SF MoMA

Time for a little cultural refreshment today! I visited the Museum of Modern Art, and came away with a few pieces that I liked (which sometimes doesn't happen with modern art!).

Reminds me of a comics panel

Can someone with an art degree explain to me why
Mondrian is so pervasive? I see this everywhere!

By an Italian artist. Called "The Vexations of The
Thinker".

I always wonder how much skill is involved with
paintings like these. They appeal to me in some weird
way though; I like the symmetry and simplicity. This
one was huge; over 9x9 feet. Sitting in front of it, the
colors seemed to pulsate and glow... kinda cool.

Untitled piece by American Barry McGee. I liked the boldness and size
of the collective piece (random standing man photographed to give
size context). Individually, each picture was quirky and offbeat and fun.

The ceiling and floor are by two separate artists.
The lights overhead would spin according to the
visitor's movement, so the whole effect was very
dizzying and disorienting. I like immersive
installation pieces!

They had a Takashi Murakami piece up! I love his stuff; it's so overly
saccharine, but with an implied irony. It's cheerful and colorful but just
slightly menacing as well. Um. At least that's my take on it.

Close-up of one section. I would hang his pieces on my
walls at home... if I could afford it! But even prints
usually cost waaay more than I can afford.

Taking advantage of jetlag

The first few days I'm in a new time zone, I tend to not sleep well. The great upside to this is that I am much more willing than usual to get up early and see the sights. I took advantage of that this morning, and headed out for an early start.

San Francisco is well known for its love of fresh local produce. I headed over to one of the larger weekend Farmer's Markets for a quick look, and was greeted by beautiful displays of late summer fruits and vegetables. For the first time since arriving in San Francisco, I felt its charm as I strolled through the market. Lucky for me too, the vendors were really generous with samples; I thoroughly ate my way through the market, sampling tomatoes and plums and grapes and cheese (to name just a few).

Late season tomatoes

These were so sweet, I ended up getting a pound. Each one had a
distinctive flavor and texture; I couldn't decide which one I liked the best!

Did you know peppers came in this many colors?

Multiple varieties of figs were available

Beautiful wildflower blooms for sale

Huge plump eggplants and squashes

So many kinds of cheese!

There was an indoors section as well to the market. I love the sign for
this store! 'Tasty salted pig parts'... could anything be better than that?

There's a kit where you can grow your own mushrooms!

Three tiny perfect tomatoes

I tried this cute little California-based oyster. It was called Sweetwater,
and was really reminiscent of a briny, clean East Coast oyster. It was
extremely delicate, and had a slightly sweet finish.

After I had my fill of the market, I realized that it was still so early I should head over to the Wharf to visit the aquarium. It was a very small one, but I enjoyed seeing some of the exhibits featuring local marine life. There was also the requisite shark tunnel and jellyfish display, and I spent a pleasant hour and a half there. While I walked around, I realized why I liked aquariums so much. When you first look into a tank, it's tempting to just glance at it and walk on. But if you stop for a minute and stay still, you begin to notice more and more things in the display. A hidden fish will suddenly reveal itself, or a shell would move and you'd realize that a crab lived inside of it. This is a good parallel for life; in other words, stop and smell the roses!

I never get tired of looking at jellyfish!

I just had you for dinner three nights ago!!!! 

Is it bad that I keep thinking of sushi when I look at this guy?

Amazingly, it was still early when I left the aquarium. So I decided to take a short boat tour around the bay to get a closer look at some famous landmarks.

Famous sunning spot for harbor seals. They drew quite a crowd as they
frolicked and called out to one another.

Gettin' on a boat!

The fog really settled in as we passed by the Golden Gate Bridge. This
was the clearest picture I could get!

See? Completely foggy (but so artistic-looking, no?)

Alcatraz, the island where NO ONE escapes from!

The fog disappears closer to shore. Pretty skyline of the city.

At this point, I am tired! I feel like I've had a big dent in my 'to-do' list for the city, and am going to get a good rest tonight!

The trouble with walking uphill

... is that it is quite unpleasant to do in new boots. Seriously, San Francisco is weird, logically speaking. Who builds a city within so many hills?! I have to grab a nice steep picture for the blog; I can't believe that some people walk it every day.

soup in bread bowl and caesar salad.

One of many candy/chocolate shops on the Fisherman's Wharf

Also (not pictured) is dinner with an old worker. It was fun to catch up and have delicious food at the same time! And now jetlag is hitting and I can't keep my eyes open!

I can still speak English!!

I have arrived back in the United States! After a long, odd flight (I technically landed earlier than I when I left, due to time differences), I am now in San Francisco. I have never been to this city before, and am looking forward to roaming the (steep, hilly) streets. First order of the day though is to buy a jacket and some shoes; it is chilly here!

Goodbye Hong Kong

This trip has been flying by. It seems only like yesterday when I was feeling giddy about landing in London, and now I am on the home stretch.

Hong Kong will always be my original hometown. I didn't remember much of it from when I was a little girl, and so I wanted this visit to be about absorbing the city. Maybe Hong Kong is why I feel so at home in New York; I was born in a city and am a city girl at heart. Hong Kong is vibrant and crowded, and fascinating in a thousand ways. Even dirty streets and old buildings have their own story to tell; I have really enjoyed strolling around some of the more pedestrian neighborhoods and spending time with family.

