Tan Tan Eel Restaurant

My idea of a nice eel dish is probably how it is served in Japanese restaurants: stewed till it is just right and drizzled with a thin layer of sweet sauce. In Hanoi, eel dishes are quite famous too. The eel meat is often deep fried before being placed in soup dishes or porridge.

M and I went to one of the eel restaurants today called "Tan Tan Eel". "Tan Tan" was the name of the owner's grandmother who used to sell eel dishes. Through diversification into the eatery business (the owner currently runs a travel agency), the owner hopes to make eel dishes more popular in Hanoi.

Quite a snazzy decor for a two storeyed restaurant...

The juice bar on the first floor

We both ordered the eel porridge as it was nice to have something warm during winter, and a pomelo salad to share. We also had a side order of "quay" or souffle batter, which is known as "you tiao" or fried dough fritters in Singapore. I liked the pomelo salad (the salads in Hanoi are really quite nice) for its crunchy texture and unique blend of sweet and sour sauce. The porridge was filled with herbs but the fried eel meat tasted only average. I guess my dislike for fried food affected my liking for the dish.

My eel porridge, looking pale in the dim lights

The pomelo salad and "you tiao"

The total meal (inclusive of 2 bowls of porridge, a salad, a side dish and 2 drinks) came up to VND 110,000 (we had a 20% discount) which is around SGD 10. Quite a good value meal but nothing spectacular in my opinion. But I admit I am a rather picky porridge eater and still very much miss the fish slice porridge in Singapore.

Tan Tan Eel
63A Hai Ba Trung
Hoan Kiem District
Open from 6am to 2pm; 5pm to 11pm
Tel: 04-242 3847

Sen Ha Thanh Restaurant

I went to Sen Restaurant for lunch with my friends today as one of them wanted to test the "authencity" of its Vietnamese cuisine before bringing her guests there. (Coincidentally, this was the same restaurant that M recommended when I asked him for suggestions the night before.) The restaurant is 3 storey high, with buffet served as levels 1 and 3. It was very crowded when we arrived so we could only get seats at level 2.

There was a queue outside the restaurant!

I like the signboard a lot...

This is what I call a GRAND entrance...

I was quite impressed by the interior decor and spaciousness of the restaurant. There were a couple of fairly nice paintings that brought a cheerful atmosphere to the eatery.

The picture here doesn't reflect it too well...
but this couplet stood out as we walked down the stairs

The variety of food is fairly wide with grilled items, small selection of Japanese cuisine, salad bar, Vietnamese selection of bun, mien (noodes) and banh (pies), dessert bar with fruits, cakes and Vietnamese che (sweet soups) and some stir-fried items like vegetables, rice and meat. I thought the Vietnamese selection was fairly good while stir-fried and Japanese items were so-so. I didn't try the grill selection though as I felt more herbivorous today but my friends agreed that it was nice. To me, the desserts were the most "beckoning". I was drooling over the yam soup and glutinous rice soup, and trying out the different variations of "mochis". Yums!

I like the Bun Oc here...

The desserts were yummy!

However, the service was not as good as we expected. K ordered a cup of earl grey tea and the waitress wrongly served her with mint tea, followed by Lipton tea. Eventually, she was told that they had run out of Earl Grey and she had to settle for Ginger tea. I was thinking, how can you run out of teas when the restaurant has just opened for lunch?

The cost of the buffet per pax came up to VND 198,000 (around SGD 19), which I consider to be expensive in Hanoi since most of the items were Vietnamese dishes. But it does seem to be a fairly popular place amongst the locals which surprised me. Personally, I thought the buffet at Brother's Cafe was more value-for-money but the ambience here is definitely better if you have guests coming by.

P.S. In case you are wondering, I took the above pictures after lunch which explained why the selection looked quite pathetic. The real selection was much more than shown.

