Vitra Singh's Blog, page 4
April 30, 2014
Dadong Peking Duck – Foodie Photos
Dadong Roast Duck Restaurant is ranked #19 out of 9,354 restaurants in Beijing. I’ll take those odds any day of getting a satisfying and memorable culinary experience.
Before deciding to try Peking Duck at Dadong, I read many articles referencing the duck as a favorite of westerners primarily because of the duck’s leanness. There are four branches of this establishment in Beijing and the Marriott staff were kind enough to help me make the reservation for the closest location.
At the Jinbao Place location, the restaurant is located inside of a mall, but takes up an entire floor. The decor was a mash-up of homely, kitschy (aka tacky), but soothing as well. Quite a combo, but let me explain:
Homely because pots of teas and coffee were set up on burners so that guests could have a drink while waiting for their tables.
Kitschy because there were fake trees with vertical “Christmas” lights which just seemed out of place. Though perhaps they are more common in Asia than one would think.
Soothing because there is a koi pond at the entrance with a ledge where guests can sit as they wait for their table (and sip on their tea.)
After being seated, we were presented with the menu:
Beautiful presentation and not at all intimidating, until you looked at it from this perspective:
While I would have loved to spend hours looking at the beautiful images and descriptions on the menu, we knew we wanted the Peking Duck, but we also wanted to try different dishes to get a full “taste” of what Dadong had to offer.
There were two different tasting menus so we decided to each order one. And as someone who only eats the birds and seafood, I was pleasantly surprised there was only one dish between two tasting menus that needed a substitution.
I’ll be perfectly honest – we tasted many dishes and they came out quickly so I didn’t have time to be blown away by any one thing. While the presentation was lovely, I found myself thinking, “This is something I can make at home.” That’s because at the core of it, the dishes were simple if you took away the bells, whistles, and nitric oxide.
Here’s a roundup of the dishes we tasted (with the exception of a soup):
I’ve got my eyes on you!
Stuffed glazed tomato with pecans
Orange-based soup
Shrimp dish
Brussel Sprouts
Marinated Bamboo
Pasta made out of lobster
The waiter brought out the entire duck and cut it in front of us into this neat and beautiful dish.
The waitress showed us two ways to eat the duck. First as a spring roll, and then as a duck burger.
DESSERT!! Mango-flavored
Lots going on including fruit, ice cream, and tiramisu
A better look
Strawberries on ice
This was my first experience having such an “elaborate” tasting menu. I did enjoy the presentation and molecular gastronomy aspect of the meal. But I’ve got to say…my favorite part was the dessert.
What’s been your most interesting culinary experience?
*Please note, all images are copyright LaDolceVitra.com. If you share them, please attribute them accordingly and include the link to this post*
April 24, 2014
Face-ing Reality in Seoul
A few weeks ago, I wrote about my day trip in Seoul.
A friend from Singapore told me to stock up on face masks in Korea, because it’s much cheaper than Singapore.
I’m not really the face mask type of girl (a scrub a few times a week, daily showers, and moisturizer are as far as I usually get).
Since it was the one thing she mentioned about Seoul out of a million possible things, I decided to keep my eyes peeled for the masks. Not to mention that Korean women have beautiful, clear, porcelain-like skin. They must be doing something right!
One of the stops on my tour was Namdaemun Market. I only had about 30 minutes to walk around, but within a few minutes, I noticed a face mask display and went to take a peek. The sign said one mask for 1,000 won, which is basically $1 USD.
There was something else written, but of course I couldn’t understand. A face mask for $1 USD is a wonderful price, especially with such a large variety to choose from. I decided to buy ten. Not because I wanted ten, but more because I thought some of the “flavors” were so intriguing.
When I went in to pay, there seems to have been a “Buy 1, Get 1 Free” sale, so I ended up spending $5 USD for ten masks.
#winning!
It’s been about a month, and I tried a “Green Tea” flavor, but here are the rest I’ve got waiting in queue!
(Yes! SNAIL – couldn’t resist!)
So many options!
What’s been your best beauty purchase abroad?
