Princess worthy ride – carrousel in GG Park
When I was a little girl, I wanted to be a doctor-astronaut-princess, oh and in my spare time I thought I could be a kickball playing-ballerina-chef. Of course the only mode of transportation worthy of my elevated status was a stallion, specifically one of those [...]
photo from wine-tasting-guide.com
Like much of life, fortified wines were born from necessity. In this case, to preserve European wines on long trade voyages in the 16th and 17th centuries. Brandy was added either before or during the fermentation process to stabilize the wines, and improve their shelf life. As might be imagined, traditional wines [...]
photo from sfgate.com
In preparing a recent post on raw fish, I developed a craving for cerviche, and really who could blame me? Living in San Francisco, there was one restaurant on my radar that I knew could offer me an authentic, or at least close proximally, of the Peruvian cerviche [...]
a side street in Brunico
When we landed in Brunico, I was confused. Not necessarily a unique state for me, but you must understand, Brunico is in Italy – the map clearly says so. Yet, I felt we had taken a wrong turn at a mountain pass and and arrived at a village in [...]
who can resist?
You see that distinctive beige triangular box and immediately you just know its going to be good, and unless you have the will power of Lance Armstrong, you know you are not going to stop with one square, err triangle portion, but settle in for the long [...]
Princess Bona Maria Sforza (from www.polishnews.com)
Once upon a time, a long time ago, there lived a princess who did her part in adding a bit of culture to the Polish court. Princess Bona Maria Sforza was born in Vigevano near Milan in 1494 to her proud parents; Gian [...]
Robert-Gilles of Shizuoka Gourmet commented on my recent post of Dijon and Creme de Cassis that I was remiss in not including his hometown of Chalon-sur-Saôn, which is close to Dijon. I intend to correct that oversight. When my husband and I traveled through Burgundy, we [...]
oranges and lemons – Spring is here!
Spring + citrus are synonymous to me. The bright colors of the fruit coupled with the wonderful flavors and scents speak of freshness like nothing else. Living in San Francisco, I try not to take for granted my access to the amazing selection that I [...]
a favorite market at 22nd and Irving
Happy days are here again! Spring is the favorite time of year for many people, and I am no exception. I love heading to the neighborhood market and discovering my favorite citrus has returned for a spell: blood oranges, myer lemons, pomelos are back. The sight of blood [...]
San Francisco Ferry Building
When I travel, I admit to being nosey. I love observing how people perform tasks that may seem mundane at home. Take food shopping. (Although while I am confessing, I have to say that I find something relaxing in food shopping, planning my menus over the course of the week, [...]
Temple Bar
When I lived in London, pubs were my “go to” spots, primarily because I barely knew a soul. I found I could go to most any pub, grab a pint and a meal without feeling the least bit awkward. In the pub, I never felt obligated to enter as part of a [...]
bread at Temple Bar Market
A topic smoldering in the back of my mind for some months as I’ve seen variations on this theme for months because of numerous holidays. When is bread more than bread? Or perhaps a bit more generally, when do baked goods serve a higher purpose? I’ve unearth a few [...]
This post continues the Curry series I started with: Britain’s National Dish is… and Curry, A World Traveler I am continuing my exploration of these them and future posts will cover curry beyond, India and Britain. Like Salad Oliveh this is truly a global dish and has influenced many [...]
redwoods in Medicino
My husband and I celebrated our anniversary last week with a weekend getaway to Mendocino County. My husband planned the event, keeping me in the dark until we were about 15 minutes from our destination. Until that moment, he had hinted strongly that we were “hiking in” and needed to stop [...]
A few of my fellow bloggers have recognized my blog and I want to say a belated “thank you” to Sophie at Sophies Foodiefiles (an incredibly talented chef who hails from Belgium, and from whom I continually get inspired). Gera from SweetsFoods, an engineer (a fellow after my own heart) [...]
its time to dress up!
Halloween is fast approaching. I know because I just spent a few days with my niece and I got the details on this much anticipated holiday from her costume (a garden fairy) to the fact that old people do not wear costumes (she’s four). She informed me of this [...]
Zhu Yuanzhang (image from history.cultural-china.com)
Imagine you are Zhu Yuanzhang living in the 14th century, and are of the Han tribe of China. You are tired of living under an oppressive Mongolian overload of the Yuan Dynasty, and desperate to overthrow this ruler. You hatch upon a brilliant plot to unite your people to [...]
Ennis pub
I never appreciated the strong connection that the Irish had with Guinness, until my recent trip to Ireland, and saw the anticipation leading up to Arthur’s Day on September 24, 2009 – a celebration of 250 years of Guinness. I was in Ireland 2 weeks prior to this event and can I [...]
Nicaraguan Beach – its all about the swell
These past few years my hubby and I have gone our separate ways on vacation, not for any specific reason, just a divergence in what appealed to each of us. My husband has been passionate about surfing for as long as I’ve known him, and [...]
photo from nextag.com
Altoids have been around forever, at least in candy years; more than 200 years now to be precise. Produced by Callard & Bower-Suchard in Great Britain, Altoids have a long and storied tradition.
History
In the late 1780’s, during the rule of King George III in England, a confectionary company called Smith [...]
