ramblings of a Seattle travel, food and photography hound
It was surprising to me that there is so much exposed salt at Death Valley. Ancient lakes didn't have an escape route to the oceans, so they simply dried up and left behind enormous salt deposits. At the Devil's Golf Course, salt got sculpted into complex, intricate formations from weathering, a phenomenon that prompted the National Park... Continue Reading →
My breath is taken away every time I see Mount Shasta from Interstate 5, just south of the Oregon-California border. Even when skies aren't always clear, its majesty dominates the horizon. Today, spectacular lenticular clouds were hovering over the mountain.
Don't let the modest place fool you. Xi'an Noodles has some of the best noodles in Seattle. It's one of the rare restaurants that specialize in one thing and do it extremely well. In this case, the specialty is the kind of noodles made in the Chinese province of Shaanxi (which touches Sichuan at its southwest corner), hand-made and pulled... Continue Reading →
Getting good poké in Seattle was like getting good ramen used to be, a challenge. Now, very good ramenya are popping up with increasing regularity. Anyone who's had ahi poké in Hawaii might agree with me that in Seattle, it's been a disappointment. The primary reason is the fish quality. There's something about tuna freshly caught off Hawaiian shores that makes it... Continue Reading →
Orcas Island has been one of our favorite local spots to vacation. Our family used to camp regularly in the summers at Moran State Park, memories that our daughters still hold today. Lately, with the kids now grown and having their own families, my wife and I have been going to Orcas during off-seasons to avoid crowds.... Continue Reading →
It just might be that the next Big Thing in cooking will be an ingredient that is uncommon here in the U.S. (for now) but that the Chinese, Japanese and Koreans have known about for a long time. Shio koji is a flavor enhancer, poised to become a wonder seasoning that happens to look like gruel, more like congee actually.... Continue Reading →
Back in 2005, after a long flight to Milan and a late train to our hotel from Malpensa, all we could do after check-in (it was around 11pm) was to try to get some shut-eye. Try, as you can imagine, because our biological clocks were off-kilter. The next morning, we headed out for breakfast. The... Continue Reading →
Yet another Taiwanese restaurant opened recently in Bellevue to join others in the greater Seattle metro area to cater to the significant number of Taiwanese-American residents. With Facing East, MonGa, Dough Zone and Din Tai Fung already attracting the faithful on the Eastside, it's become a bit more difficult for newbies to break in. HardWok Cafe does an... Continue Reading →
I thought my brother-in-law said bok choy. He repeated: batchoy, a Filipino noodle soup dish that had its origin in Iloilo where he happens to be from. While it’s traditional to use pork organs, a pork neck bone was used instead. Combine that with spare ribs and beef bones with marrow, shrimp paste and brown... Continue Reading →
On my photography outings, I've never used a variable wide angle as my only lens. The holiday season was a good excuse to visit Pike Place Market yesterday, which my wife and I would've done last week if it weren't for the freezing temperatures. The closed-in, tight spaces of the market are ideal for wide-angle shots. The summer bounty of... Continue Reading →
zoomeboshi 