Truth is, I am a little sad about leaving. It's funny that Southeast Asia made me feel American in a way I've never felt before, because Hong Kong makes me feel very Chinese.

I'll be back!! In the meantime, next stop: San Francisco.

Bye bye!

Last entry on Hong Kong food!

Tonight is my last evening in Hong Kong. I had managed to avoid weight gain throughout Europe and SE Asia... but I couldn't escape it in this food-filled wonderland. There's just so much to eat, it's a shame to not at least try a lot of it. As a matter of fact, as I sit here (after a very hearty dinner) writing this entry, I have a bag of something yummy next to me:

Can anyone tell what this is? It's crispy fried fish skin! Seriously, it
doesn't sound appetizing, but is better than chips!

There are two last meals that I wanted to write about that are worth remembering. The first is at Tai Ping Koon (太平館), a very old and established restaurant that was founded in 1860. Their specialties are dishes that have a Western bent to it... fusion cuisine from the 19th century! They claim to be the originators of Swiss sauce chicken wings, which is now a staple dish in many homes.

Ack! Sorry, bad picture! The sauce was salty and not too sweet,
 with a hint of caramelization from the sugar.
The wings were plump and cooked until tender.

Tai Ping Koon is also known for their Beef Chow Fun. It was a good rendition; slightly charred from the wok and full of flavor.

Yummy!

The second meal I wanted to remember was at Kings' Lodge (霸王山莊), a restaurant within the Olympian City shopping center. Their specialty is Shanghai food, including a delicious house-roasted Peking Duck!

Steamed dumplings, and cold cucumber salad

Cold chicken marinated with rice wine (literally, the dish is called
'drunk chicken'), and Shanghai noodle soup.

Hmm. I think this is the Shanghai version of headcheese. Compressed
pig head parts suspended in gelatinous goo. Eaten cold, this had a
great texture.

Shanghai soup dumplings. These were really soupy and had
a fantastic meaty flavor. The skin was also super delicate and thin,
which I like a lot.

HOW PRETTY IS THIS!?! Peking duck, sliced and ready to fold
into a pancake to eat. The skin was amazingly crispy, and the meat
was tender and flavorful. The remnant meat from the duck didn't go
to waste either; it was chopped up and made into another dish, which
we ate wrapped in lettuce leaves.

I think I could eat for a year in Hong Kong without making a dent into its culinary diversity. While I do miss good old NY style pizza, I have to give HK props for having a huge variety of food. Some impressively memorable dishes aren't even pictured in this blog... I admit that I may have forgotten to take my camera out once the food arrived! I will miss the wonderfully silky DouFuFa (豆腐花) at Kung Wo (公和荳品廠), an old tofu shop that has been open since the early 1900s. And I will miss the sweet dessert soups at Luk Lam (綠林甜品); my favorite ended up being the rather old-fashioned sweet potato and ginger soup.

Wait. Writing this made me hungry. Is it too late to get some for takeout right now?!? Hmm.......

Nothing but seafood

I just realized my most immediate current problem is that I'm eating way too many good meals to be able to blog about all of them. Wow, life is good. I have at least 2 more meals to write about, which will have to wait until another day... because tonight's dinner was AMAZING.

Dinner tonight was with my uncle and his family, and I have quickly realized that my family (on both sides) know how to EAT. I really have to thank them all for taking me to these great places that I otherwise wouldn't have a chance to go to.

Tucked away in Clearwater Bay, in a valley amidst the shadows of rocky hills is a small fishing community. The houses are modest, the air is quiet and clean... and if you walk to a certain area, there are a couple restaurants grouped together that is packed to the gills to local Hong Kongers. What are they eating? Why, only some of the freshest, most exotic-looking seafood around. I absolutely love shellfish, and I felt like a personal Disneyland was opened before my eyes.

Me, looking hungry.

HUGE selection of freshly caught seafood

Clams and lobsters and crabs!

These were freaky looking. Called 'Mantis Shrimp' in English (which is
much nicer than the Cantonese name). This is the BEFORE picture.

Mantis Shrimp, AFTER. Cooked in spiced salt, the meat was sweet and
reminiscent of lobster. But incredibly, this is almost BETTER than
lobster, because the meat is much more tender.

Clams in black bean sauce. The freshness of the clams made them
extra sweet and juicy!

Steamed razor clams, topped with garlic and bean threads.

Fresh abalone! Not sure how these were cooked, my mouth was
too busy chewing to ask.

Sliced geoduck sashimi. I couldn't believe that something so ugly
(seriously, google 'geoduck') could be so delicately tasty! The thin slices
were slightly chewy and sweet. The non-sashimi portion of the geoduck
was used to make a rice congee, which was so good that I ate two
bowls of it!

Fresh scallops, steamed with ginger and bean threads

Seaweed fried rice, mixed with roe. I only had a couple bites of this
because I was too busy with the congee.

Even the veggie dish had seafood in it!
Baby bok choy stir fried with squid.