12/27/12 - First 4 Days in the US

I'm sitting in the same chair I sat in 5 months ago when I set the blog up, staring at the same lake as before and drinking out of the same coffee mug.  Only now I'm marveling at the ice on the lake and am happy that my coffee is cool enough to drink in 5 minutes vs. 25 minutes and warms me up vs. makes me hot enough to start sweating.  After being here for 4 days, the question has popped into my head multiple times, "Do I really live in Singapore now or was that just a dream like a plot twist in a TV show?"  The British plugs on my phone charger convince me that I am still lucid, but the old maxim continues to hold true "time sure flies".

First experiences so far that really stick out (that never would have if we'd been here all along).  I landed in San Francisco after 16 hours of flying, happy to be back on US soil, but not thrilled about the 5 hour layover I had to endure before getting on my flight to Minneapolis.  At least this would be my 3rd red-eye flight out of the Delta terminal in SFO so I knew how to play the game.  Straight to Perry's for some bread bowl clam chowder and a few beers.  I tried to stifle a smirk when I saw my large Sierra Nevada was only $7.95.  This would have seemed like an overpriced airport bar beer 6 months ago and now I felt like I had found the best bar on the planet.  There was an NBA basketball game on that sucked me in immediately (minimal sports for 5 months will do that to you) to the point that I almost missed the college kid next to me ordering "cheese burger, fries, mac and cheese and whatever the cheapest beer you have."  When it came out it was clearly enough food for 2 1/2 people, but he didn't even blink while eating it and ordered a second Bud Light to boot.  Clearly I was getting close to home.

Walking out of the airport in Minneapolis to the car was the exact opposite of getting off a plane in Singapore.  If there is such a thing as a blast freezer vs. a blast furnace, this was it.  Once the car was warm though, everything felt fine, especially when I heard a Dave Ryan commercial on the radio station.  The bagels and coffee for breakfast at Sarah's parents house brought me even closer towards the home comfort zone.

Four hours later I was at the lake marveling at how I had gotten here.  21st century travel always leaves me with a sense of wonder when you really step back to think about it.  The 4 days after my arrival have been a whirlwind of family, dogs, Christmas and eating.  Anytime we know someone going back to the US the first thing anyone asks them is "what is the first thing you're going to eat?"  So far it has been a parade of comfort food (mashed potatoes, meatballs, ham, black beans, pie, good cheese, wine, etc) that has been a great contrast to our routine in the tropics that involves eating out for 95% of our meals.  Instead of trying to find a restaurant that serves something that seems normal, normal is right in front of you.  The burgers and burritos will come, but this officially checked me into the "home hotel."  Now I just need to kick the jet lag to the curb.  Was awake until 11:30 last night and woke up at 7:30 today on my own.  Hopefully 4 days is the magic number.

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy New Year and any other holiday I may have missed.  More reports to come as we have plenty more time with family, friends and work colleagues in the next 8 days.

12/10/12 - Bachelor Living

I got a glimpse this past weekend of what my life would have been like flying solo here for a few years.  I'm sad to report that I would be a sufficiently boring individual.  Lets examine the past 60 hours in terms of food and activities.

Food - I specifically avoided eating McDonalds in the airport because prior to the flight I really wasn't that hungry and I assumed I could find something to eat when I got home.  Half way back on the flight to Singapore I started to get a little hungry, but the offer of a "sardine puff" from the flight attendant squashed that.  I decided it best to just take a nap for the next half hour to be safe.  The taxi home was pretty fast, but not as speedy as the driver 2 weeks ago who claimed to be a "professional driver."  He had driven a taxi in Bangkok for 5 years though, and after having spent a weekend in Bangkok, anyone who is still alive after driving there for 5 years just may be a professional.

Anyway, I got home, threw some shorts on and strolled over to the hawker centre.  The problem is, there are always more places open to eat during lunch and then it turns out that my go to dumpling ramen shop is closed for about a month.  This makes sense since we have been feeding them money on a weekly basis. By the time we leave we may have put one of their children through college, $3 at a time.  The only place open was a claypot chicken shop I hadn't noticed before.  It was OK, but had a lot of items I wasn't entirely positive about their origin.  The big Kingfisher beer made me feel classy at least.  I actually had had claypot chicken in Penang for lunch and can report that I have now found food that is better in Penang than Singapore.  This sample of two hawker shops isn't exactly the most scientific conclusion, but the Penang one has rice, chicken, chinese sausage and a fried egg on top.  Plus the chili sauce is better.  Advantage Penang.

After being stymied on the food front Friday night I went over early Saturday to stock up.  Banana prata, plain prata, chicken puffs, bananas, and pineapple.  I was set for the day.  This got me thinking though.... was I doing the equivalent of making a fast food run in the US? I had rarely eaten fast food back home, but now go grab hawker fare on a regular basis.  Maybe I should have just eaten McDonalds in the airport Friday.

Activities - the reason I had to load up on food was I spent the day working at the kitchen table.  Since Sarah was done with school someone had to keep the seat warm.  Plus, she set up a new bookcase so you wouldn't even be able to tell that the table had been the study station for the past 3 months.  I couldn't go into the office because they were shutting down the power for 36 hours.  It would have been open in the morning, but you potentially could have gotten stuck on the 14th floor.  Not wanting to walk down that many flights of stairs, I opted for the day at home.  I did meet up with some friends for drinks in Clarke Quay at a New Zealand bar for a few hours.  We looked pretty tame compared to the New Zealand bankers who had been there since noon.  We weren't breaking glasses like them or wearing costumes (I think they had Christmas confused with Halloween) so I'm considering that a win for us.

