getting caught up from january...tokyo 2.0!

In January, I had a chance to tag along with Nate to Tokyo!  Although he was busy working for the majority of the time we were there, I had no problems entertaining myself with what I have decided is one of my favorite cities to eat and shop in.  

View from our hotel room - Mt. Fuji! 

View from our hotel room - Mt. Fuji! 

Shanghai is an extremely expensive city to shop in.  The duty on anything coming from outside China seems very high (yes, even if it's made in China), therefore, we don't shop much.  Needless to say I couldn't wait to go shopping in Tokyo!  We stayed in the Shinjuku area which has one of the main train stations in the city, as well as all the major department stores, and enough boutiques and restaurants that I kept plenty occupied for the time we were there.  My other favorite shopping district is Ginza.  It houses all the high-end designer labels, as well as many mainstream stores like Uniqlo!  I was in shopping heaven! 

Of course the other highlight of Tokyo is all the delicious Japanese food!  This is also the trip that had me eating raw sashimi again, and liking it!  I always try a little bit of sashimi every time I'm in Japan, but this time I actually enjoyed it and cannot wait to go back to eat more! 

There wasn't a lot of time to sight see, but we did make it up to Asakusa to see the Senso-ji Temple at night.  Unfortunately, the shops at Nakamise-dori which leads up the temple were closed by the time we got there; however, the temple was absolutely picturesque! 

Although a quick trip, I had forgotten just how great this city really is and cannot wait to visit again soon!

To see our full trip album - click here!

~ Trisha (and Nate, too!)

getting caught up from december 2014...hcmc and mui ne!

Last Christmas and New Years, we decided that we wanted to escape the cold weather in Shanghai and headed south to Vietnam!  In 2009, we had visited Hanoi in the northern part of the country and really enjoyed the food and culture; however, the weather in the north was a bit cooler, so we decided to head to Ho Chi Minh City and a costal beach area called Mui Ne.  

HCMC is definitely a city that is developing rapidly.  Alongside food carts selling bowls of pho, and vendors selling sunglasses and handbags, stands a brand-new mall with Louis Vuitton and Dior, still under construction.  The streets are filled with cars and motorcycles, and on every block there is a new restaurant or storefront being built.   The city is loud and lively, but it's exactly what we expected, and loved about the atmosphere.  We stayed at a historical hotel built in 1925 called 'Hotel Majestic' located in the central area of Dong Khoi.  It put us right in the action of HCMC, and close in proximity to many excellent restaurants and sights.  

We covered HCMC in two and a half very short days - but that didn't stop us from eating our way through the city between a few tourist sights!

A very long 6 hour drive later (we were originally told it would be no more than 4 hours), we arrived at Mui Ne.  If you know Nate and I, we can barely stand a 2 hour car ride, so this was a bit long for us.  We had chosen this beach because it was supposedly less crowded due to having no other route into this area except via bus/car.  To be honest, it wasn't our favorite beach.  December is supposed to be one of the best months to visit this particular area of Vietnam due to the mild temperatures.  Although the temperature was perfect, due to the extreme winds, you couldn't go into the water unless you were a kite surfer or I assume, an extremely strong swimmer!  As one of the main resort cities in southern Vietnam, they cater to the tourist palate, and therefore, the food was not nearly as local in flavors as HCMC.  A bit disappointed, we realized it's really a first world problem to be stuck in Vietnam with perfect weather on a beach, quickly got over it, and ended up having a nice time.  

A very short 10 minute walk from where we stayed, were red sand dunes! An interesting sight to see desert and ocean all in one view.  

Determined to find food better than the resort we were at, we made our way to downtown Mui Ne.  We decided to try out a Lonely Planet restaurant recommendation, the food was good, but even better?  One of the managers shared with us what we were really looking for, a recommendation to a food cart selling Banh Mi sandwiches!  Her instructions?  Look for 'Strawberry Restaurant' and right across the street would be a lady selling Banh Mi's.  We were sooo excited to find her! 

