Celebrating Multiple New Years

Do you celebrate multiple new years in a year?  I'm not talking about crossing the new year in two different time zones, but crossing the new year in different cultures or calendars.

Crossing the new year in two different time zones is very much doable, and there are dozens of articles which talk about that from crossing a time zone border or even the international date line.  And even at any time of the year, I am often excited when I take a trip from Asia to America via the Pacific Ocean, because I get to gain some hours due to the time zone difference.  I can leave my house in the morning, take a 9-12 hour flight and still arrive in America that same morning and sometimes, even earlier. In a world where time passes by so quickly, it is a rare treat to gain some hours in a day and that is something that a lot of people would cherish to have.

But there is another way to celebrate multiple new years, especially if you are multi cultural.  It could get confusing!  So here goes a funny wishful thought.  Imagine, you don't just gain hours, you gain days, weeks and even months.  And I often wondered whether being able to celebrate multiple new years, you get second chances to do what you need to do before a year ends! Theoretically speaking, we gain some time in a year when we would be able to experience New Year again months or so after much of the world have crossed it on January 1st on the Gregorian Calendar.

So here's an example using the Chinese New Year.  Most Chinese believe that these things need to be accomplished before or on New Years Day:

- clean the house before the New Year comes to avoid cleaning out good luck on the 1st day of the year

- pay off debts before the New Year comes to avoid debts in the new year

- have a haircut before the New Year comes to avoid cutting off good luck on the 1st day of the year

- wear red 

- have 12 round fruits around the kitchen to bring good fortune for the next 12 months

- eat noodles for long life

- have a trouble-free first day of the year to enjoy a trouble-free year ahead

- start your new year's resolution

- set off firecrackers to ward off the evil

So if you forget to pay off debts for example or did not make a new year's resolution, before January 1st of the Gregorian calendar, do you get a second chance to pay off your debts and start off a new resolution before the first day of the lunar calendar?  Or are you just fooling yourself? Hahaha! I guess at the end of the day, we get to do both and we need to double our efforts too. But best of all, we also get to double our blessings.

Over the last 2 years, I've celebrated many new years, not just on different calendars but also with different cultures and time zones.  Year 2015, we ended the year with a bang and crossed the New Year' in Barcelona, Spain.  While some traditions sounded familiar to us, one particular special highlight that I've never experienced was the eating of the 12 grapes right when the clock strikes 12 to welcome the New Year, one for each of the first 12 seconds of the new year as a bell dongs in the background.  Each grape represents good luck for every month of the new year as long as you swallow everything after the 12th dong, haha!

Year 2016 Chinese New Year in February, I get to celebrate back home where we would gather as a family to have dinner together.  Nothing fancy, but as fellow foodies, we would enjoy the bonding and camaraderie of eating together happily and everyone in lively red to cross the New Year.  Back home, we see some fireworks across the city with many of the people warding off evil spirits as we cross the New Year.

At the end of Year 2016, we spent the last few days in yet another country, in Japan.  While the Spanish New Year was busy and lively, the Japanese New Year was a tad quieter.  We visited a temple as most locals did and offered our thanksgiving and prayers for a quiet and trouble-free new year.  We were too tired though to stay up for midnight to hear the bells ringing for 108 times which symbolizes getting rid of the 108 worldly desires.

Back home for Chinese New Year today, we once again celebrated foodie-style with a dinner with family.  Ironically, we would have a Japanese dinner instead of a Chinese one and that's because that's the favorite cuisine we all enjoy.  We also knew that for most Chinese restaurants, the head chefs are usually out for this very important holiday as well and thus, may not be the best time to go for top quality Chinese food.  Besides, we would not want to miss having Japanese buckwheat soba noodles for long life. While I missed the often spectacular New Year fireworks show for two years now, I got a chance to see a great show just out from my balcony.  This year's Chinese New Year fireworks were more intense and while I enjoy a quiet time in my own balcony with the cool breeze blowing on my face, the dark sky was lit up quite nicely and I could feel the glow around me.