I tried sleeping in, but couldn't even make it past 8 AM.  I had big intentions of getting out and meandering around the city, but watching a replay of the Big 10 Championship Game (Go Badgers!) was just too tempting.  The rest of the day turned into a Netflix bender, but sometimes you just need one of those.

So there you have it - good thing Sarah will be rejoining me for 2013 so we can continue on our adventures that will involve more than cheap food and football on the couch.  The curry quest is still on though, hoping for a report in early 2013.

12/22/12 - Heading Home for the Holidays

Work officially got the best of me these past 2 weeks so the spare time for blogging was cut out of the schedule.  The good news is we hit our deadline and now its time for some relaxation.  For me, this means I'm leaving the 88 degrees of humidity and sunshine and heading back to cold and snowy Minnesota.  Considering it was 78 degrees last week at night and I was "cold" this could get ugly.  I think the high for the day I land is 26 degrees.  Yikes!  I made sure to go for one last swim today and soak up as much sunshine and heat as I could.  We'll see if it helps - my guess is, no, no it will not.  Bring on the pajama pants and the fireplace.

It will nice to head to the airport in an hour knowing that when I hear the Christmas music that has been playing all month it means I am headed towards that myself.  My staff got me off to a great start two days ago with this Christmas present.  They couldn't be nicer (or harder workers) and I plan on doing some scoping around in the US for presents to bring back to Southeast Asia.  If anyone has thoughts or ideas, you know where to find me.

I'll try and post an update or two while back in the U.S.  Something tells me the culture and climate shock could make for some interesting interactions over the next week and a half.  Regardless, can't wait to see friends, family, have some good wine, watch football on live TV and reacquaint myself with the 3 B's (Burgers, Burritos and Beer - the darker kind).

Happy Holidays from Singapore - next stop Minnesota (via Hong Kong and San Francisco - ouch).

12/8/12 - Back in the Saddle (Running in Southeast Asia)

It was bound to happen again eventually.  Man may be able to manipulate his arms and legs to move through the water with some level of efficiency, but he was put on this earth to run.  And we aren't talking sprinting here, we're talking long distance running.  Did you ever realize that humans are the only mammals that actually sweat?  When you live on the equator you tend to notice this about yourself a little more.  You see, in the grand scheme of it all, we really aren't that fast.  Usain Bolt would have nothing on a cocker spaniel.  However, if one of the Olympic marathon runners took your dog out for a run, it likely wouldn't make it to the end of the race.  It turns out that way back in the day mankind used to hunt animals by literally running them to death because the prey could not cool itself off.

So where do I come into the picture?  We've been here 4 1/2 months and I really have enjoyed swimming laps on a regular basis.  Unfortunately, the pool hours are starting to conflict with my work schedule and I needed another way to burn off excess energy.  Which is why when I was packing last night Sarah gave me a raised eyebrow and asked if I was really packing my running shoes?  Part of this is because we've all been on work trips where you pack your "work-out clothes" and what do they do?  They sit at the bottom of your suitcase taking up valuable real estate the entire trip.  The other reason is I really had effectively sworn off running until we were residing in a temperate climate again.  The pool hours, plus a co-worker whom had recently started running and some friendly mocking about not running the Penang marathon were all the motivation I needed, so into the luggage they went.

Day 1 - Treadmill
I totally wimped out.  I was sitting on the chair in my room, lacing up my shoes and listening to the evening prayer call ring out across the island.  The odd part was the prayer call felt more normal at this point than putting running shoes on my feet.  Its been a life of flip flops and work shoes since June.  I suddenly caught a bright flash out of the corner of my eye and had the "was that lightning," but before the thought could fully materialize the thunder shaking my room confirmed it.  The torrential downpour started 2 minutes later and this was the only excuse I needed to head down to a treadmill instead.  The treadmills actually have little fans in the middle that blow on you, but in my case this meant that my belly button was a little cooler instead of my face.

Even with the air con set on frigid I was still dripping 10 minutes in.  This was likely a combination between the humidity and my lack of bipedal movement in recent memory.  Ultimately, I did make it 3 1/2 miles (at least the treadmill wasn't metric) and a not too slow pace.  When I got off I felt like I was gliding across the room.  I couldn't remember if this was the usual treadmill byproduct or if I was just in need of some fluids.  Regardless, Day 1 down, 3 liters of water back in me.  Ready to tackle the actual outdoors in a few days.

Day 2 - The Great Outdoors
The good news is this is actually Day 6.  I got a little bogged down with what I'm paid to do (not a professional blogger yet) and too busy to post anything.  I actually now have a running route outside I can call my own.  Parts of it are more of an obstacle course so the cross country training from high school is getting some use.  Its at night, you'd be crazy to run when the sun is up, but its well lit.  At some locations during the run you feel like you might be in Florida whereas at other locations you could be on any road in Asia.

I start by crossing the street from the hotel to get on the right side of the road.  Literally the right side.  I don't know if I'm ever going to get used to crossing a street by looking right first and then left.  Anyway, the first quarter mile involves dodging protruding drain covers in the sidewalk, low hanging trees, sewer smells and a pretty large roundabout.  The next quarter mile you head past some large high rise condos and over a bridge where the salty smell of the ocean hits you full in the face.  Even though we're always on an island you tend to forget about it due to all the time we spend indoors.  The next landmark is a bunch of local seafood stalls that range in smells from "could be good" to "its time for that fish to get thrown out."  Probably because I run by them later in the evening.

