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Miami Sound Machine & Cuba Libre: Gloria Estefan’s Cuban Rhythms and Miami Beach’s Latin Soul
Miami sound machine + Cuba Libre
Miami Beach is an odd promontory of drunk tourists and sunbathers baking like red clams, lots of construction and atmospheric sights honouring Latin American singers like Gloria Estefan and Celia Cruz, who popularized Guantanamera (literally, girl from Guantanamo) and Azucar (sugar)! Lots of rumba, jazz, cigars and murals in search of the best empanada and cubano (disappointing, probably permenantly ruined by Chef). It’s sobering how near and far the hop across the Bay of Pigs is to a different world of deprivation, comparison and old-school Havana.
Boost Your Child's Mandarin: Starlight Chinese Academy for Immersive Learning
Our focus in the boys’ early education was always language but I have been shocked by the deterioration of their mandarin since starting primary school. Immersive Chinese language experiences have always been important to me because it has been the way I learnt best, and I regret not having sustained opportunities for that, both growing up and in my work life.
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The Land of Mermaids
Happy Chinese New Year of the Snake
Family Pineapple Tart Tradition: A Childhood Memory Baked into New Year's
I have this childhood memory of my ahyi, amongst the great fondness I have for kitchen bonding. Before each new year, the blue-tiled counter would brim with all kinds of ingredients and bubbling pots. She would enclose each ball of jam with a circle of dough and it would be my job to use the little metal scissors to snip the quills of the hedgehog before pinching a nose and adding little clove eyes. Then they would all be egg-washed in rows, baked and rested in clear tins to be given away
Kyushu Road Trip Guide: Stargazing, Sulfur Springs & Secret Culinary Treasures
Kyushu is the best roadtrip, a dramatic wide open low-density country with colours and cragginess reminiscent of the US. We took the train past the Mazda factory to Fukuoka and drove through Beppu, with its steaming hillside sulphuric aquifers, pausing in the charming Diagon Alley-like gourmand town of Yafuin and the narrow and expensive ryokan-strewn cobblestones of Kurakawa Onsen;
Kyoto Family Adventure: Geisha Dress-Up Magic, Kimono Bonding & Heartwarming Moments with Daughters
Travelling with the girls always makes me realize how hard they try, both to keep up with their brothers but also just how hard they try generally, which is tremendously heartwarming to see. As we walked around Gion spotting geishas, they asked if they too could dress up and walk around Kyoto. I think I’m more of a boy mum, as such an activity struck me as slightly bizarre; even as a child it wouldn’t have occurred to me which I attribute squarely to my dad, who asked quizzically, “do they know what a geisha is?”
Rediscovering Kyoto with Kids: Hidden Gems, Family-Friendly Eats & Unforgettable Cultural Adventures
Kyoto dawned bright and sunny; we’d been here once over 15 years ago and were less than impressed by the kitsch of Gion, the hilly shrines, the pink and green kaiseki goo and hard sweets. You wouldn’t think that coming back here with children would change that but the experience was entirely charming.
Five Years of Joy: Reflections on Parenthood, Pandemic Adventures, and the Messy Magic of Growing Up
It has been almost 5 years since the girls made their way into our lives, and I was reminded today how in the early days of Covid, our outings were very local. This shop was a favourite, which is why I think the pakciks are still entirely indulgent of their messy antics.
Explore KROP Knives: Dentist-Turned-Bladesmith Sinan Tansel's Stunning Handmade Damascus and Sustainable Steel Creations in Istanbul
A pleasure to visit with dentist-turned-bladesmith Sinan Tansel, who started #kropknives to blend his love and appreciation for music and the culinary arts. He showed us his collection of Damascus, outdoor and kitchen chef knives which use recycled, sustainable materials. He also showed us his wonderful hand-made, dual-toned patterned knife blades, made by acid staining on steel.
Step Back in Time: Exploring Hagia Sophia, Topkapi Palace, Blue Mosque, and Istanbul's Historic Wonders in 8 Hours
A long and educational tour through the Hagia Sophia, Topkapi Palace, Basilica Cisterns, Blue Mosque, Grand Bazaar and Spice Market. We started out at 7.30am and walked 22,000 steps in 8 hours! What a rich and haunting history, so full of clashes and disappointment of human civilizations.
Savor Istanbul: A Culinary Backstreets Tour Through Simit, Kunefe, Pide, Baklava, and More
A long and delicious food tour with Culinary Backstreets: Istanbul Eats exploring breakfast simit (ubiquitous baked sesame pretzel bread), peyniri (string cheese), kunefe (fried shredded wheat and cheese soaked in syrup), pide, pickles, pistachio ice cream and baklava.
Journey Through Time: A Sweet Suzhou Roadtrip with Tanghulu, Poetry, and Song Dynasty Culture
Sweet Suzhou Saturday roadtrip, with traditional tanghulu and a cultural performance of this Song Dynasty poem by Li Qingzhao, ancient China’s most famous female poet, that went completely over their heads.
Bridging Cultures: A Birthday Well Spent Promoting Bilingual Immersion for Singaporean Students in Qidong, China
Today was such a fulfilling use of a birthday and day of leave. I envy anyone who has the opportunity and aptitude for languages and it has long been a dream of mine to enable earlier immersion study for bilingualism. It mirrors my own language journey, which I regret has ebbed and flowed with my environment and creative quality of teaching; and missed opportunities to spend more time living in China improving my Chinese and indeed, in HK improving my Cantonese.
CNY2024!
This CNY, I’ve just been so blown away by the effigy of colour, celebration and dragons- I didn’t realize Asians have so much dragon stuff. Although I couldn’t maintain the stamina to keep socialising and visiting, I felt very fortunate to spend time with the warmth of family and grateful to have friends,
Macarons Time
I’m not sure what’s worse, the 7-year old who declares in the minutiae of the start of school weekend, early-dropoff-fatigue, shoes-are-outgrown, need-art-supplies, sports-trials, that he should make macarons, or the 4-year old who wakes up and bursts into your room at midnight singing “time for Cuddles!”
But he did and they turned out pretty good!
Pumpkin Pies to McDonald's: A Heartwarming 8th Birthday Fundraiser for It's Raining Raincoats"
The boys turn 8. Last Nov, Wes baked pumpkin pies to fundraise a dinner with some of the men we met through ItsRainingRaincoats, a meaningful home-grown organization. We’d planned on briyani at Racecourse Road but did an about turn when the coordinator told us they would definitely enjoy McDonald’s as a rare treat.
Family of Six 2023 Recap: Juggling Parenthood, Global Adventures & Milestones with Four Kids
Happy 2024! 2023 is the first year that we haven’t managed a physical Christmas card. This is because it has been a very quick and a very long year, and we’ve finally been overwhelmed by juggling life and four kids. It never stops, but we are getting better year-on-year at managing.
California Christmas Lights: San Carlos, Cambria & 17-Mile Drive Cycling Adventure
The spectacle that is a US Christmas light-up, I wonder how the average 100amp house panel can support these incredibly effusive displays. The San Carlos Christmas street, Cambria Christmas market and cycling the 17-mile drive along the Pacific Coastal Highway. This is the first year we can all cycle together! We also passed the Vandenburg Space Military camp while they were launching Space-X rockets, which was Pezzy’s main interest.
Kyushu is the best roadtrip, a dramatic wide open low-density country with colours and cragginess reminiscent of the US. We took the train past the Mazda factory to Fukuoka and drove through Beppu, with its steaming hillside sulphuric aquifers, pausing in the charming Diagon Alley-like gourmand town of Yafuin and the narrow and expensive ryokan-strewn cobblestones of Kurakawa Onsen;