Not a very good way to start the week

Its monday and im in a very uninviting mood. Early this am, my husband made a comment that i took personally and made my head hurt from being so mad at him. I should say, im firing in anger . He probably didnt mean it pero iba talaga pag naalimpungatan ka. Di ba nga, magbiro ka na sa lasing, wag lang sa bagong gising. I slept on it. Hoping pagkagising ko, di na ko galit. I was wrong. I woke up having a terrible headache and it made me feeling very crappy. Pero ok na din, atleast nabawasan galit ko kahit konti. This morning, tingin ng tingin love ko, naninimbang. Nararamdaman siguro nya na di ok mood ko. I even planned to leave him kanina when I woke up and go to my mom kaso lang umiiyak si Marianna kaya i attended to her. I just made myself busy by arranging things after giving my daughter milk.
Lunes na lunes. Sana naman di maumpisahan week ko ng topak. Hay ...

Lan Fong Yuen, Central, Hong Kong

The smoothest silk stocking milk tea....
The smoothest silk stocking milk tea.....

It was playing in my head for a few days before I got to try it as I heard about it from SF and also read about it in food magazine.

A small establishment tucked at the corner of Gage Street. Extremely unassuming but such gems lies within.

With about 15 tables in this small char chan teng, we (aka the tourist) looked slightly out of place as the tables were filled with locals slurping noodles and eating toasts.

It was teatime for us, so no noodles, but we opted for the famed silk stocking (xi mut) milk tea...

Unpretentious cup. Smooth as silk milk tea. Maybe there's magic in the silk stocking they used? Or from decades of serving many, many cups for milk tea? Whatever the reason, this cup of tea was indeed the smoothest I've tasted so far. The combination of tea and milk was perfect; did not leave any 'dry' aftertaste with each sip.

I ordered some peanut toast, but the lady heard wrongly, and I got toast with condense milk :(

The bread, though thick, was fluffy and charred nicely from charcoal grill.

The pork chop bun

Looks amazing? Well, it tasted even better than it looks! The chop was marinated for 12 hours, hence it was tender, flavourful and so very juicy! And served piping hot, biting into the fluffy, toasted sesame bun was just pure pleasure. Wish I could have this every day!!!

One of the waiter chatted with us, telling us that they have a larger, more comfortable (with air con) branch just a few shops down the same road. It had a bigger menu, more food selection. We did pop by another day..

We had french toast..

Too oily and not eggy enough for me. And thin layer of peanut butter dont assuage my appetite. :p

I had the iced silk stocking tea

The warm one's better. The ice dilutes the tea's flavour.

And as usual, pig that I am, I ordered the pork chop bun. Not as tasty as the original branch.
So how does the older (original) Lan Fong Yuen looks like?

No, that's not a stall, the entrance is on the left, where the lady is standing..

Lan Fong Yuen is located at 2 (original branch), 4-6 (newer branch), Gage Street, Central, Hong Kong. Opens 7 am- 6pm.

Twilight

Dahil day off ng love ko kahapon, after work, nanood kami ng Twilight sa Trinoma. Super haba ng pila. 4 na movie theater dun puro twilight ang palabas and still punuan pa din. I bet most of them have read the twilight paperback to which the movie was based and di katulad ko na nagkainterest lang kasi it topped the US movie chart this week. Anyways, maganda yung movie. Di sayang binayad namin na 170 pesos per movie ticket. After watching it nagka interest tuloy akong bumili nung paperback. 4 pala yun in one set and because of its popularity, out of stock sa mga bookstore. And it doesn't come cheap ha? Php 2500 per set, di pa hardbound. I'll probably just wait for the next movie installment.

Vaccine

Yesterday i wasnt able to go to work since its my baby's check up and scheduled vaccine injection. Inuubo ang baby ko.

When we went to the National Children's Hospital for her check up under her pedia Tita Dolly Cruz, she had a physical check up before she was given the vaccines. 9 lbs na baby ko. last check up nya, 6.8 lbs. height 54 cm from 51 cm. binati nga sya ng pedia na lumalaki na kaha nya. he he.