Such a great way to start another year!

Shop and Eat Seoul Part 2: Insadong and Lotte Mart

Insadong was our last stop for shopping.  This time, we didn't have any specific items to buy, but it was nice to stroll around this area for unique specialty items, usually from local crafters and galleries.  I managed to find three special items from here.

We visited Insadong on a Monday afternoon, just before sending off one of our travel buddies.  We took the subway train from Seoul Station to Anguk Station and took Exit #6, walked the street and joined the subway again on the station before Anguk.

The street gives you a bit of the local but modern culture as products sold here are either new creative crafts or art from street galleries.  Souvenirs of course are abundant here, but people are most amazed with the unique finds.

I myself got a miniature set of Korean sochu and beer bottles since I love to collect miniature items.  I also found those cute socks whose design cuts across both sock.  I got a fat penguin design and a Paul Frank monkey design.  At Samziegil, I got myself a personalized casual bracelet made of unique charms like camera, padlock, watch, etc - a little bit like the Pandora style bracelets.

Shop and Eat Seoul Part 1: Myeongdong

Visiting the local shopping streets and markets versus large department stores and malls, is something that I love to do when I travel.  This time though, I didn't have too much time to visit a traditional local market, so I headed to the shopping districts where they at least had individual stores.

Seoul has several popular places to go to for foreign visitors. Itaewon, Dongdaemun, Namdaemun, Myeongdong, Insadong are at least the most common ones. When I visited Seoul the first time, we had visited Itaewon, which is a global fashion and food mecca.  But I wanted to see what Korea has to offer.  So this time, my friend brought me to Myeongdong, which offers a balance of mid to high priced global and local brands.

I love the atmosphere at Myeongdong.  We had just spent a good part of the day relaxing outdoors at Changdeokgung Palace and the Secret Garden.  It was nice change to stroll through a busy and lively street this time.  The weather was just right, getting cooler as the autumn months come in.  The street was crowded, people going into all directions, but I could still stand around and just watch people go by.  I see mostly Asian faces, although I know through their language that they weren't locals.  It was tempting to go and see international stores like Uniqlo and H&M, but I'd rather spend my short time exploring their local stores which were mainly cosmetic stores. Store sales folks invite you as soon as you even spend a second gazing at their products or their store. They immediately hand you a tiny basket and a free sample, announce their promotions and politely lead you towards their store.

Beauty/Cosmetic Products

One of my goals was to get some cosmetic products for which Korea is known for:  BB cream and facial masks ;-)  We stepped into almost all the cosmetic shops: Innisfree, Missha, Nature Republic, Face Shop, Skin Food and Olive Young, some of which are already available back home, but it was nice to scan through their store even just to window shop.  A few blocks away, you'd find the same stores too, so if you miss one, you'll always get a chance to find another one just a few steps away.  I'm not so much a cosmetic product fan, but I am curious as to the secret that Korea offers as Korean skin is one of the best in the world.  I got a tube of BB cream from Missha to try, since I'm the lazy type wherein I hate long regimens.  BB cream stands for Blemish Balm or Beauty Balm, and is an all-in-one cosmetic that often acts as a moisturizer, primer, sunscreen, skin treatment, concealer and light foundation.  Perfect for me, right?  They even have CC cream now and soon, DD cream as well.  They pretty much have the same concept, but some have additional features like whitening and color correction.

Blessed in Bhutan Part 2 of 2

And the stories continue, as I share my personal experiences and impressions of Bhutan through more fast and fun facts below.

If you missed part 1 of my blog, here's the link:

• Bhutan is the Land of the Thunder Dragon where the Druk, a national symbol shown in their flag, represents Thunder Dragon from Bhutanese mythology.  It holds jewels that represent wealth.
  
  The first thing that immediately came to my mind about the Bhutanese flag was its colors resemble the colors of Buddhism.  Apparently, the orange does represent the Drukpas monasteries and the Buddhist religion and the yellow represents the authority of the King, which reminds me of the yellow color of the Emperor in Chinese culture.
  