Sen Ha Thanh
177 Bui Thi Xuan
Hai Ba Trung, Hanoi
Tel: 9744 192/93

圣诞节的惊喜

昨天，我收到了一份让我惊喜的圣诞节礼物。


真没想到哦！感觉甜滋滋的。开始以为是M的同事送的，所以只略看了一眼。后来方知是M下班后特地去买的，不知为何，那束花突然变得漂亮多了！


我自认不是爱花之人，所以惊讶的问他为何送花给我？他笑了笑，说因为我一直埋怨河内的圣诞节太平静了，所以希望能让我有个小小的surprise.


心里暗自笑了，原来木头也有开花的一天，真是守得云开见月明。:p

P.S. 谢谢你让我今年的圣诞多了一份窝心和感动！

Goodbye Princess N!

Princess N and her hubby are leaving Hanoi today after a short 4-day visit, so I went to send them off at the halal cafe in the morning (their friend was sending them off to the airport). It was a really short visit and I didn't have much time to catch up with her since her itinerary was packed, with many out-of-Hanoi tours. But still it was fun having friends here. I got Princess N a bouquet of purple flowers and she seemed to like it, which I was glad. I have never been a "flowers" person so I am not sure whether I chose the "correct" type of flowers for her.

It's really strange but I feel v down every time my friends leave. The last time I sent my friends off to the airport, I nearly cried when they walked into the immigration gate (the bystanders probably thought I was mad)! I felt the same way today too. It's like I wish I were back in Singapore with them...

Anyway, here's wishing Princess N and R a good flight back home!

Cafe Goethe at Goethe Institute Hanoi

M and I decided to enjoy western food as part of our weekend treat today so off we went to Cafe Goethe (located within the Goethe Institute). As the name goes, Cafe Goethe serves delicious and authentic German food in a nice, cozy environment.

As you step into Cafe Goethe...

You are greeted by a garden of colourful flowers...

When you turn right, you see a small cafe...

Located within a school...

And you feel like.. you are back in school! :)

As the weather was cool today, we sat at one of the tables outside. I was told that the pork dishes here were good so I decided to deviate from my usual fish and chicken orders. I had wanted the stuffed cabbage rolls but was told that it wasn't available. The waitress then recommended me the grilled pork cutlet with steamed rice and vegetables which I thought sounded good. M took the grilled pork sausages with mashed potatoes. We also ordered a soup each: M had ham with potato soup while I asked for seafood soup.

When the food arrived, they certainly looked as good as they tasted. Both our soups were not bad but I didn't find any particularly outstanding. I loved the grill sausage and mashed potatoes though. The grilled pork cutlet was delicious though a tad oily for the health-conscious me.

I almost forgot about taking the picture (see the big bite!)

The grilled pork cutlet (would be +++ good minus the oil)

The entire meal (including 2 soups, bread bowl, 2 main courses and 2 drinks) came up to VND 190,000 which is SGD 19. Definitely value for $ right? Only downside was that I felt unsatisfied because I didn't have my usual huge servings of vegetables. But then again, what do I expect at a German eatery!

Cafe Goethe
58 Nguyen Thai Hoc
Ba Dinh, Hanoi
(I forgot to check the opening hours but I assume it is open daily.)

Shots of Hanoi Old Quarters

N and her husband, R, came to Hanoi last Wednesday and I was really excited because I haven't seen her for a long time. It's really funny coz when we are together, we bicker a lot but I do miss her quite a bit when I don't see her.

Anyway, N and R managed to spare one day for me on Thursday to bring them sight-seeing around Hanoi. We went to the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum in the morning before heading off to the Old Quarters. I brought them to Hang Gai (where the silk stuff are sold), Hang Dao & Hang Ngang (to see some sports shirts) and Dong Xuan Market. We also dropped by the DVD stores in Hang Bac. It was fun browsing around though we didn't get anything much. Lunch was at a halal restaurant in Hanoi and the owner happened to be R's friend, which was quite amazing! The food was good and I especially enjoyed the teh tarik.

In the late afternoon, R wanted to try the Vietnamese coffee so I brought them to Highlands Cafe near Hoan Kiem. Not my top choice location but we didn't have a choice as M was using the car for work. :( Luckily, he enjoyed his coffee. While chatting, I took some photos of the crowded street scenes in Hanoi. This was the first time I am taking pictures despite having been there numerous times!

