Cooking
Sorry no pictures, or even any links yet. But here are some first impressions:
Arriving at night the city is balmy and buzzing with motorcycles, scooters and people everywhere. But there is a calm purposefulness about it all. Everyone we meet is polite and soft-spoken.
First day after a breakfast of pho with a view overlooking the Saigon river, we walk from the Hotel Majestic to the Ben Thanh market. Crossing the street to enter is a harrowing experience! You can't wait for traffic to die down because it never does. You just have to plow ahead in an act of utter faith or stupidity.
The market is crammed with stalls and vendors selling everything from clothes and shoes,"madam, madam, I have your size!" to bars with just one specialty--bun noodles or banh mi or something else. Glasses of exotic looking colored drinks have noodles and polka dots and who-knows-what floating or sinking in them, all day glow colors. Tons of beautiful fresh fish and enormous prawns and lobsters, mostly live and thrashing about, I actually saw what looked like a catfish getting away (!) I've taken tons of pictures and hope to get them up soon, I'm sure the folks there thought I was crazy for taking pictures of bowls of rice but there they were like bulk bins at a supermarket but all rice, maybe 15 different kinds of white rice. It is truly a different and fascinating world.
Happy New Year from Saigon!
FOOD
- Floating Market On The Mekong Delta
Here's the thing about Vietnam, it still feels authentic. I mean it doesn't feel prettied up for tourists. You can easily get a view of the real workings of the country and see how things get done. It's exciting and invigorating and sometimes...
- Lotus Tea
When you are in Hanoi or Saigon it's easy to forget how most of Vietnam is rural. Driving through the countryside you see beautiful landscapes, mountains, rice paddies, and gardens everywhere. Banana trees are heavy with fruit and tea grows on manicured...
- Making Rice Noodles
In the picturesque town of Hoi An we got to take a half day cooking class at the Red Bridge Cooking School. First we were guided through a trip to the market to learn about the fresh products we would use, then a boat ride to the school, a walk through...
- French Food In Vietnam
I came here to eat Vietnamese food, but French food is very much part of the culinary landscape. So I eat French food too. Actually I enjoy French food. So far anyway, the French food I have had has been excellent, though not exactly the same same as...
- I'm Dreaming Of Vietnamese Cuisine...
While the holidays are thoroughly captivating to many, I am filled with visions of Spring Rolls, not sugar plums, dancing through my head. The end of this month I will going to Vietnam and it will not be a whirlwind tour. I will be there for a whole...
Cooking
First Day in Ho Chi Minh City aka Saigon
Sorry no pictures, or even any links yet. But here are some first impressions:
Arriving at night the city is balmy and buzzing with motorcycles, scooters and people everywhere. But there is a calm purposefulness about it all. Everyone we meet is polite and soft-spoken.
First day after a breakfast of pho with a view overlooking the Saigon river, we walk from the Hotel Majestic to the Ben Thanh market. Crossing the street to enter is a harrowing experience! You can't wait for traffic to die down because it never does. You just have to plow ahead in an act of utter faith or stupidity.
The market is crammed with stalls and vendors selling everything from clothes and shoes,"madam, madam, I have your size!" to bars with just one specialty--bun noodles or banh mi or something else. Glasses of exotic looking colored drinks have noodles and polka dots and who-knows-what floating or sinking in them, all day glow colors. Tons of beautiful fresh fish and enormous prawns and lobsters, mostly live and thrashing about, I actually saw what looked like a catfish getting away (!) I've taken tons of pictures and hope to get them up soon, I'm sure the folks there thought I was crazy for taking pictures of bowls of rice but there they were like bulk bins at a supermarket but all rice, maybe 15 different kinds of white rice. It is truly a different and fascinating world.
Happy New Year from Saigon!
FOOD
- Floating Market On The Mekong Delta
Here's the thing about Vietnam, it still feels authentic. I mean it doesn't feel prettied up for tourists. You can easily get a view of the real workings of the country and see how things get done. It's exciting and invigorating and sometimes...
- Lotus Tea
When you are in Hanoi or Saigon it's easy to forget how most of Vietnam is rural. Driving through the countryside you see beautiful landscapes, mountains, rice paddies, and gardens everywhere. Banana trees are heavy with fruit and tea grows on manicured...
- Making Rice Noodles
In the picturesque town of Hoi An we got to take a half day cooking class at the Red Bridge Cooking School. First we were guided through a trip to the market to learn about the fresh products we would use, then a boat ride to the school, a walk through...
- French Food In Vietnam
I came here to eat Vietnamese food, but French food is very much part of the culinary landscape. So I eat French food too. Actually I enjoy French food. So far anyway, the French food I have had has been excellent, though not exactly the same same as...
- I'm Dreaming Of Vietnamese Cuisine...
While the holidays are thoroughly captivating to many, I am filled with visions of Spring Rolls, not sugar plums, dancing through my head. The end of this month I will going to Vietnam and it will not be a whirlwind tour. I will be there for a whole...