Deliciously Roasted Gratitude

I may be living in Beijing, but today I celebrated my first American Thanksgiving. I went to Lily’s American Diner in Sanlitun with Liz and her co-teacher, Jessica. Our starter was a salad, followed by a turkey dinner and an apple pie for dessert. It was delicious and definitely a treat to have turkey, stuffing and cranberry sauce, as I won’t be returning home this Christmas for my traditional-roast-dinner-fix.

In the spirit of the event, I considered the things I feel thankful for. I have whittled it down to the following list:

• Having a loving family.
• Having great friends all over the world.
• Having a good and interesting job.
• The opportunity to travel to new places.
• Living in a place where I frequently experience/learn something new.
• Low pollution days!

It’s very easy to be happy and grateful for things, but sometimes the stress of everyday life can get in the way. I will try my best to take stock of my blessings!

Hôm nay tôi tổ chức Lễ tạ ơn. Hiện nay lễ tạ ơn được tổ chức vào ngày thứ Năm tuần thứ tư tháng 11. Bữa ăn Lễ tạ ơn có món gà tây quay mềm ngọt, béo ngậy.

感恩节快乐！

The whole world in a park

Last weekend, I visited Beijing World Park (北京世界公园 Běijīng shìjiè gōngyuán). 

Not since my students introduced me to Baigoogledu (a dual search engine simultaneously displaying the results from Baidu and Google; and more importantly sounding like a funky cockerel) had I felt so excited about a new and unknown China experience.

The park boasts replicas of famous landmarks and buildings from around the world. “What better way could you spend your weekend?” I hear you ask…I may need some more time to answer this question.

From the moment Liz and I arrived outside the park, an eager lady wielding a camera greeted us. “Hello! Photo!” she beamed, as she purposefully placed us together and individually for a number of shots. Then she disappeared while we bought our entry tickets. As soon as we made our way to the gate, we noticed the lady sprinting back in our direction. She was on a mission. Once she caught her breath, she hastily and proudly revealed two small photo keyrings. After our wonderful tacky souvenir from the Watermelon Museum, Liz and I knew we had unwittingly already gained our memento for our latest adventure.

Stepping into the park, I was more than happy to see that the usual drove of people appeared to be occupied elsewhere. The park was (by Beijing standards) very peaceful!

Eat your heart out, Phileas Fogg! Eighty days to travel the world?! Pah! I managed it in an afternoon. Following a brief stop in Moscow, I was stunned and distracted by a rather humorous sign. English errors are a common occurrence here; however this one is certainly a favourite of mine.

It seems that some of the landmarks are more impressive and preserved better than others. Of course, the replica of The Great Wall was quite striking.  
Travelling through Europe and the Americas, we passed by the pyramids in Egypt and finally took a welcome break in Africa. I sat down on an elephant while contemplating where to go next.

The White House!

The journey then took us on a trek through Asia and down to Australasia. 

Taj Mahal

Angkor Wat

It was only when we got closer to the exit that we realised we had not been to Rome and Italy. Thankfully we rectified this blunder. It may be a cliché, but this photo with the leaning tower of Pisa was a necessity.

Had to be done!

It was definitely an enjoyable day and each replica came with a short description of the landmark and location. I was happy to see a famous landmark from Hanoi and made sure to have my photograph taken next to the One Pillar Pagoda.

Leaving the park, Liz and I waved by to the camera lady who was still loitering and hoping for further victims. We walked towards the subway station and grabbed a couple of roasted sweet potatoes from a street vendor. Not bad for a Sunday afternoon! It was made even better when we managed to get seats on the long subway journey home! Score!

Om nom nom!

YES! Seat on the subway!

Tacky souvenir? YES!

Cuối tuần qua, tôi đã đi Công viên thế giới Bắc Kinh. Hay quá nhỉ! Tôi có thể đến thăm những cảnh đẹp nổi tiếng trên toàn thế giới, ở một công viên! Bạn có nhận nơi này không? =))

Shortumn and Kimcheese

I have always liked Autumn. So it is unfortunate that Beijing has long hot summers and cold dry winters, with a very brief Spring and Autumn. Autumn in Beijing, or “Shortumn” as I have now decided to call it, offers comfortable temperatures in which I don’t end up a hot sweaty mess or a cold shivering wreck.

Luckily, this year, Shortumn seems to be lasting a while longer which is a welcome surprise because the central heating in Beijing will not get turned on until November 15^th. When the air quality was good, I managed to take some photographs of the leaves changing colours. Beijing’s many parks are a beautiful place to be at this time of the year. With APEC preparations underway, people in Beijing can hopefully expect a short but happy period of clear blue skies.

A couple of weeks ago, I had a craving for kimchi (fermented cabbage dish), which I had not enjoyed since visiting South Korea during the summer holiday. So I was overjoyed to see that my local supermarket sells a kind of kimchi. I decided to pair it with something else I had been craving…cheese on toast! I feel that I may have created something quite wonderful here. I have dubbed this culinary masterpiece kimcheese on toast. Not one to brag, but the spicy and sour kimchi formed a happy partnership with the cooling properties of the melted cheese. There will be another story in a similar vein to this exciting development in a short while, but for now please view my delectable dish…

More recently, I visited Glasses City in Panjiayuan. I felt it was time to update my specs. There were so many glasses to look at, including some suspicious brands that could be referred to as “Calvin Clones”. Some shopkeepers were a little too pushy and there wasn’t much English spoken; however, if you take your glasses prescription or a pair of your own glasses, they will provide you with the correct lenses. I am now a proud owner of a new pair of glasses! Woohoo!

Later that day, some friends and I went to Palms LA Kitchen and Bar which is situated in Zhangwang Hutong. This restaurant specialises in…Mexican and Korean fusion food! Yes, my kimchi craving would be satisfied once more. The food was so tasty that I was unable to take any photographs because I was too busy eating. Perhaps it was a subconscious decision so that I will have to return in order to get evidence of the experience! The kimchi quesadillas were possibly even better than kimcheese on toast. My kimchi senses are tingling and telling me that a return visit is on the cards soon.

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Vào giờ này tháng sau, tôi đang đi du lịch ở Seoul để chúc mừng sinh nhật thứ 30 của bạn tôi.. Tôi thích các món ăn Hàn Quốc ☺Tôi yêu mùa thu!