We also decided to try out Strawberry Restaurant.  We don't normally eat seafood, but since we were in a coastal city, we decided why not!?!  This place had their seafood in tanks, you picked what you wanted, and they cooked it right there for you.  We had D-E-L-I-C-I-O-U-S tiger prawns!  

After 5 days in Mui Ne, we made it back to HCMC just in time for dinner, and one more evening of eating before heading back to Shanghai.  

During our very first trip to Vietnam, we had eaten banh ghoi at a small street-side restaurant.  It was my absolute favorite thing that I had eaten, but after one week in southern Vietnam, we still hadn't stumbled upon any place with it.  Just as I had given up, we were in a taxi and passed the only restaurant we saw selling banh ghoi!  Nom, nom, nom...of course, that was just a snack!  

An hour later, we made our way up four flights of stairs to a roof-top restaurant called Secret Garden.  Amazing food and atmosphere, and an excellent way to end our trip to Vietnam!  

To view our full photo album from our trip - click here, and to see some of Nate's photography not in these albums, click here! 

~ Trisha (and Nate, too!)

getting caught up from november 2014...kobe, kyoto & osaka!

Last summer, my brother moved to Kobe for his job.  Now that we live so close, we decided to visit as soon as he was settled and ready for visitors!  Nate had been back to Tokyo for work, but this was only my second time visiting Japan, and our first time in southern Japan.  

When Nate and I stepped off the bus in Kobe where James was meeting us, we instantly looked around and asked "where are all the people"?  It was a Friday afternoon around 4:PM, and the street was silent, with hardly any cars or people walking around!  Living in Shanghai, we are used to seeing cars and people, and hearing lots of noise throughout the day and night.  The quiet atmosphere was actually very odd for me at first, but I quickly got used to it.  

Upon arrival, we decided to stay around Kobe and explore the area that my brother now calls home.  Look at the view from his apartment!  

As it turns out, a quick 10 minute walk from where he lives, is a downtown area that is a lot more populated and lively.  With such close proximity to restaurants, shopping, and transportation, we had no problem settling in and starting off our vacation the way we love to...by eating!  We ate udon noodles, green tea custard tarts, and stuffed ourselves at an izakaya.  My brother was introduced to sea snails by his local coworkers and has now become a fan of them.  For dinner, he ordered us a round.  Nate being the more adventurous eater ate them.  Me?  Well, I stuck to the sashimi. 

Due to our limited time in the area, we decided to focus on a few popular sights in Kyoto.  The first sight we went to was Kiyomizu-dera Temple.  We definitely lucked out as most of the trees still had their fall colored leaves!  

The second sight we visited was Fushimi-Inari Taisha.  I'd seen pictures of this sight many times, and was super excited to see them in person!  It was definitely a bit crowded, but we were still able to get a few pictures without people in them.  

Osaka is located in-between Kobe and Kyoto, so we had no issues making a few stop overs to eat.  My grandfather had told me that Osaka had some of the best food in Japan.  We made sure to try a few items (gyoza, sushi, tempura, and katsu) while we were there!  

We also had a great meal at one of my brothers' favorite restaurants in Kobe.  He described it as Japanese fusion food made from farm-fresh ingredients.  At first I wasn't interested in going there as I thought it wouldn't be local in flavors.  I was wrong!  The food was delicious!!!  

Incase you are wondering - we did NOT eat Kobe beef.  Before arriving, we had asked my brother to find out where the best Kobe beef restaurant in the city was so that we could all go.  As it turns out, he said that none of his local co-workers knew of any as it's really just something tourist eat.  Needless to say, we did not eat Kobe beef; however, we ate plenty of other delicious food and because there were so many sights to see, were only able to see a fraction of them in the three cities we visited - Kobe, Kyoto and Osaka.  I will back in April, and cannot wait to see more! 

To view our full photo album from our trip click here, and to see some of Nate's photography (not in this album), click here! 