The good new is, once you get past here, and hopefully you haven't tripped over an extension chord or hit your head on a road sign that is not too low for 99.9% of the people on the island, you're home free.  Traffic practically disappears at this point with the exception of a variety of scooters so you can just run down the middle of the road for a mile and half before you turn around.  This is the second time where you could convince me I'm in the US (the first being the high rise condos).  At this point you pass a huge development of million dollar homes that are sitting empty.  People are currently holding them for an investment.  Looks like it will be a nice lush neighborhood if anyone actually does move in.  At their current rate of occupancy though, the jungle might swallow the homes up first.

Once you hit the marina with a boat on gigantic sawhorses that looks like the boat Andy Dufresne bought in Mexico at the end of Shawshank Redemption its time to turn around and head back.  The nice part about running outside is you don't really have to warm up because your body is always loose.  The bad part is once you finish you can walk for 20 minutes and still not stop sweating.  I don't think the people around the mall were real impressed me with when I got done, but what can you do?  The owner of the Persian Restaurant I like still invited me to come eat pre-shower (I politely declined) and went back to guzzling water.  I need to find a coconut stand now for some post run hydration.

Off for a swim now - believe it or not, need to give the legs a rest.  Hoping to find some fun running routes in the next year or so in places other than Penang that I can highlight.

12/2/12 - 2nd Phuket Honeymoon

Almost exactly 2 years ago we spent 11 amazing days kayaking in sea caves, riding on elephants, taking Thai cooking classes and just staring at the ocean for hours while staying at Mai Khao beach on the northwest side of Phuket for our honeymoon.  The last day we were there we spent hours walking on the beach just trying to soak it all in and hoping it wouldn't end.  I'll never forget how we were in our car headed back to the airport to fly home and we both commented how lucky we were and agreed it was probably a once in a lifetime trip.  Who would have known that 18 months later we would be living in Singapore and Thailand would suddenly be just a short flight away.  With the first semester of school finished and half of this adventurous couple getting ready to head home for the holidays it seemed like a good time to make a weekend escape, especially when it ended up being the second anniversary of our honeymoon in Thailand. 

To get there 2 years ago we had to fly from Minneapolis to Detroit to Seoul to Phuket.  It took 24 hours, but sacrifices had to be made in the name of using free tickets from Delta.  The mode of transportation was a little different this time.  I can now cross "flying in a prop" plane off my bucket list.  At least none of the mechanics were duct taping the propeller blades together like they did to the Cleveland Indians plane in Major League before take-off.  The flight was actually smoother than a regular plane and I got some sweet photos out the window so call me a fan.

We had previously stayed on the north side of the island because it is quieter and more relaxing and not nearly as developed as the southern part.  It was also the best place to use my Marriott points.  Marriott had recently opened up a brand new Renaissance about a mile down the beach from where we had stayed before so we decided to check it out.  Since we would only be spending a weekend this time it was nice to be closer to the airport and only have a 15 minute taxi ride vs.  an hour for much of the rest of the island.  Plus my gold status is on the endangered species list so we wanted to take advantage of it before the year was over.

In this case..... upgrade!  We got moved from a regular room to a villa with our own plunge pool.  We spent most of the time on the beach, but sure was nice to have it just sitting out your back porch.  One night there was music on the beach so we just opened the windows up and had our own private concert while sharing the wine we were given as part of our "2nd Honeymoon Package."  Free wine and cake - seems like we'll be having our 3rd Honeymoon there before you know it.  Can you take a 3rd Honeymoon?  Seems like a good idea to me.  We really were taken care of on this trip.  I'm almost tempted to start writing TripAdvisor reviews solely based on how well we were treated at the hotel.

We didn't do any side trips this time.  The theme for the weekend was relaxation and with hour long massages on the beach costing less than $15 you know where Sarah spent some of her time.  There was a happy hour from 5-6 so you could watch the sun go down over the Andaman Sea and then head back to the room to wash the sun and sand away.  The first night we got to dig our toes into the sand while they grilled our steak, snapper and tiger prawns 15 feet away.  The second night we were feeling extra happy so it was off to happy hour the sequel at the lobby lounge overlooking the palm trees.  It got even better with an acoustic guitar playing, lightning flashing off in the distance and was a perfect way to close out the night.  

Leaving after 48 hours was not the easiest thing to do, but it sure is nice to know it isn't a 24 hour flight away anymore.  I would say the odds are good another Phuket post will find its way in here before we permanently head home.

11/25/12 - Best Mexican Food in Singapore

I know I've made this complaint before, but its worth repeating.  You just can't seem to find great Mexican food over here.  We're about halfway down the path of doing our due diligence on the subject before I can make a final conclusion so perhaps consider this a mid-way checkpoint.  El Patio in Holland Village is good. Cha Cha Cha in Holland Village, meh.  North of the Border in Rochester Park is good, even if they are trying to call themselves an Arizona restaurant - who ever heard of such a thing?  There are a variety of Senor Taco's around - they're OK, but have essentially the type of taco or burrito you would get if you turned an 8 year old loose in the kitchen.  Rumor has it there is a Baja Fresh in the Tanglin area, but we haven't tried it yet.  Baja Fresh in the US though, was in my opinion, OK on a good day, mediocre on an average day and then there was always the occasional unpleasant surprise on the real off days.