A common street sight in Hanoi (Hang Duong)

The bus terminal near Hoan Kiem Lake

At a traffic junction (minus the lights)

Look at the numerous motorbikes!

In the evening, we brought N and R to watch the water puppet show before having dinner together at the same halal restaurant. See how much we like the place? *grins* Will be dining with N and R again tomorrow night and really looking forward to catching up with them. They are off to Halong Bay and Tam Coc these few days so didn't have much chance to catch up with them. Hope that their tour in Northern Vietnam has been enjoyable... :)

Mi Han Quoc (Korean Noodles)

The past 2 days have been quite lonely for me because M comes home late from work (and it's really very late). It's strange but when he is around, I will always fight with him over TV or internet. Now that he is not at home, I actually miss the "squabbling". Yucks. I am beginning to sound lovesick. I guess this happens because we are overseas and have only each other. So when one party is not around, loneliness strikes hard.

Anyway, last Sunday was our first year wedding anniversary. We decided to have a mini-celebration by going out for lunch. My preference was always Japanese food but we decided to try something more interesting so ended up with Korean food.

The restaurant that M brought me to is near Fortuna Hotel. Initially, I thought there would be a variety of dishes that we could order so I was dreaming about all the sides dishes like tofu, kimchi, anchovies, etc. When I arrived, I realised that the restaurant's specialty is only hotpot! Sigh.. no side dishes.. There were a few different types of hotpot selection and we had some difficulty choosing because the menu was in Korean and Vietnamese. Finally, with our combined efforts of terrible Vietnamese, we chose the mushroom hotpot.

We were served two side dishes of kimchi vegetables which were quite nice, and a small hotpot of mushroom with vegetables. The hotpot came with a huge serving of noodles and a big bowl of rice topped with a raw egg plus spring onions. M and I kept wondering what we were supposed to do with the rice.

Being the smart aleck, I told M that based on my cooking experience, the rice should be mixed with soup from the hotpot and stirred before eating. Lo and Behold. The moment I scooped a spoonful of rice from the bowl, I heard a terrified scream from the Korean owner who was standing near our table. He waved his hand fervently and kept saying, "No, no, no, no!" The Vietnamese waitress came forth hurriedly and sprung a string of Vietnamese instructions, beyond my level of comprehension. Surprised, I looked at him and asked, "So what am I supposed to do?" It was then that they understood they were talking to two non-Vietnamese (a little explanation here, M and I are often mistaken for Vietnamese when we go out. Especially me. I have been told by both fellow Singaporeans and locals that I look exactly like a Vietnamese girl. Beats me.) The Korean owner then spewed out "Eat soup, vegetables. No rice. Rice later." So.. the rice was meant to be eaten later. Alright.. so M and I continued to eat our hotpot while the waitress IMMEDIATELY took away the bowl from our table. I had to endure the sniggles from M subsequently.

When we were almost done with the hotpot, the waitress came back with the bowl of rice and kept pointing to it. We just nodded mechanically. Then we watched as she emptied the contents of the hotpot into another bowl and took the hotpot away, together with the rice. She came back 5 minutes later with fried rice in the hotpot. Ahhh.. so the rice was meant to be fried in the hotpot. But I think my way of eating the rice would be equally nice.. not sure why they refused to let me try. :p

After our meal, we were served cinnamon tea which tasted a little sweet for me. M was impressed with the tea though and kept asking me whether I could make it for him at home. I was like.. err.. I don't even like it. So I placed the ball into his court again by saying that I would try once he got the cinnamon. Ha ha.. this worked perfectly because I knew there was no way he could get it. He doesn't know where.

The bill came up to VND 100,000 (approx. SGD 10) and we thought it was very cheap. I would say I was not that impressed with the food due to my earlier heightened expectations but the service was good. I would probably try other Korean restaurants the next time.

Mi Han Quoc
8B Lang Ha, Ba Dinh, Hanoi

Happiness

It had been close to 3 weeks (gasps!) since I last blogged and the reason for my cyberspace disappearance was simply I went back to Singapore. It's always a delight to go back and honestly, nothing thrills me more than catching up with my family and friends in my country - food comes a close second.