~ Trisha and Nate

getting caught up from october 2014...myanmar!

Myanmar had been a country that Nate and I had at the top of our list for a very long time.  We had actually decided that it would be one of our next destinations while living in California, and had already read the guidebooks, and watched a few programs about it.  Needless to say that when we had our first week long holiday in China, this is where we decided we wanted to go.  As many of you know, Nate works a lot and wouldn't typically agree to go to a place that clearly had a warning of "may not have internet available"; however, Myanmar is rapidly developing and the travel agency we used said our hotels would have "some internet connection", it was a go!  

Travel agency.  We don't usually use them, but planning a trip to Myanmar without one is currently near impossible.  The reason is that almost every hotel, car service, and domestic airline carrier requires that you pay everything up front and in full with a local bank card.  It was a rather stressful process of using an agency who asked us to wire 50% of the cost of our package to them - but to Singapore?!?  We had no choice, so we did it, and guess what?  Upon arrival into Yangon, we had a driver waiting for us with a name card.  Phew!  Vacation begins!  

We had approximately 8 days of holiday, so chose to focus on 3 different cities that had been recommended by some of my classmates who had visited Myanmar in the past.  With a stash of crisp, USD that we had brought with us from the states, we were in business!  First stop?  Yangon, the capital of Myanmar. 

Yangon reminded us of what it was like to live in Vizag (India).  It's a lively city with people living their life right on the streets - selling snacks, washing their cars, or just sitting.  It's crowded with cars and motorcycles, uneven sidewalks and pathways, and so much of the culture still untouched.  A developing country and one that is rapidly changing (last year there were no ATM's that accepted international bank cards, now it is rumored that you can find them at some of the top-end hotels) it's a very fascinating city to see!    We made sure to see the main highlight of Yangon - the Shwedagon Paya - one of the most important religious pilgrimage sites in the country, as well as other shrines, the largest marketplace, and several Burmese restaurants before heading to Bagan.  

Bagan is located in central Myanmar.  It's at the top of every tourists list when visiting Myanmar, but is so vast in size that with the exception of a popular sunrise/sunset vantage point, it never felt crowded.  Bagan Archaeological Zone is where everyone usually heads as it is where the plain of pagodas and stupas can be viewed.  We stayed at a hotel in Old Bagan which provided a very central location for us - read: later wake-up time needed to get to the best sunrise vantage spot!  October in Bagan is actually considered the shoulder season, and ended up being very hot!  Knowing the weather would be hot I packed several dresses and skirts, which I quickly realized was not going to work as I needed to be properly dressed to enter any of the religious sights and grounds.  No problem!  Bagan is touristy enough that at each temple you can find a hawker to buy various souvenirs from and most important, elephant pants! 

After three days in Bagan, we made our way to Inle Lake in eastern Myanmar.   A short flight, followed by an hour long car ride and a 45 minute or so boat ride, and we were at Inle Resort on the northern end of Inle Lake.  Our favorite part of our vacation, Inle Lake was large enough that even though it also tops every tourists' list to visit, never felt crowded.  From our hotel to the southern part of the lake where the nearest floating village is located,  took approximately one hour to get to.  These floating villages were by far the most unique to see!  

Tourists and locals alike, everyone travels by boat.  Most by long boat powered by diesel engines and steered from the back.  During our 2.5 days in Inle Lake, we traveled solely by boat.   The locals are used to seeing tourists, and in fact, welcome us to shop at their speciality shops and eat at their floating restaurants.  Each village prides themselves on being able to make a specialty good that they can then sell to the tourists.  Some villages are known for silver, others for textiles, or woodwork.  We purchased a few items, and Nate even made a friend - actually, I'm pretty sure whatever price we paid must have been good since the following day he spotted us from across the lake and waved to say hello!  

We happened to be in Inle Lake for the first day of their annual boat festival.  We made sure we were ready bright and early for the hour long ride down the lake and were just in time to see the procession.  After the procession, everyone followed the largest float to the main temple area which also hosted that days rotating market.  Such great people-watching! 