So what did we do to finally combat this issue?  Made some Mexican food at home!  I mean, the ingredients aren't exactly found in the exotic location of the grocery store.  Even if they were, aren't we living in the exotic section of the grocery store?  We had to attack this in a two prong approach.  Lots of expats living in the Holland Village area so Sarah stopped at the Cold Storage there on her way back from school.  She was able to find tortillas, the familiar Ortega Taco seasoning, some black beans, cheese, lettuce and even chips and salsa.  Apparently the salsa was from Mexico.  I guess that's what happens when you are importing everything.  I think we had only had Archer Farms Salsa for the past 3 years, so not a bad change of pace.

Per usual, I crossed the street to the market to see what I could hunt down.  This is the part that still bewilders me (although maybe it really does mean there isn't demand for this type of food) almost everything you need is grown in region.  I was able to find some great fresh tomatoes, peppers, onions, limes and avocados.  Of course I was talked into some of the tiniest bananas that I have ever seen that also turned out to be sweetest bananas I've ever eaten.  Almost had a citrus taste to them as well.  Made for a healthy dessert.

Anyway, we reconvened in the kitchen (which is finally getting used for a little more than making coffee) where we already had some rice on hand as well as our "meat."  We still haven't crossed the Rubicon in terms of meat purchases at the grocery store....maybe next year.  Besides, Sarah had found a recipe for lentil tacos that we wanted to try.  It took the lentils a little longer to cook than browning meat, but we had to wait on the rice cooker as well, so not a big deal.  Can't really argue with the end result, right?  Especially when you can help yourself to "thirds."


We only had Asahi - giant cans seem to be perpetually on sale for $8.95 and you get about 4 beers out of them. A Corona at the restaurant would have been $9.  So not only was the food better than we have found to date (don't worry - we'll keep looking and reporting) but it cost about 1/4 of what we would have paid to eat out.  Ah, we had leftovers too!  Which as we all know after just going through Thanksgiving is almost as important as the meal.  Its like the encore after a good concert.

11/23/12 - American Thanksgiving

We've been here a little over 4 months and it seems like every other week has been a different holiday.  Singapore National Day, Hari Raya Puasa, Deepavali and others.  While it has been fun to learn about the different cultures we are interacting with on a daily basis at some point you just want/need a taste of home.  In this case, literally.  Luckily there were signs that a big one was coming.  The weather may not have been changing (it never really does here) but there was Christmas music in the airport, "winter flavors" at Starbucks and Cold Storage had an endcap full of items to make pumpkin pie.  Christmas may be closing in, but you have to go through Thanksgiving to get to it.

Could there really be a more American holiday than Thanksgiving - setting aside the obvious comment about pilgrims for the moment?  The whole point of the holiday seems to have turned into seeing how much food you can eat before passing out in front of the TV with a football (American Football that is) game on, then waking up thinking "hmmm, time to eat again, I only had two helpings of dessert last time."  If you're really hardcore you even go change into some "comfy pants" to help the cause out.  To top it all off one of the biggest shopping days of the year that previously started the day after Thanksgiving now starts Thanksgiving evening.  And you know what?  Even with all that (and maybe because of it) it has always been one of my favorite days of the year.

We of course couldn't spend it with family this year, but we were lucky enough to have some good friends hosting a large group for Thanksgiving dinner.  Each of us had been assigned to bring a dish to pass and since Sarah is in the throes of finals week I pulled cooking duty for our family of two.  This is how I found myself laughing at the absurdity of me pealing potatoes on the porch on 90 degree Thursday afternoon, wearing shorts and a t-shirt, listening to PTI podcast discussing the biggest sports turkeys of the year.  Don't ask me why, but we had actually packed a potato masher.  So other than having to purchase some dairy products from the store (which we had not yet done in all the time we have been here) I was all set to crank out some garlic mashed potatoes.

When we arrived it was almost overwhelming to see the amount of food that had been spread out.  This was great from an eating standpoint, but all of Sarah's school friends had been highly intrigued by Thanksgiving dinner.  Now we had full photo documentation of all the trimmings.  Even though most of the people there weren't American everyone had gotten it right.  Turkey, multiple garlic mashed potatoes (one being ours) cranberries, green bean casserole, broccoli casserole (Paula Dean style so you know its good for you) multiple stuffing (one being a southern chicken recipe) sweet potatoes and then the desserts!  Someone brought a cake that looked waaaaaaaaay too much like a turkey.  Yes, the photo at the top is actually a cake!  I mean we're talking cake boss level of talent.  Pumpkin pie and pumpkin cheesecake - amazing.

We practically rolled home afterwards (above was plate #2).  There is no way either one of us had eaten that much since our going away party in the States.  We left with a prize though.... leftovers!  One of the best parts about Thanksgiving and we were able to continue that tradition here.  A few weekend meals that only involved a microwave and a taste of home besides, doesn't get much better than that.

Lots to be thankful for this year.  New friends, good health and new adventures.  Good luck to all those shoppers back home - some of whom are probably done already.

11/18/12 - This is why we work...