This time, when I came back to Hanoi, I realised a change in me. I was not as sad and forlorn when I left Singapore and instead, look forward to coming back. The main reason is obviously because M is here. But other reasons that tie me down are firstly, my friends here and the fact that I am learning to appreciate (instead of resent) the differences between Hanoi and Singapore.

Compared to Singapore, Hanoi is far from being a metropolitan city. There are hardly any high rise buildings here.. roads are dirty.. the air is often dusty and polluted.. and the sales people hardly know anything about service standards. But Hanoi is not without its charms (think lakes within the cities, pretty and slim Vietnamese gals :) and unique architecture). But what impresses me most is the ability of Hanoians to get things done the way they want despite having very little, and being able to make do with what they have.

On my way home from the airport, I saw several make-shift tents set up at the side of the road and it didn't take me long to realise that the weekend flea market was taking place soon. Though there are no proper stalls nor decorations, Hanoians have learnt to make use of what they have (like mobile tables and chairs) to create a joyful carnival atmosphere. And crowds will flock to these places to browse through the stalls and enjoy the local snacks, prepared on charcoal stoves and wire mesh.

When I was walking to gym this morning, I saw a young mother playing with her child by the roadside. The child was chuckling in delight as she played with a bamboo stick, water puppet and rattan chair. (Note: no transformers or Barbie dolls here.) Further down the road, I saw a few men fishing by the lake, despite having construction work going on right next to them. (Note: no complaints about the ongoing loud construction. It's the "you drill what you want while I fish what I want" mentality.) When I was going home, I saw two girls standing by the road, with a luggage bag, waiting for a taxi. They must have waited for a long time because they looked quite annoyed as they searched frantically for a cab to no avail. Finally, one of the girls went to pick up her motorcycle.. asked her friend to hop on.. and drove off while the luggage back trailed behind the motorbike! I was staring at them in amazement.. I would never drag my bag along the road in this manner (Note: Big car, small bike, doesn't matter. I only care about the mode of transport that can get me to my destination.)

Deep down, I still wish that I were back in Singapore. I want to continue to work in CBD, shop during lunch and go gaga over Christmas sales like my friends. But since I am not, I have learnt, and still learning, to make use of what I have here to be happy, just like the locals. While I cannot meet up with my friends regularly, I am thankful for internet access here which allows me to stay in touch electronically with them. Though I cannot see my family in "person", our daily phone chats or video conferencing sessions allow me to catch up with them. Though I am not working and gaining financially, I occupy my time with going to the gym, meeting up with friends, blogging, learning how to cook and bake and budgeting! As my mother aptly puts it, learning how to manage one's monthly household budget is a valuable and transferable skill that I should not look down on.

I guess I am quite, quite happy now in Hanoi and I am glad that I have learnt how to be happy.

Ky Y Japanese Restaurant

After a boring 2 weeks' stay at home recuperating from my flu, M decided to cheer me up by yesterday having lunch at one of my favourite Japanese restaurants, Ky Y.

Located along the food street of Trieu Viet Vuong, Ky Y is an unassuming restaurant with neither fantastic nor impressive interior decor. Instead, it focuses on creating a warm atmosphere and providing affordable good food for its customers.

How does it appeal to you?

The restaurant was quite crowded when we arrived and we were shown to the third floor, where we got a room big enough to accommodate 6 people. The room was slightly warm but I guess it was good for me since I was still having a slight cold.

Our room with nice little decoration pieces

M quickly decided on a soba tempura set as he said it had been a while since he ate buckwheat noodles. After much pondering, I finally settled on my somen sushi set. My lunch set arrived pretty soon with the food items nicely displayed in a bento style.

My somen sushi set.. appetizing..

Unfortunately, M's set turned out to be udon instead of soba. The waitress was apologetic but she said M had pointed to the udon instead of soba set (which I thought was quite unlikely because M doesn't like udon). Well, there was nothing much we could do about it so M told her he would take the udon. Luckily, it wasn't too bad.