To view our full photo album from our week long trip - click here! 

Mayanmar was definitely an adventure vacation we won't soon forget!  From trying new and delicious Burmese cuisine, to exploring three very different landscapes in a country that is rapidly changing - we probably won't be back in the near future, but this would definitely be a place to come back to years from now to see just how much will have changed.  

~ Trisha and Nate

getting caught up from september 2014...seoul!

Can anyone say BEST food in Asia?!?  That's what I felt by the time we were done with our very short four day trip last September to Seoul, South Korea.  It was our first time to Korea, and this is one place that we will go back to before we leave this region, or rather, I won't leave this region without going back there!  

We ate everything from street-side BBQ, hole-in-the-wall mom and pop run restaurants, to Lonely Planet Guide Book or TripAdvisor recommended restaurants -- all were delicious!  In general, every place was fairly clean, and we didn't feel like we needed to worry about where we were eating.  Obviously you would need to actually like Korean food and have a certain level of tolerance for spiciness, but if you do...this place is a food lovers heaven!   

We stayed in two different areas of Seoul.  The first was in a traditional Hanok guesthouse in Jongno-gu.  The guesthouse is run by an elderly couple, and communal breakfast is part of the experience.  Of course, so was sleeping on a very thin foam mattress (imagine about 1.5 inches thick) placed on top of the concrete floor.  Let's just say that I'm glad we only booked one night, and the other three nights in a regular hotel.  This area was close to one of the main attractions in Seoul - Gyeongbokgung Palace. 

The second area that we stayed in was Insa-dong.  At the end of 2011, we had traveled to Bali and met a couple who were expats in Seoul.  They are now living back in the states, but when I asked them where we should stay they didn't hesitate to say Insa-dong.  So glad we stayed there!  Insa-dong is a pedestrian area that is full of shopping, restaurants, and alleyways full of culture!  The location is also very central to another popular sight - the Bukchon Hanok Village - an area where traditionally restored Hanok homes are located.  

To see our full photo album from our trip click here, and to see some of Nate's photography (not in this album) click here! 

September ended up being a perfect time of year to visit - not too hot, not too cold.  Easy to get around, and very affordable, we can't wait to go back! 

~ Trisha and Nate

getting caught up from august 2014...chengdu!

Working on this album made me realize that we've now lived in China for over a year, and have only visited three cities outside of Shanghai - Suzhou, Beijing, and Chengdu - I guess we should start traveling more around China!    Out of the three cities we've seen, I would say that Chengdu is my favorite.  Chengdu is located in Sichuan province and is home to not only delicious Sichuan food, but China's very sacred pandas!!!  I've always thought that cartoon pandas (think Kung Fu Panda) were cute, but had been a bit skeptical that I'd think real ones were too.  Boy was I wrong!  Giant Pandas are adorable, and who knew red pandas existed?!?  

Here are some of the highlights from our trip that we took back in August:

We stayed in downtown Chengdu, which had a nice riverfront area as well as parks that were really relaxing to walk through. 

Nate and I love spicy food, so Sichuan food is our favorite kind of Chinese food to eat.  We eat Sichuan food at least twice a week here, but having it in the province that it's from really gave us an idea of how complex this style of cooking can be.  Normally when you eat Sichuan food there's a lot of red chili peppers, tons of heat, and if green peppercorn is in the dish it creates a very numbing (麻辣 mala) feeling, sometimes too numbing.   When we ate our favorite dishes in Chengdu, everything was balanced.  The heat, the numbing feeling from the peppercorn, and the spices -- all worked together to make the flavors of the dishes come out without the heat or the numbness overpowering the flavors.  Yummy!

Now for the highlight of the weekend...the panda sanctuary!  Although we went on a weekend day, and it was a bit crowded up front while we were getting our tickets, once we were inside it was actually very quiet and relaxing.  The grounds are kept very nicely landscaped, and other than a few areas where the main Giant Panda was living, or the smallest baby panda was, we could move around easily throughout the rest of the park. I know that everyone goes there to see the Giant Panda, but my personal favorite was actually the way smaller red panda!  

