To make up for the lack of posts lately (due to mad frantic packing pursuant to a big move), here's a loooong one based on my recent whirlwind visits to Hong Kong and Shanghai.
This time, we managed to stay in some luxury - Conrad Hotel, Hong Kong. I can't say enough good things about our room. The room was huge (as opposed to the typical cramped open-your-suitcase-no-room-to-move HK hotel rooms)! The view was wonderful! Overlooking the mountain side (as opposed to the more prevalent look-out-see-your-neighbour-or-wall kind of view). And the room even had its own little Nespresso machine! To top everything off, we were given a Conrad bear too! What more can a gal ask for? ... more stays at the Conrad perhaps? :) :) :)
As I've been to Hong Kong several times, I was looking for something new to try. Recalling these yummy cookies a Taiwanese friend had given us upon returning fm their holiday in Hong Kong, I decided to pick up some more for my mom to try. Here's Jenny's Bakery (the Causeway Bay outlet):
My fav: the 8-Mix ones! (cos I prefer more crisp cookies vs the 4-mix which were just a tad too crumbly.) (Note: I didn't try the almond ones at the bottom.)
Dinner at a typical HK style Cantonese restaurant ...
Chinese cabbage in broth with mushrooms
Steamed fish Hong Kong style
Roast duck ... Hong Kong roast meats are generally hard to beat ...
While shopping around Times Square, Causeway Bay, I caught sight of these whimsical decorations ... check out the cupcakes, giant lollipops ... talk about eye candy!
Later, Hubby lead me through some deserted alleys (which I'd prob never venture by myself) and found this stall selling "Che Zhai Meen". Apparently, this stall is pretty famous!
Basically, you pick whatever you want, and this lady cooks them with noodles, and puts them in this special sauce ...
And voila! "Che Zhai Meen"! (Incidentally, that octopus/squid like thing on the top is actually sausage that's been sliced in an interesting manner!) I have to say that this was really delicious! I would definitely ask Hubby to take me back there when we next visit Hong Kong :)
After our very brief stay in Hong Kong, we flew to Shanghai. Recognise the Bund?
The above pic was taken fm the restaurant we were in at Liu Jia Zhui (Pudong) - Xiao Nan Guo.
Here's our "La Zi Ji Ding" ... fried chicken cubes with dried chili ... wonderful on a cold winter's day!
Comforting chicken soup to warm our cold tummies ... Shanghai is really cold!
Dou Miao (veggies) with bamboo shoots ... yum!
Tofu with crab roe ... we've tried this dish in many other restaurants, but this is one of the best I've had ...
Around the Liu Jia Zhui commercial area ... Super Brands Mall ...
IFC Mall ... see the Apple Shop in the middle?
The iconic Pearl Tower ...
The Grand Hyatt ...
Part of the round elevated walkway ...
As it happened to be the season for hairy crabs, and it just happened that our friend happened to be on a company trip to the nearby lake which is famous for their hairy crabs, and it happened we were in town, we were graciously invited to her apt to help devour ensure these crabs did not go to waste :)
Just look at all that beautiful droolworthy creamy orangey roe!!!
After spending several hours quietly savouring every little morsel of the hairy crabs, and after a few more hours digesting our delicious lunch, we then adjourned for dinner at Xiao Jiang Nan.
Some of the more interesting dishes there:
A tofu dish which the chef was explaining was initially in liquid form, but upon the addition a hot stone at the side of the dish, would coagulate to produce a more jelly-like consistency ...
When it gets a more tofu-like texture, we had the option of having it with savoury sauces or with honey for a more dessert-like end to the meal. Our consensus was it tasted better savoury.
I was also fascinated by this rice. They actually had one type for men, and another for women (presumably the differentiation was to cater to men and women's genetic makeup). This one was for women ... black glutinous rice with lily bulb ...
This one was for men ... kinda like fried rice with corn and peas ...
A typical Shanghainese dessert: Fermented rice wine
Our friend was fascinated by this Shanghainese dessert: Ba Si. We chose sweet potato Ba Si, which is essentially sweet potato cut into strips and fried, then covered with a thick sugar syrup and served hot. In order to prevent the strips of sweet potato from clumping, we had to quickly pick up the sweet potato strips and dip them into cold water which hardened the syrup and made them deliciously crisp and yummy :)
The following day, we happened to go past this impressive looking old building which has since been turned into a museum. Apparently, it was designed by the Soviets... it certainly looks reminiscent of the Russian buildings I've seen in pictures, particularly the gold spires.
On our last day in Shanghai, we decided to have lunch at Shanghai Court in Shangri-La. I was pleasantly surprised that the Cantonese style dim sum was good and comparable to those in Hong Kong ...
Our tea ... charmingly served on a little pedestal ...
It's hard to find good char siew sou ... and this was good!
Naturally, as with all trips, how could a travel post be complete without pics of my purchases? :) So, here they are ...
A faux leather jacket fm H&M, HK
Simple plain tees fm H&M, HK
Interesting grey cardi with a metal chain-link accent down the front. Li Yuen St, HK
A simple white top ... what attracted me was the back ... Zara, HK
Ever since I saw a stylish shopgirl in Zara sporting this, I've been lusting after it ... love the golden buttons down the back ...
As it was near the Christmas holiday season, I was drawn to all the sparkling outfits in the shops. I finally succumbed to this goldeny sparkling skirt .... Zara, HK
I wonder if I could team the both above and dare I venture out in the day in this?
I loved my white lacey blouse fm Zara so much, I just had to have this grey version in a dress .... Zara, HK
In a throwback to my mom's time, I rummaged around these shops in Fa Yuen Street and Li Yuen Streets East & West, and came back with these vintagey looking dresses ...
One of my star buys ... I nearly missed it as it was sandwiched oh so tightly between a gazillion other dresses. Only a little bit of it was peeking out when I stumbled upon it. Love love love the multicolour swatches of colour, and the scalloped neckline, and the scalloped sleeves, and the scalloped pockets, and the cute buttons! What's not to love? The price was wonderful too!
A cute owl tee fm Fa Yuen Street ...
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