M's udon tempura set

After we finished our main course, we had the dessert i.e. coconut raisin ice cream, compliments from the restaurant. I am a coconut fan so I enjoyed it quite a bit! But M took half of my ice cream because he said I was still recovering and shouldn't eat too much. Well.. I guess that's true.

Except for the error made on our soba, I think we had a pretty satisfying lunch today.

Ky Y Japanese Restaurant
166 Trieu Viet Vuong
Hai Ba Trung, Hoan Kiem District
Hanoi
Open daily except Sundays for lunch and dinner

Real Life Ratatouille

Last Sunday, M and I watched the DVD "Ratatouille" since it was one of our "nuah-at-home" days. It was quite a funny show, about a mouse called Remy that wanted to be a chef. At first, Remy did it through a cute "partnership" with a chef wannabe called Linguini. But Linguini eventually gave Remy the recognition that it deserved, affirming the notion that "Anyone can Cook".

That very night, I had a strange dream that there was a rat in my house. It wasn't hilarious because I was chased around by the rat and screamed like mad. I woke up in the middle of the night in cold sweat! Here comes the best part... When I went down to my kitchen yesterday morning, it was in a mess! My dried herbs packets were gnawed open and the herbs spilled around the floor, coupled with a few tea boxes! I immediately suspected the presence of a rat and asked my maid to call for pest control service.

The guy came in the late afternoon and finished the "surveillance" in less than one minute. Basically, he took a scanty glance around the living room and knocked around the cupboards and refrigerator. Then he shook his head vigorously to signal to me that there was no sign of a rat (of course I can see that!) and there was nothing he could do. As a form of reassurance, he told my maid that I could come down at night to try to find the rat and if I did, to call his office number and alert him. I nearly fainted! Firstly, as a client, I must be mad to try to "search" for the rat! Did he think I work in a pest control company too?? Secondly, his office closes at 5pm daily. So how was I suppose to reach him???

Anyway, I was spooked the whole of yesterday and frustrated at the non-service delivery. But there was nothing much I could do! This morning, I gingerly went down to my kitchen and was relieved to find that there was no sign of a rat invasion. But before I could say "Thank Goodness", I just heard a piece of bad news from my helper, H. She spotted tiny footsteps in our bathtub on the third floor, which meant that the rat was still around! I immediately asked her to call the pest control company to insist on a rat trap. I just cannot live with the idea of having a rat as my "room mate" - or more appropriately, "roof mate"!

Now I am still waiting for the rat trap to come... Meanwhile, I have closed all my doors and windows. I know this sounds paranoid but I am VERY scared of rats! And the rats in Hanoi are quite BIG - I have seen them on the streets, so I know. EEEeeeekkkksss!

Did the rat really think that I can live with it like Remy and Linguini in Ratatouille and therefore, moved into my house prior to "seeking my consent"? FAT HOPE!

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

I woke up early today at 8am and felt lots better after a few days' of endless sleep + herbal tea + lozenges. After a wholesome meal of bread and oats, I had a sudden craving for cookies and recalled a fairly simple recipe found via the internet. So I decided to make my own oatmeal raisin cookies. :) I modified the recipe slightly because I didn't want my cookies to be too sweet nor oily.

My first batch of oatmeal raisins cookies turned out quite well. I liked the "coarse" texture though they were still slightly sweet for me. M commented that they were good which made me very pleased. I would reduce the amount of sugar added in my next attempt (i.e. 75 g) and perhaps use pear puree as a partial substitute for sugar.

My first tray of 6 cookies

A closer look...

The modified recipe that I used is as follows:

Ingredients
- 150 g plain flour
- 150g rolled oats
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 90 g of raw sugar (which I would reduce to 75g in my next attempt)
- 50 g raisins
- 1 egg
- 50 ml of olive oil (Unsalted butter could be used too)
- 4 tbsp soya bean milk

Method
1. Preheat the oven t 200 degrees Celsius. Lightly grease a baking sheet.
2. Sieve the flour and mix together with oats, baking powder, sugar and raisins in a mixing bowl.
3. Whisk the egg, milk and oil in another bowl.
4. Make a well in the centre of the flour mixture and slowly add in the egg mixture. Mix well.
5. Place spoonfuls of the dough on a baking sheet and press lightly with a fork.
6. Bake for 15 mins or until the cookies turn brown.
7. Let the cookies cool for around 10 minutes and they are ready to serve!