Eto na, wala pang naibibigay na vaccines, umiiyak iyak na sya
Sabi ni tita Dolly, "iyakin tong baby mo, lalo na to pag ininjectionan ko na".
First binigay sa kanya oral vaccine muna for rotavirus. Kontra diarrhea and vomitting. Nabasa ko lang sa Smart Parenting kaya we decided na pabigyan na sya pero its optional. You can read more about it at http://www.rotavirusvaccine.org/. Tapos yung injectible na binigay sa kanya, 6 in one. Natandaan ko lang for polio tska hepa B. Eto na, umiyak na sya ng malakas Pero nung tinanggal na yung needle sa pigue nya, konting kausap and ugoy lang, nakatulog ang anak ko. Ang mahal pala ng vaccines. Lagpas 6k din yung dalawa na yun and may bukod pa sya na dose sa dec 24 para sa pneumonia tska meningitis. and jan 28 para sa second doze ng rotavirus and 6 in one. Pero ok lang. Kung pwede nga mabakunahan sya para sa lahat ng uri ng sakit, papabakunahan namin. To ngang asawa ko, magtanong daw ako kung pwede bigyan si Marianna ng para sa varicela para di na magkabulutong. Pano sya nagpa vaccine kontra bulutong kasi hangang ngayon di pa sya nabubulutong. Natatakot syang magkamarka ng bulutong ang makinis nyang kutis

Nakakaawa pag bata nagkakasakit. Lalo na pag baby, di pa marunong mag sabi kung ano masakit sa kanila. Iniisip ko pa lang na may sakit anak ko, parang naiiyak na ko. Kaya mas mabuti ng makumpleto vaccines nya kaysa mahirapan sya pag nagkasakit. Ika nga, " Prevention is better than Cure ".

Accounting Course...ofcourse!

I wasnt able to blog yesterday. A little busy from making scheds for our up coming interim audit next wk. Parang na jack hammer yung ulo ko nung uwian na from beating the deadlines. hay ... Bakit nga ba accounting ang kinuha kong course? Eh nung high school math ang pinaka mababa ko na grade. Eh ano nga ba pinaka mataas ko? Pagkakatanda ko yata Economics tska Social Studies. Eh pag social studies naman gagawin kong batayan sa pag pili ng course, ayoko naman maging historian. Parang wala naman akong magiging future sa career na yun. Kung Economics naman, maaari pa kasi gusto kong maging ekonomista dati. There was a time in my life that graphs of GNP (Gross National Product) makes sense to me. Kaso nga lang, limitado lang pwedeng mapasukan na work pag economist ka. Di katulad pag accounting grad, lahat ng industry kailangan ng accountant in one way or another. And besides, i have no reason to complain, sa pagiging accountant ko na meet ang aking one and only love. And minahal ko na din tong course na kinuha ko. Sanayan lang yan ika nga. Lahat naman kayang aralin at mahalin. And if you love what you do, everything will come easy. Kaya dapat pag tinanong ako kung ano work ko, i should proudly say... Accountant ako! Di ba halata sa mga eyebags ko? he he

Maxim's Palace, City Hall, Hong Kong

1 time dim sum in Hong Kong on each visit is definitely not enough..

Hence our visit to Maxim's Palace :p

Maxim's is a huge, chinese restaurant (zau lau), so if you want cozy tea house setting, this is definitely not the place for you. I felt I was attending a large chinese wedding dinner when I was in there actually( and me sitting near the large golden dragon- phoenix carvings with "hei" words does not help).

I was rather intimidated by the large crowd ( mostly locals and a handful of tourists) queuing at the entrance, luckily it was quite fast as they have about 100 tables in the restaurant..

Waiters pushing trolleys and carrying trays of dim sums were everywhere, so getting food the moment we sat was a breeze...

Stuffed aubergine..

Quite yummy. Pan fried aubergine stuffed with fish paste and doused with thick sauce.

Har gau (steamed prawn dumplings)..

Thin, translucent skin wrapping encasing huge, fresh, springy prawns. Good.

The steamed beef balls

Juicy, not over cooked and very well marinated. Had a wonderful spring to it.

Lamb with black pepper sauce..