  The druk represents strength of the people to protect their country.  I think it's a very appropriate symbol for the Bhutanese as proven by their journey so far, where authenticity has never been compromised.  One can find a lot of words to describe them: loyalty, humility, strength, purity, and it all jives into the symbolism of the Druk.
  
  In addition, I'd like to point out that the jewels here refer to wealth of a different kind.  It refers more to the nation's prosperity, and not material wealth as most people would assume.  And I think that makes Bhutan achieve the personal happiness that they so strongly protect.

Blessed in Bhutan Part 1 of 2

Many of my friends have asked me why I chose Bhutan as a travel destination. It's not a common place to go on a vacation, and access is still quite restricted and expensive.  I guess Bhutan is the closest thing, next to Nepal or Tibet, that will bring me to the Himalayas.  Being the home to the highest mountain in the world, Mt. Everest is not only a goal for the mountaineers but it also represents a vision of success, of hard work, or reaching a dream, of overcoming challenges, of completing a journey, of gaining great satisfaction, and these serve as an inspiration for any regular human being, in almost every part of our lives.

So when the opportunity called to go with a photography group to Bhutan, I was ecstatic and excited. Everest is not attainable by many, at least in the physical or literal sense. This trip sort of serves as a preview, or a peek or even a short cut, depending on how one looks at it.

Well, I didn't get to see the Himalayan mountain ranges as thick clouds covered the view both times we drove through Dochula Pass, where one can enjoy a panoramic view of the Himalayas. Nor did I get to see Mt. Everest on our flight in and out of Bhutan. But Bhutan turned out to be a bag of surprises for me, unexpected but very welcome.

I hope to share my personal experiences and impressions of Bhutan to supplement some of the fast and fun facts below. 


Fast Facts and Fun Facts

• Bhutan is a landlocked country in the Himalayas.  It is bordered by China in the north and by India in the east, west and south.  Nepal is to the west of the Indian border connecting Bhutan
  
  Bhutan has the most dangerous airport landing pads in the world. Only 8 pilots are certified to land here, in Paro International Airport, which is 2,300 meters above sea level, and lies in a valley surrounded by steep and high mountains
  
  Little did I know that Bhutan wasn't even beside Nepal or Tibet, despite the fact that they are all part of the Himalayas.  I never expected it to be surrounded by India nor China.  That shows you how little I know about our geography!
  
  Before embarking on this journey, I didn't know about the risk factor associated with the Bhutan take off and landings.  I knew that I didn't have any choice for getting there except through their national airline, DrukAir, the Royal Bhutanese Airlines.
  
  So there we were almost reaching Paro, I noticed as I looked out the window, that we were flying below the tips of the mountains beside us. In a few minutes, the pilot made several turns, left and right, as we flew through the valley densely compressed between the steep mountains. For a moment there, I felt like I was flying in a fighter aircraft with Tom Cruise (Top Gun) or Josh Lucas (Stealth), pressured to find a flat landing somewhere. Or maybe I was actually in a Flight Simulator game or IMAX movie after all. I'll give it to the pilots, and yes, he's one of the few eight, yes eight, pilots certified to fly to and from Bhutan.  In fact, the flight was so smooth.  As I looked out my window, there wasn't any bit of fear, instead I felt that I was in a dream adventure.
  
  As we landed in Paro International Airport, we disembarked through the back door.  We breath the first of the Bhutanese air and stepped on the land of utmost happiness, and so they say. We could literally see the entire length of the runway, which is surrounded by a range of steep mountains. A giant billboard of a beautiful young couple in traditional attire, probably in their early to mid 30s, welcomes us as we walked towards the airport structure that looked more like a temple than an airport.  I assume the young couple was some sort of a celebrity, and celebrity indeed they were, just of a different kind.  This young couple is actually the King and Queen of Bhutan.