We hit another busy stretch on the work front so it was time to spend the weekend in Penang again.  Last time after we were done working on Saturday we had headed up to Georgetown for dinner and drinks.  That was the furthest I had been in terms of heading around the island.  If Penang were a clock, the island is really only developed from noon to 6 o'clock.  From 6 o'clock on the terrain is hillier, more jungle, agricultural, etc.  It also isn't as protected from tsunamis so yes, I'll be sticking to the right side of the clock.  Starting at the bottom of the island, from 6 o'clock to 3 o'clock is where we work and is a mix of residential and industrial sites as well as the airport. 3 o'clock to 1 o'clock is Georgetown with all the historic sites, shops, restaurants, houses etc.  Where we headed this time on Saturday after work was the 1 o'clock to noon area on the clock...... the beach!

Penang isn't exactly known for great beaches.  If you're looking for that in this area of SE Asia you need to take the 20 minute flight to Langkawi or an hour north to Phuket.  The crazy part is it took us 45 minutes to drive up here, so you almost could be at your hotel in Langkawi faster than driving to a hotel here.

Side note - The real reason we had to get out of the free trade zone area is this weekend is the Penang Bridge Marathon.  This of course starts at 2 AM because it is so hot and humid the rest of the day.  It starts right outside our normal hotel, heads north, goes part way over the bridge towards the mainland, and then comes back to end right by our hotel.  So if we would have stayed put we likely would have been up from 2 AM onwards due to the noise.  I actually lucked out in a weird way.  Because of the marathon our hotel wasn't able to give me a room on Saturday evening so for awhile I didn't even have a place to stay this weekend (and wasn't informed of this until I had checked in on Monday of course).  The logical solution seemed to be to get as far away from the race as possible.  This is where the beach hotel entered stage right.

Hopping out of the taxi at the Rasa Sayang made you feel like you really were on a different island.  Lush vegetation, waves crashing in the distance and no more cars honking and scooters weaving in and out of traffic.  To top it all off, the best restaurant on the island, the Feringgi Grill, is at the hotel.  That in and of itself is worth the drive.  They have certain items on the menu that they prepare tableside (and mac and cheese as a side dish option!).  So if you get a caesar salad, tomato soup for an appetizer (which we did) they make it right in front of you.  Once you start down that path you might as well get your steak carved in front of you and then top it off by having some banana crepes flambed next to you as well.  Finally if you want that after dinner drink they just wheel the bar right on over.  Great food and service all around.

All in all, after a solid week of a work it was a good reminder of why we do what we do.  Hard to complain about the long hours and travel when you get the opportunity to spend 36 hours in your own little tropical paradise for part of the weekend.  Now if you'll excuse me, I need some more hammock time before hitting the ground running on again on Monday.

11/10/12 - Singapore Botanic Gardens

I spent more time in Singapore this past week than I had for awhile as both business and side trips have been taking me out of the country the past month. What I had not fully appreciated was we essentially have a three alarm system in the morning to make sure we get up in time for work and school. One, around 6 AM some type of tropical bird starts making a noise that kind of sounds like one of the "Wooo Girls" from How I Met Your Mother.  Depending on what locale of our condo complex that bird settled down in after a night of partying depends on the decibel level that gives you your first notice that the sky is getting juuuuuuust a touch grayer outside.  Two, around 6:30 AM (after you've finally fallen back asleep from the first avian intruder) a good old fashioned rooster does what Mother Nature trained him to do when he sees first light.  This doesn't last too long, but you've essentially done the equivalent of hitting the snooze button because 15 minutes later your phone starts blasting out whatever ringtone seemed like a good idea for an alarm.

With finals studying beginning I found myself with some quality me time around the place this afternoon and decided to go in search of our early morning intruders.  You see, we live not much more than a solid drive off the first tee from the Singapore Botanic Gardens.  I thought there might be at least a chance one of these intruders to my sleep was residing there.  Not that I could really do anything about it, but  isn't knowing the enemy half the battle?

I needed fuel first though.  Not having a personal Mr. Fusion device to get me going I made a quick swing through the Empress Market.  I'd been meaning to try a chicken curry puff for some time now, and this seemed like as good of a time as any.  I was also going through sugar cane juice withdrawal so what better way to kill two birds with one stone (pun intended).  These things are dangerous, I mean, how could a flaky pastry full of chicken, gravy and vegetables not be good?  I could eat about 10 of them, plus the lady running the stand was really friendly.  They reminded me of the "Hot Pocket Pot Pies" we used to eat in college on our way to class.  After realizing this and then internally making a few Jim Gaffigan jokes to myself (and grinning like an idiot at how clever I thought I was) I was off again.

The gardens really do have a lot to see.  The National Orchid Garden is there where recently an orchid had been named for Princess Kate when her and William swung through Singapore.  I almost went over there, but decided I better save that for a visit when I wasn't flying solo.  I wandered through the Evolution Garden - they have different set-ups for how the Earth looked like when plants first started right up through the present day.  Then came the Rainforest Walkway in which they had left a portion of the park the way Singapore used to look like before all the modern conveniences popped up.  I happened to be listening to a "Stuff You Should Know" podcast (highly recommend subscribing - its free) during my walk so the timing was pretty eerie.  I'd hear about how the soil quality in the rainforest is poor so instead of trees putting down deep roots they will shoot out extra trunks to stabilize themselves and then all of a sudden a tree with multiple trunks would appear in front of me.

So I'm seeing all these cool plants and flowers, but no wildlife.  Finally, hot, tired and ready to potentially score some more sugar cane juice I happened across this guy and thought "maybe he's been the one tormenting me in the morning"?  Turns out black swans sound like a bugle, which come to think of it would be way worse than our current noise pollution.  In terms of tracking down our morning culprits - no dice.  In terms of a nice outdoor activity close to home - not a bad Saturday afternoon at all.  Plus I found some more cheap, good food across the street.  Everything's coming up Milhouse..... until 6 AM tomorrow. Lets hope the trees at the other end of the block look more inviting.