Extremely tender lamb cooked in slightly sweet black pepper sauce. Delicious actually, the meat was still pinkish on the inside and the black pepper not too overpowering..

Amy was craving for loh mai kai since the first day in Hong Kong..

We had to grant her, her wish. Alas, she was sorely disappointed. Some parts of the rice were uncooked and taste was, well, flat. Skip this.

The fung zhao (steamed chicken feet)

Plump chicken feet cooked in thick sweetish bean sauce. Very flavourful, pretty good. (though a tad oily)

Steamed chicken with mushroom and fish maw

This was scrumptious! The chicken chunks were well marinated, tender and moist; while the mushroom was thick and fragrant; and the fish maw was so, so good as it soaks up all the essence and sauces from the chicken and mushroom. A must order!

Some veggies to balance our meal.. As expected, very fresh and sweet veggies..

The prawn chee cheong fun.. The CCF was too thick and sauce was a tad bland.

I was asking for woo kok (yam puff) since we sat down..

And after waiting, waiting and waiting, one of the waiter finally remembered my request and wah lah.. I'm glad for the wait. Freshly cooked, it's piping hot, the yam was soft and melting and the filling was simply lip smacking. Rather than the dark coloured filling we have in Malaysia, Maxim's version is somewhat creamy; ala alfredo, but very delicious nonetheless.

We thought we'll have some sweets and saw this quaint looking thing..

Ultra mini paus filled with mango flavoured custard and coated with a light mango gelatin. Nothing to shout about though sounding so fancy.

I was surprised to see the waitress carrying trays of keropok (fish/ prawn crackers)

No, that's a sweet snack, nothing like keropok SF said

Yes, it does look different when it was placed on our table. Tasted exactly like mah zai (aka shat kei ma), but way better as the fried flour concoction melts in my mouth almost immediately. What's left was hints of honey/ maltose which lingers, just for a while. Sweet :)

Total bill was HKD510 for 3 persons. A tad cheaper than Luk Yu, though Luk Yu's quality is a notch higher. I guess this is a place for you if you prefer a lot of dim sum variety.City Hall Maxim's Palace is located at 2nd Floor, City Hall Low Block, Hong Kong.

Work kaya ko abroad? Nah ...

Tuesday, second day of work. Medyo madaming work kasi may interim audit kami next week kaya kailangan matapos mga scheds. Syempre breaktime kaya singit muna blogging. Minsan naiisip ko bakit kaya di ako mag abroad? Lalo na compared dito, mas malaki kikitain ko sa ibang bansa. Tapos yung mga kaibigan ko na wala na dito sa Pinas, malaki kita nila tsaka nabibili nila kahit na anong gusto nila o napupuntahan lahat ng lugar na gusto nilang pasyalan. Naiingit ako minsan, aaminin ko. Pero pag naiisip ko, di ko kailangan kumita ng malaki kung mahihiwalay naman ako sa family ko. Lalo na ngayon na may baby na kami. At isa pa, umaalis na nga asawa ko, pati ba naman ako, aalis din. Ayokong ma miss every milestone sa pag laki ng mahal kong si Marianna. Dapat nga magpasalamat ako dahil kahit dito lang ako sa Pinas nagtatrabaho, nabibili ko naman lahat ng pangagailangan namin at minsan, may sobra pa para makabili ng gusto from time to time. Very thankful naman ako for everything. Kaya i have no reason to be envious at other people's fortune. Dito sa Pinas, kasama ko family ko. Walang katumbas na pera kasiyahan na magkasama kami ng anak ko at nila mama. Di kayang bayaran missed moments with your family and loved ones. Dasal ko na lang, sana di magsasawa si Lord pag subaybay at pag gabay inspite of our shortcomings.

Monday Madness

Every monday it feels like i have to drag myself out to bed. Start nanaman kasi ng week ng work. But then again, di naman matatapos kung di uumpisahan kaya dali dali din ako naligo dahil 6:15 na ko nagising. Sa bahay, may mga sipon at ubo kami. Pati baby ko inuubo. Kawawa naman baby ko . Pag umuubo sya, parang nasusuka. Di kasi ok panahon this days. Bihira yata walang ubo at sipon. Tuwing umuubo sya, naaawa ko. Kasi naaabala tulog nya. Maswerte pa din kasi malakas pa din sya dumede.