Weather Changes

The weather in Hanoi has been changing drastically these few days. Just last week, we were experiencing winter-like temperature of around 13-18 degrees Celsius. But the sun is out and blazing this week. Temperatures are expected to rise to around 30 degrees over the weekend. I reluctantly kept my winter coat. Winter has come and gone.

The change in weather has resulted in many people falling sick, including myself. Have been sleeping a lot these days. So much that I feel 2/3 of my day is spent on sleep instead of 1/3 for a normal person. I have been downing all kinds of medicine in a frenzied attempt to get well. So far, they seemed to be working because I am feeling better today. I miss my morning workouts at the gym and afternoon gatherings with friends. L is leaving for Singapore today for a 5 days holiday so I won't get to see her till next week. *Sulks*

Yucks. I hate falling sick.

Welcome to Taipei (Part 2) - Chiang Kai Shek Memorial and Taipei 101

Our second day in Taipei began with a highly recommended lunch at the original 鼎泰丰 (the restaurant that left Singaporeans in a craze for 小笼包) in Taipei City. It's located 2-3 bus stops aways from the Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Hall, where L and I planned to visit after lunch. Mousie suggested that we have an early lunch, at around 10.30am, to avoid having to wait, and so we did.

When we arrived at 鼎泰丰 (a three-storeyed shop house), we were shown to our seats immediately. The menu in Taipei was pretty much the same as the one in Singapore, though we caught a few special dishes here and there. We ordered a serving of 小笼包, 卤豆腐, 海藻小菜 to share and I had a 蛋花汤 while L tried the 酸辣汤. I quite liked my egg soup though L's soup was not spicy at all! In fact, it should be more aptly named the "sour" soup as I tasted nothing but vinegar. The 小笼包 was quite "juicy" and delicious but my favourite was the braised beancurd (卤豆腐). It was very well done! The seaweed salad was alright though not fantastic.

Top left: Braised beancurd; Top right: The famous dumplings
Bottom left: Seaweed salad; Bottom right: The snaking queue formed outside

We noticed quite a number of Japanese tourists in the restaurant, in fact, more than the locals. Perhaps the fame of 鼎泰丰 is more attractive to foreigners. When we came out after a sumptuous meal, I was shocked to find a long queue formed outside the restaurant. It was so crowded that we could hardly move! Mousie really wasn't kidding...

On our way to Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Hall, we browsed through a few shops to satisfy our shopping craze. Because of our "shopping anxiety syndrome", we forgot to dry the mango ice (芒果冰) nearby which was apparently quite famous. Well, girls will always be girls...

As the name goes, the Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Hall serves as a monument to the First President of Taiwan. The exhibits detailed the journey of his life: including his army days and life with his wife, Song Meiling. We took our time to browse through the artefacts before rushing out to catch the "changing guards" ceremony. Unfortunately for us, it had started raining and the ceremony was cancelled! What a disappointment!

The miniature version of CKS Memorial Hall...

And the real thing!

Snapshots of other pics taken around the memorial hall

Entrance of the CKS Memorial Hall train station

Inside the train station.. Along the walls..

Very impressive decor huh?

Our next destination was to 台北车站. You might be thinking now what was so interesting about a train station right? Actually, our objective was to shop at the numerous underground shopping malls at the vicinity of the train station! Alas.. things didn't go as we planned.. because what happened was that we ended up spending close to 4 hours at the underground malls instead, and emerged on the surface only in the late evening! By then, the rain was quite heavy due to the typhoon so Mousie's mother, who was afraid that we would be trapped in the rain, invited us home for dinner. Thus our Friday evening was fairly quiet.

The rain raged ferociously the following day, spoiling all our plans. We had to stay indoors at Mousie's house and ended up playing Wii as well as watched "The Day After Tomorrow". Was a little disappointed at having to stay indoors as we were on holiday! But well, there was nothing much we could do since Mother Nature was against us.

