Most Memorable Food I Ate While Traveling

I got the idea for this post from The Poor Traveller. Not sure if it was Yoshke or Vince who asked on their FB page what's the most memorable food you've eaten while traveling. I used to travel a lot for work, so there's usually something I remember from each country I've visited. 

So here's a few I still remember:

Pakistan

Brain and balls! Definitely memorable since I was the only one brave enough to try it, haha. I did it for my scout brother, Badar. The brain's texture was definitely something I've experienced for the first time. I think I was too weirded out after the first try and didn't have a second serving. Eating it is supposed to do wonders for you. The balls normally known as soup #5 in the Philippines, but in Pakistan it's prepared differently. I think it was grilled? My memory is a bit fuzzy about it since we ate it in the dark (there was a power outtage). So since it was dark my colleagues tried it too.

Vietnam

Scorpion! They told us it can be poisonous if not cooked correctly. Also best not to eat too many since sometimes it can have a side effect. I just tried a tiny bit and it tasted like crab. 

South Korea

Raw octopus! It was still moving when it was served to us. It was honestly hard to pick up with chopsticks since it was slippery. I ate it with a lot of soy sauce and just swallowed it immediately, haha. I had a bit more when it stopped moving (I was scared it might get stuck in my throat!). 

Bangladesh

The spiciest chicken nuggets in the world! My scout brother, Monirul, invited us to his home. He knew I don't eat spicy food so he had his cook make me some chicken nuggets. I was so excited, but was so shocked with their idea of "not spicy". The nuggets were freshly made, but still had bits of pepper in it. Needless to say, I drank a lot of water that night. 

Taiwan

The best chorizo in the street market! I don't really like chorizo, but eating a stick of it in the street market was truly unforgettable. The closest I could get here is the one from Dayrit's. 

General Santos, Philippines

Tuna sashimi, of course. We got to experience tuna being carved right in front of our eyes. That meant bottomless sushi for the whole night! 

Zurich

Very expensive plate of pasta! We had an allowance for food, but that plate of pasta cost two-thirds of my daily allowance. It was good, but after that I would just buy ready to eat food from the nearby supermarket. 

Japan

Uncle Fumio's sukiyaki! Celebrating New Year in Japan was a very unique experience. We stayed at Uncle Fumio and Tita Pet's home and got to celebrate new year with them. To this day I couldn't forget Uncle Fumio's sukiyaki. It's the best one I've tried in the whole wide world!

I'll try to remember if there's any more memorable dishes I've had when I used to travel, so I'll leave this post open-ended! :)

#BeKind #StaySafe

　

Lost in Zurich, the Lone Adventure

Whoops I did it again!

I seem to have a penchant for getting lost.

I felt so bad that I couldn't join our team outing today because my doctor forbade me. He said I shouldn't risk my health to have some fun in the snow (cry). Anyway, so I woke up early and caught up with work and around lunch time my friend from London pinged me to remind me to get out of the hotel and go around Zurich. He recommended me to go to a cafe to have some chocolate! He said the magic word (chocolate) and I immediately left.

I couldn't figure out the tram system so I took a cab. I got the address from the cafe's website, wrote it down and gave it to the taxi driver. I figured he could use his GPS to find the place. He brought me to the right address but the cafe was nowhere in sight! There were just a few kids playing ball in what looked like a school yard. So I walked back to the main road to find another cab. And I waited... and waited and waited. Fifteen minutes had passed and there wasn't any taxis in the area. I couldn't access internet on my phone so I looked around and saw that that there was a tram stop nearby (not that I knew where exactly I was going).

The instructions on the ticket system was in Swiss and I had no idea what street to go to. There was a sign that read "Bellevue" and thought it would be a good place to head to since it was one of the main areas. Bought a ticket and found myself just by the lake! I was pretty pleased with myself and rewarded myself by eating a huge slice of pizza at the Belcafe. I abandoned the idea of finding the cafe and just did a photo-walk of the area.

After my walk around the lake I thought I'd take a taxi back to the hotel but lo and behold I couldn't find one. Luckily there was free wifi at the Belcafe so I was able to check what tram to ride back to the hotel. Got my ticket just as the tram was rolling to a stop and hopped in. I was back at Four Points (hotel) in no time.

So that was today's adventure around Zurich. I certainly hope my colleagues are having fun in the mountains!

Surviving -6°C

Zurich, Switzerland


The first thing I did when I found out that I was going to Zurich was check the weather forecast. I was mollified when I found out that temperatures go below zero and this week was supposed to go as low as -3°. I sought the advise of my sister and friends who's had winter experience. I didn't have any winter clothing so it was a great excuse to go shopping! My brother-in-law said, "Layer as much as you can."

My cold weather experience is quite limited -- US, Japan and Hongkong and it was cold. I remember when I was a kid I kept complaining to my Mom about how cold it was in Chicago. I hate feeling cold and this is oftentimes something that Sweetie and I struggle on (aircon temp can't go below 23°C). Anyway, my housemate just came from London and she said that it wasn't so bad. Just make sure to bundle up.

When I arrived in Zurich last Monday the temperature was 0°C. It wasn't so bad. I even enjoyed the walk to the office. In the evening though I was surprised to find out that it was snowing outside! Tiny snow flakes were falling fast like a gentle rainshower. It clung to my coat but it didn't feel cold. I even got to taste it! It was sweet, haha. It felt like it was Christmas!

The next day the air was colder (-3°C) and there was snow everywhere. My colleagues said that it hadn't been snowing in the past few weeks so this was a surprise. They warned though that it was going to get colder and today I got to experience -6°C (I'm hoping it won't go any further down!). I must say that it was truly a struggle for me to get to work. I was just really thankful that I managed to fling myself inside our building just before I could turn into a popsicle!

This week has so far been a new experience for me. Acclimating to this kind of weather is pretty hard for someone who grew up in a tropical country. Whatever Siberian wind I got to experience back home is nothing compared to the Siberian wind blowing towards Zurich. I wouldn't dare go out without proper winter clothing. I'm pretty sure I would turn into a popsicle if I do.

I still have about 36 hours left in this lovely city. I hope I get to see more of it before I leave. I hope the sun would come out though tomorrow! (And I need to eat RICE!!!).