Sa friday, Nov 28, 2 mos na baby ko. Nung first month nya, nagpaluto lang kami ng pansit tska shanghai kay mama. Baka sa friday bumili na lang kami sa labas . Sabi kasi nila mas ok pag pinag hahanda yung baby every month one year bago sya mag 1st bday, iwas sakit daw. Sa akin, I just want to celebrate monthly sa pagdating ng aming precious baby.

Nways going back to my monday madness, ayun as usual, super siksikan sa lrt. Sa mga babae na couch ako umuupo pero minsan mas haragan pa mga babae sa lalaki. Nung minsan ba naman, e di pasakay nga ko ng lrt, nasa bandang bungad ako ng pinto. Lumabas ulit ako kasi ang bagal ko, naubusan na ko ng upuan. Pag labas ko, dun ulit ako pumuwesto sa bandang harap ulit para maka upo na ko next train. Naku maniwala ka, yung magkabilang babae na feeling nila sinigitan ko sila, sinisiko ako. Magkabilaan. Tinitingnan ko sila di naman naka tingin sa kin pero tuloy tuloy pa din siko. Manong magsalita. Mga biolente.
Hinayaan ko na lang. Ayokong makipag away. Hay naku, talagang pag nag cocommute ka, madaming storya. May mga makakasakay ka na mga war freek, bastos, walang modo, super daldal at kung ano ano pang klase ng tao.

Countdown toThanksgiving-Dowd Style

How can you tell it is almost Thanksgiving at our house? My kids would say that the precursor for Thanksgiving is the smell of silver polish, Windex,and Guardian furniture polish. For me, I really can't get to the food until the house is clean. I usually begin with the most dreaded task in my home- defrosting our extra freezer and cleaning the fridge and pantry. Besides helping me organize and taking stock of what I have and what I need for the Thanksgiving feast, It helps make room for the frozen birds that I buy on special (this year $.49/pound) and for the quarts of frozen stock that will result from our turkeys. This time I even wrote down an inventory and typed up the list to help me keep track of what I am using out of my freezer, so I don't end up with no chicken and 20 pounds of stew meat!

Since at my Thanksgiving table I use all my best serving ware, it means that I have to open up my corner hutch and clean all the crystal and silver that will find its way to the table. Here is another of my tips- if you have beautiful things- china, crystal, linens and they sit unused in your cupboards, get them out! For years I would not usemy Waterford since I was afraid it would get broken or chipped and with the decline of the dollar, I could never afford to replace it. But then I realized- What am I saving it for!!? Since then, I use my very best things for festive family dinners. It says to your family and guests, "You are worth the best that I have to offer", and makes your meal really memorable.

My daughter has made acorn napkin rings, and I have purchased dark chocolate turkey placecard holders to mark each person's place. I have stocked the pantry, printed out all my new recipes and made my first batch of brine (we are making two turkeys this year so one will get roasted this evening).

What are the things that preceed your Thanksgiving day cooking? Do you have to iron your favorite linen tablecloth, or clean your oven? Or do you just dive right in?

Magastos maging kikay

Kahapon pagkalagak namin kay Marianna kay mama, nagpunta kami ng trinoma. Pasyal naman daw kami dahil day off nya sabi ng asawa ko. he he. Pumunta ko sa La Senza. Bibili lang talaga ko ng panty. Sale kasi. 5 pcs for php 1295. mura na sa tingin ko kasi magandang klase naman. E di nakapili na ko. May nakita ko na bra. sale din. 2 pcs for 1795. Syempre ang listang taga assist kung ano ano na pinasukat sa kin. Sa madaling salita, kumuha din ako. E di magkano na yun, Php 3090. Tapos inalok ako ng membership card. 10% disc, good for 1 year daw. kwenta ko, magdadagdag na lang 191 di bale nabayaran na ng binili ko yung membership fee. O di sige. Eto nanaman, may inalok nanaman na disc. pag naka purchase ng php3500, may libre na worth php 695. To make the long story short, inavail ko nanaman. kaya ayun, naka almost php 3800 ako. 7 panties tska 2 bra. Talaga nga naman. Medyo pinagpawisan nga ko ng malamig nung na realize ko gano nagastos ko. Mabuti na lang maganda lahat ng nabili ko kaya its not all lost. Pera ko lang ang na lost-tay. ha ha. Mukhang matagal tagal pa ulit bago ako mamili ng underwear.