11/4/12 - Mango Madness!

For some reason whenever I'm cutting up a mango to eat I always think of either Chris Kattan playing "Mango" on Saturday Night Live (the best one being when he rebuffs Garth Brooks advances) or the mango episode in Seinfeld when Kramer gets banished from the fruit shop and George has to buy his fruit for him.  In doing so George uses the power of the mango to get his game back, so he wins in the end (sort of, watch the episode).  Kramer is still stuck relying on others to procure produce for him and in the end, is still Kramer.  Who would have thought one fruit could show up in so many comedic situations?

The tasty predicament we found ourselves in this weekend was that Australian Mangoes were on sale at Cold Storage for $6.99 (normally between $10 and $11) whereas the Thai Mangoes I buy at the Empress Market are $6.99 per kilo.  As is going to become readily apparent, I buy this fruit on a regular basis.  Its amazingly flavorful and good for you (Vitamins A, B, C, E and too many other benefits to count).  Basically you get the benefits of apples, oranges and carrots all at once, except its sweeter than all of them.  Outstanding.  Now the only issue I have is where to look for them regularly, grocery store or market?  Lets run it down.

Size
The photo doesn't do it justice, but the Australian mango in the middle was the size of a large softball whereas the Thai mangoes on either side are longer, skinnier and about half the size.  So at least in our sample one Australian mango = two Thai mangoes.  In this case that would be a tie due to price, but since the Australian one was on sale we'll give a slight edge to Thailand.
Advantage - Slight Thailand

Country of Origin
This is a tough one.  We did just spend a great weekend in Bangkok and love the beaches in Phuket, but we haven't been to Australia yet, so tough to make that comparison.  Do you go to music then?  Men at Work's song 'Down Under' is pretty good, but its no 'One Night in Bangkok.'  Movies?  Crocodile Dundee I and II (lets pretend the III didn't happen, I know I have) are much better than The Beach or Hangover II.  Animals?  You can't really ride a kangaroo or a koala bear like you can an elephant.  This could go on for awhile.....
Advantage - Push.

Ease of Obtaining
There is a Cold Storage one MRT stop away in both directions.  Getting to the MRT is all of about 10 seconds faster than the Empress Market and you can enjoy some free air con for awhile.... on the train and in Cold Storage.  However, I can be to the Empress Market and back twice in the time it would take to go to the grocery store.  Plus, I can get some banana prata or dumpling ramen at the market.  I'm leaning Thailand.
Advantage - Slight Thailand

Preparation
One of the downsides to eating a mango is its a mini disaster to prepare.  There are pits in the middle that really really really don't want to come out.  Plus, with the fruit being so juicy, once you start cutting into it its like trying to hold onto a greased watermelon (only you're holding onto a knife that could cut your finger off).  The Australian pit was more round like a peach core whereas the Thai pits were long and skinny, kind of like arrowheads or spear points (I've been reading too much Game of Thrones).  Although you could peel the Thai Mangoes, getting the round pit out was easier and I didn't feel like the fruit was going to jump out of my hands and hit the ceiling at any point.  If that were to happen we'd be fighting an ant war in the kitchen for months.
Advantage - Solid Australia

Taste
Probably the most important factor when you get right down to it, but in this case, you'd be splitting hairs.  Each was sweet, juicy, and you felt like you were eating dessert instead of something that was good for you. Can we find a way to put mangoes in vending machines in the US instead of candy bars?
Advantage - Push

Wrap-Up
So where does this whole exercise get us?  It depends on what you think is the most important characteristic  but since we have effectively eliminated taste (both were great) the laziness factor really kicks in. If I can be across the street and back in half the time (and pick up some greasy, fried banana prata because I bought some fruit and assuaged my conscience) plus consistently pay the same price or less - well Empress Market will be maintaining my business..... as long as my inner Kramer doesn't come out and I get banished.

11/3/12 - Delivery, Duty Free and American TV

Living in Singapore you really are lucky to have a lot of entertainment options within a short distance of where you live.  I mean, it has to be a short distance, the whole island is only a shade under a standard marathon course across.  We are only a 30 minute MRT ride away from dinner in Little India, shopping in China Town, window shopping on Orchard Road, or bars and restaurants in Clarke Quay, Dempsey Hill, Holland Village, Club Street.... the list goes on.  I mean, the Botanic Gardens are literally just outside our back porch.  Sometimes though, after a day of school work, actual work or just being at home doing household chores, you are feeling lazy.  What does that mean? It means its time for a "Delivery, Duty Free and American TV" evening, not unlike what a lazy weekend back home might be.  In this case its 80 degrees, humid and raining vs. 10 degrees, freezing and snowing.