By evening, the rain had subsided slightly so Mousie, L and I decided to brave the intense drizzle to 台北101, where we would see the tallest building in Taipei. We had dinner at a Japanese restaurant and it was there that I had my first taste of Mister Donut, a Japanese donut franchise. The donut was yummy! We shopped at a few shopping malls around 台北101 and of course, I made victory purchases again! It was really hard to resist the draw of fashion in Taipei.

On our way back home, Mousie suggested we make a day trip to the outskirts of Taipei City since the rain was still pouring. We tossed around a few possible destinations and eventually decided on one. So where did we head off next? Keep reading to find out! :)

Coming up.. A mystery drive in the outskirts of Taipei City

Ha Hoi Restaurant @ Ha Hoi

Tucked away in a small quiet corner is an exquisite Vietnamese restaurant that L and I went to try yesterday. When we arrived, the restaurant was pretty quiet and we got a corner seat on the first floor. The interior decor of the restaurant was nicely done, and even the plates and cutlery used were beautiful. I was fairly impressed.

A welcoming atmosphere

A snapshot of the interior decor

Since there were only two of us, we ordered 3 dishes: stir-fried chicken in lemongrass (which turned out to be deep fried), grilled eggplant and clam soup.

From left: Clam and vegetables soup
Top right: Fried chicken with lemon grass
Bottom right: Grilled eggplant - Yummy!

The eggplant was my favourite! Grilled till slightly soft, it was coated with a layer of stir fried garlic, chilli and herbs like basil leaves. It was a little bit oily though. The soup was clear broth of clam soup with vegetables. Tasted so-so to me. The chicken was a disappointment. I don't fancy fried stuff and the chicken meat was a tad too hard - perhaps due to over-frying. The fragrant taste of lemon grass didn't save the dish too.

Overall, I would rate the food as average but the ambience is nice. Perfect for friends who want to catch up over long conversations while enjoying local Vietnamese food. The service of the staff was excellent. Our waitress was friendly and even spoke to us in Mandarin when she realised that we could speak the language. Thumbs up for her effort!

Ha Hoi Restaurant
4 Ha Hoi, Hoan Kiem District
Open for lunch and dinner only

A Cup of Drip Hanoi Coffee at Cafe 48

I have always been a tea lover so coffee does not appeal to me as much as a cup of warm teh-c. Although M has constantly raved about the fragrance of Hanoi "drip" coffee, it never really crossed my mind to try until yesterday.

Well, my friend, H, is helping out in her friend's cafe so I thought I should show her some support by dropping by. L was nice to accompany me there and we both ordered the highly recommended coffee with milk ("ka-fe sua"). It's basically warm "drip" coffee with condensed milk. H shared that the coffee powder is from another province and not found within Hanoi, which makes it so special. The aroma was really very fragrant and the taste was not as overwhelming as I thought. In fact, the coffee left a sweet (not bitter) after taste in my tongue, much to my delight.

From left: H waiting for me at Cafe 48
Top right: Let's start brewing!
Bottom right: My first cup of coffee in Hanoi

A cup of coffee there costs VND 7,000 (or around SGD 0.70). Definitely value for $. The only drawback is the cafe is very small and Vietnamese men tend to smoke while enjoying coffee, so I was pretty choked by the "fumes" while being there. Other than that, it was a nice cozy little cafe serving fragrant coffee.

Cafe 48
48 Tran Hung Dao, Hoan Kiem District
Opening Hours: 7am to 4pm

Welcome to Taipei (Part 1) - 十分瀑布和九份

Yes, it's another travel blog again! This is long outstanding as I went to Taipei in August this year but well, better late than never. It was mainly a shopping cum relaxation tour and also to catch up with my old friend, Mousie. It would have been a fantastic trip, if not for the typhoon, as we had to cancel our trip to 阿里山and 太鲁阁. But all was made up by the wonderful snacks and shopping that I enjoyed thoroughly. :)

夜市初体验
L and I arrived in Taipei on a Wednesday evening and Mousie came to pick us up from the airport. It was great seeing her again and she actually claimed to have dressed up to meet me! Ha! Anyway, she looked as sweet as ever. It was a 40 mins' drive from the Chiang Kai Shek International Airport to 板桥, where Mousie suggested that we dine at 南雅夜市, one of the many famous night markets in Taipei. Being a foodie lover, I was naturally excited. We tried the 麻油鸡(chicken in sesame broth) which was one of the popular items in 南雅夜市. I found it too oily for my liking though.