Kanina naman, nagpa pedicure ako. Sobrang sakit na kasi ng paa ko. 2 wks na kasi since my last pedicure. Pumunta ko ng Davids salon dito sa MCU. Ayun, pagkatapos ko sabay nakapag pagupit na and threading. php 380 lahat. php 135 yung threading tska gupit, php 110 naman yung pedicure. Buti at di ako inalok ng hair treatment at malamang pinatulan ko nanaman.

Gastos talaga. Buti na lang at wala kong credit card, kung di sasakit lalo ang ulo ko sa pagbabayad ng interest.

Vbest Tea House, Soho Central, Hong Kong

Vbest Tea House was a last minute suggestion by SF; we were tired and wanted dinner nearby..
They serve delicious smoked duck there, was SF's reply

The restaurant was rather quiet, it's located at the less crowded area off Soho. SF said it's crowded during lunch hour as it's quite near the central business district..

Decided to have some soup first...

Fish broth with bak choy and sliced pork (HKD55). The soup was simply divine; it was smooth, from hours of boiling I presume. The fish broth was a comfort to drink, the sweetness from the pork slices and veg complemented the savoury soup perfectly.

Their homemade pork wantans (HKD55)

This was an average dish. The skin was way too thick and pork filling, sparse. Can skip this.

The Mah Poh tau foo (HKD68)

Vbest's version was infused with mah lat spicy szechuan pepper corns; every mouthful earns us a numb tongue for few seconds. The smooth tau foo neutralizes it fairly quickly though. A slightly piquant dish, might not be everyone's cup of tea.

The highly anticipated Smoked Duck (HKD85)..

Such a pretty sight! The wait was definitely worth it; every slice of the duck was absolutely delectable! The luscious duck meat was beautifully marinated; tender meat , a sliver of melting fat in between the crisp, aromatic skin sent me straight to seventh heaven. Bliss.

Stir fried snow peas with ear wood fungus (HKD55)..

The vegetables was extremely fresh and sweet; and it was full of wok hei. Very tasty indeed!

Vbest Tea House is located at 17 Elgin Street, Soho, Central, Hong Kong.

Ang buhay pamilyado. Bow.

Di ako nakapasok today. Im a little bit under the weather. I have a very terrible sore throat. Hirap ako lumunok. Eh kasi naman kagabi uminom pa ko ng malamig na apple juice. Uhaw na uhaw kasi ako. Kasi naman yung nasakyan ko na jeep, malayo pinag babaan at kakain daw sila. Naglakad tuloy ako hangang bahay. Sayang pamasahe e. 30 pesos sa tricycle kasi ayoko ng may katabi. malapit lang naman kaya nilakad ko na. Exercise na din.

Nways, kinuha ni mama si Marianna today. Naawa nga kami ni Mark kasi inuubo sya. Sabi ng tita neneng ko pag dating kay mama, minasahe ng vics yung likod nya kaya tulog na tulog sya ngayon. Balak ko sana matulog at magpahinga kasi nga baka mag tuloy tuloy sakit ko. Kaso lang, madami pa kong kailangan gawin. At this time, na libre na ko to write my blog kasi tapos na ko magluto, maglaba, magtiklop ng mga tuyo ng damit, maglinis ng feeding bottles at magsampay.

Totoo pala sinasabi nila, kung nanay ka, bawal magkasakit kasi nga maraming umaasa sa yo. Lalo na maliit pa baby ko, ayokong magkasakit kasi di ko sya mayayakap. Sa totoo lang, masakit na katawan ko. Pero pag narining ko baby ko na umiiyak at may lakas pa ko para tumayo, binubuhat ko sya at hinahalikan. At that moment, nawawala momentarily sakit ng katawan ko. Sulit lahat ng hirap pag masaya ka sa ginagawa mo. And i would say, im very happy to be a mommy and a wife. I miss being single and having no worries. But i wouldnt exchange the perks of family life. I just hope I'd feel the same as time goes by. I know i will because life is good. And im here to make the most out of it.