Step 1.  Find a place that actually will deliver dinner.  This isn't as easy as you might think.  Sure there are the guys from McDonalds who have their scooter delivery, but in my mind that is a better breakfast laziness option.  I'm still shocked this isn't prevalent in the US.  I mean, couldn't McDonalds add 5% in growth just by paying people to deliver breakfast on all the college campuses in the country?  Is this a millionaire dollar business idea that needs to be pitched on a reality TV show?  Anyway, the easiest option, consistent with the US is pizza.  And Robin Scherbatsky would be proud of the best pizza delivery option (cue the "Lets go to the Mall" music) Canadian Pizza.  Its always buy one get one free and they are never going to be able to change that.  Its been immortalized in their delivery number.  Apparently Dominoes gives you a buy one get one free coupon when they are late delivering your pizza (which they always are - standard wait time is 90 minutes) but this allows you to take advantage of the free pizza immediately.  FYI - its not really free, they just jack the price up so you're paying for 2 regular pizzas, but they deliver, its hot when it gets here and it tastes OK, so you can't complain too much.

Step 2 - Duty Free.  You stayed home, so even though you ordered food you're already saving money by not purchasing drinks that have a 400% sin tax surcharge on them.  However, you still want to have a few drinks (it is the weekend after all) so what do you do?  Make sure you hit up the duty free shop on your way back into the country.  Bangkok last weekend was a great trip, and it even gave us a little thank you on the way home.... normal priced alcohol options in the airport!  So tonight we were able to make our new favorite cocktail, the Moscow Mule.  Its one of the original cocktails and shows you what happens when you let 3 guys sit around a bar at 2 PM in the afternoon in Manhattan with nothing better to do (and only 3 ingredients on hand).  They combine vodka, limes and ginger beer together and somehow it works.  Very refreshing and perfect for a hot, tropical day/evening (and you didn't pay $12 for one at the bar).

Step 3 - American TV. You have an iPad?  Check.  What you need next is one of these little miracle workers.  We picked it up in Target before we left the States, but I'm sure they are sold elsewhere.  It lets you plug your iPad into your TV so you can watch your shows on a normal sized screen.  Thanks to some good friends that will remain nameless, but will get big hugs when we come home to visit, we have a mini library of some of our favorite American shows.  Trust me, when Don Draper has a drink on Mad Men, we raise our glasses in cheers to you.  Thanks guys.

So there you have it, the three keys to a nice, lazy, American style weekend in Singapore.  Tomorrow is Mango Madness.  Comparing Australian Mangoes to Thai Mangoes.  Intrigued?  You should be... either way it will be a delicious competition.

10/27/12 - One Night in Bangkok (Encore - The Deck)

Well we had to eat again :).  We took this trip for some great food, cheap drinks as well as some sightseeing.  This dinner let us combine all three of them.  Thanks to our friends a Tripadvisor again it was back into the heart of Bangkok to eat at "The Deck" a restaurant on the bank of the Chao Phraya River, just across from Wat Arun (temple of the dawn).

Our taxi driver didn't exactly know where he was going so he dropped us off at a pier on the river.  We walked to the end of the pier, past a bunch of trinket shops, looked down at the water, didn't see a restaurant, so turned around and walked back.  At this point we were starting to wonder exactly how we were going to find this place when one of the "Tourist Police" walked up to us and asked where we were going.  Not sure if other cities are doing this as well, I know I saw something similar in Minneapolis, but he sure was helpful.  Turned out we were less than a 2 minute walk away, so feeling confident in the direction we were headed, we were off again.

The Deck had 4 different levels including the bar on top and we ended up with a place on the third deck with only 6 other people.  Solely based on the food the P Kitchen from the night before probably won the weekend battle.  In terms of dinner (more spring rolls, satay, vegetables and pineapple fried rice), dessert (homemade coconut, strawberry and blueberry ice cream) as well as the view.... I could get talked into it calling it a draw.  Pretty easy to get sucked into that view alone.  You felt like you were looking at an Asian Eiffel Tower.

After dinner while searching for another taxi we finally got taken advantage of as tourists (that we know of at least).  The driver wanted 400 baht to take us back to the hotel when we had just paid 100 baht to get to dinner.  The funny part is, both Sarah and I exchanged a look and then said "Fine" at the exact same time.  Maybe it was because we were full of ice cream, maybe it was the second Tom Collins we each ordered with dinner, or maybe it was because it was only about a $9 difference.  I think ultimately we each considered it to be a goodwill gesture to Bangkok at the end of a jam packed, fun filled weekend.  We'll be back again, didn't have time for that 2 hour massage after all, so best to leave the city on good terms.

10/27/12 - One Night in Bangkok (part deux)

Since this was only a weekend trip we couldn't be our usual lazy selves and sleep the day away.  At least Bangkok is an hour behind Singapore and Malaysia so we picked up some time that way.  The Grand Palace was also nice enough not to open until 9:30, so there didn't seem to be much of a point in getting there early.  With another trip to the lounge behind us (yes, we're lounge people..... hotel, airport, doesn't matter) and stomachs full of omelettes with Thai Hot Chilies and croissants that were as big as my hand (with chocolate sauce of course) we felt ready to tackle the city.  A quick stop at the concierge to confirm our itinerary (two thumbs up) and we set off with the camera to behave like tourists.

First stop was the Grand Palace.  This took awhile to get there as there was a "Red Shirt Rally" going on.  By rally I mean hundreds of people in cars, trucks, and motorcycles all wearing red, yelling slogans and streaming down one of the roads.  Unfortunately we needed to cross that specific road to get where we were going.  Our taxi driver actually apologized (super nice guy) but it was pretty interesting to see the political process in action as well as the group that almost derailed our honeymoon to Phuket two years ago.  We were told a "Yellow Shirt Rally" was going to be Sunday, but never did find out if that happened.  At the very least it didn't impede our trip to the airport.