Photo Gallery * Amazing Asia * Temple Running in Cambodia :-)

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Amazing Asia * Sink Your Teeth into Light and Crisp Baked BBQ Pork Buns

BBQ Pork Buns are one of the most basic and popular Chinese dim sum dishes out there.  Most often, we would find them, also referred to as cha siu bao, steamed in one of the bamboo steamers and being sold at the sidewalk bakery or being pushed in a traditional dimsum cart in restaurants.

Two buns left from the full order of three,
before I could even take a snapshot of it,
that's how yummy they are and people can't wait 

But as the market becomes more competitive, chefs have to think of new dishes or rather new and innovative ways to present old dishes.  Tim Ho Wan, one of Hong Kong's famous hole in the wall dimsum restaurants and Michelin Star-rated, have just done that.  Personally, I find the traditional steamed buns sometimes heavy and too filling and am happily surprised to get these light and crisp buns instead.

When you step into a Tim Ho Wan restaurant, you'll almost see every table with their famous baked buns, that's if you are quick enough to spot them before the customers devour them while hot and fresh.  Each table has to wait for them to be baked and brought out on a giant tray fresh, which in an instant becomes empty in just a few seconds as the dishes are immediately distributed to the waiting customers.

We arrived in Singapore, just ready for late lunch at around 3pm.  Obviously we weren't satisfied with airplane food.  Who does anyway? ;-)  So we headed to the Tim Ho Wan brnach in Plaza Singapura, hoping to get a table quickly, assuming an off peak time.  But to our surprise, there was a long queue still.  Being a big fan of their buns which would often be a struggle to try in Hong Kong given our short visits, we were willing to wait this time, and the queue seem to be moving quickly.  We decided to break into two groups to get a better chance at getting tables.  After about 30 minutes playing musical chairs as we moved one seat after another nearer to the end of the queue, we finally got a table.  Not bad for a wait.  The other half of our group was not so lucky, since the restaurant requires all members of the group to be complete before seating you, and they had to queue up separately.  I think that's a fair guideline to have though.  No take out orders either for this branch, such a bummer!

Once seated (eight of us had to squeeze in a table for six), we got a menu which we could tick off what we wanted to order.  Three orders (3 pcs each order) of those baked buns for eight of us please, one each with one extra bun for the lucky one.  But before turning in our order, we added another one, just to make sure we ended up satisfied, and we did not regret it ;-)  We also ordered their famous Pan Fried Turnip Cake (otherwise referred to as Raddish Cake in the Philippines) as well as Steamed Egg Cake (otherwise referred to us Ma Lai Gao in Hong Kong or Malay Cake back home).  Despite the flurry of dim sum places in the Philippines, we still miss the great quality of the dim sum dishes that we can almost only find in Hong Kong.  After all, that's where dim sum originated.

Light and Crisp Based BBQ Pork Buns

Light and Fragrant Ma Lai Gao (Malay Sponge Cake)

Can't miss ordering my favorite dim sum dish:  Steamed Beef Balls,
best dipped  in Worchestershire Sauce which unfortunately, most restaurants nowadays don't serve

Eating dim sum reminds me of my childhood days when we would go back to my mom's hometown in Hong Kong, on every school break we get.  And we'd have towers of the yummiest and most authentic dim sum dishes each time we go.

Photo Gallery * Amazing Asia * Our Unplanned Japan Food Adventure (June 2013)

Embarked on an "unplanned" food adventure in Japan with my friend as we just made random choices or follow our curiosity at a place with long queues!

I'm so amazed how we managed to squeeze in so many varieties of Japanese food that we just encountered along the way from sushi, sashima, tempura, ramen, curry, katsu, yakitori, yakiniku buffet, and even the Sumo chanku dining!

Of course, not to forget the varieties of unique flavors of soft ice cream! Haha!

And the original takoyaki and okonomiyaki of Osaka!

And still more cheesecake versions!

Lastly, just looking at all the food varieties in the department store food basements and fresh markets is already in itself an attraction!


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