for military buffs. I did stop on the way of the scenic drive to take in the landscape a bit.

White Sands is a very unique place. It almost look like a snow covered ground in the middle of a desert. The whole place is blindingly bright thanks to the reflection of the sun by the sand. Seeing such vast coverage of white sand, and without being by an ocean, is a strange feeling. It feels lonely, like a companion is missing.

On the way back, I took a detour to Mesilla in New Mexico. It is a quaint old town square with a church and some shops in old Southwestern style buildings. I only had time for a whirlwind walk-around and to pick up some locally produced pistachio as gift for my friends back home.

 
 
Continuing down NM-28S, the drive suddenly turned into a lush green path through the Stahmanns pecan farms. It is such contrast to the White Sands scenery that I just visited hours ago.

I was not able to bring some pecans back, as they are only available in either fresh form that requires refrigeration, or candied forms that will melt in the car within a minute.

 
 
I took Woodrow Bean Transmountain Road back to El Paso. This route passes through the Franklin Mountains State Park. I like the feeling of driving through a mountain pass - climbing in between the rocks, then the sight opening to a vast space. In this case, the sight opened to El Paso and extending into Juarez, Mexico.

I drove to the Wyler Aerial Tramway hoping to get a view of El Paso from the mountain. The drive up to the base station was very steep - I had to drive in first gear of the Corolla to get enough power for the incline. Unfortunately the tram was closed by the time I got there. For those planning to follow this itinerary and want to be a bit more leisurely, I would recommend reversing the route and start with the cable cars. I took in the city view from the base station before heading to some dinner.

After all the sightseeing, I was thirsty at this point. I stopped by Flautas y Paleteria Tepalca, an unassuming restaurant in what seems to be suburbia strip mall. This place sells a large selection of agua fresca (Mexican fruit juices) and paletas (Mexican popsicles). I have not had these many agua fresca flavors to select from since working in Los Angeles years ago - it took me almost 5 minutes to look through all the choices and decided on a mango one in a gianormous styrofoam cup. While sipping the refreshing juice, I checked out their wide paleta selection, wishing for a place like this in Toronto some day.

 
 
Last stop of the day is the famous Cattlemen's Steakhouse in Fabens, about half hour Southeast of El Paso. I got there in time for sunset, which is an amazing view, even though it was a cloudy day.

The restaurant is part of a ranch, with live animals around. Aside from the usual suspects like dogs and horses, I got a glimpse of a peacock on the roof of one of the buildings. And while having dinner, a pack of coyotes also showed up to eat some of the fresh meat left outside for them. It was a rare treat having dinner with coyotes indeed!

And the food? My 12oz ribeye was aged to perfection - juicy and buttery without being too fatty! The baked bean side dish has just the right hint of smokiness, although a bit on the sweet side.

The evening concluded with the night view at the hotel and some desperately needed rest after a long day of driving.

Of course, my El Paso trip had to conclude with more food! On the way to the airport, I made a pit stop at a local favorite Chico's Taco. Chico's has a very limited menu. Their El Paso style tacos are more like taquitos with beef filling served in tomato soup then topped with shredded cheese and green chili salsa. It may sound odd, but the tacos were quite tasty in its own way. They also serve "round" hot dog, with a halved sausage in a hamburger bun. I couldn't take more food after 3 tacos, but it did look tasty.

The gas tank warning light came on, so it's time to fill up the tank, return the car, and say adiós!

Chicago Trip Planner

This is part of the retrospective on pieces I have written in the past that still seems relevant today.  This post was posted on Facebook on October 22, 2008 at 12:17am.  I will edit in the future with some photos that was in a separate Facebook album.

Sitting in front of Gate C32 of Chicago O'Hare Airport. This is likely my last hour in Chicago for a while. 

2008 is my Chicago year ... at least between August to October. Of the last 73 calendar days, I spent 21 days in Chicago! Some of my friends now ask if I am in Toronto or Chicago as the first statement. Even Facebook is pumping out Chicago ads on my home page!

With all the assistance from Sue, Cat & Kristian, I think I got some bearing of the city from my past 3 trips. Chicago has tons of very diverse interesting neighbourhoods to explore. In case you are considering visiting Chicago in the near future, below are some of my memorable moments trotting around these neighbourhoods.

Note: Most neighbourhoods I have listed below are accessible with public transit, if you don't want to deal with the hassle of traffic & rental cars. It does take some time to travel via 'el' (elevated train) & buses, so plan your day accordingly. You can get visitor day passes from the airport or the Water Tower visitor center downtown if you are planning to go to more than 2 neighbourhoods in a day.