南雅夜市的麻油鸡-很有名哦！

看起来很不错吧。

The next dish that we tried was 麻婆臭豆腐. It was a spicy hot pot with fried "smelly beancurd", pig's blood and assorted vegetables. This was more to my liking, unlike those really smelly ones in Hong Kong, and I ate quite a lot.

好吃的臭豆腐

We walked around the 夜市after dinner and I continued to indulge myself in various snacks like red bean mochi, honeyed sweet potatoes and sour plums. It seemed as though I had been starved for years! As we were a little tired after our flight, we decided to go back to Mousie's house early to rest before "cheonging" around Taipei the next day.

十分瀑布-惊险时刻
Actually I was really thankful to have gone on the trip with L because she practically planned everything! I was literally "travel-loafing". We wanted to go somewhere further the next day so 十分and 九份 were on our radar screens. From 永宁车站, we took a 4o mins' ride to 瑞芳, before changing another train to 十分 to see the biggest waterfall in Taipei. A little hitch occurred along the way as we misread the map shown at the train station and alighted one stop earlier, at the deserted 大华车站.

Since the next train was a 1.5 hours wait (believe it or not!), we decided to walk to 十分瀑布 to save time. It was a 30 mins trek along the railway and across a dark tunnel. I was worried as I walked and it didn't help that a small snake came crawling out halfway and scared me out of my wits! But we had to brave through the journey (as shown in the picture on the left). When we finally reached 十分瀑布, I decided it was well-worth the "danger" that we risked. Of course it was not comparable to a scale of the Niagara Falls but it had a unique charm of its own. We took the opportunity to sit there and chat, take a few pictures, before trotting our way back to the correct train station aka 十分车站 to complete the second part of our planned journey to 九份.

You should have seen how my eyes lit up when I saw this sign!

This is the prelude to the fall...

Now you see it!

The "aftermath" of the fall... Serenity...

Doesn't this waterfall look like a pair of spectacles? It's called 眼镜瀑布.

The famous hanging bridge or "吊桥"at 十分.

On our way back to 十分车站, we saw an interesting sight. There was a team building exercise going on and the employees wrote their wishes on 天灯 or "sky lanterns" before letting go of the lanterns into the sky. It is said that if your lantern is launched successfully, your wish will come true. We also walked through the old streets of 十分 where we saw a few old handicrafts stalls and a "mama" shop selling ice cream and sweets.

Top row: Launch of the sky lantern
Bottom row: Shop selling sky lantern, the old "mama" shop and handicraft stall

Top row: The pretty 十分车站
Bottom row: The platform where we waited for our train

九份老街-又吃又买
Due to the unexpected delay in trekking towards the waterfall, we reached 九份 in the late afternoon. For those who are not aware, 九份 is a famous tourist attraction in Taipei because it is an old town so you get the nostalgic feeling as you roam along the small streets and enjoy the busting atmosphere. It was one of the highlights of my trip, especially since the food there was really yummy. Well, the pictures tell it all!

It was late evening when we arrived at 九份, located on top of a hill...

Left: The scene where the movie "悲情城市" was taken
Middle: A teahouse where you can sit down and relax after a long walk
Right: Rows and rows of unique shophouses selling snacks and soveniors

Assorted fish cum meat ball soup (top right).
Braised beancurd. (bottom left)

芋头粉圆汤-超好吃！

It was quite late after we had our dessert and time to head back to Taipei City. We bought a lot of things at 九份, almost 2 bags each and had a hard time lugging everything back to Mousie's house. I took a picture of 瑞芳车站 before we boarded the train. Really enjoyed the trip here lots and would definitely recommend this place to anyone who's visiting Taipei. Trust me, you will have lots of fun and food here. :)

Coming up next... Visit to Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Hall