April 9, 2014
Hot Pink Sunset
A few weeks ago, I posted some pics of sunset in Langkawi from my iPad.
I have never really liked the image quality from iPad (and never understand why people would use their iPad as the primary means of picture-taking while on vacation. But I digress.)
With the images from my camera now on my computer, I wanted to post a couple images of sunset that truly demonstrate the beautiful sunset – in my mind, what will be remembered as a hot pink sunset because the pink mixed in with the orange was just so intense.
March 31, 2014
My Day Tour in Seoul, Korea
Recently, I spent two and a half days in Seoul, Korea and I fell in love with the city. And what a huge city it is, with a population of ten million.
I traveled to Seoul after a 5 day stint in Beijing. Seoul was like a yoga retreat compared to the intensity of Beijing. (Disclaimer: I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Beijing and really got a sense of the kindness of locals.)
Since I didn’t have much time in Seoul, I decided to do a day tour to see as much as I could. It was a packed day and included the following sites in the following order:
Woman bowing before entering
Baby Buddha and I
Deoksu Palace – we were able to catch the Changing of the Guard ceremony after walking through the Palace grounds.
Deoksu Palace structure
Another tour group. Love the colorful bubble jackets!
This is done daily to as a ceremonial reminder of the old days
A drive by of the Presidential Blue House, Korea’s version of the White House
An Amethyst center – Yes, this was just an inclusion in the tour to get tourists to purchase so the organizer can get a cut?
Lunch at a Korea restaurant, which actually wasn’t as good as some of the food I’ve had in Little Korea in NYC. (womp, womp)
Changdeok Palace – a UNESCO Heritage site
architectural details
Concubine area (now with modern buildings in the background)
Lock locks
Korean version of Love Locks
A Ginseng center – Yet another random stop in hopes that someone in the tour would buy
Back to Hotel
The tour cost about $85 USD, which I think was a fair price. If I had the time to figure out transportation or several days to see all these places in detail I would not have done the tour. But the day whet my appetite and I can’t wait to go back to Seoul again to explore a few of these places for a longer period of time!
March 13, 2014
A Stroll Through Nanluoguxiang, Beijing
Today, I took a lovely stroll through a quaint, but hip and happening street named Nanluoguxiang (or Nan Luo Gu Xiang, depending on who’s writing about it!)
In contrast to highly touristy, Pipe Street, or translated from Mandarin to English, Skewed Tobacco Pouch Street - it seemed to be more of a local lane. While there are definitely tourists and travelers perusing the shops and food stalls, prices are nowhere near what they are at Pipe Street. Also, it’s not close to a subway which makes it slightly difficult for tourists to find on public transport.
I must have browsed in and out of about 15 different shops today on Nanluoguxiang. After immersing myself in the history of Imperial Dynasty’s past at the Forbidden City this morning, this laid back street was just what I needed to decompress! Here are some sights along the way.
Intricate Architecture of the Police Station:
Three Trees Coffee – because there are three trees in front of the cafe. Bet you can’t say “Three Trees” 5 times in a row:
I’ve got a thing for charming, old doors:
See what I mean? Also, love that the sign on this door says “Don’t visit me. We need the privacy.” How’s that for honesty!
What color is your dragon?
1
You are such a (happy) pig:
Another cute entrance to another cute coffee shop:
The details of a ….. door!
And finally, one of my favorite accessories I saw all day. A lion-backpack. Almost true to the size of an actual lion:
All images are Copyright 2014 LaDolceVitra. Please do not use or repost without credit.
A Match Made in Heaven?
Today I took a tour of the Temple of Heaven in Beijing, China. The grounds are beautiful, well-kept, and contain so much history. Only the Emperor of the time was allowed to conduct ceremonies there because they were seen as God on Earth. However, it has been open to the public since the end of the last Dynasty, the Qing Dynasty.
Besides the grounds and the structure of the Temple itself, one of the most endearing things about my visit there was the buzz of activities that go on. From women doing dance exercises (Tai Chi); men playing Chinese Chess; elders writing out poems on the floor in Chinese calligraphy; and my favorite – the matchmaking section!