Uptown (Red Line Lawrence/Argyle): I spent quite some time in Uptown as this is where Sue so graciously let me bunk at her place. It's an ecletic neighbourhood with lots of beautiful architecture, especially around the intersection of Lawrence & Broadway. I spent a lot of time just staring & admiring the decorative details on buildings like Aragon & Uptown. I had the opportunity to see a Tegan & Sara concert at Riveria, which is a beautiful but run-down theatre. Green Mill, frequented by Al Capone at some point, is in this neighbourhood if you are in the mood for some good jazz in a godfather-time-warp club. (My colleauge Howard does think it has lost part of its charm with the no smoking legislation now.)

Andersonville (Red Line Berwyn): A short walk away from Uptown is the commercial strip in Andersonville along N Clark. There are a lot of interesting independent boutiques like Women & Children First bookstore, Foursided and the large Gethsemane Garden Center. There are also a number of interesting places to eat & drink. My personal favorites include beer at Hopleaf, wine at In Fine Spirits, pastries at Swedish Bakery, cinnamon buns at Ann Sather & coffee at The Coffee Studio. The Middle Eastern food at Reza's is also very good, although I had my Reza's meal at the Oakbrook Terrace location & not Andersonville.

Lincoln Square (Brown Line Western): Lincoln Square is a German heritage area, although it is now very gentrified (like many other neighbourhood). The Chicago Brauhaus is supposed to be a good spot for sipping beer & hanging out, although I did not have the chance to do so. The commercial area is not large but nice to stroll along on a lazy day. Take a walk & have a coffee at The Grind. If you are looking for good brunch, don't miss Over Easy. It is slightly off the main commercial strip, but the Sassy Eggs are worth the travel! Not to be totally over-fed & under-read, make sure you check out the concert schedule at Old Town School of Folk Music. The auditorium is intimate with excellent acoustic. I went to a Latin / South American music performance by a local group called Mosaico. (I must be the only person in the hall that do not know Spanish!) The community atmosphere with the crowd dancing to the music was truly amazing!

Lakeview / Boystown (Red Line Belmont): Lakeview is quite a large area where I went on 3 different occasions - night show in Boystown, dinner/drinks, and baseball game at Wrigley Field. Boystown spans a few blocks, which is quite a bit larger than the Toronto Church Street gay village. I roamed around somewhat "early" in the night, so it does not seem as crowded as a Church Street weekend night. The Center on Halsted is an amazing community center that makes our very own 519 almost looks shabby. When I went to dinner on a separate night, I passed by the store front of my favourite t-shirt place Threadless, and the Intelligensa coffee shop that I unfortunately do not have the pleasure to go to throughout my stay. I did get a chance to eat some very flavourful Korean style fried chicken at Crisp! They mixed up our orders, and we (Sue, Cat, Kristian & I) ended up with 23 pieces of fried chicken of 3 different flavours in front of us! I'm a die-hard Plain Jane fan, while the others enjoy the Crisp BBQ & Seoul Sassy flavours more. It's interesting having Korean pickled vegetables as sides to the fried chicken in addition to the North American traditional coleslaw. After that, we went to Cat's favourite pub Jake's. It may look like a regular neighbourhood bar from the outside, but you can a great selection of domestic & import beer both on tap & in bottles. Nothing beats hanging out with friends on a weekend night at a dog-friendly neighbourhood pub. 

[Note: I have since then visited Intelligensa in the loop & tried their clover coffee.  I must say I was disappointed at the taste of the coffee.  The place is also decorated quite mainstream so not much of an ambiance.]

Wrigley Field (Red Line Addison): Many thanks to Sue for her organization & to Kristian & Cat for accommodating my travel schedule, I managed to take my mom & aunt to see a Cubs game (vs Astros) at the historic Wrigley Field. This is my first time seeing a non Blue Jays MLB game outside of Skydome / Rogers Centre. What a difference it is! The park was packed with 40000+ fans, none too shy to cheer for their beloved cubbies. The atmosphere from the enthusiasm and seeing the sea of fans both inside the park and outside on the rooftop bleachers were breath-taking. Sue brought some tacos from Carmella's to help my tacos craving, and what is a ballpark experience without a famous Chicago dog? (I did cheat & got a bratwurst instead.) Although it was hot & muggy that day, I thoroughly enjoyed the experience! 

[Note: I have since gone back for another cubs game at Wrigley, on a cold sunny day.  This time I had cheese fries & although it's processed food galore, the combo was really tasty!]

Lincoln Park (Red Line Fullerton): If you are in Chicago in the summer, make a point to visit the Lincoln Park Green City Market on a Saturday. It is quite a large green market with all sorts of fresh local produce. It is right beside the zoo and the beach if you want to take a walk to enjoy some nature. Taking the free trolley from the el station is a good way to see the neighbourhood. I went on another occasion to the Apollo Theatre to watch Baby Wants Candy improv. It was very funny, particularly the improv rap. Before the show, I got some nice Japanese food at Ringo. Everyone knows I am a BIG fan of sticky rice related products. I am so happy to find mochi yaki at Ringo!

