Belated 65th

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I travelled to Taipei for business yesterday, and took the opportunity to treat mom for a belated birthday dinner. We had been going to Paris 1930 at the Ritz Landis for these occasions since 2000, and this birthday was no exception.

On my last trip to Taipei, I had dropped off a special bottle of wine with my parents, to be drunk on this special occasion. It's a bottle of 1943 Chateau Canon, which I bought a few years ago when prices were more reasonable. Mom's 65th birthday (even though it passed 2 weeks ago) would be an occasion to pop the cork.

The first pour into the glass showed the youthfulness of the wine. Unlike the 1940 Chateau Haut Brion we drank 6 months ago, this wine isn't on its last legs. Mom's first comment was that the wine was very "young" (compared to the 1940), and that she would expect a lot less sediment at the bottom. She would be proven right.

Of course the wine isn't "young", not in the way you would describe a wine being drunk within 10 years of its vintage. But it's neither vinegar nor water, and showed a lot more body than I had expected. After an hour or so, one can even extract a certain amount of sweet fruit in the nose after swirling. While the palate is still a little acidic, it is to be expected from a wine like this. Overall we were quite happy with the wine, especially mom of course.

I chose the Chef's Menu for the evening (1930 has no a la carte dining). This would consist of the following (apologies for the poor pictures - I only had my small point/shoot):

Amuse bouche - deep fried oyster

Green asparagus, feta cheese and sweet pepper fondant, mango "yolk" with vincotta vinegar syrup. This is quite interesting as the sweet red pepper, along with the mango sauce, toned down the sharp taste of feta cheese.

Lobster with almond choux dumplings, blood orange yogurt, and zarzuela emulsion. I was initially disappointed in the dish, despite the tasty bit of lobster and the yummy yogurt and emulsion. The reason is that the dumplings were initially introduced by the waiter as spaetzle, which is totally different. The texture of the dumplings are very similar to potato gnocci, and hence different from the chewy texture of spaetzle.

Truffle lasagna, parsnip puree and young artichokes, reduced Port and truffle jus with Pecorino cheese emulsion. This was yummy, as the full flavor of the truffles hit the tongue. I could have seconds and thirds of this.

Next up on my menu would be seared fried foie gras with crispy ham. As this is mom's favorite dish, I swapped with her and had Abalone and black linguine, leek cream, crispy almonds and shallots with chorizo froth. This was very, very yummy. The abalone is seared and had the consistency of seared scallops. The linguine was done to perfection. The crispy shallots and the foam made me also want to have seconds for this course.

Main course - Lamb loin and Shimeji Mushroom, confit garlic with minted cumin au jus and potato "tagine". The lamb was very tender, done medium rare with pink centers. There is just enough fat to add a healthy dose of the gamey taste, letting the diner know that this is lamb and not any other meat. Very yummy.

We were treated to a small selection of cheese to finish off the wine, and wrapped up with a selection of bite-size desserts and petit fours. The highlight was the walnut ice cream, which was so nutty and delicious.

I think mom was happy with her birthday meal, despite having it 2 weeks late. Now I have to look for more bottles of 1943...

Easter in Thailand Day 6: Homeward Bound

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Another early start to the day, going around to the temples I marked for exploration in the morning instead of yesterday afternoon.

I start at Wat Yai Chai Mongkhon south-east of the island, whose main attraction is an outdoor reclining Buddha. As I take my camera out of the bag for pictures, I hit upon a snag. Apparently the air con in my hotel room was very cold, and now my camera and lenses are fogging up in the same way that people's eyeglasses fog up going from a cold to a hot environment. This was very frustrating, as I could do nothing but watch mangoes fall from the tree above while waiting for my equipment to defrost. Eventually it took more than 20 minutes, and I give up after a few quick snaps of the Buddha and the large chedi structures. On my way out I encounter a number of cats running around the temple, and spend a bit of time following them around.