Sweetie ko

Yan po ang picture namin ng sweetie ko. Two years ago na yan and iba na itsura namin ngayon. he he. Sweetie tawag ko sa kanya, Precious naman tawag nya sa kin, but we call each other Love for short.

Before i leave for work kanina, i kissed him goodbye. Iniwan ko sya to take care of our baby. Kawawa nga love ko kasi sinisipon pa din sya. Nag mamask na lang sya pag hawak nya si Marianna.

Super sweet ng Love ko. And lalo ko yon nalaman ngayong may anak na kami. Pag ka panganak ko, pinagluluto at pinaglalaba nya ko. Nag eeffort pa yan sa pag luluto. Nilalagyan pa ng garnish kahit tocino lang ulam. Ngayon namang pumapasok na ko sa office, sya naiiwan mag alaga kay Marianna. Katulad ngayon, kakatext lang, nakapag laba na daw sya at napaliguan na baby namin. Miss na daw nya ko. Syempre ako, miss na miss ko na mag ama ko. Kung pwede nga lang wag na ko pumasok sa office e. Gusto ko na lang silang tingnan maghapon. Lalo na aalis na naman sya sa January for work. Seaman kasi tong asawa ko. Electrician sa barko. Nung buntis ako, bihira ang gabi na di ako umiiyak. Lagi ko kasi syang hinahanap. Pero no regrets inspite of being so sad for missing him terribly pag umaalis sya, I wouldnt love anyone else but him. I consider myself very lucky for having him. Love, sana di magbago pag mamahal mo sa min ni Marianna. Mahal na mahal ka din namin.

D' Italiane Kitchen, Seksyen 13, PJ

Taking a breather from my Hong Kong posts.... ( hehe, i know some of you are sick of it already :p)

Was checking my photo files and just noticed I've not posted on D' Italiane Kitchen yet. So a very belated post on this place, we were there to celebrate Mr Chardonnay's birthday a couple of months back..

We were quite early, so the restaurant was not that packed yet...

My drink, Mango Granita Was just ok, slightly on the sweet side.

Some prawn gambas(RM21.90) for appetizers.. Prawns cooked in garlic, peppers, olives, mushrooms and chilli. Again, it was fine, but I didnt like the accompanying bread at all.

The Sicilian Seafood pizza(RM26.90)..

This was marvellous. The crust was thin but crispy on the edges, the toppings were lovely, coated with pungent cheese that goes well with the fresh seafood.

Angel Hair with Scallops (RM25.90)

Pasta al-dente, cooked dry ala aglio olio. Fragrant with garlicky bits and mild hint of chilli. Scallops were seared nicely; juicy inside, slight crisp layer on the exterior.

Gosh, I cant recall the name of this pizza..was it smoked chicken?All I could remember was it was just mediocre, the Sicilian Seafood was definitely better.

The Aglio Olio Mushrooms (RM18.90)

I find this dish lacking; the penne was still a tad hard and it was not able to fully absorb the flavours of the olive oil, garlic nor mushrooms.

Risotto with crusted lamb rack

The risotto was not very smooth, the sauce was average..something was just lacking, I cant pinpoint..The lamb rack was quite a hit among my friends; it was fried, but surprising tender and juicy. The crust reminds me of KFC though.

To end the meal with a sweet note, we had Chocolate Banana with ice cream (RM16.90)..

The cake was rather compact, lined alternating banana slices and chocolate cake. You'll enjoy this if you like sticky, chewy, fudgey type of cake.

I personally preferred the Zabaglione (RM14.90)

Made with eggs, heavy cream and marsala, this was very smooth and rich, the thick cocoa dusting added a tad of bitterness to this else sweet dessert. Goes well with a cup of coffee. yums.

D' Italiane Kitchen is located at PG-01B, Ground Floor, Jaya 33, Seksyen 13, 46100, PJ. Tel : 03-7956 3684.