To see our full photo album from Chengdu click here, and to see more photos that are not in the album but in Nate's travel photo section click here! 

We had a great time in Chengdu and maybe after we see a few new places in China will return to Chengdu to do what we love to do best - eat! 

~ Trisha and Nate

getting caught up from july 2014...beijing!

I am over six months behind in getting our photo albums from our travels out - but am working on them as fast as I can to get caught up!  So here it goes!  

In July 2014 (yes, I know, this is LAST summer) we took our second trip to Beijing.  Our first trip had been in November 2009, and left me with a less than favorable opinion of that city.  It wasn't so much that I didn't enjoy seeing the sights, but more to do with the fact that November probably wasn't the best time to visit a city located so far north...talk about freezing!  Luckily, Nate talked me into going back to visit the cultural hub of China during a warmer time of the year.  So glad we did! 

A few of the highlights included:

The Great Wall of China!  Second time there, and it is still one of my favorite places in the world to see...

Me getting my a** kicked by a bunch of little kids that were running the Great Wall like no big deal...

Me getting my a** kicked by a bunch of little kids that were running the Great Wall like no big deal...

The food! 

Getting to know the locals though photography!  Nate and I spent a few hours just hanging out in front of Tiananmen Square people watching.  During this time, many people stopped and asked Nate to be in their photos!  In return, we asked them to be in ours...

For more of Nate's photos of the people we met click here!  

Four and a half years later...so much has changed and so much remains the same.  We will definitely be back soon!  Click here for our full photo album from our trip to Beijing and here for some of Nate's additional photos from our trip.  

~ Trisha and Nate

new year, new adventures

I can hardly believe that it is already the end of January 2015!  Between school, work, and traveling, our first year in Shanghai flew by very quickly.  Although Nate has been really good about posting travel pictures to this site, I have been horrible about keeping up with my duties of blogging and sending out our Picasa Web Album links.  My last blog was 5 months ago, and since then we have traveled to many new cities and countries in the region.  I recently finished my second semester of full-time Mandarin classes, and will now have some time to work on getting these albums put together, sent out, and this blog kept up!  

Due to our busy schedules, okay - Nate's busy schedule and my lack of cooking skills - we eat out more than we'd like to admit, and have been to just about every Shanghai Lonely Planet Guidebook restaurant recommendation, as well as all the various expat favorites this past year.  With this being said, there is one kind of restaurant we still haven't tried - the mom-n-pop, hole-in-the-wall, no-English-menu restaurant.  If you know Nate and I, we aren't afraid of eating street food; however, if you can't read the menu (I have learned to read about 1,000 characters - there are thousands more) then you might not know exactly what you are ordering.  Luckily, I have a language exchange partner that was more than happy to help me with my first eating adventure of 2015!

Pam and I meet once a week for two hours to help each other practice speaking - one hour in English, one hour in Mandarin.  This week we decided to have our language exchange over dinner.  At first Pam was hesitant to take me to her favorite 饺子 (dumpling) spot and told me 这个饭馆不太漂亮和脏一点儿 (This restaurant is not to nice and a little dirty).  I asked her 好吃吗？(Is it delicious?). She confirmed, 很好吃！(Very delicious!).  Obviously I was in!

I had a blast!  Although it was freezing cold, and we were sitting on metal stools wearing our down jackets, it was such a great experience to watch this lady make-to-order dumplings (we ordered 20 mushroom w/pork and 20 vegetable w/pork), go outside to boil them on her burner, and then serve them up to an endless stream of customers who were stopping by to enjoy them.  There were only 3 tables with 4 stools per table, and Pam told me that at lunch time it is packed.  I can see why!  20 dumplings for 12 RMB ($1.92 USD)?!? I'd be back everyday...if I could find this place on my own again...

~ Trisha