Easter in Thailand Day 5: Train ride to Ayutthaya

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Today I would be leaving Bangkok and going up to Ayutthaya, the other ancient capital of Thailand. After having a quick breakfast of stir-fried kway tiaw in the hotel, I packed up and left for Hualamphong station.

I paid the 315 Baht fare for the 2nd class, air-con train. I think it was definitely a wise decision not to take the 3rd class commuter train for 15 Baht - it just looks crowded, dirty and hot. The train was actually reasonably comfortable and clean, and the air-con is a must in this climate.

My 1 1/2-hour train ride was reasonably uneventful, except for the 2-yr old boy on her mommy's lap next to me. She obviously spoils him and he gets whatever he wants, throwing food around and kicking me in the next seat. Eventually she ran out of tricks to calm him down, and I think she let him suck on her tit to keep him quiet. Anyway I think that's what happened, since I didn't exactly feel comfortable to take a good look... 

Getting off the train at Ayutthaya station, I found myself a tuk-tuk to take me to the hotel. The ride to the River View Place Hotel on the island is short and I am there in no time. The tuk-tuk driver offered to take me around the sights for charter hire, and showed me a laminated card printed with English and Japanese. He wants 300 Baht an hour! I am insulted and told him to take a hike.

Easter in Thailand Day 4: Leaving Sukhothai

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Had breakfast early in the morning, and bid farewell to Debbie before her flight back to Bangkok. I really enjoyed her company yesterday.

Set off to Si Satchanalai-Chaliang Historical Park, another part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was about an hour by car, and we arrived a bit after 8:30am. My guide Tong tells me that the name Chaliang is actually a foreign word, having been translated from the Chinese name "Choeng Lieng", as the area was called during the time of Xuanzang (玄奘) and the Journey to the West (西遊記).

The first stop was Wat Phra Si Ratana Mahathat in Chaliang, with a central Khmer-style prang dominating the grounds. The wihan in front has a large, seated Buddha under a canopy to protect it from the elements. I also witness graceful examples of the walking Buddha, while I found that the Buddha here actually had an "Indian" nose - curve downward and back in.

As we pulled up in the car, my guide Tong remarked that it "snowed" the day before. In reality, there was a night market outside the temple and the crowd left behind an incredible amount of garbage, especially in the form of white plastic bags. Cleaning crew was in the middle of taking care of this when we arrived. It's actually quite sad and shows how people's lack of consideration can easily damage a valuable part of our history.

Easter in Thailand Day 3: A traveling companion

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This morning’s program consisted of revisiting some of the main sights from yesterday to try to get better shots in the morning light. I started with Wat Mahatat to capture of the faces of the Buddha statues. The light was prefect so I was very happy.

Wat Si Sawai was my second stop, and as the tuk-tuk pulled up to the entrance, I heard the deafening roar of countless cicadas singing in the trees above me. No one was at the temple at this point in time, and the cicadas gave me a sense of being alone in the woods. Found some new angles for great shots that I missed yesterday.

Next I passed by Wat Traphang Ngoen, which has two separate parts. The ubosot sits on an island in the middle of a large pond. There is no chedi or Buddha statue here, only the laterite remains of the columns. The ubosot is surrounded by a ring of large, old trees whose canopy cover the island completely. Here, too, the cicadas sing. I find myself listening to the sounds of the tropical rainforest, relaxed and taking it easy. I relish the moment. From here I can see the rest of the wat across the pond, with its pretty lotus bud chedi, a seated Buddha and broken columns of the wihan. It’s a pretty sight, especially the reflection in the water.

I go back to Wat Si Chum, definitely my favorite location in Sukhothai. More pictures of the long fingers, and in storms a Spanish family talking loudly. They ignore my presence and begin taking touristy pictures, jumping onto the cement pedestal and touching the Buddha despite large signs in front asking tourists not to climb up. So what’s their excuse? That they are Spaniards but sign was written in Thai, English and French – three languages that they don’t read? And why did their Thai guide not stop them? I am annoyed by stupid tourists.