Upon exiting at the East Gate, I noticed throngs of people standing around and from far away, it seemed as though they were crowded around something. Walking closer, my tour guide explained that it’s a place where parents and grandparents come with descriptions of their kids or grandkids, in hopes of making a match with a nice boy or girl. Well hell – how exciting! Potential love in action!
Men and women walking by will read the various descriptions and decide on whether they seem like a good match.
If so, they will talk to the person who has brought the “advertisement” and decide on whether to put the two youngsters in touch. In this picture below, a “matchmaker” is flipping through an album filled with pictures.
Does it work all the time? Probably not, but who know? It might be a match made in heaven! (And wouldn’t that be fitting, given the location and all?!)
All images are Copyright 2014 LaDolceVitra.com. Please do not repost without credit.
March 11, 2014
Universal SIM?
It occurred to me today as I landed in Beijing that some of the most interesting experiences I’ve had in a new country is in the airport searching for a SIM counter – and successfully getting my phone to work!
It seems like it’s always a struggle to find the counter, explain what you want and comprehend the various options thrown at you. Then there’s always the anticipation of waiting to see if your phone actually syncs properly so that both calls and data come through.
A few weeks ago during my Hong Kong trip, data was not picking up and I think the attendant got tired of me just standing there waiting. He pretty much said, “Okay, if it doesn’t work, you’ll have to go to the store downtown. Bye bye.”
Today in Beijing, my hubby’s phone was having the same issue this time, and as soon as the salesperson figured it out, she was like, “Bye bye.” We must have said “Bye bye” to her about six times!
And while I do not believe this exists now – unless you have an expensive Universal plan from one of the major phone carriers – why not have an easy Universal SIM card? I’m no technology expert, and I’m sure a lot would have to go into it. Perhaps, there’s no way for all international telecom players to come to whatever agreement they would need to come to. But gosh darn it, wouldn’t it be great?!
And if that is light years away, well hell – someone should design really cool SIM card cases so I can store all the ones I’ve already accumulated.
Tell me about your most memorable experiences trying to Top Up or buy a new SIM card!
March 10, 2014
Lost my Pics – Sad Face
You know when you’re super excited that you were able to capture pictures, especially of yourself, that portray your personality so precisely?
I had some of those from a weekend trip to Langkawi last weekend. We went island hopping and on some of the massive trees there were a couple different types of swings. I decided to jump up and have some fun, and my hubby took some great shots of it.
Today, I decided to upload all my pics, and before deleting them from the memory drive – I saw them in iPhoto. Now as I was just looking for one, I can’t find any of the ones I like! There are pics from before and after, but as luck would have it – not the ones I loved.
I guess this is a lesson that regardless of what you’re able to capture (and successfully download) from great trips, it’s about the journey.
Still keeping my fingers crossed that the MacBook Air and photo Gods will have mercy on my pics!
What’s the most heartbreaking loss of photos you’ve ever experienced?
March 9, 2014
Singapore Crime Alert – Oh My!
Singapore has been easy to acclimate to – things (mostly) run on time, people follow rules, and it’s more “Westernized” than other developing neighbors.
Outside of my building, I was drawn to a “Crime Prevention” poster board that was set out on the pavement. I thought, “Oh no, I wonder what’s happened around here that would warrant alerting the public of a crime?!”
Well, check it out:
“Theft of bicycle” brought a smile to my face. In an odd way, I found this whole signboard/warning very endearing. I love knowing I’m in a city where the smallest of offenses will be known – and those found guilt will be disciplined!
Singapore is very efficient that way. In fact, at restaurants whenever my husband asks for a dish to be altered in some way (i.e.: “Can I have some jalapeños on the side?”) he is met with confused looks, and always told, “Let me check.” Nothing can be changed without checking from higher authorities first.
Things run by the book – but at least things get done!
March 8, 2014
Prayers For MH370
Today my post is simply a prayer for all those on board MH370 and their loved ones.
News like this makes you stop and realize how no moment should be taken for granted.
Whatever hope there is that the outcome of this disappearance may be positive, I hold on to it.