Logan Square / Bucktown / Wicker Park (Blue Line Damen/Western): This area is a nice shopping area with mostly smaller label shops. There is one area on Damen that has a few brand name stores like Marc Jacobs, Club Monaco & LeSportSac. Don't miss the Kidrobot Pirate store until Dec 2008, and the Boring Store along Milwakee! I especially love the concept of the Boring Store - I wish I can some day run such a fun yet meaninful operation. If you are hungry while in this area, you are in luck for some truly unique ethnic foods. My favourite is the jibarito at Borinquen Restaurant in the nearby Humbolt Park. If you know me, you know how I love plantains. Combine that with juicy tender steak and I am converted to this Chicago delicacy! If you are still hungry after that, consider getting a Middle Eastern influenced burrito-looking pita-esque "taco" at Cemitas Puebla. I did not have their famous cemitas but I was drooling when they were served to the next table. For the less adventurous of ethnic foods, brunch at Lula's over at Logan Square a few blocks down is a good choice. 

[Note: I went back to try the cemitas & I really love it!  The 3 different salsa / hot sauces provided were all exception, although my favourite would be the one with some smoky adobo sauce.]

Loop: The best way to see the amazing architecture around the loop is on an architectural boat tour. Loop art tour is another interesting way to visit some of the famous buildings and art pieces, including the Bean & the Fritzker Pavilion at Millenium Park. I was lucky enough to catch the opening of the jazz festival playing at the Fritzker Pavilion. The acoustic was great for an outdoor venue, and the atmosphere of people having a nice picnic while enjoying top notch jazz music made it one of the best jazz experience I have had. I was also lucky enough to see the Jeff Koons' exhibit at the Museum of Contemporary Art during my stay. Even though the Art Institute was under expansion, it took me over an hour to walk through the exhibits. Nighthawks seems to be the pick of my colleagues; I like it too, along with Van Gogh's The Drinkers and Irish Question. I did not do much shopping along the Magnificent Mile - My biggest shopping spree was getting bacon chocolate (yes you heard that right!) and sugar free fire hot chocolate bars at Vosges.

[Note: Forgot to mention a great steak dinner at the original Morton's.  Enjoyable & less pretentious than I imagined.  Of course it helps when someone else is picking up the tab!]

Pilsen (Pink Line 18th Street): I am a BIG fan of Mexican food. For my first trip, Kristian helped organize a taco trot around town. One of the stops is to savour some juicy carnitas in Pilsen at Carnitas Uruapan. Get a pound to share with a crowd, and you will find yourself in pork heaven! To walk off some of that, check out the National Museum of Mexican Art in the neighbourhood. Or roam around to shop for a pinata. If you are there on a warm sunny day, be sure to get distracted by the paleta guy on your way. The flavour choices can be overwhelming for a paleta newbie - nudge nudge for coconut, mango & tamarind depending on how full you are at the time.

Chinatown (Red Line Cermak): Coming from the densely Chinese populated Toronto, the Chinatown in Chicago seems very quiet and old school in comparison. It is predominantly centred around restaurants & grocery stores, although I have been told the quality of Chinese food is not really comparable with that in Toronto. If you come to this area, don't forget to check out the nice park where the water taxis dock. For those who have lived in Hong Kong, this is one of the few neighbourhoods in North America you can find people having the HK style iron gates on their front door instead of a storm door!

University of Chicago / Hyde Park (Green Line Garfield then bus to near E 57th St/University): If you are interested in historical architecture or just seeing one of the top education institution in US with alumni like Friedman, have a stroll around the U of C campus. Check out the Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House while you are there. And maybe get a coffee or ice cream at Bonjour Bakery, where Obama goes to eat. (At least according to the servers' t-shirts, he does.)

Special Mentions: As a foodie, there are a few other memorable food places that may not be as easily accessible by el, but worth checking out if you have a car. First one is Hot Doug's, a specialty hot dog place. I had their kangaroo sausage, crawfish/pork sausage & the Marty Allen along with duck fat fries, all very tasty. Beware of their long line up and short operation hours so budget plenty of time to enjoy your dogs. Another 2 places I want to mention are all up in Arlington Heights, a suburbia neighbourhood north of Chicago. There seems to be a concentration of Japanese people in this area. I stumbled upon a great Japanese izakaya restaurant called Kurumaya. They made the most wonderful garlic fried rice that I have never had elsewhere. Their hand drawn menu was unique & was quite entertaining and educational to read through. Mitsuwa is a large Japanese department store close by. I used to frequent Mitsuwa in Costa Mesa when I worked there. This one has the same familiar layout. I was very happy to pick up some nice sake while there. 

[Note: I have since then accumulated a few more Chicago fav chow - Lou Malnati's deep dish pizza, Portillo's Italian beef sandwich (which apparently is also a Chicago invention like jibaritos), and Superdawg Chicago dog & onion chips.  There is also a large Korean population in Niles - I was quite impressed with the H Mart in the area but have not yet had a chance to try any Korean food yet.]


Enjoy the windy city!