We knew that we were going to have to borrow some clothes as you cannot have bare legs or shoulders in the palace complex.  Even though the monarchy stopped living here in the '30s the rules are still pretty strict as it is still used for official functions and of course is a major cultural/historical site.  Luckily you can put a 200 baht deposit down for each article of clothing you need and you get it back when you leave.  This is how I ended up wearing this sweet pair of pajama pants for a few hours in the 90 degree heat.  If you think they fit.... well c'mon, but beggars can't be choosers. Besides, I wasn't going to walk around in jeans in that heat all day.  I actually didn't realize how much warmer it was with them on until we were leaving and I felt like I had stepped into a refrigerator just by wearing shorts again.

Lots of temples, statues, really intricate art work.  Much better photos than this sitting on the camera at home.  They may make their way into some future posts.

Feeling sufficiently more cultured it was time to do some bargain hunting at the weekend market.  This was on the other side of the city, but we were able to negotiate what seemed like a fair price with a driver for a direct route.  Anytime you got in a taxi that didn't start from your hotel they wanted to take you somewhere on the way (some type of shop) so they could get a bonus for themselves.  It was almost like buying a direct flight vs. having a layover somewhere. It was only a hundred baht or so to avoid the stop, but it helps having a professional negotiator with you.

The Chatuchak Weekend Market is just ridiculous.  Words and photos cannot do it justice.  Stall upon stall of everything under the sun.  Its like they took the Mall of America, made it one floor, outside, and turned the AC off.  Even then, that might not be big enough.  If you can't find it there, it doesn't exist.  Food, furniture, household goods, clothes, pets (if you don't think we dawdled by the multiple puppy stalls you don't know us very well) everything. We wandered aimlessly for about 2 hours trying to find a small souvenir for our apartment and finally settled on a miniature Buddha head.  You wouldn't think that would be hard to find, but for some reason we were struggling with finding a good one.

Hot, dehydrated and getting a little hungry, we needed some internal fuel to get back to the hotel.  One of the many great parts about Thailand is there seems to be a coconut vendor within your field of vision at all times.  We each scored one for ourselves, at 30 baht ($1) why not?  Coconut water is supposed to have more electrolytes than Gatorade and I sure felt better after this.  Besides, you get to watch someone use a machete to hack the top off of it.  Overall, successful shopping trip for multiple reasons.  Back to the hotel (which was turning out to be pretty awesome, great room, great lounge, great pool) to kick back and relax a bit before dinner.

10/26/12 - One Night in Bangkok (part 1)

Ok - it was actually 2 nights in Bangkok, but no one ever wrote a song called "2 Nights in Bangkok."  We hadn't taken a trip in over a month and the travel bug had set in again so off we went to Thailand.  Sarah and I were actually coming from 2 different places so we had to meet in the airport in Bangkok.  Luckily Air Asia recently began landing in Don Mueang International Airport vs. Suvarnabhumi International Airport.  Its kind of like flying into Midway vs. O'hare in Chicago.  Still a hassle, but not nearly as much.  Plus, in this case you don't have to worry about an icy runway being too short and your plane sliding through a barrier fence.  An even bigger plus is upon arrival you have a familiar face to say "Sawatdee" to you.  Ah globalization.

I got there first and after cruising through the non-existent immigration line had about half an hour to kill so I popped open the 3rd Game of Thrones book and opened up a bag of Peanut M&M's.  Two quick sidebars.  One, if you travel regularly like I do, carrying a 900 page book with you at all times is a big help, especially this series.  If nothing else, check out the show on HBO. Two, have you ever stopped to think about how good Peanut M&M's really are?  I mean chocolate, peanuts, in bite size form?  Maybe its being out of the country, but I can see why the US troops practically demanded them back in the '40s. It really is the little things in life.

The immigration line may have been tiny, but the taxi line sure made up for it.  Half an hour later we were in the back of our bright pink taxi (Sarah enjoyed this) with the meter on and heading towards what we hoped was our hotel.  I had printed off the name of the hotel (JW Marriott - I'm a sucker for rewards points) but had forgotten to make sure the name was in Thai as well.  After some gesturing back and forth and both us and the driver repeating the name of the street about 10 times it seemed like we were on the same page and did get there about 30 minutes later.  This was good timing as happy hour in the lounge went until 8:30 (it was 8 PM) and my Gold Status has about a two month shelf life left on it.  So before heading off for dinner we were able to enjoy some cool Singhas on the 16th floor terrace.  Cold beer in 85 degree weather is great, if its free too, well that's like having a cherry on top of your sundae.

Refreshed and rejuvenated it was time for taxi #2 to take us to dinner.  I really don't know what people did before Tripadvisor, but the #27 rated restaurant in Bangkok (out of 1510) was only a few kilometers from our hotel.  Of course with Bangkok traffic that meant 20-30 minutes, but still quite close.  We knew it was supposed to be a bit of a hole in the wall so when we turned down an alley and saw this it wasn't a total shock.  A plate of spring rolls and a large Singha for 150 baht (about $5) and we were sold.  The red curry, vegetables in oyster sauce and pad thai were pretty standard fare, but all well done with great flavor.  All in, food and drinks were less than $15, which may make eating Thai food in Singapore or the US seem a little steep going forward.








Dinner being done we successfully grabbed another taxi and with the hotel business card in hand (in Thai this time) we made it back to the room without a hitch.  Had to turn in early with the next day being a full blown tourist day - Grand Palace, Weekend Market, dinner on the river.